Moving Day

I saw this Silly Symphony today, and you know what it is hilarious. The jokes are well timed, and I can't count the number of times I was laughing throughout. The jokes include Goofy getting stalked by a piano, Mickey struggling to fit everything into one suitcase, and my favourite Donald trying to get (wait for it) a plunger then a goldfish bowl off his rear end. As far as I am concerned it was these extended jokes that made the short so enjoyable. Others pros are colourful Technicolour animation, a lively music score and the incomparable voice talents of Walt Disney, Billy Bletcher, Pinto Colvig and Clarence "Ducky" Nash. Plus Pete is deliciously horrible here. All in all, silly it all sounds, but actually a hilarious Silly Symphony, that has already become a favourite! I never realised a moving day could be so funny. 10/10 Bethany Cox

A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon.

With their rent six months overdue, it's a hasty MOVING DAY for Mickey and Donald before Sheriff Pete can sell their furniture.

Donald & friendly iceman Goofy handle most of the action in this very funny little Depression-era film, with the Goof dealing with a distressingly anthropomorphic piano and the Duck harassed by a plumber's helper and fishbowl which are determined to stick to his anatomy. Pete once again makes the perfect villain, literally spitting out nails and hammering them in with his fist. Walt Disney gives Mickey his squeaky voice; Clarence Nash does the honors for Donald.

Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a storm of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off.

Mickey and Donald are six months behind in their rent, so Pete, the Sheriff, is having them evicted. He sets up a furniture sale to recoup the loss. Mickey decides they need to get out as soon as possible. Goofy, the ice man, comes along with his truck to help. From then on it's a series of wild events as they attempt to pack things up. Pretty typical plot but the animation is quite good and very colorful.

My father had a copy of this on 8mm, which pleased me very much as a kid growing up to be able to see my own cartoons. As for the 8mm film, I still have it tucked away. However the big differences for me from this description: my copy is in B&W, not color as stated. Also, mine is silent -- the 8mm film projector we had didn't have any sound, and in addition I don't recall seeing any soundtrack band on the actual film -- I'll have to pull it cut of storage and look at it again to confirm. Plot is pretty much the same as described, with Goofy as the Ice delivery man, and the general mayhem around moving (especially around packing suitcases, great sight gag on the film when they over-pack the bags).

About to be foreclosed upon by Sheriff Pete, Mickey and Donald need to move out fast, leading to the usual mayhem. Goofy, as an ice delivery man (ask your grandparents), comes to help them out; but, as usual, he's no help at all.

This is one of the earliest cartoons to team Mickey, Donald and Goofy, and one of the best. The formula is established early on: The trio have a common task to complete, then split up for individual gag routines. The gags are very clever and well timed, and the action is fast-paced, with everything building up to an exciting climax. Of particular interest to animation buffs is Art Babbitt's handling of Goofy. He bends and twists his joints far past the breaking point, yet makes it seem absolutely natural, giving the Goof an astonishing flexibility without seeming rubbery. A must for cartoon fans.