Why, you ask, is someone as ubiquitous as Mickey Mouse landing outside of the top 10? Honestly, if you’d quizzed our panel of judges, they really could’ve taken or left Mickey, believe it or not. In fact, his history and his reputation within the industry are the sole reasons he’s gotten this far; you could say he was grandfathered in, really. There are three specific reasons he made the cut: “Steamboat Willie” (which has been parodied too many times to count, but one of the best was certainly “Steamboat Itchy,” on “The Simpsons”), the “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” sequence in “Fantasia,” and because he was the leader of the club that was made for you and me. (That would be “The Mickey Mouse Club,” by the way.) But, really, when was the last time you saw a new Mickey Mouse cartoon? He hasn’t maintained nearly as much of a presence outside of his theme park as, say, Donald or Goofy. Call him cartoon royalty and genuflect in his general direction, but these days, Mickey is little more than a figurehead. Sad, but true. ~WH