The Silly Symphonies debuted in May of 1929 with The Skeleton Dance, a film inspired by Saint-Saens’s Danse Macabre.

Disney was a master of technological and cultural manipulation, taking themes, characters and stores from Europe and recreating them in animated form. The popular European folk and fairy tales, used in only some of the Mickey Mouse shorts, were in most of the Silly Symphonies.

The shorts artistically sophisticated format gave animators the opportunity to be liberally creative. Donald Duck appeared for the first time in a Silly Symphony, The Wise Little Hen, 1934. Flowers and Trees, 1932, the 29th Symphony considered to be Disney’s botanical love story, was the first cartoon made in three-toned Technicolor and earned Walt an Oscar -- the first Academy Award ever given to a cartoon.

At one time or another every debuting or established Disney animator worked on the Sillies. In these innovative shorts we can find the artistic birth of many ideas that were later used in the great Disney features.

Collectors Note:
Inspired and original, these rare drawings can be acquired to build a Silly Symphony collection. Watch the Silly Symphonies DVD and select your favorite shorts. Our consultants can work with you to find the best images available.