"Mickey Mouse popped out of my mind onto a drawing pad … when business fortunes of my brother Roy and myself were at lowest ebb and disaster seemed right around the corner." -Walt Disney Wikimedia Commons Before his death in 1966, Walt Disney laid the foundations for one of the world’s most successful and iconic media corporations. The Walt Disney Company is now a vast enterprise, consisting of television networks, theme parks, and a highly successful film studio. However, as Disney himself admitted, his early business ventures were less lucrative. In 1920, Walt became co-founder of Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists. However, only a short while later, he abandoned the company in favor of a salaried position at the Kansas City Film Ad Company. A second venture, "Newman Laugh-O-Grams," was launched in 1922, only to dissolve into bankruptcy. It wasn’t until 1923 that Walt eventually found success with the Disney Brothers’ Studio.