Rare Walt Disney Mickey Mouse: Hand Drawn and Signed–Heads to Auction
At the center of Goldin’s 2026 Winter Hollywood Memorabilia Auction is a Disney artifact that transcends collecting: an original, hand-drawn Mickey Mouse sketch and inscription by Walt Disney himself. Created in 1941, the piece traces Mickey back to his earliest era, when the character was still being shaped directly by his creator.
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That defining piece sits within a larger sale featuring 478 lots spanning the modern pop-culture canon. The catalog includes screen-used and production-made items from Star Wars, Wonder Woman, Harry Potter, Batman, Thor, X-Men, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. It’s a wide-ranging celebration of film and television fandom, but the Walt Disney Mickey sketch remains the emotional and historical centerpiece.
The Santa Clara Sketch and a Moment in Time
The Mickey sketch was drawn during Disney’s goodwill and filmmaking tour of South America in 1941, a U.S.-backed cultural diplomacy mission undertaken as World War II reshaped global alliances. Disney traveled with a group of 15 artists and staff members, immersing themselves in Latin American culture while gathering inspiration for new projects.
On the 17-day return voyage aboard the Santa Clara, Disney met John Adrian and gifted him this original Mickey drawing, inscribed with the playful message, “To John Adrian Hoping He Will Be Able To Draw Better Than This,” followed by Walt’s bold signature. The humor and informality of the inscription make the piece feel personal, spontaneous, and unmistakably human—traits collectors prize in Disney-authored material.
A Rare Ensemble of Disney Collaborators
What elevates the lot further is what sits beside Disney’s sketch. Adjacent is a second sheet signed and illustrated by seven key Disney collaborators from the same voyage, turning the piece into a group portrait of the studio’s creative engine at work.
Ted Sears contributed a sketch of Goofy and inscribed it “Santa Clara – 41,” while Norm Ferguson added Pluto and Franklin Thomas drew Donald Duck. Jim Bodero sketched Bacchus, John Rose signed and inscribed “Santa Clara,” and Webb Smith contributed a drawing of the “Toad of Toad Hall.” Rounding out the group, Charles Wolcott signed beneath music and lyrics from The Reluctant Dragon, inscribing “S.S. Santa Clara 1941.” Together, the two sheets capture a fleeting but foundational moment in Disney history.
The Films Born From the Journey
That South American tour directly shaped Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros, two wartime-era releases that blended animation, live action, and music in ways Disney had never attempted before. Designed to strengthen cultural ties while keeping the studio productive during wartime constraints, the films also marked a creative pivot—elevating Donald Duck, introducing new characters, and embracing looser, more expressive visual storytelling.
For collectors, artifacts from this period carry added weight because they sit at the intersection of global politics, artistic experimentation, and Disney’s resilience as a studio.
Why This Piece Matters
In an era when Disney memorabilia spans everything from vintage animation cels to modern theme park exclusives, this piece stands apart. It isn’t just a Mickey drawing—it’s a snapshot of Walt Disney and his collaborators at a moment when imagination, diplomacy, and history were traveling together aboard a single ship.
Lucas Mast is a writer based in California’s Bay Area, where he’s a season ticket holder for St. Mary’s basketball and a die-hard Stanford athletics fan. A lifelong collector of sneakers, sports cards, and pop culture, he also advises companies shaping the future of the hobby and sports. He’s driven by a curiosity about why people collect—and what those items reveal about the moments and memories that matter most.
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