BY JOHN RIGGINS

How to Draw Mickey Mouse Tutorial

Instruction and navigation

Drawing anything takes a lot of brainpower. The artist has to evaluate, analyze and contextualize the object to be drawn. In this tutorial we will be drawing everyone’s favorite Walt Disney character, Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse has a long and storied history, so in the side bar of this tutorial his story will be explored. To participate in this tutorial the student should have a piece of paper and pencil to follow along with the drawing steps. The sidebar which explains the highpoints in Mickey’s career will contain information that will tested at the end of the PowerPoint. You can navigate this Tutorial with these buttons

Beginnings

Mickey Mouse is 80 years old so it’s a good thing that cartoon characters don’t age like people. In 1927 Walt Disney worked for Universal Studios as a part of their animation division. Disney stumbled upon a hit with his creation Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Oswald was a hug success and Universal ordered a series of cartoon shorts. The next year (1928) Walt Disney tried to renegotiate a new contract with Universal. Disney felt that his new character gave him a certain amount of leverage. When negotiations reached an impasse the Studio went behind Disney’s back and hired all his employees out from underneath him. They offered Disney a contract with less money. Universal Studios retained the rights to Walt’s characters such as Oswald the Rabbit. Walt Disney learned an important lesson and from then on he made sure he held all the rights to his characters.

Mickey Mouse: A Star is Drawn

In the spring of 1928 Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks the sole animator who stayed with Walt’s animation studio pulled their hair trying to brainstorm new ideas. They shortened Oswald’s ears and turned him into a mouse. Walt got the idea from his pet mouse he had as a child back on the farm. The new character was named Mortimer but Walt’s wife Lillian didn’t like the name and eventually it was changed to Mickey. One legend is that the actor Mickey Rooney encouraged Disney to change the name to Mickey.

The Big Screen

The first Mickey Mouse cartoons drew zero attention from the public. This all changed with Steamboat Willie in 1928. Utilizing revolutionary technology the cartoon short used synchronized music and sound effects to enhance the audience’s viewing pleasure. This was made possible by the use of a “click track” to keep musicians in tune with the film. Steamboat Willie was a parody of Buster Keaton’s film Steamboat Bill JR. Disney was able to take advantage of other studio’s reluctance to switch to the “talkies”. Felix the Cat a direct competitor of Mickey was still in silent films when Mickey made his big debut. When Felix the Cat finally switched to sound the public had moved on and the popularity of Mickey Mouse was growing.

Slight changes

Mickey was given his trademark white gloves in the short The Opry House (1929). The short was such a success that a series was ordered and appeared within months. Cartoons such as Plane Crazy which actually predate Steam Boat Willie and features Mickey as a Charles Lindbergh figure wetted the appetite of an adoring public.

A Brand is Born

As Mickey’s popularity skyrocketed, Within two years Walt Disney started a line of merchandise and a fan club for children. In 1935 twelve Mickey Mouse Cartoons were produced with Walt Disney providing the character’s signature high pitched voice. The appeal of the early cartoons lies in their vaudevillian overtones and liberal use of slapstick and puns.

Mickey Mouse’s Golden Age

By the 1950’s Mickey Mouse had a theme park, a newspaper, a comic strip (ran for 45 years) a girlfriend (Minnie Mouse) and a worldwide club Mickey Mouse Club. Early in the 1950’s Mickey’s popularity started to slip as blockbuster films like Bambi and Sleeping Beauty did well at the box office. Between the 1953 short The Simple Things and the 1983 Christmas Special Mickey’s Christmas Carol the character took a long break.

Accolades

Nine of Mickey’s cartoons have been nominated for Academy Awards for Best Animated Short. The cartoon Lend A Paw won the award in 1942. In 1978 Mickey Mouse became the first cartoon character to have a Hollywood star on the Walk of Fame.

Finishing Touches

Enjoy!

Mickey Quiz

Question 1.) Who was the sole artist that stayed with Walt Disney after he left Universal Studios?1.) Stan Lee

2.) Ub Iwerks

3.) Ricky Riccardo

4.) Charles Lindberg

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Mickey Quiz

Question 2.) One of Walt Disney’s first creations was?1.) Eli the Elephant

2.) Joey the Kangaroo

3.) Oswald the Rabbit

4.) Addie the Aadvark

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Mickey Quiz

Question 3.) Steamboat Willie utilized what new technology? 1.) Blue-ray

2.) Technicolor

3.) Click Track

4.) H.D. Camera

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Mickey Quiz

Question 4.) Steamboat Willie, the famous cartoon short staring Mickey Mouse is a parody of what live action film.

1.) Titanic

2.) Tora, Tora, Tora!

3.) Battleship

4.) Steamboat Billie jr.

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Good Job

How did you do on the Mickey quiz?

0/4… Not so good.1/4… You can do better!2/4… Keep at it3/4… Almost there4/4… Great!!

Compare your Mickey Mouse drawing to the example, how does it compare? Does it look anything like Mickey? Do you think the practice could make it look any better?

The End