Teaming of Mickey and Goofy

[Olivier]

Hi everyone!


Frank:
>>>> but.......................... has he (and I certainly don't want to forget
>>>> his writers) ever been given credit for teaming Mickey with Goofy??  [...]
>>>I only  discovered very recently that the twosome NEVER had been a duo in the
>>>> classic Disney shorts of the 30s, 40s and 50s. Here it was always either the
>>>> whole gang, the trio of Mickey, Donald and Goofy, or maybe a cameo, but no
>>>> hint whatsoever of a proper duo.

>>>> When do you reckon did the duo of Mickey and Goofy start "officially"? When
>>>> did it become the rule, rather than the exception?

An intriguing question. Let's see...

"Mickey Mouse in Death Valley" (April 1 - Sept 20, '30): first appearance of  "Sylvester Shyster,
the lawyer" (April 1) and Pegleg Pete (April 12: silhouette; April 21; April 24: Mickey says his
name); an advetisement "annoucning 'Mickey Mouse' in comic strip form by Walt Disney, his creator",
introduced Mickey, Minnie, and "terrible Tom the vile villain"-- never appeared, and when he did it
was under the name of  Pegleg Pete

Gottfredson picked up the strip on May 17

Nov '30 - June '31: Mickey makes friends with Butch, a reformed thief ("Mr Slicker and the Egg
Robbers")

"Mickey Mouse and the Gypsies" (July - Nov, '31): with Minnie, Clarabelle and Horace
"The Great Orphonage Robbery" is perpeptrated by Shyster & Pete (Jan 11 - May 14, 1931); same cast

"Mickey Mouse Sails for Treasure Island" with Minnie (May 16 - Nov 11, 1932; Horace stays with
Clarabelle

"Blaggard Castle" (Nov 12, '32 - Feb 10, '33): Horace accompanies Mickey; the girls go after them

Ted Osborne joins the MM team (Gottfredson, Taliaferro, Ted Thwaites; Earl Duvall once in a while).

October 9, 1933, marks the first appearance of  Dippy Dawg (later rebaptized "Goofy"), who has
inherited a detective agency; the new partners (well, Mickey) break(s) the case of  "The Crazy Crime
Wave" (Oct '33 - Jan '34).

On Sept 10, '34, we are introduced to a new villain, one Eli Squinch, who claims that "Bobo the
Elephant" belongs to him (July - Oct, '34); Goofy only makes a brief  appearance (his first since
"The Crazy Crime Wave")

Enter Merrill de Maris

Mickey and Goofy are soon teamed up again, and they fly away (to Umbrellastan, with Minnie) to
retrieve "The Sacred Jewel" (Oct - Dec, '34)

"The Case of  the Vanishing Coats" (Sunday): Mickey & Donald (Feb - March, '35)

"Editor-In Grief" (March - June, 35): Mickey, Goofy, Horace, Donald, Minnie

"Race for Riches (June - Sept, '35): Mickey & Horace

Sept '35 - Jan '36: "The Pirate Submarine"; Mickey teams up again with Gloomy, whom he met in "The
Air Pilot"; Captain Doberman (from the same continuity) is there too; he appears in a couple of
continuities ("Mickey Mouse Joins the Foreign Legion" and "Island in the Sky", for instance)

"Oscar the Ostrich" (Jan - March, '36): Donald is one of  the competitors in the race at the end; as
of  Jan 22, Dippy is Goofy-- it is the "new" Goofy; he is featured in a few strips only
At the same time (Jan-March), Mickey Donald and Goofy are busy at Minnie's home ("Helpless Helpers")

"The Seven Ghosts" don't stand a chance against mighty ghostbusters Mickey, Goofy and Donald! (Aug -
Nov, '36)

Mickey and Goofy fly to the "Island in the Sky" together (Nov '36 - April '37), then sail for Africa
with Minnie "In Search of  Jungle Treasure" (April - Aug, '37)-- yet another cannibal feast

The ubiquitous Mouse also spends May-Oct (Sundays) in the West with Goofy, replacing for some time
"The Sheriff of  Nugget Gulch"

"The Mighty Whale Hunter" (Feb - July, '38): Mickey & Goofy

Enter Bill Wright (inker)

"Mickey Mouse Meets Robinson Crusoe" (Dec '38 - April '39) and gets new eyes (round, with pupils) on
Dec 22


Okay, I'll stop here for now.
First adventures: Horace plays Mickey's sidekick
Goofy starts appearing in a few adventures; during a transition period, Horace joins Mickey in "Race
for Riches" and Goofy (Dippy) in "The Sacred Jewel". Horace is always rather straight, serious,
brave; Goofy obviously works better as a foil, providing plenty of  humor.

"Island in the Sky" seems to mark the definite switch from Horace to Goofyn with "The Seven Ghosts"
the last Mickey/Goofy/Donald story  I don't have time for a more detailed analysis, though, sorry.



>>>Did the teaming happen accidentally, i.e. Gottfredson wasn't allowed to use Donald anymore (as in
>>> Editor-In-Grief and others), because DD got his own strip?

I'm not sure.


>>>When did the detective element come in? Can we attribute it to Gottfredson or was it
>>> other artists/writers (Murry? Guido Martina?) who made it popular?

You mean, Mickey seemingly working exclusively as a detective?
"Mickey Outwits the Phantom Blot" in 1939 (May 20 - Sept 9; Chief  O' Hara's first appearance, if
I'm not mistaken); ten years later, he sets up a Detective Agency with Eega Beeva in 1949 ("The
Syndicate of  Crime"; Oct 24, '60 - Jan 28, '50); they close the agency at the end, though, after
their dreadful first experience.
Mickey doesn't have any fixed occupation, whether as a detective or anything else-- and he lives on
rewards; they're only a bonus, though. This worries Minnie, who'd rather see him settle down and
have a safe job-- and he enlists as a mail pilot. The strips (including gag-a-day strips-- two-week
continuities) depict him trying his hand at various jobs. The constant change is due to his
adventurousness and the fact he can't stay in one place-- whereas Donald bumbles & goofs from job to
another.


>>> Too many questions really (or maybe too stupid questions) to even expect one
>>> reply, I guess...

Here's one! I don't know if  there are enough answers, let alone satisfactory ones, though; I can
only hope it is at least a bit useful.


Best wishes,


Olivier