Pluto is an American cartoon character created byWalt Disney andNorm Ferguson. He is a yellow-orange color, medium-sized, short-haireddog with black ears. Unlike most of the Disney characters, Pluto is notanthropomorphic beyond some characteristics such as human emotions. He isMickey Mouse's pet. Officially amixed-breed dog, he made his debut as abloodhound in the Mickey Mouse cartoonThe Chain Gang. Together withMickey Mouse,Minnie Mouse,Donald Duck,Daisy Duck, andGoofy, Pluto is one of the "Sensational Six"-the biggest stars in the Disney universe. Though all six are non-human animals, Pluto alone is not dressed as a human.
Pluto debuted inanimated cartoons and appeared in 24Mickey Mouse films before receiving hisown series in 1937. All together Pluto appeared in 89 short films between 1930 and 1953. Several of these were nominated for anAcademy Award, includingThe Pointer (1939),Squatter's Rights (1946),Pluto's Blue Note (1947), andMickey and the Seal (1948). One film starring him,Lend a Paw (1941), won the award in 1942. Like all of Pluto's co-stars, he appears extensively in comics, first in 1931.[3] He returned to theatrical animation in 1990 withThe Prince and the Pauper and is in several direct-to-video films. Pluto is in countless television series, video games, and all otherMickey Mouse media.
In 1998, Disney's copyright on Pluto, set to expire at the end of 2005, was extended by the passage of theSonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. Disney, along with other rights holders, lobbied for passage of the act to preserve their copyrights on characters such as Pluto for 20 additional years.[4] On January 1, 2026, the earliest appearances of Pluto entered thepublic domain, however (like all Disney characters) Pluto's name and image remainstrademarked byThe Walt Disney Company—and unlike copyrights—trademarks do not expire unless they ceased to be used.[5][6][7]
Pluto, as "Rover", inThe Picnic (1930), one of his first appearances
The character of Pluto originated with animatorNorm Ferguson, who came to the Disney Studio in 1929. Ferguson is credited with introducing theanimation principle of "follow through and overlapping action": where different parts of the body move at different times and speeds compared to the main action. Ferguson first introduced this technique in theSilly Symphony shortFrolicking Fish (released May 8, 1930): where he animated a trio of dancing fish, and offset the movement of their fins, having them "drag" along with the main body's movement. This gave the characters a more flowing and natural movement than in most other animation of that time.[8]Walt Disney was so impressed with Ferguson's work onFrolicking Fish, that he ordered all of his animators study the scene.[9]
Shortly after completing his work onFrolicking Fish, Disney assigned Ferguson to work on theMickey Mouse cartoonThe Chain Gang (released on September 5, 1930); where Mickey is portrayed as a prisoner who escapes from jail, and is pursued by two namelessbloodhounds. Ferguson was tasked with animating a scene where Mickey runs towards the camera and is followed by the two bloodhounds, who sniff Mickey's trail, look up, snort, and bark at the camera.[10] According toFrank Thomas andOllie Johnston, when describing this scene to Ferguson, Disney reminisced about different dogs he grew up with as a child, and acted out their mannerisms (much to the staff's amusement), which Ferguson would then translate into his animation.[11]
When animating the scene, Ferguson applied his principle of "follow through and overlapping action" to the jowls of the dogs, which gave them surprisingly lifelike movement for the time. Animation historianMichael Barrier wrote about the scene:
"The dogs were among the very first Disney characters whose design broke with the prevailing formula that put white masks on virtually interchangeable black bodies... their jowls hang loosely, their nostrils wrinkle and flair, their movements echo those of real dogs. When the dogs appear, there is a sense, however faint and fleeting, of solid flesh on a screen otherwise occupied by phantoms."[10]
Upon reviewing the scene, Disney was so impressed by Ferguson's animation on the dogs, he decided to develop one of them into a recurring character.[11] Ferguson's dog character next appeared inThe Picnic (released on October 23 of that same year), however he was portrayed as Minnie's dog, and was named "Rover". In his third appearance,The Moose Hunt (released on May 3, 1931), he appeared as Mickey's pet, and was finally given the name "Pluto".[12] Disney animatorBen Sharpsteen claimed they changed the name to Pluto because: "We thought the name [Rover] was too common, so we had to look for something else. ... We changed it toPluto the Pup ... but I don't honestly remember why."[13] Some Disney animators reportedly believed that Disney chose the name "Pluto" to capitalize on the then-newly-named ninth planet ofPluto.[14] However, animation historianJohn Canemaker states that Disney chose the name simply because he once had a dog named Pluto.[15]
Other animators handled the character, but Ferguson became the Pluto specialist at the Disney Studio. Over the next few years, Ferguson continued to develop and refine the character, ultimately crystalizing withPlayful Pluto (1934), in which Ferguson animated a scene where Pluto gets a piece offlypaper stuck to his rear end. The sequence was storyboarded byWebb Smith, and Ferguson padded the scene and added extra bits of comic business.[16] The scene was considered a major landmark in the development ofcharacter animation. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston described the scene as:
"...a milestone in personality animation. From the time he [Pluto] accidently sits on a sheet of the sticky flypaper, Pluto's problems seem to become ever worse as he tries to extricate himself. Through it all, his reaction to his predicament and his thoughts of what to try next are shared with the audience. It was the first time a character seemed to be thinking on screen, and, though it lasted only 65 seconds, it opened [up] the way for animation of real characters with real problems."[17]
Following the circulation ofArt Babbitt'sCharacter Analysis of the Goof around the Disney studio,[18] Ferguson wrote a 4-Page character bible on Pluto that was published on Jan 4, 1936, and detailed Pluto's body construction, facial expressions, mannerisms and personality.[19]
Bone Trouble (1940); Butch theBulldog is a common antagonist of Pluto
Pluto first and most often appears in theMickey Mouse series of cartoons. His solo star debut is in twoSilly Symphony shorts,Just Dogs (1932) andMother Pluto (1936). In 1937, Pluto appeared inPluto's Quin-Puplets which was the first installment ofhis own film series, then headlinedPluto the Pup.
His first comics appearance was in theMickey Mouse comic strip on July 1, 1931,[20] two months after the release ofThe Moose Hunt. In 1938, Pluto headlined in theSilly Symphony Sunday comic strip, in an adaptation of hisSilly Symphony short,Mother Pluto.[21] Pluto was later featured in several sequences of theSilly Symphony strip in 1939 and 1940.
In the various Disney theme park resorts worldwide, Pluto is an interactive character just like many of his film co-stars.[22]
^abThomas, Frank; Johnston, Ollie (1981).Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life (1984 Revised ed.). New York: Disney Editions. pp. 99–104.ISBN0-7868-6070-7.
^Smith, Dave.Disney Trivia from the Vault: Secrets Revealed and Questions Answered. New York: Disney Editions, 2012.
^Brasch, Walter M. (1983).Cartoon Monikers: An Insight into the Animation Industry. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green University Popular Press. p. 69.ISBN0-87972-244-4.
^Boyle, Alan.The Case for Pluto: How a Little Planet Made a Big Difference. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2009. p. 49.
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