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Sunday, October 27, 2019

Original Production Animation Cels of Toby and Basil of Baker Street, Olivia Flaversham, & Dr. David Q. Dawson from "The Great Mouse Detective," 1986


Original hand painted production animation cels of Toby and Basil of Baker Street, Olivia Flaversham, & Dr. David Q. Dawson set on a lithographic background from "The Great Mouse Detective," 1986, Walt Disney Studios; Disney seal lower left; With original Walt Disney certificate; Size - Toby, Basil, Dawson, & Olivia: 3 1/4" x 5 1/2"; Image: 11 x 15 1/2"; Unframed.

To purchase this cel or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE!

Eve Titus wrote a series of stories about Basil of Baker Street; a mouse that lived next door to Sherlock Holmes and who shared many of his skills and traits. Walt Disney Studios adapted the Titus stories into a wonderful feature film that was still able to maintain the Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes characters, even though they were transformed into a mouse world. The famed actor Vincent Price was the voice of the film's villain, Ratigan; and the film has a very strong fan following. 


Original production animation cel of Toby without the background.


Original production animation cel of Basil of Baker Street, Olivia Flaversham, & Dr. David Q. Dawson without the background.


Close up of the Disney seal lower left.


Original Walt Disney certificate.

Toby, the basset hound, is one of the great Disney Dogs! He is lovable, fun, rolls on his back for scratching, and like all dogs works for food; specifically cheese crumpets. Toby is also obedient and being a hound dog, he is great at tracking. In this scene; Basil, Dr. Watson, and Olivia are off to track down the whereabouts of Olivia's father; and you can see them on Toby's back near his collar, with Basil holding onto the end of leash hook. This is an outstanding cel of Toby, he is full figure, eyes open, and he has his nose to the ground trying to pick up the scent of his prey. A fantastic contemporary cel setup, full of action, and just perfect for any animation art collection!

Original Production Animation Cels of Snow White and Two Birds from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937


Original hand painted and hand inked production animation cels of Snow White and Two Birds from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937, Walt Disney Studios; Set on an airbrushed Courvoisier background; Partial Courvoisier label verso; Size - Snow White: 7 3/4 x 2 3/4", Image 10 1/2 x 6 1/2", Mat 18 1/2 x 14"; Matted in the original Courvoisier calligraphy titled and embossed ©WDE mat.


“Lips red as the rose. Hair black as ebony. Skin white as snow.”
―The Magic Mirror describing Snow White

Development on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs began in early 1934, and by June Walt Disney announced to The New York Times the production of his first feature, to be released under Walt Disney Productions. Before Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the Disney studio had been primarily involved in the production of animated short subjects in the Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies series. However, Disney hoped to expand his studio's prestige and revenues by moving into features, and he estimated that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs could be produced for a budget of $250,000 (this was ten times the budget of an average Silly Symphony).

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was to be the first full-length cel animated feature in motion picture history, and as such Walt Disney had to fight to get the film produced. Both his brother and business partner Roy Disney, as well as his wife Lillian attempted to talk him out of it.  The Hollywood movie industry mockingly referred to the film, while is was in production, as "Disney's Folly."  Disney ended up having to mortgage his house to help finance the film's production, which would eventually ran up to a total cost of $1,488,422.74; an absolutely massive sum for a feature film in 1937!


Matted original production animation cels of Snow White and Two Birds.


Close up of the the original Courvoisier calligraphy title.


Close up of the embossed ©WDE mat.

A large number of actresses auditioned for the voice of Snow White. Walt Disney listened to each audition in his office while the actress performed in another room, without any knowledge of the actress' appearance or reputation. This would insure that he would only judge based on the sound of the voice. According to later accounts, most of the voices Disney felt, did not sound young enough. Eventually, in September of 1935, Adriana Caselotti was chosen for the voice of Snow White. Caselotti was eighteen at the time and made her coloraturo soprano sound younger, knowing that the character was intended to be 14 years old. In recording sessions Caselotti found difficulty in the line, "Grumpy, I didn't know you cared"; instead of "didn't", Caselotti was only able to say "din". After rehearsing the line many times, Walt Disney eventually said "Oh, the heck with..." and "din'" remained in the final film.

Snow White's design was supervised by Grim Natwick, an animator who had previously developed and worked on Betty Boop at Fleischer Studios. It is interesting to note that early designs for the Snow White resemble Betty Boop, and some appear to be caricatures of famous actresses of the time. As development continued, Snow White became more and more lifelike. Another animator, Hamilton Luske's first designs for Snow White depicted her as a slightly awkward, gangly teenager. However, Walt Disney had a different idea in mind; he wanted Snow White to be older, and more realistic-looking. This was achieved by the use of live-action references for the animators. Also, in order for Snow White to better relate onscreen to the seven Dwarfs, it was decided that her head be slightly larger than normal. In addition, the women in the animation studio's ink and paint department felt that Snow White's black hair was too unnatural and harsh, so they drybrushed whisps of light grey over the top of each and every cel.


Back of the matted original production animation cels of Snow White and Two Birds.


Close up of the partial Courvoisier label verso.

This particular cel setup is from one of the most memorable scenes in the film, when Snow White dressed in rags is at a well filling a wooden bucket with water. The scene begins when, Snow White talking to a group of white doves standing on the ledge of the well, says "Want to know a secret? Promise not to tell? We are standing by a wishing well." She quickly goes into the famous song, "I'm Wishing" with music and lyrics by Frank Churchill and Larry Morey. At the end of the song, when Snow White standing on the edge of the well is singing into the well and hearing her echo. Suddenly the Prince appears next to her singing the last word of the song, "Today." Snow White surprised, runs back into the Queen's castle, looks at her rag clothing, attempts to fix her hair, and then walks onto a balcony as the Prince concludes the song. This is an absolutely stunning setup, with Snow White standing almost eight inches tall, as she is preparing to walk onto the stone balcony. This is one the largest Courvoisier pieces I have ever offered for sale and would be a highlight to any vintage animation art collection!

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Original Production Animation Cels of Lady and Tramp from "Lady and the Tramp," 1955


Original hand inked and hand painted production cels of Lady and Tramp set on a custom hand-painted background from "Lady and the Tramp," 1955, Walt Disney Studios; With a custom painted overlay cel of the tablecloth, spaghetti, candle, and breadsticks; Size - Lady and Tramp: 5 1/4 x 7", Image 10 3/4 x 15"; Unframed.

To purchase this cel or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE!

"Oh, this is the night, it's a beautiful night, and we call it bella notte"  - Tony

"Lady and the Tramp" (released on June 22, 1955) is a full length featured animated film produced by Walt Disney and released by Buena Vista Distribution. The film was the 15th in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, and it was the first animated feature filmed in with the CinemaScope widescreen film process. The film was based on the story "Happy Dan, The Whistling Dog" by Ward Greene and tells the story of a female American Cocker Spaniel named Lady who lives with a refined, upper-middle-class family. Lady meets a male stray mutt named Tramp and they embark on many exciting and romantic adventures.

One evening in 1937, Disney storyman Joe Grant invited Walt Disney over to his house for dinner and ended up showed Disney a drawing he had made of his pet springer spaniel, who was named Lady. Walt loved the drawing and suggested that Joe make a storyboard out of it; which he did and the plan was to create a new animated film, simply titled "Lady." The story that was pitched ended up being too simplistic to Walt Disney's taste, and the project was put on hold until about 20 years later.

Lady was wonderfully animated by the great Disney artist Ollie Johnston and she was voiced by Barbara Luddy. Barbara Luddy (1908 — 1979) was an American actress from Great Falls, Montana and she starred in silent pictures in the 1920s. She was also a prolific radio performer; known for her performances on the long running radio show "The First Nighter Program" which aired from 1936 until 1953.

However, Luddy is perhaps best remembered for her voice work in Walt Disney animated films; with her most memorable role being that of Lady from Lady and the Tramp.  She also performed in Sleeping Beauty (voice of Merryweather), One Hundred and One Dalmatians (voice of Rover), Robin Hood (voice of both Mother Church Mouse and the Mother Rabbit), and the Winnie-the-Pooh featurettes (Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too) all of which she provided the voice for Kanga.
 
Initially Tramp was called Homer and although he was first conceived as Lady's suitor, he ended up as her ex-dog pound mate in the initial 1943 storyboard pitch. A few years after that version was scrapped, Walt Disney read a story called "Happy Dan the Cynical Dog" in Cosmopolitan Magazine and decided that this was they type of character that was needed to enhance the film. Although Walt wanted his new character to be called Tramp, the animators feared that audiences would take offense in such a name, due to the word's sexual connotations that had been popularized by the song "The Lady Is A Tramp." The animators first called the character Rags, then Bozo; before Walt insisted that that name Tramp would be acceptable.

Tramp is a very laid-back dog and acts more like a kid. He's flirtatious and has history of having had a multitude of girlfriends; and he's known for his street smarts, able to both avoid dog catchers and deal with junkyard dogs. However, he dreams about living with a family and in a loving home. Tramp was animated by Ollie Johnston, Milt Kahl, and Wolfgang Reitherman who animated the rat fight scene. Larry Roberts (1926 - 1992), an American voice actor and comedian who was most active in the 1950s, is best remembered for his role as the voice of Tramp.

Although the spaghetti eating sequence is the best known in the entire film, Walt Disney was prepared to cut it; because he thought it would look both silly and not be romantic. However, animator Frank Thomas was against Walt's decision and took it upon himself to animate the entire scene, without the use of lay-outs. Walt was so impressed by Thomas's work, that he kept the scene in the film.

The spaghetti scene is usually referred to as the "Bella Notte" scene because of the romantic love song "Bella Notte" that is first sung by a chorus in the opening credits; and then by Tony and Joe while Lady and Tramp eat spaghetti together while on a romantic, moonlit date. The song was written by Peggy Lee and Sony Burke, and has become an iconic love song. The animated spaghetti sequence is one of the most unforgettable Disney moments ever created.

This is a large and wonderful original production animation cel setup of Lady and Tramp from the famous "Bella Notte" scene. Lady and Tramp are sitting at Tony's specially set table, with the plate of Joe prepared spaghetti in front of them. Both dogs are eyes open; with Tramp having spaghetti hanging from his mouth and Lady with a beautiful smile. This is just a stunning piece of animation history and certainly would be the highlight for any animation art collection!

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Original Production Animation Cel of Winnie The Pooh and Tigger from "Winnie The Pooh and The Blustery Day," 1968


Original hand painted production animation cel of Winnie The Pooh and Tigger set on a lithographic background from "Winnie The Pooh and The Blustery Day," 1968; Walt Disney Studios; With original Walt Disney Art Corner label sticker verso; Size - Winnie The Pooh & Tigger: 5 x 7", Image 7 3/4 x 9 3/4", Mat 12 x 14"; Single matted.

To purchase this cel or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE! 

"Who are you?" - Tigger
"I'm Pooh." - Pooh
"Oh, Pooh, sure. What's a Pooh?" - Tigger
"You're sitting on one." - Pooh
"I am? Oh, well, glad to meet you! I'm new around here name's Tigger. T I double Ga eR. That spells Tigger." - Tigger

"The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh," 1977 was composed of a series of featurettes Disney produced based upon the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. Walt Disney wanted to introduce the public to the Pooh characters slowly over time and the released featurettes include, "Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree," 1966, "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day." 1968, and "Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too," 1974. For the full length film in 1977, extra material was added and used to link the three featurettes together. A fourth, shorter featurette was added at the end of the film and was based on the final chapter of "The House at Pooh Corner."

Wolfgang Reitherman began working for Walt Disney in 1934, along with future Disney legends Ward Kimball and Milt Kahl. The three worked together on a number of early classic Disney shorts and Reitherman worked on Disney feature films produced from 1937 to 1981, including "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (animating the Slave in the Magic Mirror) up to "The Fox and the Hound," where he served as the co-producer for the film. Beginning with 1961's "One Hundred and One Dalmatians," "Woolie" (as he was called by friends) served as Disney's chief animation director.

One of Reitherman's productions, the 1968 short "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day," won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. In addition, all three of Reitherman's sons — Bruce, Richard, and Robert provided voices for Disney characters. Bruce Reitherman was the voice for Christopher Robin in "Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree."


Matted original production animation cel of Winnie The Pooh and Tigger.


Back showing the original Art Corner label.

Winnie The Pooh was animated by veteran Walt Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston and was voiced by Sterling Holloway. Halloway had a long and distinguished career with Disney and not only provided the voice for Winnie The Pooh, but the Cheshire Cat from "Alice In Wonderland," Kaa from "The Jungle Book," Roquefort from "The Aristocats," and many more characters!

Tigger is one of the most loved characters in the Walt Disney pantheon! It is practically impossible to find anyone who does not love him. In the case of the Pooh stories, there were no real Villains; the closest thing would be Rabbit, who was the main antagonist. However, Tigger was simply fun loving and without question had some the best lines such as "The name's Tigger! T-I-double-guh-ER! That spells Tigger!" Tigger also has one of the best songs, "The Wonderful Thing about Tiggers."

Tigger was animated by one of the greatest Disney animators ever, Milt Kahl and voiced by Paul Winchell. Winchell was a ventriloquist, actor, and comedian who would later  provide the voice of Gargamel and Dick Dastardly. Winchell appeared in acting roles on numerous TV shows from the 1950's on through the 1970's. What many people do not know is that Paul Winchell, who had some medical training and was also an inventor; became the first person to build and patent a mechanical artificial heart which was implantable in the chest cavity. He was also honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for all of his work in television.

"Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day," 1968 is a film that combined live-action and hand painted cel animation. It was released by The Walt Disney Company, directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, and was based on the third, fifth, ninth, and tenth chapters of the book "Winnie-the-Pooh" by A. A. Milne. The film won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1968. Music and lyrics were written by the Sherman Brothers (Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman); with background music provided by Buddy Baker. Sterling Holloway provided the voice of Winnie The Pooh and Ralph Wright was the voice of Eeyore.

This is a spectacular cel of both a bouncy Tigger and Winnie The Pooh. Pooh had been kept awake by wind and strange sounds outside his house and opens his door, still in his night shirt and sleeping cap, to find Tigger. This is Tigger's first appearance on film and both characters are full figure. The cel occurs after Tigger bounces Pooh for the very first time and the diaolgue it below:

"Who are you?" - Tigger
"I'm Pooh." - Pooh
"Oh, Pooh, sure. What's a Pooh?" - Tigger
"You're sitting on one." - Pooh
"I am? Oh, well, glad to meet you! I'm new around here name's Tigger. T I double Ga eR. That spells Tigger." - Tigger
This is hands down the finest original cel of Pooh and Tigger I have ever offered for sale, an absolutely beautiful piece of animation art, and is perfect for any collection!

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Original Production Animation Cels of Prince John, Sir Hiss, and The Sheriff of Nottingham from "Robin Hood," 1973


Original hand painted production animation cels Prince John & Sir Hiss and The Sheriff of Nottingham set on a lithographic background from "Robin Hood," 1973; Walt Disney seal lower right; Production numbers in ink lower cel edges; Size - Prince John, Sir Hiss, and The Sheriff of Nottingham: 7 1/4 x 10 1/4"; Image 8 3/4 x 15 1/2"; Unframed.

To purchase this cel or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE!

"Squeeze every last drop out of those insolent musical peasants." - Prince John

The history of Robin Hood is that he is a heroic outlaw from English folklore who, according to legend, was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. He is usually depicted dressed in green, leads a band of Merry Men, and his motto is "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor." Robin Hood has became a popular folk figure, with ballads dating back to as early as the 15th century.

"Robin Hood" was the twenty-first full length animated film released by Walt Disney Studios on November 8, 1973. Robin Hood is an anthropomorphic fox and the protagonist of the film. Although Robin Hood is often shown as an outlaw who chooses to rob from the rich to help the poor people, in this Disney animated version, he is shown mainly attacking Prince John and his agents (Sir Hiss and the Sheriff of Nottingham), who have impoverished Nottingham with high taxes. Robin Hood and Little John steal the tax caravans and give it back to the peasants while trying to avoid capture.


Original production animation cel of Prince John and Sir Hiss without the background.


Original production animation cel of The Sheriff of Nottingham without the background.


Close up of the Walt Disney seal.

All the characters in Disney's version of "Robin Hood" were played by animals. Prince John was a lion, Sir Hiss (no surprise) was a snake, and the Sheriff of Nottingham was a wolf. Prince John is a spoiled King who will resort to any underhanded trick so that he can maintain the crown and throne of Nottingham; and was voiced by the great and deep voiced Peter Ustinov. Sir Hiss was voiced by Terry-Thomas (who's hissing speech was masterful), and both were animated by Ollie Johnston. The on-screen presence of the two together is just wonderful and Johnston's animation skills, at this point, are top notch! The personalities are different and distinct, as are the ways the two different characters move and interact. Kaa from a prior film "Jungle Book," 1967 must have been a nice starting point, in order to allow Sir Hiss to show more emotion and expression through the use of not only his face and head, but his tail.

The Sheriff of Nottingham was voiced by Pat Buttram and animated by Milt Kahl.  Pat Buttram's voice was just so wonderful and he had an extraordinary career.  He was Gene Autry's sidekick and I remember him as Mr. Haney in the television show "Green Acres."  He voiced several characters for Disney Studios including Napoleon the hound dog in "The Aristocats" and the evil and cruel Sheriff of Nottingham.

In this cel set-up, Prince John is furious over the mocking song about him:

Sheriff of Nottingham: "But, but Sire, it's a big hit. The whole village is singing it."
Prince John: "Oh, they are, are they? Well, they'll be singing a different tune. Double the taxes! Triple the taxes!"
[grabs Sir Hiss by the neck]
Prince John: "Squeeze every last drop out of those insolent musical peasants."

A spectacular eyes and mouth open hand painted animation two cel setup of all three of the villains of the film, and a great addition to any animation art collection!

Original Production Animation Cels of Maleficent and Diablo from "Sleeping Beauty," 1959


Original hand painted and hand inked production animation cels of Maleficent's Body, Maleficent's Arm & Staff, and Diablo set on a lithographic background from "Sleeping Beauty," 1959, Walt Disney Studios; Production numbers in ink lower cel edges; Size - Maleficent & Diablo: 9 x 6 1/2", Image 11 x 13 1/2"; Unframed.


"I really felt quite distressed at not receiving an invitation." - Maleficent
I really felt quite distressed|at not receiving an invitation.

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=sleeping-beauty-1959I - Maleficent

"Sleeping Beauty" is a Walt Disney animated full length feature film and was based on "The Sleeping Beauty" by Charles Perrault and "Little Briar Rose" by The Brothers Grimm. The film was the sixteenth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, and it was released to theaters on January 29, 1959 by Buena Vista Distribution. This was to be the last Disney adaptation of a fairy tale for many years, both because of its initial mixed critical reception, and because of it's under performance at the box office. The Walt Disney studio did not return to the fairy tale genre until 30 years later, with the release of "The Little Mermaid" in 1989.

"Sleeping Beauty" was directed by Les Clark, Eric Larson, and Wolfgang Reitherman, under the supervision of Clyde Geronimi. The story was written by Joe Rinaldi, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Ted Sears, Ralph Wright, and Milt Banta. The film's musical score and songs, featuring the Graunke Symphony Orchestra, was under the direction of George Bruns. Arrangements and/or adaptations were derived from numbers from the 1890 "Sleeping Beauty Ballet" by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. In addition, Igor Stravinsky's music compositions were also adapted into the film. "Sleeping Beauty" was the first animated film to be photographed in the Super Technirama 70 widescreen process, as well as the second full-length animated feature film to be filmed in anamorphic widescreen; following "Lady and the Tramp" four years earlier. In select first-run engagements, the film was presented in Super Technirama 70 and 6-channel stereophonic sound.


Original production animation cel sof Maleficent and Diablo without the background.

The style for "Sleeping Beauty" was based on the art of Eyvind Earle, who was known for his 'Pre-Renaissance' style; accomplished with strong vertical lines combined with Gothic elegance. Earle was involved with the design of all the characters in the film, and he designed and painted most of the backgrounds. The early sketches for Maleficent depicted a hag-like witch, however it was later decided that her final design should be more elegant; as it better suited Earle's backgrounds. The principal animator for Maleficent, Marc Davis, decided to make Maleficent a powerful fairy rather than an old crone that had been described in the original source material. A contributing factor for this decision may have been influenced by the choice of Eleanor Audley to be the voice of the character. Audley had previously worked for Disney by providing the voice for the cold and calculating Lady Tremaine (The Stepmother) in "Cinderella." It is known that Frank Thomas who animated Lady Tremaine and Marc Davis who animated Maleficent, incorporated the facials features of Eleanor into both characters. Audley was also the live-action model for Maleficent, and Marc Davis claimed that her movements and expressions were ultimately incorporated into the animation.


Original production animation cel of Maleficent's Body without the background.


Original production animation cel of Maleficent's Arm and Staff without the background.



Original production animation cel of Diablo without the background.
Marc Davis's design for Maleficent's costume was inspired by a book on Medieval art. One of the images featured was that of a religious figure with long robes, the ends of which resembled flames. Davis incorporated this into Maleficent's final design, and he based the sides of her headdress on the wings of a bat, and the top of her headdress on the horns of a devil. If you ask people to name their favorite Disney Villain, chances are you will one of three answers; The Evil Queen/Witch from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," Cruella DeVil from "One hundred and One Dalmatians," or Maleficent from "Sleeping Beauty." Two of the three, Cruella and Maleficent, were created and drawn by the great Walt Disney animator Marc Davis.

This three cel setup is from the scene when Maleficent appears in King Stefan's castle just as the Three Good Fairies are bestowing spell gifts on the new baby Princess Aurora. This is a rare untrimmed matched three cel setup of Maleficent, the Mistress of all evil; and her pet raven Diablo. While looking at the King and Queen she says "I really felt quite distressed at not receiving an invitation." A beautiful piece of vintage Walt Disney history and a centerpiece to any animation art collection!