Ubbe Eert Iwerks

So I'm taking this class about Disney (awesome, right?) and I just want to take a minute to give credit where credit is due to a man named Ubbe Eert Iwerks, commonly known as Ub, for creating Mickey Mouse.

Now I know you're probably thinking a couple of things. The first is, "What kind of name is Ubbe?" Fret not, I have the exact same question. I mean, Ubbe Eert? It's a great name, but not one that I would wish upon any child. His dad was called Eert Ubbe Iwerks, if that helps. Personally, I don't think it does.

The second thing you are thinking is probably, "I've never heard of this 'Ub' character, I'm pretty sure Walt Disney is the one who invented Mickey Mouse," and you're not entirely wrong. See, Walt and Ub were friends, and they worked together closely for years. Together they created Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, who was an instant success. (You can watch this video if you are so inclined. It was homework for Disney class, so shoutout to those who have made that class possible for providing me with the inspiration for this post.) Long story short, Oswald was essentially stolen from our pals Walt and Ub, so they left the company with the rights to their rabbit friend, and decided to create their own character.

A striking resemblance to Mickey Mouse, no?

Oswald was not a success without Walt and Ub. Poor Oswald, what did he ever do to deserve getting lost in the business of the animation world? (Let's take a moment to appreciate that Disney finally bought back the rights to Oswald, within the last 15 years. Welcome home, buddy.)

There is quite a bit of debate of who originally created Mickey Mouse, and it was certainly a collaboration of sorts, but I personally choose to give the credit to Ub. I'm pretty sure he's at least the one who originally animated Mickey, even if they worked together to create him. Regardless, we can all agree that Ub deserves at least some credit, right? I mean everyone knows Walt Disney's name, but no one goes around talking about good ol' Ub Iwerks. 

The thing is, back in the early days of Mickey Mouse, Walt was still getting more credit than Ub, and Ub was not happy about this, so he left to start his own animation company, but was unfortunately not very successful. There was just something about Walt and his mouse... 

This has been the rather unfortunate yet fascinating story of Ubbe Eert Iwerks, a creatively named man with a creative talent who never got the credit he deserved. 

We love you Ub, thanks for everything. 

For more about Ub, click here