January 13, 1939 – The Donald Duck Short Film Donald’s Lucky Day is Released to Theaters
“Feelin’ ducky, ducky lucky, boy, this is my lucky day!”
On January 13, 1939, the Donald Duck short film Donald’s Lucky Day was released to theaters. The timing of this short’s release was genius, as it was released to theaters on Friday the 13th. It was directed by Jack King.
On a foggy night, two men are sitting in a warehouse with a bomb, setting it for midnight. They talk about having sent for a messenger boy, and laugh about the messenger’s possible misfortune, should the bomb go off too soon. Donald, as the messenger, heads to his assignment, unaware of the danger. He rings the doorbell, and is ordered to deliver it before midnight, and to not drop it. Donald heads off to his task, and turns on the radio. The radio announcer proclaims him lucky if he’s still alive, but warns him that it’s still Friday the 13th. Donald gets spooked, and even more so when he reads that the package must go to 1313 13th Street. The announcer gives Donald some advice, and Donald nearly rides his bike under a ladder. Although he avoids the ladder, he ends up breaking through a mirror and crashing into an apple cart. After the fall, Donald frantically looks around for the package. He doesn’t hear any ticking, and assumes that the package is broken, giving it a violent shake. Hearing it tick once again, he realizes he only has about five minutes to deliver the package.
Donald finds himself facing several bad omens on Friday the 13th, including a black cat crossing his path
When he reaches the intersection of 13th Street and 13th Avenue, a black cat crosses his path. When Donald tries to avoid the cat, the cat follows him, and Donald comically tries to get past the feline. The cat jumps on top of Donald’s package and decides to take a nap. Donald then pulls out a wind-up mouse, which sends the cat away. As Donald laughs, the clock slowly makes its way to midnight. Donald runs to avoid the cat, as it starts chasing the mouse past him, sending Donald to take refuge at the docks. Unfortunately, as the cat chases the mouse over a plank, the package, which Donald placed on the other end, is taken out of his hands. Donald heads onto the plank to retrieve the package, but is in a precarious situation over the water. Donald tries to use the cat to stay on the plank, ending up in a strange see-saw with the cat. After Donald is able to get back on the dock, the package unravels itself, revealing its contents. Fortunately for Donald and the cat, the bomb was poorly made, and doesn’t blow up right away, but sparks and hisses. The cat, annoyed by the bomb’s sparking, starts playing with the bomb and sends it into the water, where it explodes and sends dozens of fish onto the dock, on top of Donald. He proclaims it to be his lucky day, but is soon dismayed when all the cats of the dock start attacking him for the fish.
disneydetail 