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Sunday, December 15, 2024

Original Production Animation Cel of Madame Medusa from "The Rescuers," 1977

Original hand painted production animation cel of Madame Medusa from "The Rescuers," 1977, Walt Disney Studios; Set on a lithographic background; Numbered 27 in ink lower right; Size - Madame Medusa: 8 1/2 x 7", Image 9 1/4 x 15 3/4"; Unframed.

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

"The Rescuers" is an animated feature film produced by Walt Disney Productions; and was released on June 22, 1977 by Buena Vista Distribution. The film is based on a series of books by Margery Sharp, most notably "The Rescuers and Miss Bianca." The 23rd film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film is about the Rescue Aid Society; an international mouse organization headquartered in New York; and shadowed the United Nations. The Rescue Aid Society, a mouse based group, was dedicated to helping abduction victims around the world at large. Two of these mice, jittery janitor Bernard (voiced by Bob Newhart) and his co-agent, the elegant Miss Bianca (voiced by Eva Gabor), set out to rescue Penny, an orphan girl being held prisoner in the Devil's Bayou by treasure huntress Madame Medusa.

Early designs for Medusa were done by Ken Anderson, there were even discussions about bringing back Cruella deVil from "101 Dalmatians" as the villain; but that was eventually abandoned. The character of Medusa was eventually created and although there are many similarities with Cruella (thin build, similar cars, appear wealthy, bad tempers, cry upon realizing that they have lost, etc.), Medusa is still quite distinct with her wild red hair, sagging breasts, green eyes, and lots and lots of makeup. Her ultimate goal in the film is to possess the Devil's Eye, the world's largest diamond. Milt Kahl was given the task of animating Medusa and it is known that one his inspirations was his ex-wife. Kahl's brilliance in animation is really showcased with this character and many point to the scene where she is removing her false eyelashes as proof of his technical skill.

The next three paragraphs are from veteran Walt Disney animator Andreas Deja:
"When Milt Kahl was asked in an interview if he had a favorite character he animated, his response was: "Oh I enjoyed a few, I just loved doing Madame Mim, Shere Khan was a lot of fun, and so were the butler and old lawyer in 'Aristocats'. But I guess I enjoyed Medusa more than any one of them." And it shows. His last animation assignment at Disney -just like Marc Davis's- was a tour de force of character acting. It has a "I'm going to give it all" feel to it.

Marc told me that Milt promised him, Medusa will "wipe his Cruella off the screen". Then he added with a chuckle: "Of course that didn't happen". So there was definitely a friendly competition going on between these two great animators and their characters. Milt sort of designed Medusa's features opposite from Cruella's.  Cruella  has a small nose, Medusa's is longer. Cruella's hair parts in the middle, Medusa's off to one side. Cruella has a pointy jaw, Medusa is almost chin less etc.

I have to admit, when I first saw Medusa in "The Rescuers" in a London theater, I couldn't believe my eyes. So much inventiveness in her drawing and motion. How on earth can you show an animated character removing her make up? Wasn't that something only a live actress could pull off...but in animation? Incredible! I have spent way too much time studying this character, on the other hand I think I got a lot out of it. Dialogue, graphic but dimensional drawing and just being gutsy in general."
This is a spectacular cel of Madam Medusa! She is eyes open and smiling. Both of her hands are visible in this very large image, and a towel is wrapped around her hair. A great piece of Disney animation artwork, perfect for any collection!

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Thursday, December 5, 2024

Original Production Animation Drawing of Ariel and Ursula's Hands from "The Little Mermaid," 1989

Original production animation drawing of Ariel & Ursula's Hands in graphite pencil from "The Little Mermaid," 1989, Walt Disney Studios; Size - Ariel & Ursula's Hands: 7 1/2 x 7 1/4", Sheet 12 1/2 x 17"; Unframed.

"Now, here's the deal." - Ursula


"The Little Mermaid," is an American animated musical fantasy film and the 28th film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures to theaters on November 17, 1989. The film was based on the Danish fairy tale of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen, which tells the story of a beautiful mermaid princess who dreams of becoming human. The film was written, directed, and produced by Ron Clements and John Musker; with music by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. The voice cast includes: Jodi Benson, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Pat Carroll, Samuel E. Wright, Jason Marin, Kenneth Mars, Buddy Hackett, and René Auberjonois.

There was more money and resources dedicated by the Walt Disney Studios to "The Little Mermaid" than any other Disney animated film in decades. Aside from its main animation facility in Glendale, California; Disney opened a satellite feature animation facility in Lake Buena Vista, Florida that was within the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park at Walt Disney World. Their first projects were to produce an entire Roger Rabbit cartoon short, "Roller Coaster Rabbit," and to contribute ink and paint support to "The Little Mermaid." Another first for Disney films of recent years, was the filming of live actors and actresses for motion reference material for the animators. Broadway actress Jodi Benson (who was predominantly a stage actress when she was cast) was chosen to play Ariel, and Sherri Lynn Stoner, a former member of Los Angeles' Groundlings improvisation comedy group, acted out Ariel's key scenes.

The Little Mermaid's supervising animators included Glen Keane and Mark Henn on Ariel, Duncan Marjoribanks on Sebastian, Andreas Deja on King Triton, and Ruben Aquino on Ursula. Originally, Keane had been asked to work on Ursula, as he had established a reputation for drawing large powerful figures, such as the bear in "The Fox and the Hound," 1981 and Professor Ratigan in "The Great Mouse Detective," 1986. Keane however, was assigned as one of the two lead artists on the petite Ariel and oversaw the "Part of Your World" musical number. He jokingly stated that his wife looks exactly like Ariel "without the fins." The character's body type and personality were based upon that of Alyssa Milano, who was starring on TV's "Who's the Boss?". The effect of Ariel's hair underwater was based on footage of Sally Ride when she was in space; and scenes of Sherri Lynn Stoner in a swimming pool were used in animating Ariel's swimming. A challenge in animating Ariel were the colors required to show her in various changing environments, both under the sea and on land. By the end of the film, the animators required a total of 32-color models; not including costume changes. The sea-green color of her fin was a hue specially mixed by the Disney paint lab, and the color was named "Ariel" after the character.
 
This drawing is from the scene in Ursula's lair during the "Poor, Unfortunate Souls" sequence when the Sea Witch tempts Ariel with an offer to make her human. Pulling a frightened Ariel closer, Ursula says "Now, here's the deal." The Sea Witch was animated on a separate level, yet her hands and the kelp frond she wears as a scarf while singing, which she then wraps around Ariel; is lightly drawn to ensure accurate registration when the corresponding cels are shot under camera. This is an absolutely beautiful drawing of Ariel from one of the greatest scenes in the film. A wonderful piece of animation art from the last Walt Disney feature that utilized hand painted cels. A great addition to any animation art collection!

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Original Production Animation Drawing of Alice from "Alice In Wonderland," 1951

Original production animation drawing of Alice in graphite and brown pencils from "Alice In Wonderland," 1951, Walt Disney Studios; Numbered 121 in pencil lower right; Size - Alice: 7 1/2 x 3 1/4", Sheet 12 1/2 x 15 1/2"; Unframed.

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

"Goodness, if the people here are like that I must try not to upset them!" - Alice

"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (commonly shortened to "Alice in Wonderland"), is a 1865 novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson who wrote under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. Disney reworked the story to fit with both a younger audience and a time frame suitable for an animated film (it's run time is only 75 minutes).

Kathryn Beaumont, who was born in London England, was just 10 years old when she was chosen for the voice of Alice. Walt Disney personally cast Beaumont after seeing her in the film "On an Island with You," in which the child actress had a small role. Disney was so impressed by her that she was also chosen to be the model for Alice, and would also go on to provide the voice for Wendy in "Peter Pan," 1953. Beaumont has also reprised her voice acting role as Alice in two episodes of the animated series, Disney's "House of Mouse," and as both Alice and Wendy in the video game "Kingdom Hearts." She did not retire as the voice of Alice and Wendy until 2005, when her role for these two characters was taken over by Hynden Walch.

Initial design for the character of Alice was accomplished by Mary Blair during the storyboard phase and also by Les Clark. Alice was animated by Ollie Johnston, Don Lusk, and Marc Davis who animated her for the tea party scene.


Close up of the original production animation drawing of Alice.

The Walt Disney animator Don Lusk supervised the animation of Alice in this scene, and this drawing in brown and graphite pencils is his work. He wrote her word of dialogue in the upper right "to." Lusk joined The Walt Disney Studios in the 1930's and he animated Donald Duck shorts as well as working on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). He was principal animator of Cleo and Figaro in Pinocchio (1940), The Arabian Dance in The Nutcracker Suite of Fantasia (1940), the Great Stag in Bambi (1942), and was involved in feature films through One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961). He passed away at the age of 105 in 2018.
 
This drawing occurs at the end of the first encounter Alice has with the Cheshire Cat; who suggests to her that she seek out the Mad Hatter or the March Hare, who is "mad too." Alice says that she does not "want to go among mad people," and the Cat replies "Oh, you can't help that... most everything's mad here." In the last scene Alice walks away, puts her hands on her hips and says "Goodness, if the people here are like that I must try not to upset them!" This is an absolutely perfect image of Alice; she is eyes open, smiling, and would be a great addition to any vintage Walt Disney animation art collection!

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Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Original Production Animation Drawing of Mickey Mouse from "Mickey and the Beanstalk" section of "Fun and Fancy Free," 1947

Original production animation drawing of Mickey Mouse in red, green, and graphite pencils from "Mickey and the Beanstalk" section of "Fun and Fancy Free," 1947, Walt Disney Studios; Numbered 27 in red pencil lower right; Size - Mickey Mouse: 4 1/2 x 3 1/4", Sheet 10 x 12"; Unframed.


"Fun and Fancy Free," 1947 was the 9th Walt Disney animated feature film and was released to theaters on September 27, 1947. This was the fourth package film produced by the Walt Disney Studios as a way to save money during World War II, and it helped to finance Cinderella and later films such as Alice In Wonderland and Peter Pan. "Fun and Fancy Free" is composed of two animated stories that are joined together with live-action segments. The first story is Bongo and is hosted by Jiminy Cricket and narrated by Dinah Shore. Bongo tells the story of a circus bear cub named Bongo who longs for freedom from captivity. He is able to escape the circus and in the wild falls in love with a female bear named Lulubelle. He realizes he must prove himself worthy of being a mate for Lulubelle by besting another bear named Lumpjaw, who is a romantic rival for Lulubelle's affection.

The second story is Mickey and the Beanstalk and is hosted by Edgar Bergen. The segment had originally been planned to be a full length feature film, but due to the war effort and Disney's governmental contraction for the production of animated propaganda films, the story line was significantly edited down to a run time of 73 minutes. Mickey and the Beanstalk is a retelling of the English fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy as three peasants who discover a temperamental Willie the Giant's castle in the sky through the use of magic beans. The three heroes must battle the greedy but lovable Giant in order to restore peace to their home, Happy Valley, be retrieving a stolen singing Gold Harp. The voice of Micky Mouse was provided by Walt Disney, but this was his last performance as he was becoming too busy with other projects. Walt was replaced as the voice of Mickey for future shorts and films by sound effects artist Jimmy MacDonald.


Close up of the original production animation drawing of Mickey Mouse.

This is a rare and wonderful drawing of Mickey Mouse from the vintage 1947 Walt Disney feature film "Fun and Fancy Free." Fred Moore was the supervising animator for the film, animated Mickey Mouse, and his handling of the title character is, as always, brilliant! Moore started working at Disney Studios in 1930 when he was only 19 years old. He perfected the squash and stretch of characters, which showed that they had real mass and in the process making them even more believable than ever before. There is no wonder that Walt put him in charge of the Dwarfs for "Snow White."

I think Freddy Moore was able to pull expressions and movements from Mickey better than any other animator of the day, and this drawing really showcases his skill; which by 1947 was at it's peak. The drawing pictured here is a very large, full figure, eyes and mouth open image of Mickey Mouse including his tail. He is from the scene when he is trying to convince Willie the Giant to change himself into a fly, as he had spotted a fly swatter on the table next to him and had plans to, at the very least, escape from the Giant. It just does not get any better as a piece of original artwork from Walt Disney's last voice performance as Mickey Mouse, and here is an absolutely perfect piece!

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