The Nifty Nineties
Encyclopedia
The Nifty Nineties is an animated
short film produced in Technicolor
by Walt Disney Productions
and released to theaters on June 20, 1941 by RKO Radio Pictures. The film stars Mickey
and Minnie Mouse
and romanticizes the decade of the 1890s
.
The film was directed by Riley Thomson
and features original and adapted music by Charles Wolcott
. The voice cast includes Walt Disney
as Mickey and Thelma Boardman as Minnie. Animators Ward Kimball
and Fred Moore
have cameos where they each voice a caricatured
version of themselves.
Set in the springtime, sometime in the 1890s, Mickey and Minnie Mouse happen to meet each other in a public park one day. Minnie attracts Mickey by intentionally dropping her handkerchief
so Mickey will return it to her.
They attend a vaudeville
show where they first see a slideshow presentation called "Father, Dear, Father", which features the song "Come Home, Father" by Henry Clay Work
. In the show, a little girl attempts to get her father to leave a local tavern because he hadn't come right home from work as promised and got drunk at the tavern. In the fourth picture in the slideshow, we see the clock tower, which reads 1:00 am. With mother home watching since tea and her son very sick in her arms, there can only be hope that the father comes home. The slideshow causes Minnie to cry, but Mickey tries to comfort her saying "Don't take it so hard. It's only a show".
The next act is "Fred & Ward, Two Clever Boys From Illinois" which features two song and dance men. Fred and Ward are caricatures of Disney animators Fred Moore and Ward Kimball
who also voiced the characters.
After the show is over, Mickey and Minnie cruise the roads of the countryside in a Brass Era car
. Goofy
rides by on a penny-farthing
bicycle, and Donald Duck
, Daisy Duck
, Huey, Dewey and Louie
ride on a bicycle built for five
. At last, in a scene reminiscent of Plane Crazy
, the car crashes with a cow. Mickey and Minnie emerge from the wreckage unhurt, but when they try to kiss each other, the cow pops her head up between them.
in one of his earliest projects for Disney.
The songs include:
Animated cartoon
An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot...
short film produced in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
by Walt Disney Productions
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
and released to theaters on June 20, 1941 by RKO Radio Pictures. The film stars Mickey
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...
and Minnie Mouse
Minnie Mouse
Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi...
and romanticizes the decade of the 1890s
1890s
The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the "Mauve Decade" - because William Henry Perkin's aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that colour in fashion - and also as the "Gay Nineties", under the then-current usage of the word "gay" which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no...
.
The film was directed by Riley Thomson
Riley Thomson
Riley A. Thomson, Jr. was an American animator and comics artist who spent most of his career working with Walt Disney films and characters. He directed six Disney short films including The Nifty Nineties and Symphony Hour.-Career:Thomson began his career in 1935 at Leon Schlesinger Productions ...
and features original and adapted music by Charles Wolcott
Charles Wolcott
Charles Wolcott served as a member of the Universal House of Justice, the supreme governing body of the Bahá'í Faith, between 1963 and 1987.Wolcott was born in Flint, Michigan, USA...
. The voice cast includes 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...
as Mickey and Thelma Boardman as Minnie. Animators Ward Kimball
Ward Kimball
Ward Walrath Kimball was an animator for the Walt Disney Studios. He was one of Walt Disney's team of animators known as Disney's Nine Old Men.-Career:...
and Fred Moore
Fred Moore
Robert Fred Moore , was an American artist and character animator for Walt Disney Productions. Often called "Freddie," he was born and raised in Los Angeles, California...
have cameos where they each voice a caricatured
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
version of themselves.
Plot summary
Handkerchief
A handkerchief , also called a handkercher or hanky, is a form of a kerchief, typically a hemmed square of thin fabric that can be carried in the pocket or purse, and which is intended for personal hygiene purposes such as wiping one's hands or face, or blowing one's nose...
so Mickey will return it to her.
They attend a vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
show where they first see a slideshow presentation called "Father, Dear, Father", which features the song "Come Home, Father" by Henry Clay Work
Henry Clay Work
Henry Clay Work was an American composer and songwriter.-Biography:He was born in Middletown, Connecticut, to Alanson and Amelia Work. His father opposed slavery, and Work was himself an active abolitionist and Union supporter...
. In the show, a little girl attempts to get her father to leave a local tavern because he hadn't come right home from work as promised and got drunk at the tavern. In the fourth picture in the slideshow, we see the clock tower, which reads 1:00 am. With mother home watching since tea and her son very sick in her arms, there can only be hope that the father comes home. The slideshow causes Minnie to cry, but Mickey tries to comfort her saying "Don't take it so hard. It's only a show".
The next act is "Fred & Ward, Two Clever Boys From Illinois" which features two song and dance men. Fred and Ward are caricatures of Disney animators Fred Moore and Ward Kimball
Ward Kimball
Ward Walrath Kimball was an animator for the Walt Disney Studios. He was one of Walt Disney's team of animators known as Disney's Nine Old Men.-Career:...
who also voiced the characters.
After the show is over, Mickey and Minnie cruise the roads of the countryside in a Brass Era car
Brass Era car
The automotive Brass Era is the first period of automotive manufacturing, named for the prominent brass fittings used during this time for such things as lights and radiators. It extends from the first commercial automobiles marketed in the 1890s until about World War I...
. Goofy
Goofy
Goofy is a cartoon character created in 1932 at Walt Disney Productions. Goofy is a tall, anthropomorphic dog, and typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fedora. Goofy is a close friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck...
rides by on a penny-farthing
Penny-farthing
Penny-farthing, high wheel, high wheeler, and ordinary are all terms used to describe a type of bicycle with a large front wheel and a much smaller rear wheel that was popular after the boneshaker, until the development of the safety bicycle, in the 1880s...
bicycle, and Donald Duck
Donald Duck
Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
, Daisy Duck
Daisy Duck
Daisy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1940 by Walt Disney Productions as the girlfriend of Donald Duck. Like Donald, Daisy is an anthropomorphic white duck, but has large eyelashes and ruffled tail feathers to suggest a skirt. She is often seen wearing a hair bow, blouse, and shoes...
, Huey, Dewey and Louie
Huey, Dewey and Louie
Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck are a trio of fictional, anthropomorphic ducks who appear in animated cartoons and comic books published by the Walt Disney Company. Identical triplets, the three are Donald Duck's nephews. Huey, Dewey, and Louie were created by Ted Osborne and Al Taliaferro, and first...
ride on a bicycle built for five
Tandem bicycle
The tandem bicycle or twin is a form of bicycle designed to be ridden by more than one person. The term tandem refers to the seating arrangement , not the number of riders. A bike with two riders side-by-side is called a sociable.-History:Patents related to tandem bicycles date from the late 19th...
. At last, in a scene reminiscent of Plane Crazy
Plane Crazy
Plane Crazy is an American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The cartoon, produced in 1928 by The Walt Disney Studio, was the first to feature the character Mickey Mouse. It was made as a silent film and given a test screening to a theater audience on May 15, 1928, but...
, the car crashes with a cow. Mickey and Minnie emerge from the wreckage unhurt, but when they try to kiss each other, the cow pops her head up between them.
Songs
With the exception of one song, "The Gay Nineties" (the opening song), this short featured mostly authentic songs from the 1890s, most of which were performed by the vocal quartet, The Sportsmen, which featured Thurl RavenscroftThurl Ravenscroft
Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft was an American voice actor and singer best known as the deep voice behind Tony the Tiger's "They're grrreat!" in Frosted Flakes television commercials for more than five decades. Ravenscroft was also known, however uncredited, as the vocalist for the song "You're a Mean...
in one of his earliest projects for Disney.
The songs include:
- "The Fountain in the ParkThe Fountain in the ParkThe Fountain in the Park, also known as While Strolling Through the Park One Day, is a song by Ed Haley , published in 1884 by Willis Woodward & Co. of New York, but dating from about 1880...
" - "Father, Dear Father"
- "There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town TonightThere'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight"A Hot Time in the Old Town" is an American ragtime song, composed in 1896 by Theodore August Metz with lyrics by Joe Hayden. Metz was the band leader of the McIntyre and Heath Minstrels....
" - "Old Folks at HomeOld Folks at Home"Old Folks at Home" is a minstrel song written by Stephen Foster in 1851. It was intended to be performed by the New York blackface troupe Christy's Minstrels. E. P. Christy, the troupe's leader, appears on early printings of the sheet music as the song's creator...
" - "In the Good Old Summertime"
External links
- The Nifty Nineties at The Encyclopedia of Animated Disney Shorts
- The Nifty Nineties at the Big Cartoon DataBaseBig Cartoon DataBaseThe Big Cartoon DataBase is an online database of information about animated cartoons, animated feature films, animated television shows and cartoon shorts....
- YouTube clip ("Father, Dear, Father" scene)