Shuffling the Canon REDUX: A Shuffled Disney & Pixar TL Redone
- Thread starter MrCarioca
- Start date
Raya and the Last Dragon (1963)
Taken from "Discovering Disney's Raya and the Last Dragon", produced 2000
Leonard Maltin: If you'd ask me to give an example of bad, horrific, downright abysmal timing, it would have to be the release of "Raya and the Last Dragon". The film was simply way, way too ahead of its time, it released in 1963 when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak. To release a movie about Southeast Asia during such a period would not fare too well for the Disney Studios, and that's excatly what happened.
Frank Thomas: We had a lot of ideas when Walt first announced another mythology movie after "The Black Cauldron". We were talking about Greek mythology like Hercules, delving deeper into fairytales, Authurian Legends, maybe even a follow-up to "The Black Cauldron". Eventually Wolfgang Reitherman, who was set to direct the film, settled on Asian mythology.
Narrator: Like Peter Pan before it, the film was animated with the Xerox style.
Leonard Maltin: Walt wasn't a fan nor really fully approved of the Xerox style, the only reason he allowed it in his films were to cut back costs after "Fantasia". I think this was one of the key reasons why Walt hated the final product so much.
Frank Thomas: The final story we ended up with was... lackluster to say the least. Walt himself came in to review the script one day and was displeased, he stormed out and wasn't really too involved with production ever since.
Narrator: "Raya and the Last Dragon" released in December 1963, it was a disaster and put the studio in a jeopardy.
Leonard Maltin: "Raya" sent the entire studio into a dark age you might say. Many people bashed Disney for its misrepresentation of Asian culture, even today its probably the most controversial and divisive Disney film. Walt never really got back into animation after this and put all his energy into developing both Disneyland and EPCOT. In a way, "Raya and the Last Dragon" was the last straw that started the Disney Dark Age.
---
"Raya and the Last Dragon, what was Disney thinking?" -Bosley Crowther of New York Times
"Disney's Raya is dull as dishwater and has little to no humour, he went from Fantasia to THIS?" -Gene Arneel of Variety
"Walt Disney to retire from animation after disasterous performance of "Raya"" -The New York Times, January 1st 1964
---
The box office failure of “Fantasia” and the critical thrashing of “Peter Pan” had placed quite the burden on the Disney Studio, there were already talks of shutting down the animation division after “Peter Pan” to focus more on the theme parks and TV shows. It didn't help that Walt had a lot of trouble choosing potential material for the studio's next feature after "Peter Pan". One idea was to revive the 1930s "Reynard the Fox" project, yet Reynard was still an unsympathetic "protagonist" who would use any needs necessary to achieve his less then noble goals. Another idea was to adapt the tales of "Chanticleer the Rooster", yet the project was halted as writers felt Chanticleer lacked a clear personality, in Walt’s own words, “you don’t feel like petting a chicken”.
Taking cues from how both "Chanticleer" and "Reynard" were popular fables and folklore, it was soon decided that Walt would once again do a mythology/folklore feature after 1953's "The Black Cauldron". Production started at earnest by December 1958 just as "Fantasia" wrapped up, the film was initially coined as a potential follow-up to "The Black Cauldron". Ultimately, it was director Wolfgang Reitherman who suggested basing the film off Asian folklore and scrap the "follow-up" idea, he claimed that Walt needed to "step out of his comfort zone" and "explore new ideas", much to Walt's amusement. By 1961, a proper first draft had formed and the film was announced to release in 1963, titled "Raya and the Last Dragon".
The film starts off long ago in the far-off land of Kumandra, where the king of Kumandra dies without a heir, leaving the land in jeopardy. Years soon pass and a young girl named Raya finds a wise dragon named Sisu. Believing that Raya has the potential to become the heir to Kumandra, Sisu takes Raya under its wing and trains the girl to become a strong and fearless warrior. A few years pass and the evil king Druun takes over Kumandra, Raya and Sisu are put to the test and have to overthrow Druun before he can do further harm.
“Raya and the Last Dragon” released in late 1963, the film was a disaster and received negative reactions. Storywise, the film was criticised for its lack of charm compared to previous Disney works and a lack of high stakes, at worst “dull as dishwater”. The film’s voice acting and particularly ugly animation didn’t do much to stand out either, some claimed that the visuals looked more scratchy than “Peter Pan”. But perhaps the biggest issue and criticisms the film received was its portrayal of Southeast Asian culture. The film released in the thick of the Civil Rights Movement, and activists tore the film apart for misrepresenting Southeast Asian culture, some took a step further and bashed the film for being “the most racist Disney film”. "Raya and the Last Dragon" remained in the Disney Vault until the mid-1990s when the hate for the film started to cool down, it would grow a following through Southeast Asian audiences and would become a cult classic.
Dismayed by the film's horrible performance and his own distatse to the film in general, Walt announced at the 1964 Studio New Year's Party that he would formally step down from animtion to focus on live-action films, theme parks and television shows. Just when things couldn't seem to get worse, Walt himself would pass away from lung cancer on December 15th 1966. This ushered the studio into a Dark Age, animated projects ranged from quality and financial reception, and the studio entered a period of uncertainty.
Release Date: December 12th 1963
Cast:
Kathryn Beaumont (Raya)
Martha Wentworth (Sisu)
Sebastian Cabot (Druun)
Notes: So I imagine this is how "Raya and the Last Dragon" in the 1960s would've gone. Storywise, I based it off OTL's Raya with some influences from Sword in the Stone. On an additional note, I didn't include the Notable Songs section yet because I couldn't figure out how any of OTL's songs could work here, but I'll try to update this soon once I fgure that one out. This film is where the Dark Age begins so things are about to get rather ugly for Disney here, stay tuned for what happens to Disney next.
Leonard Maltin: If you'd ask me to give an example of bad, horrific, downright abysmal timing, it would have to be the release of "Raya and the Last Dragon". The film was simply way, way too ahead of its time, it released in 1963 when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak. To release a movie about Southeast Asia during such a period would not fare too well for the Disney Studios, and that's excatly what happened.
Frank Thomas: We had a lot of ideas when Walt first announced another mythology movie after "The Black Cauldron". We were talking about Greek mythology like Hercules, delving deeper into fairytales, Authurian Legends, maybe even a follow-up to "The Black Cauldron". Eventually Wolfgang Reitherman, who was set to direct the film, settled on Asian mythology.
Narrator: Like Peter Pan before it, the film was animated with the Xerox style.
Leonard Maltin: Walt wasn't a fan nor really fully approved of the Xerox style, the only reason he allowed it in his films were to cut back costs after "Fantasia". I think this was one of the key reasons why Walt hated the final product so much.
Frank Thomas: The final story we ended up with was... lackluster to say the least. Walt himself came in to review the script one day and was displeased, he stormed out and wasn't really too involved with production ever since.
Narrator: "Raya and the Last Dragon" released in December 1963, it was a disaster and put the studio in a jeopardy.
Leonard Maltin: "Raya" sent the entire studio into a dark age you might say. Many people bashed Disney for its misrepresentation of Asian culture, even today its probably the most controversial and divisive Disney film. Walt never really got back into animation after this and put all his energy into developing both Disneyland and EPCOT. In a way, "Raya and the Last Dragon" was the last straw that started the Disney Dark Age.
---
"Raya and the Last Dragon, what was Disney thinking?" -Bosley Crowther of New York Times
"Disney's Raya is dull as dishwater and has little to no humour, he went from Fantasia to THIS?" -Gene Arneel of Variety
"Walt Disney to retire from animation after disasterous performance of "Raya"" -The New York Times, January 1st 1964
---
The box office failure of “Fantasia” and the critical thrashing of “Peter Pan” had placed quite the burden on the Disney Studio, there were already talks of shutting down the animation division after “Peter Pan” to focus more on the theme parks and TV shows. It didn't help that Walt had a lot of trouble choosing potential material for the studio's next feature after "Peter Pan". One idea was to revive the 1930s "Reynard the Fox" project, yet Reynard was still an unsympathetic "protagonist" who would use any needs necessary to achieve his less then noble goals. Another idea was to adapt the tales of "Chanticleer the Rooster", yet the project was halted as writers felt Chanticleer lacked a clear personality, in Walt’s own words, “you don’t feel like petting a chicken”.
Taking cues from how both "Chanticleer" and "Reynard" were popular fables and folklore, it was soon decided that Walt would once again do a mythology/folklore feature after 1953's "The Black Cauldron". Production started at earnest by December 1958 just as "Fantasia" wrapped up, the film was initially coined as a potential follow-up to "The Black Cauldron". Ultimately, it was director Wolfgang Reitherman who suggested basing the film off Asian folklore and scrap the "follow-up" idea, he claimed that Walt needed to "step out of his comfort zone" and "explore new ideas", much to Walt's amusement. By 1961, a proper first draft had formed and the film was announced to release in 1963, titled "Raya and the Last Dragon".
The film starts off long ago in the far-off land of Kumandra, where the king of Kumandra dies without a heir, leaving the land in jeopardy. Years soon pass and a young girl named Raya finds a wise dragon named Sisu. Believing that Raya has the potential to become the heir to Kumandra, Sisu takes Raya under its wing and trains the girl to become a strong and fearless warrior. A few years pass and the evil king Druun takes over Kumandra, Raya and Sisu are put to the test and have to overthrow Druun before he can do further harm.
“Raya and the Last Dragon” released in late 1963, the film was a disaster and received negative reactions. Storywise, the film was criticised for its lack of charm compared to previous Disney works and a lack of high stakes, at worst “dull as dishwater”. The film’s voice acting and particularly ugly animation didn’t do much to stand out either, some claimed that the visuals looked more scratchy than “Peter Pan”. But perhaps the biggest issue and criticisms the film received was its portrayal of Southeast Asian culture. The film released in the thick of the Civil Rights Movement, and activists tore the film apart for misrepresenting Southeast Asian culture, some took a step further and bashed the film for being “the most racist Disney film”. "Raya and the Last Dragon" remained in the Disney Vault until the mid-1990s when the hate for the film started to cool down, it would grow a following through Southeast Asian audiences and would become a cult classic.
Dismayed by the film's horrible performance and his own distatse to the film in general, Walt announced at the 1964 Studio New Year's Party that he would formally step down from animtion to focus on live-action films, theme parks and television shows. Just when things couldn't seem to get worse, Walt himself would pass away from lung cancer on December 15th 1966. This ushered the studio into a Dark Age, animated projects ranged from quality and financial reception, and the studio entered a period of uncertainty.
Release Date: December 12th 1963
Cast:
Kathryn Beaumont (Raya)
Martha Wentworth (Sisu)
Sebastian Cabot (Druun)
Notes: So I imagine this is how "Raya and the Last Dragon" in the 1960s would've gone. Storywise, I based it off OTL's Raya with some influences from Sword in the Stone. On an additional note, I didn't include the Notable Songs section yet because I couldn't figure out how any of OTL's songs could work here, but I'll try to update this soon once I fgure that one out. This film is where the Dark Age begins so things are about to get rather ugly for Disney here, stay tuned for what happens to Disney next.
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I’m guessing reception of Raya will improve after the Vietnam War ends and once the Khmer Rouge is out of power. Talk about bad timing. But I can also see a couple of things realistically happening. With the analogue of The Black Cauldron in 1985 (as well as the analogues to Dinosaur, Home On The Range, and Chicken Little in the first half of the 2000s), critics and audiences would probably be like, “Hey, maybe we were a little harsh with Raya and The Last Dragon after all.” I can also see some of the writing being proven to be accidentally correct as the years pass or alternately a bunch of dated history where much is proven to be false later on but accurate to the knowledge of the time. Overall, I can see it having more of a IOTL Pocahontas or Sword In The Stone type reception than a IOTL Black Cauldron, Dinosaur, Home On The Range, or Chicken Little type reception, especially starting in the 1980s. But I’m looking forward to seeing the 1967 film and wondering how reception to that will compare to OTL’s Jungle Book (which was part of Disney Platinum/Diamond Edition lineup).
Definitely not a "Black Cauldron" or "Chicken Little" type reception, that won't happen until 1985. Raya here is more so ahead of its time, gaining a significant following and eventually becoming a cult classic, sort of like OTL's Atlantis in a way.
Tangled (1967)
Tangled (1967)
Taken from "Tangled: The Making of a Musical Masterpiece", produced 1997
Narrator: The story of Rapunzel first caught Walt's attention in the late 1930s, but Walt didn't consider adapting the fairy tale until 1960.
Leonard Maltin: When I think of "Tangled", I think of its music and its songs. These songs served as high points and key story elements throughout the film, and that's why they're so memorable.
Wolfgang Reitherman: I went for the personalities of all the characters in "Tangled", you know strong characterisation and strong voices to fit the characters.
Phil Harris: When the studio first approached me to voice Flynn Rider, I turned it down as there was no way I could've done a voice for such a character. But then they called me over again and told me that really wanted me to do it. I decided to do the voice the way I'd naturally do it, and the boys at the studio they loved it.
Mary Costa: "Tangled" was what really kickstarted by career, you might say. I had already been in some films before "Tangled", and then I heard that Disney was holding auditions for their next film. I decided to try out and I got the job! Heaven knows where I'd be if I hadn't been the voice of Rapunzel!
Ollie Johnston: Milt Kahl, one of the Nine Old Men, was the one who animated Dame Gothel. Gothel was an all-around evil stepmother, sort of like Agatha in Snow White but played for laughs here. I think the reason Gothel works so well with Milt's animation is Verna Felton's excellent voice acting and how Gothel and Rapunzel play off each other so well.
Narrator: Walt Disney would not live to see the final product, he passed away of lung cancer in 1966 and the Nine Old Men were left on their own. Despite this, "Tangled" was an immediate blockbuster hit.
John Culhane: If "Tangled" had failed like "Raya and the Last Dragon", the animation department might have gone down the tubes as well.
---
The critical thrashing of "Raya and the Last Dragon" was the last straw for both Walt and the Disney Studio. The film singehandedly sent the studio into an uncertain dark age, films ranged from trash to treasure, and the studio struggled financially. To add salt to the already bleeding wound, Walt Disney would pass away on December 15th 1966 from lung cancer. Without the leadership of Walt, the studio would struggle to create their next feature. Fortunately, the final result "Tangled" would be a good start to the otherwise mediocre dark age.
Walt first expressed interest in adapting the fairy tale "Rapunzel" after production on "The Little Mermaid" wrapped up. It wouldn't be until several decades later when "Rapunzel" first entered production however, as Walt couldn't figure out a proper treatment for the story throughout the 1940s, not to mention the passive character of Rapunzel herself. However by 1960, Walt was ready to give "Rapunzel" another go. Walt assigned Bill Peet to draft up a storyline, Peet went for a darker and edgier treatment, which was reflected in many early story sketches and songs. The failure of "Raya and the Last Dragon" put an end to the original draft, and one of Walt's last acts in the animation division was ordering a complete re-write of "Rapunzel".
By 1964, the film was to be made completely independent of Walt. The film's title changed from "Rapunzel" to "Rapunzel Unbraided", and finally "Tangled". The story was changed to a more upbeat and comedic take on the fairy tale, much to the distaste of Bill Peet. As for voice casting, Phil Harris was brought in to voice the flamboyant and laid back Flynn Rider, actress Mary Costa voiced Rapunzel and Verna Felton voiced the villainous Dame Gothel. Sadly like Walt, Felton never got to see the final product, as she too had passed away in 1966, one day before Walt in fact.
The aging Dame Gothel longs for youth and longevity, she seeks the Golden Rose which would allow her to live young forever, but soon finds out that the Rose had been used by the king of Corona to help the queen give birth to their daughter Rapunzel. Gothel kidnaps the infant Rapunzel at night and holds her captive in her tower for 18 years. Meanwhile, Flynn Rider steals Rapunzel's crown from the palace and in an attempt to hide from the guards, stows away in Rapunzel's tower. Flynn Rider and Rapunzel bond together and he agrees to take Rapunzel outside for the first time in exchange that Flynn returns the crown. During Rapunzel's stay in town, Rapunzel discovers that she is the lost princess, while Gothel discovers that Rapunzel has escaped. Seeking the help of noble guards from Corona, Flynn's own partners the Stabbingtons, and Flynn's horse Maximus, a climatic yet comedic fight ensues which ultimately ends in Flynn cutting Rapunzel's hair, leaving Gothel literally tangled in hair and presumingly aging rapidly.
"Tangled" released in 1967 to mostly positive reviews. The light-hearted tone, charming and interesting story, and jazz style songs were praised, especially compared to "Raya and the Last Dragon". The Xerox style was also praised here, this film (and a certain 1980s film) is often considered to be the best overall use of the Xerox method. Phil Harris would receive the most praise however, his role as Flynn Rider would become one of the most iconic animated voices of all time. Today, "Tangled" is seen as the best film in the Disney Dark Age.
Release Date: October 18th 1967
Cast:
Mary Costa (Rapunzel)
Phil Harris (Flynn Rider)
Verna Felton (Dame Gothel, Queen)
Louis Prima, Hal Smith, Bill Skiles, Pete Hnederson and Leo De Lyon (The Stabbingtons)
J Pat O'Malley (Captain of the Guards)
George Sanders (King)
Notable Songs:
Once Upon a Dream (sung by Rapunzel about her hopes of leaving the tower)
I Wanna Be Like You (sung by the Stabbingtons in the Snuggly Duckling)
The March Song (sung by the guards of Corona when Rapunzel spots them on their daily march) (1)
(1) Known IOTL as Colonel Hathi's March
Notes: Like the Disney Studio ITTL, I initially coined for a darker take on "Tangled", but figured with Raya flopping horrendously here, Disney wouldn't go for the more darker take. Plotwise, it's more or less the same as OTL's Tangled but without Gothel's death scene, plus some elements of OTL's Sleeping Beauty and Jungle Book.
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NGL, including the sequels could be very headache-inducing considering the large number of butterflies. Odds are there probably would be films IOTL that wouldn't have sequels here or those that don't have sequels IOTL could have sequels instead.
Considering the placement of Moana, Zootopia and Frozen/The Snow Queen, only Zootopia might pose a problem here. If I were to include the sequels, I'll improvise
I have decided to add the three new announced sequels to the list of films shuffled, as well as including Pete's Dragon, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, The Wild and Enchanted (plus its sequel), hence why I'll be heavily re-arranging the list of films shuffled. Hopefully this TL will be completed by the time Frozen 4 becomes a thing or else this TL will get a lot more complicated. Also there might not be a "Behind the Scenes" section for each chapter until at least the Renaissance.
In the meantime, I've came up with a new TL idea that will most likely not be happening until the far future as it will require a lot of preliminary research: What if WDAS collapsed in the mid-80s?
In the meantime, I've came up with a new TL idea that will most likely not be happening until the far future as it will require a lot of preliminary research: What if WDAS collapsed in the mid-80s?
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At what date are you reshuffling the films? Every film after 1963? Or after another date?
Not really re-shufflinh and more so heavily re-arranging the slots. Most films after 1971 are changed drastically.
Based on the current line-up of films, I have decided to take a cue from @PGSBHurricane and TSD 2.0, and have Frozen 1/2 be the Snow Queen 1/2, while Frozen 3 will become Frozen either based off something else or become an entirely original story
Home On the Range (1970)
"Disney's Home On the Range has good charm but ultimately fall's flat compared to Tangled" - Charles Camplin of Los Angeles Times, January 27th 1971
"Home On the Range is a delightful musical adventure, but the animation is subpar compared to Disney's usual output" -Howard Thompson, January 15th 1971
---
Unlike previous Disney works which were based on fairy tales like Snow White and Rapunzel, popular literary works like Peter Pan and parts of Alice in Wonderland for "the Nightmare Before Christmas", and myths and folklore like "The Black Cauldron", an American ballad was the basis for Disney's next feature. In 1961 shortly after "Peter Pan" premiered, Walt approached Harry Tytle, Bill Peet and Tom McGowan to either find or come up with original animal stories for a deluxe episode of "Walt Disney's World of Color". By 1962, Peet and McGowan suggested writing a story revolving a family of cats, Walt shot down the idea as he felt the main characters were far too unlikeable. Another idea was to finally adapt the "Chanticleer" and "Reynard the Fox" tales, production would start by 1967 at earnest but was moved down the production line as once again, Reynard's unlikeability was the main issue which the storymen had to solve.
Eventually, Tom McGowan settled on a story set in the Old West. The rights to the ballad "Home On the Range" was acquired in late 1962, it was also set to become the title and de facto theme song. Before the final script was completed in 1967, there were two drafts that were made, one written by Bill Peet shortly before he left the studio after disputes on "Tangled", and another draft written by McGowan. The first drafts explored the adventures of a young cowboy named Billy, McGowan's draft revolved around cows try to retrieve their farmland. Ultimately it was McGowan's draft which was chosen, yet he had to refine the script before it finally become the one used in the final product.
By 1966, Ken Anderson suggested to change the deluxe episode into a full-length feature. Animation went underway in 1967 and all animated work was completed by 1969. For voice casting, the characters revolved around the personalities of the actual voice actors as with "Tangled". Phil Harris was brought back to voice Rico the bison, and Roddy Maude-Roxby was cast as the main villain, Edgar. The Sherman Brothers returned to compose music for the film, "The Bare Necessities", originally written for "Tangled" but dropped, became the film's most iconic song and even outdoing the title song itself. All work was completed in October 1970, two months before the film's release window.
The film revolves around a young cow named Bullets, born and bred in the farmlands alongside his close friend Billy. When farm owner Pearl Gesner expresses her desire for the cows instea of her loyal assistant Edgar, Edgar takes it upon himself to get rid of the cows by sending them away to the barren Old West. Bullets and Billy end up in a bison herd led by the laid-back bison Rico. Rico teaches the two about the circle of life and how to adapt a laid back lifestyle. With the help of Rico, Bullets and Billy return to the farm only to be kidnapped by Edgar who intends to butcher and cook the two once and for all. Rico and the farm animals (including Lucky Jack the Rabbit and Roquefort the Mouse) must save Bullets and Billy before its too late.
"Home On the Range" premiered on Christmas Eve 1970 and released nationwide in January of the following year. The film did... ok, it received mixed receptions and financially, it performed in the middle of the road, not a success but also not a failure. Most audiences and critics praised the memorable songs and charm, but the overall story as well as its animation was criticised for being subpar compared to "Tangled". Nowadays, "Home On the Range" is a classic in its own right.
Release Date: December 24th 1970
Cast:
Bruce Reitherman (Bullets)
Gary Dubin (Billy)
Phil Harris (Rico)
Sterling Holloway (Roquefort)
Junius Matthews (Lucky Jack)
Eva Gabor (Pearl Gesner)
Roddy Maude-Roxby (Edgar)
Notable Songs (1):
Home On the Range (Sung during the opening credits)
The Bare Necessities (Sung by Rico to teach Bullets and Billy about the laid-back lifestyle)
(1) A modified version of "Scales and Appreggios" is also used here sung by Bullets and Billy, I'm not sure what it'll be called here however, hence why I didn't include it in the Notable Songs section.
Notes: TTL's "Home On the Range" is a combination of the first two drafts of OTL's Home on the Range as well as OTL's Aristocats, I wanted to include Edgar and Roquefort the Mouse here due to the placement of Aristocats ITTL.
"Home On the Range is a delightful musical adventure, but the animation is subpar compared to Disney's usual output" -Howard Thompson, January 15th 1971
---
Unlike previous Disney works which were based on fairy tales like Snow White and Rapunzel, popular literary works like Peter Pan and parts of Alice in Wonderland for "the Nightmare Before Christmas", and myths and folklore like "The Black Cauldron", an American ballad was the basis for Disney's next feature. In 1961 shortly after "Peter Pan" premiered, Walt approached Harry Tytle, Bill Peet and Tom McGowan to either find or come up with original animal stories for a deluxe episode of "Walt Disney's World of Color". By 1962, Peet and McGowan suggested writing a story revolving a family of cats, Walt shot down the idea as he felt the main characters were far too unlikeable. Another idea was to finally adapt the "Chanticleer" and "Reynard the Fox" tales, production would start by 1967 at earnest but was moved down the production line as once again, Reynard's unlikeability was the main issue which the storymen had to solve.
Eventually, Tom McGowan settled on a story set in the Old West. The rights to the ballad "Home On the Range" was acquired in late 1962, it was also set to become the title and de facto theme song. Before the final script was completed in 1967, there were two drafts that were made, one written by Bill Peet shortly before he left the studio after disputes on "Tangled", and another draft written by McGowan. The first drafts explored the adventures of a young cowboy named Billy, McGowan's draft revolved around cows try to retrieve their farmland. Ultimately it was McGowan's draft which was chosen, yet he had to refine the script before it finally become the one used in the final product.
By 1966, Ken Anderson suggested to change the deluxe episode into a full-length feature. Animation went underway in 1967 and all animated work was completed by 1969. For voice casting, the characters revolved around the personalities of the actual voice actors as with "Tangled". Phil Harris was brought back to voice Rico the bison, and Roddy Maude-Roxby was cast as the main villain, Edgar. The Sherman Brothers returned to compose music for the film, "The Bare Necessities", originally written for "Tangled" but dropped, became the film's most iconic song and even outdoing the title song itself. All work was completed in October 1970, two months before the film's release window.
The film revolves around a young cow named Bullets, born and bred in the farmlands alongside his close friend Billy. When farm owner Pearl Gesner expresses her desire for the cows instea of her loyal assistant Edgar, Edgar takes it upon himself to get rid of the cows by sending them away to the barren Old West. Bullets and Billy end up in a bison herd led by the laid-back bison Rico. Rico teaches the two about the circle of life and how to adapt a laid back lifestyle. With the help of Rico, Bullets and Billy return to the farm only to be kidnapped by Edgar who intends to butcher and cook the two once and for all. Rico and the farm animals (including Lucky Jack the Rabbit and Roquefort the Mouse) must save Bullets and Billy before its too late.
"Home On the Range" premiered on Christmas Eve 1970 and released nationwide in January of the following year. The film did... ok, it received mixed receptions and financially, it performed in the middle of the road, not a success but also not a failure. Most audiences and critics praised the memorable songs and charm, but the overall story as well as its animation was criticised for being subpar compared to "Tangled". Nowadays, "Home On the Range" is a classic in its own right.
Release Date: December 24th 1970
Cast:
Bruce Reitherman (Bullets)
Gary Dubin (Billy)
Phil Harris (Rico)
Sterling Holloway (Roquefort)
Junius Matthews (Lucky Jack)
Eva Gabor (Pearl Gesner)
Roddy Maude-Roxby (Edgar)
Notable Songs (1):
Home On the Range (Sung during the opening credits)
The Bare Necessities (Sung by Rico to teach Bullets and Billy about the laid-back lifestyle)
(1) A modified version of "Scales and Appreggios" is also used here sung by Bullets and Billy, I'm not sure what it'll be called here however, hence why I didn't include it in the Notable Songs section.
Notes: TTL's "Home On the Range" is a combination of the first two drafts of OTL's Home on the Range as well as OTL's Aristocats, I wanted to include Edgar and Roquefort the Mouse here due to the placement of Aristocats ITTL.
Since I'm planning to continue TL until 1981, I might as well give some hints on what the 1970s will offer
On a side note, I'm going to be amending the list of shuffled TV shows so I don't get a headache when we get there.
1971: Features an iconic villain
1973: Will be based on mythology and/or fables
1977a: A project Disney either made or tried to adapt in the 40s IOTL
1977b: One of OTL's Renaissance films
1977c: Features mythical creatures to some extent
1973: Will be based on mythology and/or fables
1977a: A project Disney either made or tried to adapt in the 40s IOTL
1977b: One of OTL's Renaissance films
1977c: Features mythical creatures to some extent
On a side note, I'm going to be amending the list of shuffled TV shows so I don't get a headache when we get there.
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1971: 101 Dalmatians
1973: Aladdin
1977a: Bambi
1977b: Tarzan
1977c: Hercules
1973: Aladdin
1977a: Bambi
1977b: Tarzan
1977c: Hercules
You got one of these correct and you'll see which one it is pretty soon