The Mickey Mouse Club
M-I-CK-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
CLUB:
The Mickey Mouse Clubs according to the Disney general campaign booklet,
1930, provided a multitude of activities for
children on Saturday afternoons. Department stores and theaters worked
together to host and sponsor the club meetings at the theaters. Meetings,
or 'matinees', would begin with a Mickey Mouse cartoon, then an introduction
of the officers who lead the club in the 'Mickey Mouse Creed' and the enthusiastic
singing of 'America'. Then there would be a performance or contest on the
stage in front of the club. Finally, the group chanted the 'Mickey Mouse
Club Yell', the 'Mickey Mouse Club Song, and settled down to watch the
films selected for the day.
Perhaps the most important element of the club was its complete absorbtion
of the childrens' interests and creation of a virtual community during
its meetings. The stage shows drew children interested in music, art, drama,
and dance by providing an opportunity for the display and performance of
their work. In Richard deCordova's article he explains that activities
such as "marble shooting contests, doll dressing contests, model airplane
making contests, ice-cream eating contests, Easter egg hunts, and dog parades"
were common at the matinees. Some stores even sponsored picnics and baseball
teams in an effort to incorporate competing outdoor activities. All elements
of the community had the potential opportunity to get involved with clubs.
Department stores were determined to achieve success. They would network
through a multitude of children's stores allowing each one to use or display
theMickey Mouse Image in return for funds for the club.
Club's Success:
Perhaps, every child wanted to be in the Mickey Mouse Club. During
its first year one hundred and fifty theaters opened chapters, and Disney
estimated one hundred and fifty to two hundred thousand members. Cities
all over had clubs, including Milwaukee with ten, and Chicago with twenty-five.
NEWSPAPERS, local, the national trade press, the bi-monthly "Official
Bulletin of the Mickey Mouse Club", and the "Motion Picture Herald"
also got invoved by calculating the sucesses of the clubs determining the
membership contituency (deCordova, 208).
Television:
As part of Walt Disney's efforts to fund Disneyland he provided ABC
with Disney programs. One of these programs was theMickey Mouse Clubwhich
made its debut on October 3, 1955. The show was shown during the late afternoon/
pre-dinner hour, primarly aiming at a pre-teen audiance. The first two
series were extrememly successful one hour long programs. Then the program
was cut to half an hour but still promoted musical and cartoon entertainment
coupled with broad information on health, science, and international childrens'
lifestyles.