#the mad doctor gif

[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.

[ultrakillblast]

THE MAD DOCTOR (1933)

[skullsemi]

It's too bad Dr. Frankenollie from Runaway Brain only appeared (and was killed off) in that one short, I think he'd be a really fun reoccurring antagonist for Mickey

I KNOW RIGHT HE WAS GREAT

He's like, a fusion of them:

I would actually love to see more of him, he looks sanely insane, a true underrated character

Plus he's too fun to sketch.

[k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9]

[nitrateglow]

Spooky Season 2024: 39-45

1408 (dir. Mikael Hafstrom, 2007)

A paranormal skeptic visits an alleged haunted hotel room. It turns out to be haunted. Moral of the story: when Samuel L. Jackson tells you a hotel room is evil, BELIEVE HIM.

1408 is emblematic of how I feel about most Stephen King anything: it's a mix of really potent, effective horror with the goofiest things I have ever seen (there's literally a scene that plays like Groucho's bit with the mirror in Duck Soup and I could not tell if it was supposed to be funny or not). It comes off like a Nicholas Cage movie without Nicholas Cage, though that's not to say John Cusack does a bad job in the lead. Despite Samuel L. Jackson being prominently placed on the posters, this is essentially a one-man show, with Cusack acting his heart out amidst silly CG ghosts in the hotel room from hell. I didn't think it was amazing, but it is fun at least.

The Innocents (dir. Jack Clayton, 1961)

A governess fears her charges are possessed by ghosts, but her fervor to save them might be the greatest danger of all.

The Innocents is a dynamic chiller, one of the most atmospheric gothic thrillers I have ever seen. My perspective on the characters and story evolves every time I see it. The viewer is never told the "truth" of the situation. Are there actually ghosts possessing the children or are they merely traumatized? Is the governess a savior or an agent of destruction, unwitting though she may be?

If you haven't seen it, do not read the rest of what I have to say, because you'd be robbing yourself of a wonderful experience with one of the best horror films of all time. But I do want to talk about my current reaction to the central character, Miss Gibbens the governess.

SPOILERS

This time around, I found myself actually frightened of Miss Gibbens.

In the past, I found her sad and disturbed, but this time around, the danger she poses to those kids stood out more than usual. When she says she isn't a "cruel" person, I certainly believe her, but good intentions do not absolve her actions of psychological harm. If anything, the woman has a savior complex, likely augmented by her being a clergyman's daughter. At one point, she says her father taught her to "help people even if they refuse my help"-- basically to shove her brand of salvation on people no matter the harm it does because the ends justify the means.

And then there is the weird sexual undercurrent of her relationship with Miles. It's clear Miss Gibbens is enamored with her employer, the aloof bachelor who supports the children but otherwise wants nothing to do with them. She cannot be with the object of her desire for a variety of reasons (class difference, his disinterest, her own moral scruples, etc.), but her infatuation does not dissipate. Instead, she seems to transfer these affections onto Miles. Miles puts on a bit of an act, assuming he's quite grown-up compared to his sister Flora and flirting with Miss Gibbens (almost as though he were imitating Quint?), and maybe this act also influences Miss Gibbens to an extent. The dynamic between them gets really damn creepy and gross, with Miss Gibbens cloaking everything in her more amiable desire to help others and be needed. That final kiss she plants on his mouth after he dies never fails to make me shudder-- it's incredibly disturbing.

Miss Gibbens' lack of awareness-- of her own desires and of the real world-- is largely her fatal flaw. She is herself an innocent in many ways, thinking the uncle will care about her ghost theories, assuming her good intentions mean the children will not be harmed by her forcing them to confront their trauma head-on, seeing Miles as both child in need of help and corrupted, sexualized adult in a child's body. And yet, her innocence does not make her heroic or even good. It simply leads to more tragedy.

Deborah Kerr is amazing at channeling all of these contradictory elements of the character. Really, hers should be considered one of the great performances of all time, it's so good.

Candyman (dir. Bernard Rose, 1992)

Graduate student Helen is studying the urban legend of the Candyman. In life he was a Black artist named Daniel Robitaille, a son of former slaves who was brutally lynched after his affair with a white woman was discovered. A skeptic, she inadvertently summons him from beyond the grave. She is subsequently hurtled headlong into a nightmare scenario in which she is accused of several murders and her only salvation is offering her life to the Candyman as a sacrifice.

I knew about Candyman for years and it was sold to me as a slasher. It really isn't when you watch it-- with its mystery and crime thriller elements, it resembles a giallo, only far less goofy. While there are a handful of cheesy slasher moments, this is more of a gothic thriller with a dark romantic edge (romantic in the Mary Shelley sense, I mean).

But yeah, this was great. I really never knew where the film was going, and much of the imagery genuinely creeped me out. However, I also found the lore of the titular character fascinating. He essentially remains "alive" through the urban legends spread about him and resents the protagonist's efforts to make people disbelieve. The juxtaposition of the grounded, real world setting and the eerie, otherworldly images associated with the Candyman gave the film a rich sense of the uncanny. I can definitely see myself revisiting this one again and want to get a physical copy ASAP.

Also, Tony Todd's voice is just--- YES.

Bride of Frankenstein (dir. James Whale, 1935)

Following the events of the first movie, the Monster survives the burning windmill and seeks out companionship in the countryside. Meeting mostly fear and violence, he is driven to Dr. Pretorious, his creator's former mentor and an avid devotee to the idea of creating a new race of beings. Pretorious and the Monster join forces to coerce Henry Frankenstein into making a mate for the Monster, but their efforts do not end how they desired.

What can I say about this movie? It's absolutely brilliant. It takes all the strengths of the first film-- the pathos, the campy humor, the gothic production design-- and cranks it all up to eleven. Literally, my only beef is I WANT MORE OF THE BRIDE. She is so iconic and Lanchester gives her such an unsettling, alien presence. I wish she had been given more opportunities to play the character.

The Mad Doctor (dir. David Hand, 1933)

Pluto gets kidnapped by an insane scientist who loves cutting every living thing in sight into pieces. It's Mickey Mouse meets Saw, more or less.

One of the classic Mickey Mouse cartoons, the macabre humor is off the charts here, paying homage to the aesthetics of the gothic horror films of the period. It's a really good homage too-- the backgrounds and effects are astonishing. There's a sequence where the "camera" is following Mickey through a tunnel and the evocation of three-dimensional space is so cool. Part of what I love about Disney in the 1930s is how ambitious their work could be, even in short films like this.

Peeping Tom (dir. Michael Powell, 1960)

A shy photographer kills women while filming their deaths for a "documentary," but a burgeoning romance with a young woman threatens to both upend his mission and reveal his crimes to the authorities.

Disturbing and tragic, Peeping Tom remains a unique horror experience. It gets compared to Hitchcock's Psycho often-- both of them were controversial proto-slashers about disturbed, sexually repressed young men whose childhood abuse turns them into killers. Both films came out in 1960 and pushed at any notion of "good taste" with their sexuality and violence. However, Psycho became its director's biggest hit, while Peeping Tom permanently damaged Michael Powell's successful directorial career. While Psycho also provoked disgust, it was also more "fun" and humorous, while Peeping Tom has a sadder core. The ending haunts me in a way few other horror movies do.

Sisters (dir. Brian De Palma, 1972)

Ambitious young reporter Grace Collier witnesses a murder in the apartment across from hers, but when she cannot get the police to believe her story (mainly due to their prejudice against her, as she's written articles critical of police brutality and racism in the past), she investigates the crime on her own. Her inquiries uncover a disturbing conspiracy involving a pair of previously conjoined twins and the emotional rift caused by their separation.

Sisters has become a staple of my Halloween viewing since I first saw it years ago. It's weird because I initially didn't like it very much, but now I count it among my absolute favorites. It's certainly a riff on Hitchcockian themes of voyeurism and violence-- movie geeks will easily spot references to Psycho and Rear Window-- but it has a very countercultural edge. Having seen De Palma's earlier, politically charged comedies like Hi Mom! really illuminates that element of the film, particularly its feminist themes and commentary on police corruption.

But that all sounds very academic, and this film is anything but a dry pamphlet on sociopolitics via 1972. This is a darkly funny and stylistically playful thriller with some visceral shocks, and the performances from Margot Kidder and Jennifer Salt are absolutely amazing. Actually, I love Salt's character Grace the most. She's abrasive but ultimately sympathetic and admirable, her aggressive personality hiding a great many vulnerabilities, namely her anxiety about going nowhere in a writing career her mother seems to view as a distraction from "proper" womanly goals like getting married before age 30. I find Grace a funny yet poignant character, her fate disturbing.

[animals-in-old-films]

A black cat in The Mad Doctor (1940)

[gifsfrommydvds]

@giftober 2024 | Day 9: Numbers

[rohirriiim]

You’re so much like your mother.

AGATHA ALL ALONG (01x05) DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (2022)

[it-meant-nothing]

Wanda Maximoff // Erik Lehnsherr

Your son is right there, please—

[joelwindows7]

Heart jump to throat

[viceandmature]

Wanda Maximoff and Cassandra Nova skins Reed Richards and Johnny Storm

[marveldaily]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness dir. Sam Raimi | 2022

[womenofmcu]

I dream of them... every... night. Of my boys... of our life together. 

[zendayacolemann]

ELIZABETH OLSEN as WANDA MAXIMOFF / SCARLET WITCH Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

[k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9]

𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔐𝔞𝔡 𝔇𝔬𝔠𝔱𝔬𝔯 (յգՅՅ)

[dailyflicks]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) dir. Sam Raimi