Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse is an animated character created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks in 1928. He is an anthropomorphic mouse characterized as a cheerful optimist with an adventurous and mischievous streak. Estimated as standing 2' 3" (69 centimeters) and weighing 23 pounds (10 kilograms), Mickey is easily identified by his round ears, red shorts, falsetto voice, white gloves and cartoonishly large yellow shoes.

For 90 years, Mickey has been the cornerstone of the Disney empire. His success paved the way for numerous breakthroughs in both the art of animation, and the entertainment industry as a whole. Mickey's significance in pop culture came simultaneously with his public debut in Steamboat Willie, where he first wowed audiences with his cheerful smile and scampish personality.

From there, Mickey rapidly rose to the pinnacle of American culture, becoming the most popular and recognizable cartoon character in the world and the prime influence of following cartoons. He's since appeared in over 130 films and has received a combined eleven honors from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 1978, Mickey became the first fictional character to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

For all his acclaim, none have viewed Mickey more fondly than Walt Disney, himself. The two were widely regarded as "alter-egos" by peers and historians; it was said by Lillian Disney that Mickey and Walt were so simpatico, they seemed almost like the same identity. Historians have often pointed out that Mickey's career mirrored that of Walt's; at the start, they were insignificant figures struggling to make an impact in the filmmaking industry, only to become international icons over the years.

Today, Mickey is, by far, The Walt Disney Company's most famous character and serves as the company's mascot. His 3-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.

Background
Mickey comes from a stable family. According to the Italian story Once Upon a Time... In America, Mickey's father has a wealthy background, which he built with the help of his future wife (and Mickey's mother). In the same story, it is said that Mickey was named after his father as part of a family tradition. According to Symphony Hour, "Mickey and the Culture Clash" and "The Fancy Gentleman", Mickey's full name is Michel Mouse. By his parents, Mickey has an older sister named Felicity Fieldmouse. He once stated that he has no brothers. By Felicity, Mickey has mischievous twin nephews named Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse, whom he occasionally watches over.

Mickey is normally depicted as living a modest life with his pet dog, Pluto. He has a longtime girlfriend named Minnie Mouse, whom he spends most of his free time with. According to Walt Disney, Mickey and Minnie are married in private life and are merely depicted as dating onscreen.

Mickey's occupational status is dependent on the story, but he is usually portrayed as a jack-of-all-trades, working as anything from a steamboat deckhand to a sorcerer's apprentice. The most recurring employer of Mickey's is the Ajax Coporation, where he has worked alongside his best friends, Donald Duck and Goofy. Ajax consists of a variety of odd jobs (ghost exterminators, car washers, rollercoaster painters, etc.) and most of Mickey's assignments end up in failure due to his and his team's incompetence. In comic stories, Mickey has frequently been portrayed as a detective working closely with his friend Horace Horsecollar and the Chief of Police, Chief O'Hara.

Though not for pay, Mickey has been a regular contributor to his local orphanage—which houses hundreds of nameless mice children—for many years. With help from Minnie, Donald and other friends, Mickey has organized numerous benefits for the orphans such as picnic outings and theatre shows. In some cartoons, he and Pluto have even welcomed the orphans into their home.

In some continuities such as that of Darkwing Duck, A Goofy Movie, and numerous meta Disney productions like House of Mouse, Mickey is portrayed as an A-list celebrity made famous by his theatrical cartoon shorts, which are said to be based on real events in his life.

Personality
Mickey's most widely known traits are his wholesomeness and charisma. In contrast to this, Mickey is also rather mischievous; a scrappy, free-spirited rebel with a head full of curiosity, optimism and slight arrogance, Mickey has a habit of finding himself in a wide array of self-inflicted trouble—sometimes comical, sometimes highly consequential. Nevertheless, he is also quick-thinking and crafty and is thus able to save himself from the varying danger, ending out on top in the end. Because of his small size and limited resources, Mickey often relies on his wit to overcome adversity. His craftiness is also put into good use when looking for ways to make life easier for himself, even if he knowingly has to break a few rules in the process, being somewhat of a schemer in this sense.

While his success elevates his ego and drives him to act selfishly at times, Mickey is a devoted friend and cares deeply for his loved ones. This is most prominently displayed in his relationship with his longtime girlfriend, Minnie Mouse. The two are shown to be deeply in love with each other, and as such, Mickey has repeatedly gone to great lengths to both ensure Minnie's happiness, and to impress her (sometimes out of insecurity of losing her, as seen in "Mickey Tries to Cook"). In turn, Minnie is an avid supporter of Mickey and openly returns his sentiments. Though his habit of forgetting special occasions and other important matters annoy her[23][24], Minnie simultaneously serves as Mickey's better half, bringing out the best of him, even after his own flaws create significant mayhem.

Mickey is also a reliable leader and is well-respected amongst his peers because of this. When put in charge of a production, for example (such as a stage show or the House of Mouse nightclub theater) he tends to be rather professional and composed, even when hecklers and other inconveniences get in the way. Another great example of Mickey's reliability can be seen in various cartoons in which Mickey stars alongside his best friends, the ill-tempered Donald Duck and exceptionally clumsy Goofy. Mickey is able to handle issues fairly better than both Donald and Goofy, as his temper and clumsiness are not as distracting for himself as they are for his two comrades. Though whimsical and childlike in his own right, Mickey's maturity shines its brightest when paired with Donald and Goofy showing that, for all his foibles, he can act as a level-headed "voice of reason" when the situation calls for it. Mickey's selflessness is also highlighted when paired with the two. For example, as seen numerous times with Goofy, Mickey tends to act as a passive friend, as he cares a great deal for Goofy's happiness, and therefore puts up with a fair amount of nonsense for the latter's sake. At times, Mickey can be toocaring towards others, which can drive him to disregard his own needs, though he has his limits. Empathetic to a fault, Mickey will gladly come to someone's aid if they appear to be in need, though he sometimes allows his sympathetic heart to blind his better judgment. In Epic Mickey, Mickey sacrificed his only chance of escaping the Wasteland to save Oswald and Gus, both of whom he had just met. This — among other feats — proved to Oswald that Mickey's nobility was genuine, and in turn, motivated him to work alongside the mouse as an ally.

While Mickey's temper is not out of his control, he can be rather explosive after being pushed to a certain limit.[30][31] When faced with his two most frequent adversaries, Pete and Mortimer Mouse for example, Mickey tends to act irritable and churlish. He is also somewhat relentless when it comes to getting back at them for their harassment. In some cases, instead of outright giving his enemies satisfaction by losing his temper, Mickey would resort to sly pranks and trickery to best his foes—this being a way to one-up them, while also getting in a few laughs at the same time.[33][34] Because of his laid-back nature, however, Mickey is usually remorseful after letting his anger get the best of him, and does all that he can to remedy affected feelings, if any.

Mickey evidently struggles with insecurity to some extent. In "Goofy for a Day", he panicked at the prospect of losing his hosting job at the House of Mouse, believing "show business" is the only profession he's actually good at. His popularity seems to act as a double-edged sword. While he typically enjoys the attention, Mickey also feels a sense of pressure from the public to always be at his very best. This is most notably seen when Mickey is tasked with hosting live entertainment in front of a large audience. In during which, he becomes short-fused and intolerant towards any delays or disturbances.

In spite of being an anthropomorphic mouse, Mickey has the tendencies to act with his animal nature, including the fact that, being a mouse, he loves cheese. In the television series House of Mouse, Mickey, being a mouse, is made fun of when he is shown to exercise on a hamster wheel and drink from a rodent drinking bottle (like the ones found in a hamster cage). These particular facts seem to only exist in the House of Mouse and haven't been shown again, proving to have been used for brief gags only.

Voice
Since 1928, Mickey was voiced by Walt Disney himself, a task in which Disney took great personal pride. However, by 1947, Disney was becoming too busy with running the studio to do regular voice work which meant he could not do Mickey's voice anymore (and as it is speculated, his cigarette habit had damaged his voice over the years) and after recording the Mickey and the Beanstalk section of Fun and Fancy Free, Mickey's voice was handed over to veteran Disney sound effects artist and voice actor Jimmy MacDonald. MacDonald voiced Mickey in the remainder of the theatrical shorts and for various television and publicity projects up until his retirement in the mid-1970's, although Walt would still reprise Mickey's voice on rare occasions, such as in the introductions to the original 1954—1959 run of The Mickey Mouse Club TV series and "The Fourth Anniversary Show" episode of the Disneyland TV series.

Carl Stalling voiced Mickey in The Karnival Kid in 1929. Clarence Nash voiced Mickey in the 1934 short The Dognapper, which would also be the only time that Nash voiced him.[38][39] Walt was traveling in Europe at the time and was unavailable to record his lines for Mickey. J. Donald Wilson, Joe Twerp, and John Hiestand provided the voice of Mickey in the 1938 broadcasts of The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air.[40][41] Stan Frebergvoiced Mickey in the 1954 Disney record album Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse's Birthday Party.[42] Alan Youngvoiced Mickey in An Adaptation of Dickens' Christmas Carol, Performed by The Walt Disney Players in 1974, which would be the first and only time that ]Young voiced him.[43][44]

Les Perkins voiced Mickey in two TV specials in the mid-1980s: Down and Out with Donald Duck and DTV Valentine. Pete Renaday voiced Mickey in the 1980s Disney albums Mickey Mouse Splashdance and Yankee Doodle Mickey.[45][46] He also provided his voice for The Talking Mickey Mouse toy in 1986.[47][48]

1983's Mickey's Christmas Carol marked the theatrical debut of Wayne Allwine as Mickey Mouse. Allwine, who would serve as Mickey's official voice actor from 1977 until his death in 2009, once recounted something MacDonald had told him about voicing the character: "The main piece of advice that Jim gave me about Mickey helped me keep things in perspective. He said, 'Just remember kid, you're only filling in for the boss.' And that's the way he treated doing Mickey for years and years. From Walt, and now from Jimmy." Allwine was, incidentally, married to Russi Taylor, the current voice of Minnie Mouse.

Quinton Flynn briefly filled in for Allwine as the voice of Mickey in a few episodes of the first season of Mickey Mouse Works whenever he was unavailable to record.[40]

Bret Iwan, a former Hallmark greeting card artist, is the current voice of Mickey, having taken over the role after Wayne Allwine's passing. His earliest recordings in 2009 included work for the Disney Cruise Line, various Mickey toys, the Disney theme parks, Disney on Ice: Let's Celebrate!, and Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep. However, despite Iwan being Mickey's current official voice actor, the character's voice is provided by Chris Diamantopoulosin the Mickey Mouse series.