Poor Papa
| Poor Papa | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Walt Disney |
| Produced by |
Charles Mintz George Winkler |
| Story by | Walt Disney |
| Animation by |
Ub Iwerks Hugh Harman Les Clark Friz Freleng Ben Clopton Norm Blackburn Rollin "Ham" Hamilton |
| Studio |
Walt Disney Productions Winkler Productions |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 11, 1928 |
| Color process | Black and White |
| Running time | 5:11 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Followed by | Trolley Troubles |
Poor Papa is a 1928 animated short subject film, produced and directed by Walt Disney. The cartoon is the very first Oswald cartoon, and is the first appearance of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, a character that Disney and Ub Iwerks created for Universal Pictures and Charles B. Mintz. Oswald would later serve as the basis for Mickey Mouse.
Plot
Oswald has to stop storks from delivering bunny children.
History
In the early summer of 1927, Disney finished the cartoon Poor Papa. However, Universal was not very satisfied. They had expected a more Charlie Chaplin-like character and thought Oswald was too elderly and too fat. Disney agreed to make some changes and the cartoon was not released in theatres at the time. So Disney made a second Oswald cartoon known as Trolley Troubles, which was well received and released instead.
As for Poor Papa, it was released eventually in theatres, although Universal held it back until 1928. In total, nine Oswald cartoons were released in 1927.
Preservation status
After its release, Poor Papa was believed to be lost for many years, until around in the 2000s, where 3 copies were actually found existing in the United Kingdom.
In 2007, Disney tried to buy to one of these prints during production of The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit DVD, but failed.[1]
Finally in 2015, Disney was able to buy the print, and Poor Papa was released in the "Signature Edition" Blu-Ray of Pinocchio.