View source for Pluto's Christmas Tree

{{short description|1952 Mickey Mouse cartoon}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Pluto's Christmas Tree
| image          = Pluto's Christmas Tree Theatrical Poster.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Jack Hannah]]
| producer       = [[Walt Disney]]
| story          = {{unbulleted list|Bill Berg|Milt Schaeffer}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Jimmy MacDonald (sound effects artist)|Jimmy MacDonald]]
* [[Clarence Nash]]
* [[Pinto Colvig]]
* Dessie Flynn
* [[Ruth Clifford]] 
}}
| music          = Joseph Dubin
| animator       = {{Plainlist|
* George Kreisl
* [[Fred Moore (animator)|Fred Moore]]
* [[Bill Justice]] 
* [[Volus Jones]]
}}
| layout_artist  = [[Yale Gracey]]
| background_artist = Thelma Witmer
| studio         = [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney Productions]]
| distributor    = [[RKO Pictures|RKO Radio Pictures]]
| released       = {{Film date|1952|11|21}}<ref name=ultimate>{{cite book |last1=Kaufman |first1=J.B. |last2=Gerstein |first2=David |title=Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History |year=2018 |publisher=Taschen |location=Cologne |isbn=978-3-8365-5284-4}}</ref>
| color_process  = [[Technicolor]]
| runtime        = 6:45
| country        = United States
| language       = English
}}

'''''Pluto's Christmas Tree''''' is a 1952 [[Mickey Mouse (film series)|Mickey Mouse cartoon]] in which [[Pluto (Disney)|Pluto]] and [[Mickey Mouse|Mickey]] cut down a Christmas tree that [[Chip n' Dale]] live in.{{sfn|Maltin|1973|p=378}} It was the 125th short in the ''[[Mickey Mouse (film series)|Mickey Mouse]]'' film series to be released, and the second for that year.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |year=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/108/mode/2up |pages=107–109}}</ref> While the chipmunks are usually antagonists of [[Donald Duck]], they have pestered Pluto before, in ''[[Private Pluto]]'' (1943), ''[[Squatter's Rights]]''  (1946) and ''[[Food for Feudin']]'' (1950).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Grant |first1=John |title=Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters |year=1998 |orig-year=1986 |location=New York |publisher=Hyperion |isbn=978-0786863365 |page=41}}</ref>

It is one of the few Disney shorts directed by [[Jack Hannah]] not to star Donald Duck, although Donald does make a cameo at the end.

==Plot==
[[Mickey Mouse]] and [[Pluto (Disney)|Pluto]] are searching for a [[Christmas tree]], while [[Chip 'n' Dale]] are looking for acorns in the forest. Once the chipmunks see Pluto, they hit him with acorns and escape as he pursues them. Once Pluto is distracted, they hide in a tree. Mickey chops down that very tree, unaware that the two are in it.

Once they get home, Mickey and Pluto decorate the tree and Pluto admires it, but then he notices a light going on and off and investigates it. Dale, who was playing with the light, mistakes Pluto's nose for another light and twists it, revealing himself to Pluto, who then barks at him. Dale retaliates by throwing down ornaments to distract him. Mickey comes by and takes the ornaments from Pluto, unknowingly hanging one of them on Dale, who Pluto fails to alert Mickey to. Pluto then spots Dale stealing [[chestnut]]s and chases him up to the top of the fireplace with Santa candle figures. Dale takes a hat and a beard from one of the candle figures as a disguise. Pluto notices the strange figure, but he again fails to expose him to Mickey since Mickey doesn't understand his barks. Frustrated, Pluto knocks the other figures away except for Dale. Chip then notices from the tree what is going on. He rescues Dale and heads for the tree. Pluto briefly gets his feet stuck in presents as he gives chase and has difficulty following the chipmunks up the ladder. As Pluto barks at the chipmunks, they cause the ladder to fall and drop the star on top of the tree onto Pluto's tail. While the chipmunks laugh in victory, Pluto, finally pushed beyond his patience, angrily dives into the tree to attack the chipmunks.

Mickey notices Pluto and tries to pull him out, but gets pulled in instead up until the tree is stripped of its decorations and leaves. Mickey scolds Pluto for what he did, but notices Chip and Dale with only a few decorations and all of the branches bare, finally realizing what's really going on. Pluto starts barking at the chipmunks for the trouble they caused until Mickey tells him to stop, saying that it's just the holidays. At the window, they see [[Donald Duck]], [[Goofy]] and [[Minnie Mouse]] singing "Deck the Halls". While Mickey and Pluto's friends are singing, Chip and Dale join in, and then Pluto howls in as well, much to the chipmunks' irritation. They then respond by placing a sticker over Pluto's mouth that reads "DO NOT OPEN TIL XMAS".

==Cast==
* [[Jimmy MacDonald (sound effects artist)|Jimmy MacDonald]] as [[Mickey Mouse]] and [[Chip 'n' Dale|Chip]]
* [[Pinto Colvig]] as [[Pluto (Disney)|Pluto]] and [[Goofy]]
* [[Ruth Clifford]] as [[Minnie Mouse]]
* [[Clarence Nash]] as [[Donald Duck]]
* Dessie Flynn as [[Chip 'n' Dale|Dale]]

==Credits==
* Direction: Jack Hannah
* Animation: George Kreisl, Fred Moore, Bill Justice, Volus Jones
* Storyboards: Bill Berg, Milt Schaffer
* Layout: Yale Gracey
* Background: Thelma Witmer
* Music: Joseph S. Dubin

==Reception==
In ''Mickey's Movies: The Theatrical Films of Mickey Mouse'', Gijs Grob writes: "''Pluto's Christmas Tree'' is a gem of a film. The story, by Bill Berg and Milt Schaffer, is inspired, and perfectly matches the Christmas atmosphere, while still featuring great gags... The short is cute, adorable, and full of charm, making ''Pluto's Christmas Tree'' one of the most delightful Mickey Mouse cartoons from the post-war period."<ref name=movies>{{cite book |last1=Grob |first1=Gijs |title=Mickey's Movies: The Theatrical Films of Mickey Mouse |date=2018 |publisher=Theme Park Press |chapter=Pluto's Christmas Tree |isbn=978-1683901235}}</ref>

==Other uses==
Scenes from this cartoon would be used for ''[[Disney Sing Along Songs|Disney's Very Merry Christmas Songs]]''. It would be used for "[[Deck the Halls]]" and "[[Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!]]". "[[Deck the Halls]]" would use scenes from this cartoon only and "[[Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!]]" only uses a small part from this cartoon. Scenes would also be used for other Disney collections, including ''[[A Disney Christmas Gift]]''.

Scenes from this cartoon along with scenes from ''[[Mickey's Christmas Carol]]'' were also set to [[D-TV]]'s video of [[Brenda Lee]]'s "[[Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree]]".

A book published in 1954 from [[Little Golden Books]] called ''Donald Duck's Christmas Tree'' has the same plot as this cartoon but with [[Donald Duck]] instead of [[Mickey Mouse]].

''The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Characters'' mistakenly credits [[Horace Horsecollar]] and [[Clarabelle Cow]],{{sfn|Grant|1993|pp=36–37}} as appearing in this cartoon.

The Christmas tree and fireplace are on display as props from the short in the queue of the [[Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway]] attraction at [[Disneyland]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.laughingplace.com/w/news/2023/01/25/photos-first-look-inside-the-mickey-minnies-runaway-railway-queue-at-disneyland/|title=Photos: First Look Inside the Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway Queue at Disneyland|website=laughingplace.com|date=January 25, 2023|accessdate=March 26, 2023}}</ref>

==Home media==
The short was released on May 18, 2004 on ''[[Walt Disney Treasures: Wave Three#Mickey Mouse in Living Color, Volume Two|Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Living Color, Volume Two: 1939-Today]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mickey Mouse in Living Color Volume 2 DVD Review|url=https://www.dvdizzy.com/mmlivingcolor2.htmlml |website=DVD Dizzy |access-date=19 February 2021}}</ref>

Additional releases include:
* 1981/1986 - A Walt Disney Christmas (VHS)
* ''[[Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse]]'': 2001 (DVD and VHS), 2009<ref name="disneyshorts">{{cite web|url=http://www.disneyshorts.org/shorts.aspx?shortID=538|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121124052125/http://www.disneyshorts.org/shorts.aspx?shortID=538|title=Pluto's Christmas Tree|website=DisneyShorts.org|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 24, 2012}}</ref> (cartoon is a segment in the film)<ref name="disneyshorts"/>
* 2005 - [[Walt Disney's Classic Cartoon Favorites|Walt Disney's Classic Cartoon Favorites Volume 9: Classic Holiday Stories]] (DVD)<ref name="disneyshorts"/>
* 2011 - Walt Disney Animation Collection: Classic Short Films Volume 7: Mickey's Christmas Carol (DVD)<ref name="disneyshorts"/>
* 2013 - [[Mickey's Christmas Carol]] 30th Anniversary Edition (DVD, Blu-ray)
* 2018 - ''[[Olaf's Frozen Adventure]]'' (Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD)
* 2019 - [[Disney+]] (streaming)

==See also==
* [[Mickey Mouse (film series)]]
* [[List of Christmas films]]

==References==
;Citations
{{Reflist}}

;Bibliography
* {{cite book|last=Grant|first=John|title=Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters|year=1993|orig-year=1986|location=New York|publisher=[[Hachette Books|Hyperion]]|isbn=978-1562829049}}
* {{cite book|last=Maltin|first=Leonard|title=The Disney Films|year=1973|location=New York|publisher=[[Crown Publishing Group|Bonanza Books]]|isbn=978-0517177419}}
* {{cite book|last=Smith|first=Dave|title=[[Disney A to Z|Disney A to Z: The Official Encyclopedia]]|edition=1st|year=1996|location=New York|publisher=Hyperion|isbn=978-0786862238}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|45037}}

{{Mickey Mouse in animation}}
{{Pluto (Disney) in animation}}
{{Chip 'n' Dale in animation}}
{{Disney Christmas films}}

[[Category:1952 films]]
[[Category:American Christmas films]]
[[Category:Animated Christmas films]]
[[Category:1950s Disney animated short films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Jack Hannah]]
[[Category:Films produced by Walt Disney]]
[[Category:Mickey Mouse short films]]
[[Category:Pluto (Disney) short films]]
[[Category:Donald Duck short films]]
[[Category:Goofy (Disney) short films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Joseph Dubin]]
[[Category:RKO Pictures animated short films]]
[[Category:1950s Christmas films]]
[[Category:1950s English-language films]]
[[Category:Chip 'n' Dale films]]
[[Category:English-language short films]]
[[Category:English-language Christmas films]]
[[Category:1952 animated short films]]