The Talking Mickey Mouse: Hearing Voices
Did you ever have the Talking Mickey Mouse? From the Winter 1987 Disney News, we find this advertisement for “The Talking Mickey Mouse”, which premiered 17 years before Pal Mickey; it offered a similar experience, minus the in-park interactivity. There were 13 cassettes/interactive stories that were created for Talking Mickey. The cassettes included commands to move Mickey’s mouth, nose and eyes. Also available were three costumes for him: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Sleeping Mickey and Bandleader. Talking Mickey was created by Worlds of Wonder; the same company that brought us Teddy Ruxpin. It debuted in 1986.
Of course he did, He’s the Talking Mickey Mouse from Worlds of Wonder. He talks, he laughs. He sings. He tells wonderful adventure stories. And he moves his mouth when he talks. And blinks his eyes. You can take him anywhere. And because he has a great selection of storybooks and cassettes, he’ll never be at a loss for words.
There were read-a-long books that accompanied the cassettes, as well. Each book was based on a specific country: The Impossible Journey (Africa); The Magic Boomerang (Australia); The Little Lost Elephant (India); The Missing Meatball (Italy); The Littlest Viking (Norway); Goofy’s Last Waltz (Austria); Secret of the Silver Mine (Mexico); A Mystery in Paris (France); A Moose on the Loose (Canada); The City Beneath the Sand (Egypt); Follow that Ghost! (Scotland); The Secret Island (United Kingdom); and The Great Kite Caper (Japan).
You could also purchase a Talking Goofy that worked in concert with Mickey. They were connected by an audio patch cable. Apparently, Goofy could not work without Mickey! (I wonder if that was part of his contract?) You also needed four C batteries.
Image from Children’s Records & More
Did you ever have the Talking Mickey Mouse?
My baby brother had a Teddy Ruxpin – that thing was CREEPTASTIC!
Brings back memories. Thanks for posting this.
I went to WDW a couple weeks ago and brought my Pal Mickey. It still functions in the parks and is pretty entertaining.
Kim Possible in World Showcase was pretty awesome, too.
I still have both Mickey & Goofy, most of the books/tapes and the costumes! Not sure if they work anymore though, I used to play them non-stop.
I have both mickey and goofy but have lost the audio patch cable. Ehere can i find one or is there something else i can use to make,goofy talk?