Each week, Disney fans and D23 Members send us dozens of questions for Disney Chief Archivist Dave Smith. Here are Dave's answers to a recent set of your questions. Check back every couple weeks — we'll be publishing more of our beloved Disney Legend's answers to your questions about Disney history!
Q: As a child 20 or so years ago, I used to watch the Disney Channel all day. I remember a show whose main characters were a short Viking and his less-than-intelligent larger and heavier sidekick. I loved that show but can't remember the name of it. I've searched endlessly on the internet with no luck. Can you help?
Paul, Columbus, Ohio
A: That was
Asterix, non-Disney animation that aired on Disney Channel in the 1980s and 1990s.
Q: Why does Mickey wear gloves?
Brandon, South Dakota
A: Mickey Mouse didn't have gloves in his earliest cartoons, but they were added when he played the piano in
The Opry House (1929), the fifth Mickey Mouse cartoon, and from then on he wore them. The animators figured it was easier to draw Mickey's hands if they were in gloves — white outlined in black having more readability than black on black.
Q: I really love the "Golden Horseshoe Review" episode from the 1960s on The Wonderful World of Disney that celebrated the Horseshoe's 10,000th performance. It featured the show's talented stars, Betty Taylor and Wally Boag, in addition to guest starts Annette Funicello, Gene Sheldon and Ed Wynn. Was the saloon stage recreated on a Disney Studio soundstage, or was the episode filmed entirely on location at the Golden Horseshoe in Frontierland at Disneyland?
Joseph, San Francisco, California
A: Interesting question! I had never thought about that before, assuming that it had been filmed at Disneyland. So, I checked the film's shooting calls, and I should not have made that assumption. The interior of the Golden Horseshoe was actually built on Stage 2 at the Disney Studio, with filming beginning February 5, 1962. There was one day of audience reaction shots filmed at the actual Golden Horseshoe at Disneyland, though the only primary Cast Members on call that day were Betty Taylor and Wally Boag.
Q: I have a book that belonged to my father titled Mickey Mouse in Giantland, copyright 1934 by Walt Disney Enterprises, Ltd. with story and illustrations by the Staff of Walt Disney Studio. Can you tell me a little bit about this book?
Cathy, Fort Myers, Florida
A: Though perhaps the story is loosely based on a 1933 Mickey Mouse cartoon titled
Giantland, it is more or less an original narrative written specifically for the book, which was published by David McKay in Philadelphia. The book is uncommon, so you have a nice item for your Disney collection.
Q: No one has been able to give me the answer to this question so please help! In Disney's Aladdin, Aladdin says that something is written on the Genie's lamp before he rubs it. What does it say on the Genie's lamp?
Angela, Mountain View, California
A: In the film, we never know. Aladdin, in examining the lamp, says, "I think there is something written here, but it's hard to make out." When he rubs the lamp to try to read the inscription, the Genie pops out, and we never learn what it was that was written on the lamp.
Q: : I have a complimentary ticket book from 1968. It is complete with five tickets, one of each A-E. The number stamp is X067771. It's copyrighted 1968 on the back. Date number is 685. Plate number is 495. It is in great condition. Can you tell me more about this ticket book and how rare it could be?
Lisa, Anaheim, California
A: : The complimentary ticket books were often issued to Disney Cast Members and VIPs, who had received separate park admission tickets. We would not have any information on rarity or value.
