I need to start this posting with a huge apology and an explanation. A while ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer. The surgeon explained that although my condition wasn’t curable it was undoubtedly treatable, and the treatment seems to be going pretty well. But it’s the reason I haven’t been posting for some time.
When I found I needed distraction during the time I was recovering from the operation, I discovered podcasts. Podcasts might be something that you’re familiar with but I certainly wasn’t. There’s a huge range of them available nowadays and the most recent series that I’ve enjoyed is about Walt Disney.
I had the impression that Walt Disney was a success from the word go, that he was always fabulously wealthy, and, from seeing him in TV Disney specials, self-assured and happy-go-lucky. Nothing could be further from the truth. His childhood had been both impoverished and far from happy. As an adult, Walt was constantly tormented about the value and the quality of the work he did. It’s a fascinating series and if, like me, you have a particular Walt Disney favourite, it’s well worth listening to, to see what was going on behind the scenes as it was created. You can find the series at https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds and search for Walt Disney: A Life in Films
One of the most fascinating realisations for me was the huge number of gifted artists or 'inkers' who were employed to bring the Disney characters to life by painstakingly hand drawing every minute change of movement. You can read more about them at https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2010/03/disney-animation-girls-201003.
The series of programs brought back so many vivid memories that it set me thinking about which of the Disney Films were my particular favourites.
I think I would have to start with Snow White.
Although Snow White was produced in 1937, it was 1954 before the film reached the small village cinema in Cheadle Hume. I was utterly captivated by everything that I saw on the screen and shouted to Snow White not to eat the poisoned apple that the wicked queen had given to her.
It was a complete shock to learn that although he had been making films since the 1920s, it wasn’t until his studio made Cinderella, a feature-length cartoon, in 1950, that Walt Disney was able to stop mortgaging his film rights and even his home, to get the loans he needed to cover the costs of his next film.
I’m vaguely aware of having seen all of the films listed at the bottom of this posting, but
only three are truly memorable to me. The first is 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. It was enthralling to watch Kirk Douglas battling with the giant squid.
The second was Old Yeller; I cried horribly when the faithful old dog was finally shot because there was no way that his rabies could be cured.
The banshee in Derby O’Gill and the Little People lived with me for weeks afterwards. I was terrified to go to bed at night in case the horrible monster came to carry me away.
(Did you notice the discreet mention of a future James Bond on the poster?)
Here's a list of some of the films you might have seen. What are your childhood memories of Disney?
1937: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (G) 1940: Pinocchio (G) 1940: Fantasia (G) 1941: Dumbo (G) 1942: Bambi (G) 1950: Cinderella (G) 1950: Treasure Island (PG) 1951: Alice in Wonderland (G) 1953: Peter Pan (G) 1954: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (G) 1955: Lady and the Tramp (G) 1957: Old Yeller (G) 1959: Sleeping Beauty (G) 1959: Darby O’Gill and the Little People (G)