Plane Crazy
Plane Crazy is a 1928 American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The cartoon, released by the Walt Disney Studios, was the first appearance of Mickey Mouse and his girlfriend Minnie Mouse, and was originally a silent film. It was given a test screening to a theater audience on May 15, 1928, and an executive from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer saw the film, but failed to pick up a distributor. Later that year, Disney released Mickey's first sound cartoon, Steamboat Willie, which was an enormous success; Plane Crazy was officially released as a sound cartoon on March 17, 1929.[1][2] It was the fourth Mickey film to be given a wide release after Steamboat Willie, The Gallopin' Gaucho and The Barn Dance (1929).
For the game, see Plane Crazy (video game).Plane Crazy
- Walt Disney
- Ub Iwerks
Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Ub Iwerks
Black and white
Pat Powers (Celebrity Productions)
5:56 (one reel)[3]
United States
English
Production[edit]
The short was co-directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. Iwerks was also the sole animator for this short and spent just two weeks working on it in a back room, at a rate of over 700 drawings a day.[6] It is also speculated Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising might have done work for the short as well.[7][8] The sound version contained a soundtrack by Carl W. Stalling, who recorded it on October 26, 1928, when he was hired, and a month before Steamboat Willie was released.[9]
The point of view shot from the plane made it appear as if the camera was tracking into the ground.[10] When they shot this scene, they piled books under the spinning background to move the artwork closer to the view.
Home media[edit]
The short was released on December 2, 2002 on Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Black and White[13] and on December 11, 2007 on Walt Disney Treasures: The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.[14]
Copyright and preservation status[edit]
The silent version was copyrighted on May 26, 1928, eleven days after it was test screened.[15] The copyright for the silent version was renewed on March 14, 1956.[16] The sound version was copyrighted on August 9, 1930 and was renewed on December 16, 1957,[17] but the copyright on the title card of the film says 1929 (MCMXXIX).[18] It is unknown to what extent changes were made between the original silent version and the sound version.
The silent version of the film entered the public domain in the United States in 2024, but the sound version will remain copyrighted until 2025 according to current U.S. copyright law.[19]
