Today In Disney History ~ May 15th
Reruns of the original Mickey Mouse Club had aired on The Disney Channel since its 1983 launch. While the show was popular with younger audiences, Disney Channel executives felt that it had become dated over the years, particularly as it was in black-and-white. Their answer was to create a brand-new version of the Club, one geared toward contemporary audiences. Notably, the all-new “club-members” would wear high-school like Mouseketeer jackets without the iconic Mickey Mouse ears. This show was called The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (also known as “MMC” to fans).
This version of the series is notable for featuring a number of cast members who went on to international success in music and acting, including Tony Lucca, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, Ryan Gosling, JC Chasez, Nikki DeLoach and Keri Russell.
This was the first version of the club to have any studio audience, a fairly small group.
Former Mouseketeer Don Grady guest starred on an episode during the show’s first season. Grady, along with fellow Mouseketeers Annette Funicello, Bobby Burgess, Tommy Cole, Sharon Baird, and Sherry Alberoni were reunited on the 100th episode, during the show’s third season. Funicello would later appear on the show again, in an interview with the Mouseketeer Lindsey Alley.
The show was known for its sketch comedy. Some of the sketches played off well-known movies, musicals and even cartoons, as well as holiday-related skits. During the final season, some of the skits showed everyday occurrences experienced by teens, often teaching viewers a lesson on how to handle real-life situations.
A unique feature to the show was the Mouseketeers performing concerts on certain days (which were usually taped the day before or in the summer, when the kids had more time). During the final season, the concerts were replaced primarily by live performances that featured singing and dancing in front of the audience.
TMSM Today in Graphic by Sherry Rinaldi DeHart; Wiki
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
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