Walt Disney was commissioned by the US government during World War I and World War II to create propaganda cartoons. Over 90% of Disney's employees worked on producing training and propaganda films. Characters like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck delivered pro-American messages and helped turn public opinion against enemies like Nazi Germany. One famous short film, "Der Fuehrer's Face" from 1943, depicted Donald Duck having a nightmare that he was a Nazi worker. These propaganda cartoons helped boost American morale during the wars.
2. World War I and World War II
“The cartoons are object lessons in the actuality of alienation.
Disney’s cartoon world is a world of impoverished experience,
sadism and violence. That is to say, it our world. “ (Leslie,2001).
In the period of World War I and World War II (1942 and 1945,),
Walt Disney was involved for the creation of propaganda for the
US military and government purposes.
The government looked to Walt Disney more than any other
studio chief as a builder of public morale providing instruction
and training to the sailors and soldiers for Propaganda purposes.
Disney was asked to create animation for a series of pictures
produced by Colonel Frank Capra for the US Army for
persuading to influence more people to get involved in case to
succeed their purpose.
3. 90% of Disney employees
"This was accomplished through the use of animated graphics by
means of expediting the intelligent mobilization of servicemen and
civilians for the cause of the war. “
This is a quotation that should have in mind : More or less 90% of
Disney employees were devoted for the production of training and
propaganda films for the government purposes.
The target that Walt Disney company had was to support every
American soldier to keep fighting against Hitler by projecting
propaganda threw their films and make the nation fearless against
their enemies.
Most of Disney’s characters such as: Donald Duck and Mickey
Mouse weren't just for entertainment, Those characters were for
propaganda purposes and for the education of the Americans about
the enemies they had.
4. Fuehrer’s Face
The animators were hired to make hidden
symbols for military units and equipment. The
Fuehrer’s Face was a short time movie which
Donald Duck was the main character and won an
Oscar in 1942 for best short film.” (Leslie, 2001).
It was released on January 1, 1943 from the
director Jack Kinney as an anti-Nazi propaganda
movie for the American war effort.
5. Lyrics
“When der Fuehrer says, "We is t der master race, "We
HEIL! (honk!) HEIL! (honk!) right in der Fuehrer's face!
Not to love der Fuehrer is a great disgrace, So we HEIL!
(honk!) HEIL! (honk!) right in der Fuehrer's face!
When Herr Goebbels says, "We own der world und
space, "We HEIL! (honk!) HEIL! (honk!) right in Herr
Goebbels' face!
When Herr Goering says, "They'll never bomb dis place
,"We HEIL! [honk!] HEIL! (honk!) right in Herr
Goering's face!”
6. Donald Duck’s nightmare
The previews Lyrics are from the song that was
dropped into the scene when, Donald Duck’s
nightmare finds himself part of the German Nazi
force.
The band plays a song of Mein Kampf in front of him
for a moment of reading, then he goes into his house,
carrying the bass drum, and escorts him to a factory
which he is forced to work, he was forced to work 48-
hour shifts, getting a couple of seconds 'vacation'
(with a backdrop background of the Alp mountains) by
having a salute to the Hitler's portrait every time it
goes by. He shouts loud out of cry "Heil Hitler!" As he
put’s up his right arm in the Nazi salute by wearing a
swastika armband like everybody else in Hitler's
"Nazi Land."
7. Donald Duck suddenly wakes
Donald Duck is hiding some supplements because
there is nothing to eat and and he is hiding to have
secretly a breakfast by the moment that he wakes up
from his bed because is very strictly in such Nazi
Policy. Imagine that the rooster outside his house
greets the day with a hearty crow of "Heil Hitler” trying
to make you obey in the Nazi Forces.
When Donald Duck suddenly wakes up because it
was only a dream because he discovers that it was
just a nightmare , he is actually lying in his bed
wearing his pajamas. His Slogan that follows was :
"Oh boy, am I glad to be a citizen of the United States
of America!”. Then the movie ends with a tomato
splash in Hitler’s face!.
8. The target of Military
This was one of the propaganda examples that
Walt Disney's studios released. Disney’s
characters like Donald, Mickey Mouse and Pluto
became standard figures in the American war
machine against all the America’s enemies.
In December 1941,members of the United States
Government were involved by paying Disney for
creating Propaganda. The target of Military was to
transform the studios material (cartoon films) into
a defensive mechanism that would be used to
help protect their nation against their enemy.
9. Mickey Mouse on the Home
Front.
The United States Secretary Henry Morgenthau
Jr, Secretary share a profit of the money for
industrializing Germany once it had been
conquered. In those years cartoon films were not
only for the children. Most of American
population were going to the movies every week
and they were huge fans of Disney’s characters.
During the war period ( World war I and II )Disney
had the greatest success of their time. Walt
Disney during that time they released comic
books from the Disney’s favorite characters such
as Mickey in the comic book "Mickey Mouse on
the Home Front.
10. Nazi Forces
All of Disney's characters had now been
mobilized, fought the Axis powers (Nazi Forces)
in Disney's "Volunteer Army." for propaganda
purposes to encourage the American soldiers
and the rest from the United State citizens for
keep fighting. Comic books and short Films were
the powerful weapon for confidence.
Their aim was to make the enemy look funny and
ridiculous by parallel giving the pleasure to the
audiences to laugh for a while, by forgetting their
daily routine and exclude their fear Walt Disney
gave America courage.
11. In the 1942-43 Disney
In 1943 The “Education for Death” appeared in
movie theaters. Disney provided some political
aspects and also education for Americans at
home and for soldiers who were on the front too.
The general feeling of this movie was more
serious, and it didn't include characters like
Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse.
However the impressive images that they use to
describe how children in Nazi Germany were
raised how to hate and also participate in the war
effort and how little blonde Hans' purpose in life
was to die on the front line. In the 1942 Disney
was even involved in the Military purposes.
12. “Who's the leader of the club
Walt Disney's artists designed even emblems for
American troop units for tanks, bombers and ships.
Many soldiers and airmen decorated their tanks and
fighters themselves with Mickey’s, Donald’s and
Pluto’s by making with this way Disney’s character’s
as their country emblems.
These symbols became American way of life,
Democracy and Freedom, of everything that was at
stake. A clear example of that was "Mickey Mouse” in
Stanley’s Kubrick’s movie “Full metal jacket” in the
end of the movie when the Marines move out while
they walk they all sing the Mickey Mouse song.
“Who's the leader of the club that's made for you and
me? Mickey Mouse!!”. Disney’s figures became an
Americas idols and Symbols.
13. Americas idols and Symbols.
“Education for Death: The Making of the Nazi” is
an animated short film produced by Walt Disney
and released on January 15, 1943, by the director
Clyde Geronimi and basically animated by Ward
Kimball.
14. First scene of the film
Basically is a story about a German boy named
Hans, who was raised in Nazi Germany, and his
only purpose of birth is to be a German soldier
and to fight and die for his country.
At the first scene of the film is when a German
couple goes to Nazi supreme judge to approve
the name for their son because it has to be
approved first whom they want to name him
Hans into the service of Adolf Hitler. On the
Court’s wall there was a “verboten” name list
which meant that you could not give a name to
your child which was on the list.
15. Education for Death
Finally the name was approved because luckily it
was not appeared on that list. The judge gives
them a copy of the “Mein Kampf “ for their service
to Hitler. In Education for Death (1943),In the
following scene it’s a parody of Sleeping Beauty,
Sleeping beauty is a fat blonde girl who holds a
pint of bear which is symbolize Germany . She is
been trapped from the bad which is Democracy,
and the Knight (Hitler) comes to rescue her.
16. Hitler’s services
The next scene cameraman follows Hans who
sick in his bed. His mother prays for him, knowing
it’s a matter of time before the Nazi authorities
come and take him away from her because he
had to go back in Hitler’s services, in the mean
time a Nazi officer bangs heavily the door and tell
his mother that he has to take Hans away, his
mother refuse and tries to explain to him that he
is sick and needs care.
17. The teacher asks the class
The officer insists and tell hers that the orders he
has are to heal her son quickly and have him
ready to leave, implying if Hans does not get well.
At the end Hans eventually recovers he is ready
to go back to school. At the school the teacher
draws a cartoon on the blackboard of a rabbit
being eaten by a fox, The teacher asks the class
what was the meaning of that drawing and Hans
without hesitating he says : “ Poor Rabbit”.
Teacher is over reacting about his answer and
orders Hans to sit in the corner as a way of
punishment, forcing him to be away from his rest
of his classmates.
18. The education... for death
The teacher still insist and he is seeking for the
right answer. Hans Classmate stands up and
says: “The World belongs to the strong”. Exactly
the teacher says ”weakness has no place in a
soldier" and "the strong shall rule the weak". In
the end, Hans and the rest of the soldiers march
off to war only to fade into rows of graves. Thus
Hans's education is complete. "The education...
for death."
19. Conclusion
From these cartoons Disney manage with these way to
influence of public opinions successfully. The whole idea is
that there are things that are not so innocent at it looks
like. Imagine that the cartoon movies can be a serious
issue because the viewers besides adults were kids. The
adult let’s say can not be easily influenced as a kid. “From
those pictures that you made, have you any opinion as to
whether or not the films can be used effectively to
disseminate propaganda? Disney said yes. And he
observed that a Gallup poll had found that people had
been influenced by the Treasury film to pay their taxes
early.“(Leslie,2001).
Controlling people’s thoughts through images is a very
powerful weapon. There is a big danger when this weapon
is used for a bad purpose. You can use a knife to slice up
your dinner, but with the same knife you can stab someone