The Black Case Diaries
Posts about Uncategorized written by blackcasediaries
https://blackcasediaries.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/cropped-img_2456.jpg?w=32
The Black Case Diaries
Uncategorized

Yet Another (Brief) Case Around the Campfire

Recently we braved the cold to gather once again around a campfire to share some spooky stories within its glow…

We begin our Anuual Frightening February with Yet Another (Brief) Case Around the Campfire. It was cold in Ohio and we had snow that had recently fallen and covered the grass around us.

The poem that Adam read called Who’s That can be found HERE

Listen to our episode to hear about spooky forests, haunted houses, rocking chairs, strange object appearances, and more!

Check out the extended episode as a patron on Patreon!

Thank you to all that support us whether it be through listening, telling a friend, or donating!

The Case of Penelope (2006)

Hello Cassettes, and welcome back to the Black Case Diaries!

Well, today’s episode is actually a fan suggestion! We asked Robin’s sister Becky what she would like us to cover for her birthday this month. She chose the film Penelope starring Christina Ricci and James McAvoy because she feels that it has been looked at unfairly, especially by critics. Well, we love giving movies a second chance here at BCD, so we’re excited to talk about it! Spoilers ahead!!

Premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2006 and releasing two years later in the United States, Penelope was not exactly well-received. It currently has a 53% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.7 out of 10 on IMDB. Although critics liked the story’s message, they turned up their noses at this film and felt it was a bit all over the place. Penelope didn’t break any box office records but wasn’t a flop, either. For those who haven’t seen it, it’s a bit of a hidden gem relegated to discount bins and free streaming services, just waiting to be discovered!

So today, we will get people talking about the girl born with a pig nose once again. Grab your brightly-colored scarves because it’s time to go exploring with Penelope.

THE STORY

Sometimes, we set out to make an episode on a film and have a difficult time finding information. Penelope is one of those movies that proved to be a challenge in the research department. So, we’ve decided to review the story and give our thoughts on why it deserves another look. Screenwriter Leslie Caveny put together the story to flip the script on the Beauty and the Beast format. She said, “We have enough stories that prove once again that women will love men no matter what and accept them with all their flaws, so I thought we could use a switching of the gender there.” So, here’s the story of Penelope with some making-of information mixed in!

“But local legend had it that a curse was put on the Wilhern Family….”

Penelope begins like any fairytale film should, with narration. We first hear the voice of Penelope, played by Christina Ricci.

Ricci is known for her offbeat characters, gaining popularity as Wednesday Addams in Addams Family in 1991 and as Kat in the 1996 film Casper. She is still a prominent TV and film actress.

Ricci didn’t have to audition for Penelope and was instead approached by Reese Witherspoon for the part. The two women had been friends for years, and Ricci said she was quite flattered that Reese thought of her for the role.

Ricci, as Penelope, tells the audience about a curse placed on her family when an ancestor impregnated one of the house servants and subsequently abandoned her. The woman then committed suicide, which inspired her mother, the town witch, to seek revenge by cursing the family thusly: the next Wilhern girl would be born with the face of a pig. The curse would only be broken when one of her kind, a high society blue blood, learned to love her as she was.

“I’m not the one who ran, mother!”

Flash forward to the modern-day, as a young British aristocrat attempts to woo Penelope through a two-way mirror. Penelope’s mother and hired matchmaker watch through surveillance cameras as Penelope reveals her face to the man, prompting him to run.

Here we see Penelope’s face for the first time, a relatively cute pig nose that in no way makes Ricci look ugly. This detail upset critics, as Penelope’s “ugliness” is a significant plot point. Stephen Holden of the New York Times said of the film, “The movie’s fundamental flaws begin with Penelope’s appearance. She is supposed to be so hideous that potential suitors dive out of the windows of her family’s London mansion at the first sight of her.” But more on that later.

Penelope was Mark Palanski’s directorial debut, previously assisting on films like Pearl Harbor, The Amityville Horror, and The Island. Reese Witherspoon chose Palanksi for the movie after seeing his work. Palanski felt it was essential to use a prosthetic that didn’t cover up Christina Ricci’s face so she could still emote. There was a range of noses that they could have chosen from, so a hideous option was available. Ricci felt that having an animal nose was bad enough. Making the character ugly would be adding insult to injury.

The pig prosthetic took an hour and a half to put on, and Ricci couldn’t speak during the process. The actor told Cinemablend that this was difficult for her, as she’s a self-proclaimed “compulsive talker.”

This scene also introduces Catherine O’Hara as Penelope’s mother, Jessica, a vain and uppity woman intent on finding a man to break the curse while keeping Penelope in the shadows.

Catherine O’Hara is a much-loved comedic actress, recently winning an Emmy for her role as Moira Rose in the acclaimed series Schitts Creek.

Jessica fills the role of the overprotective guardian that shields the protagonist from the outside world under the guise of having Penelope’s “best interest at heart.” In fairytale terms, think of her as a Mother Gothel from Tangled.

Jessica makes Penelope’s curse all about herself, bursting into crocodile tears at the prospect of Penelope (pause for dramatic effect) not finding a suitor (collective gasp). Jessica’s so-called suffering only makes Penelope feel guilt and shame, even though she had nothing to do with the way she was born and has no control over how people will perceive her.

Shortly after this sequence, the film introduces Peter Dinklage as a story-hungry reporter named Lemon, hell-bent on exposing the story of the Wilhern baby born with a pig face. In response, Jessica fakes Penelope’s death, then buries and cremates her to ensure that no one would ever ask about her again.

Peter Dinklage is possibly best known for playing Tyrian Lannister on Game of Thrones, which earned him several Emmy awards. He’s also appeared in Elf (2003) and X-Men Days of Future Past (2014).

After the suitor runs, we see a montage of suitors jumping through windows to escape the horror of Penelope’s face. We learn that until today, the Wilherns have been able to keep Penelope’s “condition” a secret through gag orders, but now a troubled man is headed to the police station to report seeing a hideous pig-woman.

“I believe that man is with me.”

After the local paper reports that Edward, Penelope’s suitor, is having a mental breakdown and claiming to see a pig-faced woman, the man demands that the paper print a retraction. As security escorts Edward out, Lemon invites him into his van, where they two hatch a plan to expose Penelope. Edward is too scared to face Penelope again, so the men hunt down Max Campion, a blue blood gambling addict, and offer him five grand to get a photo of Penelope.

Enter James McAvoy, the love interest for the story. McAvoy is a Scottish actor famous for portraying Charles Xavier in the X-Men films and Mr. Tumnus in The Chronicles of Narnia (2005).

Christina Ricci said that McAvoy is a talented actor and an excellent screen partner, and working with him was a great experience.

In an interview, McAvoy broke down his character by saying that he’s just as trapped as Penelope, and the characters inspire each other to grow and change.

McAvoy, as Max Campion, gets rigged up in a coat that will discreetly take a photo of Penelope when she reveals herself. He heads into some sort of group interview with other suitors. When his camera jacket malfunctions, Max dives behind a couch to fix it. Unfortunately for his mission, but fortunately for the plot, Penelope reveals herself just as Max is hiding. The other men run screaming from the house, but Max stays behind, making Penelope and the family think he already saw her face and didn’t run like the others.

Penelope returns to her hidden room to speak to Max, and the two begin to fall in love. During their first conversation, Max admits that he tried to steal a book because he thought it could be worth a lot of money. Penelope then tells him that there are 300 first editions worth over $50,000. Three-hundred times 50,000 is $15 million—the budget for the film!

Intrigued by Penelope and still hoping to earn his five grand, Max promises to return the next day.

“You gotta get out of there sometime.”

As Max returns to Penelope, we see a delightful sequence where McAvoy badly plays several instruments, as Penelope tries to figure out what his instrument is. The couple plays chess, and Max tries to convince her to show herself. Finally, Penelope steps out of her room to play piano with Max. He’s shocked when he sees her face and attempts to touch her nose. But when he hears the camera take the photo, he recoils, leading Penelope to believe that she repulses him.

In this scene, Penelope’s mother, Jessica, discovers Max is working with Lemon, although he does not intend to give him the photo after seeing Penelope’s face. Max confronts Penelope, trying to explain himself. But, Penelope surprises him by showing how little she cares about his motives and her happiness. She’s willing to settle to break the curse.

Penelope delivers a heartbreaking marriage proposal, telling Max that he will break the curse if he accepts her, and she will be like anyone else. Max asks what would happen if the curse can’t be broken, and Penelope says, “then I’ll kill myself, I promise I will.” Upon hearing this, Max declares he can’t marry her, and he’s forced out before he can explain.

“I love you, and goodbye.”

With Penelope at her all-time low, Jessica wants to continue looking for suitors. So, Penelope breaks out of the house to explore the outside world.

The outside world for Penelope is a timeless and placeless version of London, populated with a mixture of American and British people. Production designer Amanda McArthur developed an urban storybook landscape with locations like the Cloverdilly Pub, which is actually the Crown and Sceptre Pub in London. Here is where Penelope meets Annie, Reese Witherspoon’s character. This film was Witherspoon’s first as a lead producer and actress.

Annie helps Penelope experience life until she accidentally reveals herself as THE Penelope from all the newspapers.

Armed with her mother’s credit card and an adorable cobble-stone scarf, Penelope finds housing, makes friends, and essentially thrives. Of course, it takes her parents almost no time to locate her since she’s using their money.

Lemon and Edward are still willing to pay five grand for a photo of Penelope, and since she loses her income, she decides to sell her own image to them for a profit. When Penelope calls the pair to make the offer, Peter Dinklage’s Lemon has the most visible character development of anyone in the film in the shortest amount of time. One moment he wants to expose Penelope, the next, he realizes the harm he has caused by treating her as a monster.

Just as Penelope declares her independence from her mother, Max willingly walks away from the poker table. Both characters take massive steps toward their freedom and well-being, utterly independent of each other. This flips another romance trope on its head. Instead of bettering themselves for each other, they focus on their individual happiness.

“They’re not running.”

After Penelope’s parents track her down, Penelope has an episode, fainting at the pub and waking in a hospital room. Here she discovers that word has gotten out, and the public isn’t afraid of her. They love her. Remember that issue the critics had with the film? The detail that Penelope isn’t ugly at all, yet men would fling themselves out of windows to get away from her? It turns out, only high-society, well-bred blue bloods are the ones that do that. Maybe the film exaggerated their reactions to prove that perspective is essential and that tradition and bias can lead us to fear things we shouldn’t.

Penelope’s popularity now poses a problem for Edward, as he has spent the entire film telling everyone that Penelope is grotesque and should be locked away. Edward’s father angrily tells him he needs to fix his mistake to put his name back in good standing. So, Edward decides to propose to Penelope.

Jessica, Penelope’s mother, brings her daughter down again. She tells Penelope that she doesn’t have friends, she has fans, and that everyone only sees her as a talking pig. The only way to fix that is for her to marry Edward. So, Penelope reluctantly accepts.

“Sure took you long enough.”

After seeing the proposal in the papers, Lemon checks in with Max Campion for an armed robbery story he heard from a colleague. However, it turns out that Max Campion is actually the hilarious, lovely, and adorable Nick Frost (those are all objective ways to describe him, don’t come at me). Lemon discovers that James McAvoy is playing Johnny Martin, the son of a plumber and former musician who fell victim to gambling addiction. Lemon just thought he was Max Campion because of a misunderstanding.

Lemon tracks down Johnny and asks him why he won’t stop Edward from marrying Penelope. This is where the audience finally discovers that he turned down Penelope because he cannot break the curse, thus not giving her what she wants. So, he lets Penelope marry Edward.

Attempting to undo the harm he’s caused, Lemon tries to stop the wedding by telling Jessica and Wanda (the matchmaker) about the whole scheme and Edward’s involvement. Wanda pleads with Jessica, begging her to stop the wedding now that they know why Max (Johnny) said no because he had to. Jessica refuses, rejecting another chance at redemption for her character. The only thing Jessica cares about is the curse, and not Penelope herself.

“I like myself the way I am.”

During the wedding vows, Penelope rejects Edward, realizing she can’t marry someone she doesn’t love just to break a curse. Jessica chases Penelope back into the house, begging her to go through with the wedding. Finally, Penelope declares that she doesn’t want to change because she accepts herself as she is.

A rush of wind and magic knocks Penelope down, and she touches her face to find that the curse has been lifted. It turns out that one of her kind could be herself–she lifts the curse by loving who she is independent of anyone else.

Christina Ricci said in an interview: “You always fear when you’re making a movie that has a moral to the story that people are going to reject the idea of being taught a lesson. Or you worry that people are going to somehow feel that they’re being talked down to, or that it’s cheesy to make a movie that’s about self-acceptance.” The moral of Penelope is refreshing and ahead of its time. Sure, Penelope accepts who she is, but only after experiencing life for herself. Under the charge of her overbearing and critical mother, Penelope never even considered loving herself. She didn’t break the curse for or because of another person. It turns out that your opinion of yourself matters more than anyone else’s.

And with the curse broken, Jessica has one last chance at redemption, realizing that if she had just accepted her daughter as she was, then the curse would never have been a problem. But, after a very short heart-to-heart, Jessica launches into her critical self again, suggesting that Penelope get a nose job.

“It’s not the power of the curse; it’s the power you give the curse.”

During a narrated montage, we see Penelope move out of the home and start a job as a teacher (how?). We also learn that the butler is the witch that cast the curse generations ago, and she then removes Jessica’s voice before walking out on the family.

Wanda alerts Penelope about Max/Johnny and updates her on why he rejected her proposal. So, she heads to the bar where he works for a Halloween party with Annie to confront him. Even though she’s wearing a pig mask (the Penelope costume is big this year), Johnny figures out who she is. The two embrace, and he’s surprised to see that the curse is broken.

Now, the two of them can be together after growing and becoming complete independently. Neither one needs to fix or change the other, and they are free to start a relationship in a much healthier place than before.

RECEPTION

Mark Palanski considered this film “low-budget” with only 15 million dollars. He enjoyed the challenge, as it meant that he had to do some creative problem-solving. Worldwide, Penelope pulled in only about $21 million, making back the budget but not enough money to be deemed a success.

We already mentioned the critical reception to this film, but it bears repeating. Critics hated Penelope. Or at least heavily disliked it. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian said, “I can truthfully say that watching this abysmal fantasy-comedy is less rewarding than being slapped across the face with a large wet fish.”

It was challenging to find positive reviews of the film written just after its release, but more recent reviews from independent sources tend to be more favorable. Maybe the world wasn’t ready to embrace Penelope in 2008. Would the film have done better today?

Penelope is what Reese Witherspoon’s Type A Studio billed it to be. It’s a modern-day fairytale taking place in a surreal universe, with themes of love and acceptance. It employs classic tropes from the romance genre, but there’s a fun twist for every predictable plot. The film has a quirky and magical aesthetic, with a brilliant cast and an entertaining story. Sure, it’s not perfect, and critics had some valid concerns. But, just as Penelope’s blue blood suitors over-reacted to her charming nose, critics seemed a bit unfair to this film. It turns out that Penelope isn’t as hideous as they thought.

SOURCES:

https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/29/movies/29pene.html

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/ifc-will-bring-penelope-north-139692/

https://movieweb.com/exclusive-director-mark-palansky-is-courting-penelope/

Interview with Ricci https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Interview-Christina-Ricci-Talks-Speed-Racer-Penelope-7782.html

https://imagejournal.org/2009/02/03/what-have-you-done-with-my-beast/

https://youtu.be/YY5NqTWico0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD6v0n_mJsY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhGLEiwRjDc

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/storied-international-folk-history-beauty-and-beast-180962502/

The (Brief) Case Of Babes In Toyland (1986)

HISTORY OF BABES IN TOYLAND STORY

In 1903, Producer Fred R. Hamlin and director Julian Mitchell had just found success with their stage musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, based on the L. Frank Baum book. Wanting to keep the momentum, the pair wanted to produce another family-oriented musical production. For help, Julian Mitchell turned to Glen MacDonough to help, since he had worked on revisions of the final text for The Wizard of Oz Musical. MacDonough provided an even greater contribution when he brought composer Victor Herbert into the production. The Operetta would be called, “Babes in Toyland,” and it featured some of Herbert’s most well-known works such as “Toyland” and “March of the Toys.” “Babes in Toyland” opened in New York in October 1903.

Soon after the Operetta, Glen Macdonough and Anna Alice Chapin released a children’s book with full color illustrated pages.

The original Operetta follows orphaned siblings Alan and Jane. Their wicked Uncle Barnaby, who has become their caretaker, plans to have them lost at sea in order to steal their inheritance. They are luckily rescued and returned to Contrary Mary’s garden.

Since then it has been made into different forms throughout the years. Each time it is remade the songs and plot change. Some examples are the Laurel and Hardy “March of the Wooden Soldiers” from 1934, a Shirley Temple anthology episode in 1960, the Disney “Babes in Toyland” from 1961, and an animated version by MGM in 1997.

SOME BACKGROUND ON THE MOVIE

The original run-time for this movie when it aired in 1986 was nearly 3 hours long. Since then, it has been cut down to an hour and thirty-five minutes for video and streaming releases. It has not been officially released on dvd which makes it a relatively rare find. There is however the entire 3-hour glorious movie version available on youtube, which we will link to for you.

It was filmed at Bavaria Studios in Munich, Germany.

Most of the original music was cut and a new score and music were put in. It was largely done by Leslie Bricusse. Only a little of Victor Herbert’s music was used, such as “Toyland” and “March of the Toys.”

It is clear when listening to the songs that the young 11-year old Drew Barrymore does not sing her own songs as the voice has a more adult vocal range. According to IMDB, Linda Harmon dubbed the singing voice for Barrymore.

THE PLOT

During a heavy Christmas storm in Cincinnati, a young girl named Lisa (Drew Barrymore) is injured in a car accident and is magically transported to Toyland. There she meets the Toyland counterparts of her sister and friends, each one a storybook character. Lisa learns that the evil Uncle Barnaby plots to marry the young Mary Contrary and steal her away from Jack B. Nimble, also barring Jack from inheriting his family’s cookie company.

THE MAIN CHARACTERS

Drew Barrymore as Lisa Piper

Jill Schoelen as Mary Piper/Mary Contrary

Keanu Reeves as Jack Fenton/Jack-be-Nimble

Googy Gress as George/Georgie Porgie

Eileen Brennan as Mrs. Piper/ Widow Hubbard

Richard Mulligan as Barnie/ Barnaby Barnicle

Pat Morita as The Toymaster

OUR REACTION

C-I-N-C-I-N–N-A-T-I !!

FUN FACT!

Shari Weiser, who was in the Labyrinth as part of Hoggle, plays the Trollog in this movie!

SOURCES:

https://www.nypl.org/blog/2012/01/24/musical-month-babes-toyland

https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1904-10-30/ed-1/seq-60/#date1=1900&sort=date&date2=1922&words=Alice+Anna+Chapin&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=19&state=&rows=20&proxtext=Anna+Alice+Chapin%22&y=6&x=19&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

The original 1986 Broadcast version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5exrmBe_fp4

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/653058/babes-in-toyland-keanu-reeves-christmas-movie

http://static.nypl.org/MOTM/BabesInToyland/BabesInToyland.pdf

The Case of Our Five Favorite Santas

First, let’s talk a little bit about the origin of Santa Claus!

Santa Claus is known around the world by many names. Some of the most well-known are; Saint Nicholas, Kris Kringle, Sinterklaas, Father Christmas, and Papa Noel. These names and origins should not be confused with the Belsnickel and Krampus. St Nicholas is known to be the patron saint of many things including children, sailors, ships, merchants, pawnbrokers, and some cities like Moscow.

One of the most well-known stories tells of Saint Nicholas gifting three girls dowries in order that they may get married. Due to his generosity and good deeds towards children in life, he became their patron saint and a popular bringer of gifts on his celebrated day of December 6th.

As people traveled and immigrated to the United States the celebrations followed and the legends of Saint Nicholas and the scary and shaggy Belsnickel became mixed to eventually become what we know as Santa Claus. Santa Claus, like the Christmas holiday, is an amalgamation of traditions and practices, and hopefully one day we will go further into detail about Santa’s history.

Much of the details that we have accepted about Santa Claus came from a Clement Clarke Moore poem called, A Visit From Saint Nicholas. But, two years before that story, there was “The Children’s Friend.” It was notable for removing the religious aspects of St. Nick and associating him with the Christmas holiday. Here are a couple of stanzas:

“Old Santeclaus with much delight

His reindeer drives this frosty night.

O’er chimney tops, and tracks of snow,

To bring his yearly gifts to you.

The steady friend of virtuous youth,

The friend of duty, and of truth,

Each Christmas eve he joys to come

Where love and peace have made their home”

NUMBER 5

“Sandy Claws” (The Nightmare Before Christmas, 1993)*

If you need a refresher, The Nightmare Before Christmas was directed by Henry Selick and produced by Tim Burton. It follows Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of Halloweentown, as he faces issues with burnout and his own identity. Jack’s purpose in life becomes reinvigorated when he discovers Christmastown and attempts to give Christmas a try instead.

Santa’s voice can be heard at the beginning of the movie during the initial narration. Since the narration doesn’t return, it makes sense that it turns out to be a character in the movie, though this is not immediately obvious to the audience

Santa Claus (or Sandy Claws) appears in this film after Jack Skellington visits Christmastown for the first time. However, the audience doesn’t get a great look at the character until much later, when three trick-or-treaters kidnap Santa Claus and deliver him to the evil Oogie Boogie Man.

Lock, Stock, and Barrell kidnap Santa so that Jack can take his place.

Voiced by Edward Ivory, this is a pretty classic take on Santa Claus. Although Santa is generally depicted as a kind being that only wants to spread joy, The Nightmare Before Christmas gave some more depth to the character by showing how he would react to being kidnapped. Although this version of Santa becomes more and more frustrated (and possibly scared for his life), he never seems to really lose his cool and still recovers in time to save Christmas!

Ivory was not in very many movies but he was also in the film Nine Months (1995), Rampage (1987), and Blood Red (1989.)

The Nightmare Before Christmas is such a well-known and beloved classic, it’s safe to say the film made a major impact on a lot of people. Although the debate about whether it’s a Halloween or Christmas movie will never be settled, you’ll find fans enjoying it during any season.

It won the Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film and Best Music

It earned Annies for Best Individual Achievement for Creative Supervision in the Field of Animation and Best Individual Achievement for Artistic Excellence in the Field of Animation.

It also won the Blimp Award at the Kid’s Choice Awards for Favorite Movie!

So why did this Santa make it into our top five?

We LOVE the style of this film, and seeing a Tim-Burton-style Santa is an automatic win. Although he has the classic characteristics of many western depictions of Santa Claus (red suit, white beard, black boots) he still has the same unmistakable charm as other Burton creations. Before this film came out, you wouldn’t find a Santa that looks like this anywhere else.

This Santa is inherently good-natured. He withstands being carried around in a sack and is essentially tortured by Oogie Boogie. But, when he realizes it was a misunderstanding and that Jack never intended for him to be hurt, he seems to forgive him almost immediately. He never hesitates to fix all the damage that the Halloweentown residents had done, and makes time to visit them after delivering all of his presents!

We asked our Twitter followers for their suggestions on some favorite Santas! Jacob (@DemChops) suggested Santa Claus from Nightmare Before Christmas, saying, “He was so fed up with the Halloween people but he still gave them some Christmas magic in the end. A true Santa.”

NUMBER 4

North (Rise of the Guardians, 2012)*

Rise of the Guardians is based on a book series by William Joyce called, “Guardians of Childhood.” Every year the holidays arrive and with them the protection of the immortal Guardians. The Guardians, known as Nicholas St. North, E. Aster Bunnymund, Toothiana, and Sandman, spread light to protect children everywhere from darkness and despair. An evil spirit called Pitch Black plots to overthrow them by destroying the source of their power, which is the faith of children everywhere. Saving the Guardians is left up to a new young immortal by the name of Jack Frost.

This film was directed by Peter Ramsey for Dreamworks Animation

Voiced by Alec Baldwin, North is the leader of the guardians and this universe’s more-secular take on Santa Claus. Although he is far from the traditional depiction of Santa Claus, he is still dedicated to spreading love and cheer across the world and protecting the innocence of children.

Though this isn’t the most popular Dreamworks film, we consider it to be one of their best works. The story is heartwarming and imaginative and encourages children to believe in magic–not just supernatural magic, but the magic within themselves.

Rise of the Guardians received the Vanity Fair International Award for Cinematic Excellence and the Hollywood Animation Award at the 16th Annual Hollywood Film Festival. The film also won two Annie Awards for Effects in Animation and Storyboarding.

So why did North make it into our top five?

Out of all the entries on this list, North is the most unique version of Santa Claus. Generally, we see an older and less active version of the character in cinema, but here we see a buff Santa with tattoos and a Russian accent (which makes sense because St. Nicholas is the patron saint of Moscow). This Santa is much more active and unafraid to use weapons to protect the things he loves. It’s important to see a different take on a character because it shows that even though someone is unconventional, it doesn’t mean they are any less than someone who is traditional. This Santa thwarts tradition and conventional standards.

Every story that includes a Santa storyline begs the question: how does he keep track of all the children and bring them toys in one night? The universe in Rise of the Guardians answers this question with a combination of advanced technology and magic. The approach feels rooted in our universe, so audiences find it easier to comprehend.

Rise of the Guardians provides a completely different perspective on Santa. We’re used to seeing him as he delivers gifts and interacts with children. In this film, we see him amongst his peers (the other holiday guardians) which adds another layer to his character. There are even some comedic moments when he clashes with the Easter Bunny or gets frustrated with his bumbling elves.

This was another Twitter suggestion! You guys really know how to pick your Santas. Mics and Beers (@micsandbeers) said, “Got to go with the Santa with swords.”

NUMBER 3

Santa Claus (Year Without a Santa Claus, 1974)

Based on a book by Phylis McGinley, The Year Without a Santa Claus follows the story of a sick Santa Claus (played by Mickey Rooney) who may not be well enough to deliver presents this year. His doctor even tells him that he should stay in bed because children don’t really believe in Santa anymore. Mrs. Claus takes action into her own hands and sends two elves with a reindeer out into the world to find Christmas cheer. When they run into some trouble, Santa heads out after them and discovers that the world still cares about Christmas.

Of all the Rankin and Bass stop-motion specials, this is one of the most beloved. It included songs by Jules Bass and Maury Laws, most notably the heat and snow miser songs!

The special was written by William J Keenan and animated in Japan, like the other Rankin and Bass specials.

This is a special that returns every year during the holiday season, and inspired a sequel special starring the heat and snow misers! You’ll also find their merchandise in stores at Christmas time.

Mickey Rooney during his lifetime was in over 300 films from silent films from Breakfast at Tiffany’s to Phantom of the Megaplex. He also voiced Santa Claus in three other animagic specials, including Santa Claus is Coming to Town. So, it’s probably OK to say that this version of Santa is the same one that appears in the other specials of the Rankin and Bass universe. However, we chose the Santa from this particular special because we liked seeing this side of him. Usually, Christmas movies are about children losing their faith in Santa, but this special was more about Santa losing faith in the world.

This Santa Claus is relatable and hard-working. He seems more mortal than other depictions because he has fallen ill. More often than not, Santa is depicted as a supernatural being, capable of looking in on children at any given time to see if they are behaving. This version of Santa, however, doesn’t seem as powerful.

No matter how awful this Santa feels, he’s never angry or upset with anyone. Sure, he feels unappreciated, but that makes him sad more than anything else. And who could blame him for wanting to cancel Christmas? None of us want to go to work when we’re feeling sick.

This version of Santa also really seems to enjoy his job. Sometimes we get the sense from other versions of the character that he feels like he’s doing the world a huge favor, but here it seems that he gets as much out of Christmas as anyone else.

NUMBER 2

Klaus (Klaus, 2019)*

Klaus is the most recent entry on our list! Directed by Sergio Pablos and Carlos Martinez Lopez, Klaus is a Netflix original that follows the origin story of Santa Claus, known in this universe as Klaus.

The story initially follows Jesper, the privileged son of the postmaster general, as he’s banished to a cold and freezing island called Smeerensburg. While there, he meets a toymaker named Klaus. Because he needs to meet a quota of 6000 letters mailed, Jesper convinces the children to mail Klaus letters so that he will deliver toys to their houses. Because one act of kindness always sparks another, Jesper and Klaus end up changing the lives of everyone on the island.

Actor J.K. Simmons provides the voice of the stoic and kind Klaus, a toymaker isolated in the woods. This version of Santa is more unwitting than others and is somewhat of a reluctant hero. Early in the film, it’s clear that he wants to make children happy, but Jesper pushes him to start making new toys again.

Simmons is famous for several character roles, like Tenzin in The Legend of Korra and Jay Jonah Jamison in the Spider-Man films.

Impact

Klaus won the 2020 BAFTA for Best Animated Feature

It also received several Annie Awards for Best Animated Feature, Character Animation, Character Design, Directing, Production Design, Storyboarding, and Editorial.

It was also nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. It, unfortunately, lost Toy Story 4.

Number two on our list is pretty high, especially for a character that might not be as well-known or established as some of the other entries. But, we chose Klaus because we love how human his story is, and his immense generosity.

When Klaus first delivers a gift, he does it solely because he saw the sad drawing of a child and wanted to cheer them up. He stays back to watch the child open the gift, and we can see how much it means to him that the child was happy.

One of the most appealing aspects of Klaus is that he’s a regular man and not a supernatural being (to begin with, anyway). He uses his craft to bring joy to other people, inspiring others to do the same.

Klaus is reclusive and uninterested in making friends, but throughout the film we see the character open up and grow, and it’s because others are willing to help that he becomes Santa Claus.

Near the end of his mortal life, Klaus embodies the spirit of Christmas so much that he becomes father Christmas. It’s seemingly a reward for a life well-lived that he can continue to spark kindness across the world.

This was another Twitter suggestion from our friend and listener, JD Gravatte!

NUMBER 1

Kris Kringle (Miracle on 34th Street, 1947)

This Christmas classic follows Doris Walker, a no-nonsense single mother with a young daughter named Susan. While Doris performs her job as the manager of the famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, a kind old man approaches her and points out that the Santa Claus hired for the event is intoxicated. Doris invites the kind older man to fill in as Santa not only in the parade but during the holiday as the Macy’s store Santa. Kris Kringle, as he calls himself, is not only a hit with the children but also with adult customers. He truly embodies the spirit of Christmas by helping them buy gifts, sending them to other stores to find them. Soon, it captures the attention of the store that Kris believes that he himself is the real Santa Claus. This issue gets overlooked until Kris assaults the resident psychologist with his umbrella, causing him to get sent to an institution. All this leads to a public hearing, where Kris’s lawyer, Fred Gayley, must defend him by proving that he is indeed the real Santa Claus.

Doris’s daughter, Susan, has never believed in magic before, but Kris convinces her that magic is real, saving Christmas for at least one child.

While this version of the character was played by Edmund Gwenn, there was a 1994 remake starring Richard Attenborough. Since it’s the same character, we felt it was worth mentioning!

Gwenn won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role! He also won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor!

Miracle on 34th Street is a tradition for many families during the holiday season. It’s heartfelt and engaging, a warm Christmas classic that’s also a legal drama? Count us in!

The film won the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor

It also won Oscars for Best Original Story, and Best Screenplay. Finally, it also won the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay.

When we set out to make this list, we knew from the beginning that Kris Kringle was our number one. Throughout the entire film, all the way until the end, the audience doesn’t actually see any proof that Kris is Santa Claus. We don’t see him perform magic or visit the north pole, we only see what the other characters see. And yet, we’re on board the entire time. Why? Because this character is so pure and believable as Santa Claus that it almost seems impossible not to believe him.

This Santa is one of the most wholesome we have ever seen. He has a genuine personality and a great sense of humor and doesn’t get frustrated or upset when people don’t believe him. Sure, he’s got some old-school ideas for punishing naughty people (the umbrella might’ve been out of line) But in 1947, parents were spanking their kids harder than Kris hits that man with his umbrella.

Kris’s interactions with others are heartwarming and memorable. He helps many different characters, from Alvin the janitor to little Susan Walker.

He is able to change those around him for the better with simple acts of kindness, like listening to people and gently guiding customers to where they can find toys so that their children can have a happy holiday.

Whether or not people believe he’s the real Santa isn’t important to Kris. Instead, he just wants to help those around him and only tells them that he is Santa because he’s just an honest person.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Since there are hundreds of movie Santas, we had some honorable mentions:

Santa Claus (The Polar Express, 2004)

Our first honorable mention is the Santa from the Polar Express. Of course, we don’t see very much of this version, but the audience gets enough of him to know that he is a very classic version of the character. This Santa appears at the end of the film when the main character is finding his faith in Santa again.

Tom Hanks voiced this Santa Claus (as he voiced many characters throughout the film).

Scott Calvin (The Santa Clause, 1994)

Played by Tim Allen

While watching his son, Charlie, for Christmas, Scott hears a noise on the roof and goes to investigate while his son follows. After scaring a red-suited man off the roof, the man disappears in the snow but his red suit remains. Scott dons the suit and he and his son are taken to the North Pole where he discovers he will be Santa for the foreseeable future. Problems arise, however, when Charlie’s mother and Step-Father believe that Scott is endangering Charlie’s well-being.

Father Christmas (The Snowman, 1982 & Father Christmas, 1991)

Voiced by Mel Smith

Father Christmas follows Santa on his adventures as he decides to take a vacation in France, Scotland, and Las Vegas. When he returns from his travels to begin preparations for Christmas he finds that he has forgotten something during his trip.

Willie T Stokes (Bad Santa 2003)*

Played by Billy Bob Thorton

Willie T. Stokes only works one season a year. He drinks constantly and is an embarrassment to himself and others. He works as Santa at the malls. On Christmas Eve he and his accomplice Marcus take all the information they have gathered while working during the season to rob the entire shopping mall.

Noelle (Noelle, 2019)

Played by Anna Kendrick

Noelle has always loved Christmas, especially the presents. The holiday is made even more special to her as her father is Santa Claus! At a young age, her brother Nick is given a Santa hat and revealed to officially be the successor to their father as Santa Claus. Noelle wants to be a part of the magic and is tasked by her father to guide Nick and help how she can. Years later after their father passes away, the pressure becomes too much and Nick runs away. Noelle must save Christmas by finding not only her brother but the meaning of Christmas beyond the presents.

Nick (Fred Claus, 2007)

Played by Paul Giamatti

Santa Claus’s older brother, Fred, is jealous of him.

Fred ends up needing help and must live with his brother for financial reasons.

Santa Claus (Elf, 2003)

Played by Ed Asner

Buddy the elf finds his human father and helps him see the spirit of Christmas.

Santa Claus (A Christmas Story, 1983)

Played by Jeff Gillen

You’ll shoot your eye out!

Maybe you believe in Santa Claus, and maybe you don’t. Maybe you call him by a different name. Maybe you think he’s a person, and maybe you think he’s the spirit of Christmas. No matter how you feel about the character, these Santas can all teach us something about humanity. You don’t need magic or a sleigh or millions of helpers to be Santa Claus for someone. As long as humans continue to use their abilities to make others happy, the spirit of Santa Claus will always endure. And that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlies Brown–wait.

SOURCES:

https://www.stnicholascenter.org/who-is-st-nicholas/patron-saint

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/131219-santa-claus-origin-history-christmas-facts-st-nicholas

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-christmas-chronicles-2-what-is-the-belsnickel/

http://www.santaswhiskers.com/the-children-s-friend.html

The Case of Cartoon Saloon

The late 90’s was an interesting time for animation. Amblimation had folded after its third film (as we talked about last week), Dreamworks SKG was gearing up to release its first animated feature, and Disney Animation was winding down from their 10-year renaissance period. Also, by 1999, PIXAR and Disney had released TWO 3D computer animated films, and Dreamworks produced one as well (as their first release!). The medium was changing, and 3D computer animation was becoming increasingly more popular. Today, it’s considered to be the most popular style of animation.

But, three artists in Ireland weren’t jumping on the 3D animation bandwagon just yet. They formed their own studio, focusing on 2D animation. In about 10 years, they had produced their first feature film, which was nominated for an oscar alongside the likes of Coraline, The Princess and the Frog, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Up.

Ever since, they have been steadily producing unique and beautiful animated content, from TV shows to major motion pictures. Last year, they released their fourth film, which has already won several Annie Awards. Each film features masterful storytelling heavily influenced and inspired by history and lore, with uniquely beautiful animation that will take your breath away.

So, this week we are excited to talk about the Irish independent animation studio Cartoon Saloon, as well as their four full-length films!

GETTING STARTED

Ireland has had a vibrant animation scene for several decades. Some of our favorite films and shows were animated there, whether in Don Bluth’s animation studio or at Murakami-Wolf, which produced the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Cartoon Saloon, however, is likely the most well-known independent animation studio in Ireland. Its creators, Tomm Moore, Nora Twomey, and Paul Young were animation students attending Ballyfermot College of Further Education in Ireland.

Nora would be the first to graduate, a year before the others. She spent that year working for a studio called Brown Bag Films, which is now known as the studio that creates shows like Doc McStuffins and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.

While in school and after graduating in 1999, Tomm, Paul, and Nora moved together to Kilkenny, Ireland. At this point, they had already started doing small freelance jobs (such as commercials and e-cards) under the name Cartoon Saloon.

At Ballyfermot, Tomm Moore specifically made sure to take courses made by Don Bluth!

Sullivan Bluth opened in Ireland when Moore was a child, and this opened his eyes to the possibility of being an animator.

He was heavily inspired by animator Richard Williams, who believed that animation was an artform.

Tomm Moore later said that starting the studio felt like a way to extend college and continue to work with talented people on animation projects.

Moore has directed or co-directed three of Cartoon Saloon’s films. The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, and Wolfwalkers are what he considers to be a spiritual trilogy. All of them are inspired by the mythology of Ireland.

At this time, many were saying that 3D animation would be the new frontier due to the success of Toy Story and A Bug’s Life. The team believed that 2D animation was still very much in style. They were discovering such treasures as “The Thief and the Cobbler” by Richard Williams and “The Hungarian Folktales” which was an animated series from Hungary. Not long after did they decide on their first movie idea: “Brendan and the Secret of Kells.” This would later be shortened to simply “The Secret of Kells.”

The operation began with about 10 artists, a couple of whom had been members of the Young Irish Film Makers which was run by Mike Kelly and based in Kilkenny, Ireland. When the Cartoon Saloon creators first moved to Kilkenny, Mike Kelly helped them earn a small grant and gave them a small space to work in. There was only one computer between the three of them, and the experience taught them how to budget and split tasks.

As they began developing The Secret of Kells, they released their first television show called, Skunk Fu! This show would be the first to give them a true spotlight. The studio now has four other TV shows. One of the most popular is Puffin Rock, which is an adorable children’s show available on Netflix and narrated by Chris O’Dowd. We are not going to go into depth with these shows but they are: Anam an Amhrain, Dorg Van Dango, agus Cul an Ti.

THE MOVIES:

THE SECRET OF KELLS

SYNOPSIS

The Secret of Kells takes place during the 9th century and follows Brendan, the young nephew of Abbot Cellach. As they prepare for an attack from the Vikings Brendan works secretly with the reverand illuminator, Aidan, to help complete the ancient book of Kells.

PRODUCTION

This film was directed by Tomm Moore and Co-directed by Nora Twomey. According to Tomm Moore there were about 200 artists that worked on the film. Ross Stewart was the Art Director, and Paul Young produced the film.

As the animators were starting out, they needed to find the money to produce the film. They received help from Screen Ireland, but they also started reaching out to other countries to find producers for the film.

They attended an event called, “Cartoon Movie” in Europe, where they met other producers and pitched their film idea. This is where they met Didier Brunner and Viviane Vanfleteren, producers from France and Hungary that helped produce the film.

The original Story was written by Tomm Moore with the screenplay done by Fabrice Ziolkowski.

The story is based on the origin of The Book of Kells. The book is an illuminated manuscript that now sits in Trinity College Library in Dublin, Ireland.

The film combines Irish history with Catholic tradition and Celtic lore. Some have criticised the historical context of the film, as it places the viking invasions to happen around the time that the book was written.

The beginning of the film was drawn to be very flat-looking in style, to model the look of medieval art.

Another key detail is that while the town was done with ink, the studio thought that the forest should be done with pencil because it is much more organic looking.

Although Abbot Cellach, young Brendan’s uncle, is not a bad guy, he is much stricter and has lost his way. In order to show the difference between him and other characters, his character and the rooms he inhabits are angular and sharper with a Gothic influence (think of gothic cathedrals and how they often come to a point). For example, there is a scene in which he and Brendan are seen in the window, and since they take up the entire space, it is almost as if it is stained glass. In comparison, Aidan and the Scriptorium have more rounded edges with a Romanesque influence.

CAST

Evan McGuire as Brendan

The character Brendan was actually based on Tomm Moore’s son, Brendan! They went through hundreds of designs though in order to get his design the way they wanted.

Christen Mooney as Aisling

Aisling’s early concept art and movements were based on Tomm’s sister, whom he claims was a little pest(lol.) She originally had black hair as well as the wolf being black.

Brendan Gleeson as Abbot Cellach

He is known for things like In Bruges, The Guard, and Calvary.

The Abbot’s character evolved from their beginning concepts of him. When they started he was more of a villain but he became more nuanced as they continued to develop the film.

Mick Lally as Aidan

Mick has been in Glenroe, Bracken, and The Secret of Roan Inish.

Aidan Originally was drawn with spiky red hair and was supposed to look like Paul Young, but he ended up looking more like Willy Nelson they said (unintentionally.)

Liam Hourican as Brother Tang/ Leonardo

He is also in Song of the Sea, Murder in Successville, and Sanctuary(2012.)

Paul Tylak as Brother Assoua

He is known for Skunk Fu!, Informer, and Capital Letters.

Michael McGrath as Adult Brendan

He has been in The Interpreter, Changing Lanes and Memphis the Musical.

Paul Young as Brother Square

Nora Twomey did additional voices

Pangur Bán (the cat) is the only character that they told kids was real. Out of all the characters in the film there have actually been stories and a poem written about Pangur Bán.

MUSIC

The music was done by French composer Bruno Coulais, who also wrote the music for Coraline (which was also nominated for an oscar the same year.)

The film also features music from the Irish band Kila!

RECEPTION/AWARDS

The film was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards and also for an Annie Award but unfortunately did not win either. It did however win many other awards overseas at several film festivals, one being the Zagreb World Festival of Animated Films. It also won best animation at the Irish Film and Television Awards.

Song of the Sea

SYNOPSIS

The story follows a ten-year-old boy named Ben and his younger sister Saoirse. After being removed from their beloved home and father by their well-meaning grandmother, Ben discovers that his sister is in fact a selkie, a being capable of transforming into a seal. Not only that, but Saoirse’s song is the only thing that can save the other fairies of the land as they are all being turned to stone. Ben must find a way to bring his sister back to the sea so she can sing her song before it’s too late.

PRODUCTION

The film was directed by Tomm Moore, and produced by Paul Young. Tomm Moore wrote the original story, but the screenplay was written by Will Collins, who would later write the screenplay for Wolfwalkers.

Tomm Moore came up with the idea for the story when he was on holiday on the Dingle Peninsula with his family. After arriving, they were saddened to discover that many seals were lying dead on the beach. He spoke to a local woman and tour guide, who told him that the superstitions and stories surrounding the seals would usually protect them from being killed. He said, “She was saying the seals would have been respected – they would have been seen as the Selkies, containing the souls of the dead – the people who were lost at sea.” Moore was inspired by the relationship between folklore and how it shapes and protects the environment surrounding it.

He found the Selkies fascinating, because he understood that they are often a way to deal with loss. So, he began developing the story for a film.

The animation surrounding an Irish story is a concept that was inspired by Hayao Miyasaki. He found it incredible that viewers don’t need to understand Japanese folklore to appreciate the films and their universal themes and characters. Moore admires how Miyasaki depicts Japan from an animator’s perspective, and the more you know about the country and its culture, the more you get from the piece.

Each location in the film is inspired by a real place, or a mash-up of places, but most heavily the Dingle peninsula. Moore took his team to the area to get a familiarity with the landscape. They used real landmarks and scenery, like the statue of Molly Malone in Dublin to ground the film firmly in its location. They depicted the landscape from the perspective of a child, and how they would perceive the country.

When asked about why they chose a hand-drawn style for the film, Paul Young commented that when young children see a hand-drawn film, they come out of the theater inspired to draw themselves.

The studio is famous for its hybrid style of computer and traditional animation. For this film, the animators used the computers to imitate animation techniques that would have been impossible with cell animation. For example, Paul Young said, “We were able to make the clouds, the watercolor layers, actually move. That would have been incredibly difficult to do [without a computer]. You couldn’t put watercolor on a cell.”

Cartoon Saloon coordinated with studios in five different countries to complete the film. This approach has helped them make films on a tight budget, in contrast to major studios that can afford to spend hundreds of thousands on productions.

CAST

David Rawle as Ben

Moone Boy!

Brendan Gleeson as Conor/ Mac Lir

Lisa Hannigan as Bronach

Fionnula Flanagan as Granny/ Macha

Lucy O’Connell as Saoirse

Jon Kenny as Ferry Dan/ The Great Seanachaí

Pat Shortt as Lug

Colm Ó’Snodaigh as Mossy

Liam Hourican as Spud/ Bus Driver

Paul Young did additional voices

MUSIC

Bruno Coulais scored this film as well as Secret of Kells, giving the films a unifying sense in their music. This makes sense since Tomm Moor considers Song of the Sea to be a spiritual sequel to The Secret of Kells.

RECEPTION/AWARDS

Song of the Sea was nominated for an Oscar for best animated film, along with several Annie Awards.

Tomm Moore said of the oscar nomination: “With the nomination, I met a lot of people like Pete Docter and Henry Selick, and it really felt like the industry saying, ‘Oh no, this is great. It’s great to see something independent. Keep going. Let’s see more.’ That’s what it felt like. It felt like the industry itself, or our peers in animation, endorsing what we were doing. And that was massive.”

THE BREADWINNER

SYNOPSIS

Based on the novel of the same name by Deborah Ellis, this film takes place in Taliban-controlled Kabul in 2001. It follows 11-year-old Parvanna, a girl that risks her life by posing as a boy so that her family can survive. She is determined to save her father’s life and reunite her family after her father has been taken to prison.

PRODUCTION

The film was the first Cartoon Saloon feature directed by Nora Twomey, and it was executively produced by Anjolina Jolie.

The screenplay was written by Anita Doran, based on the novel by Deborah Ellis. When Nora Twomey read the novel, she immediately connected with the character, and loved that the story didn’t talk down to its audience. She knew that it would make a beautiful animated film.

Nora understood that to make this movie the best it could be, she needed input from people who understand Afghan culture, and those that might have had similar life experiences to the characters. She loved the challenge of telling a story that would appeal to younger and older audiences at the same time, and chose an animation style that lent itself to that.

The filmmakers looked at the difference between western and Afghan culture, and wanted to depict universal struggles that would apply to everyone.

Nora was also dedicated to finding as many actors from Afghanistan or with a strong connection to the country and its experiences. She not only wanted authentic voices, but she also wanted people that could draw from the emotion of their own experiences.

The animation team was made up of 100 artists spread across three countries.

To give animators an understanding of how the characters would move in each scene, she acted out every scene of the film as a reference point.

Before the animation started, they made three drawings per scene to show what the characters should do, which gives the animator a better idea of how the character is feeling and how the scene should be approached.

Then, they entered the rough animation stage where the animators use quick, rough drawings to bring the characters to life. This is about the general movement of the characters.

Those rough drawings are tidied up after they have been approved. This makes sure that they can be painted easily and that the characters are in the correct style for the film. Animators then start adding shadows to put the characters in the real world, before adding color.

Every color is specifically chosen for a reason. They used the colors to guide the audience and make every scene as clear as possible.

The film consisted of two separate types of animation. The look and feel of the real world that Parvanna inhabits needed to be naturalistic and based heavily on the specific setting. Animators went for a cinematic feeling, based completely on the main character and what she would need. It was physical and immersive.

The story world needed to be bright and colorful, and essentially as limitless as a child’s imagination.

For the story world, the animators met with a paper artist to understand how light works with paper, and how it feels to animate with paper. They then recreated the paper imagery for the film, using the computer. They added shadows and textures, to give the audience a sense of puppetry. The acting of the characters in the scenes was also as theatrical as possible, with bold movements.

Sound designer JR Fountain wanted the sounds of the real world to feel oppressive and overwhelming. He treated the story world as a sort-of “playground,” not with cartoon effects necessarily, but still bringing joyful and playful sounds to the scene.

Much like The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea, this film weaves the beauty and culture of its setting with a very real world experience. Producer Anthony Leo commented on how much loved that audiences would get to see Afghanistan’s rich culture, art, and storytelling; a contrast to how the country is often portrayed, especially during this time period.

CAST

Saara Chaudry as Parvana

Saara felt that the role was a dream come true, and that her role in the film reminded her that there are people out there trying to improve the lives of people like Parvanna.

Soma Chhaya as Shauzia

Noorin Gulamgaus as Idrees/ Sulayman

Ali Badshah as Nurullah/ Talib Security Man

His wife is from Afganistan, which gave him a strong frame of reference to his character. He said he focused on the loneliness his character must feel, as an educated man that has lost his way of life as well as a child and his leg.

Shaista Latif as Soraya

Kanza Feris as Sorceress/ Woman in Courtyard

Kawa Ada as Razaq

He said of The Breadwinner, “The writing in this film, it speaks to Afgan culture as well as that it’s not sentimental. And, I mean obviously there is great heart in it, and there is such a broad scope of the people and even within the story you have all these other characters who are given their due, which I think is brilliant.”

Kane Mahon as Optician/Kiln Owner

Ali Kazmi as Darya/ Fruit Juice Vendor/ Jail Warden

MUSIC

The composers, Jeff and Mychael Danna, used a different approach musically to the real world versus the dream world.

Real world was scored more like a live action film, and it was desolate and serious. In the story world, the music followed what was happening on screen.

The composers knew it was important to honor the afgan traditions so they used afgan artists and instruments, and researched the music of the culture.

The ending music of the film was meant to leave the audience with feelings of hope and beauty, as the story is about love and strength above all else.

RECEPTION/AWARDS

Overall, The Breadwinner was nominated for 55 awards, winning 22 of them. It was the third Cartoon Saloon film to be nominated for the Oscar for best animated feature. It was also the first to win the Annie award for the same title!

WOLFWALKERS

SYNOPSIS

In a time of superstition and magic, when wolves are seen as demonic in nature and an evil to be tamed, a young apprentice huntress, Robyn, comes to Ireland with her father to wipe out a pack of troublesome wolves. But when Robyn saves a wild girl, Mebh, their friendship leads her to discover the world of the Wolfwalkers and transforms her into the very thing her father is tasked to destroy.Production

PRODUCTION

With “Wolfwalkers,” the final installment in the trilogy, the studio made a conscious decision to create a larger action adventure. Artistically and narratively, it’s their most ambitious undertaking to date. Initially, Cartoon Saloon shopped the project to Netflix, but when the streaming goliath passed, Apple stepped in.

Written by Will Collins, Wolfwalkers has roots in the Cromwellian invasion of Ireland (Lord Protector is based on Oliver Cromwell) and Irish folklore about the Wolves of Ossory, a tribe of beings who could transform themselves into wolves.

Directors Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart developed the film’s visual style to show a contrast between period Kilkenny, with its blocky look to convey its oppressive nature, and the more fluid, free look of the forest. Both were inspired by 17th century woodcuts. Stewart said in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, “[Robyn’s home in Kilkenny] is a cage, and the visuals reinforce that. The linework is very harsh and very black-and-white. There’s high contrast and there’s a lot of geometric patterning, like a kind of a warped perspective.”

Maria Pareja, a production designer on Wolfwalkers, notes that for period Kilkenny, they took creative license but also relied on extensive research, including stops at Kilkenny’s Rothe House, one of the oldest houses in Ireland.

The Rothe House was built between 1594 and 1610 and is now a must see museum and garden dedicated to the life and times of 17th century Ireland.

The film’s signature look is hand-drawn with the help of computers to augment the process. Every frame is still drawn by hand, but with a computer screen and stylus. Moore explains, “We use special digital brushes to look as much like the pencil line that we want. Backgrounds on the other hand, are painted with watercolors and the linework is also done on paper with pencils and pens. They’re combined and photoshopped to make the final background.”

The artists were also heavily encouraged to leave the pencil lines to give it a very two dimensional feel!

Screenwriter Collins’ early research focused intensely on hunters’ lives in and out of Kilkenny during the era of the Cromwellian War. He said that it was important to fill the audience in on it, but not get bogged down by it. For Stewart, the story was the most important thing. There is a time and a place for historical stories and being truthful to the original tale. But that doesn’t mean that everything has to stick to that. Stories have to adapt to the way they’re being told in this century, and they will be different in the next century.

CAST

Honor Kneafsey as Robyn Goodfellowe

She has made small appearances in the BBC Sherlock, as well as the Netflix original “A Christmas Prince” film series.

Eva Whittaker as Mebh Óg MacTíre

This is her first full length feature roll (way to start out strong!)

Sean Bean as Bill Goodfellowe, Robyn’s father and town wolf hunter

A well known actor famous for many fantasy roles including Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings and the most recent Snowpiercer.

Simon McBurney as Lord Protector

He has been in many films including the 2007 version of the Golden Compass, the 2010 Robin Hood, and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Tommy Tiernan as the farmer who is put in the stockade, Seán Óg

Known for his roles in many Irish shows such as Derry Girls, Small Potatoes, and Little Crackers

Maria Doyle Kennedy as Mebh’s Mother, Moll MacTíre

An actress known for her roles in Outlander, Orphan Black, and Dexter

Reception/Awards

Released by GKids on 500 screens across the United States and on Apple TV+, the movie has received glowing reviews and has earned the studio another Oscar nomination.

David Ehrlich of Indie Wire said in his review “Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon may not be able to match the impact or consistency of Japan’s Studio Ghibli, but the outfit has gradually emerged as one of the world’s last and most valuable assets against the crude and sometimes soulless nature that has defined the post-“Shrek” era of mainstream animated movies. With Wolfwalkers, we have an animated film that finds new beauty in ancient traditions; a film that fights back against the temptation to surrender what little magic this world still has left.”

They have also done animated shorts and tv series.

We eagerly await their next film in 2022 entitled My Father’s Dragon.

Last week, we mentioned how it can be difficult to succeed in animation without a lot of name recognition. There are so many studios out there, with talented artists, making incredible stories come to life with animation. Cartoon Saloon is just one of them! It’s a studio that has stayed true to itself, and has had remarkable success. Its films are absolutely breathtaking, with refreshing animation styles that are, quite frankly, a balm for the eyes. Cartoon Saloon takes its time with their work, using what they believe to be the best techniques for each particular story. These films are the kind that we watch not just because they are entertaining and beautiful, but because we can see how passionate the animators are about their work.

We wanted to close animation April with Cartoon Saloon because this is a studio that everyone should know. It often seems that in order to be successful, you have to have the most money or be the most popular, or that you need to make certain kinds of films using specific techniques. But in this case, Cartoon Saloon’s success comes strictly from passion, hard work, and a whole lot of talent. They’re an inspiring group of masterful storytellers, and we cannot wait to see what they will do next.

Before we go, we’d like to thank our Patrons! Joel, John, Jacob, Jacklyn, JD, Anthony, Shelli, and Linda.

SOURCES:

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/12/21/cartoon-saloon-and-the-new-golden-age-of-animation

https://www.cartoonsaloon.ie/about-irish-animation-studio/

Tangcay J. Tooned Up History Lesson. Variety. 2021;351(14):46-47. Accessed April 8, 2021. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=149546005&site=ehost-live

ROBERTS B. Behind THE Screens: Cartoon Saloon, the Kilkenny, Ireland, animation studio, has a critically acclaimed and powerfully distinctive style and redefines what it means to communicate with fans through art, storytelling and brands with soul. License! Global. March 2021:44-45. Accessed April 8, 2021. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=149408077&site=ehost-live

Wolff E. Imagining a Wolf’s View of the World. Variety. 2020;350(7):82. Accessed April 8, 2021. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=147611868&site=ehost-live

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/environmentalism-and-empathy-the-making-of-wolfwalkers

The Beginning of the studio

https://www.framefreakstudio.com/tomm-moore-cartoon-saloon/

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/nora-twomey-from-school-drop-out-to-oscar-nominee-1.3605190

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/16/movies/cartoon-saloon-wolfwalkers.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXxyS2ou9Aw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPos5suT42Y

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/song-of-the-sea-how-an-animated-treat-was-made/

https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflixs-my-fathers-dragon-animated-movie-everything-we-know-so-far/

The Case of Robin Williams

A man in a funny red suit stands in contrast to an all-black screen. He has a young face, with a wild head of hair and sparkling blue eyes. A booming voice calls down to him, asking for an update from the planet Earth. The voice is Orson, and the man is Mork, an alien sent from his home planet Ork to study Earth’s inhabitants. In this episode of “Mork and Mindy,” Mork transformed himself into an old man, to provide company to Mindy’s grandmother after the loss of her best friend. Mork delivers his usual silliness and improvisation, until it’s time to look up at the invisible Orson, and recite the moral of the episode, “Everything else here gets more valuable as it gets older: wine, cheese, furniture, coins…everything except people.”

It was moments like this that turned Robin Williams into a superstar. There was no doubt the man was comically talented, having made a name for himself on stand-up stages across southern California, but mainstream audiences fell in love with the quirky–yet sentimental–Mork.

Over the next few decades, Robin Williams entertained and inspired generations of fans. Not only was he one of the greatest comedic minds of all time, he proved to be a remarkable actor as well. He entertained in a way that no one ever has, or likely ever will. He was a shining light despite the darkness lurking in his own world, a chaotic beacon that millions looked to for warmth and a good laugh.

So today, we’re spending our first biography episode of the year on the incomparable Robin Williams.

FAMILY/ YOUNG LIFE

Born on July 21st, 1951 in Chicago, Illinois, Robin Williams was the only child of Robert and Laurie Williams. Robert held a high-ranking role in the Ford Motor Company, and Laurie was a former model and part-time actress. The two of them traveled often, leaving Robin alone for his formative years. To cope with the loneliness, Robin would create characters and voices, and bring to life a vast collection of toy soldiers.

Since both Robert and Laurie had a child from previous marriages, Robin also had two half siblings that he didn’t meet until he was about 10 years-old.

Both of Robin’s parents played a major role in his love of comedy, but he would credit his mother for being the one to show him the joy of making others laugh. She had a sight gag that she would often use at parties, that involved her placing a broken rubber band up her nose and pretending to sneeze. She would then let the rubber string dangle to great comic affect.

Robin would later describe his father as a good man, but a tough laugh. The two didn’t have a lot in common, but sometimes Robert would let his son stay up with him to watch Tonight starring Jack Paar. Robin remembered one time specifically when comedian Jonathan Winters appeared on the show, and made his father burst out laughing. This made Robin take notice of Winters, who would become one of his biggest influences.

Winters was famous for his improvisational skills. Robin loved to recount the time he called Jonathan Winters his mentor and Jonathan said, “Please, I prefer idol.”

Clip of Jonathan Winters on Tonight with Jack Paar

Robin attended an all-boys school, and was on the football team. Any rebellious nature he had, he kept from his parents, showing good grades and manners.

But when he was 17, the Williams family moved to San Francisco. The new environment changed everything for Robin. It was here that he performed for the first time, doing an impression of a particularly animated teacher at his public high school. This quiet, nervous kid now made a remarkable discovery: when he was performing, he could be someone else, and the inhibitions of his normal personality faded away.

After attending an all-boys college to study political science, Robin dropped out and received a scholarship to Juilliard, where he met his long-time friend and roommate, Christopher Reeve

Juilliard gave Robin skills that he would use for the rest of his career. He was a skilled actor with a remarkable memory and ability to project without a microphone. He could form a connection with audiences, and he fell in love with improvisation.

After college, Williams moved back to California, and would perform on the street as well as in comedy clubs like The Holy City Zoo, where he started as a bartender. This would also be where he met his first wife, Valerie Velardi. The two were married for 10 years, and Robin remarried Marsha Garces in 1989. Him and Marsha were together for 21 years, and had two children: Zelda and Cody. In 2011, Robin married his third wife, Susan.

Robin Williams burst onto the comedy scene, forging lasting relationships with other up-and-coming comedic acts like David Letterman and Billy Crystal.

In the documentary, “Come Inside My Mind,” Letterman recounted seeing Williams’ wildly funny and energetic performances, wondering if his own comedy career would soon be over. “All I could do was hold on to a microphone for dear life,” Letterman said, “and he was levitating.”

Williams thrived as a performer in front of live audiences, and it was these performances that got him cast in his first TV appearance.

FIRST PROJECTS

When producer George Schlatter saw one of Williams’ shows in the late 1970’s, he cast him in a special called , “The Great American Laugh Off.” Robin was a hit, and was later added as a cast member in the revival of “Laugh In.”

We will link to a video of this performance, as he’s seen wearing his classic rainbow suspenders.

https://youtu.be/_JoH75rraLo

In the mid 1970’s, Happy Days was the number one show on ABC. But, producer Gary Marshall’s son remarked that he was no longer watching it. When Marshall asked his son what would make him want to watch the show again, his son said that he wished there would be “space men” in the show. So, Marshall decided to write one in.

When it was time to hold auditions for Mork, a quirky alien from the planet Ork, someone who had seen Robin Williams as a street performer suggested him for the role. Gary Marshall asked if he should really “hire a kid that stands on the sidewalk with a hat” to be on his major TV show, and the person replied, “it’s a pretty full hat.”

So Robin came in to audition, and did so well, he was cast on the spot.

The showrunners knew immediately that Williams was perfect for the role, when they asked him to sit down and he sat on his head (a gag used in Happy Days and later Mork and Mindy). Marshall reportedly said that he was the only alien to show up for the part.

The episode tested well with audiences, and Happy Days brought back Mork for another episode later on.

It seemed to be a no-brainer that Mork should get his own show, so Marshall brought on actress Pam Dawber to play opposite Robin Williams, in a show about an alien that lives with a woman in present day Boulder, Colorado. The show gave Mork a new mission: he was to investigate the strange customs of the inhabitants of Earth, and report back to his superior, a faceless voice named Orson.

The show turned Robin Williams into a household name. He was making more money than ever, and he found a home in front of a live studio audience.

Sometime during the second season was when Robin started using drugs more heavily than he had before. He was friends with John Belushi, who had visited the set of Mork and Mindy on a day when Robin’s idol Jonathan Winters was a special guest.

Robin visited with Belushi on the same night that he passed away from a drug overdose. The absolute shock and devastation of losing a close friend to drugs prompted Robin to get sober.

This is an excerpt from the biography, “Robin” by Dave Itzkoff, recounting the moment that Pam Dawber had to tell Robin about Belushi’s death.

Dawber waited for a discreet moment when she and Robin were walking back from the Paramount commissary: “I said, ‘I’ve got something really terrible to tell you, Robin. He went, ‘What? What?’ And I said that John Belushi was found dead last night.” Robin found it incomprehensible to hear this about someone he had seen only a few hours earlier. “He went, ‘What? I was with him last night! I was with him last night!’” Dawber said. She could see that Robin was in pain but wanted to make sure he did not ignore the larger lesson in all of this. “I said, ‘Robin, if that ever happens to you, I will find you and kill you first.’”

Around this time, Robin’s oldest son Zach was born. This was another incentive for Williams to stay sober.

After four seasons, Mork and Mindy ended. Robin closed the book on the show that made him a star, and set his sights on bigger things. He continued to perform stand-up shows, proving himself as the king of improvisation. He would perform sets that he hadn’t written or rehearsed beforehand, and he felt free to perform without the rules of a Network holding him back.

The end of the show also freed Robin to focus on a newer chapter of his career: movies! Although he didn’t become a movie star right out of the gate, film would be the medium by which many would know him by in years to come. Once he found his footing as a film actor, he didn’t look back. In fact, he didn’t return to TV for nearly 3 decades.

A FEW OF HIS MOST INFLUENTIAL ROLES

POPEYE

Popeye was Robin Williams’ first feature film, and ultimately one that he would consider a disappointment. It wasn’t necessarily a critical darling, and although it didn’t flop, it never reached number one at the box office.

For the next few years, Williams would star in films like, “The World According to Garp” and “Moscow on the Hudson,” but he still felt that he wasn’t winning film audiences over. However the World According to Garp gave him the chance to be in a more serious role where he had to commit to the lines. He was able to build on this and show that he had a wider range than just comedy.

GOOD MORNING VIETNAM

It may seem crazy but there was a time when there were doubts about Robin’s abilities. The movies that he had been in before Good Morning Vietnam had not done well, and so the industry and Touchstone Pictures had their doubts. Barry Levinson, the movie’s director and fellow Comedy Stores Player member, knew that Robin would be perfect for the role.

This was Robin’s first film to do well and be the number one movie at the box office. It was his big break into the movie scene and to move beyond just stand-up and television.

Thirty Three years ago this month Good Morning, Vietnam came to theatres. Hours of material were ad-libbed for the radio scenes.

DEAD POETS SOCIETY

The first director, Jeff Kanew, actually wanted Liam Neeson as the role of Keating but Touchstone Pictures(AKA Disney’s Jeffrey Katzenberg) wanted Robin Williams. Robin never said yes or no to taking the part of Keating but his deafening silence towards working with Kanew on the project was noticed. Touchstone gambled and had everything set for the first day of shooting with hopes that Robin would show up. He did not. Luckily after a few changes, especially to a new director, he accepted the part and things got rolling.

Director Peter Weir when talking about whether or not Robin could pull this role off said that although he was known as a “funny man,” he had met Robin and the role he wanted him to play would be a mixture of the “real Robin” and a little of his character from “The World According to Garp.”

At first it was hard for him to get into the role, but once he was given a little free reign for improvisation on teaching the boys it all clicked.

HOOK

Dante Basco who plays the role of Rufio would often discuss The Dead Poets Society and poems with Robin. He was an aspiring poet and so at the end of shooting, Robin gifted him with a limited edition of Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. As a result he ended up opening a very successful venue in America called The Poetry Lounge.

On the set of Hook Robin had some funny antics and Thomas Tulak recounts one of the times that Steven Spielberg was trying to address the people on set, “He’s just about got every one calmed down and starts to give instructions, when Robin climbs to the top of the pirate ship, behind Steven, and moons everyone!” Tulak wrote, adding, “Needless to say, Steven lost control of the situation.”

The hardest part for Robin to play in this movie was Peter Banning. Spielberg said that it was the antithesis of who Robin was.

ALADDIN

At this time Robin Williams had become a well known star and Ron Clements and John Musker specifically wrote the role of Genie for Robin. They were incredibly inspired by a short called Back to Neverland, where Robin is taken around the world of DIsney Animation by Walter Cronkite and is taken to the animated world of Peter Pan specifically. In order to pay respect and recall back to this short, Musker and Clements had animators draw Genie at the end of the movie wearing the same yellow wild shirt and Goofy hat that he does in the beginning of Back to Neverland.

Robin at first did not want the part because he felt that the Disney contract was too strict. He finally agreed to do the film because Katzenberg convinced him to do it for his young kids so they could see their dad in something. He did however have some stipulations that he gave Disney. Some of these include: Genie could not be in more than 25% of the poster image, they couldn’t use his name or voice for marketing the movie, and that no happy meal toys be made of Genie. One of his goals was to not overshadow the movie that he had committed to first with Barry Levinson called “Toys.” Sadly “Toys” would bomb at the box office and Disney would break their promises of using his celebrity to promote Aladdin. This would lead to his anger at the studio and reason for not appearing in The Return of Jafar.

Fortunately for us however Robin had free reign in this feature and reportedly recorded 16 hours of riffing which the film cut down and brilliantly animated for the film.

MRS. DOUBTFIRE

When Joe Roth took over for Disney he gave a formal apology from Disney to Robin. This allowed Mrs. Doubtfire to be greenlit.

Anne Fine the author of the book (Alias Madame Doubtfire) that the film is based on, pictured Warren Beatty as the lead. How different the movie would have been!

True to form 2-3 cameras had to be kept on Robin as he moved about freely during filming!

Robin wanted to make sure that his costume for Mrs. Doubtfire worked and so therefore he tested it in a few different ways. One way he did this was to wear it to an adult store to buy intimate objects. It worked and it took the clerk quite a while to finally figure out that it was actually Robin! The other test came when they were casting Matthew Lawrence and Mara Wilson as the children. They wanted to get the kids’ true reactions.

Lisa Jakub who played the eldest daughter said about the movie that “I have had so many people come up to me and want to talk about this because it was so meaningful to them and really helped them get through their parents’ divorce,” said Jakub. “This idea that this might not be the way that you thought your life was going to be, that doesn’t mean that it’s bad or wrong. You’re going to be okay. That’s a really powerful message.”

There were reports that multiple cuts of the movie were made, one for PG, PG-13, R, and even NC-17 depending on what Robin ad-libbed. The final cut they chose was the PG-13, yet I know that lots of kids were still allowed to watch it!

There were two scenes that were also cut from the film for being “too heartbreaking.” We watched them and…yeah, we agree. You can find them HERE.

JUMANJI

The director Joe Johnston said that TriStar pictures told them that they would make the movie if they could get Robin to be in it. The first script was passed by Robin and so the team spent an entire night revising the script. Luckily this next screenplay was accepted and he said yes!

Young 12 year old Bradley Pierce had to have make-up put on for 3 hours a day to become the monkey boy. Since Robin had to go through a similar time, recently being made up as Mrs. Doubtfire, he kindly kept Bradley company and gave advice as he sat in the chair.

Bonnie Hunt said of the movie “Kids always remember the first movie that makes their hearts pound. Then that feeling becomes nostalgic, and you want to revisit it and share it with a new generation.”

And boy was it a hit, winning $262.8 million worldwide.

GOOD WILL HUNTING

Good Will Hunting gave Robin Williams his only Academy Award, for the role of Sean McGuire. Although Williams had proved he was a strong dramatic actor (hence Juilliard) this role really proved his range.

It is now one of his best-known performances, and fans of the movie often take trips to the public bench in Boston, where one of the film’s most iconic scenes takes place.

In one scene, Williams improvised a line about his late wife farting in her sleep. The story made Matt Damon and Williams both break into laughter, and if you look closely, you can see the camera shaking because the cameraman was laughing as well!

Robin says that the quietest person in the room is the one to look out for. The line in Good Will Hunting where his character grabs Damon by the throat and says I will end you came from when Robin saw a large guy at a bar picking on a smaller dude and the smaller dude was quiet until he had enough. He pointed and said “I will end you” and the larger guy walked away.

PATCH ADAMS

Patch Adams was a way to show Robin’s care for children, especially those fighting cancer or other ailments. It was a way to show that laughter really can be the best medicine.

Cameron Brooke Stanley was only 7 year old, undergoing treatment for her kidney in real life, and cast with a speaking role. She remembers Robin fondly as he cared for the children’s comfort and well-being first and foremost. As of 2014 she was 22 and living in San Jose free of cancer.

Patch Adams, after hearing of Robin’s passing, had this to say to Time Magazine, “I’m enormously grateful for his wonderful performance of my early life, which has allowed the Gesundheit Institute to continue and expand our work. We extend our blessings to his family and friends in this moment of sadness. Thank you for all you’ve given this world, Robin. Thank you my friend.”

His last roles were; “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb,” and a voice part in “Absolutely Anything.”

CONTRIBUTIONS TO AMERICAN CULTURE

When performing, Robin had a lot of energy and would move freely about in the space that he was given. He was very unpredictable. Due to this, he is the reason that a fourth camera was brought into the sitcom format during Mork and Mindy. They brought it in specifically to capture Robin, because he was not hitting his marks!

Robin Williams did lots of charity work, he helped where he could. Here are just a few organizations that he put his time, money, and talents towards.

You may remember him doing ads for St. Jude’s Hospital. We would often see them at the theatre before they played the trailers! He was a big supporter and would spend whatever time he could to visit with the children and families.

Since he was a close and personal friend with Christopher Reeve he committed 4 years of his life on the Board of the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. He went to several of the fundraising events and made sure to talk to as many people as he could. The foundation raises money for research towards spinal cord injuries. Robin would financially support this foundation as much as he could.

Comic Relief was a special telethon organized by Bob Zmuda that had Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, and Robin Williams as the hosts. It’s purpose was to raise money and awareness to homelessness and health care services. The three of them would host a total of 8 of the telethons starting in 1986.

He was always willing to go and visit the soldiers overseas with many performances over his 12 years of involvement with the USO. He would pose for so many pictures with troops that he would often have to be practically dragged away from them.

AWARDS

Here is a list of some of the awards that Robin Williams won throughout his career

Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2005

Golden Globe winner for his roles in: Mrs. Doubtfire, Aladdin, The Fisher King, Good Morning Vietnam, and Mork and Mindy

Emmy Winner for roles in:

ABC Presents: A Royal Gala

Carol, Carol, Whoopi and Robin

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for his roles in One Hour Photo and Aladdin

American Comedy Awards: Mrs. Doubtfire, Comic Relief III, Comic Relief ‘87, Good Morning Vietnam, Robin Williams Live at the Met

In 1988 and ‘89 he won Funniest Male Stand-Up Comic and in 89 he also won Funniest Male Performer of the Year

He won these along with several others and many more nominations! He even won a few Grammy’s like one for the soundtrack for Good Morning Vietnam.

HIS DEATH AND LEWY BODY DEMENTIA

Robin Williams had an unparalleled mind. He relied on his ability to think on his feet, as well as his extraordinary memory that he inherited from his dad. Near the end of his career, Robin was still getting steady work. He starred in a sitcom called “The Crazy Ones,” and made appearances in all three of the “Night at the Museum” films.

But despite outward appearance, Robin and his wife Susan noticed something was wrong. In October of 2013, around the time of their two year anniversary, Williams started experiencing what his wife would call, “a firestorm of symptoms.” Among these were paranoia and memory loss. For months there were no answers on what could be causing these issues. Susan Schnieder Williams remembers her husband calling her while he filmed the final “Night at the Museum” movie. He was having a panic attack because he couldn’t remember his lines. A month later, he was given the devastating diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease.

Symptoms would change and worsen as time went on. Robin was confused and distraught. He seemed to be losing his ability to judge depth, and at times he would get caught in a frozen stance, unable to break out of it.

On August 11, 2014, Williams’ assistant found the comedian unresponsive in his home. He had died of an apparent suicide.

The news of Robin Williams’ death shook his fans from all over the world. It was an unbelievable loss. Robin Williams was the kind of person that seemed untouchable, invincible.

President Obama said of his death: “Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan, and everything in between. But he was one of a kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien — but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit. He made us laugh. He made us cry. He gave his immeasurable talent freely and generously to those who needed it most — from our troops stationed abroad to the marginalized on our own streets. The Obama family offers our condolences to Robin’s family, his friends, and everyone who found their voice and their verse thanks to Robin Williams.”

His manner of death sparked many discussions on mental illness, more specifically depression. The incident seemed to highlight the importance of seeking help, and destigmatizing mental illness.

In the fall of 2016, a neurology journal published an essay by Susan Schneider Williams called, “The Terrorist Inside my Husband’s Brain.” Which we will link to in the blog. https://n.neurology.org/content/87/13/1308

It was revealed that after Williams’ autopsy, medical professionals discovered Lewey Bodies on his brain. These are lumps of protein known to cause dementia. Robin Williams had a unique and advanced case of Lewey Body Syndrome (LBD) that was likely a major factor in his suicide.

In the essay she wrote: “I will never know the true depth of his suffering, nor just how hard he was fighting. But from where I stood, I saw the bravest man in the world playing the hardest role of his life.”

Susan Schneider has continued to educate the public about the little known brain disease that affects about 1.4 million Americans.

In her essay, Robin Williams’ wife wrote, “Robin is and will always be a larger-than-life spirit who was inside the body of a normal man with a human brain.”

Robin Williams was truly remarkable. There was something in him that we all see in ourselves, yet he was utterly unique. He spoke to us, made us laugh, made us cry, and made us laugh again. On stage, he was lightning personified, striking in unpredictably amusing ways. In life, he was quiet, loving, and at times, lonely. He shared with the world, the magic of his inextinguishable spark. And although he may be gone, his light will never leave us.

SOURCES:

https://biographics.org/robin-williams-biography-life-dark-comedy/

https://n.neurology.org/content/87/13/1308

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000245/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDJjq0Pd0RM&list=PL-K70rinP31UUfnq7XatLQHDBV8TzuSba&index=2

https://www.emmys.com/video/remembering-jonathan-winters-65th-emmys

https://www.romper.com/p/when-did-robin-williams-start-doing-standup-comedy-clubs-were-where-he-got-his-start-9762320

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/05/robin-williams-death-biography-dave-itzkoff-excerpt

https://money.cnn.com/2014/08/12/news/companies/robin-williams-charity/

https://variety.com/2014/tv/news/comic-relief-campaign-was-more-than-photo-op-for-robin-williams-1201282307/

Robin Williams Remembered

Robin by Dave Itzkoff

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgiReyZE4T4

https://www.romper.com/p/when-did-robin-williams-start-doing-standup-comedy-clubs-were-where-he-got-his-start-9762320

https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/dead-poets-society-why-it-works-and-how-it-happened/

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/about-that-time-robin-williams-mooned-the-cast-of-hook-behind-steven-spielbergs-back_n_58c2b1bde4b054a0ea6a120f?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIwLf-HB-PllDr4NLOL5BpCw6XfVT8AxbQw12Gj-J1vnimyMMI-ywvFswYaCfkixfIHBEcuIWJsxdSbCtl95GJ02qbGXALOnTrrWBk8qDF4Bs50UFtxhv_kMukiyoOyfpdXz-R75fttXdTUy9BfTX1nwGTxsaV3k-R28pIolJuOV

https://screenrant.com/hook-movie-behind-scenes-details-making-trivia/

Celebrity Reaction. USA Today. Accessed January 8, 2021. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=J0E427382948714&site=ehost-live

https://www.mouseplanet.com/122

86/The_Robin_Williams__Disney_Genie_War_Part_One

https://film.avclub.com/loaded-with-robin-williams-riffs-and-killer-songs-alad-1844578281

https://screenrant.com/mrs-doubtfire-behind-scenes-making-hidden-trivia/

https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/ct-ent-mrs-doubtfire-25-anniversary-20181127-story.html

https://time.com/3105119/robin-williams-dead-patch-adams-remembers/

https://abc7news.com/patch-adams-movie-robin-williams-film-sick-children-cancer/255277/

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/robin-williams-mrs-doubtfire-deleted-scenes_n_56bc9fd8e4b08ffac12408b5

Casper the Friendly Case

Since they have been around, humans have been utterly fascinated by the idea of life after death. Some believe in heaven and hell, while others believe in reincarnation. And some believe that spirits can roam the earth after leaving their bodies.

According to a 2019 YouGov poll, 45% of Americans believe in ghosts. It’s a fear that has plagued the nightmares of many, the idea that there are unseen spirits among us. But what if you found out that the ghost in your house isn’t mean? Would it change your mind if the spirit just wanted to be your friend?

In the mid 1940’s, Paramount’s Famous Studios produced a short called, “The Friendly Ghost,” starring a cute little spirit named Casper. Casper went on to star in many other cartoons and comics, and in 1995 he starred in a major motion picture alongside Bill Pullman and Christina Ricci!

So, if you’re the kind of person that believes in ghosts, this is the story of Casper. And if you’re the kind that doesn’t believe in ghosts, well, this is the story of Casper anyway!

So before we start talking about the movie, let’s talk about Casper’s history!

The Friendly Ghost, the first Noveltoon to feature Casper, was released by Paramount in 1945.

HISTORY

Casper, the friendly ghost (the friendliest ghost you know.)

If you look at the original animation and subsequent comics, it’s tough to figure out exactly where Casper came from. But, in the real world, he was created in the late 1930’s by Joe Oriolo and Seymour Reit.

The story behind Casper’s origins was disputed between the co-creators. Joe Oriolo’s family says that he created the character to help his daughter overcome her fear of the dark. Reit claimed that he wrote the story, but Oriolo drew up the images of the character. Let’s just say they were both correct and call it a day!

Casper was originally designed to be a spirit in a bedsheet. The idea of a ghost in a white sheet dates back as early as the 15th Century, when people in England would report seeing apparitions wrapped in shrouds.

The idea stems from the fact that many people of lower economic status couldn’t afford coffins, and were then only buried in their burial shrouds.

By the time of Shakespeare, reports of people impersonating ghosts by wearing sheets were becoming somewhat common–it seemed a popular disguise for criminals.

Over time, this became the most iconic image of a ghost, and would become a popular Halloween costume.

Casper’s creators were animators, working for Max Fleischer! Originally the concept was for a children’s book, but that didn’t pan out. The project was put on hold as Reit served in the military during WWII.

During the war, the Fleischer Studios was purchased by Paramount, and was now called, “Famous Studios.”

Because of this, all rights to Casper were sold to Famous Studios for $200.

Some sources say that Oriolo sold the rights to the book while Reit was fighting in the war.

In 1945, Casper made his debut in a Famous Studios short called, “The Friendly Ghost.”

The short introduced audienc