If “love will tear us apart”, then we’ll surely be left in one piece by this newest Disney oddity-the Mouse that helped create an empire meets the cover art of Joy Division’s album Unknown Pleasures in their newest t-shirt design.

Seeing designs like this coming out of the Mouse Factory makes me wonder if Disney’s design crew think about the subtexts relayed by their images, or if they see a hot trend happening and just follow right along. What’s next-emo Mickey complete with lame haircut and mascara?

–via DesignTAXI

Walt, I have never prayed to you before. I have no tongue for it. No one, not even you, will remember if we were good men or bad. Why we fought, or why we died. All that matters is that two stood against many. That’s what’s important! Cuteness pleases you, Walt… so grant me one request. Grant me revenge! And if you do not listen, then to hell with you!

Fantasy artist Frank Frazetta (warning: some NSFW images) never worked for Disney, which is a shame. He would have inspired some spectacular movies. But Disney artist John T. Quinn III does, and composed this cartoon in the style of Frazetta.

Link -via Popped Culture

(L) Mickey Mouse and Jack Skellington, as drawn by Derrick Dent, based on (R) the sketch by Sarah Straub

What a marvelous idea! The blog Ten Paces and Draw by Philadelphia-based illustrators Alyssa Nassner and Rachel Dougherty is an ongoing collaboration between artists, who turn each other's sketches into drawings.

Take a look: Link - via Hey Oscar Wilde!

In 1932, a comic featuring Mickey Mouse and his buddy, Horace Horsecollar, faced a trio of mad scientists who claimed that X-Rays would fry your brain. Kids took this pretty seriously, as they tend to do, and Pennsylvania doctor Reuben Alley wrote to Disney and complained. The above is the response received from the mouse himself.

Link via Letters of Note

Mickey measured over 50 feet tall and was constructed by the Goodyear Rubber Company. Attendants dressed in adult Mickey and Minnie Mouse Halloween costumes guided the gigantic balloon through the streets of New York.

Vintage Disney Memorabilia Blog has the story: Link

Another photo from Flickr user William J. Crawford:

Photo: William J. Crawford [Flickr]

Mickey and Minnie Mouse, 1934

Before the opening of Disneyland, people have been wearing Mickey and Minnie Mouse costumes. This one is from the November 1934 issue of The Oakland Tribune:

The mice will play, even if Santa Claus does give them permission. Here’s Santa greeting Mickey and Minnie Mouse at Kahn’s toy department.
Story at Vintage Disney Collectibles 1928 – 1945

Mickey and Minnie, 1959

From Stuff From the Park, a fantastic blog about all things Disneyland – via Broke Hoedown

Photo: Gorillas Don’t Blog

Mickey and Minnie Mouse, 1950s

Though from the improvement of the masks over the Matterhorn 1959 photo, I’m guessing this is in the early 1960:

Photo: Miehana [Flickr] – via Smogr

Mickey and Minnie Mouse, 1961

Photo: Miehana [Flickr]

For more 1960s photos, check out Stuff From the Park blog’s Big Head Characters

Mickey Mouse, 1962

Photo: Daveland Blog

Mickey’s mask looked much better, but it obviously wasn’t yet perfected as it collapsed under the hot California sun.

Mickey and Minnie 1970

Photo: Daveland Blog

Don’t miss Dave DeCaro’s fantastic Disneyland Attractions website | See also Dave’s Mickey & Minnie Mouse: Evolution of a Costume

Found at the Epic Mickey booth at the 2010 E3 Expo in Los Angeles. (Apparently, Epic Mickey is a new wii game from Warren Spector, the famous video game designer – I’m most familiar with his Wing Commander series, which I’m sure told you about when I quit playing video games!).

When you see it, you’ll … be mildly amused

Mickey Mouse made his public debut in the cartoon Steamboat Willie on November 18, 1928 -81 years ago! The character appeared in Plane Crazy a few months earlier, but the Walt Disney Company doesn’t count that because it was a silent film. Link

Disney comissioned artist former Deus Ex designer Warren Spector to come up with his interpretation of a very twisted Disney World as concept art for the Wii game Epic Mickey.

…images from both Gambino and Glover, covering rotted Epcots, foreboding Cinderella castles, terrifying scorpion-like mecha-Country Bears, and more — all of which come with the obvious caveat that they may or may not reflect anything of the current state of the project.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by xpresscm.

It’s important to keep kids feeling comfortable and happy, even when they need to watch out for poisonous gas clouds -or at least, that must be the theory behind this Mickey Mouse gas mask sold in WWII. Paranoia and consumerism sure make for an interesting combination.

Link Via Consumerist