Mickey Mouse Club
Encyclopedia
- Not to be confused with Mickey Mouse ClubhouseMickey Mouse ClubhouseMickey Mouse Clubhouse is a children's television series, that premiered in prime time on Disney Channel on May 5, 2006. The program was originally part of the Playhouse Disney daily block intended for preschoolers...
The Mickey Mouse Club is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
variety
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
television show that began in 1955, produced by Walt Disney Productions
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
and televised by the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, featuring a regular but ever-changing cast of teenage performers. The Mickey Mouse Club was created by Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
. The series has been revived, reformatted and reimagined several times since its initial 1955–1959 run on ABC.
The 1950s series
The Mickey Mouse Club was Walt Disney's second venture into producing a television series, the first being the Walt Disney anthology television series, initially titled Disneyland. Disney used both shows to help finance and promote the building of the DisneylandDisneyland Park (Anaheim)
Disneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of the Walt Disney Company. Known as Disneyland when it opened on July 18, 1955, and still almost universally referred to by that name, it is the only theme park to be...
theme park. Being busy with these projects and others, Disney turned The Mickey Mouse Club over to Bill Walsh
Bill Walsh (producer)
Bill Walsh was a film producer and screenwriter who primarily worked on live-action films for Walt Disney Productions...
to create and develop the format, initially aided by Hal Adelquist.
The result was a variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
for children, with such regular features as a newsreel, a cartoon, and a serial, as well as music, talent and comedy segments. One unique feature of the show was the Mouseketeer Roll Call, in which many (but not all) of that day's line-up of regular performers would introduce themselves by name to the television audience. In the serials, teens faced challenges in everyday situations, often overcome by their common sense or through recourse to the advice of respected elders. Mickey Mouse himself appeared in every show not only in vintage cartoons originally made for theatrical release, but in opening, interstitial and closing segments made especially for the show. In both the vintage cartoons and in the new animated segments, Mickey was voiced by his creator Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
. (Disney, of course, had previously voiced the character theatrically from 1928 to 1947, and then was replaced by sound effects artist Jimmy MacDonald
Jimmy MacDonald (sound effects artist)
John James "Jimmy" MacDonald was a Scottish voice actor and the original head of the Disney sound effects department, and the voice of Mickey Mouse from 1946 to 1977.-Career and sound effects:...
.)
Cast
Mickey Mouse Club was hosted by Jimmie DoddJimmie Dodd
James Wesley Dodd was best known as the MC of the popular 1950s Disney TV show The Mickey Mouse Club, as well as the writer of its well-known theme song, "The Mickey Mouse Club March"...
, a songwriter and the Head Mouseketeer, who provided leadership both on and off screen. In addition to his other contributions, he often provided short segments encouraging young viewers to make the right moral
Morality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
choices. These little homilies
Homily
A homily is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture. In Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Eastern Orthodox Churches, a homily is usually given during Mass at the end of the Liturgy of the Word...
became known as "Doddisms". Roy Williams
Roy Williams (artist)
Roy Williams was an artist and entertainer for The Walt Disney Studios, perhaps best known as "Big Roy," the adult mouseketeer for four seasons on the Mickey Mouse Club television series....
, a staff artist at Disney, also appeared in the show as the Big Mooseketeer. Roy suggested the Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
ears (Mouseke-ears or Mouseket-ears) worn by the cast members, which he helped create, along with Chuck Keehne, Hal Adelquist, and Bill Walsh.
The main cast members were called Mouseketeers (a play on "musketeer
Musketeer
A musketeer was an early modern type of infantry soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern armies, particularly in Europe. They sometimes could fight on horseback, like a dragoon or a cavalryman...
s"), and they performed in a variety of music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
al and dance numbers, as well as some informational segments. The most popular of the Mouseketeers comprised the so-called Red Team, which consisted of the following:
- Annette FunicelloAnnette FunicelloAnnette Joanne Funicello is an American singer and actress. She was Walt Disney's most popular cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club, and went on to appear in a series of beach party films.-Early life and early stardom:...
- Tommy ColeTommy ColeTommy Cole is an American make-up artist, a former actor and singer who is still best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:...
- Darlene GillespieDarlene GillespieDarlene Faye Gillespie is a former child actor. She is best known for having been a singer and dancer on the original Mickey Mouse Club television show from 1955 to 1958. Her Irish father and French-Canadian mother were a former vaudeville dance team...
- Cheryl HoldridgeCheryl HoldridgeCheryl Holdridge was an American actress, best known as a cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club.-Early life:Holdridge was born Cheryl Lynn Phelps in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her mother, Julie A...
(joined in second year) - Bobby BurgessBobby BurgessRobert Wilkie "Bobby" Burgess is an American dancer and singer. As a child he was an original Mouseketeer and later in life a regular on the The Lawrence Welk Show.-Early life:...
- Doreen Tracey
- Cubby O'BrienCubby O'BrienCarl Patrick O'Brien , who generally goes by the nickname of "Cubby", is a professional American drummer, and a former child actor, who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:...
- Karen PendletonKaren PendletonKaren Pendleton was born August 1, 1946 in North Hollywood, California. She was an original Mickey Mouse Club Mouseketeer on ABC television from 1955-1958. She was one of only nine Mouseketeers who were on the show during its entire original run. Karen toured Australia in 1959 and 1960 with a...
- Lonnie BurrLonnie BurrLonnie Burr was born on May 31, 1943, in Dayton, Kentucky. He is an American actor, dancer/choreographer, singer, director and author of Danish, French, Scots-Irish and German descent, best known for having been a star on the original Mickey Mouse Club television show from 1955 to 1959...
- Sharon BairdSharon BairdSharon Baird is an American actress and dancer who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:Sharon Baird was born in Seattle, Washington to Eldon Baird, an aerospace worker, and Nikki Marcus, a future talent agent. She has one younger brother, Jimmy Baird, also a former child actor...
- Dennis Day (first and second year)
- Nancy Abbate (first year only)
- Jay-Jay Solari (second year only)
(Cubby and Karen were initially Meeseketeers because they were the youngest of this group)
The remaining Mouseketeers, consisting of the White or Blue Teams, were Don Agrati (later known as Don Grady
Don Grady
Donald Michael Agrati , better known as Don Grady, is an American composer, musician and actor. He is remembered both as one of Mickey Mouse's original Mouseketeers, and as Robbie Douglas, from My Three Sons. His sister was also an actress, billed as Lani O'Grady...
when starring as "Robbie" on the long running sitcom My Three Sons
My Three Sons
My Three Sons is an American situation comedy. The series ran from 1960 to 1965 on ABC, and moved to CBS until its end on August 24, 1972. My Three Sons chronicles the life of a widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas , raising his three sons.The series was a cornerstone of the CBS...
), Sherry Alberoni
Sherry Alberoni
Sherry Alberoni is an American actress and voice artist. Alberoni got her start as a Mouseketeer on the weekday ABC television program The Mickey Mouse Club. As an adult, she became a voice artist for Hanna-Barbera Productions...
, Billie Jean Beanblossom, Johnny Crawford
Johnny Crawford
John Ernest "Johnny" Crawford is a prolific American character actor, singer and musician. At 12, Crawford rose to fame for playing Mark McCain, the son of the Lucas McCain character , in the popular 1960s ABC western series, The Rifleman, which aired from 1958 to 1963...
, Jonathan A. Kahn (a.k.a. Tio Juan), Eileen Diamond, Dickie Dodd (not related to Jimmy Dodd), Mary Espinosa, Bonnie Lynn Fields, Judy Harriet, Linda Hughes, Dallas Johann, John Lee Johann, Bonni Lou Kern, Charlie Laney, Larry Larsen, Paul Petersen
Paul Petersen
William Paul Petersen is an American movie actor, singer, novelist, and activist. Primarily known for his character-type roles in the 1960s and 1970s, as an adult Petersen established the organization A Minor Consideration to support child stars and other child laborers through legislation,...
, Lynn Ready, Mickey Rooney Jr.
Mickey Rooney, Jr.
Mickey Rooney, Jr. is a retired American actor and the eldest son of the actor Mickey Rooney. He operates the Rooney Entertainment Group, a movie and TV production company.-Early life:...
, Tim Rooney
Tim Rooney
Timothy Hayes Yule was an American actor and voice actor. He was the second son of actor Mickey Rooney and suffered from a muscle disease known as dermatomyositis....
, Mary Lynn Sartori, Bronson Scott, Michael Smith, Margene Storey, Ronnie Steiner, Mark Sutherland and Don Underhill. Dennis Day was a Mouseketeer for two seasons; the others served for shorter periods. Larry Larsen, on only for the 1956-57 season, was the oldest Mouseketeer, being born in 1939. Among the thousands who auditioned but didn't make the cut were future vocalist/songwriter Paul Williams
Paul Williams (songwriter)
Paul Hamilton Williams, Jr. is an Academy Award-winning American composer, musician, songwriter, and actor. He is perhaps best known for popular songs performed by a number of acts in the 1970s including Three Dog Night's "An Old Fashioned Love Song", Helen Reddy's "You and Me Against the World",...
and future actress Candice Bergen
Candice Bergen
Candice Patricia Bergen is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for starring in two TV series, as the title character on the situation comedy Murphy Brown , for which she won five Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards; and as Shirley Schmidt on the comedy-drama Boston Legal...
.
Other notable non-Mouseketeer performers appeared in various dramatic segments:
- Tim ConsidineTim ConsidineTimothy Daniel "Tim" Considine is a former American child actor and young adult actor who was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s...
- Tommy KirkTommy KirkThomas Lee "Tommy" Kirk is a former American actor, and later a businessman.-Disney years:Kirk was discovered by talent agents at the age of thirteen in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California...
- Roberta ShoreRoberta ShoreRoberta Jymme Schourop , better known as Roberta Shore, is an American actress and performer, most famous for her youthful television and movie roles in the 1950s and early 1960s....
a.k.a. Jymme Shore - Steve Stevens (not to be confused with musician of same name)
- David StolleryDavid StolleryDavid John Stollery, III , is a former American child actor and, as an adult, a noted industrial designer. He appeared in numerous Disney movies and television programs in the 1950s...
- Judy NugentJudy Nugent-Early life:Nugent was born in Los Angeles, California, daughter of Lucille and Carl Nugent. Her father was a property master for MGM, her mother later became a talent agent, managing Judy's career and that of her older sister, Carol Nugent.-Career:...
- Kevin CorcoranKevin CorcoranKevin Anthony "Moochie" Corcoran is an American director, producer, and former child actor. He appeared in numerous Disney projects between 1957 and 1963, frequently as an irrepressible character with the nickname Moochie...
, a.k.a. Moochie - J. Pat O'MalleyJ. Pat O'MalleyJames Patrick O'Malley was an English singer and character actor, who appeared in many American films and television programs during the 1940s–1970s, using the stage name J. Pat O'Malley...
- Sammy Ogg
- Alvy MooreAlvy MooreJack Alvin "Alvy" Moore was an American light comic actor best known for his role as scatterbrained county agricultural agent "Hank Kimball" on the television series Green Acres....
- Julius Sumner MillerJulius Sumner MillerJulius Sumner Miller was an American physicist and television personality. He is best known for his work on children's television programs in North America and Australia.-Off-screen:...
as "Professor Wonderful"
These non-Mouseketeers primarily appeared in numerous original serials filmed for the series, only some of which have appeared in reruns. Certain Mouseketeers were also featured in some of the serials, particularly Annette Funicello and Darlene Gillespie.
Major serials
Major serials included the following:- Spin and MartySpin and MartySpin and Marty was a popular series of television shorts that aired as part of ABC's Mickey Mouse Club show of the mid-1950s produced by Walt Disney. There were three serials in all, set at the Triple R Ranch, a boys' western-style summer camp. The first series of 25 eleven-minute episodes,...
(three serials, starring Tim ConsidineTim ConsidineTimothy Daniel "Tim" Considine is a former American child actor and young adult actor who was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s...
and David StolleryDavid StolleryDavid John Stollery, III , is a former American child actor and, as an adult, a noted industrial designer. He appeared in numerous Disney movies and television programs in the 1950s...
in the title roles) - The Hardy Boys (two serials, starring Tim ConsidineTim ConsidineTimothy Daniel "Tim" Considine is a former American child actor and young adult actor who was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s...
and Tommy KirkTommy KirkThomas Lee "Tommy" Kirk is a former American actor, and later a businessman.-Disney years:Kirk was discovered by talent agents at the age of thirteen in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California...
) - Corky and White Shadow, starring Darlene Gillespie
- Walt Disney Presents: AnnetteWalt Disney Presents: AnnetteWalt Disney Presents: Annette was a television serial that ran on The Mickey Mouse Club during the show's third season . It starred Annette Funicello as Annette McCloud, a poor, orphaned country girl who moves into town with her upper-class aunt and uncle...
, starring Annette Funicello - Adventure in DairylandAdventure in DairylandAdventure in Dairyland is a television serial that aired in 1956 on ABC as part of the second season of The Mickey Mouse Club. The serial starred Mouseketeer Annette Funicello and Sammy Ogg of Spin and Marty and featured Kevin Corcoran in his first Walt Disney production.-Plot:Annette Funicello...
, featuring Funicello and Sammy Ogg, and introducing Kevin Corcoran as Moochie - Jiminy Cricket educational serials (four Animated serials educating kids on various topics).
- The Adventures of Clint and MacThe Adventures of Clint and MacThe Adventures of Clint and Mac is a 1957 television serial that aired on ABC as part of the third season of The Mickey Mouse Club.-Plot:Clint is an American boy living in London while his father is stationed there with the United States Air Force. He's formed a friendship with Mac, his neighbor,...
(starring Neil Wolfe as Clint Rogers and Jonathan Bailey as Alastair "Mac" MacIntosh.) - Boys of the Western Sea
Music
The opening theme, "The Mickey Mouse MarchMickey Mouse March
Mickey Mouse March , is the opening theme for the The Mickey Mouse Club TV show, broadcast weekday afternoons in the US from October 1955 to 1959, on the ABC television network...
," was written by the show's primary adult host, Jimmie Dodd. It was also reprised at the end of each episode, with the slower it's-time-to-say-goodbye verse. A shorter version of the opening title was used later in the series, in syndication, and on Disney Channel reruns. Dodd also wrote many other songs used in individual segments over the course of the series.
Show themes
Each day of the week had a special show theme, which was reflected in the various segments. The themes were:- Monday - Fun with Music
- Tuesday - Guest Star
- Wednesday - Anything Can Happen
- Thursday - Circus
- Friday - Talent Round-up
Scheduling and air times
The series ran on ABC Television for an hour each weekday in the 1955–1956 and 1956-1957 seasons (from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. ET), and only a half-hour weekdays (5:30 to 6:00 p.m. ET) in 1957–1958, the final season to feature new programming. Although the show returned for the 1958–1959 season (5:30 to 6:00 p.m. ET), these programs were repeats from the first two seasons, re-cut into a half-hour format. The Mickey Mouse Club was featured on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Walt Disney's Adventure Time, featuring re-runs of The Mickey Mouse Club serials and several re-edited segments from Disneyland and Walt Disney Presents, appeared on Tuesdays and Thursdays.Cancellation
Although the show remained popular, ABC decided to cancel the show after its fourth season, as Disney and the ABC network could not come to terms for renewal. The cancellation in September 1959 was attributable to several factors: the Disney studios did not realize high-profit margins from merchandise sales, the sponsors were uninterested in educational programming for children, and many commercials were needed in order to pay for the show. After canceling The Mickey Mouse Club, ABC also refused to let Disney air the show on another network. Walt Disney filed a lawsuit against ABC, and won the damages in a settlement; however, he had to agree that both the Mickey Mouse Club and Zorro could not be aired on any major network. This left Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (later retitled the Wonderful World of Disney) as the only Disney series left on prime timePrime time
Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast programming during the middle of the evening for television programing.The term prime time is often defined in terms of a fixed time period—for example, from 19:00 to 22:00 or 20:00 to 23:00 Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast...
until 1972, when The Mouse Factory
The Mouse Factory
The Mouse Factory was a syndicated television series produced by Walt Disney Productions, that ran from 1972 to 1974. It showed clips from various Disney cartoons and movies and showed celebrity guests, including Johnny Brown, Charles Nelson Reilly, JoAnne Worley and many more, visiting the Disney...
went on the air. The prohibition against major U.S. broadcast network play of the original Mickey Mouse Club (or any later version) became moot when Disney acquired ABC in 1996, but no plans have been announced for an ABC airing of any version of The Mickey Mouse Club produced between 1955 and 1996 or for a new network series.
Australian tour
Although the series had been killed in the United States, many members of the cast assembled for highly successful tours of Australia in 1959 and 1960. The television series was very successful in Australia and was still running on Australian television. The cast surprised Australian audiences, as by then they had physically developed and in some cases, bore little resemblance to the young cast with whom Australians were so familiar. Mainstream television did not reach Australia until 1956 so the series screened well into the sixties when the back catalogue expired.Syndication
In response to continuing audience demand, the original Mickey Mouse Club went into edited syndicated half-hour reruns that enjoyed wide distribution starting in the fall of 1962, achieving strong ratings especially during its first three seasons in syndicated release. (because of its popularity in some markets, a few stations continued to carry it into 1968 before the series was finally withdrawn from syndication). Some new features were added such as Fun with Science, aka "Professor Wonderful" (with scientist Julius Sumner MillerJulius Sumner Miller
Julius Sumner Miller was an American physicist and television personality. He is best known for his work on children's television programs in North America and Australia.-Off-screen:...
) and Marvelous Marvin in the 1964–1965 season; Jimmie Dodd appeared in several of these new segments before his death in November 1964. Many markets stretched the program back to an hour's daily run time during the 1960s rerun cycle by adding locally produced and hosted portions involving educational subjects and live audience participation of local children, in a manner not unlike Romper Room
Romper Room
Romper Room is a children's television series that ran in the United States from 1953 to 1994 as well as at various times in Australia, Canada, Japan, Puerto Rico, New Zealand and the United Kingdom...
.
In response to an upsurge in demand from baby boomers entering adulthood, the show again went into syndicated reruns from January 20, 1975, until January 14, 1977. It has since been rerun on cable specialty channels Disney in the U.S. and Family in Canada. The original Mickey Mouse Club films aired five days a week on the Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
from its launch in 1983 until the third version of the series began in 1989. The last airing of the edited 1950s material was on the Disney Channel's "Vault Disney" from 1997 to September 2002.
Reunions
Almost all of the original Mouseketeers were reunited for a TV special, which aired on Disney's Wonderful WorldDisney anthology television series
The Walt Disney anthology television series refers to a television series which has been produced by the Walt Disney Company under several different titles from 1955 to 2008...
in November 1980.
Several original Mouseketeers performed together at Disneyland
Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
Disneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of the Walt Disney Company. Known as Disneyland when it opened on July 18, 1955, and still almost universally referred to by that name, it is the only theme park to be...
in the fall of 2005, in observance of Disneyland's 50th birthday, and the 50th anniversary of the TV premiere of The Mickey Mouse Club.
1970s revival, The New Mickey Mouse Club
In the 1970s, Walt Disney ProductionsThe Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
revived the concept but modernized the show cosmetically, with a disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
re-recording of the theme song and minority cast members. The sets, though colored, were simplistic, lacking the fine artwork of the original. Like the original, nearly each day's episode included a vintage cartoon, though usually color ones from the late 1930s and onward.
Disney voice actor and sound effects editor Wayne Allwine
Wayne Allwine
Wayne Anthony Allwine was an American voice actor, a sound effects editor and foley artist for The Walt Disney Company. He was born in Glendale, California. He was the voice of Mickey Mouse for 32 years, narrowly the longest to date, and was married to voice actress Russi Taylor.Allwine was the...
voiced Mickey in the animated lead-ins for the show. He would keep providing the voice for the character up to his death in 2009.
Serials
Serials were usually old Disney movies, cut into segments for twice-weekly inclusion. Movies included Third Man on the MountainThird Man on the Mountain
Third Man on the Mountain is a 1959 American Walt Disney Productions movie set during the golden age of alpinism about a young Swiss man who conquers the mountain that killed his father. It is based on Banner in the Sky, a James Ramsey Ullman novel about the first ascent of the Matterhorn, and was...
, The Misadventures of Merlin Jones
The Misadventures of Merlin Jones
The Misadventures of Merlin Jones is a 1964 Walt Disney production starring Tommy Kirk and Annette Funicello. Kirk plays a college student who experiments with mind-reading and hypnotism, leading to run-ins with a local judge...
and its sequel The Monkey's Uncle
The Monkey's Uncle
The Monkey's Uncle is a 1965 Walt Disney production starring Tommy Kirk as genius college student Merlin Jones and Annette Funicello as his girlfriend, Jennifer. The title refers to a chimpanzee named Stanley, Merlin's legal "nephew" ; Stanley otherwise has little relevance to the plot...
(both starring Tommy Kirk
Tommy Kirk
Thomas Lee "Tommy" Kirk is a former American actor, and later a businessman.-Disney years:Kirk was discovered by talent agents at the age of thirteen in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California...
), Emil and the Detectives (retitled The Three Skrinks), Tonka (retitled A Horse Called Comanche), The Horse Without a Head (about a toy horse), and Toby Tyler
Toby Tyler
Toby Tyler is a Disney film released on January 21, 1960 by Buena Vista Distribution Company, based on the 1880 children's book Toby Tyler, or Ten Weeks with a Circus by James Otis Kaler....
(starring Kevin Corcoran
Kevin Corcoran
Kevin Anthony "Moochie" Corcoran is an American director, producer, and former child actor. He appeared in numerous Disney projects between 1957 and 1963, frequently as an irrepressible character with the nickname Moochie...
). In addition, one original serial was produced, The Mystery of Rustler's Cave, starring Kim Richards
Kim Richards
Kimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
and Robbie Rist
Robbie Rist
Robert Anthony Rist is an American actor and musician.-Acting and voiceover work:As a child, Rist played Cousin Oliver in the final six episodes of The Brady Bunch. With the regular children all getting older, his inclusion was intended to reintroduce cute younger children to the series...
.
Theme days
Theme days were:- Monday - Who, What, Why, Where, When and How
- Tuesday - Let's Go
- Wednesday - Surprise
- Thursday - Discovery
- Friday - Showtime (at Disneyland, with performers usually at Plaza Gardens)
Troubled syndication run
The series debuted on January 17, 1977, on only 38 local television stations in the United States, and by June, when the unsuccessful series was discontinued, only about 70 stations in total had picked up the series. Additional stations picked up the canceled program, which continued to run until January 12, 1979; 130 new episodes, with much of the original material repackaged and a bit of new footage added, and a shortened version of the theme song, were produced to start airing September 5, 1977. The series has not had more than token reruns, unlike its 1950s predecessor, and while both the 1950s and 1990s series had DVD releases in July 2005, the 1970s series seems forgotten except by that short generation of youthful viewers for whom it defined the Club.Cast
The cast had a more diverse ethnic background than the 1950s version. Several 1970s cast members went on to become TV stars and other notable icons.The show's most notable alumna was Lisa Whelchel
Lisa Whelchel
Lisa Diane Whelchel is an American actress, singer, ventriloquist, and writer best known for her role in the television series The Facts of Life as the preppy and wealthy Blair Warner.-Life and career:...
, who later starred in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
television sitcom The Facts of Life
The Facts of Life (TV series)
The Facts of Life is an American sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979 to May 7, 1988. A spin-off of the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, the series' premise focused on Edna Garrett as she becomes a housemother at the fictional Eastland School, a prestigious...
before becoming a well-known Christian author. Mouseketeer Julie Piekarski
Julie Piekarski
Julie Anne Piekarski is best known for her role on the popular 1980s sitcom The Facts of Life....
(born St. Louis, 1963) also appeared with Lisa Whelchel on the first season of The Facts of Life. Kelly Parsons
Kelly Parsons
Kelly Parsons achieved fame as an American actress and model. She was born in Coral Gables, Florida, on January 23, 1964. She won the Our Little Miss pageant in 1975...
(born Coral Gables, Fla., 1964) went on to become a beauty queen
Beauty Queen
"Beauty Queen" is the second song from Roxy Music's second album, For Your Pleasure. The lyrics refer to Ferry's girlfriend, Valerie Leon, one-time UK beauty queen, B-movie actress and model working in the Newcastle area, circa 1973.-Musicians:...
and runner-up to Miss USA
Miss USA
The Miss USA beauty contest has been held annually since 1952 to select the United States entrant in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operates both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA...
. Shawnte Northcutte (born Los Angeles, 1965) appeared once on Facts of Life. Billy 'Pop' Attmore (born at US military base in Landstuhl, West Germany, 1965) appeared in a few movies before and after the series, a fifth-season episode of The Brady Bunch
The Brady Bunch
The Brady Bunch is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz and starring Robert Reed, Florence Henderson, and Ann B. Davis. The series revolved around a large blended family...
("Kelly's Kids"), and as a streetwise hood in the short-lived Eischied
Eischied
Eischied is an American crime drama broadcast on NBC from September 21, 1979 to January 20, 1980. It was based on the starring character from the 1978 miniseries To Kill a Cop, which was based on the novel by Robert Daley.-Snyopsis:...
crime drama. Nita Dee appeared at the tail end of an episode of Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:...
.
Other Mouseketeers from the 1970s show:
- Scott Craig — born in Van Nuys, California, in 1964; lived in Las Vegas, died December 30, 2003.
- Nita Dee (Benita DiGiampaolo) — born in Long Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, 1966 - Mindy FeldmanMindy FeldmanMindy Feldman is an American film and television actress.-Career:In addition to appearing in films and television series, Feldman is a former Mouseketeer — a member of The Mickey Mouse Club.-References:...
— born in Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, CaliforniaBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
, 1968, and sister of Corey FeldmanCorey FeldmanCorey Scott Feldman is an American film and television actor. He became known during the 1980s, with roles in the Hollywood films Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, The Goonies, Stand by Me, The Lost Boys, License to Drive, Dream a Little Dream, Gremlins and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...
. - Angel Florez — born in Stockton, CaliforniaStockton, CaliforniaStockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
, 1963; died April 25, 1995. - Allison FonteAllison FonteAllison Fonte was a cast member of the television show The New Mickey Mouse Club, a 1977-78 revival of the Disney television show that had originally aired between 1955 and 1959....
— born in Anaheim, CaliforniaAnaheim, CaliforniaAnaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
, 1964 - Todd Turquand — born in Hollywood, California, 1964
- Curtis Wong — born in Vancouver, British Columbia, 1962
Disney voice actor and sound effects editor Wayne Allwine
Wayne Allwine
Wayne Anthony Allwine was an American voice actor, a sound effects editor and foley artist for The Walt Disney Company. He was born in Glendale, California. He was the voice of Mickey Mouse for 32 years, narrowly the longest to date, and was married to voice actress Russi Taylor.Allwine was the...
voiced Mickey Mouse in the animated lead-ins for the show, replacing Jimmy MacDonald, who in 1947 had replaced Walt Disney as the voice of Mickey. Allwine would keep providing the voice for the character up to his death in 2009.
Future rock musician Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
claims to have auditioned for a part on the show, reading a poem by Sylvia Plath; she was not selected.
Theme song and soundtrack
The lyrics of the Mickey Mouse Club March theme song were slightly different from the original, with two additional lines: "He's our favorite Mouseketeer; we know you will agree" and "Take some fun and mix in love, our happy recipe."A soundtrack album was released with the show.
Distribution
This incarnation was not distributed by Disney alone; while Disney did produce the series, it was co-produced and distributed by SFM EntertainmentSFM Entertainment
SFM Entertainment is an American television syndicator, established in 1968. The name comes from the initials of the company's founders: Walter Staab, Robert Frank, and Stanley Moger.The company was known for the closing logo with no voiceover...
, which also handled 1970s-era syndication of the original 1950s series (Disney since regained sole distribution rights).
1990s revival, The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (MMC)
In 1989, The Disney ChannelDisney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
revived the show with a different format, which was very similar to other popular shows of the time like You Can't Do That on Television
You Can't Do That on Television
You Can't Do That on Television is a Canadian television program that first aired locally in 1979 before ultimately airing internationally in 1981...
or Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
. The show structure was originally developed by Walt Disney Television in the mid-1980s.
Scheduling and air times
Seasons 1–5. In Season 6, the show was on from Monday to Thursday at 5:30PM. In its final season, Season 7, it aired Thursdays only at 7:30PM. The show premiered Monday, April 24, 1989, ended production in 1994, and ran reruns until Thursday, May 31, 1996. Seasons 3, 5, and 7 had the most episodes. Seasons 4 and 6 were shorter, having about 35 episodes each.Format
The long version of the new show's title was The All New Mickey Mouse Club, but it was more commonly called MMC. Recorded before a studio audience at the Disney-MGM Studios, now Disney's Hollywood StudiosDisney's Hollywood Studios
Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...
in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, it featured diverse teens. The show was a mix of live skits, recorded comedy, and songs. The Mouseketeers did their own versions of popular songs live and in music videos. Emerald Cove was a recurring soap opera-type segment starring Mouseketeers and several actors who exclusively appeared on these segments, which aired three times a week for 10 minutes.
Cast
Season 1 had 12 teen and 2 adult cast members. Season 2 had 11 teen cast members. Season 3had 15 teen and 2 adult cast members.
Five members of the show (Damon Pampolina, Tiffini Hale
Tiffini Hale
Tiffini Talia Hale is an American actress and pop singer. She was a Mousketeer on The All New Mickey Mouse Club and a member of the pop group the Party.-External links:...
, Chase Hampton
Chase Hampton
Chasen Cord "Chase" Hampton is an American actor, performer, singer, songwriter, musician, and mentor.-Early life and career:...
, Albert Fields
Albert Fields
Albert Jeunepierre Fields is an American actor and pop singer. He was a Mousketeer on The All New Mickey Mouse Club and a member of the pop group The Party. After The Party disbanded, Albert went under the moniker Jeune and released a solo album in 1995 titled Back to Reality...
, and Deedee Magno
Deedee Magno
Deedee Lynn Magno Hall is an American actress and singer, formerly a member of the pop group The Party. She also lent her voice to the Disney show The All New Mickey Mouse Club. She also appears as Jasmine on the Aladdin a Musical Spectacular Soundtrack...
) left the show and became the musical group the Party
The Party (band)
The Party was an American pop band. The group was composed of Albert Fields, Tiffini Hale, Chase Hampton, Deedee Magno, and Damon Pampolina, all of whom were cast members of The All New Mickey Mouse Club.- History :...
, and released four full-length albums and a greatest-hits compilation album on Disney's Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote...
. The group produced moderate radio hits with five charting songs, most notably a pop cover of the Dokken
Dokken
Dokken is an American heavy metal and hard rock band formed in 1978. They split up in 1989 but reformed four years later. The group accumulated numerous charting singles and has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide...
rock song "In My Dreams
Under Lock and Key
Under Lock and Key is the third studio album by heavy metal band Dokken, released in 1985 through Elektra Records.The album contains three singles: "In My Dreams", "It's Not Love" and "The Hunter" all became moderately successful...
."
The show would be the starting point for several American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
superstars and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
s. The fourth season introduced viewers to Matt Morris
Matt Morris (musician)
Matthew Burton Morris is an American pop artist and songwriter. He is the son of country music star Gary Morris. He achieved early fame when he appeared on the Disney Channel television series The Mickey Mouse Club in the early 1990s, where he was a cast member from 1991-1995...
, JC Chasez, and Golden Globe-winning actress Keri Russell
Keri Russell
Keri Lynn Russell is an American actress and dancer. After appearing in a number of made-for-television films and series during the mid-1990s, she came to fame for portraying the title role of Felicity Porter on the series Felicity, which ran from 1998 to 2002, and for which she won a Golden Globe...
. The sixth season featured future actress Nikki DeLoach
Nikki DeLoach
Ashlee Nicole DeLoach is an American actress known as Nikki DeLoach.-Life and career:DeLoach was born in Waycross, Georgia. DeLoach was a member of the Georgia 4-H Performing Arts group Clovers & Company from 1991 to 1994. She then joined the The New Mickey Mouse Club in 1993.In 1998, she became a...
; Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning singers Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
, Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
, and Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
; and future Academy Award-nominated actor Ryan Gosling
Ryan Gosling
Ryan Thomas Gosling is a Canadian actor and musician. He first came to public attention as a child star on the Disney Channel's Mickey Mouse Club and went on to appear in other family entertainment programmes including Are You Afraid of the Dark? , Goosebumps , Breaker High and Young Hercules...
.
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Simpson is an American recording artist, actress, television personality, and fashion designer whose rise to fame began in 1999. Since that time, Simpson has achieved many recording milestones, starred in several television shows, movies, and commercials, launched a line of hair and...
and Countess Vaughn
Countess Vaughn
Countess Danielle Vaughn is an American actress and singer. She is perhaps best known for her role as Kim Parker on the UPN television sitcom Moesha and its spin-off The Parkers.-Early life and career:...
were audition finalists but did not make it onto the show. Sara Bareilles
Sara Bareilles
Sara Beth Bareilles is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She achieved mainstream success in 2007 with the hit single "Love Song", which brought her into the number one spot on the Billboard Pop 100 chart. She has sold over 1 million records in the United States alone and has been...
also sent in an audition, but it never came to fruition.
The only Mouseketeers who appeared each season from the first until its cancellation in 1994 were Lindsey Alley
Lindsey Alley
Lindsey Erin Alley is an American actress and singer, who for several years lived in New York City and is now residing in Los Angeles....
, Jennifer McGill, and Josh Ackerman, with Tiffini Hale
Tiffini Hale
Tiffini Talia Hale is an American actress and pop singer. She was a Mousketeer on The All New Mickey Mouse Club and a member of the pop group the Party.-External links:...
and Chase Hampton
Chase Hampton
Chasen Cord "Chase" Hampton is an American actor, performer, singer, songwriter, musician, and mentor.-Early life and career:...
back for the final season.
Theme days and other notable episodes
In 1990, as part of Season 3, six former Mouseketeers Sherry AlberoniSherry Alberoni
Sherry Alberoni is an American actress and voice artist. Alberoni got her start as a Mouseketeer on the weekday ABC television program The Mickey Mouse Club. As an adult, she became a voice artist for Hanna-Barbera Productions...
, Sharon Baird
Sharon Baird
Sharon Baird is an American actress and dancer who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:Sharon Baird was born in Seattle, Washington to Eldon Baird, an aerospace worker, and Nikki Marcus, a future talent agent. She has one younger brother, Jimmy Baird, also a former child actor...
, Bobby Burgess
Bobby Burgess
Robert Wilkie "Bobby" Burgess is an American dancer and singer. As a child he was an original Mouseketeer and later in life a regular on the The Lawrence Welk Show.-Early life:...
, Tommy Cole
Tommy Cole
Tommy Cole is an American make-up artist, a former actor and singer who is still best known for having been a Mouseketeer.-Early life:...
, Don Grady
Don Grady
Donald Michael Agrati , better known as Don Grady, is an American composer, musician and actor. He is remembered both as one of Mickey Mouse's original Mouseketeers, and as Robbie Douglas, from My Three Sons. His sister was also an actress, billed as Lani O'Grady...
, and Annette Funicello
Annette Funicello
Annette Joanne Funicello is an American singer and actress. She was Walt Disney's most popular cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club, and went on to appear in a series of beach party films.-Early life and early stardom:...
made a special appearance, actually participating in some skits and a couple of musical numbers. They were presented with 1990s MMC jackets. Annette thanked everyone very much and told the new Mouseketeers, "The Club is in good hands because of all of you." MMC celebrated its 200th episode with a show about racial unity; It featured Rev. Jesse Jackson, Tracie Spencer
Tracie Spencer
Tracie Monique Spencer is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, actress, and model.-Biography:She began singing by the age of three and modeling in pageant competitions at age five. Tracie performed, produced and directed her first music videos before she was ten years of age...
, Young Nation, and Tevin Campbell
Tevin Campbell
Tevin Jermod Campbell is an American R&B singer-songwriter and actor. He scored a string of R&B chart hits as a teenager in the early to mid-1990s.-Music career:...
.
Theme days were as follows:
- Music Day - Mondays (Seasons 1-5), Tuesdays (Season 6)
- Guest Day - Tuesdays (Seasons 1-5), Mondays (Season 6)
- Anything Can Happen Day - Wednesdays (seasons 1-5)
- Party Day - Thursdays (Seasons 1-4, 6), Fridays (season 5)
- Hall of Fame Day - Fridays (Seasons 1-4), Thursdays (Season 5), Wednesdays (Season 6)
Full cast of 1990s Mouseketeers
Listed alphabetically:
|
External links
(1950s version) (1970s version) (1990s version)- Famous Former Mouseketeers - slideshow by Life magazine
- Classic TV - The Mickey Mouse Club
- The New Mickey Mouse Club Renaissance Project
- Walt Disney Treasures: The Mickey Mouse Club at UltimateDisney.com
- Mickey Mouse Club: Best of Britney, Justin & Christina at UltimateDisney.com
- New Mickey Mouse Club.com
- Original Mickey Mouse Club
- Mickey Mouse Club