Disney Treasures/Front Lines: How to skip Maltin's Blabberment in "From the Vault"
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Disney Treasures/Front Lines: How to skip Maltin's Blabberment in "From the Vault"
On disc #1 of "On the Front Lines", in the From the Vault section (where you find "Der Feuhrer's Face, Education for Death, etc...) Maltin blabs a disclaimer type pitch before each cartoon.
Now I can appreciate his expertice and respect his knowledge but I for one like the choice of making up my own mind about whatever material I may be watching without outside influences. If I want his opinion (& 2 cents), I'll go back and listen to it (and at some point I will), but they don't seem to allow that choice in this area of the disc and having to listen to him Blab on everytime I want to watch them is nothing short of Pure Terror!
I've tried the ol' STOP and PLAY & STOP and SKIP that usually works fine in other areas of the Treasures sets (and other titles), but it hasn't worked with these specific "From the Vault" selections.
Is there anyway you know to skip his lip?
(...other than the VOLUME or MUTE button?)
Thank You.
Tek
Now I can appreciate his expertice and respect his knowledge but I for one like the choice of making up my own mind about whatever material I may be watching without outside influences. If I want his opinion (& 2 cents), I'll go back and listen to it (and at some point I will), but they don't seem to allow that choice in this area of the disc and having to listen to him Blab on everytime I want to watch them is nothing short of Pure Terror!
I've tried the ol' STOP and PLAY & STOP and SKIP that usually works fine in other areas of the Treasures sets (and other titles), but it hasn't worked with these specific "From the Vault" selections.
Is there anyway you know to skip his lip?
(...other than the VOLUME or MUTE button?)
Thank You.
Tek
Last edited by The Edit King; 06-03-04 at 10:44 PM.
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You can't -- it's that way on purpose. Disney believes [value-neutral comment, don't flame me] that the introduction must be seen along with the shorts.
IIRC, you can't even fast forward through at least one of the intros.
IIRC, you can't even fast forward through at least one of the intros.
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Originally posted by Trinitron
You can't -- it's that way on purpose. Disney believes [value-neutral comment, don't flame me] that the introduction must be seen along with the shorts. IIRC, you can't even fast forward through at least one of the intros.
You can't -- it's that way on purpose. Disney believes [value-neutral comment, don't flame me] that the introduction must be seen along with the shorts. IIRC, you can't even fast forward through at least one of the intros.
I knew they wanted it that way (because of the content) but I'm hoping there's a trick to bypass Mr. Maltin!
THEEK!
Last edited by The Edit King; 06-03-04 at 10:35 PM.
#4
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I knwo if you select play all, you have to watch the first intro, but at the end of the cartoon start to fast forward and it will stay on fast forward during his comments. Best I've found.
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Originally posted by mh4268
Best I've found.
Best I've found.
You probably won't believe me but I'm crying right now.
I'm crying tears of joy because your Play All, Fast Forward at the end (or even during) the cartoon "hack" (as it were) really works!
My Wife & I Thank You.
&
BTW: Do these people look like they actually invited him to sit at their table? I don't think so...
Hey! Is he giving her the goose??? The nerve of that guy...
(No smilie was harmed during the making of this post.)
Paul (aka: That Most Pleased Edit King Gentleman Fellow )
Last edited by The Edit King; 06-03-04 at 10:43 PM.
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hmm....not that I think we should be held hostage to Maltin's intros either --- but it's largely his long years of prodding Disney that this stuff is out at all -- and especially in an uncut form. Maltin's one of the few (if supremely odd) film zealots these days with the clout to really put his money where his mouth is.
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Originally posted by unclehulot
hmm....not that I think we should be held hostage to Maltin's intros either --- but it's largely his long years of prodding Disney that this stuff is out at all -- and especially in an uncut form. Maltin's one of the few (if supremely odd) film zealots these days with the clout to really put his money where his mouth is.
hmm....not that I think we should be held hostage to Maltin's intros either --- but it's largely his long years of prodding Disney that this stuff is out at all -- and especially in an uncut form. Maltin's one of the few (if supremely odd) film zealots these days with the clout to really put his money where his mouth is.
#10
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While I am happy that they hare released them, and can understand the intros, the fact that I need to be told that we are "more senstive" today to other cultures because of Pluto wearing an Indian Head Dress really insults me.
Have we become truly this big of a collective vagina?
Have we become truly this big of a collective vagina?
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Originally posted by Scot1458
While I am happy that they hare released them, and can understand the intros, the fact that I need to be told that we are "more senstive" today to other cultures because of Pluto wearing an Indian Head Dress really insults me.
Have we become truly this big of a collective vagina?
While I am happy that they hare released them, and can understand the intros, the fact that I need to be told that we are "more senstive" today to other cultures because of Pluto wearing an Indian Head Dress really insults me.
Have we become truly this big of a collective vagina?
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by EPKJ
[B]Unfortunately, the answer is yes, we have. President Bush recently read a portion of General Eisenhower's D-Day speech and actually edited out the word crusade in order not to offend Moslems.
Actually, I think Bush was afraid he couldn't prounounce CRUSADE.
But then again, he doesn't mind trying to pronounce NUCULAR.
He can't even read his cue cards -- I had a great laugh seeing him try to how we were ROOTING out the enemy in Fallujah -- but prouncing it like ROUTE!! But seriously, "crusade"?? What's next, should we change the names for all of our sports teams with American Indian references to that of big corporations? I guess Bush has the numbers right, there are more Moslems to be offended than conoisseurs of history or correct grammatical usage out there.
Of course Disney famously bowed to pressure to change that line in the opening credits song of ALADDIN : ``Where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face. It's barbaric, but hey it's home.''!
[B]Unfortunately, the answer is yes, we have. President Bush recently read a portion of General Eisenhower's D-Day speech and actually edited out the word crusade in order not to offend Moslems.
Actually, I think Bush was afraid he couldn't prounounce CRUSADE.
But then again, he doesn't mind trying to pronounce NUCULAR.
He can't even read his cue cards -- I had a great laugh seeing him try to how we were ROOTING out the enemy in Fallujah -- but prouncing it like ROUTE!! But seriously, "crusade"?? What's next, should we change the names for all of our sports teams with American Indian references to that of big corporations? I guess Bush has the numbers right, there are more Moslems to be offended than conoisseurs of history or correct grammatical usage out there.
Of course Disney famously bowed to pressure to change that line in the opening credits song of ALADDIN : ``Where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face. It's barbaric, but hey it's home.''!
#13
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Duder; I'm actually with you.. I swear I remember skipping through the intros as I hit play all and had to get back to where I left off when I last put the disk away unfinished..!
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Yea the intros are all disgusting and insulting!! Even more so when it’s forced! I actually like it when he’s giving a historical background on things, but before EVERY cartoon we have to have him telling us not to have our feelings hurt from an Amerind caricature?? This is the ultimate insult as they basically think we can't handle it! Hell, I grew up watching these cartoons uncut and I remember all the stereotypes and guns in Disney, Tom and Jerry, Loony Tunes, etc! They’re cartoons they’re supposed to have exaggerations! In fact, political correctness is one of the reasons all cartoons today suck! Compare the newer 90s Tom and Jerry to the older ones! Compare Tiny Toons to Loony Tunes. Compare the 1995 Mickey Mouse short “Runaway Brain” to any of the older ones! You can obviously tell they took the candy out of the sugar when you compare the new to the old!
Maybe when double layered DVD-R drives and media are common, we can all make 1:1 copies of these DVDs minus all the Maltin “warning” messages. Ahhh that’d be awesome.
Maybe when double layered DVD-R drives and media are common, we can all make 1:1 copies of these DVDs minus all the Maltin “warning” messages. Ahhh that’d be awesome.
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wow...
imagine all the cries of "censorship" had Disney decided to just "censor" the shorts instead of giving Maltin a 30 second intro before each one..
guess there's no pleasing people..
imagine all the cries of "censorship" had Disney decided to just "censor" the shorts instead of giving Maltin a 30 second intro before each one..
guess there's no pleasing people..
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Blame the producers of the DVD. According to DVDFile, it was a decision to make them manditory to make sure no one took the cartoons out of context.
Annoying to those who can take Education for Death, yes... but there's a lot of people out there who would probably single out the least offensive cartoon on the set as the most offensive.
Keep in mind that we're in a time where it just took ONE person to keep Fox from airing their Charlie Chan films on Fox Movie Channel. ONE person.
Annoying to those who can take Education for Death, yes... but there's a lot of people out there who would probably single out the least offensive cartoon on the set as the most offensive.
Keep in mind that we're in a time where it just took ONE person to keep Fox from airing their Charlie Chan films on Fox Movie Channel. ONE person.
#17
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See my sig if you want to know how I feel about political correctness.
While I hate that the intros are forced on us, I must applaud Disney for at least releasing them. Now if they would just get on with it and release Song of the South as well. As a society, we have become a total wusses. Everything offends people.
I find it an interesting parallel that during World War II, Disney released shorts (albeit under a bit a pressure) that were actually patriotic, mocked the enemy, showed them as evil and served to uplift the American people. Today, we have news organizations like ABC telling their broadcasters not to wear American Flag lapel pins so as not to appear "biased." Umm, hello...they are the America Broadcasting Company. Wow. And to think that just 60 odd years ago, the press refused to publish pictures of a wheelchair-bound President Roosevelt because they did not want the Commander in Chief to be perceived as weak. Never in a million years would news organziations even feign patriotism today. How things have changed. Charlie Chan doesn't air because one moron has his/her panties in a wad!! Oh boo-freaking-hoo. Grow up and get a life. I swear some people must be raised and trained on how to be offended at everything. And today we bend over backwards to not offend anyone. It is just absurd. What next? No more Snow White - don't want to offend short people. No more Gone With The Wind - I mean, it does show slavery and all. Give me a break. When will it stop?
Please forgive the rant. Anything even remotely resembling political correctness just irks me more than I can say.
But, in the end, I have to applaud Disney for releasing these shorts. They are wildly entertaining, historically important (I graduated with a history degree) and evoke memories of a time when it was OK to be patriotic. While I don't like the forced intros, I can live with them. My thanks to Disney for a fine release. Now get Song of the South out there and an unedited "Saludos Amigos." I promise, I won't be offended at the sight of Goofy smoking a cigarette will not scar me or my young child.
While I hate that the intros are forced on us, I must applaud Disney for at least releasing them. Now if they would just get on with it and release Song of the South as well. As a society, we have become a total wusses. Everything offends people.
I find it an interesting parallel that during World War II, Disney released shorts (albeit under a bit a pressure) that were actually patriotic, mocked the enemy, showed them as evil and served to uplift the American people. Today, we have news organizations like ABC telling their broadcasters not to wear American Flag lapel pins so as not to appear "biased." Umm, hello...they are the America Broadcasting Company. Wow. And to think that just 60 odd years ago, the press refused to publish pictures of a wheelchair-bound President Roosevelt because they did not want the Commander in Chief to be perceived as weak. Never in a million years would news organziations even feign patriotism today. How things have changed. Charlie Chan doesn't air because one moron has his/her panties in a wad!! Oh boo-freaking-hoo. Grow up and get a life. I swear some people must be raised and trained on how to be offended at everything. And today we bend over backwards to not offend anyone. It is just absurd. What next? No more Snow White - don't want to offend short people. No more Gone With The Wind - I mean, it does show slavery and all. Give me a break. When will it stop?
Please forgive the rant. Anything even remotely resembling political correctness just irks me more than I can say.
But, in the end, I have to applaud Disney for releasing these shorts. They are wildly entertaining, historically important (I graduated with a history degree) and evoke memories of a time when it was OK to be patriotic. While I don't like the forced intros, I can live with them. My thanks to Disney for a fine release. Now get Song of the South out there and an unedited "Saludos Amigos." I promise, I won't be offended at the sight of Goofy smoking a cigarette will not scar me or my young child.
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Originally posted by ZackR
Today, we have news organizations like ABC telling their broadcasters not to wear American Flag lapel pins so as not to appear "biased." Umm, hello...they are the America Broadcasting Company. Wow. And to think that just 60 odd years ago, the press refused to publish pictures of a wheelchair-bound President Roosevelt because they did not want the Commander in Chief to be perceived as weak. Never in a million years would news organziations even feign patriotism today. How things have changed.
Today, we have news organizations like ABC telling their broadcasters not to wear American Flag lapel pins so as not to appear "biased." Umm, hello...they are the America Broadcasting Company. Wow. And to think that just 60 odd years ago, the press refused to publish pictures of a wheelchair-bound President Roosevelt because they did not want the Commander in Chief to be perceived as weak. Never in a million years would news organziations even feign patriotism today. How things have changed.
Now get Song of the South out there and an unedited "Saludos Amigos." I promise, I won't be offended at the sight of Goofy smoking a cigarette will not scar me or my young child.
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Actually, it's possible that ONE vault short has a bit of censorship after all! Read http://forums.toonzone.net/showpost....8&postcount=87
#23
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Here's an interview with the producer of the Disney Treasures Tins, where he says that it was his idea to make the intros forced, and why:
You've built a pretty amazing resume at Disney over the past twenty years as both an animator and producer - Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, Fantasia 2000 - was working for Disney something you always wanted to be a part of?
It's funny. I tell people no. I enjoyed cartoons growing up like any other normal kid, but I actually started going to school in New York for advertising art. Then, in my second year of college I took what was called a TV graphics class. And one of the project was to create what was essentially a moving logo. And that was the first time I had my artwork move and created some animation.
Around the same time, I had been handed an article in the New York Post that talked about this school in California called Cal Arts, which had the Character Animation Program, which was essentially set up by Disney to help get more artists into the world. So I sent my portfolio out and got accepted and received a Disney scholarship. And that is how I got into it.
It is funny, but while I was at Cal Arts, I was with a lot of people who were big DIsney fans and their dream was to work there. And they would ask me what I wanted to do and I'd say, I want to go back to New York and get into the commercial world and do advertising with animation. But that never happened - one thing lead to another and I got hired at Disney and have been with them for twenty years.
On the Front Lines is a bit of a change for you, considering your past work as an animator. What compelled you to attempt such an enormous undertaking?
I have always been interested in some of this material, partially because it was under lock and key. And when things are under lock and key, you are always more curious. I actually came up with the idea of doing a compilation about ten years ago. [So] I went in and I pitched it, and it was totally shot down. (laughs) I felt like this material was never going to get released and they didn't want to talk about it. It just wasn't going to go out.
What would eventually change Disney's mind?
I had done presentation materials, so I shoved those into an envelope and kept those in my office [over the years].Then, virtually two months to the day after 9/11, I dusted the stuff off, updated some of the materials and I sent Tom Schumacher, who was then President of Feature Animation, I sent him an email which said, Tom, I have an idea I'd like to come and pitch you. And he shot me back a note that said, Absolutely. Let's do it.
In two days I was in his office pitching him my idea. And he was very receptive to it. The fact that 9/11 happened and there was this outpouring of patriotism in the nation and all these things happening in the geopolitical realm, I think people [internally] looked at it and said, This isn't a bad thing. Dick Cook was receptive to it, Roy Disney, who was still with the company at the time, was supportive of it. So I was able to move forward with it.
Why do you think Disney had reservations about it originally?
Part of it had to do with some of the material was looked at as being sensitive. Certainly, some of the cartoons are unflattering to our enemies. Which is what they were meant to be. There are unflattering caricatures of Japanese soldiers, of Germans, of Hitler. I think some people deemed it as, We don't want to put this out there. This was done during the war, and the war is over, and we don't need to show these.
But I also think some other people said that this was a piece of history. And I certainly viewed it that way.
How long did it take you to put all of this together?
I like to tell people this project took me ten years. The reality is that I pitched it in November of 2001, and completed it in July 2003.
Was there any sort of issues with the U.S. government, in terms of clearances?
No. All of this stuff is public domain. All of the training films are public domain. Also, most of this stuff was declassified in the late 60s and early 70s.
How complex was the restoration process? The DVDs look great.
We took the best film elements we could find. We literally went in and did a whole digital restoration.
Disney is often cited as having the best archival policies of any studio in the world...
I think they care deeply about the assets they have. I actually am now involved in the restoration of Bambi, and have been involved with the restoration of many previous titles. A great deal of money is being spent on restoring and preserving this material. Even more recent titles. We went in and did a restoration on Beauty & the Beast. We went in and did a restoration on Aladdin. The Lion King. And we are going to be doing Cinderella. They are now going back to retrieve the nitrate negative from the Library of Congress vault. There is an enormous amount of love going into preserving this material.
What is interesting about the Walt Disney Treasures releases, at least from the perspective of someone like myself, who was not alive when Walt was so visible on television, is that they are sometimes more like historical texts than mere entertainment. So there has been some controversy suggesting - and I am not saying I agree - that perhaps a title like On the Front Lines is potentially negative to the Disney brand. I have to admit, it is shocking to see Donald Duck and a swastika in the same cartoon!
We packaged this DVD collection - and all of the Treasures editions - to aficionados. And not so much as a cartoon collection for children, certainly not this one.
The other thing is, there is a historical aspect to this. The argument about, should we see Donald with a swastika is irrelevant, because you can find the image in a split second on the internet. It is out there.
I actually had someone internally say to me that they were completely against putting that short out, because they didn't want Donald with a swastika on. She told me her parents had been in a concentration camp and she completely did not like this. I had a different view on it. I don't think we should hide stuff like this. I think this is the kind of stuff you want to discuss with your children and have an intelligent conversation about. That is how you can get beyond this.
Was there anything specifically you did in terms of DVD presentation to ensure that these materials were seen in the proper context?
The reason I think I was able to get this project done was because I focused on making sure all of this material was presented in the context of which it was made. If you just swept these cartoons on a DVD with no introductions, it would have been a disaster. You had to put this material together and couch it within the historical perspective in which it was made.
I did a lot of research on this project. It was just digging up as much information as I could. I went into the corporate files and dug out telegrams and letters and correspondence between Walt and his brother Roy, and various people in the military and government agencies. And artists. Joe Grant, who still comes to work everyday - he's going to be 96 on Saturday - was a tremendous resource. Every time I came across something and had questions, I could walk down to Joe's office and show him documents, even telegrams he had sent to Walt. It was amazing - to be able to sit there and talk with Joe and get a sense of what it was like at the studio, and just in general, during those years.
We also took it a step further. On most Treasures editions, you can do a "Play All." On this volume you can't do that. You can play a certain all through, but the propaganda and more sensitive cartoons, we actually default to Leonard Maltin's introductions. You can't skip over it. That was a conscious effort on our part, because again we wanted to make sure that these were being viewed in the proper historical context. That was very, very important.
And, by the way, the studio did not dictate that. That was us. That was me, as a producer, saying we need to do this.
There has also been a great deal of controversy, especially on the internet, regarding a delay in the release of On the Front Lines. Can you speak to what was the cause for the postponements?
The initial release on this was going to be in December of 2002. I am responsible for delaying it. No one else. There was a lot of rumor about the studio canceling it, but I went in to the folks at [Buena Vista] Home Entertainment and asked them to delay it a year because we needed more time to ready all the materials in the proper way. And they agreed, and gave us the extra year.
Then, when it came time for the December of 2003 release, the second delay was due to all of these big titles that they had an enormous demand for. Finding Nemo, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lion King - there were millions and millions of units being produced and the replicating facility was maxing out its capacity. So they decided to move all four [Walt Disney Treasures] volumes to May. That is the reason behind it.
If Walt were alive today, do you think he would be as politically active in terms of his work, especially in light of what is going on in the world today?
It is always hard to second guess, to try and think of what Walt would do. And there are certainly a lot of people who like to do that. I like to think, based on all the research I did on this project, that Walt was very patriotic. He cared very much about supporting the war effort during World War II. And he felt that Victory Through Airpower was his greatest contribution. I think if he were alive today, I think he would be open and receptive to helping out the government if they asked.
http://www.dvdfile.com/news/special_...ave/index.html
You've built a pretty amazing resume at Disney over the past twenty years as both an animator and producer - Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast, Fantasia 2000 - was working for Disney something you always wanted to be a part of?
It's funny. I tell people no. I enjoyed cartoons growing up like any other normal kid, but I actually started going to school in New York for advertising art. Then, in my second year of college I took what was called a TV graphics class. And one of the project was to create what was essentially a moving logo. And that was the first time I had my artwork move and created some animation.
Around the same time, I had been handed an article in the New York Post that talked about this school in California called Cal Arts, which had the Character Animation Program, which was essentially set up by Disney to help get more artists into the world. So I sent my portfolio out and got accepted and received a Disney scholarship. And that is how I got into it.
It is funny, but while I was at Cal Arts, I was with a lot of people who were big DIsney fans and their dream was to work there. And they would ask me what I wanted to do and I'd say, I want to go back to New York and get into the commercial world and do advertising with animation. But that never happened - one thing lead to another and I got hired at Disney and have been with them for twenty years.
On the Front Lines is a bit of a change for you, considering your past work as an animator. What compelled you to attempt such an enormous undertaking?
I have always been interested in some of this material, partially because it was under lock and key. And when things are under lock and key, you are always more curious. I actually came up with the idea of doing a compilation about ten years ago. [So] I went in and I pitched it, and it was totally shot down. (laughs) I felt like this material was never going to get released and they didn't want to talk about it. It just wasn't going to go out.
What would eventually change Disney's mind?
I had done presentation materials, so I shoved those into an envelope and kept those in my office [over the years].Then, virtually two months to the day after 9/11, I dusted the stuff off, updated some of the materials and I sent Tom Schumacher, who was then President of Feature Animation, I sent him an email which said, Tom, I have an idea I'd like to come and pitch you. And he shot me back a note that said, Absolutely. Let's do it.
In two days I was in his office pitching him my idea. And he was very receptive to it. The fact that 9/11 happened and there was this outpouring of patriotism in the nation and all these things happening in the geopolitical realm, I think people [internally] looked at it and said, This isn't a bad thing. Dick Cook was receptive to it, Roy Disney, who was still with the company at the time, was supportive of it. So I was able to move forward with it.
Why do you think Disney had reservations about it originally?
Part of it had to do with some of the material was looked at as being sensitive. Certainly, some of the cartoons are unflattering to our enemies. Which is what they were meant to be. There are unflattering caricatures of Japanese soldiers, of Germans, of Hitler. I think some people deemed it as, We don't want to put this out there. This was done during the war, and the war is over, and we don't need to show these.
But I also think some other people said that this was a piece of history. And I certainly viewed it that way.
How long did it take you to put all of this together?
I like to tell people this project took me ten years. The reality is that I pitched it in November of 2001, and completed it in July 2003.
Was there any sort of issues with the U.S. government, in terms of clearances?
No. All of this stuff is public domain. All of the training films are public domain. Also, most of this stuff was declassified in the late 60s and early 70s.
How complex was the restoration process? The DVDs look great.
We took the best film elements we could find. We literally went in and did a whole digital restoration.
Disney is often cited as having the best archival policies of any studio in the world...
I think they care deeply about the assets they have. I actually am now involved in the restoration of Bambi, and have been involved with the restoration of many previous titles. A great deal of money is being spent on restoring and preserving this material. Even more recent titles. We went in and did a restoration on Beauty & the Beast. We went in and did a restoration on Aladdin. The Lion King. And we are going to be doing Cinderella. They are now going back to retrieve the nitrate negative from the Library of Congress vault. There is an enormous amount of love going into preserving this material.
What is interesting about the Walt Disney Treasures releases, at least from the perspective of someone like myself, who was not alive when Walt was so visible on television, is that they are sometimes more like historical texts than mere entertainment. So there has been some controversy suggesting - and I am not saying I agree - that perhaps a title like On the Front Lines is potentially negative to the Disney brand. I have to admit, it is shocking to see Donald Duck and a swastika in the same cartoon!
We packaged this DVD collection - and all of the Treasures editions - to aficionados. And not so much as a cartoon collection for children, certainly not this one.
The other thing is, there is a historical aspect to this. The argument about, should we see Donald with a swastika is irrelevant, because you can find the image in a split second on the internet. It is out there.
I actually had someone internally say to me that they were completely against putting that short out, because they didn't want Donald with a swastika on. She told me her parents had been in a concentration camp and she completely did not like this. I had a different view on it. I don't think we should hide stuff like this. I think this is the kind of stuff you want to discuss with your children and have an intelligent conversation about. That is how you can get beyond this.
Was there anything specifically you did in terms of DVD presentation to ensure that these materials were seen in the proper context?
The reason I think I was able to get this project done was because I focused on making sure all of this material was presented in the context of which it was made. If you just swept these cartoons on a DVD with no introductions, it would have been a disaster. You had to put this material together and couch it within the historical perspective in which it was made.
I did a lot of research on this project. It was just digging up as much information as I could. I went into the corporate files and dug out telegrams and letters and correspondence between Walt and his brother Roy, and various people in the military and government agencies. And artists. Joe Grant, who still comes to work everyday - he's going to be 96 on Saturday - was a tremendous resource. Every time I came across something and had questions, I could walk down to Joe's office and show him documents, even telegrams he had sent to Walt. It was amazing - to be able to sit there and talk with Joe and get a sense of what it was like at the studio, and just in general, during those years.
We also took it a step further. On most Treasures editions, you can do a "Play All." On this volume you can't do that. You can play a certain all through, but the propaganda and more sensitive cartoons, we actually default to Leonard Maltin's introductions. You can't skip over it. That was a conscious effort on our part, because again we wanted to make sure that these were being viewed in the proper historical context. That was very, very important.
And, by the way, the studio did not dictate that. That was us. That was me, as a producer, saying we need to do this.
There has also been a great deal of controversy, especially on the internet, regarding a delay in the release of On the Front Lines. Can you speak to what was the cause for the postponements?
The initial release on this was going to be in December of 2002. I am responsible for delaying it. No one else. There was a lot of rumor about the studio canceling it, but I went in to the folks at [Buena Vista] Home Entertainment and asked them to delay it a year because we needed more time to ready all the materials in the proper way. And they agreed, and gave us the extra year.
Then, when it came time for the December of 2003 release, the second delay was due to all of these big titles that they had an enormous demand for. Finding Nemo, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lion King - there were millions and millions of units being produced and the replicating facility was maxing out its capacity. So they decided to move all four [Walt Disney Treasures] volumes to May. That is the reason behind it.
If Walt were alive today, do you think he would be as politically active in terms of his work, especially in light of what is going on in the world today?
It is always hard to second guess, to try and think of what Walt would do. And there are certainly a lot of people who like to do that. I like to think, based on all the research I did on this project, that Walt was very patriotic. He cared very much about supporting the war effort during World War II. And he felt that Victory Through Airpower was his greatest contribution. I think if he were alive today, I think he would be open and receptive to helping out the government if they asked.
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Last edited by slop101; 06-04-04 at 04:06 PM.
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I keep reading here something here about 30 SECONDS...
Well, I just timed the Maltin Monologue before "Der Feuhrer's Face" (for example) and it was something closer to ONE WHOLE MINUTE AND 20 SECONDS!!!
The NERVE of that man!
( & )
THEEK!
Well, I just timed the Maltin Monologue before "Der Feuhrer's Face" (for example) and it was something closer to ONE WHOLE MINUTE AND 20 SECONDS!!!
The NERVE of that man!
( & )
THEEK!
Last edited by The Edit King; 06-04-04 at 06:23 PM.