TCM’s Treasures from the Disney Vault returns on Monday, March 25th, with an evening of content themed to wild animals. With Tim Burton’s Dumbo and John Favreau’s The Lion King busting blocks this year, it’s a great way for Disney fans to celebrate the company’s rich history of content with similar themes while looking forward to the studio’s current output. Get ready for an evening of lions and tigers and bears (Oh my!).

8:00 pm - Elmer Elephant (1936)

Walt Disney’s Silly Symphony series introduced the world to many loveable characters who only had one short subject. One that made a lasting impression on me as a child was Elmer Elephant, an underdog story about a young elephant who is made fun of amongst his animal friends. This anthropomorphic tale is full of Disney’s charming 1930’s watercolor style and lovable animal characters that are sure to find their way into your heart.

When Elmer Elephant arrives at Tilly Tiger’s birthday party, he is teased and mocked for his big ears and long nose by all of the other animals. He leaves the party with hurt feelings, but when a fire starts, Elmer is the only one who can save the day.

Like so many others, the moral of Elmer Elephant is that what makes you different and unique can be a strength, not a weakness. Disney told a story with a similar moral a few years later through Dumbo, which is reimagined by Tim Burton later this month. This makes it a particularly inspired way to begin the evening.

Recommendation: Don’t miss “Elmer Elephant,” a delightfully charming animated short.

8:15 pm - The African Lion (1955)

Walt Disney’s True-Life Adventures series began with a series of short films that lead way to full-length feature films. The African Lion was the third full-length film in the series, setting its sights on the African savannah. It’s a locale that we will see twice in tonight’s lineup and one that audiences will obsess over this summer with the reimagined version of The Lion King.

An animated paint brush widens our world to the mighty animal kingdom and the world of African lions. Their daily routines are mostly comical, except when they hunt. Their neighbors and prey all become topics of exploration in this educational feature, including elephants, zebras, wildebeest, giraffes, rhinoceros, and baboons. Moments where lions grab a bite to eat underscore the “Circle of Life” theme that Disney has so ingrained in our minds.

Disneynature revisited the same topic in 2011 with the film African Cats. While Walt Disney’s True-Life Adventures series opened the doors for modern nature documentaries and entire television networks devoted to this same topic, the format has vastly improved over the years. While The African Lion is one of the better True-Life Adventures films, modern audiences will likely find it dull in comparison to modern nature films. But while watching, appreciate the fact that a small team of cinematographers spent three years in the African savannah to bring you this footage.

Recommendation: “The African Lion” is a nostalgic look at the early days of nature documentaries, but pales in comparison to the modern equivalent. Skip it if this doesn’t interest you.

9:30 pm – Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar (1967)

Long before the term “cougar” was used to describe middle-aged women on the prowl, Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar made an entire generation of kids fall in love with these mountain cats. Filmed entirely on location in Canada, this Rex Allen narrated film is one of the better ones, in large part due to a likable human cast.

Charlie is an orphan cougar who is rescued by a man named Jess. While he grows up around people in his logging town, he also grows to miss the company of his own kind. When he reaches maturity, he returns to the wild. But without the skills he would have learned from his mother, he eventually needs Jess’ help in order to end his loneliness.

Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar features a lot of moments that would make modern animal rights activists cringe, but is still a great example of how Disney used animals to tell fantastic stories. It features some breathtaking cinematography and it’s easy to see why it was so fondly remembered. Fans of Disney’s animated classic, The Jungle Book, will be interested to know that Charlie was originally released to theaters on a double bill with that animated feature.

Recommendation: “Charlie the Lonesome Cougar” is a shining example of Disney’s evolution away from “True-Life Adventures” and towards scripted, narrated animal films. I wouldn’t call it a “Must-see,” but it’s not a bad way to spend 90-minutes.

11:00 pm - The Yellowstone Cubs (1963)

Moving from Canada to Wyoming, this next film is technically feature-length as it’s barely over 40-minutes long, pun intended. Initially attached in theatersto Savage Sam (sequel to Old Yeller), The Yellowstone Cubs found its biggest audience through repeat airings on The Wonderful World of Disney.

Nakoma is a mama bear with two cubs, Tuffy and Tubby. When the mischievous cubs run off, Nakoma scares tourists while trying to find them and is relocated to the outskirts of Yellowstone National Park. Meanwhile, her cubs spend the entire summer roaming the park and having a lot of fun.

The film lives and dies by cute baby bear sequences, with a simple premise and predictable ending. It’s the perfect length, allowing the animal antics to not run stale. Disney fans should listen for a cameo of a classic song, “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.” It’s also narrated by Rex Allen, most infamous amongst Disney fans from the theme park attraction Carousel of Progress and the original singer of “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow.”

Recommendation: “The Yellowstone Cubs” is a surprising highlight of the night and a rare live-action Disney short. Don’t miss it.

12:00 am - The Country Cousin (1936)

The Aesop Fable The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse comes to life as an animated Silly Symphony in Walt Disney’s The Country Cousin. This is yet another shining example of the Silly Symphony series at its best, which also gave the world such classic shorts as The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, and The Tortoise and the Hare.

When a sophisticated city mouse invites his country bumpkin cousin for a visit, they discover just how different their worlds really are. Abner, the country mouse, doesn’t have the refined etiquette or social manners of his city cousin Monty. And lacking an understanding of big city living, he finds the city to be a far more dangerous place to live than his rural home.

Told with no dialogue, The Country Cousin is a pantomime short set to music. 1930’s social norms are on display and it’s interesting to think about how this short would play if it were remade for a 2019 audience. Of particular interest is the fact that this short stars two mice who bear little resemblance to Mickey and his pals.

Recommendation: While not as charming or memorable as “Elmer Elephant,” animation is the hallmark of the Walt Disney Company and fans should absorb as much of it as they can. Stick around for “The Country Cousin.”

The night is still young! Proceed to the next page to see the rest of the night’s lineup.

12:15 am - The Wild Country (1971)

Focusing on farm life, The Wild Country is the most human story of the night. It’s a family western, following them as they endure harsh weather and harsher neighbors in a lawless part of Wyoming. Horses and cows are a big part of the film, but this is the one entry tonight that is barely an animal film as all of the main characters are human.

The Tanner’s have just bought a ranch in Wyoming and are ready for a new life, but they find nothing but trouble. The ranch is broken down, the neighbors restrict them from accessing fresh water for their crops and cattle, and a drought and tornado would be enough to make anyone give up. But this inspiring story shows a family that perseveres and endures, unwilling to compromise or give up their dream.

Young Ronny Howard stars along with his brother Clint in one of his first projects for Disney. Vera Miles (Those Calloways, Follow Me Boys!) is the most familiar Disney face in the film, and of the entire night. There are elements reminiscent of Old Yeller, but the film chose real Wyoming filming locations rather than Disney’s more comfortable Golden Oak Ranch.

Recommendation: “The Wild Country” is a solid film and one of Disney’s few attempts in the early 1970’s to branch away from tried and true formulas, showcasing a more violent and less optimistic view of Western living than Disney audiences were accustomed to. Step outside the traditional Disney comfort zone and check out “The Wild Country.”

2:00 am - Cheetah (1989)

It would’ve been ideal for Cheetah to air directly following The African Lion. This Roy E. Disney produced film also takes place in Africa and connects the dots of his film career, which began on the True Life Adventures series and ultimately lead to his position as Director Emeritus of the Walt Disney Company. In addition, Roy E. Disney revitalized the Walt Disney Animation Studio, which produced The Lion King a few years after this film was made. The phrase “Hakuna Matata” was first heard by Disney moviegoing audiences in 1989’s Cheetah.

Ted and Susan get to spend their summer in Kenya with their overprotective parents, who don’t allow them to explore the savannah while they work. When the siblings sneak off and befriend a village boy named Morogo, they discover and orphaned cheetah and raise her back to health. But when their summer comes to an end, they discover that some cruel men have devious plans for their trained wild pet.

If you’ve visited Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park, Cheetah will remind you of the experiences you’ve had there and the important message of conservation and respecting the natural balance between mankind and the animal kingdom. Themes in the film that resonate with park goers include poaching, sanctuary reserves, and collecting illegal animal artifacts. Even the music will remind you of the theme park, with a song called “Jambo Bwana” recurring throughout the film and the phrase “Hakuna Matata” spread about, including on a t-shirt worn by Keith Coogan.

Recommendation: Fans of Disney’s Animal Kingdom won’t want to miss “Cheetah.” Hakuna Matata!

3:30 am - Benji the Hunted (1987)

The 1980’s were a weird time at Walt Disney Pictures and a real curiosity in the cannon of Disney films is Benji the Hunted. You’ve no doubt heard of Benji, the popular dog film series by Joe Camp who already had three theatrical films and a holiday TV special by the end of the 1970’s. Flash forward almost a decade when Disney gives the little dog his fourth and final theatrical outing, although he would resurface in direct-to-video and Netflix films later.

The famous show dog Benji gets lost in the woods of Oregon and must fend for himself if he’s ever to get home. His journey leads him to four orphaned cougar kittens and the loving dog becomes their surrogate father, taking care of them and protecting them against the dangerous elements.

From the uniquely 1980’s score to cinematography that often resembles those posters of kittens in a field of flowers from the same era, there’s no doubt about when this film was released. It may not have been beloved at the time, but with nostalgia it takes on some added entertainment value. And with Benji returning to prominence on Netflix, Disney fans should revisit the star dog’s only film to open with a blue castle intro.

Recommendation: Dog + cougar kittens = cuteness overload.

5:00 am - The Bears and I (1974)

Winston Hibler is most well known for narrating the True Life Adventures series, but he was also a producer at Disney, primarily focusing on scripted films starring animal actors. One of his last films before retiring was The Bears and I, written by John Whedon (grandfather of Joss Whedon).

Discharged from the army, Bob Leslie travels to the Canadian Rockies to pay respects to the native family of his fallen brother in battle. While there, he takes three orphaned bear cubs under his care, unintentionally causing conflict with the indigenous people who believe he has interfered with the plans of the Great Spirit. But when the Canadian Government tries to force them out of their home to turn the area into a national park, Bob finds himself in the role of peacekeeper while raising his cubs.

The bears are named Scratch, Patch, and Rusty, and surprisingly the film doesn’t feature as many cute cub scenes as you would expect. It focuses more on the human drama than the animal antics. The theme song for the film is “Sweet Surrender” by John Denver, who had a holiday special with the Muppets a few years later.

Recommendation: “The Bears and I” is another little-known gem in the Disney library and a more mature film than you expect it to be.

Although this installment of Treasures from the Disney Vault featured two films that have already aired in the series (Charlie the Lonesome Cougar and Benji the Hunted), it was still an entertaining lineup. It’s surprising that the series would re-air two films rather than explore other untouched animal films in the Disney vault, but I’m sure some backend politics play into these decisions.

The next installment on June 25th will have a sleuthing theme and includes films like The Moon-Spinners, The North Avenue Irregulars, Emil and the Detectives, Never a Dull Moment, and The Littlest Horse Thieves. Sadly, That Darn Cat is not part of this lineup, despite being on theme.