National Mickey Mouse Day

November 18th is National Mickey Mouse Day, and the character has a long history. He was created in 1928 with Ub Iwerke the main illustrator. "Plane Crazy" was the first short cartoon, but it had a poor reception, and Disney couldn't find a distributor. The second short, "The Gallopin' Gaucho" had the same experience. Neither cartoons were released.

The first Mickey Mouse animation to find a distributor was Steamboat Willie, which came out on November 18, 1928. In The Barn Dance (March 14, 1929), Minnie turns down Mickey in favor of Pete. Mickey wore his white gloves for the first time in The Opry House (April 28, 1929). When the Cat's Away followed (May 3, 1928).

From a meager beginning, the films continued, compiling a long list of successes. The first official color film of Mickey came with The Band Concert in 1935, and the movies just kept coming. In addition, Mickey appeared on television and in comic strips. He even started merchandising with numerous items for sale. He still remains a popular Disney character.

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