Mickey Mouse

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The icon

Mickey Mouse is a Disney character, who is perhaps Walt Disney's most famous creation. Fancifully estimated as standing 2 ft 3 in (69 cm) and weighing 23 pounds (10 kg), the mouse rapidly rose to the pinnacle of American culture, being more widely recognized overseas than any other American icon but the U.S. flag. For over seventy-five years, he has signified The Walt Disney Company, animation, goodwill, fun, laughter and most of all Walt Disney himself. It was said by Lillian Disney, his wife, that over the years, Mickey and Walt grew together and were mirrors of each other's personality. They both started off mischievous and cheeky, but as they grew older preferred to step out of the spotlight and observe others work their magic. President Jimmy Carter once said; "Mickey Mouse is the symbol of goodwill, surpassing all languages and cultures. When one sees Mickey Mouse, they see happiness".

Mickey's three-circle silhouette serves as the logo for most of Disney's subsidiaries, save for the ones that don't carry the 'Disney' or 'Walt Disney' label. Andy Warhol's portrait The Art of Mickey Mouse used Warhol's famous pop art techniques on the classic mouse.

Creation and debut

Mickey was originally created as a replacement for Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, an earlier star created by the Disney studio. Oswald had been created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks for Charles Mintz of Universal Studios. In fact, Mickey closely resembled Oswald in his early appearances. However, Disney received an unpleasant lesson when he asked Mintz for a larger budget for his popular Oswald series: in reply, Mintz fired Disney and Iwerks and hired others to draw Oswald, to which Mintz and Universal owned the rights. From that point on, Disney made sure that he owned all rights to the characters produced by his company.

In order for Walt and his older brother and business partner Roy to keep their company active, new characters had to be created to star in their subsequent animated shorts. One day, during a train ride, Walt desperately wanted to come up with a money-making character to replace the one he lost, Oswald, whom he loved dearly. He had visions of a mouse in the back of his head (he had previously made silent cartoon shorts with animated mice). He wanted to name his new creation Mortimer Mouse, but his wife Lillian Marie Bounds thought the name was too pretentious, so he changed it to Mickey Mouse. The name Mortimer would later be used for a character in a Mickey cartoon.

It has been suggested that Walt Disney was influenced by an actual mouse that he almost tamed by feeding it crumbs on his desk at the Laugh-O-Gram Studio.

Mickey and Minnie Mouse (Mickey's flapper girlfriend) debuted in the cartoon short Plane Crazy, first released on May 15, 1928. The short was co-directed by Walt Disney and Iwerks. Iwerks was also the main animator for this short, and reportedly spent six weeks working on it. Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising were credited for assisting him; these two had already signed their contracts with Charles Mintz, but he was still in the process of forming his new studio and so for the time being they were still employed by Disney. This short would be the last they animated under this somewhat awkward situation.

The plot of Plane Crazy was fairly simple. Mickey is apparently trying to become an aviator in emulation of Charles Lindbergh. After building his own aircraft, he proceeds to ask Minnie to join him for its first flight, during which he repeatedly and unsuccessfully attempts to kiss her, eventually resorting to force. Minnie then parachutes out of the plane. While distracted by her, Mickey loses control of the plane. This becomes the beginning of an out-of-control flight that results in a series of humorous situations and eventually in the crash-landing of the aircraft. A non-anthropomorphic cow that briefly becomes a passenger in the aircraft is believed to be Caroline Cow making her debut.

Mickey as portrayed in Plane Crazy was mischievous, amorous, and has often been described as a rogue. Modern audiences have occasionally commented on this version of Mickey as being somewhat more complex and consequently more interesting than his later self. At the time of its first release, however, Plane Crazy apparently failed to impress audiences, and to add insult to injury, Walt could not find a distributor. Though understandably disappointed, Walt went on to produce a second Mickey short: The Gallopin' Gaucho.

Addition of sound to the series

Steamboat Willie was first released on November 18, 1928. It was co-directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. Iwerks again served as the head animator. He was assisted by Johnny Cannon, Les Clark, Wilfred Jackson and Dick Lundy. This short was intended as a parody of Buster Keaton's Steamboat Bill Jr., first released on May 12 of the same year. Despite the fact this was not the first Mickey cartoon made or released, it is still considered by some as Mickey Mouse's true debut. The cartoon is often listed in history books as being the first animated film ever to feature a synchronized sound, music, and dialogue track, although Max Fleischer released some sound cartoons using the DeForest system in the mid-1920s. Steamboat Willie was, however, the first sound cartoon to achieve wide commercial success. Animation historians have long debated who had served as the composer for the film's original music. This role has been variously attributed to Wilfred Jackson, Carl Stalling and Bert Lewis, but identification remains uncertain. Walt Disney himself acted as voice actor for both Mickey and Minnie.

The script had Mickey serving aboard Steamboat Willie under Captain Pete. At first he is seen piloting the steamboat while whistling. Then Pete arrives to take over piloting and angrily throws him out of the boat's bridge. They soon have to stop for cargo to be transferred on board. Almost as soon as they leave, Minnie arrives. She was apparently supposed to be their only passenger but was late to board. Mickey manages to pick her up from the river shore. Minnie accidentally drops her sheet music for the popular folk song "Turkey in the Straw" (alternate versions include "Natchez Under the Hill" and "Old Zip Coon". The lyrics are thought to have been added to an earlier tune by Bob Farrell who first performed them in a minstrel show on August 11, 1834). A goat which was among the animals transported on the steamboat proceeds to eat the sheet music. Consequently Mickey and Minnie use its tail to turn it into a phonograph which is playing the tune. Through the rest of the short, Mickey uses various other animals as musical instruments. Later audiences have often described those scenes as humorously exaggerated examples of animal cruelty. Captain Pete is eventually disturbed by all this noise and places Mickey back to work. Mickey is reduced to peeling potatoes for the rest of the trip. A parrot attempts to make fun of him but is then thrown to the river by Mickey. This served as the final scene of this short.

Audiences at the time of Steamboat Willie's release were reportedly impressed by its use of sound for comedic purposes. Sound films were still considered innovative. The first of them to become a commercial success was arguably Al Jolson's The Jazz Singer, first released on October 6, 1927. Following its success, most United States movie theaters had installed sound film equipment. Walt Disney apparently intended to take advantage of this new trend and, arguably, managed to succeed. Most other cartoon studios were still producing silent products and so were unable to effectively act as competition to Disney. As a result Mickey would soon become the most prominent animated character of the time.

It should however be noted that Steamboat Willie was arguably the first animated sound film to become commercially successful, but not the first to be produced. In fact Fleischer Studios, headed by Max Fleischer and his brother Dave Fleischer, had already produced over a dozen cartoons with synchronized soundtracks.

Such earlier attempts would soon be more or less forgotten. Walt Disney soon worked on adding sound to both Plane Crazy and The Gallopin' Gaucho (which had originally been silent releases) and their new release added to Mickey's initial success and popularity. A fourth Mickey short was also put into production. It was The Barn Dance.

From comedy to musical

The ninth Mickey short to be released that year was The Jazz Fool, first released on July 5, 1929. The title was probably intended to be reminiscent of both The Jazz Singer, and also The Singing Fool, first released on September 19, 1928. Both musical films featured Al Jolson as their star and had proved commercially successful. This film followed the originals in having minimal plot and focusing on musical performances. Mickey and his friend Horace Horsecollar, the later in his first anthropomorphic appearance, are cast as the sole two performers of "Mickey's Big Road Show". The former plays the piano and the later the xylophone. The soundtrack of the film reportedly contained elements of both ragtime and Dixieland jazz. This short is considered to be representative of a change of focus early in the series. The preceding shorts already featured their share of song and dance numbers as part of their comedic plots. Many of the following ones can better be described as animated song and dance shows with little to no plot.

Mouse in transition

Mickey entering the Depression Era

The twelfth and last Mickey short released during the year was Jungle Rhythm, first released on November 15, 1929. Mickey is seen in a safari somewhere in Africa. He rides on an elephant and is armed with a shotgun. But the later proves to be problematic soon after Mickey finds himself standing in between of a lion and a bear. Mickey proceeds to play music to calm them down. During the rest of the short, various jungle animals dance to Mickey's tunes. The tunes vary from the previously mentioned "Yankee Doodle" and "Turkey in the Straw" to Robert Burns' "Auld Lang Syne" (1788), Johann Strauss' "The Blue Danube" (An der schönen, blauen Donau - 1867) and Queen Liliuokalani of Hawaii's Aloha `Oe - 1878. This was the first Mickey short to be released during the Great Depression. Mickey's efforts as an entertainer to the jungle can be seen as representative of a function often credited to him. To provide relatively cheap but much needed entertainment to the audiences of the period.

Departure of a co-creator and consequences

They were followed by Cactus Kid, first released on April 11, 1930. As the title implies the short was intended as a Western movie parody. But it is considered to be more or less a remake of The Gallopin' Gaucho set in Mexico instead of Argentina. Mickey was again cast as a lonely traveler who walks into the local tavern and starts flirting with its dancer. The later is again Minnie. The rival suitor to Mickey is again Pete though using the alias Peg-Leg Pedro. For the first time in a Mickey short, Pete was depicted as having a peg-leg. This would become a recurring feature of the character. The rhea of the original short was replaced by Horace Horsecollar. This is considered to be his last non-anthropomorphic appearance. The short is considered significant for being the last Mickey short to be animated by Ub Iwerks.

Shortly before its release, Iwerks had left the Studio in an attempt to create his own. The result of his early efforts was the Flip the Frog series. His departure is considered to mark a turning point to the careers of both Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse. The former lost the man who served as his closest colleague and confidant since 1919. The latter lost the man responsible for his original design and for the direction and/or animation of several of the shorts released till this point, and some would argue Mickey's creator. Walt Disney has been credited for the inspiration to create Mickey, but Iwerks was the one to design the character and the first few Mickey Mouse cartoons were mostly or entirely drawn by Iwerks. Consequently some animation historians have suggested that Iwerks should be considered the actual creator of Mickey Mouse. It has been pointed that advertising for the early Mickey Mouse cartoons credit them as "A Walt Disney Comic, drawn by Ub Iwerks". Later Disney Company reissues of the early cartoons tend to credit Walt Disney alone.

In any case, Walt and his remaining staff continued the production of the Mickey series. Mickey continued to appear regularly in animated shorts until 1943 and again from 1946 to 1953. But back in early 1930, Walt had another matter to attend to: the creation of the comic strip after Iwerks' departure. At first Walt was content to continue scripting it and assigning the art to Win Smith. However, Walt's focus had always been in animation and Smith was soon assigned with the scripting as well. Win Smith was apparently discontent at having to script, draw, and ink a series by himself. This became evident by his sudden resignation.

Walt proceeded to search for a replacement to Smith among the remaining staff of the Studio. For uncertain reasons he chose Floyd Gottfredson, a recently hired employee. At the time Floyd was reportedly eager to work in animation and somewhat reluctant to accept his new assignment. Walt had to assure Floyd that the assignment was only temporary and that he would eventually return to animation. Floyd accepted and ended up holding this "temporary" assignment from May 5, 1930 to November 15, 1975.

Later Mickey history

1930-1950

In his earliest cartoons Mickey was often mischievous and the cartoons sometimes used outhouse humor. As the series became more popular, Disney decided to change his best-known character into a well meaning everyman, and creating mischief was thereafter left to other characters.

From 1930 until 1950, though the numbers of the comic creators that worked on Mickey increased, the most popular version (considered the "classic" version today) was that of Floyd Gottfredson, who developed Mickey's character, adopted characters from the cartoons, and created many others. Since 1950 the most popular version of Mickey has been that of Italian creator Romano Scarpa, who has further developed Gottfredson's characters and has added many of his own.

Mickey's most well known supporting characters are his girlfriend, Minnie Mouse; his dog, Pluto; and his best friends, Goofy and Donald Duck.

By his sister Amelia Fieldmouse, Mickey Mouse has two nephews, the lesser-known Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse (in contrast to Donald Duck's famous nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie).

In 1929, Disney created the original Mickey Mouse Club for fans of his character and cartoons, which later formed the basis for a popular 1950's television show (with follow-ups of the same name in the 1977 and 1989).

Mickey has only starred in one theatrical feature film: the "Mickey and the Beanstalk" segment of Fun and Fancy Free (1947). He has also starred in two half-hour theatrical featurettes, Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983, screened in front of a re-issue of The Rescuers) and The Prince and the Pauper (1990, screened in front of The Rescuers Down Under).

Many television programs have centered around Mickey, such as the recent shows Mickey Mouse Works and House of Mouse.

For many years, Mickey Mouse has served as the mascot for The Walt Disney Company, alongside Jiminy Cricket and Tinkerbell.

Recent history

On November 18, 1978, in honor of his 50th anniversary, he became the first cartoon character to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The star is located on 6925 Hollywood Blvd.

Throughout the decades, Mickey Mouse competed with Warner Bros.' Bugs Bunny for animated popularity. But in 1988, in a historic moment in motion picture history, the two rivals finally shared screen time in the Robert Zemeckis film Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Warner and Disney signed an agreement stating that each character had exactly the same amount of screen time, right down to the semi-second.

Only three people have regularly provided the voice for Mickey (not including theme park attractions and parades): Walt Disney from 1928 to 1947, James MacDonald from 1948 to 1983, and currently, Wayne Allwine, who first voiced the Mouse in Mickey's Christmas Carol in 1983. His most recent theatrical cartoon was 1995's short Runaway Brain, while in 2004 he appeared in the made-for-video features The Three Musketeers and the computer-animated Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas.

Mickey will co-star in the children's television series Disney's Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

Mickey was the Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year's Day 2005.

In the Kingdom Hearts video game series, King Mickey Mouse resides over Disney Castle alongside Queen Minnie Mouse. Donald Duck is his Court Wizard, while Goofy Goof is the head of the King's royal guard. Mickey only appears briefly in the first game, but is expected to play a much larger role in the sequel, Kingdom Hearts II. He also appears in the Game Boy Advance "semi-sequel", Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories.

Social impact

Electoral career

In the United States, protest votes are often made in order to indicate dissatisfaction with the slate of electors presented on a particular ballot, or to highlight the inadequacies of a particular voting procedure. Since the American electoral system does not provide for blank balloting or a choice of "None of the Above", most protest votes take the form of a clearly non-serious candidate's name entered as a write-in vote. Cartoon characters are typically chosen for this purpose; as Mickey Mouse is the most well-known and well-recognized character in America, his name is frequently selected for this purpose. (Other popular selections include Donald Duck and Bugs Bunny.) This phenomenon has the humorous effect of causing Mickey Mouse to be a minor but perennial contestor of nearly all U.S. presidential elections.

Pejorative use of Mickey's name

"Mickey Mouse" is a slang expression used as a diminutive adjective and adverb meaning small-time, amateurish or of inferior quality. A poorly executed construction project, for instance, could be pejoratively described as a "Mickey Mouse job". Presumably, this comes from the insinuation that the object or action in question was taken as seriously as a Mickey Mouse cartoon (that is to say, not at all). The term does not imply any actual connection to Mickey.

An alternative theory comes from the fact that Mickey Mouse watches were notorious for breaking down.

In Finland, the software company Microsoft is often derogatorily called "Mikkisofta" ("Mickey Software").

Copyright issues

The Walt Disney Company has become well known for protecting its copyright on the Mickey Mouse character, whose likeness is so closely associated with the company, with particular zeal. In a protracted case in the 1970s, Disney sued underground cartoonist Dan O'Neill for his comic book Air Pirate Funnies, even going so far as to request the court press criminal charges. Disney has lobbied for and achieved copyright term extensions from the United States and the European Union that have prevented the character from entering the public domain. Disney's lobbying efforts have contributed to the ability of other copyright owners to extend their copyrights as well. This has caused the United States, once known for its disrespect for copyrights and respect for the public domain, to develop one of the most restrictive copyright policies in the world. What is ironic about this is the fact that, as Lawrence Lessig pointed out in his book Free Culture, Mickey Mouse's first appearance on Steamboat Willie is a clear borrowing from Buster Keaton's movie Steamboat Bill, Jr.

Filmography

Mickey Mouse appeared in 132 short subjects(133 including Fantasia). Here is the list of his cartoon shorts:

The Early Years

The Early Years were the years that Mickey was starting out in. During these years, Mickey was much more brash, rude and a bit of a bully. Due to this fact, these cartoons seem colder than any other Mickey cartoon would have. Many of these films just take an idea and a setting, throw a few gags in, and have Mickey come out as the victor (Even rarer and perhaps colder would be when Mickey came out the loser, like in The Barn Dance).

1928

1929

1930

1931

Mickey Becomes a Character

During these years, Mickey becomes a character that you could sympathize for. He had to be. During the time, many mothers were upset at how Mickey's constant rudeness and bullying was starting to rub off on their own children. Walt then (regretfully) turned Mickey into a kinder, hero-type character as opposed to the more anti-hero charcter he was in the early years. He became an everyman who could do anything (and usually did). He was turned into a character that people could laugh with, and not at. It was also during this peoiod that Mickey was paired up with Donald Duck and Goofy.

1932

1933

1934

Mickey and Color

During this time period, Mickey and the gang were introduced to Technicolor, something that Walt had taken a gamble on for the Silly Symphonies in 1932. Walt didn't want to take a gamble on his most famous creation, the Mickey Mouse series. In 1935, however, Walt felt that Mickey was ready for color. The feedback and profits rocketed so Walt never used Black and White again, not even for his television series (which were filmed in color).

1935

Mickey's Man Friday
Mickey's Kangaroo
Mickey's Service Station
The Band Concert (First Mickey Mouse cartoon in color)
Mickey's Garden
Mickey's Fire Brigade
Pluto's Judgment Day
On Ice

1936

1937

1938

A New Mickey

During this time, Mickey's body structure was changed and was given a new look. His round body was replaced by a pearer looking one and his head was changed so his nose was closer to his body. His ears were turned from round to oval and his eyes became more detailed (the pupils smaller, the eye itself outlined instead of partially open).

1939

Society Dog Show
The Pointer (First cartoon to use the new look)
Mickey's Surprise Party
The Standard Parade

1940

1941

Mickey and the War

During this time period, World War Two was taking place and the Disney characters were off to war. All of the main characters were given their own war-related cartoons at least once, except for one: Mickey. While all of the other characters were off to war, Walt refused to draft Mickey. (Goofy also lacks wartime shorts. This must be because he was discharged for being so "goofy".)

1942

1943

Pluto and the Armadillo

Mickey's Postwar Years

After the war was over, Mickey made a comeback. He began to star in his own cartoons again and paired up with Donald and Goofy for the first time in years. (This era also shows a great advance in the animation style. This is probably due to the fact that many of the old animators had died overseas and Disney had to find new ones. These cartoons led the way to the "modernized" style of animation that Disney used in the mid fifties to late sixties.)

1946

Squatter's Rights

1947

Mickey and the Beanstalk
Mickey's Delayed Date (First cartoon to use the "modernized" style of animation)

1948

1949

Pueblo Pluto

Disney's Theme Parks

Ever since Disneyland first opened in 1955, Mickey and the gang have been an important part of the Disney theme park experience. Today, they can be seen everyday in shows, parades, and meet-and-greet oppertunities at all 11 Disney theme parks worldwide. Classic cartoons staring the beloved characters are also screened in the Main Street Cinema at Disneyland and the Town Square Exposition Hall at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom is also home to Mickey's PhilharMagic, an all-new computer animated 3D film staring Mickey, Donald, and a host of other classic Disney characters. The attraction debuted at Walt Disney World in Fall 2003 and has since opened in Hong Kong Disneyland as well. Back in Disneyland's old Adventure Thru Inner Space, most of the molecules were shaped around Mickey heads.

External links

This page uses content from the English Wikipedia page Mickey Mouse. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. Text from Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.