The Mickey Mouse Knock-Offs

This page indexes all the reviews of the Van Beuren Mickey and Minnie knock-offs at the Shades of Gray blog. 

By the end of 1929, Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse had exploded in popularity around the world, due in large part to the exceptional way Disney fully integrated the new technology of sound into his animated films. It should surprise no one that other production companies wanted to get caught in that wave of success and come up with their own Mickey Mouse knock-offs.

Cue the Van Beuren Corporation's team of animators. They redesigned a pair of the company's characters that had been popping up every now and then since the early 1920s--Milton and Rita Mouse-- in in a way left no doubt as to where Van Beuren's creative staff got their "inspiration".

THE VAN BEUREN MICKEY MOUSE KNOCK-OFFS

A Close Call (1929)

Circus Capers (1930)

Big Cheese (1930)

The Office Boy (1930)

Stone Age Stunts (1930)

Red Riding Hood (1931)

Eventually, the Walt Disney Company became frustrated with Van Beuren's raucous and racy mice causing brand confusion with their flagship character. They sued and they won and Milton and Rita retired peacefully to parts unknown.