El Árbol Navideño de Pluto

When the episode begins, Mickey and Pluto are out in the woods chopping down a tree for Christmas. What they don't realize, however, is that this was Chip 'n Dale's home....and the pair stow away in the car in order to stay with their purloined home. Soon Pluto discovers the pair and spends most of the show chasing them about...with the chipmunks consistently getting the upper hand on him.

This is a cute and funny cartoon. And, like so many of the Mickey cartoons of the 1950s, Mickey is barely in the thing and it's really more a Pluto short. Well worth your time...and a Christmas favorite.

Just went on YouTube and rediscovered this classic cartoon from Walt Disney starring Mickey Mouse, Pluto, and Chip 'n' Dale that I first saw on "The Wonderful World of Disney" on December 25, 1977 when the episode was the all-animated "From All of Us to All of You". In this one, Mickey and his dog live in a cabin near the tree that the chipmunks reside in. C 'n' D have some mischief with the yellow dog before master Mickey chops their tree down. Since the mouse is oblivious to the little rodents, Pluto risks trouble in pursuing them...Directed by usual Donald Duck helmer Jack Hannah, Pluto's Christmas Tree shows nice timing in many visual gags especially of the chase variety though they do pale somewhat compared to the kinds of pacing that abound in the Warner Bros. and M-G-M cartoons of this period. Still, it's enjoyable enough and well worth seeing for Walt Disney enthusiasts of all kinds.

A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon.

PLUTO'S CHRISTMAS TREE arrives in Mickey's living room with Chip 'n' Dale still living in it...

This enjoyable little Holiday film matches the frustrated Pup against the cunning Chipmunks, with all the props & paraphernalia of Christmas Eve adding extra interest. Mickey has only a supporting role; Goofy, Donald & Minnie have a quick cameo at the end of the cartoon as carolers singing `Deck The Halls.'

Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by pictures & drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew comic figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a blizzard of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work will always pay off.

Pluto's Christmas Tree (1952)

**** (out of 4)

One of the all-time great animated shorts has Mickey cutting down a Christmas tree for Pluto and bringing it back into the house. This is where the fun is supposed to begin but for Pluto it's a nightmare as Chip and Dale are in the tree and causing all sorts of havoc. PLUTO'S Christmas TREE is a classic short that gets better each time you watch it. It's been years since I had last seen it but I was still amazed at how fast-paced and fun the thing was. I think there are several highlights in the movie but one has to be the scene where Pluto knows that the chipmunks are in the tree and we see him jumping in there to find them but of course it destroys the tree. Another highlight is a scene where the chipmunks are inside the tree messing with the ornaments and one gets attached to one and we see him going all over the tree as Pluto frantically watches trying to get Mickey's attention. Of course, some other classic characters show up at a cameo towards the end capping off a perfect short to show around the holidays.

Now, I admitted in my 'Pueblo Pluto' entry that I'm not a huge fan of Pluto (or Chip and Dale for that matter), but this animated short is a classic. The visuals are just great, like when Chip and Dale first notice their home has been transformed into a beautiful Christmas tree. Pluto loses his sanity for a moment and chases these chipmunks all over the place, destroying everything. It's just like a classic `cat and mouse' cartoon. Mickey also fits in nicely with a supporting role, and it's also interesting to see him wearing something other than his trademark red shorts and yellow shoes.

Finally to make this cartoon even more memorable, lovable Disney characters, Minnie, Goofy, and Donald make a cameo and sing 'Deck the Halls,' only to be joined by Pluto's ear-screeching rendition. If I were a rich guy, I'd love to get the original animation cel of the final scene of what Chip and Dale do to Pluto. It's just a classic!

My IMDb Rating: 9/10