Walt Disney didn’t just make animation history — he made Academy Award history. To this day, Disney still holds many Academy Awards records, including the most competitive Oscars (a whopping 22) and the most Oscars overall (a monumental 26). This record includes myriad Oscars for Best Short Subject (Cartoon) for such animated shorts as "Flowers and Trees" (1932), "The Three Little Pigs" (1933), "The Ugly Duckling" (1939), and "Der Fuehrer’s Face" (1942), and a set of honorary Oscars, including one for the creation of Mickey Mouse (1932), the use of sound in Fantasia (1942), and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award in (1942). However, it was at the 11th Academy Awards in 1939 when Disney was bestowed the most unique Oscar in history.

At the ceremony on Feb. 23, 1939, Disney was given an honorary Academy Award for his first feature-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). By definition, honorary awards have always been special, but Disney’s was particularly unique.