This was one of the sketches that resulted from my recent attempt to re-design Minnie Mouse based on her first appearance (from that time about a year ago that we thought the original Minnie Mouse and a couple other characters were going to enter the public domain because the first three Mickey Mouse cartoons had fallen into PD, only to discover that while the shorts now belong to us, Disney maintains copyright to the characters themselves, so this re-design was pointless). The whole thing was better explained in this post: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/56668919/

It strikes me, though, that I might not have to abandon the basic design, as I can always claim it to be based on an actual public domain character...

Turns out there was a Minnie Mouse look-a-like used by another studio in the early 30's. I'm not sure which studio, or if the character has a name of her own, though. I can tell you that she appears in at least two shorts, one as Little Red Riding Hood and another as a circus performer who steps out on her Mickey Mouse look-a-like boyfriend by trying to seduce the manager into giving her a bigger role! That's the most bizarre aspect of these shorts, which is how weirdly sexualized they are. I don't know who made the shorts, but I do know THAT character is in public domain, and she just happens to look like Minnie's twin...

UPDATE: The character was named Rita. At least she was in the particular short she headlined. CIRCUS CAPERS, 1930, Van Buren. Minnie Mouse may not be public domain, but Rita Mouse is...