Back In 1967, Disney Made A Song About Michigan And It’s Super Catchy

When you think of Disney these days, it's mostly Pixar movies and remakes of their successes from the 90s. But believe it or not, Disney used to make original feature films that weren't sequels, and back in 1967, it released a largely forgotten musical called The Happiest Millionaire featuring "pet alligators, a Bible-and-boxing school in the stables, and an eccentric millionaire" in Philadelphia.

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Now, I'm sure you're wondering what a Philadelphia millionaire has to do with Detroit.  To explain, we need to take a brief (alligator-free) trip down memory lane before hearing the song that symbolized Detroit during its height.

Detroit During The 1900s

When The Happiest Millionaire (1967) was released, Detroit was one of, if not the, premier cities in the entire world, known for being the birthplace of the auto industry and Motown Records. Manufacturing had drawn immense wealth to the region during the early 1900s, with Detroit's population of 1.85 million in 1950 making the city the fourth-largest in the entire country.

READ MORE: The Dark End of a Once-Popular Michigan Zoo

However, towards the end of the 1900s, the auto industry had largely abandoned the city, and while Detroit's decline is well-documented as the beginning of the Rust Belt, the city was one of the most sought-after destinations in the world (a title it is slowly reclaiming after the city recently reported its first population growth since 1960).

However, this movie was set in 1916, when Detroit was still in its BOOM, which explains why Walt Disney himself chose the city of Detroit as the star of not only one song in the musical, but a key destination for the star-crossed lovers of this movie to move to.

The Happiest Millionaire (1967)

This film follows the millionaire Biddle family, focusing on the love story between Cordy Biddle, daughter of Anthony Biddle, and her suitor, Angie Buchanan Duke. The two fall in love, with Angie's dream of abandoning the family business to move to Detroit and make a fortune in the auto industry being a leading motivator for their relationship.

This is where the song DETROIT shines, painting Detroit as the "land with golden chariots / All molten out of dreams" and the place where Angie can make his dreams come true. It's a moving piece, and one that symbolizes the general feeling of awe and optimism that captivated the city of Detroit during its economic boom.

The Happiest Millionaire Was A Commercial Flop

However, several factors led to this move being a commercial flop. The sentiment around the Walt Disney Company's live-action films was beginning to sour among moviegoers. This movie followed Mary Poppins, which remains a staple of the Disney catalogue today. While that film was a success and is still beloved today, this movie was scarred by the untimely death of Walt Disney, who died during production of this film.

While this is not an accredited reason for the box office performance, it should be noted that there is a sense of irony that this movie, which put Detroit on a pedestal as a land of greatness, came out one month before the Twelfth Street Riots took place. These riots were one of the biggest in US history, leaving 43 people dead and hundreds injured.

Despite all this, it's pretty cool that Walt Disney himself was part of the making of the film that painted the city in such a positive light. If you want to check the movie out for yourself, it is streaming on Disney+ and YouTube.