Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse is a comic animal cartoon character who has become a symbol for The Walt Disney Company. Created in the 1920s by Ub Iwerks, the mouse has evolved from being simply a character in animated cartoons and comic strips to become one of the most recognizable symbols in the world.

Roles

Mickey as a suitor

The Barn Dance, first released on March 14, 1929, would be the first of twelve Mickey shorts released during that year. It was directed by Walt Disney with Ub Iwerks as the head animator. The barn dance of the title is the occasion which brings together Minnie and her two suitors: Mickey and Pete. The latter two and their vehicles are first seen arriving at Minnie's house in an attempt to pick her up for the dance. Mickey turns up in his horse-cart while Pete in a newly purchased automobile. Minnie initially chooses Pete to drive her to the dance but the automobile unexpectedly breaks down. She resorts to accepting Mickey's invitation. They are later seen dancing together, but Mickey proves to be a rather clumsy dancer as he repeatedly steps on Minnie's feet. She consequently turns down his invitation for a second dance. She instead accepts that of Pete, who proves to be a better dancing partner. Mickey then attempts to solve his problem by placing a balloon in his shorts. That apparently helps him to be "light on his feet" and he proceeds to ask Minnie for another dance. She accepts and is surprised to find his dancing skills to have apparently improved. Pete soon discovers Mickey's trick and points it out to Minnie. Minnie is visibly disgusted by this attempt at deception. As a result, she leaves Mickey and resumes dancing with Pete. In the finale Mickey is reduced to crying on the floor.

Related Topics:
The Barn Dance - March 14 - 1929 - Animator - Horse - Cart - Automobile - Balloon - Shorts

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This short was the first to feature its three main characters as parts of a love-triangle. It is notable for featuring Mickey turned down by Minnie in favor of Pete. It is also an unusual appearance of the Pete; previously depicted as a menacing villain, he is portrayed here as a well-mannered gentleman. In addition, Mickey was not depicted as a hero but as a rather ineffective young suitor. In his sadness and crying over his failure, Mickey appears unusually emotional and vulnerable. It has been commented, however, that this only serves to add to the audiences' empathy for the character.

Related Topics:
Villain - Hero

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First gloved appearance

"Ever wonder why we always wear these white gloves?" - Various characters (with minor variations)

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The Opry House, first released on March 28, 1929, would be the second short released during the year. It cast Mickey as the owner of a small theater (or opera house according to the title). Mickey performs a vaudeville show all by himself. Acts include his impersonation of a snake charmer, his dressing in drag and performing a belly dance, his caricature of a Hasidic Jew and, for the finale, a piano performance. Minnie did not appear in person in this short. Instead, a poster of her can be seen which introduces her as a member of the Yankee Doodle Girls, apparently a group of female performers.

Related Topics:
The Opry House - March 28 - 1929 - Theater - Opera house - Vaudeville - Drag - Belly dance - Caricature - Hasidic Jew - Piano - Poster

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The only other recurring character to appear in the short is known as Kat Nipp (apparently a play on the word catnip). This would be his debut; he would appear in two more shorts during the year as a minor antagonist. This short featured no dialogue and consequently its humor relies in a long series of visual gags. The musical pieces accompanying them notably included "Yankee Doodle" and Georges Bizet's Carmen. More notably this short introduced Mickey's gloves. Mickey can be seen wearing them in most of his subsequent appearances. Supposedly one reason for adding the white gloves was to allow audiences to distinguish the characters' hands when they appeared against their bodies, as both were black (Mickey did not appear in color until 1935).

Related Topics:
Kat Nipp - Catnip - Dialogue - Gag - Yankee Doodle - Georges Bizet - Carmen - Glove

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Depiction as a regular mouse

When the Cat's Away, first released on April 11, 1929, would be the third Mickey short to be released that year. It was essentially a remake of one of the Alice Comedies, Alice Rattled by Rats, which had been first released on January 15, 1926. Kat Nipp makes his second appearance, though his name is given as "Tom Cat" (this describes his being a tom cat, and the character should not be confused with the co-star of the Tom and Jerry series). He is seen getting drunk on alcoholic beverages. Then he leaves his house to go hunting. In his absence an army of mice invade his house in search of food. Among them are Mickey and Minnie, who proceed to turn this gathering into a party. This short is unusual in depicting Mickey and Minnie as having the size and partly the behavior of regular mice. The set standard both before and after this short was to depict them as having the size of a rather short human being. On another note, it has been commented that since this short was released during the Prohibition era, the alcoholic beverages would probably have been products of bootlegging.

Related Topics:
When the Cat's Away - April 11 - 1929 - Alice Comedies - Alice Rattled by Rats - January 15 - 1926 - Kat Nipp - Tom cat - Tom and Jerry - Alcoholic beverage - Hunting - Party - Standard - Prohibition - Bootleg

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Mickey as a soldier

The next Mickey short to be released is also considered unusual. It was The Barnyard Battle, first released on April 25, 1929. As the title implies it featured a battle between an invading army of cats and an army of mice trying to defend their homes and farms. Pete was depicted as a leading soldier of the former army and Mickey as a conscript of the latter one. Before joining the army, Mickey has to pass a physical examination. This scene depicts Mickey becoming the subject of physical and emotional abuse. After passing the examination, he is given a machine gun and is sent to battle. Mickey's combat efforts are comical in depiction but prove effective enough in forcing the enemy to retreat. Mickey is hailed as a hero by his fellow soldiers and then the short ends.

Related Topics:
The Barnyard Battle - April 25 - Army - Farm - Soldier - Conscript - Machine gun - Hero

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This short is notable as the first to depict Mickey as a soldier and the first to place him in combat. The physical examination scene has since often been edited out as being somewhat disturbing. However modern viewers have often pointed to this scene as being the most memorable of the short. The short did not clearly identify the war it depicted; but it has been noted that the cats are depicted as wearing military helmets similar to those used by the German Empire during World War I. On the other hand, the mice are marching in battle to the tune of "Dixie's Land", a song written in 1859 by Daniel Decatur Emmett (October 29, 1815 – June 28, 1904). The song is known to have been popular among the forces of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. The victory of the mice is celebrated in the tune of "Battle Cry of Freedom". Both the music and the lyrics to this song were written in 1862 by George Frederick Root (August 30, 1820 - August 6, 1895) and it is known to have been popular among the forces of the United States during the same conflict. In any case both wars were still within living memory of the audiences at the time of release and so it is possible that the details mentioned were intended as recognizable references to both of them.

Related Topics:
War - Helmet - German Empire - World War I - Dixie's Land - 1859 - Daniel Decatur Emmett - October 29 - 1815 - June 28 - 1904 - Confederate States of America - American Civil War - Battle Cry of Freedom - 1862 - George Frederick Root - August 30 - 1820 - August 6 - 1895

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