Shorts 
After the possibilities for the "Alice" shorts had been exhausted, Universal began fishing around for a series of cartoons featuring a rabbit. Mintz naturally thought Disney would be perfect for the job and the two began developing the character of "Oswald, the Lucky Rabbit." (The name was suggested by P. D. Cochrane, who at that time led Universal's publicity department.) Disney and his staff went into overdrive and sent the first Oswald short, "Poor Papa." to Universal in the spring of 1927.
The reviews were less than impressive. Universal had been expecting more of a Charlie Chaplin type character. Oswald, they said, came across as "sloppy and fat." Disney, disappointed, agreed to rework the character and began work on the second short, "Trolley Troubles," an obvious tip-of-the-hat to Fontaine Fox's "Toonerville Trolley" series. This short was much better received by Universal and the Oswald series went into full production.
The Oswald series was well received by both reviewers and the public. It also served to introduce a new facet into Disney's ever increasing world : merchandising. As the first Disney character to be liscenced onto other products, Oswald found himself first on the wrapper of a marshmallow candy bar made by the Vogan Candy Corporation of Portland, Oregon. Other products that followed included buttons and a stencil set. The surprising thing about these products, especially considered in light of today's merchandising frenzy, is that Disney received no royalties for letting Oswald be used on other people's products. He merely considered it good advertising
It was also on the Oswald series that Disney introduced the first of his technical innovations, pencil tests. At first they were sporadically done since Walt had only one camera in the studio, so the animators had to wait until the day's shooting was completed and then if there was film still left in the camera, It would be a few years before Walt would get a second camera just to photograph the the pencil tests. Today pencil test are standard operating procedure in every animation house in the world. Back then though, such innovations were discouraged, especially if they cost extra money.
