posted 09-24-2026 01:01 AM               

Disney's Ludwig von Drake inspired by rocket scientists 65 years ago

Did you know that the first character that Walt Disney created to specifically appear on television was inspired, in part, by early Space Age rocket scientists?

On this day 65 years ago (Sept. 24, 1961), Disney introduced the world to the "renowned scientist, lecturer, psychologist [and] world traveler," Ludwig von Drake. A member of the Duck family (he is the "brilliant and eccentric" uncle of Donald Duck), von Drake was "the outstanding genius of the century" (per Disney himself) who helped to explain scientific principles and technological concepts to the millions of people who tuned in every Sunday to watch "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" on NBC.