The beautiful Sleeping Beauty has a very shaky historical beginning with Disney. This story was adapted from a Charles Perrault work. Walt Disney had originally wanted all three of his early Princesses to look alike but that idea was quickly shot down by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas; the animators for the film. It was their idea that to have different looking Princesses would be much more exciting.
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The figure of Princess Aurora was modeled after Audrey Hepburn and refined before the film was completed. Marc Davis, another animator on the film, made her a bit more angular to fit in with the scenery. Voice actor Mary Costa played the voice of Princess Aurora and her alter ego Briar Rose.
Released on January 29, 1959 and costing six million dollars to produce; Sleeping Beauty was a disappointment at the box office… and nearly caused the Disney Studio to go bankrupt. Luckily for Disney the film has since grown a wild following; and it finally began making.
Eleven years after the original movie release Sleeping Beauty was once again in the theaters in June of 1970, September of 1979, and finally in March of 1986. Because of these additional releases the movie finally began to make money after its original financial losses.
Sleeping Beauty herself has fewer speaking parts in her own film that any Disney Princess. In fact; only Dumbo has fewer speaking parts as a Disney main character. The reason for this is because for half of the story Princess Aurora was asleep.
Princess Aurora also has another nickname. She is known as the 'Crown Princess Aurora'. The reason for this is because she is the only Disney Princess to wear a royal crown.
Sleeping Beauty Castle appears as the main visual centerpiece at Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, and Hong Kong Disneyland.