TCM’s Treasures from the Disney Vault: March 2017
I was saddened to hear the news last week that Robert Osborne, TCM’s original host, had passed away. His inviting personality and superior knowledge of film history made the network the success that it is today, without which we wouldn’t have a reason to gather together four times a year to celebrate some of the wonderful productions from the Walt Disney Company. And so I’d like to start this look at this next programming lineup with a sincere thank you to Robert Osborne and all of the wonderful things he has shared with TCM viewers over the years.
On Thursday, March 16th, Treasures from the Disney Vault returns to TCM. Leonard Maltin once again shines a spotlight on the studio’s many animal-themed productions, but first he presents one of the most heartfelt and uplifting films the company has ever produced. This guide will help you decide what to watch and how late you will stay up (or what you’ll set your DVR to record). So get your Pop Secret ready, it’s movie time!
8:00 pm – Good Scouts (1938)
The night begins with a classic Donald Duck short where he is joined by his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie. Donald is the leader of his Boy Scouts troop on a camping trip in Yellowstone National Park. But since nothing is ever easy for Donald Duck, he struggles to show the boys how to pitch a tent and finds himself the enemy of a wild bear. This short is perfectly on theme with the next film in the evening’s lineup.
Recommendation: This fun short is a perfect way to start the evening and if you’re planning to watch Follow Me, Boys!, this makes a perfect lead-in.
8:15 pm – Follow Me, Boys! (1966)
Disney Legend Fred MacMurray had a successful career prior to his Disney work and if you’ve never seen any of his earlier films, you may not realize just how big of a heartbreaker he was in his youth (for an example, see Double Indemnity). He is best remembered by Disney fans for his roles in The Absent-Minded Professor and The Shaggy Dog and most of his Disney tenure was spent in comedies. But in Follow Me, Boys!, we see him return to his dramatic roots.
Follow Me, Boys! tells the story of how one person’s good dead can have a big impact. After moving to the town of Hickory, where young boys are deemed a nuisance for their rowdy behavior, Lem Siddons (MacMurray) starts a Boy Scouts troop to impress a pretty banker, played by Vera Miles. But it’s the way he changes the life of a troubled youth, played by a young Kurt Russell, that has a reverse impact on his life as well.
While Follow Me, Boys! is a wonderful film, there are just a few aspects that have prevented it from reaching the same classic status as the greats like Old Yeller or The Parent Trap. At just over 2 hours in length, the film loses focus towards the end with a new troop engaged in Boy Scout fun that has little to do with the rest of the picture. But the performances are top notch, particularly from young Russell, and the emotional element is more raw and real than Disney films are known to allow, even by today’s standards.
Rcommendation: This is a must-see film, especially if you love Fred MacMurray and Kurt Russell’s Disney work.
10:30 pm – The Hound that Thought He was a Raccoon (1960)
This episode of The Wonderful World of Color follows the story of a puppy who gets lost in the woods and is raised by a mother raccoon. Nubbin has a lot of fun adventures with his raccoon mom, Mala, but soon gets lost again with his raccoon brother, Weecha. When his former master finds Nubbin, he is trained to be a hunting dog, but years later he comes across his former family and has a tough choice to make.
Narrated by Rex Allen and produced by Winston Hibler, this hour-long TV movie feels like a close relative of both the True-Life Adventures and the narrated animal movies that became a hallmark for Disney in the 1960’s. And the plot is somewhat similar to the animated feature, The Fox and the Hound, which was produced almost twenty years later.
Recommendation: If you love Disney’s animal movies of the 1960’s, this is another cute one. If you’re just looking for an example of this type of film, this is a shorter one to try first.
11:30 pm – Chip & Dale Shorts (1949-1951)
Next up is a trio of shorts starring Chip & Dale. In All in a Nutshell (1949), Donald Duck sets up a roadside peanut butter stand that looks like a giant nutshell. But when Chip and Dale happen upon what they perceive to be the world’s largest nut, they work on finding a way to crack it open, unintentionally disturbing the cantankerous duck inside.
Also from 1949 is Winter Storage, which finds Chip & Dale living in Donald’s backyard. Fall is coming to an end and the two are working hard to store enough nuts for winter. But when Donald finds their winter storage and decides to steal it for himself, they must find a way to outsmart him to get their nuts back.
Out of Scale from 1951 is a nod to Walt Disney’s own backyard train. When Donald adds a miniature locomotive addition to his backyard, he chops down the tree where Chip & Dale live. However, they won’t give up their home without a fight, making it difficult for Donald to make a perfect scale miniature world for his train.
Recommendation: These shorts are classic Donald Duck fun and it’s not often that you get to binge watch Chip & Dale. Don’t miss this second animated portion of the night.
The night is still young. Continue to the next page to see the rest of the evening's lineup.
12:00 AM – The Incredible Journey (1963)
I grew up in the 1990’s and like all kids from that era, I loved Disney’s Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey. So you can imagine my surprise as I got older when I discovered that it was a remake of a 1960’s Disney animal film, The Incredible Journey. Like other films of this era, the animals don’t talk and have their thoughts revealed through a narrator (Once again, Rex Allen).
Two dogs, Bodget and Luath, and a cat named Tao are left in the care of a family friend far from home when the Hunter family takes a trip. Confused by their situation, the trio break free and face a dangerous journey back home that’s full of obstacles, including bears and a lynx cat.
While The Incredible Journey is a fine film, it has been completely eclipsed by the remake. The voices of Michael J. Fox, Sally Field, and Don Ameche brought so much humor and heart to the 1993 version that there’s little point in going back to revisit the original, except for some beautiful shots of the Canadian countryside.
Recommendation: Skip this one and watch Homeward Bound instead. It’s currently streaming on Hulu.
1:30 am – Jungle Cat (1960)
Jungle Cat was the 14th and final entry in the True-Life Adventures series, which began over a decade prior in 1948 and won eight Academy Awards for Walt Disney. However, the lasting effect of the series was immense and scenes from all of the films, including Jungle Cat, were recycled over and over through episodes of The Wonderful World of Disney and educational films that are still being shown in schools.
Of all the True-Life Adventures, Jungle Cat has the most in common with the modern Disneynature features because its narrative largely focuses on the same family of jaguars. Set in the jungles of South America, the felines are the true stars, while the camera often deviates to highlight many of their neighbors, including exotic birds, monkeys, and anteaters.
Some of the most amazing imagery ever captured in the True-Life Aventure series is on display in this film. It’s shocking to see the jaguars provoking large crocodiles and they prove their might when they actually kill one. But the moment that is hardest to forget is when they drag an anaconda out of a river, tearing apart the giant water predator just for fun.
Recommendation: Jungle Cat is one of the finest True-Life Adventure films and is one of the highlights of the evening.
2:45 am – 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 feature.
Recommendation: If you had to chose between Charlie, The Incredible Journey, or The Hound that Thought He was a Raccoon, I would choose Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar.
4:15 am – Napoleon and Samantha (1972)
Jodi Foster makes her feature film debut in this 1972 Disney animal movie. And while it’s not as fondly remembered as her later Disney work, such as Freaky Friday or Candleshoe, the young actress is already showing signs of her amazing abilities here. Kirk Douglas’ son, Michael Douglas, continues the Disney family tradition with a starring role in his only Disney work prior to Marvel’s Ant-Man (Kirk starred in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in 1954).
A boy named Napoleon lives with his grandfather, a former lion tamer who takes an elderly lion in shortly before passing away. Fearing that he will be placed in an orphanage, Napoleon runs away with his best friend, Samantha. But when the two get in more danger than they ever thought possible, they will have to seek the help of an out-of-work stranger in order to survive.
There’s a lot of heart in Napoleon and Samantha, with a few tears early on in the film. The story loses some traction midway through and a wanted-man subplot feels like it comes out of nowhere towards the end, but it’s a decent film from an era of mostly forgettable Disney pictures. MGM fans may recognize the lion who played Major as he is none other than Leo the lion from the opening to all MGM films from 1957 to the present.
Recommendation: If you’re a Jodi Foster fan, you should set your DVR for Napoleon and Samantha. All others aren’t missing much by skipping this.
That's a wrap on March's Treasures from the Disney Vault. This is not the first time that Leonard Maltin has chosen to showcase some of Disney's animal features, and there's certainly more films like these to warrant a revisit in the future. However, I do hope that the next Treasures from the Disney Vault shifts gears a little bit. Might a suggest an evening of turn-of-the-century programs like the Mickey Mouse short The Nifty Nineties and the features Pollyanna, Summer Magic and The Happiest Millionaire?