Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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The year of the mous^# Rodent that spawned global entertainment empire turn 75 BY DANIEL CHANG KNIGHT RICHER NEWSPAPERS M-I-C. See you all over the place. K-E-Y. Why? Because no rodent ever infiltrated popular culture so thoroughly. M-O-U-S-E. In film and on television, around wrists and atop heads, through theme parks and cruise ships and specialty stores, Mickey Mouse has proven likable, marketable and downright durable. Mickey’s cartoons have been translat ed into dozens of languages. His image is recognized on every continent. And on Tuesday, the mouse that spawned a $47 bil lion global entertainment industry empire celebrates his 75th birthday. bince ne aeDutea in steamDoat wuiie at the Colony Theater in New York on Nov. 18,1928, Mickey captured the popular imagination with a grip that has only grown tighter, says Monique Peterson, co author of “Mickey Mouse: The Evolution, The Legend, The Phenomenon!” (Hyperion, 2001). “He was at the forefront of so many things,” Peterson says, “from being the first talking cartoon character at a time when Hollywood was just bom — so he was get ting top billing along with Clark Gable on the marquees — and then as a savior through the Great Depression. With the birth of television, Walt Disney was one of the first people to get on the air and use that medium with the help of Mickey Mouse. “No matter what era you were bom in,” he says, “there was some kind of first that Mickey Mouse was a part of.” Many people assume Mickey was Walt Disney’s first character. He wasn’t. During the 1920s, Walt had created other charac ters. Working out of his uncle’s garage in Los Angeles, he came up with Oswald the PHOTO BY COURTESY KRT CAMPUS Lucky Rabbit and Peg Leg Pete before find ing success with Mickey. “Steamboat Willie” introduced the world to Mickey as the first cartoon syn chronized with sound — specifically, squeaks, whistles and music. With new sound technology revolutionizing movies, Mickey’s star ascended at about the same time Hollywood released the first truly suc cessful “talkie,” A1 Jolson’s “The Jazz Singer,” in 1927. Studios began minting now-legendary stars and Mickey was right there with them. “He was an abstract drawing but he be came real, right next to Greta Garbo,” says Robert Heide, co-author of “Mickey Mouse: The Evolution.” “You see drawings of Mickey shaking hands with Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin." Mickey is as squeezable as Charmin — those round ears and face, that squeaky voice, the bubbly personality — and dur ing the Great Depression his antics were a tonic for hard times. MicKey Decame mis Kina oi miscnie vous imp that livened things up in a time when people were standing in bread lines,” Heide says. But Disney’s considerable marketing muscle probably takes the biggest credit for making the mouse a worldwide sym bol for the Happiest Place on Earth. In 1933, a merchandising wizard named Kay Kamen licensed Mickey’s image and it wasn’t long before the familiar face began to appear on everything from pencil erasers to toy trains and wristwatches. Disney also began using the mouse’s im age as a corporate logo in the early 1930s, adding it to company letterhead and stamping the symbol over the first Disney Studios in Los Angeles. Live with Your Friends •Free USC Shuttle •Free Ethernet •Free Washer / Dryer •Private Bedrooms Have Fun •Be happy you got the best value! •Be proud of where you live •Enjoy the benefits of luxury living! Be Healthy •24 Hour Fitness Center •Basketball & Sand Volleyball Courts •Pool and Hot Tub , . • Free Tanning Dome Love Where You Live •Rent as low as $345 •Furnished Units •Spacious Floor Plans •All the comforts of home! f SrrCRLI ncTn IVIZRSIT V 215 Spencer Place 739-0899 www.suhriverside.com SUH ® Community, SUH® is a trademark of SUH®