The Journey of Mickey Mouse | Birthday Special

He has been one of our favourite cartoons - and as a kid, we could never get enough of his charismatic personality. Almost every child has owned at least one merchandise from Disney world (or the local toy store) that has something to do with him. You can never get enough of his 'big ears'. We have all had birthday cakes shaped like him or kiddie perfumes sold in bottles that resemble his face. On a personal note, my post-school and dance session evenings were incomplete without his hour long shows, where he, along with his four other famous pals, would keep me entertained. But, when you are told that our favourite, adorable little mouse turns 92 today, you can't help but spend a moment of silence to understand that - 'Time does fly too quickly'.

Yes, I am talking about the most cheerful mouse you will ever come across. Late Sir Walt Disney's beloved - Mickey Mouse! On this day, the well mannered, perfectly dressed and sophisticated mouse made his debut in a cute film called Steamboat Willie in 1928. Every individual, who feels that Mickey Mouse was indeed an integral part of their childhood, must watch this film.

As everybody's favourite Mickey turns a year older, we take a look at some of our favourite shows and films featuring the superstar mouse. 

Steamboat Willie

"I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing – that it was all started by a mouse." - Walt Disney.

Yes indeed, this is where it all started. The lovable mouse, created together by Sir Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks, was actually inspired by a mouse, that Disney came across while sketching a few ideas, as he wanted to create a new character, that could become the face of Disney as a company.

And once he was born, the audience got a lovely visual treat in the form Steamboat Willie, that continues to rule many hearts even after 86 years.

The Karnival Kid

By 1929, the mouse was definitely more popular (and a year old now). In a span of one year, the audience has already seen him in films like The Opry House and When The Cat's Away, but it was The Karnival Kid that turned out to be the next milestone, as this is where you will hear Mickey speaking for the first time. And guess who turned voice actor for this charming character? None other than Disney himself.

Mickey's Orphans

Despite internal problems (Iwerks walked away to create his own studio), Mickey's popularity continued to soar and after a couple of short films in between, it was in 1931 that he received his first Academy Award nomination for Mickey's Orphans. This was also the year when Sir Walt Disney was awarded with an honorary award for creating this endearing mouse.

Warning: Cuteness overload in the next film!

Parade of the Award Nominees & The Band Concert

While Mickey's first official appearance in colour, Parade of the Award Nominees, was in a film strip exclusively made for the 5th Academy Awards in 1932, his first public colour film came out only in 1935. Titled The Band Concert, this film was also voted as the third greatest cartoon of all time, in a poll of animated professionals in the year 1994. Post this film, Mickey's friend Donald also became quite popular, thanks to his crazy (read: funny) antics.

The Simple Things

The year 1953 saw a few last regular theatrical films starring Mickey, post which, he became a regular on animated television films and even popular series like House of Mouse, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse among others. He even did a few cameos in animated-live action films like Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Muppets At Walt Disney World among others. In The Simple Things (1953), Mickey is seen fishing with Pluto.

Mickey was also seen in another lovely film titled Mickey's Christmas Carol, which was an adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Unfortunately, there is very little access to this film on the internet and hence, you need to be lucky enough to catch this precious film on Disney channel at home. With every passing decade, one saw various changes in Mickey's appearance. His clothing became more sophisticated, the colours used for his apparel changed overtime. Surprisingly, the new shorts feature him in an avatar, which is quite similar to his looks from 1930s. In one of these short films, we see Mickey in an Indian avatar, as he takes to the Mumbai roads as  guess what? A rickshaw-wala. Don't miss this for anything, folks!

But hey, be it any look, we can't thank Mickey enough for filling our childhood with lots of fun and awesomeness. We all may grow up, but nobody will mind turning all child-like again to watch these films and shows.

 Happy Birthday, Mickey! We love you.

Love,

The Dancebee