I found a Top 100 Disney song countdown on UltimateDisney.com, an invaluable Web site to anyone wanting to know anything Disney related, including release dates, upcoming movies, cast lists, dvd special features, etc. I thought it would be fun to share. They asked site visitors to vote on 129 songs from live-action and animated Disney features and then compiled a list of the Top 100. Here are the results. Agree? Disagree? Anything Missing?
100) "Rumbly In My Tumbly" (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)
99) "The Three Caballeros" (The Three Caballeros)
98) "Painting the Roses Red" (Alice in Wonderland)
97) "Great Spirits" (Brother Bear)
96) "A Star is Born" (Hercules)
95) "Sing, Sweet Nightingale" (Cinderella)
94) "Best of Friends" (The Fox and the Hound)
92) (tie) "Forget About Love" (The Return of Jafar)
92) (tie) "Look Through My Eyes" (Brother Bear)
91) "The Age of Not Believing" (Bedknobs and Broomsticks)
90) "Pink Elephants on Parade" (Dumbo)
89) "I Will Go Sailing No More" (Toy Story)
88) "Little Black Rain Cloud" (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)
87) "Once Upon a Time in New York City" (Oliver & Company)
86) "Little Patch of Heaven" (Home on the Range)
85) "I've Got No Strings" (Pinocchio)
84) "Love" (Robin Hood)
83) "Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee (An Actor's Life for Me)" (Pinocchio)
82) "Strange Things" (Toy Story)
81) "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier)
80) "The Wonderful Thing about Tiggers" (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)
79) "He's a Tramp" (Lady and the Tramp)
78) "He Mele No Lilo" (Lilo & Stitch)
77) "I'm Wishing" (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
76) "Cinderella" (Cinderella)
75) "Give a Little Whistle" (Pinocchio)
74) "He Lives in You" (The Lion King II: Simba's Pride)
73) "All in the Golden Afternoon" (Alice in Wonderland)
72) "Son of Man" (Tarzan)
71) "Gaston" (Beauty and the Beast)
70) "True to Your Heart" (Mulan)
69) "Candle on the Water" (Pete's Dragon)
68) "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" (Lilo & Stitch)
67) "The Unbirthday Song" (Alice in Wonderland)
66) "Honor to Us All" (Mulan)
65) “Let’s Get Together” (The Parent Trap)
64) "I'm Still Here" (Treasure Planet)
63) "Portobello Road" (Bedknobs and Broomsticks)
62) “Strangers Like Me” (Tarzan)
61) “Zero to Hero” (Hercules)
60) “On My Way” (Brother Bear)
59) “Ev’rybody Wants to Be a Cat” (The Aristocats)
58) “Substituatiary Locomotion” (Bedknobs and Broomsticks)
57) “Bella Note” (Lady and the Tramp)
56) “Be Prepared” (The Lion King)
55) “In a World of My Own” (Alice in Wonderland)
54) “Winnie the Pooh” (The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)
53) “Why Should I Worry” (Oliver & Company)
52) “Poor Unfortunate Souls” (The Little Mermaid)
51) “Whistle While You Work” (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
50) "So This is Love" (Cinderella)
49) "Two Worlds" (Tarzan)
47) (tie) "Baby Mine" (Dumbo)
47) (tie) "Arabian Nights" (Aladdin)
46) "I Wonder" (Sleeping Beauty)
45) "What's This?" (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
44) "The Second Star to the Right" (Peter Pan)
43) "Out There" (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
42) "Just Around the Riverbend" (Pocahontas)
41) "Let's Go Fly a Kite" (Mary Poppins)
40) "God Help the Outcasts" (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
39) "You've Got a Friend in Me" (Toy Story)
38) "When She Loved Me" (Toy Story 2)
37) "If I Never Knew You" (Pocahontas)
36) "I'll Make a Man Out of You" (Mulan)
35) "Cruella De Vil" (101 Dalmatians)
34) "One Jump Ahead" (Aladdin)
33) "Something There" (Beauty and the Beast)
32) "Prince Ali" (Aladdin)
31) "The Bells of Notre Dame" (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
30) “Friend Like Me” (Aladdin)
29) “You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly!” (Peter Pan)
28) “Go the Distance” (Hercules)
27) “I Wan’na Be Like You” (The Jungle Book)
26) “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love)” (Hercules)
25) "Heigh Ho" (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
24) "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" (The Lion King)
23) "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (Mary Poppins)
22) "The Bare Necessities" (The Jungle Book)
21) "A Spoonful of Sugar" (Mary Poppins)
20) "Belle" (Beauty and the Beast)
19) "Feed the Birds (Tuppence a Bag)" (Mary Poppins)
18) "Chim Chim Cher-ee" (Mary Poppins)
17) "Hakuna Matata" (The Lion King)
16) "Someday My Prince Will Come" (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
15) "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes" (Cinderella)
14) "Reflection" (Mulan)
13) "You'll Be in My Heart" (Tarzan)
12) "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" (Song of the South)
11) "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" (The Lion King)
10) "Kiss the Girl" (The Little Mermaid)
9) "Colors of the Wind" (Pocahontas)
8) "Be Our Guest" (Beauty and the Beast)
7) "Once Upon a Dream" (Sleeping Beauty)
6) "Under the Sea" (The Little Mermaid)
5) "Part of Your World" (The Little Mermaid)
3) (tie) "When You Wish Upon a Star" (Pinocchio)
3) (tie) "Circle of Life" (The Lion King)
2) "Beauty and the Beast" (Beauty and the Beast)
1) "A Whole New World" (Aladdin)
If you made it through the whole list - I'm impressed! Notice anything about the top-25? Very heavy on the 'Fab 4' - Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin. Those were the best!
March 29, 2009
Upcoming Disney Releases
The following is the scheduled DVD release dates of the next few Disney movies:
March 2009: Pinocchio
March 2009: Bolt
March 2009: Lilo and Stitch
May 2009: A Bug's Life
June 2009: Black Cauldron
October 2009: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
March 2010: Fantasia
March 2010: Fantasia 2000
October 2010: Beauty and the Beast
Disney on Broadway: Current Shows
The Little MermaidDisney Theatrical produced its newest musical, "The Little Mermaid," based on the 1989 animated feature, in 2007. The show performed its pre-Broadway tryout in Denver in the summer and opened for previews in New York in November 2007. The show officially opened in January 2008. The show starred Sierra Boggess as Ariel, Eric Palmer as Prince Eric and Sherie Rene Scott as Ursula. The set and costume design attempts to create an underwater world, which is assisted by the cast's wearing of roller skates. As they roll across stage, it appears as if they are gliding or swimming.
The stage version features the same songs as in the movie, with a score by Alan Menken and lyrics by the late Howard Ashman. However, new songs were added with lyrics by Glenn Slater including "Human Stuff" performed by Scuttle, "Her Voice" performed by Prince Eric, and "The World Above" performed by Ariel. The show has had success over the last year and a half and shows no signs of closing within the short future. To watch part of the show, click the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RdrQy0j39E&feature=related
The Lion King
"The Lion King" based on the 1994 animated Disney feature opened on Broadway in November 1997 and has had critical and public success in the 12 years since. It has since opened in London and Toronto and has had several national tours, and is currently the ninth longest-running show on Broadway. "The Lion King" won six Tony awards: Best Musical, Best Scenic Design
, Best Costume Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Choreography and Best Director.
, Best Costume Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Choreography and Best Director. Elton John and Tim Rice wrote the score and lyrics for the stage version and animated version, adding new songs to the stage version, including "They Live in You," "The Morning Report," and "Shadowland." The role of Rafiki (the baboon) was changed to a female character in the stage version to provide a leading female character.
Many of the cast portraying animals in the production use extra 'tools' to move their costumes. For example, the giraffes are portrayed by actors carefully walking on stilts. The Lions use mechanical headpieces that can be raised and lowered to create illusions of cat-like behavior. Other characters, such as the hyenas, Zazu, Timon, and Pumbaa, are portrayed by actors in life-sized puppets or costumes.
"The Lion King" is probably the most successful Disney musical to date. To watch collage of scenes from the production click on the link below.
"The Lion King" is probably the most successful Disney musical to date. To watch collage of scenes from the production click on the link below.
March 18, 2009
Let's Get the Facts Straight
In honor of the recent release of the 70th anniversary edition of "Pinocchio" are the following fun facts about the film. If you like this type of post, let me know what other movies you'd like to know some trivia about.- When Pinocchio is changed into a real boy, his hands are transformed from three-fingered and white-gloved "Mickey Mouse" hands into four-fingered (plus thumb) human hands sans gloves. Wood-carver/dad Geppetto sports a full compliment of gnarly digits throughout this 1940 classic.
- Lampwick, the red-headed boy whom Pinocchio befriends at Pleasure Island is a caricature of Disney animator Fred Moore.
- The song from Pinocchio, "When You Wish Upon A Star" was ranked #7 in the 2004 American Film Institute's List of the "Top Movie Songs of All Time", the highest ranking song on the list among Disney animated films.
- As of June 2008, "Pinocchio" is ranked #2 on the American Film Institute's list of the 10 greatest films in the genre "Animation".
- On its first release, this movie was billed on posters as being filmed in "Multiplane Technicolor".
- "Pinocchio" gets its story from Carlo Collodi, who was really Carlo Lorenzini, a journalist who wrote children's stories. When he originally published "Pinocchio" in the form of a magazine serial, Lorenzini's intention was to kill Pinocchio by having him hang himself. At the suggestion of his editor, Lorenzini added chapters sixteen to thirty-two, giving the story a happy ending and creating the character of the Blue Fairy.
- The Blue Fairy in Pinocchio (as well as the prince in Snow White) was created by using the rotoscope technique.
- This was the first Disney feature available on DVD.
- The August 1993 issue of Playboy cited 43 instances of violence and other unfavorable behavior in this film, including 23 instances of battery, nine acts of property damage, three slang uses of the term "jackass", three acts of violence involving animals, two shots of male nudity, and one instance of implied death.
- The pool hall at Pleasure Island is in the shape of a giant eight ball with a tall cue-shaped structure standing nearby. This is a neat takeoff on the Trylon and the Perisphere at the 1939 New York World's Fair.
- Due to the war, the movie was not released in either Germany or Japan before the 1950s.
- During the musical number "When You Wish Upon A Star", when it shows a spotlight on Jiminy Cricket, you are able to see two books to the left of the screen. The names of the books are Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland. Walt Disney would come to create these stories for the big screen in the future.
Thanks to imdb.com for the trivia!
Rapunzel, Rapunzel Let Down Your Hair
It's official. Disney's continuing with the fairy tale. After releasing "The Princess and the Frog" this December, a film adapted from the fairy tale, "The Frog Prince," Disney will continue with an animated verison of the Grimm's fairy tale, "Rapunzel." Although presented in CGI animation, Rapunzel will attempt to resemble hand-drawn animation. How they do that, I don't know - why not hand-draw it so it actually looks like it's hand-drawn.
Originally, "Rapunzel" was to be directed by Glen Keane, an acclaimed animator responsible for much of the animation sequences in "Aladdin," "Little Mermaid," and "Tarzan." However, in October 2008, Keane announced he was stepping down and the directors of "Bolt" would be taking over (hopefully not taking over his vision of having the film not look like computer animation). Voices include Broadway talent Kristin Chenoweth as Rapunzel, Dan Fogler as Prince Bastion and David Schwimmer (from Friends) as Father Sam/Mr. Sunton. The film is expecting a Christmas 2010 release date.
Disney on Broadway: Past Shows
Beauty and the Beast
In March 1994, Walt Disney Theatrical Productions, took its adaptation of the animated feature "Beaut
y and the Beast" to Broadway. The musical, with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice ran for 5, 464 performances, closing in 2007 as Broadway's sixth-longest running production. The musical's rights have recently been released, making this Disney musical a hit with high schools and community theater groups.
y and the Beast" to Broadway. The musical, with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice ran for 5, 464 performances, closing in 2007 as Broadway's sixth-longest running production. The musical's rights have recently been released, making this Disney musical a hit with high schools and community theater groups. While the story closely follows the animated hit, new songs were added, including "Home," "If I Can't Love Her," and "A Change in Me." Some notable Belle stars included: Susan Egan as the original Belle (Egan was also the voice of Meg in Disney's animated "Hercules"), Toni Braxton, Christy Carlson Romano, and Kerry Butler.
To watch excerpts from the Broadway production follow the links below:
Tarzan
The Broadway production of the Disney's "Tarzan" opened on May 10, 2006. Featuring music by Phil Collins, Tarzan never really did well at the box office, and closed a year later in
July 2007 after 486 performances. The show was nominated for a Tony award for Best Lighting Design in a Musical and had fantastic special effects, but audiences didn't take to it the way they had other Broadway Disney productions. No real notable names appeared in the production and although other productions of "Tarzan" have appeared in countries such as Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands, a tour has yet to appear in the United States.
July 2007 after 486 performances. The show was nominated for a Tony award for Best Lighting Design in a Musical and had fantastic special effects, but audiences didn't take to it the way they had other Broadway Disney productions. No real notable names appeared in the production and although other productions of "Tarzan" have appeared in countries such as Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands, a tour has yet to appear in the United States. I know people made fun of this production, but I saw it and I must say I enjoyed it. Of course, I like Phil Collins songs and didn't expect too much from a script written for 5 year olds. However, the special effects, set design, costume design, and scenic design were absolutely phenomenal, making up for a lacking story and acting. Below is a link featuring snippets from the show. Check it out:
March 7, 2009
Where have all the parents gone?
I’ve always thought it was weird that most Disney main characters either have only one parent or no parents. Or, if they have parents, something happens where they are taken away from them or a parent dies. Is this the result of some complex Walt Disney had? Here are some of the ones I can think of. If I’m missing some, let me know!
ORPHANED
Snow White – no parents, lives with evil step-mother
Aladdin – street rat, no parents (although technically he finds his dad in “Aladdin and the King of Thieves” but never knew him growing up)
Cinderella – parents dead, forced to live with step-mother and step-sisters
Arthur (The Sword and the Stone) – orphaned
Mowgli – orphan, raised by wolves
Penny (The Rescuers) – orphan
Tod (The Fox and the Hound) – orphan
Tarzan – no parents, both die while he’s a baby
Oliver – orphaned kitten
Lewis (Meet the Robinsons) – orphan, but adopted at the end of the movie
Lilo, Nani – mother dies, leaves them orphaned
Bambi – mother dies, leaves him orphaned, as his dad is never around
Quasimodo – mother is killed, leaves him orphaned
Peter Pan - no parents
JUST A MOM
Dumbo – had a mom, but taken away from her
Aristocats – just a mom
Andy (Toy Story) – no dad
Roo (Winnie the Pooh) – just a mom
JUST A DAD
Pinocchio - no mom, Gepetto becomes his dad
Belle – no mom, just ‘crazy ol’ Maurice’
Jasmine – no mom, only Sultan father
Olivia (The Great Mouse Detective) – no mom
Pocahontas – no mom, chief dad
Ariel – no mom, just King Triton dad
Nemo – no mom, just a dad
Jane (Tarzan) – just a dad
PARENT DIES LEAVING ONE PARENT
Simba – dad dies, mom still alive
TAKEN FROM PARENTS
Sleeping Beauty – taken from parents, raised by fairies
Dalmations – have two parents but are stolen from them
FULL PARENTAGE
Hercules – has two real parents and two adoptive parents
Lady – two owners (Jim Dear and Darling)
Wendy, John, Michael (Peter Pan) – two parents
Mulan – two parents
ORPHANED
Snow White – no parents, lives with evil step-mother
Aladdin – street rat, no parents (although technically he finds his dad in “Aladdin and the King of Thieves” but never knew him growing up)
Cinderella – parents dead, forced to live with step-mother and step-sisters
Arthur (The Sword and the Stone) – orphaned
Mowgli – orphan, raised by wolves
Penny (The Rescuers) – orphan
Tod (The Fox and the Hound) – orphan
Tarzan – no parents, both die while he’s a baby
Oliver – orphaned kitten
Lewis (Meet the Robinsons) – orphan, but adopted at the end of the movie
Lilo, Nani – mother dies, leaves them orphaned
Bambi – mother dies, leaves him orphaned, as his dad is never around
Quasimodo – mother is killed, leaves him orphaned
Peter Pan - no parents
JUST A MOM
Dumbo – had a mom, but taken away from her
Aristocats – just a mom
Andy (Toy Story) – no dad
Roo (Winnie the Pooh) – just a mom
JUST A DAD
Pinocchio - no mom, Gepetto becomes his dad
Belle – no mom, just ‘crazy ol’ Maurice’
Jasmine – no mom, only Sultan father
Olivia (The Great Mouse Detective) – no mom
Pocahontas – no mom, chief dad
Ariel – no mom, just King Triton dad
Nemo – no mom, just a dad
Jane (Tarzan) – just a dad
PARENT DIES LEAVING ONE PARENT
Simba – dad dies, mom still alive
TAKEN FROM PARENTS
Sleeping Beauty – taken from parents, raised by fairies
Dalmations – have two parents but are stolen from them
FULL PARENTAGE
Hercules – has two real parents and two adoptive parents
Lady – two owners (Jim Dear and Darling)
Wendy, John, Michael (Peter Pan) – two parents
Mulan – two parents
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