''Mickey's Orphans'' is a 1931 American animated

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

produced by

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...

and released by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

. The cartoon takes place during Christmas time and stars

Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...

Minnie Mouse Minnie Mouse is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. As the longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a bow, polka-dotted dress, white bloomers, and low-heeled shoes occasional ...

, and

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...

, who take in a group of disruptive and mischievous kittens. It is directed by

Burt Gillett Burton F. Gillett (October 15, 1891 – December 28, 1971) was a director of animated films. He is noted for his Silly Symphonies work for Disney, particularly the 1932 short film ''Flowers and Trees'' and the 1933 short film ''Three Little Pi ...

and features the voices of

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

as Mickey and

Marcellite Garner Edna Marcellite Garner ( ; July 3, 1910 – July 26, 1993) was an American artist and voice actress. She is most remembered as the first regular voice of Minnie Mouse during her time working at Walt Disney Productions and has been partially c ...

as Minnie. It was the 36th Mickey Mouse film, the twelfth of that year. The film was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film is an award given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as part of the annual Academy Awards, or Oscars, since the 5th Academy Awards (with different names), covering the year 1 ...

at the

5th Academy Awards The 5th Academy Awards were held by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on November 18, 1932, at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California, hosted by Conrad Nagel. Films screened in Los Angeles between August 1, 1931, and J ...

in 1932, the award's inaugural year. It lost to another Disney film, ''

Flowers and Trees ''Flowers and Trees'' is a 1932 '' Silly Symphonies'' cartoon produced by Walt Disney, directed by Burt Gillett, and released to theatres by United Artists on July 30, 1932. It was the first commercially released film to be produced in the full- ...

'', Disney's first color film. ''Mickey's Orphans'' is a remake of the 1927 Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoon ''

Empty Socks ''Empty Socks'' is a 1927 short animated film made by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks that was considered a lost film until its rediscovery in Norway in 2014. The film stars Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Plot Oswald pretends to be Santa Claus with his hors ...

'', the oldest Disney cartoon with a Christmas theme. The latter was considered lost, but an almost complete copy, missing about one minute, was found in The

National Library of Norway The National Library of Norway ( no, Nasjonalbiblioteket) was established in 1989. Its principal task is "to preserve the past for the future". The library is located both in Oslo and in Mo i Rana. The building in Oslo was restored and reopened ...

in December 2014.

Plot

hooded A hood is a kind of headgear that covers most of the head and neck, and sometimes the face. Hoods that cover mainly the sides and top of the head, and leave the face mostly or partly open may be worn for protection from the environment (typica ...

figure walks past a church on a snowy night carrying a covered basket. The Christmas carol "

Silent Night "Silent Night" (german: "Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht", links=no, italic=no) is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in the small town of Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an ...

" is heard coming from the church, setting the time of year. The figure then approaches Mickey Mouse's house and peeks in the window: Minnie is playing "Silent Night" on an organ, Mickey is decorating a Christmas tree, and Pluto is peacefully sleeping by the fire. The figure then leaves the basket on Mickey's doorstep, rings the bell, and walks away. Pluto carries the basket inside and discovers it is loaded with kittens, evidently orphaned. Mickey and Minnie are at first charmed by the kittens, but the kittens soon prove to be a nuisance. Nevertheless, Mickey and Minnie are determined to make the kittens welcome. Mickey leaves the room momentarily and soon returns dressed as

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...

with a bag full of toys. The kittens remove the contents, the majority of which are various implements of destruction such as saws, hammers, and toy weapons. The kittens go to work and destroy the piano and other furniture. Finally Mickey and Minnie reveal their Christmas tree, but the kittens remove all the decorations and foliage.

Voice cast

* Mickey Mouse:

* Minnie Mouse:

* Pluto:

Pinto Colvig Vance DeBar Colvig Sr. (September 11, 1892 – October 3, 1967), professionally Pinto Colvig, was an American voice actor, newspaper cartoonist, and circus and vaudeville performer whose schtick was playing the clarinet off-key while mugging. C ...

* Orphan Kittens: unknown

Reception

Motion Picture Herald The ''Motion Picture Herald'' was an American film industry trade paper published from 1931 to December 1972.Anthony Slide, ed. (1985)''International Film, Radio, and Television Journals'' Greenwood Press. p. 242. It was replaced by the ''QP Heral ...

'' (December 19, 1931): "Minnie and Mickey find a basket on the doorstep on Christmas Eve. Out jump innumerable miniature Mickies, who proceed to take the furniture apart with neatness and dispatch, to the tune of usual animated furniture music. When Mickey and Minnie expose the Christmas tree, the animated infants strip it with no loss of time. The youngsters will get a real kick out of this short, and the oldsters will extract a bit of enjoyment." This incorrectly refers to the kittens as smaller versions of Mickey. ''

The Film Daily ''The Film Daily'' was a daily publication that existed from 1918 to 1970 in the United States. It was the first daily newspaper published solely for the film industry. It covered the latest trade news, film reviews, financial updates, informatio ...

'' (December 20, 1931): "Swell Holiday Cartoon: A Walt Disney Mickey Mouse production designed as a Christmas short and one that fills the bill. It will delight all children and get many a laugh from their elders... A Mickey Mouse short that is filled with many hilarious moments for children, and fun for adults who have ever staged a Christmas party for the youngsters."

Releases

*1931 – Original theatrical release *1997 – ''Ink & Paint Club'', episode #1.2 "Mickey's Landmarks" (TV)

Home media

The short was released on December 2, 2002 on '' Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Black and White''. Additional releases include: *1983 – " Cartoon Classics: Volume 5: Disney's Best of 1931-1948" (VHS) *2005 – "Vintage Mickey" (DVD)Vintage Mickey
at Amazon.com

References

External links

* *
Mickey's Orphans
' at the Disney Film Project *

' at Animated Toast *

' at Mickey Mouse Follies * {{Burt Gillett 1931 films 1931 animated films Mickey Mouse short films Pluto (Disney) short films 1930s Disney animated short films American Christmas films Animated films about cats Animated films about mice Animated films about orphans Films directed by Burt Gillett Films produced by Walt Disney Disney film remakes Short film remakes American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures short films Columbia Pictures animated short films 1930s Christmas films 1930s American films