Pluto (Disney)

Last updated

Pluto
Mickey Mouse & Friends character
Pluto (Disney) transparent.png
First appearance
  • The Chain Gang (September 5, 1930;94 years ago (1930-09-05)) (unnamed)
  • The Picnic (October 9, 1930;94 years ago (1930-10-09)) (as Rover)
  • The Moose Hunt (April 30, 1931;93 years ago (1931-04-30)) (as Pluto)
Created by
Designed by
  • Norm Ferguson
Voiced by
Developed by
In-universe information
Alias
  • Rover
  • Pluto the Pup
Species Dog
GenderMale
Family Mickey Mouse (owner)
Significant other
Relatives

Pluto is an American cartoon character created by Walt Disney and Norm Ferguson. He is a yellow-orange color, medium-sized, short-haired dog with black ears. Unlike most Disney characters, Pluto is not anthropomorphic beyond some characteristics such as facial expression. [3] He is Mickey's pet. Officially a mixed-breed dog, [4] he made his debut as a bloodhound in the Mickey Mouse cartoon The Chain Gang . [5] Together with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, and Goofy, Pluto is one of the "Sensational Six"—the biggest stars in the Disney universe. [6] Though all six are non-human animals, Pluto alone is not dressed as a human. [7]

Contents

Pluto debuted in animated cartoons and appeared in 24 Mickey Mouse films before receiving his own series in 1937. All together Pluto appeared in 89 short films between 1930 and 1953. Several of these were nominated for an Academy Award, including The Pointer (1939), Squatter's Rights (1946), Pluto's Blue Note (1947), and Mickey and the Seal (1948). One film starring him, Lend a Paw (1941), won the award in 1942. [Note 1] Because Pluto does not speak, his films generally rely on physical humor. This made Pluto a pioneering figure in character animation, by expressing personality through animation rather than dialogue. [8]

Like all of Pluto's co-stars, the dog has appeared extensively in comics over the years, first making an appearance in 1931. [9] He returned to theatrical animation in 1990 with The Prince and the Pauper and has also appeared in several direct-to-video films. Pluto also appears in the television series Mickey Mouse Works (1999–2000), House of Mouse (2001–2003), Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (2006–2016), Mickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures (2017–2021), Mickey Mouse (2013–2019) and its successor The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse (2020–2023), Mickey Mouse Funhouse (2021–present) and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse+ (2025–present).

In 1998, Disney's copyright on Pluto, set to expire at the end of 2005, was extended by the passage of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. Disney, along with other studios, lobbied for passage of the act to preserve their copyrights on characters such as Pluto for 20 additional years. [10] Under current US copyright law, Pluto's earliest appearances will become public domain at the start of 2026. However Pluto, like all Disney characters, will remain trademarked by Disney, and trademarks do not expire unless the rights holder stops using it.

Origin

The character of Pluto originated with animator Norm Ferguson, who came to the Disney Studio in 1929. Ferguson is credited with introducing the animation principle of "follow through and overlapping action": where different parts of the body move at different times and speeds compared to the main action. Ferguson first introduced this technique in the Silly Symphony short Frolicking Fish (released May 8, 1930): where he animated a trio of dancing fish, and offset the movement of their fins, having them "drag" along with the main body's movement. This gave the characters a more flowing and natural movement compared to most other animation of that time. [11] Walt Disney was so impressed with Ferguson's work on Frolicking Fish, that he ordered all of his animators study the scene. [12]

Shortly after completing his work on Frolicking Fish, Disney assigned Ferguson to work on the Mickey Mouse cartoon The Chain Gang (released on September 5, 1930); where Mickey is portrayed as a prisoner who escapes from jail, and is perused by two nameless bloodhounds. Ferguson was tasked with animating a scene where Mickey runs towards the camera and is followed by the two bloodhounds, who sniff Mickey's trail, look up, snort and bark at the camera. [13] According to Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, when describing this scene to Ferguson, Disney would reminisce about different dogs he grew up with as a child, and act out their mannerisms (much to the staff's amusement), to which Ferguson would then translate into his animation. [14]

When animating the scene, Ferguson applied his principle of "follow through and overlapping action" to the jowls of the dogs, which gave them surprisingly lifelike movement for the time. As animation historian Michael Barrier writes of the scene:

"The dogs were among the very first Disney characters whose design broke with the prevailing formula that put white masks on virtually interchangeable black bodies... their jowls hang loosely, their nostrils wrinkle and flair, their movements echo those of real dogs. When the dogs appear, there is a sense, however faint and fleeting, of solid flesh on a screen otherwise occupied by phantoms." [13]

Upon reviewing the scene, Disney was so impressed by Ferguson's animation on the dogs, he decided to develop one of them into a recurring character. [14] Ferguson's dog character next appeared in The Picnic (released on October 23 of that same year), however he was portrayed as Minnie's dog, and was named "Rover". In his third appearance, The Moose Hunt (released on May 3, 1931), he appeared as Mickey's pet, and was finally given the name "Pluto". [4] Disney animator Ben Sharpsteen claimed they changed the name to Pluto because: "We thought the name [Rover] was too common, so we had to look for something else. ... We changed it to Pluto the Pup ... but I don't honestly remember why." [15] Some Disney animators reportedly believed that Disney chose the name "Pluto" to capitalize on the then-newly-named ninth planet of Pluto. [16] However, animation historian John Canemaker states that Disney chose the name simply because he once had a dog named Pluto. [17]

While other animators would handle the character of Pluto - Ferguson became the Pluto specialist at the Disney Studio. Over the next few years, Ferguson would continue to develop and refine the character of Pluto, ultimately crystalizing with Playful Pluto (1934), in which Ferguson animated a scene where Pluto gets a piece of flypaper stuck to his rear end. While the sequence storyboarded by Webb Smith, Ferguson padded the scene and added extra bits of comic business. [18] The scene was considered a major landmark in the development of character animation. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston described the scene as:

"...a milestone in personality animation. From the time he [Pluto] accidently sits on a sheet of the sticky flypaper, Pluto's problems seem to become ever worse as he tries to extricate himself. Through it all, his reaction to his predicament and his thoughts of what to try next are shared with the audience. It was the first time a character seemed to be thinking on screen, and, though it lasted only 65 seconds, it opened [up] the way for animation of real characters with real problems." [19]

Following the circulation of Art Babbitt's Character Analysis of the Goof around the Disney studio, [20] Ferguson wrote a 4-Page character bible on Pluto that was published on Jan 4, 1936, and detailed Pluto's body construction, facial expressions, mannerisms and personality. [21]

Characterization

Unlike Mickey's other animal friends, such as Goofy (who is also a dog), Pluto is a relatively normal animal, with few anthropomorphic traits apart from his facial expressions. Pluto usually doesn't speak in English, walk upright or wear clothing. A significant departure from this was his speaking role in The Moose Hunt (1931), which was produced before Pluto's characterization had been clearly defined. As Pluto made more appearances, it became common that he would mostly speak in barks and grunts like most dogs. Other ways of communicating Pluto's thoughts occur through his facial expressions, and sometimes through the use of a shoulder angel/devil who speak directly to Pluto. (Mickey's Elephant, Lend a Paw ).

Pluto is generally a cheerful and adventurous dog, although he can be given to sheer panic when confronted with something unknown. Common themes in Pluto's stories involve him becoming jealous of Mickey getting another pet (Mickey's Elephant, Lend a Paw , Mickey and the Seal ), Pluto accidentally and unwittingly swallowing something and panicking when he realizes it ( Playful Pluto , Donald and Pluto), Pluto getting entangled with something inanimate like a piece of flypaper ( Beach Picnic , Playful Pluto ), or Pluto being pestered by a smaller animal (Private Pluto, Squatter's Rights ). In many of his appearances with Mickey, Pluto will get himself into trouble and cause Mickey to get angry at him. Mickey, however, often cheers up quickly, often telling Pluto "Aw, I can't be mad at ya.".

Pluto sometimes appears with other regular animal characters. His friends include Fifi the Peke, Dinah the Dachshund, and Ronnie the St. Bernard Puppy. Other animals he is less friendly with include Salty the Seal, Butch the Bulldog, Figaro the Kitten, Chip 'n Dale, Peg Leg Pete, Spike the Bee, Bent-Tail the Coyote, Milton the Cat, and other characters. In Disney's 1937 animated short Pluto's Quin-puplets , Pluto has five sons, one of them returning in the 1942 short Pluto Junior . In the 1946 animated short Pluto's Kid Brother , Pluto has a younger brother named K.B.

Appearances

Bone Trouble (1940); Butch the Bulldog is a common antagonist of Pluto Butch and Pluto.jpg
Bone Trouble (1940); Butch the Bulldog is a common antagonist of Pluto

Pluto first and most often appears in the Mickey Mouse series of cartoons. On rare occasions, he is paired with Donald Duck ("Donald and Pluto", "Beach Picnic", "Window Cleaners", "The Eyes Have It", "Donald's Dog Laundry", & "Put-Put Troubles").

The first cartoons to feature Pluto as a solo star were two Silly Symphony shorts, Just Dogs (1932) and Mother Pluto (1936). In 1937, Pluto appeared in Pluto's Quin-Puplets which was the first installment of his own film series, then headlined Pluto the Pup. However, they were not produced on a regular basis until 1940, by which time the name of the series was shortened to Pluto .

His first comics appearance was in the Mickey Mouse comic strip in July 1931, [22] two months after the release of The Moose Hunt. In 1938, Pluto headlined in the Silly Symphony Sunday comic strip, in an adaptation of his Silly Symphony short, Mother Pluto . [23] Pluto was later featured in several sequences of the Silly Symphony strip in 1939 and 1940.

Pluto Saves the Ship , a comic book published in 1942, was one of the first Disney comics prepared for publication outside newspaper strips. However, not counting a few cereal giveaway mini-comics in 1947 and 1951, he did not have his own comics title until 1952.

In 1936, Pluto was featured in the picture book Mickey Mouse and Pluto the Pup by Whitman Publishing.

Pluto ran his own neighborhood in Disney's Toontown Online until its closedown. It was called the Brrrgh and it was always snowing there except during Halloween. During April Toons Week, a weekly event that was very silly, Pluto switched playgrounds with Minnie (all other characters did this as well), and he actually talked in Minnie's Melodyland.

Pluto has also appeared in the television series Mickey Mouse Works (1999–2000), House of Mouse (2001–2003), Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (2006–2016), Mickey Mouse (2013–2019), Mickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures (2017–2021), and The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse (2020-present) and Mickey Mouse Funhouse (2021–present). Curiously enough, however, Pluto was the only standard Disney character not included when the whole gang was reunited for the 1983 featurette Mickey's Christmas Carol , although he did return in The Prince and the Pauper (1990) and Runaway Brain (1995). He also had a cameo at the ending of Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). In 1996, he made a cameo in the Quack Pack episode "The Really Mighty Ducks".

Short films

Feature films

Video games

Pluto appeared as a non-playable character in Mickey Mania (1994).

Pluto also appears in Disney Golf for the PlayStation 2. In the event that the player's golf ball goes out of bounds or hits a water hazard, Pluto will come and look for the player's golf ball.

In the Kingdom Hearts video game series, Pluto is still Mickey's pet and acts as somewhat of a messenger, assisting in his master's plans. For most of Kingdom Hearts II , Pluto stays by Kairi's side (even when she has been kidnapped), as he has apparently taken a liking to her. Strangely, throughout the series, Pluto appears and disappears at random moments.

Pluto is a playable character in the world builder game Disney Magic Kingdoms , being a premium character to unlock in the main storyline of the game.

Disney parks

In the various Disney theme park resorts around the world, Pluto is a meetable character just like many of his film co-stars. [24] Pluto, however, uncharacteristically walks on two legs in this capacity out of necessity. Adults and children are able to meet, play with, and get autographs and pictures with Pluto and his friends at all Disney parks. Shirts, hats, toys and other various types of merchandise featuring Pluto are available.

Notes

  1. ↑ Pluto also appears in the Academy Award-nominated films Building a Building (1933) and Runaway Brain (1995), but does not play a significant role in either.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Mouse</span> Disney cartoon character and mascot

Mickey Mouse is an American cartoon character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The longtime icon and mascot of the Walt Disney Company, Mickey is an anthropomorphic mouse who typically wears red shorts, large shoes, and white gloves. He is often depicted with a cast of characters including his girlfriend Minnie Mouse, his pet dog Pluto, his friends Donald Duck and Goofy, and his nemesis Pete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goofy</span> Disney cartoon character

Goofy is a cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. He is a tall, anthropomorphic dog who 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, and is Max Goof's father. He is normally characterized as hopelessly clumsy and dim-witted, yet this interpretation is not always definitive; occasionally, Goofy is shown as intuitive and clever, albeit in his own unique, eccentric way.

<i>Mickey Mouse Works</i> American animated television series

Mickey Mouse Works is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation featuring Mickey Mouse and his friends in a series of animated shorts. The first Disney television animated series to be produced in widescreen high definition, it is formatted as a variety show, with skits starring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pluto and Ludwig Von Drake while Horace Horsecollar, Clarabelle Cow, Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse, Huey, Dewey and Louie, Chip 'n' Dale, Scrooge McDuck, Pete, Humphrey the Bear, J. Audubon Woodlore, Dinah the Dachshund, Butch the Bulldog, Mortimer Mouse, José Carioca, and Clara Cluck appear as supporting or minor characters. Musical themes for each character were composed by Stephen James Taylor with a live 12-piece band and extensive use of the fretless guitar to which the music of the series was nominated for an Annie Award in both 1999 and 2001. Most of the shorts from the series were later used in House of Mouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minnie Mouse</span> Disney cartoon character

Minnie Mouse is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. As the longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a red or pink bow, blue polka-dotted dress, white bloomers and yellow low-heeled shoes occasionally with ribbons on them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Mouse universe</span> Fictional universe involving Mickey Mouse and related Disney characters

The Mickey Mouse universe is a fictional shared universe which is the setting for stories involving Disney cartoon characters, including Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Pluto and Goofy as the primary members, and many other characters related to them, being most of them anthropomorphic animals. The universe originated from the Mickey Mouse animated short films produced by Disney starting in 1928, although its first consistent version was created by Floyd Gottfredson in the Mickey Mouse newspaper comic strip. Real-world versions also exist in Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, called Mickey's Toontown.

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 of music. As such, the films usually did not feature continuing characters, unlike the Mickey Mouse shorts produced by Disney at the same time. The series is notable for its innovation with Technicolor and the multiplane motion picture camera, as well as its introduction of the character Donald Duck, who made his first appearance in the Silly Symphony cartoon The Wise Little Hen in 1934. Seven shorts won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.

<i>Mickeys Polo Team</i> 1936 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Mickey's Polo Team is a 1936 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by United Artists. The cartoon features a game of polo played between four Disney characters, led by Mickey Mouse, and four cartoon versions of real-life movie stars. It was directed by David Hand and was first released on January 4, 1936. The film was inspired by Walt Disney's personal love of polo. It was the 80th Mickey Mouse short film to be released, and the first of that year.

<i>The Chain Gang</i> (1930 film) 1930 Mickey Mouse cartoon

The Chain Gang is a 1930 Mickey Mouse animated film produced by Walt Disney Productions for Columbia Pictures, as part of the Mickey Mouse film series. It was the twenty-first Mickey Mouse short to be produced, the sixth of that year. It is one of a group of shorts of strikingly uneven quality produced by Disney immediately after Ub Iwerks left the studio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burt Gillett</span> American film director (1891–1971)

Burton F. Gillett was a director of animated films. He is noted for his Silly Symphonies work for Disney, particularly the 1932 short film Flowers and Trees and the 1933 short film Three Little Pigs, both of which were awarded the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film and both of which were selected for inclusion in the National Film Registry.

Richard James Lundy was an American animator and film director who worked at several animation studios including Walt Disney Productions, MGM, Walter Lantz Productions, and Hanna-Barbera. Lundy was a pioneer of personality animation and is best remembered as one of the creators of Donald Duck. Throughout his career he worked as a primary animator on at least 60 films, both short and feature-length, and directed 51 shorts.

This is a list of appearances made by Donald Duck in Disney features and cartoons.

The first wave of Walt Disney Treasures was released on December 4, 2001. It includes four different DVD sets.

The fourth wave of Walt Disney Treasures was released December 7, 2004. This is the only wave that comes in White cases, and is the final wave that is in double DVD cases. Starting with this wave, the side strap was replaced with seal wrap with stickers and the back was no longer printed on the tin but included as a card glued to the back.

<i>Playful Pluto</i> 1934 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Playful Pluto (1934) is a Walt Disney cartoon, directed by Burt Gillett. It was the first cartoon to showcase Pluto as a major character. It was the 65th Mickey Mouse short film, and the third of that year.

<i>Plutos Christmas Tree</i> 1952 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Pluto's Christmas Tree is a 1952 Mickey Mouse cartoon in which Pluto and Mickey cut down a Christmas tree that Chip n' Dale live in. It was the 125th short in the Mickey Mouse film series to be released, and the second for that year. While the chipmunks are usually antagonists of Donald Duck, they have pestered Pluto before, in Private Pluto (1943), Squatter's Rights (1946) and Food for Feudin' (1950).

<i>The Picnic</i> (1930 film) 1930 Mickey Mouse cartoon

The Picnic is a 1930 American animated short film directed by Burt Gillett and produced by Walt Disney. It was first released on October 9, 1930, as part of the Mickey Mouse film series. It was the twenty-third Mickey Mouse short to be produced, the eighth of that year.

Silly Symphony is a weekly Disney comic strip that debuted on January 10, 1932, as a topper for the Mickey Mouse strip's Sunday page. The strip featured adaptations of Walt Disney's popular short film series, Silly Symphony, which released 75 cartoons from 1929 to 1939, as well as other cartoons and animated films. The comic strip outlived its parent series by six years, ending on October 7, 1945.

<i>Pluto</i> (film series) American film

Pluto is a series of American animated comedy short films produced by Walt Disney Productions. The series started in 1937 with Pluto's Quin-puplets and ended in 1951 with Cold Turkey. The series stars the titular character Pluto, introduced in the Mickey Mouse film series as Mickey's pet dog, in addition to having recurring appearances by previously known characters such as Minnie Mouse, Figaro the Kitten, and Mickey Mouse, and also introduced well-known characters such as the chipmunk duo Chip 'n' Dale.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Scott, Keith (October 3, 2022). Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, Vol. 2. BearManor Media.
  2. ↑ "Fred Flintstone Meets Jiminy Cricket: A Salute to Alan Reed -". CartoonResearch.com. August 25, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  3. ↑ Farrell, Ken. Warman's Disney Collectibles Field Guide: Values and Identification. Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2011. p. 308.
  4. 1 2 Smith, Dave. Disney Trivia from the Vault: Secrets Revealed and Questions Answered. New York: Disney Editions, 2012.
  5. ↑ Smith, Dave. Disney A to Z: The Updated Official Encyclopedia. New York: Hyperion, 1998. Print. ISBN   0-7868-6391-9.
  6. ↑ Stewart, James B. Disney War. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005. p. 5.
  7. ↑ Griffin, Sean. Tinker Belles and Evil Queens: The Walt Disney Company from the Inside Out . New York: New York UP, 2000. p. 70.
  8. ↑ "The Flypaper Sequence Mystery," essay by Michael Barrier
  9. ↑ Pluto at INDUCKS
  10. ↑ Sprigman, Chris. FindLaw's Writ, March 5, 2002, "THE MOUSE THAT ATE THE PUBLIC DOMAIN: Disney, The Copyright Term Extension Act, And eldred V. Ashcroft Archived October 30, 2012, at the Wayback Machine ". Accessed September 19, 2012.
  11. ↑ Barrier, Michael (1999). Hollywood Cartoons: American Animation in It's Golden Age (2003 Revised ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. p. 75. ISBN   978-0-19-516729-0 . Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  12. ↑ Gabler, Neal (2006). Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagnation. New York: Alfred A Knof. pp. 169–170. ISBN   0-679-43822-X . Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  13. 1 2 Barrier 1999, p. 75.
  14. 1 2 Thomas, Frank; Johnston, Ollie (1981). Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life (1984 Revised ed.). New York: Disney Editions. pp. 99–104. ISBN   0-7868-6070-7 . Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  15. ↑ Brasch, Walter M. (1983). Cartoon Monikers: An Insight into the Animation Industry. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green University Popular Press. p. 69. ISBN   0-87972-244-4.
  16. ↑ Boyle, Alan. The Case for Pluto: How a Little Planet Made a Big Difference. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2009. p. 49.
  17. ↑ The Life and Times of Pluto (2004), Documentary featurette ( Walt Disney Treasures : The Complete Pluto DVD - Disc 1), Walt Disney Home Entertainment
  18. ↑ Barrier 1999, pp. 113–114.
  19. ↑ Thomas & Johnston 1981, p. 100.
  20. ↑ Friedman, Jake S. (2022). The Disney Revolt: The Great Labor War of Animation's Golden Age. Chicago Review Press. p. 71. ISBN   9781641607223 . Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  21. ↑ Sporn, Michael (July 29, 2009). "Pluto models". Michael Sporn Animation. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  22. ↑ Gottfredson, Floyd (2011). Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse, vol 1: Race to Death Valley. Seattle, WA: Fantagraphics Books. pp. 163–166. ISBN   978-1-60699-441-2.
  23. ↑ Kaufman, J.B. (2016). "Introduction". Silly Symphonies: The Complete Disney Classics, vol 2. San Diego: IDW Publishing. pp. 7–8. ISBN   978-1-63140-804-5.
  24. ↑ "Pluto".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.