Walt Disney Treasures - Mickey Mouse in Black and White (1932) Review

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(More customer reviews)Despite this being a seminal moment in DVD history having the black and white Mickey Mouse cartoons available in the best possible digital format, this Disney Treasures collection is not a complete set. As mentioned, this set will contain 34 black and white MM shorts, but they are only selections out of about 75 made between 1928-1935. Last year's "Silly Symphonies" collection was put together in a similar way with a little more than half of the 73 or so made. Rumors are that next year's DT series will include a "Mickey Mouse in Living Color Vol. 2", which means that host/compiler Leonard Maltin possibly intends to include second volumes of past and future collections in this series that don't contain everything in one set due to large amounts originally produced. When these MM black and white shorts were available on laserdisc years ago, they were also released in two volumes.
Here is a complete list of the B&W selections on this collection (year-by-year) straight from the Disney press release:
1928--"Steamboat Willie", "The Gallopin' Gaucho", "Plane Crazy" (actually the first official Mickey Mouse short--originally silent with sound added later and re-released following the success of "SW").
1929--"The Karnival Kid", "Mickey's Follies"
1930--"The Fire Fighters", "The Chain Gang", "The Gorilla Mystery", "The Pioneer Days"
1931--"The Birthday Party", "Mickey Steps Out", "Blue Rhythm", "Mickey Cuts Up", "Mickey's Orphans"
1932--"The Duck Hunt", "Mickey's Revue", "Mickey's Nightmare", "The Whoopee Party", "Touchdown Mickey", "The Klondike Kid"
1933--"Building a Building", "The Mad Doctor", "Ye Olden Days", "The Mail Pilot", "Mickey's Gala Premiere", "Puppy Love", "The Pet Store", "Giantland"
1934--"Camping Out", "Gulliver Mickey", "Orphan's Benefit", "The Dognapper", "Two-Gun Mickey"
1935--"Mickey's Service Station" (Curiously, "Mickey's Kangaroo" is not included here. This was really the last B&W Mickey cartoon done shortly after he premiered in color in "The Band Concert").
The press release has stated that, in addition to all the features mentioned above, there will also be rare footage of the only MM B&W pencil test known to exist. This pencil test was done for "The Mail Pilot." Also, new interviews were apparently done with the legendary animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston for the documentary. Much-needed audio commentary (presumably by Leonard Maltin) has also been added to the poster gallery on disc 2 that was absent from last year's "Mickey Mouse in Living Color."
For those not acquainted with last year's "Mickey Mouse in Living Color": that collection collects Mickey's first three years in color between 1935-1938. Next year's rumored Vol. 2 will probably complete the color Mickey, going up to his last short under Walt Disney--"The Simple Things" (1953).
More rumors for next year's DT series: "Wartime Cartoons" (originally intended for this year) and "The Chronological Donald" (obviously the first phase of the many Donald Duck cartoons produced through the 1930's-1960's).

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Witness the birth of an American icon. This historic compilation chronicles Mickey Mouse's early career, from his landmark debut in 1928's "Steamboat Willie" to the last of his black-and-white shorts, "Mickey's Service Station," in 1935. Gain insights into Mickey's beginnings in new interviews with legendary Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. See the earliest visuals on record showing the creative birth of animation's most historically significant cartoon as well as the only black-and-white cartoon pencil footage known to exist. All of this and more is revealed in this homage to the mouse who captured the imagination of the world. Featuring exclusive introductions by film historian Leonard Maltin, this is a timeless collection from generations past for generations to come.

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Walt Disney Treasures - Mickey Mouse in Living Color (1937) Review

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(More customer reviews)First the good:
This is by far the best compilation of Mickey shorts available to the public to date. Disney produced 87 Mickey shorts in the 30's - by far the most prolific period of Mickey Mouse Cartoons (there were only 120 made from 1928 to 1953). 27 of these shorts are contained on this disc, which constitutes more than half of the color Mickeys made. He was already a sensation before he went to color; these shorts firmly established him as an American icon. To the animation fan, it can be argued that this disc contains some of the best cartoon "acting" of the golden age of animation. By no means should a serious fan avoid this disc.
The not so good:
These shorts have not been remastered. I'm not even sure they come from the best available print. Some of these shorts have looked better on the "Ink and Paint Club." The cartoons in this package contain flaws that some could consider unacceptable, or at least annoying - colors going out of register (albeit probably not noticeable to the casual viewer), a few sound problems (rare, but a bit annoying), dust and dirt. Watch the "Brave Little Tailor" in the scene where Mickey kills the seven flies. The amount of film debris present is alarming - it almost looks like it's snowing. Some have said that the recent remastering of Snow White has resulted in an ultra-clean presentation that takes away from the period animation. Well...this disc certainly doesn't present THAT dilemma. It's not unacceptable as the good far outweighs the bad. But I would have thought Disney to spend a bit more time on presenting the best possible versions of these pieces.
Overall:
An absolute must for the animation collector. Concerning the comments about the mastering - it's highly unlikely that Disney will remaster these shorts in another package. Grab it while it's available as this is supposedly a limited release of 150,000 copies....

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A collection of twenty-six animated shorts in color starring everyone's favorite, Mickey Mouse, released between 1935 and 1938. Introduction by Leonard Maltin. Cartoons: The Band Concert, Mickey's Garden, Mickey's Fire Brigade, Pluto's Judgement Day, On Ice, Mickey's Polo Team, Orphan's Picnic, Mickey's Grand Opera, Thru the Mirror, Mickey's Rival, Moving Day, Alpine Climbers, Mickey's Circus, Mickey's Elephant, The Worm Turns, Magician Mickey, Moose Hunters, Mickey's Amateurs, Hawaiian Holiday, Clock Cleaners, Lonesome Ghosts, Boat Builders, Mickey's Trailer, The Whalers, Mickey's Parrot, Brave Little Tailor.

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Walt Disney Treasures - Disney Rarities - Celebrated Shorts, 1920s - 1960s (1953) Review

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(More customer reviews)It's not exactly a state secret that the "Disney Treasures" DVDs have been big money-makers for the company. So how do you squeeze a little extra cash out of a cash cow? Why, start throwing animated shorts onto DVD without remastering them, that's how!
Yep, the bulk of these cartoons are presented in vintage 20-year-old transfers. The images are soft and low-res, colors are frequently washed-out (I defy you to find the color tan anywhere in "Paul Bunyan"), and Cinemascope films such as "Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom" are presented in non-anamorphic widescreen. If you have a 16X9 TV, prepare yourself for a joyless experience.
The shorts themselves are largely second-tier Disney, with a few bona fide masterpieces such as "Ferdinand the Bull." Others show that when the Disney artists tackled a new field (such as UPA-style limited animation in "A Cowboy Needs a Horse," or dimensional animation in "Noah's Ark," with its fanciful found-object animals) they could do it better than just about anybody else. Kids may become a tad restless at times, but animation fans and Disney completists will be in heaven.
Bottom line: If Disney's going to call these shorts "Treasures" they should treat them as such.

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This fascinating volume features some of Walt's most unique animated triumphs.Included are several of Walt's "The Alice Comedies," a pioneering series of early short films that combined live-action and animation.These wonderful, lesser-known unique films pre-date much of the work that would make him world-famous."Alice's Wonderland" is one of Walt's very first films. Fans will enjoy the unique animation of "Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom," which won an Academy Award(r) (Best Short Subject (Cartoon) 1953) and was the first cartoon produced in Cinemascope.This short film established a completely new animation style for the Studio.DISNEY RARITIES, CELEBRATED SHORTS 1920s-1960s showcases a large collection of Walt's outstanding animated shorts that fans may not be aware of. Bonus features include: "Alice's Cartoon World" in which Leonard Maltin discusses Disney's historic "Alice" shorts with Virginia Davis who played the original Alice when she was 4-years old; "From Kansas City to Hollywood" - a timeline of Walt's silent era; "A Feather In His Collar" a rarely seen short supporting the Community Chest; audio commentary for "A Symposium On Popular Songs" by composer Richard Sherman, and still frame galleries. Introductions by Leonard Maltin. CONTENTS *Alice's Wonderland*Ben and Me *Alice Gets in Dutch* Football, Now and Then *Alice's Wild West Show* Toot, Whistle, Plunk & Boom *Alice in the Jungle* Pigs Is Pigs *Alice's Egg Plant*Social Lion *Alice's Mysterious Mystery*A Cowboy Needs a Horse *Alice the Whaler*Hooked Bear *Ferdinand the Bull*In the Bag *Chicken Little*Jack and Old Mac *The Pelican and the Snipe*The Story of Anyburg, U.S.A. *The Truth about Mother Goose*The Brave Engineer *Paul Bunyan*Morris, the Midget Moose *Noah's Ark*Lambert, the Sheepish Lion *Goliath II*The Little House *The Saga of Windwagon Smith*Adventures in Music: Melody *A Symposium on Popular Songs

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Walt Disney Treasures - The Chronological Donald, Volume Two (1942 - 1946) (1942) Review

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(More customer reviews)The official announcement of the exact contents of this DVD set has just been made, with the set containing the Donald Duck cartoons of 1942-1946. These first official announcements occasionally have some mistakes or omissions, but they are generally accurate. In addition to the cartoons, the following extras were announced:
A chat with the current voice of Donald Duck.
The complete episode of the Disney TV Show "A Day In The Life Of Donald Duck", first shown February 1, 1956. The cartoon Donald (and his car, at times) is placed in live-action settings to show his "typical work day". One special scene has Donald arguing with his "voice" Clarence "Ducky" Nash, with Nash getting the last "quack". Jimmy Dodd, Roy Williams, and the Mouseketeers also appear. A few of Donald's cartoons are included.
A featurette on Donald Duck artists Carl Barks "The Art And Animation of Carl Barks".
The 1940 Donald Duck public service short 1940 "The Volunteer Worker". If this info is correct, I don't know why this is repeated from the Walt Disney Treasures DVD set Chronological Donald Duck Volume 1.
A timeline of the Walt Disney Studios during the World War II years 1941-1945.
Donald-themed still frame art galleries.
The cartoons below noted with a "*" were also previously released on the Walt Disney Treasures DVD set On The Front Lines. Cartoons noted with a "+" should be in the set, but were probably mistakingly left off the official announcement list.
1942
1. The Village Smithy - Donald is a smithy who is continually frustrated in his work on a wagon wheel and trying to shoe a donkey.
2. Donald's Snow Fight - When Donald destroys his nephews' snowman, the snow fight escalates into Donald's snow ship attacking the nephews' snow fort. The nephews win the fight, with hilarious results. My favorite of the Donald/nephews conflict cartoons.
3. * Donald Gets Drafted - Donald eagerly obeys his army induction order, but soon suffers through a humiliating physical and a sadistic drill sergeant. I always got a laugh out of Donald reporting to an army induction in his sailor suit.
4. Donald's Garden - Donald continually has gardening problems - first, with his watering can and water pump; and then with a gopher who eats his prize watermelons.
5. Donald's Gold Mine - Donald's conflicts with his donkey in his gold mine results in finding gold; but, in the end, Donald looks like one of his bars of gold.
6. * The Vanishing Private - Donald uses invisible paint to camouflage an anti-aircraft gun. His sergeant Pete angrily chases an invisible Donald. Pete finally loses his temper by throwing grenades where he thinks Donald is. Donald gets the last laugh when a general has Pete thrown into jail, with Donald as the guard.
7. * Sky Trooper - Donald continually bugs his sergeant Pete by saying he "wants to fly an airplane". Pete tricks Donald into being a member of a parachuting team. When Donald refuses to jump and Pete tries to force him out of the plane, both Donald and Pete fall out without a parachute. As they fall, they dislodge a bomb, which destroys the general's headquarters. Donald and Pete both end up doing KP peeling potatoes.
8. + Bellboy Donald - After Donald's hotel manager gives him a lecture about Donald's impoliteness to the guests, Donald is taunted continually by Junior, Senator Pete's son. Donald controls his temper until the very end, when Donald ends up spanking Junior after Donald has lost his temper and his job.
1943
9. * Der Fuehrer's Face - Donald has a nightmare that he is living in Nazi Germany, where everything (buildings, trees, clouds, etc.) is shaped like a swastika. He dreams of bayonet discipline, starvation, hard labor on a munitions assembly line, and having to "Heil Hitler" every minute of the day. He awakens to find himself glad to be a U.S. citizen. This is a very effective propaganda cartoon and is also an entertaining, funny cartoon. It is the only Donald Duck cartoon to win an Academy Award.
10. Donald's Tire Trouble - While speeding through the countryside, Donald has a flat tire. Due to the wartime rubber shortage, Donald has several hilarious misadventures in trying to fit the flat.
11. Flying Jalopy - Donald buys a defective plane from Ben Buzzard, who makes Donald's life insurance out to Ben and then proceeds to try to wreck the plane while Donald is flying it.
12. * Fall Out - Fall In - Donald suffers through the drudgery of the life of a soldier, including impossibly long marches through all types of weather. Donald wrestling with his tent while trying to pitch it is hilarious.
13. * The Old Army Game - His sergeant Pete catches Donald sneaking back into his barracks after curfew. Donald takes off, with Pete chasing him, with funny and interesting results.
14. * Home Defense - Donald, a civilian war aircraft spotter, falls asleep at his post. His nephews trick him by launching a toy plane and toy parachutists to make Donald think there is an enemy attack. Several funny scenes follow.
1944
15. Trombone Trouble - The gods Vulcan and Jupiter are kept awake by Pete's awful trombone playing, so they give Donald the power to stop Pete. After Donald wins, he picks up the trombone and starts playing it himself. One of the funniest Donald/Pete conflict cartoons.
16. Donald Duck and the Gorilla - Donald and his nephews scare each other with a fake gorilla suit when the radio announces that a gorilla has escaped from the zoo. But a frantic chase begins when the real gorilla shows up.
17. Contrary Condor - Donald Duck, an egg collector, pretends to be a baby condor when the mother condor catches him trying to steal one of her eggs. Very funny scenes follow of Donald trying to get out of his predicament.
18. * Commando Duck - Donald is given a secret mission to wipe out a Japanese airbase. Unfortunately for Donald, he isn't told how he is supposed to accomplish this alone. There are several very imaginative scenes that follow, resulting in Donald wiping out the airbase.
19. The Plastics Inventor - Donald bakes a plastic airplane from radio instructions and proudly goes out to try it. But several hilarious scenes follow as the plane melts in a rain storm.
20. Donald's Off Day - Donald's nephews and the weather continually frustrate his efforts to go golfing.
1945
21. The Clock Watcher - Donald works as a department store gift wrapper, but his job is threatened by his tardiness, laziness, playing with the merchandise, and the gifts just refusing to be wrapped.
22. The Eyes Have It - Donald mistreats Pluto by using hypnotism glasses to change Pluto into different animals. Pluto turns the tables on Donald and chases him when Pluto is changed into a lion.
23. Donald's Crime - Donald, needing money for a date with Daisy, steals from his nephews' piggy bank. After the date, his conscience makes him get an all-night dishwashing job to get the money to put back into the piggy bank. But Donald doesn't get away with his theft - the nephews catch him putting the money back into the bank and thinks he's stealing the money.
24. + Duck Pimples - A fun and imaginative cartoon in which characters in a murder mystery book come to life and Donald is accused of the crime.
25. No Sail - One of my favorite Donald/Goofy cartoons. They rent a sailboat that runs on nickels. After they run out of nickels, there are several frustrations for Donald due to Goofy being silly and clumsy.
26. Cured Duck - Daisy refuses to see Donald again until he is cured from his terrible temper. Donald uses an "insult" machine to cure himself. He returns to Daisy cured, but then has to deal with her temper.
27. Old Sequoia - Forest ranger Donald is fired after many misadventures in trying to prevent some beavers from destroying a sequoia tree.
1946
28. Donald's Double Trouble - Daisy breaks up with Donald due to his numerous faults. Donald meets his "sophisticated" double and uses him to win back Daisy's love. The trick backfires when the double falls in love with Daisy.
29. Wet Paint - Donald gets into a war with a bird that destroys Donald's new car paint job and uphostery while gathering material for her nest. Donald gives up when he sees her nest full of her baby birds.
30. Dumb Bell of the Yukon - Artic trapper Donald gets the trouble he deserves when he takes a cub from a sleeping mother to make a fur coat for Daisy. Several funny scenes follow when the mother bear chases Donald.
31. Lighthouse Keeping - Donald, a lighthouse keeper, must deal with a pelican who is trying to douse the lighthouse light. As usual, Donald causes his own problems by first playing tricks on the bird.
32. Frank Duck Brings 'Em Back Alive - Donald loses his sanity in trying to capture "wild man of the jungle" Goofy.
These cartoons are among Donald's funniest and most imaginative. These Walt Disney Treasures sets of the Disney cartoons are among the best bargains of any DVD set. I own these cartoons since VHS tapes of the 1980s and the Disney Channel cartoon shows and still enjoy them after watching them for many years. I very much look forward to the DVD sound and picture quality that these Walt Disney Treasure sets have had.

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The adventures of the world's favorite fiery-tempered duck continue as we follow his solo-starring efforts from 1942 through 1946. This period was filled with an abundance of comic exploits as Donald shows his huge audience what he's made of, short fuse and all. Among Donald's featured escapades is the Academy Award(R)-nominated Best Short, "Donald's Crime," from 1945. Also showcased is an interview with the current-day voice of Donald Duck, Tony Anselmo, and a profile of the legendary comic book artist Carl Barks -- including a look at the not-often-seen work he did in Disney's animation department.

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Walt Disney Treasures - The Complete Goofy (1941) Review

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(More customer reviews)Here is a list of all forty-six Goofy cartoons--year by year--contained on this new Disney Treasures collection:
1939-"Goofy and Wilbur" (Goofy's first official "solo" short)
1940-"Goofy's Glider" (The first in the long-running "How-to" series)
1941-"Baggage Buster", "The Art of Skiing", "The Art of Self-Defense"
1942-"How to Play Baseball", "The Olympic Champ", "How to Swim", "How to Fish"
1943-"Victory Vehicles" (Could have been released under the delayed "Wartime Cartoons" Disney Treasures collection)
1944-"How to Be a Sailor", "How to Play Golf", "How to Play Football"
1945-"Tiger Trouble", "African Diary", "Californy er Bust", "Hockey Homicide"
1946-"A Knight for a Day", "Double Dribble"
1947-"Foul Hunting"
1948-"They're Off", "The Big Wash"
1949-"Tennis Racquet", "Goofy Gymnastics"
1950-"Motor Mania", "Hold That Pose"
1951-"Lion Down", "Home Made Home", "Cold War", "Tomorrow We Diet", "Get Rich Quick", "Fathers Are People", "No Smoking"
1952-"Father's Lion", "Hello Aloha", "Man's Best Friend", "Two Gun Goofy", "Teachers Are People", "Two Weeks Vacation", "How to Be a Detective"
1953-"Father's Day Off", "For Whom the Bulls Toil", "Father's Weekend", "How to Dance", "How to Sleep" (the last of the "How-to" series made for the big screen)
1961-"Aquamania"
Though this collection is "The Complete Goofy", it would have been nice to include the two cartoons Goofy did with Donald Duck ("No Sail" and "Crazy with the Heat") in 1945 and '47, respectively (probably saved for a later Donald Duck collection in the DT series). Also, "How to Ride a Horse" and "El Gaucho Goofy" (taken from "The Reluctant Dragon" and "Saludos Amigos", respectively) were re-released in an animated short format in the 1950's, but are obviously unnecessary to include in this collection. Goofy also appeared in "Freewayphobia" and "Freewayphobia #2" (both in 1965) which also appears to not be included here (probably because these were educational films produced extensively during this time by the Disney company).
Many of the above-mentioned Goofy shorts contained controversial scenes that have been removed and/or altered by the Disney company in recent years. This collection is promising that they will all be uncut--so let's hope they will be seen the way they were originally seen if only for the historical context. Last year's "Mickey Mouse in Living Color" and "Silly Symphonies" collections lived up to that promise, though the "Disneyland USA" set had some perplexing cuts.
This collection is one of three exciting, new releases this December in the second wave of the continuing Disney Treasures series (and extremely limited edition--125,000 appearing to be made instead of the 150,000 last year). There were supposed to be four releases again this year, but the intended fourth (Disney Wartime Cartoons) was delayed for reasons--as of this writing--unexplained by host/compiler of the DT series, Leonard Maltin.
The other two releases for this year: "Mickey Mouse in Black and White", and "Behind the Scenes at the Disney Studio."

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With a gentle, childlike innocence, Goofy has delightedaudiences for 70 years. For the first time ever, celebrate Walt Disney'slumbering, lovable, and eternally loyal everyman in this retrospectiveof his classic animated shorts and enjoy the heyday of one of the mostpopular characters in cartoon history. Unlike the rest of Disney's"mouse pack," Goofy didn't become a major movie star overnight. Thiscompilation of shorts begins with the Goof's first starring role. Thevolume also includes animator Art Babbitt's original descriptivereference of all things Goofy, the original voice behind the Goof, PintoColvig, and an exclusive interview with the current voice of Goofy, BillFarmer. You'll also have the opportunity to see theatrical posters andother memorabilia, a selection of story drawings, and backgroundpaintings. After all, it's the Goofy thing to do. Featuring exclusiveintroductions by film historian Leonard Maltin, this is a timeless collection from generations past for generations to come.

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