Mickey Mouse turns 90; fans around the world celebrate the birthday of Walt Disney's iconic cartoon character

Mickey Mouse turned 90 on 18 November, and his birthday is being celebrated around the world, including in India. To mark this event, here are some fun facts about the iconic cartoon character. [caption id=“attachment_5572391” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Mickey Mouse. Image from Twitter @Reuters[/caption] Mickey Mouse made his first appearance in Steamboat Willie on 18 November, 1928. He was born out of necessity when Walt Disney discovered he had lost the rights to his previous character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. In fact, in the first cartoons Mickey’s voice was provided by Disney. The character was introduced in the silent film era and first spoke in an animated short called The Karnival Kid. His first words were, “Hot dogs.” According to Sunday Times, Mickey was initially going to be named Mortimer, but Disney’s wife thought it sounded “too pompous.” Although, a mouse of the same name was introduced as Mickey’s arch nemesis, who used to date Minnie. Over the years people have speculated as to what kind of a relationship do Minnie and Mickey share. In a 1933 interview, Disney had revealed that the two were actually married. “In private life, Mickey is married to Minnie. A lot of people have written to him asking this question, because sometimes he appears to be married to her in his films and other times still courting her. What it really amounts to is that Minnie is, for screen purposes, his leading lady. If the story calls for a romantic courtship, then Minnie is the girl; but when the story requires a married couple, then they appear as man and wife. In the studio we have decided that they are married already,” he had told Film Pictorial magazine via The Walt Disney Family Museum website. The adorable rodent has been a muse for many contemporary artists like Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst. Many designers like Marc Jacobs, Dolce & Gabbana and Tommy Hilfiger have introduced Mickey Mouse inspired clothing lines and accessories as well. (With inputs from Indo-Asian News Service)