Mickey's evolution

[William CallMeBillClark]

Hi everyone,
        I've been a little underworked at work and have been doing some
reading.  As you may recall, I can't find Disney comics here in Japan, but
I did read an interesting Mickey related item.
        In his book "The Panda's Thumb", Stephen Jay Gould has an essay
entitled "An Homage to Mickey Mouse" (as best I can remember; I left the
book at work).  It is about the change in Mickey's features over time.  He
makes specific reference to the movies, but since the comic Mickey is based
on the movie, it still holds true.
        In short, he said as time passed Mickey developed more juvenile
features (bigger eyes, bigger head, shorter nose etc).  It then goes on to
explain how these features seem to be related to the perception of
"cuteness" by humans.  He noted the more adult features of Goofy and others
as well.  The beloved Donald Duck was also mentioned.  Seems he became more
juvenile as well, but not nearly as much as Mickey since he's still a bit
of a bad boy.
        So, let me ask you, do you think, based on the earliest Donalds
you've seen that he has become "cuter"?

Thanks,
        Bill

P.S.  It is a good book on evolution and worth getting if you are mildly
interested in the topic.  I really liked the Mickey article (about 8-9
pages, almost all text with just a few illustrations)