Merlin the Enchanter (Disney)

Synopsis

The history starts when the England, private of king, is plunged in the obscurantism. Only hope: that somebody withdraws anvil in which it is fixed the sword of the king, Excalibur, designating it as new fine sovereign and putting at this disturbed period. Not far from there, Arthur says “Mosquito”, orphan young person, employee with the kitchen at Sir Hector, fails by chance, at the time of a shooting party with Kay, the son of its lord, in the hut of Merlin the Enchanter.

This one decides to accompany back Arthur at his place, and to undertake its education, accompanied by Archimedes, its erudite owl. For that, it transforms Arthur into various animals, while this last also involves Kay for the tournament of London which will crown the winner king d' Angleterre. During one of its transformations (in bird), it lands inopportunely in the chimney of Mrs Mim, a dangerous witch, that Merlin faces in a memorable duel of magic, that it gains. The day of the tournament, the Arthur young person, rider of Kay, goes to London with this one and Sir Hector. Having forgotten the sword of its knight, it seizes without effort that imprisoned in the anvil. He is recognized then as king d' Angleterre. Merlin, as for him, remains close to its pupil in order to help it in his task.

Data sheet

Title: Merlin the enchanter
original Title: The Sword in the Stone (litt. " The Sword in the pierre" )
Realization: Wolfgang Reitherman
Scenario: Bill Peet according to The Sword in the Stone of Terence Hanbury White
Design graphic:

Artistic director: Ken Anderson
Design of the characters: Milt Kahl and Bill Peet
Framing (Layout): Gift Griffith, Basil Davidovicth, Vance Gerry, Sylvia Cobb, Flagstone Barnhart and Homer Jonas
Decorations: Walt Peregoy, Bill Layne, Al Dempster, Anthony Rizzo, Ralph Hulett and Wire Mottola

Animation:

Supervision: Milt Kahl, Frank Thomas, Ollie Johnston and John Lounsbery
Animation of the characters: Hall King, Eric Larson, Eric Cleworth, John Sibley, Cliff Nordberg, Hall Ambro and Dick Lucas
special Effects: daN McManus, Jack Boyd and Jack Buckley

Sound: Robert O. Cook (supervision)
Assembly: Donald Halliday and Roy Mr. Brewer Jr. (film), Evelyn Kennedy (music)
Music:

Type-setter: George Brown
Songs: Richard Mr. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
Orchestrations: Franklyn Marks

Associate producer: Ken Peterson
Production: Walt Disney Pictures
Distribution: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Format: Colors - 1,37:1 (1,75:1 wide) - Mono (RCA Sound System)
Lasted: 79 minutes
Comings out date: The United States: December 25th 1963; France: December 16th 1964

Distribution

Original voices

Rickie Sorensen : Arthur " Wart" (" Moustique")
Karl Swenson : Merlin
Junius Matthews : Archimedes (Archimedes)
Sebastian Pooch: Sir Ector (Hector) /Narrator
Norman Alden: Kay
Alan Napier : Sir Pelinore (Pélimore)
Martha Wentworth: Granny Squirrel (Grandmother Squirrel) /Madam Mim/Scullery Maid (Kitchen maid)
Ginny Tyler: Little Girl Squirrel (Young female Squirrel)
Thurl Ravenscroft: Knight At Tournament (Black Knight) and additional voices (additional voices)
Barbara OJ Allen: Scullery Maid (Kitchen maid)
Jim MacDonald: Wolf (additional Voices)
Tudor Owen: Knight in Crowd (additional Voices)
Richard Reitherman
Robert Reitherman

French voices

Dominique Collignon-Maurin: Arthur " Moustique"
Alfred Pasquali: Merlin, the enchanter
Rene Hiéronimus: Archimedes, the owl
Claude Bertrand: Sir Hector
Jacques Balutin: Kay, the son of Hector
Jacques Ciron: Lord Pélimore
Lita Recio: Mrs Mim
Armand Mestral: The Black Knight
Henriette Marion: The Cooker
Jean-Pierre Duclos: Narrator
Jean Cussac: Singer soloist

Songs of film

the Legend of Excalibur - Soloist
Higitus Figitus - Merlin
It is which makes that all runs smoothly - Merlin and Moustique
the most complicated Thing - Merlin

Rewards and Nominations

1964 - Nomination with the Oscar of the Better music

Exits Cinema

December 25th 1963 - the United States
July 18th, 1964 - Japan
December 10th, 1964 - Mexico
December 14th, 1964 - Sweden
December 16th, 1964 - France
December 17th, 1964 - West Germany
December 23rd, 1964 - Italy
December 26th, 1964 - Denmark
December 26th, 1964 - Norway
December 17th, 1965 - Finland
December 20th, 1965 - Spain
December 22nd, 1972 - the United States (Arisen)
December 14th, 1973 - Italy (Arisen)
April 16th, 1976 - Finland (Arisen)
October 6th, 1978 - West Germany (Arisen)
March 11th, 1983 - the United States (Arisen limited)
March 25th, 1983 - the United States (Arisen)
3 may 2000 - Norway (Arisen)

Videos out

1988 - VHS with Format 4/3 (Full screen)
February 1992 - VHS with Format 4/3
Fall 1994 - VHS with Format 4/3
Fall 1994 - Laserdisc with Format 4/3
1996 - VHS with Format 4/3
2000 - DVD with Format 4/3
April 25th 2003 - VHS and DVD with Format 4/3

Did you know?

One can regard this film as miraculé, because the scenario writer Bill Peet, interested by the history of White as of the publication of the book, had spoken about this project with Walt Disney but this one was hardly enthusiastic. The scenario writer thus decides to only work there. It is only after having seen the scene where Merlin piles up all its effects in a bag thanks to its Magic wand, scene which dazzles it, that Walt Disney finally changed opinion.

the nickname of English Arthur is " Wart" what means " verrue" and is much désobligeant than " Moustique".

Merlin the enchanter mark the first long and profitable collaboration of the " Sherman" brothers; , as type-setters of songs, with Walt Disney. It is also the first cartoon film directed by only one man: Wolfgang Reitherman, one of the Nine Old Men, " vétéran" Disney studios which will carry out almost all the masterpieces of the decade.

the animation of the scene where Arthur goes in the dark forest to the research of the arrow of Kay was re-used in Taram and the magic cauldron (1985); the battle of Sir Hector and Kay against the crockery enchanted in the kitchen takes again that To marble and Horace against Pongo and Perdita in the 101 Dalmatiens (1961).

the film, although he was not a large financial success, became worship during the years.

the organizers Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston defined animations of Milt Kahl for the characters of Kay and Sir Hector like " best human figures ever made with the studio". As for the battle between Merlin and Mrs Mim, it is often quoted in example by experts as regards animation like one of best animations of characters on this date. The people pass by many physical transformations, without losing their personality throughout the scene (all the Avatar S of Merlin are blue, carry its glasses and have its moustache or its beard, whereas those of Mim are pink and have its hair). This scene evokes another battle of metamorphosing himself wizard, in oldest cartoon film preserved, the Adventures of the prince Ahmed (1926), of Lotte Reiniger.

In the video game Kingdom Hearts , one can see Merlin in " Cross Town" who involves Sora to use the magic. It also gives new weapons after the execution of certain tasks. In the continuation of the play Kingdom Hearts II , Merlin is of return like member of the " Committee of Restoration of the Hollow Bastion " ; however, its importance is only one negligible part of the history, and does not assign the player directly. Because of its experiment of the magic, Merlin is often in dissension with another member of the committee: Cid Highwind, which is an expert computers technology.

Titrate in various languages

German: Die Hexe und der Zauberer or Merlin und Mim
English: The Sword in the Stone
Bosnien: Mač U kamenu
Chinese: 石中剑
Croatian: Mač U kamenu
Danish: Sværdet I Stenen
Spanish: Merlín el Encantador (" Merlin l´Enchanteur") in Spain; Espada in will piedra (" The Sword in the pierre") in Latin America
Esperanto: Spado in Ŝtono
Finnish: Miekka Kivessä
French: Merlin the Hebrew Enchanter
: החרבבאבן
Dutch: Merlijn de Tovenaar
Italian: Spada Nella Roccia
Japanese: 王様の剣 (Ōsama No Tsurugi = " The Sword of the roi")
Norwegian: Sverdet I Stenen
Portuguese: has Espada Era has Lei
Polish: Russian Miecz W kamieniu
: Мечвкамне (kamnié Miétch v = " The Sword in the pierre")
Serb: Mač U kamenu
Swedish: Svärdet I Stenen
Vietnamese: Thanh Gươm Trong Đá

External bonds

Merlin the enchanter on Internet Movie Database
Merlin the enchanter on Ultimate Disney

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