The Haunted House was released on December 2, 1929. It is notable for being Mickey's first encounter with the undead.
Plot[]
The short begins at night time. Mickey is seen caught up in a storm with an umbrella serving as his only protection from the rain. Mickey is naturally seeking a refuge for himself. He soon discovers an apparently deserted house and proceeds to enter it. The door suddenly shuts behind him and seems to be locked. Mickey is somewhat unnerved and his encounters with bats and large spiders only increase his growing fear. At this point, Mickey finds out that the house is indeed inhabited ... by ghosts in skeleton form. Mickey has entered a haunted house. The figure of the Grim Reaper orders him to play music to entertain them. Mickey is surprised but clearly too scared to argue with it. Skeletons are seen dancing to Mickey's tune. At some point, Mickey attempts to escape but any room he attempts to enter contains more skeletons. The finale has a terrified Mickey jumping through a window to escape. When he tries to hide in an outhouse and finds it contains yet another skeleton, he runs off into the distance as the film irises out.
Notes[]
This short borrows the skeletons and some of the dancing animation of The Skeleton Dance, which was released earlier in the year.
The short appears as a transition level in Epic Mickey, linking areas within the Lonesome Manor stage.
The original opening in its initial theatrical release involved the title of the short's letters flying right off of the screen after the original Celebrity title card faded out to pitch black. It was briefly seen on the reissue print of this short, as shown in its VHS/laserdisc release on Walt Disney Cartoon Classics: Scary Tales.
