More on Oswald
A few days ago, I blogged on Disney buying back Oswald, the Lucky Rabbit. Well, I guess I’m not the only one who picked up on the story. It looks like International Animated Film Society (AKA ASIFA, Dunno why) has posted this humorous interview on their site:
The great news for me this week is that Oswald the Not-So-Lucky Rabbit has been released after 78 years of imprisonment. Mister Lucky-Rabbit, a first cousin of the world famous Mickey Mouse, was reached by this reporter today at his temporary burrow under the Disney Magic Hat Building.
LL: Mister Lucky-Rabbit, do you mind if I call you Oswald?
OL-R: No, not at all. That is my name.
LL: It must be very strange to be free after all these years? What was captivity like?
OL-R: It was not good Larry. For the last 50 years they had me locked in a dark, airless, vault. I was being guarded by out of work Universal Monsters. The Invisible Man was the worst. He has a real inferiority complex. Thinks he`s always being overlooked. Talk about your Geneva Convention violations.
Give the whole thing a read. Pretty amusing. Also, we have a look at the animation blog known as “Jim Hill Media” and what they have to say on the matter:
Yep. This story is true. You can read about all the particulars here.
But what I find fascinating is what isn't turning up in any of the official press accounts about the Al Michaels / Oswald the Lucky Rabbit trade. To be specific, how Bob Iger initially got interested in reacquiring this character. More importantly, what Bob plans to do with Oswald now that Disney's got him back.
That’s what I’d like to know. Why DID Iger buy Oswald back?
The story that I've heard from a number of Disney insiders is that it was actually an article that ran on Jerry Beck & Amid Amidi's excellent Cartoon Brew website back in January of 2005 that reportedly put Oswald the Lucky Rabbit on Iger's radar. You see, Jerry & Amid had just done a story about how Oswald merchandise was (for some inexplicable reason) suddenly selling like hotcakes in Japan. And Bob -- while doing his standard every morning routine of trolling-around-the-Internet-while-strolling-on-his-treadmill -- allegedly just filed this factoid away.
Japan, huh? Doesn’t surprise me. “Felix the Cat” is so much more popular in Japan than in the U.S., they made bubble gum and trading cards for him. They even made a “Baby Felix” cartoon not too long ago just to repackage the franchise and make them cuter. Wonder how well that went. Considering the popularity of that character, it doesn’t surprise me that another inkblot animation child would be popular in Japan as well. But there’s more to the story:
Later that same morning, once he actually got into work, Iger supposedly began making inquiries about Oswald. As he tried to find out A) Who now really held the rights to this classic Disney cartoon character and B) what the licensing rights to the lucky rabbit might actually be worth in today's marketplace. Bob's staffers eventually got back to their boss with all the necessary info (I.E. That Universal still held the rights to Oswald. More importantly, that there was some seriously unrealized marketing potential in this classic Disney cartoon character). And then Iger just tucked that info away in his pocket ... and waited.
Could Iger be having a nostalgia attack as well as realizing that the company might see some fortune? Only time will tell.
The great news for me this week is that Oswald the Not-So-Lucky Rabbit has been released after 78 years of imprisonment. Mister Lucky-Rabbit, a first cousin of the world famous Mickey Mouse, was reached by this reporter today at his temporary burrow under the Disney Magic Hat Building.
LL: Mister Lucky-Rabbit, do you mind if I call you Oswald?
OL-R: No, not at all. That is my name.
LL: It must be very strange to be free after all these years? What was captivity like?
OL-R: It was not good Larry. For the last 50 years they had me locked in a dark, airless, vault. I was being guarded by out of work Universal Monsters. The Invisible Man was the worst. He has a real inferiority complex. Thinks he`s always being overlooked. Talk about your Geneva Convention violations.
Give the whole thing a read. Pretty amusing. Also, we have a look at the animation blog known as “Jim Hill Media” and what they have to say on the matter:
Yep. This story is true. You can read about all the particulars here.
But what I find fascinating is what isn't turning up in any of the official press accounts about the Al Michaels / Oswald the Lucky Rabbit trade. To be specific, how Bob Iger initially got interested in reacquiring this character. More importantly, what Bob plans to do with Oswald now that Disney's got him back.
That’s what I’d like to know. Why DID Iger buy Oswald back?
The story that I've heard from a number of Disney insiders is that it was actually an article that ran on Jerry Beck & Amid Amidi's excellent Cartoon Brew website back in January of 2005 that reportedly put Oswald the Lucky Rabbit on Iger's radar. You see, Jerry & Amid had just done a story about how Oswald merchandise was (for some inexplicable reason) suddenly selling like hotcakes in Japan. And Bob -- while doing his standard every morning routine of trolling-around-the-Internet-while-strolling-on-his-treadmill -- allegedly just filed this factoid away.
Japan, huh? Doesn’t surprise me. “Felix the Cat” is so much more popular in Japan than in the U.S., they made bubble gum and trading cards for him. They even made a “Baby Felix” cartoon not too long ago just to repackage the franchise and make them cuter. Wonder how well that went. Considering the popularity of that character, it doesn’t surprise me that another inkblot animation child would be popular in Japan as well. But there’s more to the story:
Later that same morning, once he actually got into work, Iger supposedly began making inquiries about Oswald. As he tried to find out A) Who now really held the rights to this classic Disney cartoon character and B) what the licensing rights to the lucky rabbit might actually be worth in today's marketplace. Bob's staffers eventually got back to their boss with all the necessary info (I.E. That Universal still held the rights to Oswald. More importantly, that there was some seriously unrealized marketing potential in this classic Disney cartoon character). And then Iger just tucked that info away in his pocket ... and waited.
Could Iger be having a nostalgia attack as well as realizing that the company might see some fortune? Only time will tell.
posted by Jaimetud at 3:42 PM
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