Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse: Cultural Transformation

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Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse A Cultural Transformation Walt Disney was born on December 5, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois. At the age of sixteen, Walt enlisted in the army. He was denied because of his young age. Because he was denied, he joined the Red Cross and drove an ambulance around France. While in France, he started working on and painting his cartoons. When he came home from France, he began a company in the commercial arts called “Laugh-O-Grams.” The company went out of business and Walt moved California with his brother Roy. Walt and Roy worked on The Alice Companies, which became a huge success. Walt married one of the employees, Lillian, on July 13, 1925. Around the year 1938, Walt created Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse was created in the first years of the Great Depression. Walt was thinking of a character that could make an impact on the people in his new comics. He had recently bought a pet mouse to keep him company at the time. Then he thought of it, Mickey Mouse! Mickey Mouse was created to bring joy to people in the midst of the Great Depression. Mickey’s happy spirit is what made him popular. That, and the advanced technology Disney would use in these cartoons. People loved the idea of Mickey, and not only rooted for his success, but the success for themselves. Mickey Mouse was a huge success. He struck a group of audience members who needed reassurance. They were seeking signs of a joyful human spirit and the ability to keep moving into the future. Not just moving into the future, but moving into the future with an optimistic point of view. Mickey Mouse taught them just that. People have been so damaged by the Great Depression, that Mickey gave them something to look forward to. He was an inspiration to many. Mickey Mouse was not the only inspiration in the Great Depression. In 1937, Walt Disney came out with Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs.

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