Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Resurfaces

I heard a feature on NPR's All Things Considered this evening about the new Wii game "Epic Mickey". In the story it was mentioned that Oswald the Lucky Rabbit would make his first appearance since 1928 as a character in the game. I wasn't aware, but Oswald was Walt Disney's first main character. He apparently lost the rights to the character in a contract dispute with his distribution company. Thus the birth of Mickey Mouse.

Can you imagine if Mickey had not been created and we'd have seen Oswald in Steamboat Willie instead? Here's Oswald in a 1927 short:

From the NPR Story:

Among the forgotten characters Mickey encounters on his odyssey is "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit." Warren Spector, the creative director behind Epic Mickey, told NPR's Guy Raz that Oswald was Walt Disney's first big star but hasn't been seen in one of the company's productions since 1928.

Disney lost the rights to him in the late 1920s, only regaining them in 2006. This is the first time the company has used him since then. Oswald plays something of the foil to Mickey's character as the mouse tries to escape consignment to Disney's Wasteland.

Here's a 1928 feature of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit: