1980

Theatrical releases

Feature films

• February 8 - Midnight Madness
• March 7 - Lady and the Tramp (re-issue)
• April 17 - The Watcher in the Woods (New York City, New York)
• May 23 - Mary Poppins (re-issue)
• June 25
  • Herbie Goes Bananas
  • The Last Flight of Noah's Ark
• October 10 - Song of the South (re-issue)
• December 6 - Popeye (co-production with Paramount)
• December 19 - The Aristocats (re-issue)

Shorts

• June 25 - Mickey Mouse Disco
• September - Foods and Fun: A Nutrition Adventure
• ? - The Atom: A Closer Look

Character debuts

• June 25 - Pete Stancheck, Davy Johns, Paco, Prindle, Quinn, Shepard, Melissa

Theme parks

• Disneyland celebrates its 25th anniversary.
• February - The Fort Wilderness Railroad closes at Walt Disney World.
• June 7 - 18-year-old Gerardo Gonzales dies in an accident on the PeopleMover at Disneyland.
• September 14 - Mickey Mouse Revue closes at the Magic Kingdom to be moved to Tokyo Disneyland.
• November 15 - Big Thunder Mountain Railroad opens at the Magic Kingdom.

Home video releases

Laserdisc releases

• March 4
  • Pete's Dragon
  • The Black Hole
  • The Love Bug
  • Escape to Witch Mountain
  • Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier
  • 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
  • Bedknobs and Broomsticks
  • The North Avenue Irregulars
  • The Apple Dumpling Gang
  • Hot Lead and Cold Feet
  • On Vacation with Mickey Mouse and Friends
  • Kids is Kids
  • The Adventures of Chip 'n' Dale (All tapes were rental only until October)
• December 30 - Mary Poppins

People

Births

• January 2 - Georgie Kidder (voice actress)
• January 4 - Greg Cipes (voice artist)
• January 8 - Rachel Nichols (actress and model)
• January 16 - Lin-Manuel Miranda (actor, writer, composer, and rapper)
• January 17 - Zooey Deschanel (actress, model, singer-songwriter, and musician)
• January 18 - Jason Segel (actor, screenwriter, comedian, composer, puppeteer, musician, and singer)
• January 30
  • Josh Kelley (singer-songwriter and actor)
  • Wilmer Valderrama (actor, voice actor, singer, dancer, and producer)
• January 31 - James Adomian (actor, voice actor, comedian, and impressionist)
• February 3 - Jennifer Candy (actress, comedian, and producer)
• February 9 - Margarita Levieva (actress)
• February 11 - Matthew Lawrence (actor)
• February 12
  • Christina Ricci (actress)
  • Enver Gjokaj (actor)
• February 17 - Jason Ritter (actor)
• February 21 - Justin Roiland (animator and writer)
• March 9 - Matthew Gray Gubler (actor, producer, screenwriter and model)
• March 30 - Winter Ave Zoli (actress)
• March 31
  • Maaya Sakamoto (voice actress)
  • Kate Micucci (actress, voice actress, singer-songwriter, and artist)
• April 8 - Katee Sackhoff (actress)
• April 26 - Channing Tatum (actor)
• May 2 - Ellie Kemper (actress, comedian, and writer)
• May 31 - Andy Hurley (drummer)
• June 10 - Jessica DiCicco (actress, voice actress, singer, and stripper)
• June 23 - Melissa Rauch (actress)
• June 26 - Jason Schwartzman (actor and musician)
• June 30 - Melissa Goodwin Shepherd (actress and animator)
• July 3 - Olivia Munn (actress, model and presenter)
• July 6 - Eva Green (French actress and model)
• July 7
  • Michelle Kwan (figure skater)
  • America Martin (painter, sculptor, and former child actress)
• July 10 - Jessica Simpson (singer, actress, and model)
• July 18 - Kristen Bell (actress and singer)
• July 20 - Gisele Bündchen (model)
• August 12 - Maggie Lawson (actress)
• August 19 - Daniel Ross (actor, voice actor, and producer)
• August 26 - Chris Pine (actor)
• September 9 - Michelle Williams (actress)
• September 13 - Ben Savage (actor)
• September 23 - Aubrey Dollar (actress)
• September 29 - Zachary Levi (actor, voice actor, director, and singer)
• October 3 - Daniel DeSanto (actor and voice actor)
• October 4 - Nick Mohammed (comedian, actor, and writer)
• October 7 - Adam Ryen (Norwegian child actor)
• October 8
  • Nick Cannon (actor, rapper, and radio and television personality)
  • Michael Mizanin (professional wrestler, reality television star, and actor)
• October 13 - Ashanti (singer and actress)
• October 14 - Ben Whishaw (actor)
• October 17
  • Justin Shenkarow (actor)
  • Angel Parker (actress)
• October 29 - Ben Foster (actor)
• October 31 - Samaire Armstrong (actress)
• November 10 - Niketa Calame (actress)
• November 12 - Ryan Gosling (actor)
• November 13 - Monique Coleman (actress)
• December 3 - Jenna Dewan (actress, dancer, and businesswoman)
• December 9 - Simon Helberg (actor, comedian, and musician)
• December 18 - Christina Aguilera (singer and actress)
• December 19 - Jake Gyllenhaal (actor)
• December 30 - Eliza Dushku (actress)

Deaths

• February 1 - Jack Bailey (actor, voice actor, and game show host)
• April 15 - Raymond Bailey (stage, film, and television actor)
• July 24 - Peter Sellers (comedian and actor)
• November 15 - Bill Lee (singer)
• December 8 - John Lennon (singer)

Artists joined

• Andreas Deja - Supervising Animator on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King.
• Mark Henn - Supervising Animator on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King.
• Mark Dindal - Director on The Emperor's New Groove and Chicken Little. Effects Animator on The Fox and the Hound, The Little Mermaid, and Aladdin.
• Barry Temple - Animator for Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Mulan.
• Ruben Procopio - Animator/Sculptor who worked on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King.
• Sandra Borgmeyer - Animator for The Black Cauldron and The Great Mouse Detective.
• Retta Davidson - Coordinating Animator/Animation Teacher with Eric Larson and Walt Stanchfield, who worked on The Fox and the Hound, Mickey's Christmas Carol, The Black Cauldron, and The Great Mouse Detective.
• Karen Keller - Layout Artist on The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and Hercules.
• Tia Kratter - Background Designer for The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin.
• Donald A. Towns - Background Designer/Art Director on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin.
• Brian Sebern - Background Designer for The Fox and the Hound, The Great Mouse Detective, and The Little Mermaid.
• Tony Anselmo - Current voice actor for Donald Duck and animator on The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.
• Gail Frank - Assistant Animator on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King.
• Peter Gullerud - Visual Development Artist/Assistant Animator on The Little Mermaid and Aladdin.
• Mike McKinney - Assistant Animator on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King.
• David Pacheco - Assistant Animator on The Fox and the Hound, The Great Mouse Detective, and The Little Mermaid.
• Natasha Selfridge - Assistant Animator on Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King.
• Toby Shelton - Storyboard Artist/Character Designer/Director for DuckTales, The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and The Return of Jafar. Also worked as an Assistant Animator on Mickey's Christmas Carol, The Black Cauldron, and The Great Mouse Detective.
• Peggy Tonkonogy - Assistant Animator on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King.