Could Mickey really be 80? The world's favorite mouse made his screen debut in Steamboat Willie on this date in 1928, when the short animated film opened at the Colony Theater in New York City.
Creator Walt Disney had come up with the idea of a friendly-looking mouse in red velvet pants, as he traveled back to Los Angeles from NY, having lost his earlier cartoon creation, Oswald Rabbit, to his financial backers. Disney and head animator Ub Iwerks fine-tuned Mickey's appearance and Disney himself provided the character's voice in the early days.
