Oswald the Lucky Rabbit: The Search for the Lost Disney Cartoons

by David Bossert, J.B. Kaufman (Introduction), David Gerstein (Contribution by)

Overview

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit was created in 1927 by Walt Disney and his team through twenty-six cartoon shorts. Not without fits and starts, the series and its impish title character were an instant hit with audiences. At the end of that initial run, Walt lost the contract to Oswald, which prompted the creation of Mickey Mouse. Over the years, Oswald became a footnote in the Disney story . . . until 2006, when The Walt Disney Company recovered rights to Walt's twenty-six shorts. Behind-the-scenes, a complex and labor-intensive search developed for the physical film footage of some Oswald cartoons deemed "lost to time." For anyone interested in Disney origins, fascinated by early cinema, or entertained by a feisty little rabbit, this engaging and accessible volume delivers an in-depth look at Walt's first major animated success and the journey to reclaim the lost Disney films.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781484780374
Publisher:	Disney Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/29/2017
Series:	Disney Editions Deluxe Series
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 12.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: David A. Bossert is an award-winning artist, filmmaker, and author. He is a thirty-two-year veteran of The Walt Disney Company and is an independent producer and creative director. Dave is considered an authority and expert on Disney animation and history. He coauthored Disney Animated, which was named iPad App of 2013 by Apple and won a prestigious British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Award. He is also the author of Remembering Roy E. Disney: Memories and Photos of a Storied Life; An Animator’s Gallery: Eric Goldberg Draws the Disney Characters; and Dalí and Disney: Destino—The Story, Artwork, and Friendship Behind the Legendary Film; and The Art of Tennessee Loveless: The Mickey Mouse TEN x TEN x TEN Contemporary Pop Art Series. You can connect with Dave on social media and/or at: www.davidbossert.com.

ABOUT THE ARCHIVAL EDITOR: David Gerstein is a comic book writer/editor and animation historian specializing in the Disney Standard Characters. His published work includes The Floyd Gottfredson Library of Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse series, Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck: The Don Rosa Library series, IDW Publishing’s Disney Timeless Tales series, and Mickey and the Gang: Classic Stories in Verse. Gerstein has also been a contributing research historian on the deluxe Walt Disney Treasures home video series, working on such titles as More Silly Symphonies, The Chronological Donald Vol. 4, and The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Editorial Reviews

PRAISE FOR AN ANIMATOR’S GALLERY: ERIC GOLDBERG DRAWS THE DISNEY CHARACTERS

"Disney Editions is no stranger to gorgeous art books, and Eric Goldberg is no stranger to gorgeous art. . . . The deceptively simply line work betrays a stunning talent, and all of the characters–from Oswald the Lucky Rabbit to Baymax and everyone in between–are masterpieces. . . . Many of the pieces 'link together' as characters and settings reach beyond the confines of the frames—demonstrating that imagination (and Goldberg's talent) cannot be contained. If you’re a fan of Disney animation, this is definitely one you’ll want in your collection."
—Geek Dad

PRAISE FOR DALI AND DISNEY: DESTINO—THE STORY, ARTWORK, AND FRIENDSHIP BEHIND THE LEGENDARY FILM

"Dave Bossert gives us an insider’s look at the production of a paramount achievement in animation and art. We learn about the culture of Disney studios through the years and the remarkable meeting of Disney and Dali which comes to feel destined. Further we get original insights into the character of Dali—at once, agreeable, hard-working, as well as eccentric.”
—Hank Hine, Executive Director, The Dali in St. Petersburg, Florida

PRAISE FOR DALI AND DISNEY: DESTINO—THE STORY, ARTWORK, AND FRIENDSHIP BEHIND THE LEGENDARY FILM

"In 1946, Salvador Dalí and Walt Disney began collaborating on a short film. It took nearly sixty years for that film to be completed for various reasons . . . [Dali and Disney: Destino] tells the story of how Dalí and Disney became friends first, and then collaborators . . . Destino ended up being a very short film, and it’s a shame we don’t know what the original vision would have looked like, but this book is an inside peek at how it all came to be."—Geek Dad

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
". . . vitally important historical perspective . . ."—Brian Sibley, writer, broadcaster, and Disney scholar

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"A thoroughly entertaining history of Disney’s forgotten cartoon star . . . Important new research—a vital read for those who think they already know the whole Disney studio story. Bravo!"—Jerry Beck, animation historian

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"An absolute joy, a pleasure to peruse, and the ultimate record . . ."—Cartoon Research

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"Never before has so much unique Oswald the Lucky Rabbit information been collected in one publication and shared with the general public. . . . I highly recommend it both to film history scholars and casual animation fans alike."—Tommy Jose Stathes, early animation historian

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"Oswald would have been a rabbit’s footnote in history if those early, quirky cartoons weren’t found. Enter Oswald the Lucky Rabbit: The Search for the Lost Disney Cartoons."—New York Post

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"The book colors in the lines and fills in details to present a fuller picture and a deeper understanding of this famous (and lucky) rabbit. . . . a must for Disney fans."—Chuck Mirarchi, Disney writer and historian

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"This book finally tells his story as it should be told."—Leonard Maltin, film critic and historian

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"This book is a page-tuner and a ‘must have’ for Disney historians and animation enthusiasts alike."—Didier Ghez, Disney author and historian

PRAISE FOR OSWALD THE LUCKY RABBIT
"We all owe Dave Bossert a tremendous debt for his determined efforts to find and restore the missing films from Oswald’s first year. Now, in this richly illustrated volume, Dave shares the details of those films. . . ."—J. B. Kaufman, film historian and author

From the Publisher