When the Mickey Mouse Club went on the air on the ABC Television Network in October, 1955, few people would have guessed that it would soon become one of the most popular children’s television programs ever. Because of Walt Disney’s insistence upon having his “club” populated by a group of fresh, unspoiled boys and girls, kids all over America identified with the “Mouseketeers.” The variety of segments on the programs cach day provided something for veryone, whether they liked adventure, singing, dancing, cartoons, or newsreels. But one of the most popular segments on the show was “Spin and Marty,” the story of a group of boys at a dude ranch.
Lawrence Edward Watkin had written a book entitled Marty Markham that had come to the attention of Walt Disney and his Mickey Mouse Club producer, Bill Walsh. They decided that it would be a good story to serialize on the television show, and so early in the summer of 1955 work began on what would be Production 8209 at the Disney Studio. Jackson Gillis was brought in to write a screenplay based on the Watkin book.
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