Minnie Mouse

Minnie Mouse is a fictional character of the Mickey Mouse universe featured in animated cartoons, comic strips and comic book by The Walt Disney Company. The comic strip story "The Gleam" (published January 19-May 2, 1942) by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minerva has since been a recurring alias for her.

A recurring co-star

The commercial success of Steamboat Willie helped introduce Mickey and Minnie into the audience. Twelve more films featuring Mickey were produced in 1929. But Minnie only co-starred in seven of them and was mentioned in an eighth.

Related Topics:
Steamboat Willie - 1929

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The first of them was The Barn Dance, first released on March 14, 1929. Minnie stands at the center of attention as Mickey and Pete rival each other in order to win her favor. Both offer to pick her up for the dance but she chooses Pete's newly purchased automobile over Mickey's horse-cart. When the automobile breaks down she resorts to go with Mickey. The later proves a clumsy dancing parter, repeatedly stepping on her feet, and so she turns to Pete again. She is surprised when Mickey asks for another dance and seems to be light on his feet. However she is disgusted when Pete points that his rival had placed a balloon in his shorts. She resumed dancing with Pete while Mickey is reduced to crying on the dance floor. Minnie proves to be rather demanding as a partner in a romantic relationship. Mickey obviously has yet to claim her as his girlfriend by this point.

Related Topics:
The Barn Dance - March 14 - 1929 - Automobile - Horse - Cart - Balloon - Shorts - Floor - Romantic relationship - Girlfriend

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The Opry House, first released on March 28, 1929, was the first short to feature Mickey but not Minnie. A poster however mentions Minnie as being member to the Yankee Doodle Girls. The later group of female performers remained unseen characters and were apparently short-lived. Minnie appears again in When the Cat's Away, first released on April 11, 1929. She is attending a party with Mickey along with several other mice. The short was unusual in the depiction of Mickey and Minnie with the size and part of the behavior common in 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.

Related Topics:
The Opry House - March 28 - 1929 - Poster - Yankee Doodle - Female - Performer - Unseen character - When the Cat's Away - April 11 - Party - Mice - Standard - Human

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Minnie was seen again in The Plow Boy, first released on May 9, 1929, where she is featured as a farm girl. However she gets Mickey to milk her cow Clarabelle for her. When Mickey presents her with a bucket full of milk and proceeds to kiss her, Minnie answers by knocking the bucket on his head. This in front of his horse Horace Horsecollar who is just making his debut. Minnie obviously was not very appreciative of Mickey's affection at the time.

Related Topics:
The Plow Boy - May 9 - 1929 - Farm - Milk - Cow - Clarabelle - Horse - Horace Horsecollar

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Their attempt at farming life would prove short-lived. Their next appearance in The Karnival Kid (May 23, 1929) casted Mickey as a hot dog vendor and Minnie as a carnival Shimmy Dancer. Minnie then appears as a fiddle player in Mickey's Choo Choo (June 26, 1929).

Related Topics:
The Karnival Kid - May 23 - 1929 - Carnival - Shimmy - Fiddle - Mickey's Choo Choo - June 26

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