Mickey's Surprise Party

Mickey's Surprise Party is a 1939 American animated short film directed by Hamilton Luske, produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Nabisco. It was the 105th short in the Mickey Mouse film series to be released, and the second for that year.[2]Mickey's Surprise Party is the first cartoon with Mickey and Minnie Mouse in their current designs.

Mickey's Surprise Party
Directed byHamilton Luske
Produced byWalt Disney
StarringWalt Disney
Marcellite Garner
Clarence Nash
Music byOliver Wallace
Animation byOllie Johnston
Walt Kelly
Riley Thomson
Charles A. Nichols
Harvey Toombs
Ken Peterson
Claude Smith
Lynn Karp
Color processTechnicolor
Production
company
Distributed byNabisco
Release date
  • February 18, 1939 (1939-02-18)
[1]
Running time
5 minutes 15 seconds
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

This is notable for being the first Disney product of any kind to be sponsored by a company, and one of a few Disney cartoons to be in the public domain. Walt Disney hated the idea of public commercials, and avoided commercial entanglements until then. The cartoon had its premiere at the Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) on Treasure Island in San Francisco in February of 1939. The film was shown in the "Food and Beverages" building in the Nabisco Theater. Walt was present at the fair for the premiere of the short. It was also shown in the Nabisco Theater at the New York World's Fair in 1939, which did not open until April. The two versions were identical except that the Nabisco products (cookies and crackers) featured at the end were different, reflecting products available on the west and east coasts.

In the short, Pluto's romantic partner is Fifi, a Pekingese who also appears in Puppy Love (1933), Pluto's Quin-puplets (1937) and Society Dog Show (1939).[3]

This cartoon was included in the US VHS and LaserDisc release The Spirit of Mickey and the non-US VHS and LaserDisc release Minnie's Greatest Hits, with all the Nabisco packaging replaced by generic products, and all of Minnie's lines referencing the names of the products overdubbed by Russi Taylor. However, most DVD versions of the short contain the original uncut version, replete with the Nabisco references. Milk Bone Dog Biscuits, referenced in the original version of the film and made by Nabisco at the time of the short's production, have since been acquired by Big Heart Pet Brands (a division of Del Monte), which has been owned by the J. M. Smucker Company since May 2006.

Plot

Minnie bakes cookies to impress Mickey. Just as she leaves, however, her dog, Fifi, accidentally knocks popcorn into her batter while chasing a fly. Minnie, none the wiser, puts the batter in the oven. Minnie then prepares for the visit, as does Fifi. Mickey and Pluto then arrive. Minnie accepts Mickey's flowers, but Fifi rejects Pluto's bone for some reason. Unfortunately, Minnie has baked the cookies too long, burning them. As she takes them out, the corn starts popping, but not before Pluto eats one, leading to him having an exploding cookie stuck in his belly while Mickey fights the burnt cookies with a water sprayer. Minnie is then seen crying on the couch, saying that she wanted to bake cookies just like Mickey's mother. Mickey tries to comfort her, saying "My mother used to burn them all the time!"[4] which made her cry even louder, however, which leads to Fifi crying too. Mickey suddenly had an idea, and leaves with Pluto. When they come back, they have several Nabisco products, including: Oreos, Lorna Doone, Ritz Crackers, Barnum's Animal Crackers, Social Tea Biscuits, Fig Newtons (Mickey's and Minnie's favorite), and Milk Bones (which Fifi accepts and kisses Pluto). The film ends with Minnie kissing Mickey all over his face. The cartoon fades to "The End", which fades to the Nabisco logo.[5]

See also

References
  1. Kaufman, J.B.; Gerstein, David (2018). Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History. Cologne: Taschen. ISBN 978-3-8365-5284-4.
  2. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 107–109. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  3. Grant, John (1998). Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters (2nd ed.). Hyperion. p. 42. ISBN 978-0786863365.
  4. Gabler, Neal (2006). Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. p. 406.
  5. Gabler, Neal (2006). Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. p. 406.


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