As Dreamers Do: American Magic Redux

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Entertainment News for Spring 1969
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    • OldNavy1988

    In a shocking turn of events, Walt Disney, Sr. announces the creation of a new division of his entertainment empire. Hyperion Pictures will be headed by Walt, Jr. and will specialize in content containing mature themes and other elements that would otherwise be out of step with the family friendly Disney core brand.
    - The Hollywood Reporter

    MGM shareholders vote to reject Kirk Kerkorian's proposed purchase of the studio.
    - The LA Times

    Desilu rumored to be interested in purchasing DC Comics.
    - The New York Times

    Westinghouse and Metromedia formally submit their joint proposal for a fourth or possibly fifth television network to the FCC.
    - The Washington Post

    After failing to acquire ABC, Howard Hughes acquires a majority stake of Sports Network, Inc with plans to rename it Hughes Television Network.
    - The New York Times
     
  • Index

    • TheFaultsofAlts

    If Gulf+Western buys Desilu like in OTL, and if the rest of its history plays out also like IOTL, will we see Paramount be responsible for films like the Christopher Reeve version of Superman and the Tim Burton version of Batman?
     
    Entertainment News for Mid-Summer 1969
  • Index

    • OldNavy1988

    Walt Disney Productions officially opens its Hyperion division for screenwriters looking for an outlet to pitch movie ideas.
    - The Hollywood Reporter

    Jay Ward's next animated project, Karen Sympathy, about a female secret agent, will debut on NBC this fall.
    - The New York Times

    FCC continues to undergo the due diligence process on Westinghouse and Metromedia's TV network proposal.
    - The Washington Post

    Bipartisan, international effort to block proposed AFL/NFL/CFL mega-merger picks up steam in both Washington and Ottawa.
    - The Toronto Star

    Warner Bros. acquires the North American rights to an obscure Japanese cartoon whose title roughly translates to Hey, I'm Guzura!
    - TV Guide
     
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    • Apollo 11
  • Index

    • OldNavy1988

    "It's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
    - Neil Armstrong

    5d2faa4d7e76cc3f20437ff6

    Buzz Aldrin on the moon surface.​
     
  • Index
    • Alice in Wonderland (1969 Version)
  • Index

    • OldNavy1988

    Alice in Wonderland
    56302.jpg

    The poster above is actually from the OTL 1974 reissue. I thought it would still fit the psychedelic marketing I hinted at earlier. Keep in mind that the animation is still being produced with the Xerox process. As a consequence, the character outlines are not as smooth as the OTL film from 1951.

    Released by Walt Disney, Sr. on August 22, 1969

    Directed by
    Wolfgang Reitherman

    Story
    Larry Clemmons
    Ken Anderson
    Bill Peet
    Ralph Wright
    Floyd Norman
    Xavier Atencio
    T. Hee

    Supervising Animators
    Frank Thomas
    Ollie Johnston
    John Lounsbery
    Milt Kahl

    Character Animators
    Eric Larson
    Hal King
    Bill Justice
    Fred Hellmich
    Julius Svendsen
    Dick Lucas
    Eric Cleworth
    Don Bluth
    Ted Berman
    Dave Michener
    Burny Mattinson
    Whitey Larkin*

    *fictional animator

    Layout
    Basil Davidovich
    Don Griffith
    Sylvia Roemer

    Backgrounds
    Al Dempster
    Art Riley
    Thelma Witmer

    VOICES
    Olivia Hussey as Alice
    Danny Kaye as the White Rabbit
    Sterling Holloway as the Cheshire Cat
    Ringo Starr as the Caterpillar
    Frank Gorshin as the Mad Hatter
    Cesar Romero as the March Hare
    Don Messick as the Dormouse
    Sidney James as the Dodo
    Mel Blanc as Bill the Lizard
    J. Pat O'Malley as Tweedledee and Tweedledum
    Kenneth Williams as the Doorknob
    Clive Dunn as the Carpenter
    June Foray as the Queen of Hearts
    David Tomlinson as the King of Hearts
    Lord Tim Hudson and Chad Stuart as Card Soldiers

    Music by
    George Bruns

    Songs by
    Richard M. Sherman
    Robert B. Sherman

    Narration by Peter Coyote (From the 1999 TV special Behind the Looking Glass)
    "Upon its original release, Alice in Wonderland would earn a crossover appeal with the counterculture crowd that flocked to a reissue of Fantasia earlier that year."

    "Walt struggled and struggled to get his version of Alice in Wonderland on screen. But it is kinda funny how things worked out when we learned how the film was being embraced by the hippie crowd at the time."
    - Floyd Norman (2009 interview)

    "Walt's version still takes a lot of creative liberties, but nowhere near as blatant as Bob Clampett did roughly a quarter century earlier."
    - Charles Solomon; Animation Historian (2009 interview)

    "It's true. Plenty of people dropped acid before they took their seats to watch the film. I remember, in the row in front of me, there was a dad who brought his son and daughter to see the movie and he was high as a kite halfway through it."
    - Walt Disney, Jr.​
     
  • Index

    • TheFaultsofAlts

    OldNavy1988 said:
    Walt Disney Productions officially opens its Hyperion division for screenwriters looking for an outlet to pitch movie ideas.
    - The Hollywood Reporter

    Jay Ward's next animated project, Karen Sympathy, about a female secret agent, will debut on NBC this fall.
    - The New York Times

    FCC continues to undergo the due diligence process on Westinghouse and Metromedia's TV network proposal.
    - The Washington Post

    Bipartisan, international effort to block proposed AFL/NFL/CFL mega-merger picks up steam in both Washington and Ottawa.
    - The Toronto Star

    Warner Bros. acquires the North American rights to an obscure Japanese cartoon whose title roughly translates to Hey, I'm Guzura!
    - TV Guide
    Click to expand...
    1: Might I suggest Tron becoming part of the Hyperion lineup ITTL, but keeping its IOTL release date?

    2: So the one character worth giving a nut in the Rocky and Bullwinkle live-action movie would end up having some past awareness ITTL. I like it!

    3: Is it me, or would Urusei Yatsura and Kimba the White Lion fit right at home among the crowd at Warner Bros?
     

    OldNavy1988

    TheFaultsofAlts said:
    1: Might I suggest Tron becoming part of the Hyperion lineup ITTL, but keeping its IOTL release date?

    2: So the one character worth giving a nut in the Rocky and Bullwinkle live-action movie would end up having some past awareness ITTL. I like it!

    3: Is it me, or would Urusei Yatsura and Kimba the White Lion fit right at home among the crowd at Warner Bros?
    Click to expand...

    1. That would be a nice idea.

    2. Yup. You heard correctly.

    3. I am not too sure when those titles came out, but it might be a little early to tell.
     

    myuacc1

    nick_crenshaw82 said:
    1978 and 1965 respectively.
    Click to expand...
    The anime adaptation of Urusei Yatsura came out in 1981, but I'm pretty sure that Nelvana would also be a good fit to not only dub, but also co-produce Urusei Yatsura's anime adaptation and the films and OVAs that came out of it ITTL.
     
    Last edited:
    QTXAdsy

    QTXAdsy

    OldNavy1988 said:
    Alice in Wonderland
    56302.jpg

    The poster above is actually from the OTL 1974 reissue. I thought it would still fit the psychedelic marketing I hinted at earlier. Keep in mind that the animation is still being produced with the Xerox process. As a consequence, the character outlines are not as smooth as the OTL film from 1951.

    Released by Walt Disney, Sr. on August 22, 1969

    Directed by
    Wolfgang Reitherman

    Story
    Larry Clemmons
    Ken Anderson
    Bill Peet
    Ralph Wright
    Floyd Norman
    Xavier Atencio
    T. Hee

    Supervising Animators
    Frank Thomas
    Ollie Johnston
    John Lounsbery
    Milt Kahl

    Character Animators
    Eric Larson
    Hal King
    Bill Justice
    Fred Hellmich
    Julius Svendsen
    Dick Lucas
    Eric Cleworth
    Don Bluth
    Ted Berman
    Dave Michener
    Burny Mattinson
    Whitey Larkin*

    *fictional animator

    Layout
    Basil Davidovich
    Don Griffith
    Sylvia Roemer

    Backgrounds
    Al Dempster
    Art Riley
    Thelma Witmer

    VOICES
    Olivia Hussey as Alice
    Danny Kaye as the White Rabbit
    Sterling Holloway as the Cheshire Cat
    Ringo Starr as the Caterpillar
    Frank Gorshin as the Mad Hatter
    Cesar Romero as the March Hare
    Don Messick as the Dormouse
    Sidney James as the Dodo
    Mel Blanc as Bill the Lizard
    J. Pat O'Malley as Tweedledee and Tweedledum
    Kenneth Williams as the Doorknob
    Clive Dunn as the Carpenter
    June Foray as the Queen of Hearts
    David Tomlinson as the King of Hearts
    Lord Tim Hudson and Chad Stuart as Card Soldiers

    Music by
    George Bruns

    Songs by
    Richard M. Sherman
    Robert B. Sherman

    Narration by Peter Coyote (From the 1999 TV special Behind the Looking Glass)
    "Upon its original release, Alice in Wonderland would earn a crossover appeal with the counterculture crowd that flocked to a reissue of Fantasia earlier that year."

    "Walt struggled and struggled to get his version of Alice in Wonderland on screen. But it is kinda funny how things worked out when we learned how the film was being embraced by the hippie crowd at the time."
    - Floyd Norman (2009 interview)

    "Walt's version still takes a lot of creative liberties, but nowhere near as blatant as Bob Clampett did roughly a quarter century earlier."
    - Charles Solomon; Animation Historian (2009 interview)

    "It's true. Plenty of people dropped acid before they took their seats to watch the film. I remember, in the row in front of me, there was a dad who brought his son and daughter to see the movie and he was high as a kite halfway through it."
    - Walt Disney, Jr.​
    Click to expand...

    Great update and seeing that Alice gets a better reception at the first time of asking and thus Walt doesn't disown it here.

    Interesting to remember that Kathryn Beaumont for OTL film served as the performance model for both characters for live-action reference to help the animators, I'm assuming that Olivia Hussey, who is a great casting choice IMO, does the same here for her Alice? It would be interesting seeing how Hussey would be about 17-18 during this time that this Alice would be older.

    Speaking of changes, anything else that is different compared to OTL film other than the cast and animation style as mentioned above?
     

    mrcubfan415

    OldNavy1988 said:
    Bipartisan, international effort to block proposed AFL/NFL/CFL mega-merger picks up steam in both Washington and Ottawa.
    Click to expand...
    Will there still be an AFL-NFL merger?

    Edit: Actually, I just had a thought: what if the AFL merged with the CFL ITTL?
     
    Last edited:
    Fall 1969 TV Debuts
  • Index

    • OldNavy1988

    The Fall of 1969 saw the debut of three television series that would go on to become staples of popular culture.

    Scooby Doo, Where are You!
    (First aired on CBS on September 13, 1969)

    Monty Python's Flying Circus
    (First aired on BBC 1 on October 5, 1969)

    Sesame Street
    (First aired on NET on November 10, 1969)
     
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