Bambi Grows Up

Walt Disney Productions, Random House, 1979

This book takes us from newborn fawn to young stag in the life of Bambi, the young prince. We meet his best pal, Thumper and we encounter a skunk called Flower. His mother explains how to behave when hunters are near and tells him about his father. We also meet Faline, his love interest and watch as Bambi challenges Ronno, a strange deer, for Faline. He's all grown up and his father "The Great Prince of the Forest" is proud.

In a small way this is a precurser to The Lion King without all the Hamlet. I adore the artwork in this book. I realize it's just "Disney," but that doesn't change the appeal for me... Nearly every picture is one I'd like to frame.

"Curious, and curiouser," said Alice.

Walt Disney Productions, Western Publishing Company, 1965

I am a huge Alice in Wonderland fan and so it stands to reason I would have some special feelings about this book. I have a lot of faves when it comes to the artwork in various editions of Lewis Carroll's story, but I'm not afraid to admit my love for this lovely print adaptation of the Disney film. The book seems like it should have a record to accompany it, because it is that Read Along record size but I don't see any mention of it on the intro page, or is there a pocket for the record in the back. With only 23 pages of text, it's frightfully abridged, but that just makes it a bite-size treat.

Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Walt Disney Productions, 1973

While this book club edition of Snow White is meant to be the official Disney character rendering I feel the images to be close but not quite. I actually really LOVE the way they look in this version. The opening illustration is depicted above but the other half of the scene is missing (sorry). I like the muted colors and dreamy quality present in the scenery. The evil queen is deliciously evil looking and the expressions on Snow White's face in the various pictures is probably my favorite part. For example, I love the look on her face as she and the little animals are busy doing the dishes.

We all know this version of the story and it took years before I discovered that in other versions Snow was visited multiple times by the Queen who offered her a corset and a poisoned comb as well. You think you'd learn by the third visit... Oh well.

One aspect of this Wonderful World of Disney series I love is the end pages. I should scan them every time I blog about one of these books, because they all make me so happy. This book features each of the seven dwarfs with their names beside them.

And they lived happily ever after...

Walt Disney Productions, 1967

In the Disney Bad Guys Hall of Fame, I'd say Malificent ranks highly. Cruella DeVille is pretty rotten. Madame Medusa would have my knees knocking, but Malificent takes the cake. Just look at those flames. Yowzers. Sleeping Beauty was one of my favorite Disney films until Beauty and the Beast came along and I saw in Belle a kindred spirit... a girl with her nose in a book dreaming of a world beyond her provincial life.

These illustrations are from the read-along record and for this one I actually still have the record. The three fairies are so sweet in this story and I love the sappy image on the last page... posted here for your viewing pleasure. And they lived happily ever after... with blue birds and chipmunks in lush green grass.... (of course it was kind of a bitch to have to walk all that way to and from the castle to frolic in that grass...)

Illustrated by Al White, Western Publishing Company, 1965

This is a Golden Super Shape Book with rather simplistic text, but pictures that are burned on my brain. I loved the mouse shaped swimming pool at Mickey's house, his cool blue convertible, and all his exciting "movie roles" as the book points out: cowboy, spaceman, swordsman. The book has a very limited plot. I think the story is... "meet Mickey, here's what his life is like." The book features some of the rest of the gang: Pluto, Minnie, Goofy, Donald Duck, and even his nephews, Mortie and Ferdie. The story ends with a big picnic on the beach.

Truly this book is nothing "special" but when I suddenly spotted this copy at the local thrift store, I didn't hesitate to shell out the 50 cents necessary to make it mine.

I've Got No Strings.

Walt Disney Productions, Random House, 1973

The origins of Pinocchio go far beyond the Disney film (1883 by Carlo Collodi). This book is simply a slice out of the film, however. The bit with the puppet show. Of course, that's all I can really remember of the story, and that might be explained by the fact that I have this book which I'm sure I read again and again.

I love the Italian names like Geppetto and Pinocchio and Stromboli (which actually just make me think of some kind of delicious food!) The animals were some of my favorite characters, however--Cleo, Figaro, and Jiminy Cricket.

The more I ponder this tale, the more I want to rewatch the film. I am suddenly remembering all the allusions in that sci fi Steven Spielberg/Kubrick film A.I. and how the blue fairy makes an appearance and how the little robot, David, longs to be "a real boy." It was all very nicely done. Of course, I am a huge fan of literary allusion.

Love the silhouette image of the three of them running home.

And With the Wolf At the Door

Peter and the Wolf
Walt Disney Productions retells Sergei Prokofiev's fairy tale
Random House, 1974

The story is a bit like The Penguin That Hated the Cold in that it was a film first. Walt Disney produced an animated version of the work in 1946, with Sterling Holloway providing the voice of the narrator. It was released theatrically as a segment in Make Mine Music, then re-issued the following year accompanying a re-issue of Fantasia (as a short subject before the film), then separately on home video in the 1990s.

I love the names of the characters: Peter, Sasha, Ivan, and Sonia. I was planning to feature this book soon, but for some reason it seemed appropriate today. In this story a young boy disregards the advice of his grandfather and with the help of some friends manages to catch a dangerous wolf with only a toy gun and his wits. It's a dangerous game and some might say it's a foolish one that almost cost Peter his friend. Still, it is also a story of a boy who is underestimated,and the odds were not in his favor and yet he never wavers and in the end he comes out on top.

On this inauguration day, we say hello to a new President and somehow, despite the dire forecast, the disastrous state of our nation, I have hope. I am counting on him and those in this new administration to be like Peter and to boldly venture out, to use innovation and intellect, and even a bit of bravado to get the job done. I am hoping we can banish those wolves in our midst.

He Flies Through the Air, With the Greatest of Ease...

That daring, cartoon mouse, on his flying trapeze!

We had one of these "Tricky Trapeze" toys made popular in the 1960s. Produced in Hong Kong by Kohner. I'm not sure if ours was of the 1960s or 1970s. It looked more like this and this is different from the earliest version. They made Goofy and Donal Duck versions too, as well as some Tricky Trapeze toys for various superheroes!

Sweet Sleep.

Bambi pillowcase, Walt Disney Productions

Such a Deer.

Bambi, Walt Disney Productions, 1941
from Bambi Gets Lost, text by Albert G. Miller,
Random House, 1972

I don't really remember seeing Bambi (1942--they rereleased some of these classics in the 70s. ) in the theatre but my mom said I hated it. HATED it. It made me cry all the way home. I was very upset, very sad and fairly inconsolable. At a slightly older age I felt the same about E. T.. I guess I was not a fan of a "good cry" when I was a kiddo.

Still, how can one NOT love this little guy? I mean, that picture of him sleeping is frameworthy. In this Wonderful World of Reading Disney book, Bambi goes out to play with Thumper, who knows more and is introducing him to the wonders of the forest. They promise to stay close to home but end up getting lost. I think my life long mental image of possums is based on an illustration from this book.

Even the end papers of this book are adorable.

I love that line "your eyesight is punk."
Of course I selected the picture because
it is wonderful of Thumper and I LOVE Flower.

Escape to Witch Mountain

This has to be one of my favorite childhood films. Escape to Witch Mountain is a 1975 Disney film based on a book by Alexander Key (book cover images below). I am guessing I saw the film on TV on the Wonderful World of Disney TV program that ran opposite 60 minutes so it was always a battle with my parents to be allowed to watch "our show." This was back when we had to turn the antenna on the top of the house to tune in one of our four main TV channels.

I read Key's book AFTER seeing the film and right now I really can't remember the book or any of its differences from the film.

Tony and Tia Castaway with Winkie and Mr. O'Day

Tony (Ike Eisenmann) and Tia (Kim Richards) are orphaned children who are placed in a juvenile center after their foster mother Mrs. Malone dies. They possess paranormal abilities. Tia can communicate using only her mind; she does this to speak to Tony and to animals and unlock doors with her mind.

One of the best scenes is when the kids are presented a puppet playset and Tony is able to make them work using his music. Using his harmonica he can access his powers of telekinesis and it both entertains them and saves them when they are locked up in the jail and he distracts the officer by creating a dancing coat rack that frightens the man into a corner.


Pictured here is Tia's "star case" with its hidden map the kids just discovered. They've been suppressing memories about their past and Tia begins to remember an Uncle Bene and a shipwreck of some kind. She remembers being rescued and that other people drowned. They use the map to flee the baddies who are chasing them for their powers and Mr. O'Day (Eddie Albert) is instrumental in helping them get there. One of the main bad guys is devilishly familiar now that I've seen all the James Bond films--Donald Pleasance plays Mr. Deranian.

Interesting fact I learned while creating this post:
Kim Richards is Paris Hilton's aunt.

In 2009, a new version of the film will release. I am not sure how I feel about this. Certainly it will NOT be as good as the beloved favorite from my youth. Heck, the beloved favorite seen today isn't as good as it was in my youth. Things rarely are. But I really did enjoy watching the 1975 version about a week ago at the gym. I barely noticed all the exercise I was getting while running on the treadmill. I was too captivated by the film as it aired on TCM. I didn't stick around to watch the sequel Return from Witch Mountain which introduces new bad guys--notably Bette Davis and Christopher Lee. I am guessing I will watch this 2009 movie when it makes its way to DVD.

Race to Witch Mountain (2009)

How Pablo, The Penguin Who Hated the Cold, Warmed a Heart

Walt Disney Studios, illustrator, Simon & Schuster, 1946

Meet Pablo the Penguin. An Antarctic penguin, living in an Eskimo-style igloo from the other end of the world, whose major motivation was to find warmth. This little book is the result of a little film made by Walt Disney in the 40s.

The telling of Pablo's story took place in The Three Caballeros, released Feb. 3, 1945. Like most Disney features of the 1940s, this wasn't a true feature, but consisted of several unrelated segments, of which Pablo starred in one.

Unlike other such features, however, this one had a tenuous plot thread tying it together, in which the caballeros of the title (Donald Duck, José Carioca and Panchito Pistoles) had an adventure together and unrelated tales, without which the story wouldn't have been nearly long enough to stand as a feature, got told as they did so. One of them introduced Donald to a recurring pestiferous antagonist, The Aracuan bird. Another was about an Argentine boy and his winged burro. Pablo's, inserted as a movie Donald watched, was titled The Cold-Blooded Penguin.

Rather than being acted out the regular way, this segment used only voice-over narration to accompany the animation. Thus, Pablo didn't speak, so nobody did his voice. The narrator was character actor none other than, Sterling Holloway.

The character of Chilly Willy, more or less a clone of Pablo, was later created by Walter Lantz of Woody Woodpecker fame.

Info taken and somewhat modified from Toonopedia.
Read the full article here.

The Little Golden Book version of this story was written by Robert Edmunds. It had alternating black and white and color pictures and much more text than the version I grew up knowing. I had a copy of The Penguin That Hated the Cold which was a board book produced in the 1970s as part of the Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Reading series.

All of this matters, at least a little, because about a week ago in our staff lounge Deb, our art teacher, was part of a discussion on beloved children's books and she mentioned a story about a penguin who wanted to be warm. She thought his name was Pablo. And instantly I knew. She told a story about how her sisters fought over the book and her middle sister won. Yes, even at 60, these books matter!

On the way back to class, another colleague suggested we try to find the book and so this celebration of Pablo began. I immediately ordered a copy of the book I had as a child but then we figured out that she probably had the Little Golden Book since that was the series we were discussing when she had her Pablo moment. So, to be safe, we ordered both. The look on her face when we presented her with her choice of books yesterday was priceless.


The Penguin That Hated the Cold,
adapted by Barbara Brenner,
Random House, 1973

This video cuts off the intro, but the other one can't be embedded. If you'd like to see the bits with Donald Duck at the very beginning click here.