#Max Fleischer

[enlightenedrobot]

Other Characters you can legally use for your Mickey Mouse project

Mickey Mouse is in the public domain, as is Minnie Mouse and Peg-leg Pete. There's some caveats to that, and I talk about that more in this other post, but for now, let's talk about other characters who you can also use to fill out the cast.

These characters should all be in the public domain, though some characters still have treademarks. I'll get into how to use them safely as we go. Anyways, let's start.

Other Disney Characters

Disney obvciously doesn't advertise this, but there's actually quite a few Disney originals who've actually been in the public domain for a while.

The Mad Doctor never had it's copyright renewed, and so it's very technically the first Mickey Mouse cartoon to enter the public domain. Keep in mind, the version of Pluto featured in the short isn't in the domain just yet, but the Doctor himself is free to use.

What's funny is that Disney would later use a version of Doctor for Epic Mickey. Obviously don't use that version of the character.

Aside from the Mad Doctor, we also have Oswald and Ortensia

Yeah, as it turns out, Oswald's been in the public domain for quite a while, but he's still trademarked by Disney. Easy recommendation... use the original "fat" design of the character and have him go by Lucky.

But before Oswald, we have the Alice Comedies

Everything about the Alice Comedies is Public Domain for a long time, and the Disney corporation very rarely acknowlege these characters existence. Which is a shame because These shorts were some of the first shorts Walt ever produced, and they have the unique gimmick of featuring a live action girl in an animated world.

Everybody already knows about Oswald, but nobody talks about Oswald and Mickey's older brother from these shorts, Julius the Cat

Like... yeah no, it didn't all start with a mouse. Or a rabbit. It started with a cat.

Foxy and Milton Mouse

Both Foxy (top) and Milton (bottom, pictured with his girlfriend Rita Mouse) were characters created by Warner Brothers and Van Beuren respectively to cash in on Mickey's success, and both characters are also in the public domain.

In fact, all Van Beuren cartoons are apparently in the public domain, and I encourage you to find their cartoons and use them as you please.

Fleischer Characters

Betty Boop is probably in the Public Domain, but there's a few caveats with this. From what I can tell, the name Betty Boop is trademarked, but the character herself isn't. Most of the old Betty Cartoons are free to use, but newer incarnations, including the versions used in 1985's The Romance of Betty Boop and 1989's The Betty Boop Movie Mystery are still very much under copyright.

To avoid any legal trouble, I have two big recommendations. Although everybody remembers Betty as having Black hair, in one of the few early instances of Betty being shown in color, she's actually depicted as Redhead.

This is Betty Boop in 1934's Poor Cinderella, and her hair color is pretty clearly red.

The other option is to just make her black.

Though there's been some debate as to whether Betty Boop was intentionally modeled after Esther Lee Jones or not, there's still no denying the influence of Jazz on the character. Betty Boop is a Jazz singer and is often depicted dancing to Cab Calloway. Hell, the Betty Boop musical features Jasmine Amy Rogers as the titular character.

Betty Boop aside, there's an entire world of defunct Betty Boop characters who are definately public domain, including Bimbo and Koko the Clown.

Next year, Popeye's also gonna enter the Domain. So keep an eye out for him too.

Anyways, these are my picks, but obviously this list isn't meant to be comprehensive. There's a ton of old cartoon characters out there who can be freely reinterpreted into newer works. Feel free to add your own favorite public domain cartoon to the list.

[oldshows]

[cosmonautroger]

Max Fleischer

[sabrondabrainrot]

Newest EP was cute! I really liked meeting these Toon Sun and Moon. I couldn't resist doing a doodle of them and then I ended up coloring it and lining it. Hope you guys like the cartoon boys. I channeled Max Fleischer into this. Koko the Clown save meeee I love the black and white model designs, they belong to SolareVR (I don't know if they're on tumblr)

This Sun in the ToonWorld (Is this the name?) seemed to be way smarter then he let on.

Did the map remind anyone else of the KH toon world when Sora got all cute and noodly armed? I kept thinking that the entire time. (I know it's a Steamboat Willy ref, but I can't take the KH thoughts away)

transparent image under the cut!

I'm also including my sketch! I usually don't and had a lot of fun drawing these two silly boys.

[bungowife]

There's a b&w version too I couldn't decide which one I like more WAAHHHH

[animusrox]

This amazing stranger from the planet Krypton, the man of steel, Superman! Empowered with X-ray vision, possessing remarkable physical strength, Superman fights a never ending battle for truth and justice, disguised as a mild mannered newspaper reporter, Clark Kent.

Max Fleischer’s Superman (1941 - 1943)

[citizenscreen]

Animator/producer Max Fleischer was born on July 19, 1883 #botd

Pictured: Fleischer with his star, Betty Boop. Fleischer Studios’ most famous star made her first appearance in a 1930′s film, “Dizzy Dishes.”

[anawkwardgalnamedtarazan]

Dice Doin' His Best!

(Ft. Henchman😈🐘)

🎲🕺🎶

🔥🔥🔥🔥

Based on this:

[atomic-chronoscaph]

Superman (1942)

[aquamon]

[oswaldskovich]

Bimbo the dog is a fat, black and white cartoon pup made by Fleischer Studios. He is well known for not only being the girlfriend of Betty Boop, but also the partner of Koko the clown. Bimbo was made in 1930 to try and rival Disney's Mickey Mouse. Bimbo was technically made back in 1926 although he was different and named Fitz. He got the name Bimbo because in the 1920s, that word was associated with men who liked to fight. However in 1934, he was discontinued due to Hays Code as the studio feared an anthropomorphic dog dating a woman was seen as too risqué.

[oldshows]

[cosmonautroger]

Betty Boop & Bimbo

[acmeoop]

Happy 36th Anniversary! Who Framed Roger Rabbit was Released on June 22nd, 1988 in North America

[classicanimationart]

Production backgrounds.

Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor (Fleischer, 1936)

[domono08]

Betty before 1931