A Mouse Divided: How Ub Iwerks Became Forgotten, and Walt Disney Became Uncle Walt

Almost everything you know about Mickey Mouse is wrong: he wasn’t Disney’s first star; Steamboat Willie wasn’t his first movie; Mickey wasn’t a nice guy—and Walt Disney didn’t invent him.

In 1928, two very different best friends invented Mickey Mouse. And the success tore them apart. Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks’s friendship is a story of betrayal, love, war, money, power, tragedy, intrigue, humor, despair, and hope. You’ll love them both—when you don’t want to drop anvils on their heads. Disco...