Ben and Me is an American animated two-reel short subject produced by Walt Disney Productions and released theatrically on November 10, 1953.[1] It was adapted from the book of the same name written by author/illustrator Robert Lawson and first published in 1939. Though both book and film deal with the relationship between a mouse and American Founding FatherBenjamin Franklin, the book, with illustrations by Lawson, focused more heavily on actual historical events and personages, and included incidents from Franklin's French career at Versailles.
This short was also notable for being the second release on the Buena Vista Distribution label, with the first being Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom, released on the same day. On its release, Ben and Me was packaged with the True-Life Adventure documentary The Living Desert. When Disney's regular distributor RKO Radio Pictures resisted the idea of a full-length True-Life Adventure, Disney formed his own distribution company to handle future Disney releases.[3]
At a statue of Benjamin Franklin, a tour group leader is discussing to a group of children Franklin's great impact in American history. At the same time on the Franklin statue's head, the leader of a tour group of young mice reveals the contributions of a mouse named Amos (also immortalized as a statue on Franklin's hat) to Franklin's career, reading from Amos' diary, titled Ben and Me. After describing the exploits of some of his ancestors, which includes one sailing on the Mayflower to come to America, Amos tells his own story.
The eldest of 26 siblings living in the Christ Church, Philadelphia, Amos sets out on his own in 1745 to find work and help his large family. Having no such luck, he takes shelter in Ben's shop from the bitter cold and snow and befriends the beleaguered printer, who is grave danger of having his press and all he owns repossessed by bill collectors. Amos invents bifocals for Ben from his two broken pairs of glasses, and inspires him to create the Franklin stove. Amos also helps Ben turn his dry publication, Poor Richard's Almanack, into a successful newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette; Amos acts as journalist to gather good stories and helps Ben operate the printing press. As the years pass, Amos helps Ben advance socially and build his reputation.
Unfortunately, Ben makes Amos an unwitting test subject in his experiments with electricity, culminating in him sending the mouse into the air as part of his kite experiment. Amos is nearly killed when the kite is struck by lightning and crashes to the ground. Furious, he leaves Ben and moves back in with his family.
Years later, the early stages of the American Revolution take place. Ben travels to England to try to reason with the king and persuade an end to the taxes, but this proves a failure. When Amos sees Ben returning in despondence, one part of him has pity and wants to help, while the other part still unforgiving. In 1776, Ben finds Amos' hole at the church and begs him for his help. Amos agrees on the condition that Ben sign a contract agreeing to his terms. As Ben is reading the contract, Thomas Jefferson comes by, struggling with writing the introduction to the United States Declaration of Independence. The language in Amos' contract inspires Jefferson, and it becomes the Declaration's introduction. Amos accompanies Ben to the signing of the Declaration. The short ends with both tour groups stating how both man and mouse were truly great figures in American history.
