Roy Disney to Head Rose Parade

Get out those mouse ears for the millennium. Pasadena’s Colorado Boulevard will be a part of the Disney empire on New Year’s Day.

That’s because Roy E. Disney, vice chairman of the Walt Disney Co. and Walt Disney’s nephew, is to be the grand marshal of the first Tournament of Roses Parade of the 21st century, officials announced Wednesday.

To a fanfare of Disneyland trumpets and with a sprinkling of Mickey Mouse’s magic dust, the grand marshal of the 111th Rose Parade appeared from behind a curtain Wednesday at the Pasadena Tournament of Roses headquarters.

Of course, Roy E. Disney, who heads the entertainment company’s animation department, could not make an appearance without a cadre of Mickey, Minnie, Dopey and Snow White come to life.

“For my entire life, I’ve been associated with a company that makes dreams come true, and now I get to be on the receiving end,” said Disney, who lives in Toluca Lake. “I think every kid that grows up in Southern California dreams of being in the Rose Parade, and I certainly was no exception.”

Tournament of Roses Assn. President Kenneth Burrows said Disney reflects the parade’s theme “Celebration 2000: Visions of the Future.”

“Young people are the future and he inspires the world’s children with imagination,” Burrows said.

Disney, 69, said having seen the 1938 parade remains one of his most vivid childhood memories. “I watched the whole parade standing on the hood of an old Buick in a used car lot on Colorado Boulevard that belonged to one of my dad’s best friends. I couldn’t have been more excited that day, especially when the Snow White float went by,” he said.

That first Disney presence in a Rose Parade coincided with Snow White’s film debut. Disney’s late uncle Walt, whom he strongly resembles down to the trademark mustache, was grand marshal in 1966. Roy E. Disney is the son of Walt’s late brother, Disney co-founder Roy O. Disney.

Disney said he was asked to be marshal after tournament officials saw a trailer for “Fantasia 2000,” his current labor of love and a continuation of the 1940 animated classic. The new film will play Jan. 1 at Pasadena Civic Auditorium.