FYS The Fifties

By Sophia Kontoes

Hi Mouseketeers! Let’s flashback to October 3, 1955, the first day The Mickey Mouse Club aired on television to celebrate the opening of Disneyland. Do you remember the theme song that we had all the little kids singing? “Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me? M-I-C… See you real soon! K-E-Y… Why? Because we like you! M-O-U-S-E.”

Walt Disney is the epitome of postwar success, by the 1950s he was already a well known innovator in Hollywood. The beginning of Disney’s legacy began in 1937, when his first full length cartoon, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, premiered. “That was all a prologue to the expansion of his entertainment empire in the fifties, which by the end of the decade included television, feature films, documentaries, educational programs, and an amusement park…” (Dunar 245). His first dabble into television began in 1950 with a special on NBC. After four years of ABC trying to lure Disney into creating a weekly program, he finally agreed in 1954, which also affirmed support to build Disneyland in California.

The Disneyland Show, which first aired in 1954, quickly became one of the most successful programs on television. The show was hosted by Walt Disney himself, and was a great way to market his business. He also divided the episodes into segments that mirrored areas of his park such as: Fantasyland, Frontierland, Adventureland, and Tomorrowland. Building off of “Frontierland,” Disney created a three-part series “Davy Crockett mythologized the life of the American frontiersman, and his heroic death at the Alamo in the war with Mexico in the 1840s.” (Dunar 246). Davy Crockett, who starred Fess Parker, became extremely marketable because of one of the fifties’ fads it included. Coonskin hats became bigger than Mickey Mouse ears, even Time magazine claimed, “Davy Crockett is even bigger than Mickey Mouse.” (Dunar 246)

Disney then created a show to target the younger generation, which became known as The Mickey Mouse Club, which is modernized and still aired today. The show aired in the early evening everyday, and included of an all kids cast, who were called the “Mouseketeers,” and were lead by the host Jimmie Dodd. They wore large felt tip mouse ears and became role models to the children of that generation. Considering Disney demanded the Mouseketeers be regular kids, not actors, a lot of the children dreamed of being one.

The Mouseketeers were well rounded, energetic, and lively. They went to school five days a week on the Disney lot, on top of working six days a week and performing for the public on Sundays. Mouseketeers became very close friends, and still remain friends till this day. Most of the actors got their big break from this show, including Johnny Crawford, Annette Funicello, and many more. The big felt mouse ears were what put the show on the map. They were a great marketing tool, and became just as popular as coonskin hats.

Sources

Dunar, Andrew J. America In The Fifties. Syracuse, N.Y., Syracuse University Press, 2006.

Doperalski, Daniel. “The Mickey Mouse Club: Famous Members.” Variety, 4 Oct. 2014, variety.com/gallery/the-mickey-mouse-club-famous-members/.

“The Mickey Mouse Club.” Disney Wiki, disney.wikia.com/wiki/The_Mickey_Mouse_Club.

“The Mickey Mouse Club.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Oct. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mickey_Mouse_Club.