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"M-I-C-K-E-Y.......M-O-U-S-E

by Maxine

Today, November 18, is the 80th birthday of Mickey Mouse, the brainchild of Walt Disney. He was actually "born" about six months before but the cartoons of a more sinister mouse weren't popular. The first successful cartoon showcasing Mickey was Steamboat Willie in which Minnie drops a paper with a song written on it that is eaten by a goat. The song comes out of his tail. Other animals act as instruments playing the music which is perfectly synchronized to the action.

Over the next ten years, Mickey appeared in over 100 cartoons and his face became more rounded and friendly. He was a great commercial hit even during the Great Depression. The name, "Mickey Mouse" has come to mean other things beside an heroic mouse. It sometimes is used to connote something foolish or amateurish such as a "Mickey Mouse class" in college. Mickey Mouse has also become a standard write-in name on election ballots as a protest vote. Mickey has been on every presidential ballot since he was born.

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