Author Archives: hemingray

Major Updates for Song of the South Memorabilia Museum

The Song of the South Memorabilia Museum has received some much needed attention! This is the single biggest update to the museum since I migrated it to a database in 2009. Here are what’s been going on behind the scenes:

  1. Redesigned interface — As you may have noticed, the entire web site has be redesigned from the ground up, including the memorabilia section. The museum is now more mobile-friendly and adaptable to any size screen, so no more squinting on your phone or tablet!
  2. Suggested Values added — About 17 years ago I planned to publish a Song of the South memorabilia price guide book, but that proved to be too impractical. So, I’ve added this information to the database, free of charge and available to everyone. The suggested value ranges for each item are based on nearly 25 years of collecting Song of the South memorabilia; I hope you find it useful.
  3. Advanced Search added — As the museum has grown so much in the past 20 years, I’ve added the ability for you to perform your own custom searches with the new Advanced Search feature.
  4. 20 New Items added — A lot of new memorabilia and extra photos to existing items have been added (the database now has over 850 photos!) Visit the New Additions page to see what’s new.
  5. Books & Print section split up — At nearly 200 items, the Books & Print section has proven to be the largest memorabilia category, so I have split it out into 2 separate sections: 1) Story Books for books, and 2) Periodicals for comic books, magazines, etc.
  6. Database Code Updates — Under the hood, I’ve updated all of the PHP and MySQL code to improve security and version compatibility, which should hopefully help future proof the database for several years to come.

I hope you like the improvements! If you enjoy this website and would like to support my efforts, I’ve added links in my Store and on individual memorabilia pages to relevant products you can purchase for yourself. Clicking on these links and purchasing items through them will benefit the both of us. Thank you for your support!

Iger States Song of the South Will Not Appear on Disney+

At the Walt Disney Company’s 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders held on March 11, 2020, Disney shareholder Matthew Hansen asked the first question during the Q&A session:

Good morning, Bob and Bob. My name is Matthew Hansen, I’m a shareholder from Salt Lake City. At last year’s meeting, you, Mr. Iger, mentioned that Disney+ would eventually have “the entire Walt Disney Studios library.” Currently there are a lot of absences from the catalog, ranging from various short films to “Victory Through Air Power” to “Follow Me, Boys!” and many more. What is the plan or timeline for the full catalog to be added to Disney+? Also, are there plans to add content such as Michael Eisner’s Disney’s Sunday Movie Intros? And along with that, many have wondered after your comments if, when you said “entire library”, does that include “Song of the South,” and if not, why can’t it be included with a similar disclaimer about containing outdated cultural depictions that currently accompanies many other titles on Disney+? ….”

Disney Executive Chairman Bob Iger replied:

…. I think when I said “the whole library,” one of the things that we realized was a lot of what was made in the past is not of the quality just in terms of the quality of the film initially, when it’s digitized, and we’re working through some of that. We also had to prioritize because there’s so much that had to be digitized so we couldn’t get everything on. So I think in the end when I said the entire library it turns out not everything will be available because of some of those issues. I’ve felt, as long as I’ve been CEO that Song of the South was, even with a disclaimer, was just not appropriate in today’s world. That’s actually true with some of the other things that we’ve made as well. It’s just hard to, given the depictions in some of those films, to bring them out today without, in some form or another, offending people. So we’ve decided not to do that.

The full audio of the shareholder meeting can be listened to here. The Q&A session begins around the 39:15 mark.

Mr. Hansen has been dutifully asking about Disney’s plans for Song of the South at many of Disney’s shareholder meetings over the years (you can read about nearly all of them in our News Archive), and Bob Iger’s responses have varied.

Iger stepped down as CEO in February 2020, but is still serving as Executive Chairman; it is unknown at this time if Iger’s successor, Bob Chapek, feels the same way about this film.

Until then, there are several steps you can take:

  1. Sign the Petition to Release Song of the South on Disney+.
  2. Spread the word! Like Song of the South on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
  3. Nominate Song of the South to be added to the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry. The National Film Registry was established to preserve and safeguard U.S. films that are “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” Each year they select 25 films. It’s important to note that nominations do not carry over from year to year, so if you nominated Song of the South previously, you should re-nominate each year (and you are encouraged to do so).
  4. If you subscribe to Disney+, you can suggest a title be added to Disney+ by going to the Help section, clicking on “Give Feedback” and selecting “Request a film or show” from the drop-down menu.

SongoftheSouth.net Turns 20! Site Renovation In Progress

SongoftheSouth.net turns 20 years old this year! I originally launched this site in 2000, and it didn’t always used to be this big. It was originally only intended to showcase my humble memorabilia collection, but I decided to expand the web site because there wasn’t a lot of information out on the Internet back then about this movie. Oh, how times have changed…

As part of my “20 year celebration”, I’m in the process of completely renovating the entire web site. Under the hood, some of this website’s code was literally 20 years old… that’s ancient for a website! I’m doing away with all remnants of HTML 3.2 and 4.01, nested tables, and all those other messy hacks left over from before the days of Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Wanna see what this site used to look like? Head over to my Old Sites page for all the gory details.

In this new world of web design, I’m replacing all site code with pure HTML5, CSS3 and responsive design for mobile devices. I’ve also completed the transition to SSL (using https:// rather than the insecure http://). This has all been quite the learning experience, and I feel that I’ve merely scratched the surface.

I’m also going through all my old content and updating links where I can, and pruning dead links to sites long gone (another side effect of having such a long-running site… apparently I’ve outlived a lot of other sites out there!)

Anyways, I hope you like it! Feedback is always welcome. This is a work in progress, so pages are being updated one at a time. There are well over 100 pages on this site, so I expect it to take several more weeks at least!

Be on the lookout for more updates and improvements in the near future!

Disney+ adds “outdated cultural depictions” disclaimer to some films

Disney+, the new streaming service launched on November 12, 2019 (incidentally Song of the South’s anniversary), predictably does not include Song of the South among its available films. Several of their other older films have also recently had a disclaimer added:

This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions.

So far the films confirmed to have this disclaimer added include:

  • Dumbo (1941)
  • Peter Pan (1953)
  • Lady and the Tramp (1955)
  • Jungle Book (1967)
  • The Aristocats (1970)

It is unclear what criteria must be met for these films to receive this disclaimer. There are several other films that could be considered offensive to some, including more recent films such as Aladdin (1992) and Pocahontas (1995). What about the cigar-smoking parrot José Carioca in Saludos Amigos (1942), or the depiction of Panchito Pistoles as a gun-toting, sombrero-wearing rooster in The Three Caballeros (1944)? Where does one draw the line? There are also several films from the 1940s that Disney has inconsistently censored, including:

  • Removing the Martins and the Coys sequence from Make Mine Music (1947) for its depiction of gunplay
  • Removing the cigarette from Pecos Bill’s mouth in Melody Time (1948) for its depiction of smoking (yet they left his guns)
  • Removing the centaur Sunflower from Fantasia (1940) for its stereotypical depiction of African Americans

This begs the question if they will restore these above films to their original content, and add these disclaimers? One has to wonder if they will eventually do the same for Song of the South as well. You can suggest a title be added to Disney+ by going to the Help section and selecting “Request a film or show”.

Thanks to everyone for the news reports!

Today Marks Song of the South’s 73rd Anniversary

Today marks the 73rd anniversary of Song of the South’s worldwide premier at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.

Today also marks the premier of the new Disney+ streaming video service, which will reportedly not be offering Song of the South among its available movies. The movie has never been commercially released by Disney on VHS or DVD in the United States, and despite a recent call from Disney Legend Whoopi Goldberg to bring back and discuss this film, Disney has continued to sideskirt releasing the film, while profiting off of the movie through Splash Mountain merchandise, collectibles, and the Academy Award-winning song “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.”

It’s hard to believe that my website will be 20 years old next year, but my mission remains the same: provide as much information to the public on this movie as I can in the absence of Disney. If you want to help preserve this movie (after all, whether you love or hate the film, it’s part of cinematic history), be sure to check out our Facebook page, and sign the petition if you haven’t already done so. The biggest way you can help is to spread the word about this movie. You might be surprised how many people don’t even know this film exists (and I’m afraid that might be what Disney wants).

Provost Park Pass Interviews Splash Mountain Voice Actor Jess Harnell

On November 6, Provost Park Pass published on YouTube a behind-the-scenes interview at Disneyland with one of my personal favorite celebrity voice actors: Jess Harnell! Jess is the talented voice behind many, many childhood memories, including Wakko Warner from the Animaniacs, Roger Rabbit, and several voices on Splash Mountain, including Brer Rabbit:

If you’re also a Jess Harnell fan, be sure to check out the Twisted Toonz YouTube channel to see Jess hilariously perform alongside other prominent voice actors including Maurice LaMarche, Tress MacNeille, Jim Cummings, Rob Paulsen, and many more. I’ve gotta say, there’s nothing quite as amusing as hearing Darth Vader lines being delivered by Winnie The Pooh (courtesy of Jim Cummings)! And while I know this isn’t Song of the South related, I was also very excited to hear that the Animaniacs will be rebooted next year on Hulu, and all the original voice actors above will be returning as well. It’s simply not the Animaniacs without them!

Special thanks to Philip Kippel for sharing a link to the video on our Song of the South Facebook page, and thanks to Provost Park Pass and Jess Harnell for the great feature!

‘You Must Remember This’ Podcast Airs ‘Six Degrees of Song of the South’

Variety Magazine recently published an article about the ‘You Must Remember This’ Podcast releasing a 6-part podcast series on Song of the South: “In the new season of Hollywood historian Karina Longworth’s acclaimed podcast, “You Must Remember This,” the former film critic delves into the history of “Song of the South” — how it was made, the controversy that surrounded it from the get-go, and how Disney has managed to profit off of the film without ever giving it a home entertainment release.”

The article can be read on Variety.com:
https://variety.com/2019/film/news/song-of-the-south-disney-plus-you-must-remember-this-podcast-karina-longworth-1203379940

The podcast series itself, entitled “Six Degrees of Song of the South,” is being broadcast weekly as a series in 6 parts:

Thanks to Shawn Kelly for the news report!

New Disney+ Streaming Service Will Not Include Song of the South?

It is being widely reported that Disney’s new streaming service “Disney+” will not include their Academy Award winning and controversial movie Song of the South, contrary to Disney CEO Robert Iger’s quote that Disney+ would “house the entire Disney motion picture library.”

Ironically, the new streaming service is set to launch on November 12th, the anniversary of Song of the South’s worldwide premier in 1946.

It has also been reported that Disney will be censoring another piece of company history as well: the crows from Dumbo (1941). If so, this would join several other films from the 1940s that Disney has decided to edit over the years, including scenes and elements from Fantasia (1940), Make Mine Music (1946), and Melody Time (1948).

Disney Legend Whoopi Goldberg was interviewed at the D23 Expo in July 2017, and had this to say about both films:

“I’m trying to find a way to get people to start having a conversation about bringing Song of the South back, so we can talk about what it was, and where it came from and why it came out. I want people to start putting the crows, you know, in the merchandising. Because those crows sing the song in Dumbo that everybody remembers. So I want to… I want to highlight all the little stuff people sort of maybe miss in movies.”

http://www.songofthesouth.net/news/2017/07/16/disney-legend-whoopi-goldberg-wants-song-of-the-south-released/


Memorabilia Corner: Noel Dwelley Richards Song of the South Dolls

In this issue of Memorabilia Corner, we’re featuring a set of hand-crafted dolls made by Noel Dwelley Richards of Fort Pierce, Florida, from the 1950’s through the 1970’s. There is very little information out there on the Internet about these dolls, so it’s time we fixed that! While these dolls aren’t technically official Disney memorabilia, it turns out they were directly inspired by Walt Disney’s Song of the South.

Although I didn’t know it at the time, I caught my first glimpse of Mrs. Richards’ handiwork back in 2001, about when I started this web site. I was provided a photo of two stuffed animals that looked remarkably like Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox from Walt Disney’s Song of the South. There were no tags, so I filed the photo away in my “More Research Needed” folder. Fast forward to 2018, when I found and purchased a Brer Bear doll on eBay that looked remarkably similar to the other two dolls. I assumed they were early Disney dolls, but had no other information to go on.

Then, in March 2019, I was contacted by Mary Jo from Kentucky:

 I know your primary interest is the movie, but thought you may have some suggestions or guidance. In the 1970s, my mom bought me a set of handmade dolls made by Noel Dwelley Richards from Fort Pierce, FL (my mom’s hometown). I have Uncle Remus, Brer Bear, Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox and Tar Baby. 

My interest piqued, I thanked her for contacting me and asked to see photos. When she sent the photos, there they were! The very same stuffed animals, plus two more dolls I had never seen before (The Tar Baby and Uncle Remus). Not only that, but she provided me with a newspaper article from The Palm Beach Post (March 16, 1977) featuring the shop where her mother had purchased the dolls—The Emporium, which was located at 301 S. US Highway 1 in Fort Pierce, Florida. The article, which interviewed Noel’s son Nick Richards, states that these dolls were indeed directly inspired by Walt Disney’s Song of the South:

Richards family is still actively interested in the shop, and one of his best selling items is made by his mother, Noel Dwelley Richards, who patented her own line of stuffed dolls.

“When my brother and I were young mother took us to see the ‘Song of the South,’ and we liked it so much mother made us some dolls based on the Uncle Remus characters,” Richards said.

“Everybody liked them so much that she patented the patterns and has been making them ever since,” he said. “Now she sells them only through the store, but they are so popular I can’t get her to make enough,” he said.

Excerpt from “Emporium Preserves History” by John Bartlett, The Palm Beach Post, March 16, 1977, Section C

Mary Jo generously let me purchase the set of dolls, and I am happy to report their new home here in the Song of the South Memorabilia Museum! I believe this may be a complete set.

I wanted to try to find out more about these dolls and the Richards family, so I did some more research. While I was unable to find any patents for Noel’s doll designs, I did find a 1952 copyright entry in the Library of Congress:

RICHARDS, NOEL DWELLEY ©. Cartoons in cloth. “Negro man and animals” Photo. ©29Oct52 JU7208.

Library of Congress – Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third Series, Pg. 232 (Link)

Based on the 1952 date, that would indicate that the Richards family had seen the original 1946 theatrical release of Song of the South. Noel passed away at the age of 79 in Fort Pierce on Thursday, January 8, 1998. Based on further research, it also appears that her son Nick Richards may have passed away on February 9, 2005. Based on the article above, Nick had a brother, but I have not attempted to contact him (I believe his name is William Brooks Richards Jr.) If anyone has any more information on these dolls, please let me know!


New Disney Streaming Service to Include Song of the South?

According to an article posted today over at Polygon, Disney’s new streaming service “Disney+” will include the “entire Disney motion picture library.” Presumably, that would include Walt Disney’s Academy Award winning 1946 film Song of the South, which hasn’t seen the light of day in the U.S. since 1986.

To quote Disney CEO Robert Iger at today’s investor meeting held in St. Louis:

The service, which I mentioned earlier is going to launch later in the year, is going to combine what we call library product, movies, and television, with a lot of original product as well, movies and television. And at some point fairly soon after launch it will house the entire Disney motion picture library, so the movies that you speak of that traditionally have been kept in a “vault” and brought out basically every few years will be on the service. And then, of course, we’re producing a number of original movies and original television shows as well that will be Disney-branded.

In the past, when shareholders have asked Robert Iger about releasing Song of the South, he has stated in no uncertain terms that the studio had no plans to re-release the film:

Iger (2011): I just don’t feel that it’s right for us to use company resources to make [Song of the South] available, whether it’s wide or whether it’s narrow… narrowly available. It’s a strong belief that I have— consulted with other top executives of the company. They all agreed, and I think, just remember it as it was, and don’t expect to see it again for… at least for awhile, if ever.

Maybe sufficient time has passed and they’re finally ready? Only time will tell if this is truly the entire Disney motion picture library, or just their usual fare. The service is slated to be released later this year, so “fairly soon after launch” could mean 2020 or beyond. We’ll be keeping an eye on this, however.

Thanks to James Moyner for the news report!