''The Pointer'' is a 1939 American animated

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

produced by

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...

and released by

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...

on July 21, 1939. The short was directed by

Clyde Geronimi Clito "Clyde" Geronimi (June 12, 1901 – April 24, 1989), known as Gerry, was an American animation director. He is best known for his work at Walt Disney Productions. Biography Geronimi was born in Chiavenna, Italy, immigrating to the United S ...

and animated by Fred Moore, Frank Thomas, Lynn Karp, Seamus Culhane, Ollie Johnston, Preston Blair, Lester Norvi, John Lounsbery, Claude Smitha, Art Palmer, and Josh Meador. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoon) in 1940.The Pointer
. ''www.bcdb.com'' It was the 106th short in the '' Mickey Mouse'' film series to be released, and the third for that year. The cartoon follows Mickey Mouse as he tries to teach his dog

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Sun. It is the largest ...

to be a pointer dog during a quail hunt. It was directed by

and features the voices of

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 Mickey and Lee Millar as Pluto. Although often cited as the animated debut of Mickey's modern character design, this actually occurred five months earlier in ''

Mickey's Surprise Party ''Mickey's Surprise Party'' is a 1939 American animated short film directed by Hamilton Luske, produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Nabisco. It was the 105th short in the ''Mickey Mouse'' film series to be released, and the sec ...

''. Nevertheless, ''The Pointer'' is still considered a milestone Mickey Mouse film for its background art and Mickey's acting which was personally staged by Walt Disney. The film was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film is an award given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as part of the annual Academy Awards, or Oscars, since the 5th Academy Awards (with different names), covering the year 1 ...

at the

12th Academy Awards The 12th Academy Awards ceremony, held on February 29, 1940 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best in film for 1939 at a banquet in the Coconut Grove at The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. It was hosted ...

in 1940, but ultimately lost to Disney's own ''

The Ugly Duckling "The Ugly Duckling" ( da, Den grimme ælling) is a Danish literary fairy tale by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published on 11 November 1843 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. First Collection'' ...

'', the final installment of the ''

Silly Symphony ''Silly Symphony'' is an American animated series of 75 musical short films produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939. As the series name implies, the ''Silly Symphonies'' were originally intended as whimsical accompaniments to pieces ...

'' series.

Plot

Mickey Mouse and Pluto are camping in the woods about to set out hunting. Mickey reads to Pluto from an instructional book how to

point Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...

at game and not move. Mickey promises that if they are successful they will have "

quail Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy. Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New ...

on toast, and maybe a nice big juicy bear steak" that night. After Mickey tosses aside a can of beans in favor of their target meal, they set out into the forest, Mickey carrying a shotgun. But the first time they see quail, Pluto gets too excited, knocks Mickey over, and scares the birds away. Mickey scolds Pluto, but later softens, realizing that Pluto is a mutt and won't be able to learn. They set off again, but become separated. Pluto again hears some quail, and points at them. He is careful this time not to move at all, even to the point of letting the quail jump up on him and pull his fur. Mickey however, is unaware that Pluto is not right behind him. He jumps down from a rock and unwittingly wakes a sleeping bear who starts to follow him. Only when Mickey doubles around and comes across Pluto, still in his pointer position, does he realize that there is a bear behind him. The bear appears to be belligerent, but rather than running away, Mickey first tries to talk to the bear, explaining that he and Pluto were only hunting quail. Mickey even introduces himself to the bear, saying "I hope you've heard of me." The bear instead chases after Mickey and Pluto, who tear a path across the landscape back to their camp. That night they happily eat a supper of canned beans.

Use in other media

Animation of Mickey whistling and walking through the woods was reused in the ''

Disneyland Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envision ...

'' episode "Tricks of Our Trade" in 1957. For this appearance, Pluto was omitted, and Mickey was redrawn having different clothes and carrying a fishing pole instead of a shotgun.

Voice cast

* Mickey Mouse:

* 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. C ...

(archive sound)

Releases

*1939 – Theatrical release *1954 – ''

'', episode #1.1: " The Disneyland Story" (TV) *1961 – ''

Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...

'', episode #8.5: "The Hunting Instinct" (TV) *c. 1983 – ''

Good Morning, Mickey! ''Good Morning, Mickey!'' is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. It was first aired on April 18, 1983 when Disney Channel was launched. It was one of the Disney Channel's first original programs, a ...

'', episode #9 (TV) *1997 – '' The Ink and Paint Club'', episode #1.2: "Mickey's Landmarks" (TV)

Home media

The short was released on May 18, 2004 on '' Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Living Color, Volume Two: 1939-Today''. Additional releases include: *1983 – "Cartoon Classics: Pluto" (VHS) *2006 – " Funny Factory with Mickey Mouse" (DVD) *2011 – iTunes (digital download)

References

External links

''The Pointer''
at The Encyclopedia of Animated Disney Shorts * *

at the Disney Film Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Pointer 1939 films 1930s color films 1939 animated films Mickey Mouse short films 1930s Disney animated short films Hunting in popular culture Films about hunters Films directed by Clyde Geronimi Films produced by Walt Disney 1930s American films