The most famous mouse in the world is 81 years old. November 18, 1928 is the official birthday of Mickey Mouse. That is the date that “Steamboat Willie,” the first animated film with synchronized sound starring Mickey Mouse, was released.

The lovable rodent (who was almost named Mortimer!) was born out of an initial setback. As a biography on The Walt Disney Family Museum website explains:

In 1928, after losing the rights to a character he had helped develop, Walt Disney had to come up with a new creation. His wife, Lillian, recalled, “He was talking about different things, kittens and cats, this and that and the other. He kept talking about a mouse.” Walt later said, “And then the name came. I had Mortimer first and my wife shook her head and then I tried Mickey and she shook her head the other way and that was it.

- The Walt Disney Family Museum

The rest, as they say, is history.