''The Mad Doctor'' is a
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 ...
cartoon released in 1933. It is known as the first appearance of the title character "The Mad Doctor", or "Dr. XXX". It was the 52nd Mickey Mouse short film, and the second of that year.
Plot
The plot centers on the title character, a
mad scientist
The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as " mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabashedly amb ...
who has kidnapped Mickey's dog,
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...
. Mickey tries to rescue him before the doctor can perform his experiment: putting Pluto's head to the body of a chicken in order to see if a puppy will hatch from an egg (that is if the end result will "bark or crow or cackle"). Mickey battles his way through booby traps and animated skeletons before eventually getting caught and strapped onto a table to get cut open by a buzzsaw, forcing Mickey to suck in his belly, trembling. The scene then fades to Mickey asleep in bed and suddenly woken up by a fly, whose buzzing resembles the whirring of the saw. Not yet realizing the events were only a nightmare, Mickey shouts for Pluto, who eagerly jumps onto Mickey's bed with his doghouse and chain still attached to his collar.
Allusions
The short uses several gags that appeared in
The Haunted House, such as the door locking itself after Mickey enters the Mad Doctor's lair.
Reception
The short's
horror genre
Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian ...
overtones made it unusual for a Mickey Mouse cartoon. Some theaters refused to show it, believing it to be too scary for kids. At one time, for this reason, it was banned entirely in the United Kingdom, as well as
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.
On February 10, 1933, ''
The Film Daily
''The Film Daily'' was a daily publication that existed from 1918 to 1970 in the United States. It was the first daily newspaper published solely for the film industry. It covered the latest trade news, film reviews, financial updates, informatio ...
'' said: "One of the liveliest animated cartoons to come along, and plenty comical."
Legacy
The short's title character had a cameo in the
Roger Rabbit
Roger Rabbit is an animated anthropomorphic rabbit. The character first appeared in author Gary K. Wolf's 1981 novel, ''Who Censored Roger Rabbit?'' In the book, Roger is second banana in a popular comic strip, "Baby Herman". Roger hires private ...
short, "Tummy Trouble", in which he was seen on a picture. ''The Mad Doctor'' was also the basis for, and title of, the second level in the video game, ''
Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse'' released for the
Super NES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...
,
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
,
Sega CD
The Sega CD, released as the in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. It was released on December 12, 1991, in Japan, ...
and
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
(as ''Mickey's Wild Adventure''); a depiction of the Mad Doctor level is used as the cover art for the game. He also appears as a major character in ''
Epic Mickey
''Epic Mickey'' is a 2010 platform game for the Wii developed by Junction Point Studios and published by Disney Interactive Studios, except in Japan, where it was published by Nintendo. The game focuses on Mickey Mouse, who accidentally damag ...
'' and
its sequel. The video game ''
Kingdom Hearts III
is a 2019 action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows and Nintendo Switch. It is the twelfth installment in the ''Kingdom Hearts'' series, and serves as a conclusion of the ...
'' includes a mini game based on the short, with the Mad Doctor appearing as an enemy.
Home media
The short was released on December 2, 2002 on ''
Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Black and White''.
In addition, this cartoon is one of a few Disney shorts that lapsed into the
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
, and can be found on many low budget VHS tapes and DVDs, usually paired with "Minnie's Yoo Hoo" and "
The Spirit of '43
''The Spirit of '43'' is an American animated World War II propaganda film created by Walt Disney Studios and released in January 1943. The film stars Donald Duck and features writer /designer Carl Barks' prototype for the character Scrooge McDu ...
".
Voice cast
* Mickey Mouse:
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 ...
* Pluto:
Pinto Colvig
Vance DeBar Colvig Sr. (September 11, 1892 – October 3, 1967), professionally Pinto Colvig, was an American voice actor, newspaper cartoonist, and circus and vaudeville performer whose schtick was playing the clarinet off-key while mugging. Co ...
* The Mad Doctor: Allan Watson
See also
*
Mickey Mouse (film series)
''Mickey Mouse'' (originally known as ''Mickey Mouse Sound Cartoons'') is a series of American animated comedy short films produced by Walt Disney Productions. The series started in 1928 with Steamboat Willie and ended in 1953 with ''The Simple ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mad Doctor, The
1933 films
1933 animated films
1930s science fiction films
1933 horror films
Censorship in Germany
1930s Disney animated short films
Disney controversies
Films directed by David Hand
Films produced by Walt Disney
Mad scientist films
Mickey Mouse short films
Films about nightmares
Film controversies
Film censorship in the United Kingdom
Film controversies in the United Kingdom
American black-and-white films
Animated films about animals
American science fiction films
American horror films
1930s American films