Mickey Mouse 100th Anniversary

What this countdown tracks

The 100th anniversary of Mickey Mouse — Saturday 18 November 2028 — counted from the premiere of *Steamboat Willie* at the Colony Theatre on Broadway in New York City on 18 November 1928. The Walt Disney Company recognises that date as Mickey's official birthday. The centennial is the first round-number Mickey anniversary to occur after *Steamboat Willie* and the original 1928 Mickey design entered the United States public domain on 1 January 2024.

About the anniversary

*Steamboat Willie* was the first Mickey Mouse cartoon released with synchronised sound, produced by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at the Disney Brothers Studio on Hyperion Avenue in Los Angeles. It was not the first sound cartoon — that distinction belongs to *Dinner Time* — but its commercial success and inventive sound-on-film synchronisation made it the watershed work of the early sound-cartoon era. By the early 1930s Mickey was a global icon, anchoring the Disney studio's expansion through *Plane Crazy*, *The Karnival Kid* (Mickey's first speaking role), the Silly Symphonies, *Snow White*, the parks, and the entire post-war IP empire built atop his ears.

The legal twist for the centennial is the staggered public-domain status. The *Steamboat Willie* version of Mickey is now public domain in the US. Later Mickeys — gloved, red-shorted, modern-cheery, sorcerer-apprentice — remain copyrighted. Disney retains a separate trademark registration on Mickey-as-brand. The 2024–2028 window has produced a flood of *Steamboat Willie* horror films, indie remixes, NFTs and merchandise — but nothing that uses the modern Mickey design without licence.

Significance

• First major IP centennial under modern copyright after a high-profile public-domain expiration.
• Disney is expected to mount a yearlong global celebration: park overlays, a feature film, retrospectives at Lincoln Center and the BFI, and a US Postal Service commemorative stamp.
• The legal boundary between expired-copyright Mickey and registered-trademark Mickey will be tested by aggressive third-party uses during the anniversary window.

Past anniversaries

• 90th (2018) — *Get a Horse!* short, D23 retrospectives, Mickey: The True Original Exhibition in NYC.
• 75th (2003) — Mickey Avenue at Walt Disney Studios Park, French postal stamp series.
• 50th (1978) — first character to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

How to follow

The Walt Disney Company press room (thewaltdisneycompany.com), D23 (the official Disney fan club), the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco, and the Walt Disney Archives at Burbank publish anniversary programming. Expect simultaneous events at Disneyland Anaheim, Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland and Shanghai Disney Resort.

Related countdowns

Pair Mickey's centennial with the 100th Academy Awards on ABC, the Apple Computer 50th anniversary and the LA28 Olympics opening ceremony for the 2026–2028 American cultural-centennial cluster.

FAQ

When is Mickey Mouse's 100th anniversary? 18 November 2028. Is Mickey in the public domain? The *Steamboat Willie* version is, since 1 January 2024; later Mickeys remain copyrighted. Does Disney still own Mickey? Yes — Disney holds active trademarks, which do not expire as long as they are used in commerce. Where did Steamboat Willie premiere? The Colony Theatre, Broadway, New York, 18 November 1928.