Why mickey wears gloves

Watch the video above to learn more about the origins of those cartoon gloves. Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment: to empower through understanding.

Financial contributions from our readers are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive work and help us keep our journalism free for all. Please consider making a contribution to Vox today to help us keep our work free for all. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. By choosing I Accept , you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies.

Why cartoon characters wear gloves. Reddit Pocket Flipboard Email. Next Up In Video. Delivered Fridays. Thanks for signing up! The more in-depth answer looks at the history of vaudeville, how early animation was built around vaudeville traditions, and in particular the figure of the minstrel. Essentially it means that, historically speaking, Mickey was developed as part of a tradition of racist parody.

What the film also points out is that - conversely - cartoon birds don't tend to wear gloves nor do some human characters, which isn't so surprising , but we don't yet have an explanation for that. A bird wearing gloves?

That would be weird. But a cow in gloves? Totally normal. Want up-to-the-minute entertainment and tech news? In addition to a knack for getting into trouble, you may have noticed that Walt Disney's earliest cartoon characters all share an affection for gloves. What's up with that? What are animals doing wearing gloves? As animation historian and professor at NYU John Canemaker explained to Vox , the reason some of our favorite cartoon characters wear gloves has nothing to do with fashion, and everything to do with early animation techniques.

A laborious process, even by today's standards, Canemaker said that animators came up with hacks to make their jobs easier and faster. This also meant simplifying features, such as hands, feet, and even Felix the Cat's snout, to speed up the animation process.