# The Mouse Factory

The Mouse Factory is an American syndicated television series produced by Walt Disney Productions and created by Ward Kimball, that ran from 1972 to 1973. It showed clips from various Disney cartoons and movies, hosted by celebrity guests (credited as being "Mickey's Friend"), including Charles Nelson Reilly, JoAnne Worley, Wally Cox, Johnny Brown, Phyllis Diller, Joe Flynn, Annette Funicello, Shari Lewis and Hush Puppy, Lamb Chop, Dom DeLuise, Don Knotts and many more visiting the Mouse Factory and interacting with the walk-around Disney characters from the Disney theme parks. The series was later rerun on the Disney Channel in the 1980s and 1990s.
The theme played over the previews of each episode was a fast instrumental version of "Whistle While You Work" from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

## Ending credits

To start the ending credits, the series depicts Mickey Mouse in a biplane. He flies across the screen carrying a banner that reads "the end". A large ape, resembling King Kong, promptly swipes said plane as well as Mickey out of thin air, dropping them in his mouth and devouring them. In season 2, this was changed to Donald Duck uttering the phrase "it won't work".
The song played over the end credits is "Minnie's Yoo Hoo", the theme song from the original Mickey Mouse Clubs that met in theaters starting in 1929. The version used in the series originated in a 1968 episode of The Wonderful World of Disney celebrating Mickey's birthday.

## Premise

The Mouse Factory mixes live-action with animation and features a different theme in each episode. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who plays a new character and interacts with Disney characters such as Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Pluto (appearing in costume form as they do in theme parks), among others. In addition, each episode features several classic short films and clips of feature films (about three short films and clips in each episode).

## Records

Disneyland Records released two vinyl 12-inch LP records and three seven-inch 33 1/3 rpm to tie in with series, all containing previously released recordings and no new soundtrack material from the TV show. The Mouse Factory Presents Mickey and His Friends was an LP compilation of songs and sketches. Stories and Songs from The Mouse Factory contained four edited "read-along" recordings of tales seen on the show. The three seven-inch records each presented four songs featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy.

## Cancellation of the series

Due to low ratings and limited distribution, the series was cancelled after its second season.

## List of episodes

43 episodes were produced, including:

### Season 1 (1972)

| # | Title | Host | Cartoons Featured | Airdate |
| 1 | Vacations | Charles Nelson Reilly | Tea For Two Hundred (1948) Grin And Bear It (1954) Father's Day Off (1953) Grand Canyonscope (1954) Lake Titicaca (1955) | January 26, 1972 |
| 2 | Women’s Lib | JoAnne Worley | A Symposium On Popular Songs (1962) ("Rutabaga Rag" segment) Fantasia (1940) ("Dance Of The Hours" segment) Make Mine Music (1946) ("Willie The Operatic Whale" segment) | February 2, 1972 |
| 3 | Folk Tale Favorites | Johnny Brown | The Tortoise And The Hare (1935) Song Of The South (1946) ("Laughing Place" segment) Brave Little Tailor (1938) The Ugly Duckling (1939) Old King Cole (1933) | February 9, 1972 |
| 4 | Spooks and Magic | Phyllis Diller | Lonesome Ghosts (1937) The Sword In The Stone (1963) ("Dueling Wizards" segment) Trick Or Treat (1952) | February 16, 1972 |
| 5 | Physical Fitness | Don Knotts | Goofy Gymnastics (1949) Reason And Emotion (1943) ("Diet Argument" clip) No Smoking (1951) Donald's Off Day (1944) Wide Open Spaces (1947) Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937) ("Dwarfs Cleaning Up" clip) | February 23, 1972 |
| 6 | The Great Outdoors | Dom DeLuise | How To Fish (1942) Donald's Garden (1942) Foul Hunting (1947) | March 1, 1972 |
| 7 | Water Sports | Joe Flynn | How To Be A Sailor (1944) Boat Builders (1938) How To Swim (1942) Hawaiian Holiday (1937) Aquamania (1961) | March 8, 1972 |
| 8 | Man at Work | John Byner | Dragon Around (1954) Hold That Pose (1950) Inferior Decorator (1948) Moving Day (1936) ("Goofy Moving Piano" clip) Fire Chief (1940) | March 15, 1972 |
| 9 | Music | Skiles and Henderson | Dumbo (1941) ("Casey Junior" segment) Cured Duck (1945) Three Little Wolves (1936) Melody Time (1948) ("Bumble Boogie" segment) Mickey's Follies (1929) Mickey's Amateurs (1937) Toot, Whistle, Plunk And Boom (1953) | March 22, 1972 |
| 10 | Interplanetary Travel | Jonathan Winters | Man In Space (1955) (Clips) Mars And Beyond (1957) (Clips) | March 29, 1972 |
| 11 | Homeowners | Jim Backus | Home Made Home (1951) How To Have An Accident In The Home (1956) (Clips) Up A Tree (1955) Mickey's Trailer (1938) The New Neighbor (1953) | April 5, 1972 |
| 12 | Spectator Sports | Charles Nelson Reilly | They're Off (1948) Double Dribble (1946) Canvas Back Duck (1953) The Olympic Champ (1942) Football (Now And Then) (1953) | April 12, 1972 |
| 13 | Horses | JoAnne Worley | How To Ride A Horse (1941) Fantasia (1940) ("Pastoral Symphony" segment) The Adventures Of Ichabod And Mr. Toad (1949) ("Cyril Proudbottom" and "The Headless Horseman" segments) Mickey's Polo Team (1936) | April 19, 1972 |
| 14 | Aviation | Johnny Brown | Victory Through Air Power (1943) (Clip) The Flying Jalopy (1943) Goofy's Glider (1940) Test Pilot Donald (1951) Dumbo (1941) ("Dumbo Flying" clip) | April 26, 1972 |
| 15 | Back to Nature | Wally Cox | The Legend Of Johnny Appleseed (1948) Make Mine Music (1946) ("The Martins And The Coys" segment) Pinocchio (1940) ("Ticking Clocks" clip) Clock Cleaners (1937) Mother Goose Goes Hollywood (1938) (Clip) Eyes In Outer Space (1959) (Clip) Melody (1953) (Clip) Magic Highway, U.S.A. (1958) (Clip) Alpine Climbers (1936) | May 3, 1972 |
| 16 | Bullfighting to Bullfrogs | Pat Buttram | Ferdinand The Bull (1938) (Clip) Baggage Buster (1941) Two-Gun Mickey (1934) | May 10, 1972 |
| 17 | Sports | Pat Paulsen | How To Play Golf (1944) How To Play Baseball (1942) How To Play Football (1944) Hockey Homicide (1945) The Art Of Skiing (1941) | May 17, 1972 |

### Season 2 (1972-1973)

| # | Title | Host | Airdate |
| 1 | Alligators | Johnny Brown | September 11, 1972 |
| 2 | Paul Bunyan | Jim Backus | September 18, 1972 |
| 3 | Bullfighting | Bill Dana | September 25, 1972 |
| 4 | Knighthood | Henry Gibson | October 2, 1972 |
| 5 | Pluto | John Astin | October 9, 1972 |
| 6 | Goliath II | Kurt Russell | October 16, 1972 |
| 7 | The Mouse Show | Dave Madden | October 23, 1972 |
| 8 | Cats | Shari Lewis and Hush Puppy | October 30, 1972 |
| 9 | Ben Franklin | Wally Cox | November 6, 1972 |
| 10 | Mickey Mouse | Annette Funicello | November 13, 1972 |
| 11 | Lions | Henry Gibson | November 20, 1972 |
| 12 | Consciences | Harry Morgan | November 27, 1972 |
| 13 | Noah’s Ark | Bill Dana | December 4, 1972 |
| 14 | Hunting | John Astin | December 11, 1972 |
| 15 | Sports | Nipsey Russell | December 18, 1972 |
| 16 | Tugboats | Dave Madden | December 25, 1972 |
| 17 | Automobiles | Ken Berry | January 1, 1973 |
| 18 | Trains | Harry Morgan | January 8, 1973 |
| 19 | Homes | Jim Backus | January 15, 1973 |
| 20 | The Reluctant Dragon | Wally Cox | January 22, 1973 |
| 21 | Wheels | Johnny Brown | January 29, 1973 |
| 22 | Winter Fun | Kurt Russell | February 5, 1973 |
| 23 | Penguins | Annette Funicello | February 12, 1973 |
| 24 | Elephants | Nipsey Russell | February 19, 1973 |
| 25 | Mickey and the Beanstalk | Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop | February 26, 1973 |
| 26 | Dancing | Ken Berry | March 5, 1973 |