The creation of Disney started with Walt Disney creating the character of Mickey Mouse after losing the rights to his first character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It took Walt decades of overcoming challenges like World War II and losing early characters to build Disney into the global entertainment company it is today. Disney theme parks were built in California and Florida due to the beautiful weather and land in those locations. Disney is now worldwide with parks on multiple continents and has had a huge impact on popular culture and entertainment.