Mary's Little Lamb (1935)
“Everywhere that Mary went, the trouble was sure to go.”
Streamed free from the Internet Archive · no signup, no cost — this film is in the public domain.
Synopsis
The nursery rhyme comes to life when Mary's pushy pet lamb tags along to a one-room schoolhouse on talent-show day. The ham of a lamb steals the spotlight and tangles with the strict teacher, escalating into a barnyard chase through the classroom. A gentle, music-driven Cinecolor short anchored by the familiar "Mary Had a Little Lamb" melody.
Cast
About the Director
Ub Iwerks — Ub Iwerks co-created Mickey Mouse and was Disney's first star animator before founding his own studio, which produced the ComiColor series. Presented by P.A. (Pat) Powers; music by Carl Stalling.
Why It’s Free: The Public-Domain Story
Public domain in the United States: Celebrity Productions (Pat Powers) never renewed the copyright after the original term lapsed.
Behind the Scenes
Released theatrically May 1, 1935 as the fourteenth ComiColor Cartoon. Distributed by Celebrity Productions and later reissued for home use by Castle Films; included on the "Cartoons That Time Forgot: Ub Iwerks" DVD.
Did You Know?
- Built around Sarah Josepha Hale's 1830 poem "Mary Had a Little Lamb."
- Shot in two-color Cinecolor, the series' signature warm-toned process.
- Opens on an unusually long held background shot of nearly a minute.
- Reuses a desks-in-perspective layout from an earlier Iwerks short, re-shot here in color.
Reception & Legacy
A minor but pleasant entry, valued today as a clean, music-forward example of Iwerks' fairy-tale-and-rhyme house style.
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