"(The) Mickey Mouse March" is the opening theme for ''

The Mickey Mouse Club ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' is an American variety television show that aired intermittently from 1955 to 1996 and returned to social media in 2017. Created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions, the program was first televised ...

'' television show, which aired in the United States from October 1955 to 1959, on the ABC television network. (The first two lines are: ''Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me? M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!'') The song is

reprise In music, a reprise ( , ; from the verb 'to resume') is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the 18th century—was simply any repe ...

d with the slower "it's time to say goodbye" verse, at the end of each episode. In the show's opening, the song is partially performed by the characters

Dumbo ''Dumbo'' is a 1941 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The fourth Disney animated feature film, it is based upon the storyline written by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl, ...

and

Jiminy Cricket Jiminy Cricket is the Disney version of the " Talking Cricket" (Italian: ''Il Grillo Parlante''), a fictional character created by Italian writer Carlo Collodi for his 1883 children's book ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'', which Walt Disney adap ...

. It also ended with

Donald Duck Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor shirt and cap with a bow tie. Donald is known fo ...

attempting to hit a gong with the "Mickey Mouse Club" title on it, but would end with comic results, such as him getting hit by lightning, or the gong turning out to be a pie, or Donald just hitting a triangle instead. The song was written by the ''Mickey Mouse Club'' host

Jimmie Dodd James Wesley Dodd (March 28, 1910 – November 10, 1964) was an American actor, singer and songwriter best known as the master of ceremonies for the popular 1950s Walt Disney television series ''The Mickey Mouse Club,'' as well as the write ...

and was published by

Hal Leonard Corporation Hal Leonard LLC (formerly Hal Leonard Corporation) is an American music publishing and distribution company founded in Winona, Minnesota, by Harold "Hal" Edstrom, his brother, Everett "Leonard" Edstrom, and fellow musician Roger Busdicker. Curre ...

, July 1, 1955. Dodd, who was a guitarist and musician hired by

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

as a songwriter, wrote other songs used over the course of the series, as well, such as the “theme day” songs sung on the show.

Cover versions

Julie London Julie London (née Peck; September 26, 1926 – October 18, 2000) was an American singer and actress whose career spanned more than 40 years. A torch singer noted for her sultry, languid contralto vocals, London recorded over thirty album ...

covered the song on her 1967 album, ''

Nice Girls Don't Stay for Breakfast ''Nice Girls Don't Stay for Breakfast'' is an LP album by Julie London, released by Liberty Records under catalog number LRP-3493 as a monophonic recording and catalog number LST-7493 in stereo in 1967. The song arrangements were by Don Bagley. ...

''.

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

performed a bit of the song during his May 2, 1975 concert in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton County, the mos ...

. A concert recording of the show was made available on the Follow That Dream Collectors' label release, ''Southbound - Tampa / Atlanta '75.''

Mannheim Steamroller Mannheim Steamroller is an American neoclassical new-age music ensemble founded and directed by percussionist/composer Chip Davis in 1974. The group is known primarily for its '' Fresh Aire'' series of albums, which blend classical music with ...

covered the song as the final track on the album, ''

Mannheim Steamroller Meets the Mouse ''Mannheim Steamroller Meets the Mouse: Unique Musical Creations Based on Disney Songs'' is a Disney-themed music album by Mannheim Steamroller, released by Walt Disney Records and American Gramaphone in 1999 on CD and DVD. It features a few vin ...

'' (1999). In 2000, a

eurobeat Eurobeat refers to two styles of dance music that originated in Europe: one is a British variant of Italian Eurodisco-influencedAng, Ien & Morley, David (2005). "Cultural Studies: Volume 3, Issue 2". ''Routledge''. pgs. 171, 173, 170. . "Eurore ...

version of the song was released on the Japan-only ''

Eurobeat Disney is the first of a series of compilation albums of various Disney songs which has been remixed in the style of eurobeat. It is produced by Italian singer Dave Rodgers for Walt Disney Records and released exclusively in Japan. The first ''Eurobeat ...

'', recorded by

Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also c ...

and

Dave Rodgers Dave Rodgers (born Giancarlo Pasquini; 21 February 1963) is an Italian singer, songwriter and producer known for his contributions to the Eurobeat genre of dance music. Born in Mantua, Italy, he formed the band Aleph before contributing to the lon ...

Andrew W.K. Andrew Fetterly Wilkes-Krier (born May 9, 1979), known professionally as Andrew W.K., is an American conceptual performance artist, rock singer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and actor. Raised in Michigan, Wilkes-Krier began his musi ...

also covered the song, on the Japanese-only release of the album ''

Mosh Pit On Disney ''Mosh Pit On Disney'' is a Japanese compilation cover album containing punk rock and ska renditions of various Disney songs, such as Mickey Mouse Club March, Main Street Electrical Parade, and Under the Sea, performed by both Japanese and Ameri ...

'' (2004). In 2017, D-Metal Stars created a Heavy Metal cover of the song on the album "Metal Disney" featuring Mike Vescera and Rudy Sarzo There was a gachimuchi cover made of Mickey Mouse March called "Bockey Mouse March" on YouTube, receiving immense amount of popularity until it was removed by YouTube.

In popular culture

* In ''M*A*S*H'' season 5 (1976–77),

Hawkeye Pierce This is a list of characters from the ''M*A*S*H'' franchise, covering the various fictional characters appearing in the novel '' MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors'' and its sequels, the 1970 film adaptation of the novel, and the televisio ...

sings the M-O-U-S-E line of the song after

Radar O'Reilly This is a list of characters from the ''M*A*S*H'' franchise, covering the various fictional characters appearing in the novel '' MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors'' and its sequels, the 1970 film adaptation of the novel, and the televisi ...

spells out a name. The episode was first aired in December 1976, but depicts events in 1952, three years before the song was published. * In

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

film ''

Full Metal Jacket ''Full Metal Jacket'' is a 1987 war drama film directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Herr and Gustav Hasford. The film is based on Hasford's 1979 novel '' The Short-Timers'' and stars Matt ...

'' (1987), American Marines sing the song to ironic effect at the film's end, as they march out of the city at the

Battle of Huế The Battle of Huế (31 January 1968 – 2 March 1968), also called the Siege of Huế, was a major military engagement in the Tết Offensive launched by North Vietnam and the Việt Cộng during the Vietnam War. After initially losing co ...

. * In ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...

'' short film '' Plusaversary'' (2021), the song is heard when

Bart Simpson Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in '' The Tracey Ullman Sh ...

, dressed as

Mickey Mouse Mickey Mouse is an animated cartoon Character (arts), character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime mascot of The Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red sho ...

, enters Moe's Tavern.

Parodies

* The titles for the second series of

Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle (born 7 August 1952) is an English actor, author, stand-up comedian, television presenter and former recording artist. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s. He was voted the 18th gre ...

's BBC comedy series, ''

Alexei Sayle's Stuff ''Alexei Sayle's Stuff'' is a British television comedy sketch show which ran on BBC2 for a total of 18 episodes over 3 series from 1988 to 1991. Cast Alexei Sayle's Stuff stars stand-up comedian Alexei Sayle, with a recurring cast including A ...

'' are a parody of those for ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' with the third and fourth lines: ''Who’s an ugly bastard and as fat as he can be? A-L-E-X-E-I S-A-Y-L-E!''

References

{{authority control Disney songs 1955 songs Animated series theme songs Children's television theme songs Comedy television theme songs The Mickey Mouse Club