A LONG-LOST Disney movie featuring the prototype of Mickey Mouse has been found in a British company's archives.
The black and white cartoon, called Hungry Hobos, was released in 1928. The original print has been missing since before the Second World War and was thought to have been lost forever.
The only known copy has now been discovered in Huntley Film Archives in Herefordshire, UK, and will go under the hammer at Bonhams Entertainment Memorabilia auction in Los Angeles on December 14, 2011.
The film features Oswald The Lucky Rabbit - who later evolved into Mickey Mouse - and Peg Leg Pete and is expected to fetch $30,000 to $40,000.
Oswald was created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks for a series of cartoons introduced in 1927. Disney had signed a contract with Universal Studios to produce a new series for George Winkler and Charles Mintz but the first production featuring Oswald, Poor Papa, was rejected by Universal as the production and look of Oswald was deemed unsatisfactory.
The second, Trolley Troubles, with a younger-looking Oswald, became a great success, with Walt Disney overseeing some 26 titles. Hungry Hobos was released in May 1928 and is one of a number of the series that had been thought lost.
In 1928, Disney approached Mintz for a budget increase but Mintz countered with a demand for a cut. Disney refused Mintz's demand and disassociated himself from the Oswald series. Iwerks and several others stuck with Disney and it was during this period that Disney and Iwerks produced Mickey Mouse - a slightly altered Oswald - who became the most iconic of Disney's creations.
Stephanie Connell, of Bonhams Entertainment Memorabilia department, said: "Hungry Hobos is an incredible find, a lost masterpiece and a cartoon with a unique and vital place in animation history."
The details of the discovered copy are:16mm double perforated celluloid acetate positive print; silent; probably dating from around its distribution date of la...
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[Source: Coventry Telegraph - The Geek Files]
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