An alternate history of animated films

What Dr. Seuss story should Warner Brothers make a film of first?

  • Total voters
    8
  • Poll closed .
Reader mode

NoName

So, as you can tell from the previous post, there's been a slight change of plans for 1946, mainly in that the only animated film released that year will be Disney's Peter Pan. And this film will be slightly different from OTL's version.

As I mentioned before, the film will be darker and more faithful to the book. It will cut back to the parents grieving over their missing children, and Captain Hook will be a legitimate threatening villain instead of the comical goof we know him as. Unfortunately, the Indians will probably be just as politically incorrect as they are in OTL's version.

Here is the voice cast I've come up with.

Peter Pan: Jean Arthur
Wendy Darling: Angela Lansbury
John Darling: Bobby Driscoll
Michael Darling: One of the filmmaker's kids, like IOTL
George Darling: Cary Grant
Mary Darling: Heather Angel
Captain Hook: Cary Grant
Mr. Smee: Sterling Holloway
Lost Boys: A lot of the kid actors from Bambi
Tiger Lily: June Foray
Indian Chief: Clarence Nash
Narrator: Fred Shields
 

NoName

The next big update will cover both 1946 and 1947.

As you may remember, Warner Brother's John Carter of Mars will be released in the latter year of TTL. I tried reading through A Princess of Mars (which is what this will be directly adapted from) online, but found the second half difficult to follow, so I kind of skimmed through it. But here's the voice cast I came up with based on what I could follow:

John Carter: Stan Freberg
Dejah Thoris: June Foray
Tars Tarkas: Mel Blanc or Frank Graham
Tal Hajus: Billy Bletcher
Sola: Bea Benaderet

I plan on having it be more or less a comedic parody version of its source material, with a tone more like that of the Looney Tunes shorts, having a whole bunch of slapstick and pop cultural references, being essentially a proto-Shrek. It will also have a happier ending than its source material, closing with Carter and Dejah being married. If anyone here is familiar with the novel and wants to suggest ideas, that would be appreciated.
 
Last edited:

NoName

Disney's The Wind in the Willows will also be released in 47.

It'll be pretty similar to the WitW short in OTL's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, except extended into a full feature, and the characters' personalities will be more like their book counterparts. The voice cast will be pretty much the same. Not sure if Cyril Proudbottom will be in there or not like IOTL's version.

This will also be the final film that Fred Moore works on before he goes to work with Walter Lantz at Universal. Unlike IOTL, he will stay there and not return to Disney, and his deadly car crash will be butterflied away.
 
1946-1947
  • Index

    • NoName

    1946
    Disney's Peter Pan is released. The film is successful, but gets mixed reviews due to the unlikable behavior of the titular character. Walt also announces that Uncle Remus will be his first live-action/animation hybrid film.

    Meanwhile, at Warner Brothers, due to his rivalry with Chuck Jones over John Carter, Bob Clampett leaves the studio, allowing Chuck Jones the full director's chair for the film.

    1947
    Disney releases The Wind in the Willows. The film gets good reviews, but is only mildly successful at the box office. It is notable for being the final Disney credit of animator Fred Moore, who has decided to leave the studio in favor of Universal, to work with Walter Lantz on Don Quixote.

    Fleischer releases a film adaptation of Marge's comic strip Little Lulu. The film is not as successful as the Superman films.

    What animated film IS the big hit? Warner Brother's first animated feature film John Carter of Mars. This film started out as a straightforward adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess of Mars, before evolving into more or less a parody of its source material, with a zany feel more akin to Warner Brothers' shorts at the time. The film is also unique for being filled with pop cultural references, which most Disney films tended to avoid to prevent their films from dating.

    Burroughs' himself is not a huge fan of the finished project, due to the comic tone and the happy ending, but audiences fall in love with the film and its new and unique formula, causing the film to be a monster success at the box office. This is also notably the first time a non-Disney animated film has outcompeted a Disney animated film in the US.

    Theodor Geisel (AKA Dr. Seuss), currently making a living as a writer of children's books, notices the success of this film, and decides to pitch one of his story ideas to Warner Brothers. He had previously had a history with the studio in the past, with Bob Clampett's short adaptation of Horton Hatches the Egg, and working with Chuck Jones on the Private Snafu shorts.

    At MGM, when asked about it, Tex Avery says he has no plans to direct a feature at the time, preferring the simplicity of shorts. Bill Hanna and Joseph Barbera, on the other hand, decide to announce a feature-length remake of Hugh Harman's 1939 short Peace on Earth. With the Cold War dawning on the US, this may just be what everyone needs.

    Paul Terry decides to delay his Heckle and Jeckle film to 1948 to avoid competition with Warner Brothers.
     
  • Index

    • NoName

    So, which of these Dr. Seuss stories would you like to see Warner Brothers do a film version of first?

    Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose
    Bartholomew and the Oobleck
    Gerald McBoing Boing (if not a feature, it'll be a short directed by either Robert McKimson or Friz Freleng)
    Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (as a compilation film of three 20 or 30 minute shorts)

    EDIT: Also, the reason I decided Don Quixote should be Walter Lantz's next film is because Walt tried to adapt it a few times, and I couldn't think of a good place to fit it ITTL, so I thought that since Lantz was a good friend of Walt, Walt would be fine with Lantz doing it instead.
     
    Last edited:

    NoName

    Don Quixote is coming up next.

    I admit, I'm not greatly familiar with the source material (outside of it being about a delusional Spanish dude who reads a bunch of books and thinks he's a knight, and has a fat dude named Sancho Panza acting as his sane man). For the voice cast, I'm picturing Joaquin Garay (the voice of Panchito in OTL's The Three Caballeros) as the voice of the titular character. (He was Mexican, not Spanish, but I don't expect most people to know the difference, especially in the forties.) Any ideas for the voice of Sancho (along with the other characters)?
     

    OldNavy1988

    Those titles sound good. Kinda surprised nobody has even tried to do a film based on And To Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street.
     
    DakotaTimeTraveler

    DakotaTimeTraveler

    A few thoughts...

    First, how about some more package films like Ichabod and Mr. Toad or Fun & Fancy Free? This would probably be a good choice for Terrytoons as they could string their shorts together (Heckle & Jeckle, Mighty Mouse, Gandy Goose & Sourpuss, etc) with a little bit of new wraparound animation to tie the segments together? These were used during the TV era and even into the 1970s and 1980s (The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, etc).

    Second, how about foreign markets? Are these films being exported to Canada, Mexico, South America, Europe and Asia? There's a lot of potential there for profit.

    Third, what about the potential butterflies all these animation studios and their films will have on manga & anime? Before you discount this, keep in mind Osamu Tezuka (the father of manga & anime) was strongly influenced by Disney when creating his work. If you have not just Disney but Warner Brothers, Fleischer, etc exporting work to Japanese film markets, this could have considerable butterflies on Tezuka and his colleagues.
     

    NoName

    OldNavy1988 said:
    It'll likely have to be 1950 or 51 for Bartholomew because the book wasn't published till '49.
    Click to expand...

    Yes, that is the date I'm considering.

    DakotaTimeTraveler said:
    First, how about some more package films like Ichabod and Mr. Toad or Fun & Fancy Free? This would probably be a good choice for Terrytoons as they could string their shorts together (Heckle & Jeckle, Mighty Mouse, Gandy Goose & Sourpuss, etc) with a little bit of new wraparound animation to tie the segments together? These were used during the TV era and even into the 1970s and 1980s (The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, etc).
    Click to expand...

    I know the main reason Disney did them during the forties IOTL was because they couldn't afford to make real features. With that said, I can see Paul Terry wanting to do that kind of film, knowing what a cheapskate he was.

    DakotaTimeTraveler said:
    Third, what about the potential butterflies all these animation studios and their films will have on manga & anime? Before you discount this, keep in mind Osamu Tezuka (the father of manga & anime) was strongly influenced by Disney when creating his work. If you have not just Disney but Warner Brothers, Fleischer, etc exporting work to Japanese film markets, this could have considerable butterflies on Tezuka and his colleagues.
    Click to expand...

    OTL's Tezuka was also influenced by Fleischer and Terrytoons, so I doubt that'll change much.
     
    1948
  • Index

    • NoName

    1948
    Universal releases Walter Lantz's Don Quixote. The film is even zanier and wackier than Aladdin and His Lamp, with a tone more akin to last year's John Carter of Mars. The film gets good reviews for being a relatively faithful adaptation of Miguel de Cervantes' novel that keeps the spirit despite the story changes, and is a big success at the box office.

    Terrytoons releases The Adventures of Heckle and Jeckle. Despite the title, the film is actually only 25% original content, and is mainly a compilation of previous shorts hosted by Heckle and Jeckle. This misleading title frustrates audiences and critics alike, and the film ends up being Terrytoons' first bomb, despite its low budget. Paul decides to take a long break from features to focus primarily on shorts.

    Warner Brothers announces their next film: an adaptation of Dr. Seuss's Bartholomew and the Oobleck starring Walter Tetley as the title character.

    ----

    Special thanks to DakotaTimeTraveler for the idea of making the final Terrytoons film a package film.
     
  • Index

    • NoName

    Disney's Uncle Remus is coming up next. I imagine it will be slightly different from OTL's Song of the South.

    For starters, there's no stupid subplot about a boring whiny white boy. It's pretty much just a compilation film of Br'er Rabbit stories with a live-action Uncle Remus as a framing device. Assuming James Baskett's death isn't butterflied away, can you guys think of any black male actors from the time that would be a suitable Uncle Remus?

    Hopefully this film won't be as controversial as OTL's version, and will actually get a home video release.
     
    Reader mode
    You must log in or register to reply here.
    Top
    Top