Melody of the South

Mélodie of the South is the 11th feature film of animation of the studios Disney, mixing animation and taken real sights. Left in 1946, it is adapted Contes of the Uncle Rémus (Bruise Uncle Remus off) of Joel Chandler Harris, published between 1880 and 1905.

Object of an important controversy to the the United States around the racial remarks that it conveys, the film is still not brought out in DVD.

Synopsis

Under pretext of the absence of his/her father, Johnny will live with his/her mother in her grandmother who has a cotton plantation in the south of the the United States. One day, it binds friendship with the Ginny young person. Together, they spend their time listening to an old black employee called “Uncle Rémus” to tell them the stories of Brother Rabbit, Frère Fox and Brother Bear. In spite of that, Johnny would like much to re-examine his/her father…

Data sheet

Title: Melody of the South
original Title: Song off the South
Realization: Harve Foster (taken real sights) and Wilfred Jackson (sequences of animation)
Scenario: Dalton Reymond assisté of Morton Grant and Maurice Rapf (real sequences), William " Bill" Peed, Ralph Wright, George Stallings (sequences of animation) according to Joel Chandler Harris
Image: Gregg Toland (taken real sights)
Directing of the photograph: Perry Ferguson assisted Elmer To pluck (taken real sights)
Assembly: William Morgan (taken real sights)
Costumes: Mary Wills (taken real sights)
Proceeded technical: Ub Iwerks (taken real sights)
Sound: C.O. Slyfield (supervisory), Harold Steck and Fred Lau (recording)
Consulting Technicolor: Natalie Kalmus assitée of Mitchell Kovaleski
Design graphic (sequences of animation):

Artistic director: Kenneth Anderson, assisté of Charles Philippi, Harold Doughty, Hugh Hennessy and Philip To bore
Stylism decorations and colors: Mary Blair and Claude Coats
Decorations: Ralph Hulett, Brice Mack, Ray Huffine, Edgar Starr and Al Dempster

Animation:

Supervision: Eric Larson, Mark Davis, Milt Kahl, Ollie Johnston, John Lounsbery and Stimulating Clark
: Gift Lusk, Harvey Toombs, Tom Massey, Hall King, Murray McClellan, Jack Campbell, Ken O' Brien, Cliff Nordberg, Rudy Larriva, Al Coe and Hall Ambro
special Effects: George Rowley, Josh Meador, Blaine Gibson and Brad Puts

Musique: Charles Wolcott (supervision and direction)

Type-setters: Daniele Amfitheatrof (real sequences) and Paul J. Smith (sequences of animation)
vocal Arrangements: Ken Darby
Orchestrations: Edward H. Plumb
Songs: Combines Wrubel, Ray Gilbert, Sam Coslow, Arthur Johnston, Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Eliot Daniel, Robert McGimsey and Foster Carling

Associate producer: Borer Pearce
Production: Walt Disney Pictures
Distribution: RKO Radio operator Pictures
Format: Colors - 1,37:1 - Mono (RCA Sound System)
Lasted: 94 minutes
Comings out date: The United States: November 12th 1946; France: December 14th 1949

Distribution

Original distribution and voices

James Baskett: Uncle Remus (Uncle Rémus)/Br' er Fox (Brother Fox) (voice)
Ruth Warrick: Sally
Bobby Driscoll : Johnny
Luana Patten : Ginny
Lucile Watson: Grandmother (Grandmother)
Hattie McDaniel: Aunt Tempy (Aunt Tempy)
Eric Rolf: John
Glenn Leedy: Toby
Mary Field : Mrs. Favers
Anita Brown: Maid (the Good one)
George Nokes: Jake Favers
Gene Holland: Joe Favers
Nick " Nicodemus" Stewart: Br' er Bear (Brother Bear) (voice)
Johnny Lee: Br' er Rabbit (Brother Rabbit) (voice)
The DeCastro Sisters: Bird voices (Voice of birds)

French voices

August 1st

Songs of film

Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah -
Song off the South -
Uncle Remus Said
Ev' rybody' S Got has Laughing Place (Everyone has its p' tit corner of happiness) -
How Do You Do? -
Sooner gold Later -
Who Wants to Live Like That? -
Let the Rain For Down -
All I Want -

Rewards and nominations

1948 - Nomination with the Oscar of the " Better Band of a Musical" Film; (Daniele Amfitheatrof, Paul J. Smith and Charles Wolcott)
1948 - Oscar of the " Better Chanson" (Combines Wrubel and Ray Gilbert for Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah )
1948 - Oscar of honor given to James Baskett " for its formidable and cordial interpretation of the Uncle Rémus, friend and storyteller of stories of the children of the world entier" .

Exits cinema

November 12th 1946 - the United States
December 19th, 1946 - Argentinian
July 3rd, 1947 - Australia
November 11th, 1947 - Mexico
February 23rd, 1948 - Sweden
December 14th, 1949 - France
January 26th, 1950 - Netherlands
March 23rd, 1950 - Italy
March 29th, 1951 - HongKong
October 12th, 1951 - Japan
April 9th, 1955 - Spain
October 8th, 1980 - the United States (Arisen)
March 12th, 1982 - West Germany
November 21st, 1986 - the United States (Arisen)
August 29th, 1995 - Finland

Videos out

Years 1980 - VHS
Between 1985 and 1990 - Laserdisc in Asia
1991 - VHS with the 1st doubling

Did you know?

When the black main actor of film, James Baskett, went to the first to Atlanta in Georgia, no hotel wanted to rent a room for the night to him, simply because it was black.

In Which wants the skin of Roger Rabbit? (1988), Eddie Valiant is accommodated by the bird-singers of film at the time of his arrival with Toontown. One also sees Frère Fox and Brother Bear in the final scene.

Hattie McDaniel, which plays aunt Tempy, was the first actress Afro-American to receive a Oscar (" Better actress in a second rôle") for its interpretation of Granny in Gone With The Wind (1938).

Seules five minutes of film are without music.

During the production of the scene Everyone with its p' tit corner of happiness , Johnny Lee, the actor who lent his voice to Frère Rabbit had to go away and it is James Baskett who doubled the character in his place.

the film was parodied in the American television program Saturday Night Live .

Brother Rabbit, Brother Fox and Brother Bear was the high-speed motorboats many cartoons starting from 1946 pennies the names of Bibi Lapin , Basile and Boniface . It is besides by the publication of a series of Comic strip S weekly starting from the October 14th 1945 that the film was launched.

Br' er , abbreviation of Brother ( brother ), and Located' , abbreviation of Sister ( sister ) in American black slang, is the generic name of all the characters of the Contes of Harris. It is followed of their race, whose kind always does not correspond to French. One finds thus, inter alia, Br' er Terrapin (" Tortue" brother; alias " Lambin"), Br' er Badger (" Blaireau" brother;), Br' er Buzzard (" Vautour" brother;), Br' er Coon (" Brother Little rat laveur"), Br' er Dove (" Colombe" brother;), Br' er Owl (" Hibou" brother;), Br' er Groundhog (" Marmotte" brother;), Br' er Quadrant Bird (" Brother Bird-lyre"), Br' er Mole (" Taupe" brother;), Br' er Possum (" Opossum" brother;), Br' er Wolf (" Loup" brother;)… and their partners Sis' Goose (" Oie" sister;), Sis' Muskrat (" Sister Rat Musqué"), Sis' Owl (" Chouette" sister;), etc Thereafter, these words considered to be discriminating were replaced by " Mr." and " Mrs."

attraction Splash Mountain of the parks Walt Disney World Arises, Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland is inspired by film with its characters and his music.

Titrate in various languages

German: Onkel Remus' Wunderland (marvellous Country of the uncle Rémus)
English: Song off the Spanish South
: Canción LED on
Esperanto: Kanto of Sudo
Finnish: Sången om Södern
French: Melody of the South
Hebrew: שירתהדרום (Shirah Edaravam)
Italian: I Racconti dello zio Tom (Stories of the Uncle Tom)
Japanese: 南部の唄 (Nanbu No ATU) (the Song of the southernmost fatherland)
Dutch: Melody van het Zuiden
Portuguese: Como E bom to divert
Swedish: Sången om Södern

External bonds

'' Mélodie of the South '' on Internet Movie Database
Fan site (in English)

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