more cartoons

cartoons

the jungle book

the year: 1967

the genre: animated


the plot: Bagheera the Panther and Baloo the Bear have a difficult time trying to convince the boy Mowgli to leave the jungle for human civilization.


did you know: that when Gregory Peck was the President of the Academy of Motion Pictures and Science, he tried his hardest to get a full-length animated feature film (most notably the The Jungle Book) not only nominated for Best Picture Academy Award but actually win the award. He resigned as President in 1970 when other members didn't agree with him about animated films being nominated for the award. It would be over 20 years later before the Academy would reconsider, allowing Beauty and the Beast to be nominated.


extra bonus points: if you know why the Beatles ended up not voicing The Vultures as suggested by their manager.


don't miss: "I Wanna Be Like You" with Louis Prima and Phil Harris' off the cuff scatting. Because of their busy band schedules, they recorded the song separately.

when you're sick...

Sorry I've been MIA this week. I've been under the weather.

Sadly, I was feeling so poorly that I didn't even feel like turning on the Tube. (I know - right on death's door!) But it got me thinking (in my semi-comatose state)...if I HAD had enough energy to move downstairs to the couch, what would I have watched...

The answer? Classic Looney Tunes.











Why? Could be the falling anvils, death ray guns, sound effects, Witch Hazel...hard to say.

Is there anything you watch that makes you feel better when you're under the weather?

the reluctant dragon

the year: 1941

the genre: comedy


The loose plot of the film features Robert Benchley trying to find (or, rather, avoid finding) Walt Disney so that he can, at the insistence of his wife, pitch to him the idea of making an animated version of the book by Kenneth Grahame. Dodging an overly officious studio guide named Humphrey, Benchley stumbles upon a number of the Disney studio operations and learns about the traditional animation process.



don't miss: the poetry slam. I still can't decide which one I like best...Sir Giles' Radish or the dragon's Upside-Down Cake.



did you know: the dragon was originally drawn with a navel which had to removed before the film could be passed, per the Hays Office censors.


Watch the entire piece (including Robert Benchley's tour of the Disney studio) here.

anastasia

the year: 1997

the genre: cartoon


the plot: The daughter of last Russian czar, Anastasia, is found by two Russian men, Dimitri and Vladimir, who seek reward that her grandmother Marie promised to the ones who'll find her. But evil genius of czar family Rasputin still wants Romanovs family to be destroyed forever.


listen for: "Just wishing I could do the job for you, sir. I'd give her a HA! And a HI-YA! And then a OUU-WA! And I'd kick her, sir."


don't miss: Bartok. Hank Azaria is a genuis.



extra bonus points: if you can name two of the famous people who make a "cameo" during the song "Paris Holds the Key to Your Heart".



also listen for: "What? Hey - why are you circling me? What were you, a vulture in another life?"


did you know: Composer David Newman's father Alfred Newman wrote the score for 1956's Anastasia.

the emperor's new groove

the year: 2000

the genre: comedy


the plot: The vain and cocky Emperor Kuzco is a very busy young man. Besides maintaining his "groove", and firing his suspicious administrator, Yzma, he's also planning to build a new waterpark just for himself for his birthday. However, this means destroying one of the villages in his kingdom. Meanwhile, Yzma is hatching a plan to get revenge and usurp the throne. But, in a botched assassination courtesy of Yzma's right-hand man, Kronk, Kuzco is magically transformed into a llama. Now, Kuzco finds himself the property of Pacha, a lowly llama herder whose home is ground zero for the water park. Upon discovering the llama's true identity, Pacha offers to help resolve the Emperor's problem and regain his throne, only if he promises to move his water park.


count: how many times Tipo says the word "great" when he says, "You know, I really don't believe you're my great aunt, you're more like my...",



don't miss: Theme Song Guy. The makers of the film originally wanted to get Sting to sing the opening song but he said he was too old, they need someone more hip and younger. So they went with Tom Jones. The irony? Sting is in his 50s, Jones is in his 60s.



watch for: the nod to Bob's Big Boy restaurants.



listen for: "Ah, how shall I do it? Oh, I know. I'll turn him into a flea, a harmless, little flea, and then I'll put that flea in a box, and then I'll put that box inside of another box, and then I'll mail that box to myself, and when it arrives...I'll smash it with a hammer! It's brilliant, brilliant, brilliant, I tell you! Genius, I say!...Or, to save on postage..."



did you also know: Patrick Warburton improvised Kronk's humming of his own theme song when he was carrying Kuzco in the bag to the waterfall. Disney legal department had Patrick to sign all rights to the humming composition over to them.



extra bonus points: if you share your favorite quote from this movie.


also listen for: "Squeaky, uh, squeak, sqeaker, squeakin'."