From children to adults, it is hard to find anyone who is not in love with the ever-lovable Minnie Mouse. With her bubbly and cheerful personality and the most adorable style, she is many’s favorite Disney character. If you are among those who can’t get enough of Minnie Mouse, I bet you would like to know some more about her.
Created by Walt Disney, Minnie Mouse is a cartoon character who first appeared in 1928. She is the better half of Mickey Mouse, another creation of the same person. She is an unofficial Disney princess who is loved by all even after more than 90 years after her birth.
But these are just some of the facts that you may or may not be aware of. There are many other interesting and shocking facts that you might not know about Minnie Mouse. If you are curious to know, don’t worry as I will share 25 fun and surprising Minnie mouse facts in this article.
History of Minnie Mouse
We all know and love the animated mouse character known as Minnie Mouse. She was created in the hands of Walt Disney. Her first appearance dates back to November 18, 1928, in the legendary short “Steam Boat Willie” and she remains one of the most popular animated characters of all time. From her character to her appearance, she is the most adorable and sweet cartoon character.
Minnie Mouse is famously known as the longtime girlfriend of another beloved character, Mickey Mouse. They were both created on the same day, on November 18, 1928. They were brought to life in the hands of Walt Disney and remain the two of the most beloved characters of all time.
Minnie Mouse is one of the Fab Five of classic Disney characters alongside Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto. She loves eating cheese, cake, and chocolate. As for her music tastes, her all-time favorite genre is jazz music.
25 Surprising Minnie Mouse Facts
Despite being one of the most beloved and sweetest of animated characters of all time, not many people know a whole lot about her. There are many Minnie Mouse facts that people are shocked to find out for the first time.
I have listed 25 of those interesting and surprising facts about Minnie Mouse. You are sure to learn all about Minnie Mouse once you are done reading them.
1. “Minnie” Is a Nickname for “Minerva”
Minnie might be the name we all know and her by, but it is an abbreviation of her full name, “Minerva”. We already love her by her simple, sweet, and cute name Minnie. But I have to say her full name has a unique ring to it. Her full name is not all that famous among the general public. Only the true fans would know her full name.
Minnie’s full name first appeared in a comic strip known as “The Gleam”. She was referred to as Minerva Mouse in the comic. It was published a long time back from January to May in 1942.
2. The Best Friends Minnie Has By Her Side
Minnie is best friends with the lovely Disney character, Daisy Duck. Minnie has other friends as well. Other notable friends of hers are named Clarabelle Cow and Honor the Hippo.
In recent cartoons, Minnie is seen often alongside Daisy Duck. They spend a lot of time together but are mostly seen shopping together. However, in the classic shorts, they have never interacted with each other.
3. Minnie Comes From a Farming Family
Minnie comes from a family of farmers. Many of her family members were introduced in a comic strip. The strip is named “Mr. Slicker and the Egg Robber” and came out in 1930. A mouse named Marcus Mouse is introduced to be Minnie’s father. But her mother wasn’t introduced with any name.
Other family members such as her grandparents and uncle were introduced as well. The grandparents are known as Marvel and Matilda Mouse and the uncle is named Milton.
4. Minnie and Mickey Are Happily Married in Real Life
If you love how sweet and perfect Mickey and Minnie look together, you should be delighted to know that they are married to each other. Walt Disney, the creator himself states in an interview for “Film Pictorial” that they are married in private life.
So when they are in a movie, they need to pretend they are simply sweethearts for the sake of the story. When in fact, they are happily married in real life.
5. Throughout the years, 7 People Have Voiced as Minnie Mouse
Only 7 people have had the luck to voice Minnie Mouse. Many would think in her long 93 years of animated life more people would have the chance to voice her. Mickey Mouse has had as many as 14 different voice actors. The number is rather big compared to Minnie Mouse.
6. Minnie Mouse’s Debut
Minnie Mouse started her career as an animated character back on November 18, 1928. With the legendary short “Steam Boat Willie”, her official debut on the big screen was alongside Mickey Mouse.
The short is the first Disney movie that had synchronized sound and was ahead of its time. It was the first cartoon that had a soundtrack that was completely produced beforehand.
7. Minnie Wasn’t Always Wearing a Bow
Now it might sound a bit strange but Minnie wasn’t always wearing her trademark bow. In the original design, she was in dresses that were famous in the flapper era. So she wore a cute pillbox hat that had a white daisy coming out from the top.
In 1940, both Mickey and Minnie got redesigned. After the makeover, Minnie started wearing her signature bow and bows on her shoes that we are all too familiar with.
8. Minnie Didn’t Only Wear Pink and Red
It might come as a shock but Minnie didn’t wear red and pink in her earlier days. Her first appearance in color was in 1935’s “On Ice” and in the cartoon, we can see her wearing a skirt in yellow with white polka dots over it.
You can also see her in many other colors such as blue, green, and black. She didn’t wear a shirt in the earlier days just like her sweetheart Mickey.
9. Minnie Was Originally a Flapper Girl
Minnie Mouse was a “Flapper girl” as she rocked the style. In her earlier days, you can see her in a short but cute flapper girl dress. The dress showed off her knickers. The look was one of a kind. In this iconic look, Minnie wore some oversized pumps and black stockings with her dress.
10. Minnie Made an Appearance at New York Fashion Week
Minnie Mouse graced the New York Fashion Week in 2017. Alongside many famous friends, she visited many of the iconic sites and was an icon herself. On her 90th birthday, she looked as stylish as ever and was named the “trendsetter” and one of the most famous style icons of all time.
11. Minnie Had Taken a Hiatus for 12 Years
It may sound absurd but Minnie was off-screen for as long as 12 years. From 1974 to 1986, she was not seen speaking on film and had no appearance during this time.
But she did make a come with “Mickey’s Christmas Carol” and has made countless appearances over the years. This is all thanks to Russi Taylor who took over Minnie’s role back in 1987.
12. Minnie Used to Date Mortimer
You may know Minnie as the lifelong partner of Mickey Mouse. While that is true and her love is always for one and only Mickey, Mortimer is her ex-boyfriend.
Mortimer does not seem like the nicest person and is Mickey’s arch enemy. He keeps trying to go back to dating Minnie. But it’s for sure her love only belongs to Mickey now.
13. Minnie Has a Sundae Named After Her
The famous cartoon character even has a sundae named after her. Certainly tells us how loved she is to have a sundae inspired by her.
If you would love a taste, you can visit Clarabelle’s Yogurt Shop on your next visit to Disneyland in California. The sundae looks adorable at a glance and tastes fantastic.
14. Minnie Loves Meeting Her Fans
Minnie is an extremely sociable mouse who loves meeting up with people. It’s not uncommon to see her giving out signs and taking pictures with her fans in Disney theme parks.
Minnie will have meet and greets throughout the day. She enjoys her time with her fans and would love it if you visit her.
15. Minnie Is an Original yet Unofficial Disney Princess
You are most probably aware of Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Rapunzel, and others as Disney princesses. But not many consider Minnie as one. But in fact, she is the original Disney princess.
In many films such as “Kingdom Hearts” or “Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers”, Minnie appears as a princess. Moreover, we can agree with Mickey Mouse when he said “Gosh Minnie, you’ve always been a Princess to me!”
16. Pluto Was Originally Minnie’s Pet
Can you believe there was a day when Mickey wasn’t with his best friend Pluto? In the 1930s short “The Chain Gang” Pluto appeared first as a bloodhound who was on a mission to track down Mickey.
Later, she appeared as Minnie’s pet Rover in “The Picnic”. So he was a pet of Minnie before going over to Mickey.
17. Minnie Has Three Pets
With a dog named “Fifi”, a mouse named “Sweetie” and an adorable cat named “Figaro”, Minnie has three pets in total. She also owned Pluto before he went away with Mickey. The cat named Figaro is the same one that appeared in Pinocchio. Minnie is a huge pet lover.
18. Minnie Mouse’s Adorable Nieces
Minnie has two adorable nieces. They are named Millie and Melody Mouse. Sweet, but a bit of trouble makers just like their aunt, they are a delight to see.
19. Minnie Mouse Has Her Own Star in Hollywood
After a legendary career of over 90 years, has received her official star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. On January 22, 2018, the legend finally joined the honor after Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck.
20. Minnie Has Many Other Names
In her long career, she can be seen portraying many roles. So many times you will see her named Maestro Minnie or even as Princess Minnie. Her newest name to add to the list is Captain Minnie as she is the captain of Disney’s new cruise ship the Wish setting sail in 2022!
21. Minnie’s Long-Acting Career
It has been 93 years since Minnie’s debut and she has certainly acted in several cartoon series. Her appearance in cartoon shorts can be counted to over 68+. Certainly seems like a long career.
22. A Romantic and Sweet Fact about Mickey and Minnie’s Voice Actors
If you love the lovey-dovey and sweetest relationship between Mickey and Minnie, you would love this fact. The voice behind Minnie, Russi Taylor was the wife of the one who voiced Mickey, Wayne Allwine.
23. Minnie and Mickey Have their Birthdays on the Same Day
Mickey and Minnie were both born as they appeared alongside each other in the legendary short “Steamboat Willie”. On November 28th, 1928 both of them celebrated their birthdays.
24. Minnie Mouse Inspired the National Polka Dot Day
Inspired by Minnie’s signature polka dot dress, January 22nd was officially declared as the National Polka Dot day.
It’s the perfect day to show your love for the adorable character and rock on some polka dots. Celebrate the day as you channel the Minnie Mouse in your heart and #RockTheDots.
25. Minnie’s Original Voice Actor was Walt Disney Himself
Walt Disney took on the voice of both Mickey and Minnie when they first came out. This was more of a necessary action as he had yet to come across Marjorie Ralston and then Marcellite Garner.
They took over the roles for Mickey and Minnie after roughly a year of Walt Disney doing their voice acting himself.
Conclusion
In her long career of over 93 years, Minnie Mouse has brought smiles to many people’s faces. The bubbly and adorable princess of Disney is bound to be your favorite at some point in life. If you love her as much I do, I hope reading the 25 surprising Minnie Mouse facts I compiled was interesting and enjoyable for you. Thank you for reading.
