In these cartoons released between 1928 and 1935, Walt Disney created one of the icons of 20th-century culture. Disney's reputation was built on these early shorts, and the films shimmer with the energy of the young artists exploring the new medium of the sound cartoon. Watching the films in chronological order enables the viewer to see the remarkable progress Walt and his crew made in animation, storytelling, and acting in just seven years. The rambunctious, rubbery Mickey of "Plane Crazy" and "Steamboat Willie" quickly developed into the polished charmer of "Gulliver Mickey" and "Mickey's Orphans." More than 70 years after his debut, the black and white Mickey still displays the appeal that made him so popular during the '30s, when
A Mickey Mouse Cartoon appeared on theater marquees with the feature titles, and his fans included Franklin Roosevelt, Mary Pickford, George V of England, the Nizam of Hyderabad--and the more than one million children who joined the first Mickey Mouse Club.
Although it's fun to look at the old sketches and pencil tests, the high point of the supplementary material is the discussion host Leonard Maltin conducts with Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, the last surviving members of the justly celebrated "Nine Old Men" of Disney animation. Thomas and Johnston were nearly 90 at the time of the interview, but their enthusiasm for their work, for Mickey, and for the man who made it all possible remains undimmed. (Unrated; suitable for all ages: cartoon violence) --Charles Solomon
Witness the birth of an American icon. This historic compilation chronicles Mickey Mouse's early career, from his landmark debut in 1928's "Steamboat Willie" to the last of his black-and-white shorts, "Mickey's Service Station," in 1935. Gain insights into Mickey's beginnings in new interviews with legendary Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. See the earliest visuals on record showing the creative birth of animation's most historically significant cartoon as well as the only black-and-white cartoon pencil footage known to exist. All of this and more is revealed in this homage to the mouse who captured the imagination of the world. Featuring exclusive introductions by film historian Leonard Maltin, this is a timeless collection from generations past for generations to come.
1 Yoo hoo!
This is out of print, and the only way you can get it is to pay a lot of money for it. Is it worth it? Well, I certainly think so. You get 34 black and white Mickey Mouse cartoons. Some of the early ones are rather primitive, but they are still amusing, and it gets even better as it goes along. If you buy this along with "Mickey Mouse in Black and White Volume 2", you'll have all the black and white Mickey Mouse cartoons. What more can an animation fan ask for?
2 A great compilation of the early Mickey cartoons
Everyone (or almost everyone) that reviewed the set loved the cartoons, but didn't like Leanord Maltin. I don't believe that's fair, since I can't believe no one else notices that apologizing about clearly unoffensive things is NOT HIS FAULT. If you read "Of Mice and Magic" you'll find he doesn't act like every minor comment is an insult. Disney is MAKING HIM SAY THAT STUFF. But I'm getting carried away. The cartoons on this set (1 star worst, 5 stars best) are:
DISC 1:
STEAMBOAT WILLIE *****
One of the greatest Disney cartoons, only topped by The Band Concert. This is NOT the very first sound cartoon, though. Max Fleischer was putting out 'Bouncing Ball Screen Song Cartoons' years before The Jazz Singer, much less Steamboat Willie. Still it's the first cartoon where the sounds actually match what the character is doing or saying.
THE GALLOPIN' GAUCHO **
Very bad, actually. It's too 'basic' to be funny. Two stars is actually high praise for this stinker.
PLANE CRAZY *****
The first Mickey Mouse cartoon! Mickey is mischevious and kind of a wise guy, and the animation is incredible. It's hard to believe Ub Iwerks animated it by himself... IN TWO WEEKS!!
THE KARNIVAL KID **
Dull. But Mickey utters his first words: "Hot Dog!"
MICKEY'S FOLLIES ***
Most of it is pretty bad, but the entire cartoon is worth it for "MINNIE'S YOO HOO", Mickey Mouse's theme song.
THE FIRE FIGHTERS ****
This cartoon is really great! I took off one star for the terrible ending.
THE CHAIN GANG **
Though Pluto isn't Mickey's pet, I believe one of those dogs is Pluto.
THE GORILLA MYSTERY *****
I don't know why everyone who works at Disney's automatically hates gorillas, but this cartoon is wonderful! One of Burt Gillet's best.
PIONEER DAYS *
Dull, and unoriginal. What cartoon character DIDN'T battle Indians?
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY *
Always avoid the Mickey Mouse 'party' cartoons. Their always bad.
MICKEY STEPS OUT *****
The first cartoon where Pluto assumes his long and tedious career of being Mickey's pet. This is perhaps Pluto's finest performance, though. NOTE: If you're tired of Minnie now, you get even MORE tired of her by the next disc.
BLUE RHYTHM *****
Another great cartoon, except when Mickey jumps up and starts dancing and the piano remains playing.
MICKEY CUTS UP *
A garden cartoon. A BAD garden cartoon.
MICKEY'S ORPHANS ***
Not the same orphans that appear in "Mickey's Nightmare" and a handful of other Mickey shorts (the little Mickeys). THESE orphans are cats.
THE DUCK HUNT *
Forgettable.
MICKEY'S REVIEW *****
I believe this is the first cartoon with Goofy in it. He has a beard, and is DEFINATELY the highlight (he's the loud guy who laughs at every mistake in the show).
MICKEY'S NIGHTMARE ****
Not nearly as good as the Fleischer Popeye cartoons "Wimmen is a Mystery", but it IS earlier.
THE WHOOPEE PARTY *
GAAAHHH!! Another party cartoon!
TOUCHDOWN MICKEY *****
I am not a fan of Football, but this cartoon could be rewarded as one of the funniest cartoons ever made.
THE KLONDIKE KID *****
Don't worry, it gets funnier as it goes along.
DISC 2:
BUILDING A BUILDING *****
Extremely funny. Vastly entertaining. A good cartoon.
THE MAD DOCTOR *****
This is the eeriest cartoon in the collection, the black and white makes it all the creepier, had is been in color, it would have ruined the short.
YE OLDEN DAYS *
Goofy is a DOG! We know this because his name (in this cartoon) is Dippy Dawg, which, by the way, is a better name than Goofy. The rest of the cartoon is punk.
THE MAIL PILOT *
Ho hum.
MICKEY'S GALA PREMIER *****
Now HERE'S a classic for ya'. Jimmy Durante, the Marx Brothers, Eddie Cantor, Laurel and Hardy... they're all there to see a Mickey Mouse cartoon, which, alone, is the worst Mickey cartoon ever made.
PUPPY LOVE *
I hate this cartoon.
THE PET STORE *
Just as bad. Though, I like it on the sign it says: "Birda Seed" (you see, the owner of the place is Italian).
GIANTLAND ****
It promises much more than it offers, but it's still good.
CAMPING OUT *
I hate mosquitos. I hate this cartoon.
GULLIVER MICKEY *****
A much better short than "GIANTLAND". This time, instead of giants, Mickey is attacked by the opposite, little people. And Minnie isn't in it. Awesome.
ORPHAN'S BENEFIT *****
A very good cartoon. Minnie isn't in this one either (hooray), but Donald is! It's too bad Donald wasn't in more of these, he could have even saved YE OLDEN DAYS.
THE DOGNAPPER ****
Mickey and Donald are cops, after Pete the Dognapper. That's about it.
TWO GUN MICKEY *****
Excellent. And Minnie almost has personality (!!!!!), imagine that!
MICKEY'S SERVICE STATION *****
What a finale. Mickey, Donald and Goofy are together, just how it should be. This Mickey-Donald-Goofy cartoon is probably the third best of their short together. CLOCK CLEANERS and THE LONESOME GHOSTS are a little better, but this is very close.
If you're a Mickey Mouse buff, you'll LOVE it. The quality is great and (of course) the cartoons are great (most of them anyway).
NOTE: Skip over YE OLDEN DAYS.
3 The Good, the Bad, & the Mickey
If you can actually acquire these rare DVD's (and the ever-elusive collectible tin), you'll simultaneously be impressed and disppointed.
First and foremost, this collections is a wonderful compilation of vintage 20's and 30's cartoons, not just encompassing the period in which cartoons were popularized and evolved into the form they are today, these black and white shorts define that period. Each cartoon is in excellent condition, with clean picture and relatively clear sound (although the original audio limitations of these "sound cartoons" constitutes the real audio handicap). While not all of them are in window box format, like Steamboat Willie, they are appropriately croppped to show the maximum picture on your screen. For some people today, this can be annoying, but for purists this is the best and only way to view old movies.
Unfortunately, Disney DVD's are notoriously substandard compared to other studios, and this is no exception. The most annoying quirks are the unavoidable introduction at the beginning (why does anybody think we would want to see this every time we insert the DVD? just give us the main menu please) and the absence of a "play all" option (as if anybody would want to have to manually select each chapter on a movie). In addition, while Leonard Maltin's comments are interesting and informative (including background on Al Jolson's talkie, the Jazz Singer), they can be annoying. More than anything, the comments seem to be a disclaimer to sanatize some of the more questionable scenes (such as Mickey drinking, smoking, chewing tobacco, etc.) that are nowadays inconsistent with Disney's wholesome image. Even worse, the exact same and unavoidable disclaimers repeat before multiple chapters (do we really want to see the exact same thing again?). And of course, as has already been mentioned, the 1928-1935 caption is misleading, as this is only a select few of the cartoons really released from that period.
Three stars for the marvelous content on these discs, but the actual product is lacking. If only a more compotent vintage company like Kino or Image Entertainment had been able to produce this set, it would be a lot more than just an inferior DVD sold by its collectible tin.
Interestingly enough, Maltin makes one comment about how just because some of the shorts contain unrefined, questionable, and even racist humor, they should not be locked away in the vaults. Yet, one has to wonder why else Disney has done just that? After decades of being unavailalbe, the studio makes an inadequate and underproduced supply avaialable, only to seal it up in the vaults again (but as predictable as Disney is, they'll probably re-release it again in 10 years). Of course, i supppose one has to keep in mind that Disney is marketing mostly to these collectors who appreciate the serial-numbered tin but not the actual cartoons. If nothing else, Disney could at leat re-release this set without the tin--that's all that's really availalbe anyway.
4 A Little More Information on Mr. Maltin
A couple of notes to "Yarby".
Leonard Maltin is not a self appointed expert. He is the author of "Of Mice and Magic", the authorative book on theatrical American animation.
If you would check another of Maltin's book "TV Movies", he gives "Song of the South" a very high rating. It is BECAUSE of people like Maltin, that the "questionable" material in these collections gets shown at all. There is great presure these days to cut all this material out. (Note recent bows to pressure stopping screenings of Charlie Chan movies on cable and "The Birth of a Nation" at a cinema in Los Angeles.)
Maltin is one of our best American film historians. If you don't like his screen presence, I recommend you to his numerous books. He is a fine writer.
5 Would be FOUR STARS without Leonard Maltin
But, of course, you can't but love these cartoons. These were made back when the efforts of the artists weren't constrained by financial considerations. Thus, within the same frame, there are sometimes more than two things going on at once, and often both hilarious. This is what cartoons were meant to be.
The drawback to this set?....the inclusion of the self-appointed movie "expert" Leonard Maltin, spoiling an otherwise perfect DVD set. His PC comments, while usually insipid, are also often insulting....pointing out minor "offensive" points in the cartoons which in actuality are merely a reflection of the time in which they were made. He seems to think he is the only one who understands this perspective, and he has to explain it to what he must conclude is a brain-dead viewer. It is individuals with thinking such as Maltin's that have prevented such classics as "Song of the South" and "Amos and Andy" from being released on DVD, on the presumption that the audience is too stupid to evaluate the place in history of such shows.
I guess one would expect this screwed-up perspective from Maltin, having read some of his comments in his books. He always seems to be reprimanding those responsible for movies of the past, instead of ignoring the obvious (the era from which they come) and praising their value.
The only good part about the Leonard Maltin comments? They can be skipped by using the chapter button on the remote. It's just a pity that one has to use it so often. Some of his comments are even tacked on at the beginning of individual cartoons....this is the most annoying of all, just like flies at a picnic.
Of course, since the producers at Disney consider the Maltin sequences bonuses, you really don't get much but the cartoons...and a lot of this nitwit....on this set.
Five stars for the cartoons.....the transfers are as good as can be expected for cartoons of this age.
However a BIG problem I had was one which I've seems to be a problem on MANY Disney DVD's....a random appearance of closed captioning. Closed captions appear at the beginning of many of the cartoons. After a brief appearance, they go away, until the NEXT cartoon is started.
For the "bonus features".....negative 10...I prefer my "picnic" without the "flies". Obviously, based on many of the negative Maltin reviews on this site, I am not the only one.
6 Earliest and Best!
I eagerly awaited this DVD set of Mickey Mouse's earliest cartoons, and was thrilled. While not the entire run of the black and white cartoons (it is assumed there will be a Part. 2)
it does include every Mickey Mouse cartoon from Steamboat Willie to the mid 30s.
These cartoons show how Mickey evolved in the earliest cartoons to a rattish looking mouse, into the more classic Mickey we know. Cartoons are violent in some cases (Mickey torturing a cat!!! Say it aint so!!) to downright adorable. The DVD extras, including a look at Mickey memorabilia and introductions by Leonard Maltin, as well as a promotional Mickey Mouse cartoon made for Nabisco, make this DVD well worth it.
7 What is wrong with people???
People will complain about ANYTHING!!! So there is no PLAY ALL feature...that make this disc a 1 star review??? I know it must be so tough for these people to press a few buttons on the remote...can they not afford batteries??...are they so stupid they dont know how to navigate through a DVD???...there is just one word I can use to describe all these negative reviewers...LAZY!!! I trully believe these people look for the bad in everything. This is a great DVD, and I am extremely happy to finally have these shorts in my collection, and so should everyone else.
8 Excellent reflections in animation history
My family loves this set. Ironically, the kids clamour for it more than the MICKEY IN LIVING COLOR set depsite the B&W and lack of dialogue in many of the cartoons. They LOVE it. Some parents may want to note that there is plenty of un-P.C. content here but that is a great time to open the discussion with your kids.
The beef has already been noted that this disc does not have the Play it All feature like the color set has. So if you're getting it for little kids there is no "set it and forget it" option. They'll either have to know how to move around in a menu or you'll be back at the TV every 5 minutes to advance it to the next cartoon.
Other than that, this set is a real treasure and not only a great look into animation/Disney history, but also US culture in the 30s and 40s.
9 Essential for any animation fan
This (along with the the Mickey Mouse in Living Color DVD Set) helped introduce me to why Mickey Mouse became popular in the first place - Great Cartoons.
If you are only familiar with Mickey Mouse the Pop Culture Icon, you owe it to yourself to check this out.
The only drawback? There's no way to stick this into the DVD player and just play all the cartoons! You have to pick one from the menu, watch it, then pick another.
Hopefully, Disney won't make the same mistake on the next set of Disney Treasures - the earlier ones (Silly Symphonies and Mickey Mouse in Living Color) had that feature - why not here?
10 Tin or not Tin?
This is an outstanding disk, for pure nostalgia alone. The quality is as good as can be expected, considering the age of some of these features. My only complaint is the case. Mine is a plastic snap case. Do I have some bootlegged version?
11 For the cartoons that are on here, it's great.
There are 34 cartoons that are nothing short of excellent, but there were 74 mickey mouse black and white cartoons, They're missing forty! Hopefully, they'll come out with a "Mickey mouse in black and white,part 2", but until then, you'll have to deal with these.
"Steamboat Willie"
(released on November, 18 1928
"The gallopin' gaucho"
(released in 1928)
" Plane Crazy"
(released in 1928)
"The Karnival Kid"
(released in 1929)
"Mickey's follies"
(released in 1929)
"The fire fighters"
(released on June 25, 1930)
"The chain gang"
(released on September 5, 1930)
" The gorilla mystery"
(released on October 10,1930)
"Pioneer days"
(released on December 5, 1930)
"The birthday party"
(released on January 7, 1931)
"Mickey steps out"
(released on July 7,1931)
"Blue rhythm"
(released on August 18,1931)
"Mickey cuts up"
(released on November 30,1931)
"Mickey's orphans"
(released on December 9, 1931)
"The duck hunt"
(released on January 28, 1932)
"Mickey's revue"
(released on May 25, 1932)
"Mickey's nightmare"
(released on August 13, 1932)
" The whoopee Party"
(released on September 17, 1932)
" Touchdown Mickey"
(released on October 15, 1932)
" The klondike kid"
(released on November 12, 1932)
" Building a building"
( released on January 7, 1933)
" The mad doctor"
(Released on January 21, 1933)
" Ye olden days"
(released on April 8, 1933)
" The mail pilot"
(released on May 13, 1933)
"Mickey's gala premiere"
( released on July 1, 1933)
"Puppy Love"
(released on September 2, 1933)
" The pet store"
( released on October 28, 1933)
" Giantland"
(released on November 25, 1933)
" Camping out"
( released on February 17, 1934)
" Gulliver Mickey"
(released on May 19, 1934)
" Orphan's benefit"
(released on August 12, 1934)
" The dognapper"
(released on November 17, 1934)
"Two Gun Mickey"
(released on December 15, 1934)
"Mickey service station"
(released on March 16, 1935)
Enjoy!!
12 Part of the history of animation
It's a joy to see these films I've never before seen. In Sweden there been some color Mickey Mouse-films, "Boat Builders" and "Mickey's Trailer" and sometimes colorshorts with Pluto on TV. A complaint: why not release them cronological? I miss Ub Iwerks "The Barn Dance" and "The Opry House". Some others who sounds fun are: "The Jazz Fool", "Jungle Rhythm", "The Haunted House", "Shanghaied" and "Mickey in Arabia". Hoping that Disney will release a #2-box with the rest of the black and whites. December 2004?
13 must have for true animation fans
If you consider yourself a true fan of animation and especially disney animation then this is a must have dvd. I wont go on about the whats inside cause it has been listed already in the other reviews but this the ultimate collection of the early mickey mouse shorts. Many of these toons are very hard to find elsewhere and this is a great dvd that packages them all here in a great format.
14 UNRESTORED Cartoons with Faked Title Cards
This is a terrible DVD - ALL the original title cards have been removed and replaced with new versions with all references to Columbia Pictures and United Artists being removed!! You can hear the original sound to the Columbia Pictures logo intro but instead you see a reanimated sequence - the same goes for the United Artist Mickey Mouse cartoons - THE MOST OUTRAGEOUS PART is that all the opening and ending sequences have been reanimated and changed to LOOK LIKE the original openings to people who don't realize that they are BRAND NEW ANIMATED sequences - but they are obiviously FAKE when you compare them to original film prints!
15 And about time too!
These DVDs are for the historians, for they show us a Mickey developing from the callous creature with a taste for fame of "Plane Crazy" to the hero of "Two Gun Mickey" and the team player of "Mickey's Service Station".
The Iwerks-drawn wierdness of "The Karnival Kid" justifies the purchase of these discs alone. I regret the absence of a "Play All" option but I can see how its omission is justified to prevent the use of this material as electronic babyminder fodder. I have no trouble with the social attitudes and understand many of the jokes of the 1920's/30's but certainly our attitudes about race have changed (I hope) and Al Jolson isn't the easily recognisable stereotype he was when still alive....Leonard Maltin's explanatory announcements before cartoons that would offend the offendable are crystal clear even to those of heightened offensitivity, and preferable to just consigning these cartoons to the bin of history.
If I have a criticism it is that they are not generally available in the uk (all should have the chance to see these).
An especial treat is to see "Steamboat Willie" with a sequence not normally seen, it wasn't on the VHS issue of 1982, and despite being featured in an Ub Iwerks documentary had been excised from the copy of the cartoon that followed the documentary!
Buy it. Its like will not be seen again otherwise, and that would be a crying shame.
16 Memories of Mickey
These classic shorts from 1928-1935 are worth every penny that you pay for them. We all know who Mickey Mouse is, but how many of us truly have seen him in his infancy days? This DVD shows a classic in the works. It may not necessarily be for younger viewers because the animation is simply not near the kind of storyline and animation style of today. But it is meant more for the adult who truly appreciates the time and musical work that went into these old but classic shorts.
This is a history of Mickey Mouse in the making. As an adult I truly enjoy seeing different animation styles. These shorts are fun and show the work of a great and forever-living character. I'm very happy that these shorts, which are difficult to find on televison, are now available.
Please remember: your younger children may not enjoy them. This collection is mostly for the child in the adult. It's probably best to watch these shorts as an entertaining way to see a classic character evolve into what we know today.
17 Walt Disney Treasures Part 6: Mickey's Haydays
Walt Disney Treasures Review 6: Mickey Mouse in Black & White;
This is the sixth Walt Disney Treasure. This treasure is one of the four cartoon sets. Mickey Mouse in Black and White begins inside the Walt Disney Treasure Theater. Leonard Maltin introduces the format. When at the main menu, you may choose to go visit the films in alphabetical order or chronoligical. The shows will be listed in Chronoligical. On Disc 1, you will see the pioneering films: "Steamboat Willie," "The Gallopin' Gaucho," "Plne Crazy," "The Karnival Kid," "Mickey's Follies," "The Fire Fighters," "The Chain Gang," "The Gorilla Mystery," "Pioneer Days," "The Birthday Party," "Mickey Steps Out," "Blue Rythm," "Mickey Cuts Up," "Mickey's Orphans," "The Duck Hunt," "Mickey's Revue," "Mickey's Nightmare," "The Whoopee Party," "Touchdown Mickey," and "The Klondike Kid." Head over after watching all of these to the Bonus Features. Here, you will see a featurette called, "Frank and Ollie...And Mickey." Here, Leonard talks about the history of Mickey Cartoons with those two animators. Second, is the Story Scripts. Here, You will see the story scripts for two films, "Steamboat Willie" and "Mickey Steps Out." The final feature on disc one is Story Sketch Sequences, when there are sketches telling parts of some of the cartoons being shown on the screen. There are sequences for: "Blue Rythm," "Mickey Cuts Up," "Mickey's Orphans," "Mickey's Nightmare," "The Whoopee Party," "Touchdown Mickey," and "The Klondike Kid." There is an intro by Leonard before all of the shows. On disc 2, it starts with an intro by Leonard, than go to the Chronoligical order and watch these shorts: "Building a Building," "The Mad Doctor," "Ye Olden Days," "The Mail Pilot," "Mickey's Gala Premier," "Puppy Love," "The Pet Store," "Giantland," "Camping Out," "Gulliver Mickey," "Orphan's Benefit," "The Dognapper," "Two-Gun Mickey," and "Mickey's Service Station." Then go to Bonus Features, where you will find a pencil test for, "The Mail Pilot," A Poster Gallery with audio attachments with Leonard Maltin speaking about select posters, and even more story sketch sequences. There are sequences for, "Building a Building," "The Mad Doctor," "Ye Olden Days," "Puppy Love," "The Pet Store," "Giantland," "Camping Out," "Gulliver Mickey," "Orphan's Benefit," "The Dognapper," "Two-Gun Mickey," and "Mickey's Service Station." There is an intro at the beginning. This set included just over 30 films, half of the original Black and Whites. There should be a second set coming out with the Black and Whites soon. This set all comes in a Limited 250,000 tin with a booklet and collectible lithograph. Get your copy now. You won't regret it. There is something for everyone if you are one or one hundred and one.
Also avaible:
Silly Symphonies
Mickey Mouse in Living Color
Disneyland USA
Davy Crockett
Behind the Scenes at Walt Disney Studios
The Complete Goofy
Look for Reviews by me at these sites or visit the about me link here on this page.
18 Very entertaining
All of these cartoons, I'm seeing for the first time. I'm 21 years old and have no cable, just to give you an idea of my experience with Mickey Mouse. Before I bought this, I had only seen bits and pieces of Steamboat Willie and Plane crazy. I've very proud of owning this DVD set. It even comes in a nice metal container!
The cartoons are very funny. Lots of slapstick, singing objects, and Mickey smoking cigars in front of a beer. In that age of animation, characters were allowed to drink liquor(Tom & Jerry have gotten drunk quite a few times!) and smoke cigars(ohhhh, I've seen lots of that in old cartoons). This is very fun to watch. There's also tons of information, like the cultural reference of a character yelling "MAMMY!" when they get soot on their face. There was an entertainer back then that put on black makeup and sang a song called "MAMMY!". The term can be offensive to African-Americans today.
I love this DVD set. Some of the visual gags remind me of Tex Avery cartoons. I never knew Walt Disney and his talented crew were THIS good! Definitly something to watch many times. Who CARES if it's black and white, has scratches and is old? It's good stuff.
19 The Mickey Mouse of our grandfathers
Review of the movie: Walt Disney began his animation carrer, working for Chales Mintz; Walt was the creator of many series of silent cartoons (The "Alice" shorts, where he mixed live action with animation (he didn't invented it, Max Fleischer invented this) and where Peg Leg Pete made his debut, and the Oswald Rabbit cartoons (something like MM but with long ears)... suddendly, Mintz cut out the money for the WD shorts, and he (and Ub Iwerks) quited, and began to work on their own.
The first attempt to made animation was Mickey Mouse (with silent cartoons (Plane Crazy and Galloping Gaucho)), but it was ignored by the public... then Walt Disney had a great idea!, what if the make sound cartoons? (in a almost speechless era in the movies), and he released "Steamboat Willie" that was a big hit in 1928 (Ub Iwerks almost did all the animation for those shorts), from here, Mickey Mouse was a big star, and Felix the Cat and Oswald were straight to the bottom.
The earlier MM cartoons are a little "surreal" and with some "weird humor" (they were similar to the Felix the Cat shorts..., in these shorts, you can expect some Political Incorrect stuff (like MM torturing animals, or some black faces characters, so parental discression is warned), but affortunatelly, in thos non-PC short, you get a disclaimer from Leonard Maltin.
The DVD review: The remastering of those shorts are good (but could be better... perhaps couldn't be perfect because those shorts are almost 70 years old), the sound is good, but you must not expect a Dolby surround 5.1 (considering the age of the cartoons), the amount of the short are good, but could be better (the second disk only have 2 pages of shorts, while the goofy collection have 4), the extras are good (an interview with Frank and Ollie (animators from the Disney era), some picture galleries) but the best feature of the DVD are the shorts themselves; in the foreign language support, only english audio and closed caption in english (some spanish subtitles would be good, but i guess that the WD treasures are intended for the US market only :( )
This is a great DVD for all the animation fans outthere (like me), but maybe the kids will find it boring; if you find this DVD in stock somewhere, don't hesitate and buy it (because there where only 125000 copies)
20 Great overall....
...the 34 shorts are wonderful and they can be play either in closed-captioned (CC) or subtitled but for the rest of DVD features such as Frank and Ollie...and Mickey, introductions by Maltin and a few others they are not closed-captioned or subtitled and that was very disappointing.
21 Good for film students, might be boring for kids
I got this one mostly because it has the first Mickey film "Steamboat Willie", and also out of a sense of curiosity about what the early films were like.
The selections are all pretty clear but still sometimes scratchy, guess the restoration people couldn't fix everything. I found the stories to be rather boring, posibly because the age in which they were produced makes them so alien to modern sensibilities (Maltin touches on this in discussing the types of humor, racial stereotypes were one example).
I found that I didn't like most of the stories except for that one Mickey and the beanstalk story- Giantland(?). I did think it was interesting to see an early version of Goofy, then called Dippy Dawg, little resemblance to Goofy as he is today.
Film students/historians will find something to watch here, casual viewers and small children will be bored.
22 Almost got it right
My kids and I love these Mickey classics! My 4 year-old watches in awe...however, I would love to be able to play these in their entirity so that when I have to take care of something around the house, I don't have to be beholden to the TV every 10 minutes. Disney managed to set up the "School House Rock" DVD in exactly that way. You have the option of watching any one part, group of shorts together, or the whole DVD uninterrupted...they could have managed with this one. I am very happy that this is my only complaint, but I don't think I would purchase more like this.
23 Big Disappointment
This DVD is a big disappointment relative to Silly Symphonies or the Mickey Mouse in Color series. First, Disney inserts unnecessary and definitely not-entertaining commentary by Leonard Maltin in many places throughout the DVDs. There are a few very minor, insensitive references to ethnic groups in the cartoons which would probably go unnoticed, but Maltin draws unwarranted attention to them. Secondly, unlike the first "Mickey" treasures collection, this one has no "play all" button. So you have to go back into the TV room every nine minutes to turn on another cartoon for your youngster! If you could get beyond these two great annoyances, you would find the actual cartoons entertaining.
24 It all Started with a Mouse
This collection of black-and-white Mickey Mouse shorts from the 1920s and 30s is a treasure trove of vintage shorts. Not only does the DVD set feature some of Mickey's better-known shorts like "Steamboat Willie" or "Orphan's Benefit", but also some equally charming rarities such as "The Gorilla Mystery" and "Blue Rhythm". All of the included shorts, unlike previoud showings of these shorts on Television, are also uncensored and many feature introductions by film historian Leonard Maltin to put into perspective what would be considered today as politically incorrect. Bonus features are also included including an interesting look at the original Mickey Mouse Clubs in the 1930s and pencil tests and sketches from the disk's shorts. The shorts themselves may not be as flashy or action-packed as many of today's cartoons, but these music and joke-filled films are full of nostalgia and are must-haves for any Disney fan.
25 Great Mickey DVD,but gets a F for features
The Dvd has some great Mickey shorts on it.The problems comes with a lack of play all feature.some people say disney did this so little kids could not see all the so called bad shots.Well if there that bad release Song of the south on dvd,if disney will release this then they could do the same for song of the south.I think the feature was just left out by accident,if not this will be the last disney treasure I will buy.the goofy dvd has the same problem.Letter to DISNEY FIX IT,or lots of loss sales will follow.
26 This DVD is fantastic!
"It could have been perfect, but some geniuses disable the "play all" feature in this and Goofy's DVD. Well Mr. "Genius" you made it again"
Well maybe the genuises wanted the DVD buying community to not be so lazy to not be able to select another cartoon from the menu! Comon people. That is no reason to give a DVD 1 star. This cartoon collection is made for the adults benefit, not some kid who's glued to the television all day. The DVD is fantastic. Leonard Maltin provides introductions for the more "contrivercial" cartoons and puts them in their proper context. The picture is superb, especially for these cartoons being almost 70 years old. I hope Warner Brothers realizes that there is a market for classic cartoons and releases their Looney Tunes in this type of format.
27 The Mistake That Wasn't
After reading a review of this excellent DVD set on a site called cartoonresearch.com I understand now why there was no "PLAY ALL" feature. Many of these cartoons have many stereotypes, some "unsocial" activity from the Mouse, himself and "Mammy" of course...these cartoons are not to be shown for 4-year old kids....after all many of you may be parents that would like to sit their child unattended in front of the TV but you can't because of the fact there's no "PLAY ALL" feature. But the kids will probably find these boring and may get the wrong impression. true, many of you will disagree but the abscence of "PLAY ALL" isn't a mistake after all. Well at least on this DVD set.
28 A solution for the lack of "Play All" problem
This is a great DVD collection. Even my wife and my 2 year old son sit in awe and watch this. It's an even break from all the flashy shows my son watches. As for the play all problem, go to a seldom used option built right into most dvd players: random play. It works great until you hit the chapters that show the storyboards, then you have to manually skip through it. It works better on the Goofy DVD set since there are no storyboards to stall it up. As for the cartoons themselves, my kid loves them. He laughs harder at these than he does most other shows. A blast for all ages.
29 I wish this hadn't been rushed
Generally I found the title amusing. I found that the inability to play all shorts without interruption (like on previous "Treasures..." releases) rather frustrating. Maltin's comments while factual and informative really didn't need to dwell on the politically incorrectness of the some of the shorts. In case most of the viewers didn't realize, all the shorts were done before the "enlightenment" of the politically correct movement.
However, what frustrated me the most was:
1. Consistent poor mastering. I know these are old shorts, I know it was probably difficult - but please, please clean up the sound. I don't expect 5.1 Digital, but stereo with out hisses and pops would be nice. I suppose it would be difficult to remove the scratches and other artifacts in the video - but this is their corporate symbol they placed on the DVD, they needed to show some more respect and care. Disney, next time you release these, clean up the presentation or don't bother.
2. Inconsistency between shorts. Some shorts started off with the original credits and musical score. Other shorts started off with a newly created (probably circa 1980's) screen that displayed the year the short was originally released and then it was off to the original credits and musical score. Even my 6-year-old son noticed the difference - Walt must have rolled in his grave over this lack of attention to details.
Otherwise this title is delightfull and should be purchased by any serious Disney/Mickey Mouse fan. However, the title felt like it was rushed to market.
30 MICKEY MOUSE
IF YOU WATCH THE VIDEO TAPE CALLED "HERE'S MICKEY" THEIR IS A CARTOON NAMED ORPHINS BENIFIT AND ON THIS DVD ITS THE SAME EXACT CARTOON, EXCEPT ITS IN BLACK AND WHITE. WHY WOULD DISNET DO THAT???
31 Another DVD without "Play all"
It could have been perfect, but unfortunately the "play all" feature is disabled as in Goofy's DVD.
32 This Is A TREASURE
This truly is a Walt Disney Treasure. These are some of the finest cartoons of all time including the firsts "Plane Crazy", "The Gallopin' Gaucho", "Steamboat Willie" and some favorites "The Klondike Kid", "Touchdown Mickey", "The Chain Gang", "Mickey's Nightmare", and "Mickey's Service Station". I wish "Mickey's Good Deed" was on here since that is definently one of the bests. But if there's a volume 2 It'll be on there. And lack of the PLAY ALL feature is dissapointing but these shorts rock the house and if you are an animation fan you HAVE to buy this. I wouldn't say its for kids though as they will find the cartoons "Dumb" and "Boring". How sad for them.
33 M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!
I love this collection. I got this DVD set for Christmas and I enjoyed it. The Bonus Features include very rare material. And I know two rare materials you can get. They are both on disc 1. Insert Disc 1, from the main menu go to the Bonus Materials. Highlight the entry "register your DVD" and then press the "up" arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight Mickey's hat. Press Enter. You will get to see a brief introduction with Lenoard Maltin about the original Mickey Mouse Clubs' being held in theaters. Then you will get a cartoon that was shown during these Mickey Mouse Club events. After that you will get a news reel about Mickey Mouse.
34 Mickey Mouse, before he turned in a corporate logo
This collection, without a doubt, is aimed to adults, why?
1.- The kids is going to find those early cartoons boring (no plot, a lot of music, no computer effects, etc)
2.- Mickey Mouse can be sometimes, naughty.
Yeah! this MM is closer to Felix the cat, than the modern Mickey Mouse, specially in the "Steamboat Willie" short (by the way, in this collection, this short is intact, with all the animal abuse); in those early cartoon, you find a surrealistic, sexist, animal abuser Mickey Mouse.
If you're a fan of the animation golden era, this is a worth buying.
In the specifications of this collection, the video is good (for shorts that are 70 years old), the sound is good also (but don't expect surrond 5.1)... there aren't spanish (or other languages) subtitles, but almost are useless, mostly of these shorts have no dialog (they have a lot of music and effects... but they are almost speechless).
In the goodies zone, there are an interesting featurette with two Disney animators from that era, storyboard from many shorts (including Steamboat Willie), pencil tests, and other goodies.
Besides, there are some flaws: the abscent PLAY ALL function, the abscence of the short where Donald Duck made his debut (and other B/W shorts), and that Leonard Maltin mistakes when he says that Felix the Cat was created by Pat Sullivan (when is widely known that Pat stolled him from his employee, Otto Messmer).
A great collection.... not greater than Complete Goofy, but it worth the price
35 What Mickey Mouse outfit removed the "PLAY ALL" feature?
The cartoons are great, the DVD's lack of "PLAY ALL" menu item makes viewing these cartoons annoying. The person that made the decision to leave out this menu option should get the "What were you thinking award!"
36 Keep Pushing Buttons!
I couldnt agree more, that this is a significant addition to everyones cartoon library. I dont have the presence of mind to argue the pc of cartoons created before pc existed. I can tell you though, that the play value, ( not the replay value ) is significantly reduced by the lack of an play all option. Why instead of enjoying this collection, am I forced to continualy KEEP PUSHING BUTTONS?! Mickey in Living color, and Silly Symphonies, both have this basic feature. What has changed? Disney Wake Up!!! If I want to push buttons, I'll play video games. The only reason this collection does not get five stars, is the lack of a play all feature. Why take a beautiful collection like this, and make you KEEP PUSHING BUTTONS!
For the end of this review,
Push the Button.
37 Hidden bonus - If you like finding them, read no further.
I'm not going to elaborate on the 2 disc set. As far as I'm concerned, it's a five star set that apoligizes for not being PC.
On disc one, there is a hidden bonus.
STOP HERE IF YOU WANT TO FIND IT YOURSELF.
The hidden bonus is Malton's explanation of the 1920's - 1930's Mickey Mouse club, the (extremely rare) "Minnie's YooHoo" cartoon that usually began the Mickey Mouse club meetings, And a news reel on a 2 day festival.
The 2 ways that you can obtain the hidden bonus:
1. First go to the bonus material menu. Then right arrow down till you highlight "Register your dvd". Then press the up arrow.
At this point, Mickey's cowboy hat should have turned blue. Press play, and it will start. (Malton intro is chapter 1, Minnie's YooHoo is chapter 2, 2 day festival is chapter 3).
2. After going to the bonus menu, press 6 on your remote.
Incidently, to bypass the nonPC apology from Malton that occurs several times, press the forward to next chapter arrow on your remote (ie: those cartoons that contain the Malton speech are broken up into 2 chapters - the speech (ch. 1), and the cartoon (ch. 2)).
Enjoy.
38 felix the cat-clon, mickey mouse
I really think a lot about buying this collection, but when i readed that this collection was uncut, like the goofy collection, i gave it a chance, and i love it.
Maybe those shorts are less funny than the WB or Goofy cartoons, but is a pleasure look MM doing things, that he would never do when he was turned into a corporate logo; this Mickey Mouse look closer than Felix the Cat from the early years, than the following MM (in color).
This collection is a must-be for al those animation fans out there (the only lack is the absence of the Play All function, and the abscence of other languages besides the english)
Ah! by the way, the "Leonard Maltin commentary" has a terrible flaw; he says that Felix the Cat was created by Pat Sullivan, and today, everybody knows that Pat stoled it from Otto Messmer and was credited as the author, until recent years that this secret was unveiled.
39 felix the cat-clon, mickey mouse
I really think a lot about buying this collection, but when i readed that this collection was uncut, like the goofy collection, i gave it a chance, and i love it.
Maybe those shorts are less funny than the WB or Goofy cartoons, but is a pleasure look MM doing things, that he would never do when he was turned into a corporate logo; this Mickey Mouse look closer than Felix the Cat from the early years, than the following MM (in color).
This collection is a must-be for al those animation fans out there (the only lack is the absence of the Play All function, and the abscence of other languages besides the english)
40 Could have been better
This is a wonderful collection of delightful cartoons. Only some of them have been available on VHS (or VCD) in recent years, sometimes in "colorized" versions. It's an eye-opener to see the original black-and-white animation, which is technically more primitive, but not inferior in energy or artistry, to the color animation that soon displaced it. I have three reservations. First, the collection is not complete. Given that this is a canon that will not be expanded and is not often reissued, it could and should have included all the MM b&w cartoons from 1928 to 1935. [Postscript: Volume II of Mickey Mouse in Black and White is scheduled for release in December, 2004.] Second, like the player queen in Hamlet, Leonard Maltin "doth protest too much," that is, apologizes too much (at some half-dozen points on the disks)for aspects of the cartoons that would not make it past the censor today. Are we so Puritanical in 2002 that we need a sociological explanation of Mickey pulling a cat's tail, or smoking a cigarette? These are cartoons, for Pete's sake. Even the arguably more offensive matters, such as (mild) racial stereotypes, are over-explained by Maltin. Perhaps this was necessary to get the cartoons past today's guardians of political correctness, but I hope not. Finally, and most important, the cartoons show the destructive effect of time on negatives and prints, with little evidence of clean-up. One hoped for more effort at digital restoration, a la the Snow White DVD. But these are tough times at Disney, and perhaps budgets are restricted.
41 What I always wanted, but the menu is goofed
I have waited and hoped for years that these old B&W cartoons would be released on DVD. My friends all call me crazy because teh first thing I played on my state of the art DVD player and HD TV projection home theater system was "Skeleton Dance".
I love these cartoons, and enjoy Maltin's setting up of the context of these gems.
But one of my favorite ways to play the other colleciotns Mickey Mouse and the Silly Simphonies) is to let them play continuously in hte background at parties.
This DVD does not allow that. It REALLY irks me! I'm hoping that it is just an oversight and will be corrected in a revision. I'd be happy to buy it over again to get that feature.
42 The "other" Mickey
Having grown up with the impression that Micky Mouse was no more than a wholesome, no nonsense gentlemouse (who, honestly, bored most of the kids of my generation), I was truly shocked when I first put in these DVDs. Mickey once burgeoned with personality and naughtiness.
"Steamboat Willie" has Mickey turning animals into musical instruments by beating on them, squishing them, stepping on them, throwing them by their tails, etc. If that wasn't enough "Plane Crazy" has Mickey torturing poor Minnie in a small airplane: when she refuses to kiss him, he rolls the plane, dives and barnstorms. When the plane is again level, Minnie is trembling with fear. Mickey just smiles and asks once again for a kiss. This clearly isn't the Mickey Mouse I know, and I was beginning to suspect why these black and white cartoons were so hard to find. Years ago, there was an edition put out on laser disc (remember those?!?!) but that's the only other definitive collection I've ever seen until now. Perhaps Disney didn't want to soil Mickey's reputation, as Leonard Maltin says in one of the DVDs commentaries.
If you can swallow a little cruelty and early twentieth century sterotypes (there are numerous "Mammy" references as well, and Native Americans are treated rather badly in one toon where they're depicted as scalping, hooting bloodthirsty wolves) these cartoons are a blast. I didn't expect to laugh so much, particularly at the early toons by Ub Iwerks(one of the greatest names of all time). They have a style and personality that the late Mickey lacks to this day.
The DVD set also shows Mickey becoming more and more "proper" as the years go on. By disk two the hilarity starts to calm, and I found myself laughing less and less until disk two's finale: "Mickey's Service Station" which has Mickey, Donald and Goofy in their familar roles. It's a good way to end the disk.
The supplementary material is also helpful, but Leonard Maltin's commentary could have been compacted into one presentation rather than spread throughout the DVDs. I became annoyed with seeing Maltin every third or fourth time I pressed "Play" when I expected to see a cartoon. His commentary and interviews do give good background information, but I would rather not have them shoved in my face.
In short, a great collection that explains Mickey Mouse's popularity for those of us unfamiliar with his early wild days, and a host of culturally significant debuts: Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald, Pluto. Buy it and get to know all sides of the mouse that once roared very loudly and naughtily.
43 No continuous Play?
I can't take exception to the reviews of these shorts form the standpoint historical significance, although I'm not sure how 90 out of 91 people agreed with a review posted over 2 months before the DVD was released...What DOES irk me though is the inability to play the discs non-stop. Someone at Disney decided we would be better served to return to the menu after each cartoon. Can't speak for others, and I hope this is important information to some of you, but I consider this to significantly lower the "replay factor".
44 Minus a star for DVD menu faux pas
For the most part, the reviews here are on target. This is an important collection of historical animation. It's important to note that these appear to be unedited. I have no reference of the original features, but I do instantly recognize additional material that isn't shown on Disney's "Ink and Paint Club" on the rare occasions when they show the back & whites.
What is most disappointing about this collection is that you can't play the features consecutively. The conclusion of each feature takes you back to the menu. Did someone at Disney conclude that the public would not want to watch these one after another? This impacts the disc's playability - knowing you're going to have to pick up the remote every five minutes to watch the entire thing - that 33 times if you want to watch the both discs in one sitting.
45 Mickey is Great -- Maltin is Not.
I haven't yet watched both discs in their entirety, but am thoroughly enjoying the shorts I've viewed so far. It is fascinating to see how Mickey, and his surroundings, change and improve over the years, from the crudely simplistic style of the earlist cartoons, to the more elaborate and 'colorful' (though still b&w, of course) films of half a decade later.
The set lost a star, in my view, because Leonard Maltin's commentary becomes extremely annoying. While the general introduction at the start of the first disc is fine, do we really need to see, before almost every story, the same reminder that .. gosh... life was different in the 1920's and '30's, so some of the humor might be "politically incorrect" by 21st century standards? While the message may be worth hearing, it could have easily been placed in the general intro, so we don't have to view it over and over again. (Or, he could have tailored his comments to each individual story, noting what was un-PC about that particular film. Instead, we get two generalized apologies; one explaining that Mickey sometimes smokes/drinks/chews/is cruel to animals, and one talking about ethnic stereotypes.)
My favorite, of the stories I've viewed so far, is "The Karnival Kid." Those hot dogs...
46 it's good
it's good and stuff. watch it and stuff. really and stuff.
don't forget the things, too. and stuff.
47 A decent collection of Mickey Mouse shorts
The newest set of Walt Disney Treasure DVDs are excellent collector's items. The Mickey Mouse in Black and White set has a decent selection of shorts that highlight early Mickey Mouse development.
48 Finally available again
This is a set that has been deserving to be put out for the past decade. As stated in other reviews, not all of the Mickey B&W cartoons are here, but the character is well represented by what is here. Its fun to watch the character evolve from Plane Crazy and Steamboat Willie as a happy-go-lucky sort to Mickey's Service Station where he is in the process of being straight man to Donald Duck and Goofy. The majority of the cartoons are fun to watch some near 70 years after their premiere with the sight gags usually associated with cartoons take a back seat to the musical and sound experimenting the studio revolutionized in animation. The sets only drawbacks are that the collection is incomplete (hopefully another Mickey set is due) and the play feature does not let you watch one cartoon to another as you have to select each and everyone. If you're looking at this set to make you feel the kid in your heart and relive times long ago, you'll not be disappointed and its well worth the price.
49 Just might be the most important cartoons of our time
The DVD is as good as it gets.These are one of the greatest and most important cartoons to see.This is a must have DVD and a very great thing to own.
50 Simply Fascinating - Thank You Walt Disney & Leonard Maltin
This DVD set is a real treasure. I am considering buying another copy just in case something happens to the one I already own.
It should be noted that the material presented on this DVD set (two discs) is absolutely intact. Even cartoons that contain ethnic and/or racial jokes and animal abuse gags, which might be considered offensive to some people today, are absolutely uncensored. Leonard Maltin should be congratulated for his effort to present these animated masterpieces in their original form. Maltin appears before every cartoon that contains politically incorrect bits and helps contextualize these films within the historical/cultural period in which they were made. He emphasizes over and over again that "to judge these films by today's norms and standards would be rather foolish". Warner Bros and MGM should learn from this DVD collection and realize that altering/censoring historical documents (and these cartoons ARE documents from our past) or locking them away is much more shameful than risking offending a few people who, if they take themselves so seriously to be offended by seeing animated films out of historical/cultural context, probably deserve to be offended. To lock these films just because we may find some of their contents inappropriate, to quote Leonard Maltin once again, "would be a real shame".
Having said that, you'll be happy to know that "Steamboat Willie" on this DVD set is presented in its ORIGINAL form. I've seen this film a million times, but I've never realized that what I'd been watching all these years was a CENSORED version of Mickey's `first' film. Now, for the first time, you can see how very naughty Mickey was in his first theatrical appearance. The scene that I'm talking about comes right after Mickey finishes pulling little piglets' tails (I won't give out what happens).
This is also a warning to the easily offended parents, who want to buy this set for their kids, but who think that their children should, by all means, remain within the boundaries of magically enchanting, politically correct, shiny fairyland: You better get "Mickey's House of Mouse", or "Mickey's Magical Christmas and/or Easter" (whatever), or some other cheap simulacral garbage in colour.
Oh, yes...Real animation fans will also be pleased to see that the short "Pioneer Days" on this DVD set has its ORIGINAL ending. The ending of this film on the existing releases (including the laser disc) is incredibly abrupt and I've always wondered why Disney animators would do such a horrible job in terms of the story development, climax, and closure. Now I have my answer - they wouldn't and they didn't !!!!! The copies that we've had so far were incomplete. This cartoon makes much more sense with its original closure and, here it is, presented in its original form for your viewing pleasure on this fascinating DVD set.
The material on this DVD is digitally restored and looks amazing, especially taking into account how old these cartoons are. The menus are user-friendly and you can access the cartoons either in chronological or in alphabetical order. The only big flaw is that both discs lack the "Play All" option.
I have been very critical of Disney in the past (especially when they released a butchered/censored version of "Fantasia" (1940) and bluntly lied on the DVD cover that it was Walt Disney's original version). But, this time, we should all take our hats off to both Walt Disney studio and Leonard Maltin for presenting these masterpieces of classical animation in a wonderful uncensored format.
Warner Bros and MGM, learn from Disney !!!!
51 Surprises From the Revisionist Disney Empire
I was leery of this set, but bought it without hesitation. My greatest concern was that the highly revisionist modern-day Disney would butcher these early, rude 'n' crude Mickey Mouse cartoons, which are rife with animal abuse, drinking, smoking and racial/cultural stereotypes. These cartoons are so much better and livelier than the stale, dull "Silly Symphonies," which are important historically but bland as tapioca. Maltin provides on-screen mea culpas for the blackface gags and outhouse humor, but defends every American's right to see these pieces of our cultural history, and to view them with hindsight and intelligence. That said, these 34 cartoons are corkers. It will surprise some to see how zany and surrealistic these early Mickeys are. They are almost as daffy as the pre-Code Betty Boop cartoons of the Fleischer brothers. My favorite is the anarchic "The Karnival Kid," a 1928 cartoon that made me laugh non-stop. Transfers are decent, considering the age and condition of these films. Some obviously suffered vault neglect, and given the volatility of nitrate film stock, I suppose we're lucky to have them at all. There is little to no tampering that I could see, tho' the 1930-32 cartoons have something weird going on with the title cards. You'll see what I mean when you view them. I wonder why they re-did the cartoon titles, and why they're so jerky and wobbly. The extras are quite thoughtful, and more substantial than on the "Silly Symphonies" set. This is essential viewing for anyone who loves the rough and tumble days of pioneer animation.
52 Risque' Mickey!
That's right, Mickey's somewhat of an animal abuser, politically incorrect and sexist! IT'S GREAT! Disney has impressed me this time around, by making this collection FOR ADULTS. Thank you! In the uncensored "Steamboat Willie", Mickey plays a female hog's teats like a xylophone! Wait'll you see the script for this scene! He kicks animals out of the way, forces his affections on Minnie in a couple of cartoons...man! Mickey kicks some serious butt in these old 'toons that begin in 1928 and run thru 1935. Let's face it, not many young kids will get a kick out of these...they won't care for the antique animation, the black and white, the lack of special effects or even the plotlines. But we who appreciate these early 'toons for their POLITICAL INCORRECTNESS, nostalgia and artwork need this in our collections. Included is an Easter egg of the FIRST "Mickey Mouse Club", a club that was held in movie theaters in the 30's. You will definitely get a kick out of these...you can view them in chronological or alphabetical order as well. Thanks again, Disney...looks like you're getting on the right track for those who were the first to grow up with you.
53 Glad to see old animation is being released in good order!
This is great for any animation/Disney fan, though the price should be lower. This shows Disney in it's early days. I can get 4 hours of WB cartoons for 10 dollars in a 2-pack.
54 Before the Mouse was domesticated
Of Mickey Mouse, E.M. Forster once noted, "Certainly one would not recognize him in a trap." This collection of early Mouse cartoons shows Mickey before he became a corporate symbol and his impish humor was toned down. (In the course of the series, you can see Mickey's character whittled down to a mere straight man, while supporting characters gradually steal the lion's share of laughs.)
Many of these cartoons were made before the Production Code was enforced, and they feature language and behavior that would shock a family audience today. But for animation fans who complain that the Disney studio was always too innocent and sentimental for its own good, this package is a useful corrective. It's about as far away from fairy tales and suburban reveries as it can get -- much closer to the surreal antics of the Fleischer studio than the sitcom blandness of later Disney films.
The quality of video and audio transfers varies widely from cartoon to cartoon. The picture ranges from adequate to excellent, and the sound, adapted from original source materials, is quite good given the age and condition of the source material. The plentiful extras are geared more to animation buffs than general viewers, but they're consistently interesting. Disney has put together a terrific package here, possibly the best of the "Walt Disney Treasures" series to date.
Warning to parents: Many of these cartoons (especially the ones made before 1933) are not for children.
55 I am exciting in getting this!
The classic VHS classic collection was out of print. This is the time to take this collection again. It is a must have for those Disney fans and animators.
56 Mickey Mouse in B&W...
Despite this being a seminal moment in DVD history having the black and white Mickey Mouse cartoons available in the best possible digital format, this Disney Treasures collection is not a complete set. As mentioned, this set will contain 34 black and white MM shorts, but they are only selections out of about 75 made between 1928-1935. Last year's "Silly Symphonies" collection was put together in a similar way with a little more than half of the 73 or so made. Rumors are that next year's DT series will include a "Mickey Mouse in Living Color Vol. 2", which means that host/compiler Leonard Maltin possibly intends to include second volumes of past and future collections in this series that don't contain everything in one set due to large amounts originally produced. When these MM black and white shorts were available on laserdisc years ago, they were also released in two volumes.
Here is a complete list of the B&W selections on this collection (year-by-year) straight from the Disney press release:
1928--"Steamboat Willie", "The Gallopin' Gaucho", "Plane Crazy" (actually the first official Mickey Mouse short--originally silent with sound added later and re-released following the success of "SW").
1929--"The Karnival Kid", "Mickey's Follies"
1930--"The Fire Fighters", "The Chain Gang", "The Gorilla Mystery", "The Pioneer Days"
1931--"The Birthday Party", "Mickey Steps Out", "Blue Rhythm", "Mickey Cuts Up", "Mickey's Orphans"
1932--"The Duck Hunt", "Mickey's Revue", "Mickey's Nightmare", "The Whoopee Party", "Touchdown Mickey", "The Klondike Kid"
1933--"Building a Building", "The Mad Doctor", "Ye Olden Days", "The Mail Pilot", "Mickey's Gala Premiere", "Puppy Love", "The Pet Store", "Giantland"
1934--"Camping Out", "Gulliver Mickey", "Orphan's Benefit", "The Dognapper", "Two-Gun Mickey"
1935--"Mickey's Service Station" (Curiously, "Mickey's Kangaroo" is not included here. This was really the last B&W Mickey cartoon done shortly after he premiered in color in "The Band Concert").
The press release has stated that, in addition to all the features mentioned above, there will also be rare footage of the only MM B&W pencil test known to exist. This pencil test was done for "The Mail Pilot." Also, new interviews were apparently done with the legendary animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston for the documentary. Much-needed audio commentary (presumably by Leonard Maltin) has also been added to the poster gallery on disc 2 that was absent from last year's "Mickey Mouse in Living Color."
For those not acquainted with last year's "Mickey Mouse in Living Color": that collection collects Mickey's first three years in color between 1935-1938. Next year's rumored Vol. 2 will probably complete the color Mickey, going up to his last short under Walt Disney--"The Simple Gifts" (1953).
More rumors for next year's DT series: "Wartime Cartoons" (originally intended for this year) and "The Chronological Donald" (obviously the first phase of the many Donald Duck cartoons produced through the 1930's-1960's).
57 It all started with a mouse...
Over the years Mickey Mouse has become more of a corporate symbol as opposed to a cartoon character in his own right. Today his smiling face and famous ears grace a million and one products, and he is arguably one of the most famous fictional characters of all time.
Here at last is the original Mickey in the full black and white splendor. See, perhaps for the first time, why this clever, spunky and all-together likeable little guy achieved the fame he currently enjoys. Walt Disney Treasures collection continues in a fine tradition with "Mickey Mouse in Black and White." Chronicling the birth and rise of an American icon, included on this DVD are all of Mickey"s black and white shorts. From the famous first synchronized sound cartoon "Steamboat Willie" to his final black and white appearance in "Mickey's Service Station," all 34 toons are included complete and uncut with original soundtracks.
As if this wasn't enough, "Mickey Mouse in Black and White" contains interviews with animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, rare pencil tests and other earlier visualizations of Mickey. Leonard Maltin adds his commentary has he has on other Disney Treasures DVDs.
What a fantastic collection!
