Julius the Cat after Julius. The Julius character appeared in 47 of the 51 films of the "Alice Comedies" series. Julius the Cat Julius (the Cat) is a funny animal cartoon character, starring in the first animated series created by Walt Disney, the "Alice Comedies", making him the predecessor of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and Mickey Mouse. Julius is an anthropomorphic cat, appearing intentionally similar to Felix the Cat. A bold and inventive hero, he gradually became the primary focus of the "Alice Comedies", to the point Disney abandoned live action for pure animation on subsequent projects. Julius was the first of Disney's
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit 1927–28. The story was later reprinted, as "Just Like Magic!", in the American Disney comic "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" #726 (2015). In February 2006, Disney CEO Bob Iger initiated a trade with NBC Universal in which a number of minor assets, including the rights to Oswald, were acquired by The Walt Disney Company in exchange for sending sportscaster Al Michaels from Disney's ABC and ESPN to NBC Sports. At the time, ABC had lost its contract for NFL broadcast rights, and despite recently signing a long-term contract with ESPN, Michaels was interested in rejoining broadcast partner John Madden at