Monthly Archives: July 2013
Disney Film History: Melody Time
Jul 31
Melody Time was tagged with the phrase “7 Hit Songs! 11 Musical Artists!” If that sounds familiar, it’s because Melody Time was the fifth film of the 1940s to be riddled with song numbers and short cartoons. The film was released in 1948, after World War II, but the film was in development while the war was still going on and the U.S. military was still using the studio as an army base.
The previous films, Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, and Fun and Fancy Free seem to have all led to this film. Blending the ideas of Jazz and modern music into shorts was a highly successful idea with Make Mine Music and the studio made lots of money off of formula. On top of that, the studio had also created a market for South America and still wanted to keep their Good Neighbor ideals by incorporating a segment into this film. The result is a blend of jazz, big band, folk, western, samba, and swing music accompanying American and South American stories. Add to the top that Walt Disney had all of his Nine Old Men working on this film and you’ve got yourself a pretty great film in the making.
The film is made up of 7 segments, but only a few really stand out from the pack, notably the longer pieces. “Bumble Boogie” and “Trees” do a great job at combining abstract art and serious animation, but seem misplaced amongst the shorts filled with story and lore. “Once Upon a Wintertime” is the first short in the film and a great introduction. Frances Langford sings the music in this short which blends a love story, beautiful background art, and some very comical animation. A story about a boy who isn’t really a Casa Nova and the girl of his dreams getting into trouble on an icy river, it stands the test of time and, along with it’s Victorian imagery, seems like a great American love story.
For myself, three major segments really stick out in this film. The first is “The Legend of Johnny Appleseed”. Curiously, Johnny Appleseed isn’t a story or folklore, but the story of a real man, John Chapman, who walked the midwest planting apple trees. Though it’s a fictitiously reimagining of the man that really was, the story stands true as a good Christian man who made America a better place thanks to his involvement with planting trees and orchards around Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana. The segment leads us through his whole life as a boy just starting out planting until his death when he is asked by his guardian angel to come plant trees in heaven.
The second segment and probably one of the two particularly infamous segments from Melody Time is the short titled “Little Toot” which is sung by the Andrews Sisters. The Andrews Sisters were one of the most important acts of the WWII era and this segment shows. Little Toot, the story of a small boat that needs to grow up, but gets himself and his father in trouble, became a smash hit with audiences. Based on a children’s story written and illustrated by Hardie Gramatky in 1939, the cartoon went on to outgrow this package film and was even am opening short for another Disney film in 1954. The song “Little Toot” sang by the Andrews Sisters may have become even more popular than the short. It was the first children’s song to ever reach 1 million records being sold and was a large hit for a number of years after the films release.
“Blame It on the Samba” marks the return of Donald Duck and Jose Carioca (my favorite) to the screen as they dance along with Ethel Smith only to be toyed with by the Arucuan Bird. (Also my favorite!) It’s a fun segment that brings us back to the roots of these characters in Saludos Amigos. It’s an enjoyable piece and sticks out in a good way since it is so vibrant and different than the rest of the music in the film. It’s also important for me to say that this is the third film starring Jose Carioca which means he has been in more Disney feature films than Mickey Mouse up to this point. This is also Donald’s fourth film making him the most popular repetitive character in Disney animation feature films.
The last segment, and longest segment of the film, is “The Ballad of Pecos Bill”, a truly folk tale of the 20th century about one of the greatest cowboys to live from the great state of Texas. It starts out with Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers singing “Blue Shadows on the Trail”. Notably in this segment is our good child actor friend Bobby Driscoll who was signed to a contract before filming Song of the South. This film is his second role for the Walt Disney company. Also in this segment is Luana Patten, Driscoll’s costar from Song of the South and the upcoming film So Dear to My Heart. Roy Rogers tells the children the tale of why the coyotes howl at the moon, which is also the tall tale of Pecos Bill and how he grew to be the greatest cowboy that ever lived until he met the love of his life, Slue foot Sue. Another note from this film is that Pecos Bill is a pistol shooting, cigarette smoking cowboy, which has been edited out of later releases of the short to make Pecos seem more politically correct for today’s audiences.
The film was met with mostly positive reviews and was seen to be the best of the package films during the World War II era. It’s fun to watch and listen too. There seems to be something for everyone in this film. I enjoyed Make Mine Music better, but that’s my personal opinion. This film does seem much more accepted by wider audiences and it’s purely Disney magic.
Have you seen Melody Time? What’s your favorite or least favorite segment? Do you prefer this film over others during the package film era, or would you rather watch a different film? Leave your thoughts and comments below!
Josh Taylor
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Previous Film: Fun and Fancy Free
Next Film: So Dear To My Heart
Disney Trip Planning: Getting Sick
Jul 29
So, you’ve been planning your vacation for months, looking forward to experiencing every detail of all the fun things you are going to do. You arrive at your destination, and 
BAM! you just came down with the worst illness of your life. This totally just happened to me. I was on vacation for 1 day and everything was going great when all of a sudden, well… I’m not going to get into too much detail here, but basically food-eating no longer became an option for me. While I was laying in bed trying to convince myself that I wasn’t going to puke all over myself, I thought, “This would make a great article!” So, here it is, what to do if you get sick while you are on your Disney vacation:
Obviously, there is many a way for one to be sick, so I will be including all of the flu-like symptoms, including the sniffles, vomiting, and everything in between.
First of all, stressing about being sick only makes things worse. I learned this very quickly on my own, because every time I thought about needing to feel better faster, I felt more sick. Just tell yourself that your body will get better in its own time.
Lucky for you, if you didn’t plan ahead and bring any meds that address sickness symptoms, all of the Disney Resort gift shops carry items to help you! So, if you’re feeling nauseous, pick up some Tums and/or Pepto and slowly sip ginger ale. If you have a plain old cold, Sudafed and Alkaseltzer are key, along with cough medicine and cough drops and throat numbers. Got allergies? They have Benedryl and Claratin! They also carry sleep aids, over-the-counter pain meds, and Immodium. Usually this stuff is sold behind the counter or with the food stuffs, so don’t give up if you don’t find it in the store right away.
If you are vacationing in the Disneyland Resort area, but not staying in Disneyland Hotel, Grand California, or the Paradise Pier hotel (the only 3 owned by the company), but are staying in a hotel close to the resort, you can either walk to one of these resorts to buy the items mentioned above or drive/walk/take a cab to one of the CVS or Walgreens drug stores located within a mile of the parks.
If you are staying in one of the Disney Resorts, whether it be on the east or west coast, the great thing is that even the cheapest rooms, aka the Value Resorts, are comfortable. (Tip: it’s even better if you can upgrade to a “Preferred Room” because that will put you closer to the food court and gift shop!) If you ever get sick away from home, your comfort level is automatically compromised, but you’ll be happy to know that the cleanliness of Disney hotels is probably better than your own house! The beds and pillows are quality and if you need to hang your head over the toilet, you probably wont be staring at any gross left overs from the guests who stayed in your room previously (their plumbing is great, too, by the way.) Let yourself relax in bed, take a few deep breaths, and watch some free television in your hotel room (just don’t watch Stacey tell you what the must-do Disney attractions are or you will just be sad that you might not be able to do them.)
Disney Resort hotels also offer room service (as will most other non-Disney hotels – but I wouldn’t count on it if you are staying at some cheap-o motel). You should probably eat even if you feel like you can’t keep food down, and if you are left alone in your room, this might be the best option.
The great thing about the most magical place on Earth is that the Cast Members (the employees of the Disney Parks) are always trying to help and make their guests feel like they are one in a million. I’ve heard great stories of Cast Members going above and beyond to help a guest in need – whether you are sad, crying, or keeled over. This might mean someone going out of their way to bring you some Pepto Bismol to your room if you aren’t feeling up to going to get it yourself.
A great tip for someone traveling with someone else on a Disney vacation is: yes, you should take care of them, but if they tell you to go have fun at the parks, then you should listen to them and go have fun at the parks on your own (at least some of the day.) If you don’t, then the person you are with who is sick will just feel bad and that will probably make them feel worse. Don’t make them feel worse. Feel better together and go have fun!
Feel free to leave your sick stories below or if you have any remedies I didn’t add to this article.
Angie Carreiro
http://www.ILoveAnimalArt.com
Beast’s Real Name Isn’t Adam…again
Jul 27
A few months ago, Keith Lapinig made a video explaining how the Beast from the film Beauty and the Beast doesn’t actually have a real name in the film and the rumor that his name is Prince Adam is completely false. If you thought Keith didn’t have enough evidence the first go around, he is back to once again prove the naysayers wrong.
Keith Lapinig
http://www.KeithLapinig.com
Top 5: Disney Parks That Never Were
Jul 26
Back when I first started writing about Disney, my first series I ever tackled was a series based on Walt Disney World attractions, lands, hotels, and restaurants that were in development but never built. Among my research, I came across tons of great ideas I wish were implemented, not only for WDW but also for the Disneyland Resort. From the earliest years of Disneyland in the 1950s until now, projects get dropped for better ones, or at least projects they think are better. I won’t argue with Disney Imagineering because I’d say they’ve done a heck of a job creating some of the most innovative, exciting, and fun worlds that we can walk through and experience at the Disney parks…but I still like ot ponder on some of the things that could have been. So here is my top 5 list of Disney parks that never were.
5-Musem of the Weird. I’ve always been a fan of strange and exotic things. Rolly Crump had the right ideas when coming up with the Museum for the Weird. A walk through/restaurant that would exhibit “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” artifacts, but these artifacts were all made up. This comes at a time before Ripleys was even around or popular. Now the Believe It or Not museums are all around the states and they make money. Imagineering should have taken this restaurant attachment to the Haunted Mansion much more seriously. It could still be around today making hand over fist with all of that weird stuff.
4-Dick Tracy’s Crime Stoppers. Think of this as the Indiana Jones Adventure set in 1930s Chicago. A fast paced car chase between the Mob and Dick Tracy, and you are right in the middle of it. Not only was this supposed to be the first use of the Enhanced Motion Vehicle, but the attraction would have gotten it’s own subland, similar to Muppet Plaza, that would be a dock area in Chicago. The attraction and land would have worked extremely well in Disney’s Hollywood Studios and it’s a shame that Dick Tracy didn’t do as well as the Disney studio had hoped or else we may have gotten this one!
3-Roger Rabbit’s Hollywood. One of the greatest films to come out of the 1980s, Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a big success or Disney and was one of Michael Eisner’s pet projects at the time. Due to the ongoing development of Roger Rabbit getting his own land at the Disney Hollywood Studios, the character himself was on hand for the dedication of the park in 1989. Planned attractions had a simulator attraction through Toon Town, a dark ride similar to the one at Disneyland, and several other spaces that would give Roger a big presence in the park. Unfortunately we never got this due to legal battles over who and control over the character and film.
2-WestCOT. During Michael Eisner’s big Disney Decade, one of his goals was to turn the Disneyland park into the Disneyland Resort with a downtown area, new hotels, and a brand new park that would be located just across from Disneyland. That park was originally not California Adventure, it was deemed WestCOT. A similar concept to Epcot in Florida, WestCOT would join the use of technology as well as world cultures together. The west coast would have seen replicas of The Land, The LIving Seas, Horizons, and Spaceship Earth. (Renamed SpaceStation Earth for Disneyland.) World Showcase would also be transported, but divided into four sections: Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, giving the park a more rounded feel than the World Showcase in Epcot which is very Euro-centric. I do love California Adventure, but this just sounds too good to have been passed up.
1-Beastly Kingdom. How could a large part of the original Animal Kingdom idea not be number one on this list? Despite my serious love for Animal Kingdom and how much I truly love every land of the park, something is seriously missing when going left from The Oasis. Camp Minnie-Mickey was hardly a themed land, and it never really improved over the 10+ years it was land in the park. Beastly Kingdom would have truly made this park a “full day park” and skeptics would have been much easier on the park if it embodied this realm of fantasy. The original park had only a few major lands and ditching one to save money and cut costs is unfortunate, especially when Beastly Kingdom was packed with more attractions and family entertainment than any of the other lands. Will Avatar become a decent fit for that spot in the Animal Kingdom? We don’t know, but anything is better than what it has been since the park opening, I just wish we could have seen this come to fruition.
What are your thoughts on any of the ideas listed above? Are there some missing elements that you’d like to see at the Disney parks? Leave your thoughts and comments below!
Josh Taylor
https://ModernMouseRadio.com
Disney Food: Rainforest Cafe
Jul 24
Photo by Marc Uchman
When my girls asked if we could eat at Rainforest Café, my first reaction was, “No way!” You see, we have a Rainforest Café about 45 minutes from our house. When I go to Disney World, I want to try new restaurants, not ones that I can visit when we are home. Plus, I am not a fan of the Rainforest Café in Nashville. It’s always chaos, it’s loud and scares some small children, and the food is overpriced and not that great. “But this one is at Disney World, so it has to be better!” my 11 year old stepdaughter argued. Well how could I disagree with that?
There are two locations of Rainforest Café at Disney World. The first is in Animal Kingdom and the second is in Downtown Disney. I should note here that Rainforest Café is the only table service restaurant we did not make advanced dining reservations for. We were at Animal Kingdom that day, and my picky eater stepdaughter was a little scared of the choices at Tusker House and Yak and Yeti. This is part of the reason I caved and agreed to Rainforest Café. We had been caught in a huge downpour for the second day at Animal Kingdom. For some reason, Mother Nature did not want us to enjoy this park. Again, we rode out the storm hiding out in Finding Nemo: The Musical. Again, the park was pretty much empty when we left. Apparently, while we hid from the rain in Finding Nemo, everyone else in the park decided to hide in Rainforest Café. By the time we got there, the wait for a table was two hours.
Needless to say, I did not want to wait two hours for a table. I tried to convince the girls to try a different restaurant, but they had their heart set on Rainforest Café. So I called the Downtown Disney location. The wait there was only 45 minutes and they let me put our name on the waiting list over the phone. We took the bus to Downtown Disney and arrived a few minutes before they called our name. It actually worked out pretty well, all things considered.
Photo by Marc Uchman
We were seated pretty quickly (especially considering how long we waited at T-Rex Café). As we were walking to our table, one of the rainstorms started. My two year old freaked out when she saw and heard the gorilla. For some reason, she is terrified of primates. She even gets scared at the zoo if she sees one. I’m glad we didn’t see King Louie at Animal Kingdom.
We were seated near an elephant, and away from the gorilla, thank goodness. Our server and our food came right away. I had the Caribbean coconut shrimp and wish I hadn’t. It was just okay, like I expected. I honestly do not think that their food will ever be anything but mediocre. The problem came when I tried the mango dipping sauce. It’s my own fault for not asking, but I’m pretty sure it had papaya in it, which I am allergic to. After dinner we went straight back to the hotel where I took a large dose of Benadryl.
Of course, the best part (and only good part in my opinion) is the Volcano. If you have never been to a Rainforest Café, the Volcano is their signature dessert. It consists of a chocolate brownie cake tower topped with ice cream, caramel and chocolate sauce, and a silver foil sparkler on top. The servers made a big deal of it when one is delivered. A group of servers deliver it to your table while shouting “Volcano!” at the top of their lungs. My husband and girls devoured it while my dad enjoyed his key lime cheesecake. I sat there with a swollen tongue telling everyone to hurry up so I could get back to our room.
Photo by Marc Uchman
Even though my stepdaughter tried to convince me that Rainforest Café at Disney World would be better, it wasn’t. If anything, this trip made me hate it even more. My allergic reaction was my own fault, but until my daughter gets over her fear of primates and the food improves, I have zero desire to go back. That might be a problem though since the girls are already trying to convince me to make reservations at the Animal Kingdom location for our next trip!
What are your thoughts on the Rainforest Cafe at Walt Disney World? Do you have your own stories from either location? Leave your comments!
Alexia Christensen
Disney Trip Planning: A Day Outside the Parks
Jul 22
When visiting WDW, you may, for whatever the reason, find yourself with a day during your vacation that you don’t have park tickets for or a partial day where you are waiting around before you have to catch your flight. During said day, you might be wondering what to do! Well, luckily for you, I’ve had many a day like this, so here’s my list of how to still enjoy yourself by doing “free” things in WDW.
If you pick a few things on this list and make it last all day, you will essentially be having a full day of free fun, or you can just do one or two things on the list before you leave for your flight back home, but take into account you might still have to factor in the cost of food at Disney restaurants (unless you plan ahead and bring your own food from home) and possibly an extra night at the hotel! Also, my list assumes your hotel choice is on property, so you will either be taking the Disney buses or driving your car and getting free parking!
Hotel Hopping – eventually visiting every single WDW hotel once is on my “bucket list,” and I’m slowly working to accomplish that with each trip! The intricate theming and backstories of each hotel on Disney property are well worth the trip! Some of my can’t-miss favs are: Art of Animation, Fort Wilderness, and Animal Kingdom Lodge! Some of the ones I’ve got to see but either haven’t yet or did but was too young to remember: Boardwalk Inn, Port Orleans, and Fort Wilderness Campground! There are various ways to get to the hotels from your own hotel! It can get confusing, but once you figure it out, you’ll be a pro! Here are the ways, excluding walking:
Using buses– Buses do not run from hotel to hotel, so if you are planning on taking a bus to another hotel, pick a bus going to one of the parks, then once you get to the park, look at the signs on the bus stops to see which one goes to the hotel you are planning on visiting. If you are going to be going late at night, you may have to take the Downtown Disney bus to and from the hotels, because some parks close earlier than others, so pay attention to the park closing times while you are there. It’s fun (NOT) when it’s 7pm and you think you can wait for the bus to take you to Animal Kingdom and you wait there forever and find out it closed at 6pm and you should have just taken one of the 5 Magic Kingdom buses that came while you were waiting – definitely happened to me. It’s a great strategy to figure out which parks are either closer to your hotel or closer to the hotel you are visiting, to minimize the time spent on the bus! You can quickly figure out the quickest route this way by looking at a map provided by your resort hotel!
Using the Monorail– There are a few ways you can get to the monorail loop that goes to the Polynesian Resort, The Contemporary, and The Grand Floridian. First of all, there are 3 monorail loops: 1 goes from MK (The Magic Kingdom) to all three of these resorts PLUS the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), the other goes around from MK to the TTC only, and the last goes around from EPCOT to the TTC. essentially you want to get yourself to MK by any mode of transportation, including the other 2 monorail loops. From MK and EPCOT, you can take the monorail for free, without entering the park first!
Using Boats– There are a few boat options around and to get to these starting places, you will have to think about what your best mode of transportation is to start with. 1. There are a couple ferry boats from MK which go to Fort Wilderness, The Wilderness Lodge, and The Polynesian. 2. There are also a couple boats you can take from Disney’s Hollywood Studios that go to The Boardwalk, Swan and Dolphin, and Yacht and Beach Club. 3. And lastly, from Downtown Disney you can catch a ferry to Port Orleans and Old Key West!
Using your car– You have to drive to one of the parks in your car, then transfer to one of the 3 methods above. You cannot park at a Disney resort hotel if you aren’t a guest at that particular hotel unless you have dinner reservations!
Going for a Boat Ride– Sometimes just going for a ride in one of the ferry boats mentioned above is enough of an event, even if you have no particular place you want to go!
Downtown Disney– To make this free, you’d basically have to “window shop.” There are a considerable amount of shops here and you can go around like me and pretend you are going to decorate your home with all the expensive art and figurines!
Pool Time– Chill-out in or next to your resort pool! Be warned, even though some resorts don’t have a system in place to enforce it, you aren’t supposed to swim in a pool at a resort that you aren’t a guest of. Some resorts do have a system in place, though, like the gated off Art of Animation pools that require the swipe of a card key to get in!
Fireworks– If you take a bus, monorail, or ferryboat over to the Polynesian Resort (my advice is using any of these modes of transportation via MK), then you can find yourself a spot on the beach (with complimentary lounge chairs) to watch the fireworks over the Magic Kingdom. The normal-non-special-occasion fireworks show is called Wishes Nighttime Spectacular and is performed MOST nights, but check the schedule before you go to confirm the night and time! It’s completely free to watch from across the bay, and if you’re lucky the Electrical Water Pageant will be going on that night as well!
There are extra things you can do that cost some money, but that aren’t as expensive as a theme park ticket might be. (Once you already have in your package 7 day park tickets, the cost of adding on one more ticket ends up being less than $20, so you will probably just end up adding on an extra day if you are going to spend extra money. BUT if you only have, say, a 1 day or even 3 day ticket, it might be worth just taking a Park-less day and paying for some fun little extras in combination with the activities I mentioned above.) Things like:
Bike Ride – Rent a Surrey bike at the Boardwalk (starting at $25) or regular ol’ 1 person bike (starting at $18 for a day, or $9/hour) at various locations including Fort Wilderness, Wilderness Lodge, the Caribbean Beach Resort, the Boardwalk, Old Key West, Port Orleans, and Coronado Springs!
Mini Golf – There are two courses here: Winter Summerland (close to Blizzard Beach, in the Animal Kingdom area) and Fantasia Gardens (EPCOT area). They are both $12 per child and $14 per adult.
Bowling – Located in Downtown Disney, Splitsville just opened up. As far as the theming of this place goes, Adam Rucker might say it’s “pretty cool.”
Catch a Movie – Also in Downtown Disney, theres a considerably impressive AMC theater! Regular theater tickets are similarly priced to what you’ll find back home, with night time rates like $15 for an adult and $11 for a child. There’s also the option of doing a dinner/movie combo at their Fork & Screen Dine-InTheater. (They also serve alcohol, yum yum!)
I must have missed something great! Come on, tell me about it in the comments below!
Angie Carreiro
http://www.ILoveAnimalArt.com
Modern Mouse Radio #23: Armchair Imagineers w/John O’Brien
Jul 22
John O’Brien has been a dedicated fan since day one and we finally invited him onto the show to help change and rebuild the old Wonders of Life Pavilion at Epcot. A dormant building that could be put to better use gets it’s fair shot in this round of Armchair Imagineers!
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Keith’s Disney Cruise (Part 7)
Jul 20
It’s the last day of Keith’s Disney Cruise. We say goodbye to the family, but first we eat out, race to play on ship games, and a beautiful day at Castaway Cay. Check out the souveniers and the great memories made about the Disney Dream ship. Now the cruise videos end, but thanks for following our summer series! Hopefully we inspired you to check out a Disney cruise!
Keith Lapinig
http://www.KeithLapinig.com
Top 5: Reasons Why Tom Hanks is the Perfect Walt Disney
Jul 19
Last week we got the (personally long awaited) trailer for Saving Mr. Banks, a docu-drama film about how Walt Disney convinced Mary Poppins writer, P.L. Travers, to give him the rights to the story to make one of his most infamous films. An interesting idea for a film, this will be the first time that we get to see someone play the roles of the personalities at the Walt Disney company. Since 1966, Walt Disney has never been viewed in any other light beyond his own living breathing self, but now we are getting Tom Hanks as the lovable Uncle Walt. The Walt Disney company is making this film so it was of high importance that they showcase they founder in such a way that he would become beloved and cherished through the prism of one actor, so choosing Tom Hanks was a big deal! What gives Hanks credentials? Here are my top 5 reasons why Tom Hanks is the perfect choice to play the part of Walt.
#5-Toy Story. Tom Hanks has been a voice actor for Disney-Pixar and is familiar with the company. He has starred in 3 Toy Story films and has been one of the key reasons the films are so successful. Due to his involvement, he has walked the halls of the Walt Disney studio. He’s seen Walt’s office and can get that feeling of where the man worked and how it must have felt to be the head of that studio. Maybe that’s a bit of a far stretch, but my confidence in Hanks as the thinking actor brings me to that conclusion.
#4-Band of Brothers. During the mid-1990s, Hanks decided to not only do work in front of the camera, but also behind the camera, producing and directing several films and series. Nothing has been creme de la creme like the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers. It gave him some serious credentials as a director and producer. He had previous film experience in those roles but Band of Brothers was successful on HBO, in DVD sales, and it had a bit of buzz around it for an extended period of time. It also showed how well Hanks does period pieces. Again, he had previous experience in period films and series, but Band of Brothers brought WWII to life in a way it hadn’t really been portrayed, unless you could Saving Private Ryan, which also stars Tom Hanks.
#3-That Thing You Do. I previously mentioned that Band of Brothers wasn’t his first foray into the director/producer role. That Thing You Do was! The film showcases Hank’s love for 1950s and early 60s California and the entertainment business. A period in which Saving Mr. Banks is showcasing. That Thing You Do also provides comedy to a dramatic film about the rise and decline of a band. It has the perfect blend of serious moments and jokes, something that Walt Disney was known for. The fact that he not only acted in the film, but also wrote, directed, and produced it implies that he can portray the head of a business because he himself was the head honcho on that film.
#2-The Terminal. Despite The Terminal not being an overly successful film critically, it showcases Hanks as the ultimate optimist, a trait that Walt himself was know for. The Terminal is about Viktor a man from a country that just went into war during his flight to New York, and due to his home country being at war, he is held captive at JFK airport. The foreign Viktor, who speaks little English, spend the majority of 9 months sitting and waiting around at the terminal of the airport. His optimism and his decision to make the best of a bad situation is what helped keep Viktor from losing his mind. That being said, I feel like Hanks can bring a bit of that character to the Walt Disney role in a fresh way that makes Walt the ultimate optimist as he once really was.
#1-Big. Walt Disney was someone special because despite his role in the company he created and the negative things that happened in his life, such as his mother dying or his employees rising up against him, he never lost his optimism or his sense of being a child. A boy raised in Missouri, he never lost his roots and always made time to have fun, whether that was playing with his daughters on the weekends, building his own railroad in his backyard, or riding his favorite attractions at his own theme park, the man never lost the child within him. Tom Hanks played a role that fits perfectly into that glove. The character of Josh from the film Big is a boy who wishes he was an adult. The end result is Tom Hanks playing a boy in the body of a man, something Walt Disney could perfectly be compared to. Hanks himself also seems to have never lost that child within him, always having fun in interviews and the roles that he portrays. Has his role in Big developed that or was Tom Hanks the perfect choice to play the man-child in Big? Either way, that attribute is perfect for the role of Walt Disney.
What are your thoughts on the trailer for Saving Mr. Banks and Tom Hanks playing Walt Disney? What do you think of the other actors in the film? Are you looking forward to the film or not? What other Tom Hanks films do you love? Let’s make this a serious Tom Hanks-like conversation! Leave your comments below!
Josh Taylor
https://ModernMouseRadio.com
Disney Film History: Fun and Fancy Free
Jul 19
The package film era is a difficult one to write about. Many of the Disney films of the 1940s were just longer pieces that were cut down, turned into shorts, and compiled together for the sake of getting a product out there. Many of them made money and we can be glad for that because the Disney company wouldn’t be around if it weren’t for these films and the government help the studio got in exchange for propaganda and other things. When it came time to research for Fun and Fancy Free, I didn’t think the information would be plentiful and it would be a repeat of what I had said about the film Make Mine Music or The Three Caballeros. What I found was a plethora of information that makes Fun and Fancy Free a serious piece of history.
Let’s start with the stories. Unlike Make Mine Music, this film is made up of only two short pieces: Bongo and Mickey and the Beanstalk. Each have a unique story and for their sake, I’ll be telling both and splitting this article in half so-to-speak. What ties these two shorts together are segments that give this film a bit of credibility from the get go. Before our first short, Bongo, we meet up with Jiminy Cricket, our old friend from Pinocchio, as he discovers a record of the story. Of course, the record is of Dinah Shore, a popular singer of the period. The choice was probably made due to the success of using contemporary musical artists in Make Mine Music, never-the-less, Dinah Shore narrates our story and does it beautifully. The interlude between Bongo and Mickey and the Beanstalk includes famous ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. Jiminy is invited to a party featuring the entertainer and Bergen puts on his classic act with his dummies Charlie and Mortimer. If you’ve never seen there act, do go out of your way to see it. Bergen is the most superior ventriloquist to ever perform, plus his act is clean so all ages can enjoy it. The segments between the two shorts really gives the film a smooth feel and helps elevate it with the star power involved, but let’s move on to the actual shorts and what they mean in the long run.
The first short, Bongo, was actually a short story written by Sinclair Lewis for Cosmopolitan Magazine in 1930. Lewis was a satirical writer usually criticizing American society and pop culture so this short story was a stretch for him. (A circus bear that feels desperate to leave the circus and live in the wild, while at the same time falling in love with another bear at the circus.) The original plan from Disney was to purchase the rights to the story from Lewis and release this film in the 1940s as a full length animated sequel to Dumbo. Ideas soon got nixed and Bongo became it’s own story filled with all sorts of animals, but when World War II started, the full length version was shortened into what we have now. It’s a cute tale with Bongo and his love interest, Lulubelle, looking more cartoonish while the world around them looks more realistic. It’s stunning to look at visually, but because of the shortened story, isn’t memorable enough to make anyone’s top 10 list. I’d be interested in seeing what they could have down with this film if WWII didn’t happen, but the film may not have made money if that weren’t the case.
The second short in Fun and Fancy free was deliberately placed second, or last, because of the star power involved with Mickey Mouse. It’s interesting to note that Mickey and the Beanstalk involves the trio of Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, and this marks Mickey’s second feature film, but Donald takes the cake as this is his third appearance in a feature film, making Donald more visible than the icon Mickey Mouse, but I digress. Mickey and the Beanstalk had been a story Disney had played with before. The shorts “The Brave Little Tailor” and Giantland” tell a similar story, so I think Walt knew that the Mickey segment of this film would be a sure thing. The short stands out for another reason, maybe a reason some of us don’t know. Walt Disney had been the voice of Mickey Mouse ever since Steamboat Willy, but as age, smoking, and the workload at the studio caught up with Walt, he opted to give up the voice to someone else. Fun and Fancy Free marks the last time Walt Disney was the permanent voice of Mickey Mouse. Another interesting minor note is the film was cut down due to it’s combo with Bongo. The original story had Minnie Mouse giving Mickey the magic beans. Up to this point in the new millennium, almost 100 years of Disney full length animation, Minnie has never appeared in a feature length animated film, but she would have if Mickey and the Beanstalk was not shortened.
All in all, Fun and Fancy Free became a financial and critical success. That being said, the package films of the 1940s roll on to help fund the movies of the 1950s, but we aren’t there yet. We still have more films of the 40s to cover. Could I say Fun and Fancy Free is my favorite of the package films, no, in fact, it might be my personal choice for least favorite. It’s shortened stories seem to have burdened the possible full length features each of these two stories could have been, however the film is good and after doing some serious research, realize that this film played a significant role in Disney history.
What are your thoughts on Fun and Fancy Free? Have you seen the whole film or have you only seen it in segments? Leave your comments below and keep the conversation rolling.
Josh Taylor
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