Mickey Mouse Club is a long-running American variety television show that began in1955, produced byWalt Disney Productions and televised byABC, featuring a regular but ever-changing cast of teenage performers, known as Mouseketeers.Mickey Mouse Club was created byWalt Disney. The series has been revived, reformatted and reimagined several times since its initial 1955-1959 run on ABC. The original series has been repackaged and rerun several times over the decades. In2017, the series was rebooted exclusively on social media under the nameClub Mickey Mouse.
Mickey Mouse Club was Walt Disney's second venture into producing a television series, the first being the Disney anthology television series, initially titledDisneyland. Disney used both shows to help finance and promote the building of theDisneyland theme park. Being busy with these projects and others, Disney turnedMickey Mouse Club over toBill Walsh to create and develop the format, initially aided byHal Adelquist.
The result was essentially a variety show for children, with such regular features as a newsreel, a cartoon, and a serial, as well as music, talent and comedy segments. One unique feature of the show was the Mouseketeer Roll Call, in which many (but not all) of that day's line-up of regular performers would introduce themselves by name to the television audience. In the serials, teens faced challenges in everyday situations, often overcome by their common sense or through recourse to the advice of respected elders.
Cast[]
Mickey Mouse Club was hosted by Jimmie Dodd, a songwriter and the "Head Mouseketeer", who provided leadership both on and off screen. In addition to his other contributions, he often provided short segments encouraging young viewers to make the right moral choices. These little homilies became known as "Doddisms". Roy Williams, a staff artist at Disney, also appeared in the show as the "Big Mooseketeer". Roy suggested the Mickey Mouse ears ("Mouseke-ears") worn by the cast members, which he helped create, along withChuck Keehne, Hal Adelquist, and Bill Walsh.
The main cast members were called "Mouseketeers," and they performed in a variety of musical and dance numbers, as well as some informational segments. The most popular of the Mouseketeers constituted the so-called "Red Team," which consisted of:
Dennis Day (1955-1957, 1980) [Joined the Red Team in the second season]
Michael Smith (1955-1956, 1980)
Jay-Jay Solari (1956-1957)
Don Underhill (1955-1956, 1980) [Left the Red Team by the end of the first season]
(Cubby and Karen were initially "Meeseketeers".)
1955-1959, 1976-1977, 1989-1992 logo.
The remaining Mouseketeers were Don Agrati (1955-1959, 1980, 1990) (later known asDon Grady when starring as "Robbie" on the long-running sitcomMy Three Sons), Sherry Alberoni (1955-1959, 1980, 1990), Billie Jean Beanblossom, Eileen Diamond, Dickie Dodd, Mary Espinosa, Bonnie Lynn Fields, Judy Harriet, Linda Hughes, Dallas Johann, John Lee Johann, Bonni Lou Kern, Charlie Laney, Larry Larsen, Paul Petersen, Lynn Ready, Mickey Rooney Jr. (1955-1956, 1980), Tim Rooney (1955-1956, 1977, 1980), Mary Lynn Sartori, Bronson Scott, Margene Storey, Ronnie Steiner, and Mark Sutherland. Dennis Day was a Mouseketeer for two seasons and 1 special episode; the others served for shorter periods. Larry Larsen, on only for the 1956-57 season, was the oldest Mouseketeer, being born in1939. Among the thousands who auditioned but didn't make the cut were future vocalist/songwriter Paul Williams and future actressCandice Bergen.
1956 cast photo. Front row; L–R: Annette Funicello, Karen Pendleton, Cubby O'Brien, Sherry Alberoni, Dennis Day. Row two: Charley Laney, Sharon Baird, Darlene Gillespie, Jay-Jay Solari. Row three: Tommy Cole, Cheryl Holdridge, Larry Larsen, Eileen Diamond. Row four: Lonnie Burr, Margene Storey, Doreen Tracey. Back row: Jimmie Dodd, Bobby Burgess.
Other notable non-Mouseketeer performers appeared in various dramatic segments:
Julius Sumner Miller as "Professor Wonderful" (1955-1959)
These non-Mouseketeers primarily appeared in numerous original serials filmed for the series, only some of which have appeared in reruns. Certain Mouseketeers were also featured in some of the serials, particularly Annette Funicello and Darlene Gillespie.
Major serials[]
Major serials included:
Spin and Marty (three serials, starring Tim Considine and David Stollery in the title roles)
Hardy Boys (two serials, starring Tim Considine and Tommy Kirk)
Corky and White Shadow, starring Darlene Gillespie
Walt Disney Presents: Annette, starring Annette Funicello
Adventures in Dairyland, also calledAn Adventure in Dairyland, featuring Funicello and Sammy Ogg, and introducing Kevin Corcoran as Moochie
Music[]
The opening theme, "The Mickey Mouse March", was written by the show's primary adult host, Jimmie Dodd. It was also reprised at the end of each episode, with the slower "Now it's time to say goodbye" verse. A shorter version of the opening title was used later in the series, in syndication, and on Disney Channel reruns. Dodd also wrote many other songs used in individual segments over the course of the series.
Show themes[]
Each day of the week had a special show theme, which was reflected in the various segments. The themes were often introduced byMickey himself in each show. The themes were:
Monday - Fun with Music
Tuesday - Guest Star
Wednesday - Anything Can Happen
Thursday - Circus
Friday - Talent Round-up
Each of the Mickey intros had Mickey (voiced once again byWalt Disney for the first time since 1947, and animated byJohn Lounsbery) in different costumes and accompanied by a different Disney song:
Anything Can Happen Day: Mickey is dressed in his sorcerer costume from "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" segment ofFantasia while "The Siamese Cat Song" fromLady and the Tramp plays in the background.
Circus Day: Mickey is dressed in a marching band uniform and plays "Following the Leader" fromPeter Pan on a trombone.
Talent Round-up Day: Mickey is dressed as a cowboy and does rope tricks and speaks with a drawl to the tune of "Pecos Bill" from theMelody Time segment of the same name.
Scheduling and air times[]
The series ran on ABC for an hour each weekday in the 1955-1956 and 1956-1957 seasons (from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.), and only a half-hour weekdays (5:00 to 5:30 p.m.) in 1957-1958, the final season to feature new programming. Although the show aired for the 1958-1959 season (5:00 to 5:30 p.m.), these programs were shows from the first two seasons, re-cut into a half-hour format.Mickey Mouse Club was featured on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, whileAdventure Time, featuring reruns ofMickey Mouse Club serials, ran on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Cancellation[]
The cancellation in1959 was attributable to several factors: The Disney studios did not make a profit on the merchandise, the sponsors were uninterested in educational programming for children, and many commercials were needed in order to pay for the show. Walt Disney filed a lawsuit against ABC, and won the damages in a settlement; however, he had to agree that both theMickey Mouse Club andZorro could not be aired on any major network. This leftWalt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (later retitled theWonderful World of Disney) as the only Disney series left on prime time until 1972 whenThe Mouse Factory went on the air.
Syndication[]
However, in response to continuing audience demand, it went into syndicated reruns from1962 to1965, with some new features such asFun with Science andMarvelous Marvin in the 1964-1965 season. In response to an upsurge in demand from baby boomers entering adulthood, the show again went into syndicated reruns from January 20,1975, until January 14,1977. It has since been rerun on cable specialty channels Disney in the U.S. and Family Channel in Canada. The originalMickey Mouse Club films aired five days a week on theDisney Channel from its launch in1983 until the third version of the series began in1989. The last airing of the edited 1950s material was on the Disney Channel'sVault Disney from1995 to September2002.
Almost all of the original Mouseketeers were reunited for a TV special in1980, which aired onDisney's Wonderful World in1980.
Several original Mouseketeers performed together atDisneyland in the fall of2005, in observance of Disneyland's 50th birthday, and the 50th anniversary of the TV premiere ofMickey Mouse Club. Also, the original Mouseketeers celebrated their 60th Anniversary Celebration in D23 Expo in 2015 by doing tribute to Annette Funicello and performing songs from the show.
1970s revival:The New Mickey Mouse Club[]
In the 1970s,Walt Disney Productions revived the concept but modernized the show cosmetically, with a disco re-recording of the theme song and minority cast members. The sets, though colored, were simplistic, lacking the fine artwork of the original. Like the original, nearly each day's episode included a vintage cartoon, though usually color ones from the late 1930s and onward.
Serials[]
Serials were usually old Disney movies, cut into segments for twice-weekly inclusion. Movies includedThird Man on the Mountain,The Misadventures of Merlin Jones and its sequelThe Monkey's Uncle (both starring Tommy Kirk),Emil and the Detectives (retitledThe Three Skrinks),Tonka (retitledA Horse Called Comanche),The Horse Without a Head (about a toy horse), andToby Tyler (starring Kevin Corcoran). In addition, one original serial was produced,The Mystery of Rustler's Cave, starring Kim Richards andRobbie Rist.
Theme days[]
Mickey once again introduced the theme of each show. Theme days were:
Monday - Who, What, Why, Where, When and How
Tuesday - Let's Go
Wednesday - Surprise
Thursday - Discovery
Friday - Showtime (at Disneyland, with performers usually at Plaza Gardens)
Low syndication run[]
The series debuted on January 17, 1977, on only 38 television stations, and by June, when the unsuccessful series was discontinued, only about 70 stations in total had picked up the series. Additional stations picked up the canceled program, which continued to run until January 12, 1979; 130 new episodes, with much of the original material repackaged and a bit of new footage added, and a shortened version of the theme song, were produced to start airing September 5, 1977. The series has not had more than token reruns, unlike its 1950s predecessor, and while both the 1950s and 1990s series had DVD releases in July 2005, the 1970s series seems forgotten except by that short generation of youthful viewers for whom it defined "the club".
Cast[]
The cast of The New Mickey Mouse Club.
The cast had a more diverse background than the 1950s version. Several 1970s cast members went on to become TV stars and other notable icons.
The show's most notable alumna was Lisa Whelchel, who later starred in theNBC television sitcomThe Facts of Life before becoming a well-known Christian author. Mouseketeer Julie Piekarski (1976-1977) also appeared with Lisa Whelchel (1976-1977) on the first season ofThe Facts of Life. Kelly Parsons (1976-1977) went on to become a beauty queen and runner-up to Miss USA. Shawnte Northcutte (1976-1977) appeared once onFacts of Life. Billy 'Pop' Attmore (1976-1977) appeared in a few movies before and after the series, a fifth-season episode ofThe Brady Bunch ("Kelly's Kids"), and as a streetwise hood in the short-livedEischied crime drama. Nita Dee (1976-1977) appeared at the tail end of an episode ofFantasy Island.
Other Mouseketeers (from seasons 1-2 (recorded in 1976 and released in 1977) from the 1977 show:
Scott Craig (1976-1977) — born in Van Nuys, California, in 1964; lived in Las Vegas, died December 30, 2003.
Nita Dee (1976-1977) — born in Long Beach, California, 1966
Mindy Feldman (1976-1977) — born in Burbank, California, 1968, and sister of Corey Feldman
Angel Florez (1976-1977) — born in Stockton, California, 1963; died April 25 1995.
Todd Turquand (1976-1977) — born in Hollywood, California, 1964
Curtis Wong (1976-1977) — born in Vancouver, British Columbia, 1962
Theme song and soundtrack[]
The lyrics of theMickey Mouse Club March theme song were slightly different from the original, with two additional lines:"He's our favorite Mouseketeer, we know you will agree" and "Take some fun and mix in love, our happy recipe."
This incarnation was not distributed by Disney alone; while Disney did produce the series, it was co-produced and distributed by SFM Entertainment, who also handled 1970s-era syndication of the original 1950s series (Disney has since regained sole distribution rights). The syndication rights for this version are now with CBS Television Distribution.
1980s-1990s revival (The All New Mickey Mouse Club)[]
Season 6 (1993-1994) Title Card Logo
In 1989, theDisney Channel revived the show with a different format, which was very similar to other popular shows of the time like Nickelodeon'sYou Can't Do That on Television orSaturday Night Live.
Scheduling and air times[]
The series aired Monday - Friday, 5:30/4:30 CST during Seasons 1-5. It aired Monday - Thursday, 5:30/4:30 CST Season 6. In its final season, it aired Thursdays only at 7:30/6:30 CST. The show premiered Monday, April 24, 1989, ended production on October 22,1994. The 7th and Final Season premiered on May 4,1995 with the final episode airing on March 7,1996 and ran reruns until December 29,1996. Seasons 3, 5 and 7 had the most episodes. Seasons 4 and 6 were shorter, having about 35 episodes each.
Format[]
The long version of the new show's title wasThe All New Mickey Mouse Club, but it was more commonly calledMMC. Recorded before a studio audience atDisney's Hollywood Studios (then known as Disney MGM Studios) in Bay Lake (Buena Vista Lake), Florida, it featured an all-new cast of Mousekeeters (mainly Kids and teenagers). The show was a mix of live skits, recorded comedy, and songs. The Mouseketeers did their own versions of popular songs live and in music videos.Emerald Cove was a recurring soap opera type segment starring Mouseketeers that aired once a week for 10 minutes.
Cast[]
Five members of the show (Damon Pampolina, Tiffini Hale, Chase Hampton, Albert Fields, and Deedee Magno) broke off and formed the musical group The Party, and released four full-length albums:The Party;In The Meantime, In Between Time;Free; andThe Party's Over...Thanks For Coming. They had a radio hit with the Dokken cover of "In My Dreams".
The sixth and seventh seasons of the show would be the starting point for several famous pop superstars and actors. Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Keri Russell, and Ryan Gosling were all on the show and had future stardom.
The only Mouseketeers who remained on the show until its final episode in 1996 were Lindsey Alley, Jennifer McGill, and Josh Ackerman, and with Tiffini Hale and Chase Hampton in The Party back for the final season.
Theme days and other notable episodes[]
In 1990, as part of Season 3, six former Mouseketeers Tommy Cole, Sharon Baird, Sherry Alberoni, Bobby Burgess, Don Grady, and Annette Funicello made a special appearance, actually participating in some skits and a couple of musical numbers. They were presented with 1980s-1990sMMC jackets. Annette thanked everyone very much and told the new Mouseketeers that "the Club is in good hands because of all of you."[citation needed]MMC celebrated its 200th episode with a show about Racial Unity. It featured Rev. Jesse Jackson, Tracie Spencer, Young Nation and Tevin Campbell.[citation needed]
Some of the 90's cast.
Theme days were:
Music Day- Mondays (Seasons 1-5), Tuesdays (Season 6)
Guest Day - Tuesdays (Seasons 1-5), Mondays (Season 6)
Anything Can Happen Day! - Wednesdays (seasons 1-5), was not used in Season 6
Party Day - Thursdays (Seasons 1-4, 6), Fridays (season 5)
Hall of Fame Day - Fridays (Seasons 1-4), Thursdays (Season 5), Wednesdays (Season 6)
(Note: In Season 7, the show was shown on Thursdays only, therefore, no theme days were used.)
2015 revival in South Korea,The Mickey Mouse Club[]
On July 9, 2015, it was announced that a new version of the series will debut on July 23, 2015 on Disney Channel (Korea). The format of revival will include musical performances, games, and skits, as same as the original one in the US. It's planned that the series will have two pilot episodes and ten regular episodes. The Mouseketeers (known as Mickey Mouse Friends inthe Mickey Mouse Club) will consist of nine members of S.M. Entertainment's pre-debut group calledSM Rookies including five boys — Mark, Jeno, Donghyuck, Jaemin, and Jisung — and four girls — Lami, Herin, Hina, and Koeun. The series will be hosted by Leeteuk, the leader of Super Junior.[2]
The show ended on December 17, 2015.
2017 Reboot:Club Mickey Mouse[]
On September 8, 2017, it was announced thatMickey Mouse Club would be rebooted under the name "Club Mickey Mouse" with a new set of Mouseketeers, and for the first time, the series will be available on Facebook and Instagram, rather than it's original half hour to full hour format on television, and will be more like a reality show than a variety show, with about 90% of its content being behind the scenes. This incarnation of the Mickey Mouse Club features seven Mouseketeers (formerly 8 from 2017-2018 and 6 from 2018-2020) who wears the black Club Mickey Mouse jackets (rather than 8 to 18 like from the original to the 90's): Regan Aliyah, Jenna Alvarez, Ky Baldwin (2017-2018), Gabe De Guzman, Leanne Tessa Langston, Brianna Mazzola (2017-2018), Sean Oliu, and Will Simmons. The Mouseketeers was joined by Todrick Hall as a mentor to the young cast until around October 2017. A 21-year-old YouTube user from Florida named Nicole Marsden who is a big Disney fan and is currently in love and will soon be dating former Broadway star and musician Joshua Dela Cruz will become a Head Mouseketeer and will wear the blue Club Mickey Mouse jacket in the 2020’s after becoming an official Mouseketeer while attending at the All New Mickey Mouse Club 30th Anniversary Reunion event in Orlando in 2019.
Full cast of 2017-present Mouseketeers[]
Listed alphabetically:
Regan Aliyah (2017–present)
Jenna Alvarez (2017–present)
Ky Baldwin (2017-2018)
Gabe De Guzman (2017–present)
Leanne Tessa Langston (2017–present)
Nicole Marsden (2020–present) *Head Mouseketeer*
Brianna Mazzola (2017-2018)
Sean Oliu (2017–present)
Will Simmons (2017–present)
2017 Malaysian version[]
On May 4, 2017, it was announced that another iteration ofClub Mickey Mouse would be created in Malaysia, and premiered on September 15, 2017. Charis Ow becomes a Head Mouseketeer in the series. A fourth season will return as Charis and Dheena will not return, possibly Charis is getting married and Dheena focuses on LGBTQ rights. Disney Channel Asia decided to pick 2 new Mouseketeers for an audition and will be aired in 2021. Two new Mouseketeers has been announced: Eric Lau Lofstedt and Melynna Rose.
Full cast of 2017-present Mouseketeers[]
Listed alphabetically:
Erissa Puteri Hashim (2017–present)
Nur "Natasya" Alianatsha Hanafi (2017-2018)
Mohd. Wafiy Ilhan Johan (2017–present)
Ellya Keesha (2018–present)
Eric Lau Lofstedt (2021-present) *2nd Head Mouseketeer*
Dheena Menon (2017–2020)
Ahmad Faiz Najib (2017–present)
Charis Ow (2017–2020) *Head Mouseketeer*
Gabriel Noel Poutney (2017–present)
Melynna Rose (2021-present)
Gallery[]
Crew members Lillie Hayward, William "Bill" Beaudine Sr. and his son Bill Jr.
Old Yeller makes his appearance onMickey Mouse Club in 1957.
Trivia[]
Most of famous celebrities were auditioned for the Mouseketeers, but they rejected:
Donald performing his gong gag while doing a different thing at the beginning of every episode was the inspiration for Gonzo's trumpet gag onThe Muppet Show, as well as the famous Couch Gag onThe Simpsons.
Previous to the TV series, there was a theater-based Mickey Mouse Club. The first one started on January 4, 1930, at 12 noon at the Fox Dome Theater in Ocean Park, California with 60 theaters hosting clubs by March 31. The Club released its first issue of the Official Bulletin of the Mickey Mouse Club on April 15, 1930. By 1932, the Club had 1 million members. And in 1933, its first UK club opened at Darlington's Arcade Cinema. In 1935, with different clubs around the world, Disney begins to phase out the club.
There is a shorter version of the intro that is used in syndication and on theBest of the Mickey Mouse Club DVD. The reason for that is because while originally an hour in length, the show was subsequently cut to 30 minutes in reruns in syndication and on The Disney Channel.
There is a colorized version of the intro that is used when the television medium has switched to color. The reason for that is because although the show was filmed and broadcast in black and white, all of the animated segments - the opening theme, Mickey's introductions and farewells, theJiminy Cricket shorts, etc. - were filmed in color.
There is another color version of the intro, which had darker colors. This version was used for the 1970s revival series.
Mickey's quote from the Guest Star Day intro, "Everybody neat and pretty?", was seen on the boxes of soap bars offered at the Walt Disney World resort hotels from the 1990s through the 2000s.
The 1950s series would be Walt Disney’s last time voicing Mickey Mouse before foley artist Jimmy MacDonald took over the role permanently. As Walt would voice the titular mascot part-time, his voice sounded noticeably weaker than before due to his smoking habit. Ironically Wayne Allwine began voicing Mickey in the 1970s revival series.
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