Mickey Mouse turns 80 years old today but he looks as good as always despite the fact that he has been wearing the same outfit for 8 decades now. One of USA’s most enduring entertainment figures appeared for the first time on November 18, 1928 in a cartoon called “Steamboat Willie.” It was the first animated talking cartoon, created by Walt Disney, who provided the squeaky voice himself. It was considered a technological marvel, and its success allowed Mickey to be joined shortly by the spluttering, irascible Donald Duck.

Sadly, the Disney Corporation are not making a big deal of Mickey’s birthday, perhaps because they are worried that mentioning his great age will damage his reputation among his youngest fans.

Mickey Mouse was created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks as well. Walt Disney got the inspiration for Mickey Mouse from his old pet mouse he used to have on his farm. In 1925, Hugh Harman drew some sketches of mice around a photograph of Walt Disney. These inspired Ub Iwerks to create a new mouse character for Disney.

This is what Disney had to say about the famous little fellow: "We felt that the public, and especially the children, like animals that are cute and little. I think we are rather indebted to Charlie Chaplin for the idea. We wanted something appealing, and we thought of a tiny bit of a mouse that would have something of the wistfulness of Chaplin — a little fellow trying to do the best he could. When people laugh at Mickey Mouse, it's because he's so human; and that is the secret of his popularity. I only hope that we don't lose sight of one thing — that it was all started by a mouse.”

On November 18, 1978, in honor of his 50th anniversary, he became the first cartoon character to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.