Mickey Mouse – Mickey’s Kangaroo (as Mickey kangourou) (1935) – original Belgian titles Erik 2026-09-19 | Mickey Mouse – Mickey’s Kangaroo (as Mickey kangourou) (1935) – original Belgian titles
Donald Duck – The Plastics Inventor (1944) – original RKO titles with Walt Disney Pictures intro Erik 2025-02-07 | In the 1980s, it was still common practice for Disney to have classic animated cartoons accompanying new feature films when shown at cinemas. This unmarked 35mm print of The Plastics Inventor (1944) was likely one of those cartoons. It carries the text “A fully restored animated classic” and the 1980s Walt Disney Pictures logo at start, then the original RKO titles are kept intact. But which Disney feature could have had this as a supplement?
Donald Duck – Sky Trooper (1942) – original headshot Erik 2025-01-29 | Was Donald Gets Drafted (1942) the only instance where Donald wears a drill sergeant hat in the headshot? No, it seems it was actually used one more time, in the following wartime Donald short, Sky Trooper (1942) – even though Donald actually wears a cap in the film itself.This black and white print, on 1944 Kodak US stock, does not include the Donald Duck logo card or the closing titles – supposedly because it was a print supplied to the army and not distributed by RKO (and it obviously wasn’t in Technicolor either).Since this is a very early print of Sky Trooper, I was curious to see whether the scene where Donald accidently pins the tail on Pete’s rear end would be left intact. It wasn’t – it’s exactly the same as in all other versions I’ve seen. I’ve included it here for reference, and if you haven’t noticed before, there’s a jump cut in the middle of the scene where Donald starts touching said body part on Pete; Donald starts opening his mouth and then there’s the cut. I have the feeling Donald originally said something ambiguous here, and it didn’t pass the censors (like “Yeah – this is where I’ll stick it”). Also, there is no sound effect when the painful action then happens, only Pete’s subsequent scream – possibly another intervention by the censors.
Pluto – Dog Watch (1945) – Walt Disney Educational Media titles Erik 2025-01-13 | In the early 1980s, Walt Disney Educational Media decided to put together three packages of vintage shorts for 16mm distribution to schools. Each one included three shorts, just like the Cartoon Parades offered by Disney’s regular 16mm division. The main difference was that the Educational packages had a theme, and the opening titles of the shorts were replaced, save for the title cards. Dog Watch (1945), seen here in a 16mm Eastman LPP print dated 1984, was part of the package called Tales of Pluto, released in 1982. It surprisingly featured new and quite nice animation of Pluto in the titles (but why he’s backstage at a theatre remains a mystery). The other two shorts included in the package were Wonder Dog (1950) and Pluto’s Surprise Package (1949).
Pluto – Dog Watch (1945) – original RKO titles Erik 2025-01-13 | This is the original RKO titles to Dog Watch (1945), scanned from a 16mm Technicolor UK print. The Pluto headshot is, as expected, the 1937/1940 version, then the layout of the credits is noticeably different from the Buena Vista reissue. At first glance the title card looks to be exactly the same as the reissue, but look closely at the letters – there’s no gloss effect here.
A Walt Disney Cartoon – The Cold-Blooded Penguin (1944) – 1971 non-theatrical reissue titles Erik 2024-12-28 | The Cold-Blooded Penguin, originally part of The Three Caballeros (1944), was surprisingly not re-released as stand-alone short in the mid-1950s. It was not until 1971 that it was given opening and ending titles, for its non-theatrical release on 16mm. The choices of music for the titles are certainly odd; an edited version of the 1951 Chip ’n’ Dale theme for the opening, and the end of the 1947 Mickey Mouse opening theme for the closing titles. Scanned from an Eastman LPP 16mm print dated 1982.
Silly Symphony – The China Plate (1931) – non-theatrical Kodascope reissue titles Erik 2024-12-28 | These non-theatrical reissue titles to The China Plate (1931) were made by the Disney studio for its inclusion in the Kodascope Libraries in 1936. That year, Kodascope offered twelve complete Disney shorts, with sound, for rental on 16mm, followed by another twelve in 1937. All of them were black-and-white shorts originally released by Columbia in 1930–1932.Kodascope Libraries was a division of the Eastman Kodak Company, and it appears that consumers could only rent the films at a limited number of Kodak-owned camera stores across the US.Then, sometime in the late 1940s, G.B. Equipments (owned by the Rank Organisation) started offering Disney shorts for rental in the UK, and many Kodascope versions seem to have been among them. Incredibly enough, the very same 36 black-and-white shorts listed in G.B.’s 1950 16mm catalogue were still available more than 30 years later, as evidenced by their 1983 catalogue.This print of The China Plate was scanned from a 16mm Kodak UK print dated 1955. The original 1931 titles can be found on Walt Disney Treasures: Silly Symphonies.
Pluto – The Army Mascot (1942) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-12-28 | This is the original RKO titles to The Army Mascot (1942), scanned from a 16mm Kodachrome US print dated 1944. The Pluto headshot is worth noting here, as it’s the first time the head is aligned vertically. Other than that, there are no surprises – the Buena Vista reissue cuts to the original title card after the logo card.
Donald Duck – No Hunting (1955) – original RKO Cinemascope titles Erik 2024-12-24 | When I shared the Academy ratio titles to No Hunting (1955) a couple of years ago, I added a little speculation that the Cinemascope version might originally have had gunshot sounds during the title card, matching the bullet holes in the sign. (Someone apparently took that for an actual fact and added it as such to the short’s Wikipedia page.) This 16mm Agfa print of the Cinemascope version, made before the Treasures dvd, contradicts that – it’s the standard Donald theme all the way through. What wasn’t on the Treasures, however, was the opening fanfare on the RKO logo heard here – and it think it’s the last time the “cymbals” version was used.
Mickey Mouse – The Klondike Kid (1932) – United Artists titles reconstructed, with original theme Erik 2024-12-24 | As followers of this channel might recall, only a handful of frames of the original United Artists opening titles were present in the 16mm scan I uploaded in 2020. Now that I have been able to piece together the complete original opening theme, I felt I could make a pretty accurate reconstruction of the whole thing. The Mickey headshot comes from my print of The Wayward Canary, officially released on the same day (November 12, 1932). I have also used that print as reference for the transition – or rather flickering – between the head’s explosion and the logo card, and the timing of the title’s fade before the iris in. The tight cropping (obscuring most of the United Artists president’s name at the top) is not my doing, but carried over from the print. Anyway, hope you enjoy it!
Mickey Mouse – The Klondike Kid (1932) – burlap reissue titles with the complete original theme Erik 2024-12-24 | I finally found – and scanned – another print of The Klondike Kid (1932) with the original opening theme. This too had a splice midway through the titles, but not at the same spot as the print I’ve shared before – so by combining the two, the complete theme can now be heard. Scanned from a Gevaert (pre-1963) and a 1964 Kodak UK print.
Pluto – Bone Bandit (1948) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-12-24 | The original RKO titles to the 1948 Disney short Bone Bandit, scanned from a 16mm Technicolor print. No surprises here, really; the credits are left-/right-aligned as expected, and the title card was refilmed without alterations for the Buena Vista reissue. The Disney+ version uses the headshot and logo card from Food for Feudin’ (making the copyright year and MPAA code wrong), followed by the credits from the reissue.
Goofy – How to Be a Detective (1952) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-12-24 | This is the original titles to the 1952 Disney short How to Be Detective, scanned from a 35mm Technicolor print. The names of animators John Sibley and Ed Aardal have switched places in the Buena Vista reissue, but the most interesting difference is the title card, where both the lettering and the illustration were faithfully recreated for the reissue. You need to look very closely at details such as the hair in the beard and the reflection in the magnifying glass to notice it.This well-worn print, dated 1952, was likely used for the original theatrical release. There were multiple splices throughout, and the entire first scene with the waterfront was missing, so I’ve used the version on the Treasures to patch it up. All the elements of the original opening and closing titles were present, however.
Mickey Mouse – Playful Pluto (1934) – original United Artists titles Erik 2024-08-24 | This is the complete original United Artits titles to Playful Pluto (1934), scanned from a 16mm print of unknown origin (no markings on the film strip). It’s sort of sad – given this short’s importance in animation history – that its original titles have never been properly restored. The titles seen in the recent version on Disney+ have been recreated using those faux-30s titles that were created for a small number of black and white Mickey shorts re-released theatrically in 1974 (Playful Pluto was not one of them).
Donald Duck – Sleepy Time Donald (1947) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-08-24 | The original RKO Radio Pictures titles to the Disney short Sleepy Time Donald (1947), scanned from a 16mm Technicolor print. At first glance, the title card appears to be the same as in the Buena Vista reissue, but look closely at the stars in the background, the S and the Es in the block letters, and the D in Donald – the whole title card was actually remade for the reissue. This was the last short to feature the early-1940s Donald opening theme; the following Donald short, Clown of the Jungle, uses the Mickey Mouse theme first heard in Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip, then the classic “Donald Duck Song” was introduced in the next one after that, Donald’s Dilemma. There were some minor splices in the titles, so the soundtrack comes from the UK dvd Donald’s Laugh Factory (2005), re-timed to the original 24 fps.
A Walt Disney Cartoon – Blame It on the Samba (1948) – 1955 RKO reissue titles Erik 2024-08-19 | The 1955 RKO reissue titles to Blame It on the Samba (originally part of Melody Time) are already – in various forms – available on YouTube, of course. This scan comes from a 16mm Fuji print dated 1977, and it’s likely not an official Disney release, as the splices you see near the end (when the Aracuan moves around the frame) are actually in the print, likely carried over from the 35mm source. Anyway, there are several interesting things to note about this version: It’s actually not labelled as a Donald Duck short like Lake Titicaca and Aquarela do Brasil, it has unique art on both the opening and the closing titles – and the end is different from Melody Time, where the Aracuan pops his head back out from the iris out.
Donald Duck – Donald’s Dilemma (1947) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-08-09 | Donald’s Dilemma (1947) was the first short to feature Donald’s theme song, known simply as the “Donald Duck Song”. When I handed in this 16mm Technicolor blue-track print (made shortly after the short’s original theatrical release) for scanning, I was curious to know if the theme in this original version was different from the Buena Vista reissue. As it turned out, the reissue kept the original soundtrack unaltered – and so the slightly different version of the theme song, missing the “Hmm?” comment after the line “Who never, never starts an argument?” and the more prominent strings near the end, was only used in Daddy Duck and Donald’s Dream Voice (both 1948).
Mickey Mouse – Mickey in Arabia (1932) – burlap reissue titles Erik 2024-08-09 | These early 1950s non-theatrical titles – a design commonly referred to as “burlap” or “burlap note swirl” – to Mickey in Arabia (1932) interestingly keeps the MPPDA (here MPAA) logo from the original Columbia titles. This and Musical Farmer (1932) were likely the only Disney shorts distributed by Columbia to feature the MPPDA logo in their original titles. Scanned from a 16mm Kodak UK print dated 1955.
Mickey Mouse – Mickey in Arabia (1932) – original Columbia titles Erik 2024-08-09 | This is the original opening and closing titles to Mickey in Arabia (1932), the last Disney short to be distributed by Columbia. One interesting thing here is the presence of the MPPDA logo (below the sponge under the blackboard), even though it’s almost blurred-out in this (likely unofficial) 16mm Kodak UK print dated 1948. The soundtrack is borrowed from the Treasures dvd, as this print was silent.
Goofy – El Gaucho Goofy (1942) – 1955 RKO reissue titles Erik 2024-04-01 | El Gaucho Goofy, originally part of Saludos Amigos (1942), was released as a stand-alone short in 1955 – one and a half year after the original RKO Goofy series had ended. I have previously shared the Buena Vista re-release titles (which keep the title card and closing titles seen here). The RKO logo at start was not included on this rather faded Kodak SP print dated 1976, but I have reinstated it here – using the timing, fade-out, etc from Hooked Bear (1956), which uses the same opening theme.
Donald Duck – Window Cleaners (1940) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-04-01 | While the original RKO titles to Window Cleaners (1940) were seen on several vhs and laserdisc releases in the 1980s, this nice 16mm Technicolor print from the UK is certainly an improvement. This was the first Disney short to have the MPPDA certificate placed on the title card – a practice that lasted until early 1942.
Silly Symphony – The Ugly Duckling (1939) – original RKO titles Erik 2024-04-01 | I’ve uploaded the original title card to The Ugly Duckling (1939) before, as one of the stills included in the “Mickey Mouse Viewer” film strips. Here are finally the complete RKO opening and closing titles, scanned from a Technicolor 16mm print. As you can see, the logo card in this final Silly Symphony still carries the same design as in RKO’s first release in the series (The Old Mill, 1937). Thus it seems more than likely that the RKO titles with bright red letters (mimicking the 1935 logo) did not exist in any original releases, but was created for the reissues in the late 1940s. Note: There were several splices in this well-worn blue-track print – dating from around 1950 – so I’ve used the soundtrack from Walt Disney Treasures and looped parts of the titles.
Mickey Mouse – Mickey’s Good Deed (1932) – original United Artists titles Erik 2023-12-03 | The original titles to Mickey’s Good Deed (1932) opens with the first use of the small Mickey headshot (replacing “Exploding Mickey”) – and then snow gradually starts falling on the titles, matching the opening scene. This was the first Mickey to use the RCA sound system, and the special “Christmas” version of Mickey’s theme tune was only heard here. The opening fanfare is somewhat truncated, unfortunately, so it’s a little unclear whether this too is a unique version. Scanned from a 16mm Gevaert print of unknown date.
A Walt Disney Cartoon – Johnnie Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet (1946) – 1954 reissue titles Erik 2023-11-28 | Johnnie Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet from Make Mine Music (1946) was reissued by RKO as a stand-alone short in 1954. The RKO logo was omitted when this 16mm Eastman print was made in 1974, and today the colours have turned mostly purple – but it’s still nice that this version exists, I think.
Pluto – Pluto’s Housewarming (1947) – original RKO titles (complete) Erik 2023-11-24 | The original opening titles to Pluto’s Housewarming (1947) have been known for a long time, of course. But this 16mm Technicolor blue-track print also includes the closing titles, which were replaced on all 1980s VHS copies I’ve seen. As far as I can tell, the original title card was refilmed without alterations for the Buena Vista reissue. This was the first regular Pluto short to feature the all-new headshot, which was then used right up to the end of the series in 1951.
Silly Symphony – The Busy Beavers (1931) – early French titles Erik 2023-11-24 | This French version of the 1931 Disney short The Busy Beavers is a little bit of a mystery to me. Tempête chez les castors (“Storm at the Beavers’ Home”) seems to have been the original French theatrical title, and it’s complete with soundtrack and all. But why, for instance, is there no mention of Walt Disney or even a copyright notice? I’ve tried researching the distributor Univers Ciné, but haven’t found anything useful. Anyway, it’s scanned from a French Kodak 16mm print dated 1962.
Goofy – Home Made Home (1951) – original RKO titles Erik 2023-11-13 | The original titles to the 1951 Disney short Home Made Home, scanned from an unmarked 35mm print. There were many splices in the titles (though all the elements were there), so I‘ve restored it using the timing and soundtrack from the Buena Vista reissue. Interestingly, whoever filmed the reissue titles forgot the cel overlay with “Technicolor” and “Copyright ... Walt Disney Productions,” so under the Goofy logo it just says “MCML”. After the credits, the reissue cuts to the original title card seen here.
Introduction segment to the “Mickey Mouse 25th Anniversary Show” (1953) Erik 2023-11-13 | As Mickey officially turns 95 in a couple of days, I thought it would be nice to share this interesting little thing. It appears that in 1953, five colour Mickey shorts (plus, strangely, Tiger Trouble) were re-released by RKO under the banner “Mickey Mouse Birthday Cartoons” – both individually and as a package (see intanibase.com/oldforum/index.php?topic=1776.0). I believe this is the introduction segment to the package version, although it ends just as we hear the opening theme to an early 1940s Mickey starting (likely Mickey’s Birthday Party or Mr. Mouse Takes a Trip, both among the reissued shorts). This is scanned from a 35mm Eastmancolor print dated 1952, and it was spliced onto a reel with three 1950s Disney shorts – none of them featuring Mickey. (The package seems to have had no official title, hence the quote marks above.)
Donald Duck – All in a Nutshell (1949) – original RKO titles Erik 2023-10-30 | I’ve shared parts of the original RKO titles to All in a Nutshell (1949) before, but here they are in their entirity, scanned from a 16mm blue-track Technicolor print. As I noted in that previous upload, there are no real surprises here compared to the Buena Vista reissue – there’s the original headshot of course, and the credits have the typical 1947–49 layout.
Pluto – Pluto’s Blue Note (1947) – original RKO titles Erik 2023-10-30 | This is the original RKO titles to Pluto’s Blue Note, the last Disney cartoon to be released in 1947, scanned from a 16mm blue-track Technicolor print. In addition to the credits having the expected layout of the time, the title card is noticably different from the Buena Vista reissue. The reissue kept the background art, but the lettering was condensed to vertically place the title closer to the centre – at a safe distance from TV or 16mm cropping. The original title card can also be seen in the Disneyland episode At Home with Donald Duck.
Mickey Mouse – Shanghaied (1934) – original United Artists opening titles Erik 2023-10-23 | This is the original United Artits opening titles to the 1934 Mickey Mouse short Shanghaied, scanned from a 9.5mm Pathéscope print. There were never any date codes on such prints, but it was issued in 1952. This copy was not complete, hence the missing closing titles – and I hope to find a better copy some day. I also had to make frame loops in the opening titles since they were considerably shortened for this silent print.
Donald Duck – Donald’s Lucky Day (1939) – original RKO titles Erik 2023-10-23 | The original RKO titles to Donald’s Lucky Day (1939), scanned from a 16mm Technicolor print. As far as I can tell, these titles look the way we expect them to. The Buena Vista reissue jump-cuts to the original title card seen here, after, as usual, substituting the headshot and the Donald Duck logo card.
A Walt Disney Cartoon – The Brave Engineer (1950) – original RKO titles Erik 2023-10-16 | The Brave Engineer (1950) was the first Disney cartoon to feature the RKO logo on its own card at the start – and, as these original titles reveal, it was ... purple! Also, instead of fading to black, it cross-dissolves to the next card. (If you look closely at the Buena Vista reissue, you can see the end of the dissolve mistakenly left in for a couple of frames.) Scanned from a 16mm Technicolor blue-track print; there were a few splices, so I’ve used the soundtrack from the reissue, which is exactly the same.
A Walt Disney Cartoon – In the Bag (1956) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | The Academy ratio titles to the 1956 Disney short In the Bag, scanned from a 16mm Eastman LPP print dated 1988. This was the last Disney short distributed by RKO, but unfortunately this print did not include any logo at start.
Donald Duck – How to Have an Accident in the Home (1956) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | The Academy ratio titles to How to Have an Accident in the Home (1956), scanned from a 16mm Kodak SP print dated 1976. On The Chronological Donald Vol. 4, the Buena Vista logo seems to be replaced by a later version, and the unusual fanfare heard here is missing.
Walt Disney Cartoon – Hooked Bear (1956) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | This is the Academy ratio titles to the 1956 Disney cartoon Hooked Bear, transferred from the Australian vhs release Starring Donald (1990). It’s missing the RKO logo and fanfare at front, unfortunately.
Donald Duck – Chips Ahoy (1956) – Academy ratio reissue titles Erik 2021-09-18 | Academy ratio Buena Vista reissue titles to Chips Ahoy (1956), scanned from a 16mm Kodak SP print dated 1978. Like the reissue of Dragon Around, it’s a mystery why they choose to replace the headshot and the logo card, when simply substituting the RKO logo at start would have been enough. I haven’t seen the original version though.
Donald Duck – Beezy Bear – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | The Academy ratio titles to Beezy Bear (1955), scanned from a 16mm Eastmancolor print dated 1978. This is a Buena Vista reissue, but like Bearly Asleep, I think it’s a safe bet that only the RKO logo at front has been replaced.
Donald Duck – Bearly Asleep (1955) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | This is the Academy ratio titles to Bearly Asleep (1955), scanned from a 16mm Kodak SP print dated 1979. This is a Buena Vista reissue, but I think we can be pretty certain in this case that only the RKO logo at front has been replaced.
Donald Duck – No Hunting (1955) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | The Academy ratio titles (missing the RKO logo at front) to the 1955 Disney short No Hunting, transferred from two 1980s vhs releases. As you can see, there is no action on the title card here; in the Cinemascope version, seen on The Chronological Donald Vol. 4, three bullet holes curiously appear on the sign as the choir sings “Who gets stuck …” I would not be surprised if there was originally a sound effect there (three gunshots), mistakenly edited out like the airplane sound in the opening of Test Pilot Donald.
Donald Duck – Grand Canyonscope (1954) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | This is the Academy ratio titles to the 1954 Disney short Grand Canyonscope, transferred from, and combined of, two different 1980s vhs releases. In addition, the Buena Vista logo is from a Swedish TV showing in 2005, and the ranger’s comment “this is a big canyon” (replacing “this is Cinemascope”) comes from a 16mm print of Highway to Trouble (1959).
A Walt Disney Cartoon – Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom (1953) – Academy ratio titles Erik 2021-09-18 | Two versions of the 1953 Disney short Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom were filmed – one in Cinemascope, and one in the standard Academy ratio. While it’s more interesting to look at differences in actual scenes, here are the opening and closing titles to the Academy version, scanned from a 16mm Eastman LPP print dated 1986. After the short’s initial theatrical run, this was the common version seen on 16mm, home video and and TV. The Disney Rarities dvd and the Fantasia 2000 dvd use the Cinemascope version – but unfortunately letterboxed inside the 4:3 format.
Mickey Mouse – The Grocery Boy (1932) – original Columbia titles Erik 2021-04-09 | The original Columbia titles to the 1932 Disney short The Grocery Boy, scanned from a 16mm Kodak UK print dated 1944. The recreation on Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Black and White Vol. 2 actually comes quite close this time (but of course, there is not supposed to be a headshot at the start). There were several splices here, so I’ve used the Treasures soundtrack, which is exactly the same.
Donald Duck – Donald Duck’s Debut (Orphans Benefit) – 1930s Ensign titles Erik 2021-04-09 | This is a nice little Ensign home movie release from the late 1930s. It’s fun to see the 1934 version of Donald getting his own title design, of course, but historically the most interesting part is the one frame accidentally left in of the original “Orphans Benefit” title card. I’ve made a still of that and placed it at the end in case you don’t catch it as it flashes by. As far as I can tell, there is no sign of any apostrophe (’) on either side of the s in “Orphans”. Scanned from a silent 16mm Selo UK print, soundtrack added from Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Black and White, Vol. 1.
Goofy – For Whom the Bulls Toil (1953) – original RKO titles Erik 2021-04-08 | The original RKO titles to the 1953 Disney short For Whom the Bulls Toil, scanned from a 35mm Eastman print dated 1953. The Buena Vista reissue commonly seen today has the original title card refilmed without alterations; the credits look almost the same, but “Direction” has been changed to “Director” and the typography is somewhat tighter.
Mickey Mouse – The Mad Dog (1932) – original Columbia titles Erik 2021-03-19 | The original Columbia titles to the 1932 Disney short The Mad Dog, scanned from a silent 9.5mm Pathéscope print. The recreated version on the Treasures dvd comes close to this, if you omit the Mickey headshot they incorrectly placed at front. I’ve added the soundtrack from that version, which sounds original to me. Pathéscope released hundreds of silent Disney home movies on 9.5mm, but this short, The Steeple-Chase and Mickey’s Kangaroo are to my knowledge the only ones to feature original titles.
Mickey Mouse – The Mail Pilot (1933) – early non-theatrical reissue titles Erik 2021-03-19 | This early non-theatrical version of the 1933 Disney short The Mail Pilot includes some valuable original material, thanks to the minimum effort that went into removing the United Artists references. It starts with the very first use of the final black and white Mickey headshot, which then starts to fade into the original United Artists Mickey and Minnie card. Then the reissue version follows – and at the end of that, we can again briefly see the original Mickey and Minnie card, along with the original title lettering.
Donald Duck – Donald’s Diary (1954) – original RKO titles Erik 2021-03-04 | Just like in the Buena Vista reissue – most recently seen on the US DVD Best Pals: Donald and Daisy (2006) – the opening theme in the original RKO version starts on the logo at front. On the Treasures, the RKO logo is silent and the theme starts on the Donald headshot. Other than that, the titles are the same. There were several splices in my 16mm Technicolor print, so I’ve edited and synched it to the soundtrack from the Donald and Daisy dvd.
Pluto – Cat Nap Pluto (1948) – original RKO titles Erik 2021-02-26 | The original RKO Radio Pictures titles to the 1948 Disney short Cat Nap Pluto, scanned from a 16mm Technicolor blue-track print. No surprises this time; the credits are the same (although in their original layout here), and the title card was refilmed without changes for the Buena Vista reissue.
Mickey Mouse – Mickey’s Trailer (1938) – original headshot and title card Erik 2021-02-26 | A British Movie-Paks release featuring the original headshot and title card to Mickey’s Trailer (1938). The only difference I can detect is that the lettering on the title card is placed a little bit closer to the characters. Scanned from an 8mm Kodak UK print dated 1964; soundtrack added from the Treasures dvd.
20th Century Fox Disney Promotional reel – date unknown Erik 2021-02-26 | This is a rather odd promotional film, presumably from the 1970s, containing various classic Disney clips, plus recreated versions of the RKO-era Donald and Goofy headshots – and even a Dumbo headshot! Some professional work has apparently gone into the editing, including placing one clip inside a TV set.The British accent of the voice-over, and her sales-pitch type comments, makes me think this reel may have been used to sell a Disney package to UK TV channels. (And maybe that Fox handled the sales, using the same intro to all their promotional reels, which would account for the promise of Cinemascope and stereo sound at the start.) This is only speculation, of course. Does anyone out there know more? There is nothing written at the start or end of the film strip, but it’s all one and the same 16mm Agfa-Gevaert print, with no splices whatsoever.
