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Steamboat Willie
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Disney's Steamboat Willie is a landmark in the history of animation. It was the first Mickey Mouse film released and the first cartoon with synchronized sound. It threw silent animation into obsolescence, and launched an empire. Previously, there had been little to distinguish Disney's cartoons from those of his competitors. He was facing bankruptcy when Alan Crosland's The Jazz Singer, with long sequences of song and dialogue, took America by storm in 1927. Sensing that sound movies meant big business, Disney decided to stake all on his talking mouse.
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Just hearing Steamboat Willie and His New Orleans Jazz Band is a memorable experience. Not only does he enchant even the most discerning critic; he has the ability to excite those who are not yet experienced veterans of this creative art form. He is a pre-'20s-music historian who plays obscure as well as "old favorite" tunes in a style all his own.
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Starring Mickey Mouse in his first feature performance, 1928's Steamboat Willie made history after it its premier at the Colony Theater in New York. The first cartoon designed and synchronized along with a musical soundtrack, this tale of a then black-and-white Mickey's adventures at sea served as a springboard for the now legendary Disney empire and provided some much needed comfort during the Great Depression years. Steamboat Willie was, of course, directed by Walt Disney himself. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
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A Steamboat Willie-themed world named Timeless River is featured in the Disney/Square Enix video game Kingdom Hearts II, featuring appropriately "period" versions of the familiar characters. Mickey's design is slightly inaccurate in having white gloves and drawn with an increased 'roundness' more similar to the modern Mickey Mouse. The game's in-world dossier ... claims Mickey first appeared in Steamboat Willie, despite a sub-level themed around the true original, Plane Crazy.
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Steamboat Willie is a music historian specializing in the 1920's era. One distinctive aspect of his trumpet and vocal trademark lies in reviving obscure tunes as well as old favorites in a traditional jazz manner.
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The Peter Pan, Fantasia, and Steamboat Willie conference rooms have been renovated and offer state-of-the-art technology, complete with LED flat-screen TVs. The meeting space has a business center, computer workstations, and a refreshment bar.
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Steamboat Willie