The Art of Walt Disney told him that he had no rights to Oswald, because the cartoon was not copyrighted under Walt’s name. After, Walt, his brother Roy O. Disney, and Ub Iwerks, came together to create all new characters, all of which Walt was going to make sure he owned. Mickey Mouse was soon developed, a character Walt had been inspired to create just from a simple pet mouse he once had in his office back in Missouri. Since its release in 1973, The Art of Walt Disney has expanded and revised its content on four separate occasions; 1975, 1995, 2004, and 2011. Each
The Walt Disney Company Ed Catmull took over as President of Pixar Animation Studios. Former Executive Vice-President of Pixar, John Lasseter, became Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, its division Disneytoon Studios, and Pixar Animation Studios, as well as assuming the role of Principal Creative Advisor at Walt Disney Imagineering. In February 2006, Disney acquired the rights to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit from NBC Universal (including the character's intellectual property and the 26 Oswald cartoons produced by Walt Disney) as part of an exchange of minor assets. In return, Disney released sportscaster Al Michaels from his contracts with ABC Sports and ESPN,