Category Archives: Articles

Ain’t It Cool News Features Song of the South

Quint over at Ain’t It Cool News has posted his Behind the Scenes Pic of the Day for Friday, entitled “Please don’t throw the Behind the Scenes Pic of the Day in that briar patch!”

This backlot photo features James Baskett (Uncle Remus), Bobby Driscoll (Johnny), Glenn Leedy (Toby), and Luana Patten (Ginny). It was also used in 1986 for Song of the South’s final theatrical release (as line art). This photo appears courtesy of the D23 fan club magazine.

Also of note is the article, in which Quint talks about speaking to an unnamed ex-Disney executive a few years ago, asking him if we’ll ever see this film released on DVD or Blu-Ray. “His response: ‘Never.’ I asked why. ‘Because it’s racist,’ he exclaimed. I know that’s the general perception of this film, but I was still taken aback. I thought for a second and asked, ‘Have you seen it?’ Incredibly he said he hadn’t and that right there is the root of the problem.”

Indeed, this is the exact problem that Disney has created by not releasing this film: it perpetuates the stigma surrounding this film. When Disney’s own executives haven’t seen this movie, yet condemn it as “racist”, something is wrong here. And with that I’ll step down from my soapbox too.

I would encourage everyone to read Quint’s short article that accompanies this great behind the scenes photo. Thank you to the anonymous person that alerted me to this article, and thanks to Quint over at Ain’t It Cool News for posting it!

New York Post Article: “Exclusively on YouTube”

Print edition of the New York Post article “Exclusively on YouTube”, published 4/7/2013,

Chief Film Critic Lou Lumenick of the New York Post recently published an article on April 7th titled “Exclusively on YouTube“, which chronicles a few different films that are, essentially, just that: movies that the studios have not released on video or DVD and live exclusively on YouTube.com.

One of those films is Disney’s Academy Award-winning and controversial movie “Song of the South”. I was contacted by Mr. Lumenick back in March to get my thoughts on this. Also contacted was Disney historian Jim Korkis (who recently published the book “Who’s Afraid of the Song of the South?“)

So, if you still haven’t seen Song of the South and don’t want to purchase one of the numerous bootleg copies available on the Internet, now’s your chance to go check it out on YouTube. It will be interesting to see whether Disney decides to tighten their enforcement.

The other films mentioned that are currently in the same boat as Song of the South are The Great Gatsby (1949), Christmas Holiday (1944), and Once in a Lifetime (1932). Here’s hoping that all of these pieces of cinematic history get the preservation they deserve and eventually make their way to a home video release. Special thanks to Lou for publishing this article!

Jim Korkis Publishes Book: “Who’s Afraid of the Song of the South?”

“Who’s Afraid of the Song of the South?” by Disney Historian Jim Korkis

Disney Historian Jim Korkis, well known for his columns on MousePlanet.com (including articles about Song of the South, under the pseudonym Wade Sampson), has just released the first ever book primarily focused on the history of Walt Disney’s Song of the South.

The book, entitled “Who’s Afraid of the Song of the South?” weighs in at 291 pages, with nearly 100 pages dedicated to the history, controversy, secrets and more surrounding the film. The remaining chapters detail many, many other “forbidden stories” about Disney. You are guaranteed to learn a lot from this book (I certainly did!)

The foreword is written by Disney Legend Floyd Norman, Disney’s first African-American animator and storyman. The book is also praised by film critic Leonard Maltin, CartoonBrew.com webmaster Jerry Beck, MouseTracksOnline.com webmaster Greg Ehrbar, and yours truly.

The book is currently available on Amazon.com in paperback ($19.95) and digital Kindle edition ($7.99). If you are interested in Song of the South, or just Disney history in general, this book is an absolute must read!

My sincere thanks goes out to Jim for all his time and effort to make this book a reality, and to editor Bob McLain of Theme Park Press. Read the full press release here.

Song of the South Turns 66; DVD Being Sold?

Song of the South’s worldwide premier was on November 12, 1946. Happy 66th Birthday!

Photo Credit: Lynn Hobbs/Staff of The Eatonton Messenger

On the DVD front, we’ve received several reports that Song of the South is being sold on DVD at the Uncle Remus Museum in Eatonton, Georgia. An article published by the Eatonton Messenger sums it up the best:

“…Uncle Remus Museum bookkeeper Bill Watterson said the local museum is one of several venues that carry the movie on DVD.

Watterson said he’d been searching for a good copy of the movie for quite a while, because “over the years, we’ve had a lot of requests for it.”

It wasn’t until early this summer that he found one through one of the museum’s book publishers.

“It’s much better quality than you normally see. That’s why we carry it,” Watterson said. “Being self-supportive, we can’t afford to have poor-quality products.”

….

The DVD costs $25 at the museum and includes bonus features such as music by Johnny Mercer and the Pied Pipers, interviews with Walt Disney and cast members, rare behind-the-scenes footage, and “Tales of Uncle Remus” audio book.”

You can read the full article by Lynn Hobbs here. It should be noted that Disney has never officially released this movie on DVD. The version that the museum is carrying is technically an unauthorized copy, though it will be interesting to see if Disney takes any action on this.

Over the past several years, bootleg (unofficial) DVDs of Song of the South have become more and more prevalent (including Amazon), and YouTube offers clips of the movie that Disney is no longer attempting to remove. In fact, the last time any action was taken on unauthorized distribution (that we know of) was April 2004, in which a South Carolina man was arraigned for pirating Song of the South on VHS and DVD (read article here).

Has Disney essentially given in and turned a blind eye, allowing fans to distribute the film as a way to ease demand while avoiding responsibility? Only time will tell. Thanks to everyone for the news reports!

Entertainment Weekly Lists Song of the South Among Worst Disney Movies

Christian Blauvelt of Entertainment Weekly has compiled a list of 30 Best/Worst Disney Animated Movies. Among the worst is Song of the South:

“It’s a great irony of Disney’s filmmaking history that one of its most technologically progressive efforts should also be among its most socially regressive. Based on Joel Chandler Harris’ Uncle Remus stories, Song of the South is a disturbingly idyllic presentation of Reconstruction Era southern plantation life, glutted with racial stereotypes — as such, it’s never received any home video release. But it’s also one of the earliest, and most ambitions, attempts at mixing live-action photography with animation, an enduring technique also explored in 1949’s So Dear to My Heart, 1964’s Mary Poppins, 1987’s Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and 2007’s Enchanted. Despite the film itself being kept under lock and key in the Disney Vault, Song of the South‘s characters and setting inspired the Disney theme parks’ wildly popular Splash Mountain rides. And of course, this was the movie to give the world ”Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah.”

Also listed as the Worst Disney Animated Films: Robin Hood (1973), Home on the Range (2004), Chicken Little (2005), Brother Bear (2003), The Black Cauldron (1985), Hercules (1997), Sleeping Beauty (1959), Tarzan (1999), and The Great Mouse Detective (1986).

The following are what Entertainment Weekly considers to be the Best Disney Animated Films: Tangled (2010), Alice in Wonderland (1951), Mulan (1998), The Little Mermaid (1989), Cinderella (1950), Fantasia (1940), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Lady and the Tramp (1955), Dumbo (1941), Pinocchio (1940), The Aristocats (1970), Aladdin (1992), 101 Dalmatians (1961), The Lion King (1994), Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937), Peter Pan (1953), The Jungle Book (1967), Beauty and the Beast (1991), and Bambi (1942).

Interestingly, some of the movies in the “best of” list have been criticized for stereotypes as well, such as the crows in Dumbo, the Indians in Peter Pan, and the Siamese cat in the Aristocats. It’s also curious why Song of the South made it into the Disney Animated Films category, while other animation/live action hybrid films such as So Dear to My Heart and The Three Caballeros were listed among their Best/Worst Live Action films.

Thanks to Maggi for the news report!

Academy Awards Website Shows Footage of James Baskett

One of our readers has brought to our attention that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has updated their website with a section called Oscar Legacy, featuring all of the previous Academy Award ceremonies from 1927 to present.

Of special interest is the 20th Academy Awards, which was held at the Shrine Civic Auditorium on Saturday, March 20, 1948, honoring movies released in 1947. (Even though Song of the South premiered November 12, 1946, it was counted among the 1947 films.)

Song of the South won two Academy Awards: James Baskett received an Oscar “for his able and heart-warming characterization of Uncle Remus, friend and story teller to the children of the world, in Walt Disney’s Song of the South.” Also, Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah won the award for Best Music (Song).

What makes this page special is a film clip from the UCLA Film & Television Archive, featuring a news reel from the 1948 Academy Awards. Here we get to see Mr. Baskett receive his Oscar, narrated in the first person by “Oscar” himself:

The second special award is to be made by Ms. Ingrid Bergman who presents me to Mr. James Baskett, so that my gleaming image may be a reminder that he gave us all a glowing and nostalgic happiness with his splendid Uncle Remus in the “Song of the South”.

The film clip can be viewed here:
http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/legacy/ceremony/20th.html

Sadly, James Baskett passed away just four months later on July 9th at age 44, but his legacy will live on as being the first African American man to receive an Academy Award. (Incidentally, the first African American woman was Hattie McDaniel, who played Aunt Tempy in Song of the South). A special thanks to Bradley West for the news report!

Nostalgia Chick Reviews Song of the South

In what is perhaps the first-ever online video review of Song of the South featuring actual clips from the film, Nostalgia Chick over at That Guy With The Glasses has put together a witty and entertaining look at Song of the South. In the review, she covers just about everything, including comparisons to other Disney films and landmark Hollywood films. Song of the South seems to be summed up in one word: boring… but her review is anything but. I highly recommend watching this!

Bumper art by Andrew Dickman. Follow Nostalgia Chick on Twitter and Facebook. Special thanks to Kyle for the news report and to Lindsay for the excellent job. You have a new fan!

Song of the South Among Salon’s Top 10 Greatest Missing Movies

Salon Entertainment columnist Andrew O’Hehir has written an article on the Top 10 Greatest Missing Movies, one of which is none other than Walt Disney’s Song of the South. O’Hehir covers a wide range of films, from those that are “well and truly missing” to the ones that “can’t be seen because those who own them simply don’t want you to see them” (guess which movie he’s talking about.) Here is the list of films, in order:

Greed (Erich von Stroheim, 1924)
The Mountain Eagle (Alfred Hitchcock, 1927)
The Great Gatsby (Herbert Brenon, 1926)
The Magnificent Ambersons (Orson Welles, 1942)
Song of the South (Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson, 1946)
Looking for Mr. Goodbar (Richard Brooks, 1977)
Let It Be (Michael Lindsay-Hogg, 1970)
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (Peter Greenaway, 1989)
Catch My Soul (Patrick McGoohan, 1974)
The Day the Clown Cried (Jerry Lewis, 1972)

O’Hehir describes Song of the South thusly: “This Disney mixture of live action, animation and highly uncomfortable race relations definitely exists, and if you’ve got $150 or so burning a hole in your pocket, you can buy it on VHS tape. Sooner or later, you’d have to think the corporate suits in Mouseland will find the right context for a collector’s edition DVD: Essays by Henry Louis Gates and Cornel West? Earnest panel discussions on the Jim Crow era and the depiction of African-Americans in Hollywood? I’ve never seen “Song of the South” in its entirety and I’m sure it’s got many cringe-worthy moments, but can anyone possibly deny its cultural and historical importance?”

(Indeed, which is why we’re still trying to get Song of the South to be added to the United States Library of Congress’ National Film Registry. Click here for more information on how you can easily nominate the movie yourself.)

I found O’Hehir’s article to be very interesting, as most of these films I had never heard of before now.

Click here to read the full article on Salon.com. Thank you to D.Z. for the news report!

MousePlanet article: The Sad Song of the South

MousePlanet staff writer Jim Corkis (a.k.a. Wade Sampson) has written another excellent article covering Song of the South, this time stemming from the recent shareholder meeting, in which Disney CEO Robert Iger once again shot down any hope for a release of this movie.

“Obviously, the Disney stockholders were not asked whether they would like to see the film released.” My thoughts exactly, Jim. Iger has proven by his remarks that he and some of the Disney executives are making a personal decision to withhold this movie from the public. What does this have to say about the power of the shareholders? Clearly from hearing the applause this question elicits every year, there are many other shareholders that would like to see this movie released as well.

Without any more ado, here is Jim Corkis’ excellent article. I highly encourage you all to read it! http://www.mouseplanet.com/9602/The_Sad_Song_of_the_South

Special thanks to Joey for informing me of this article, and to Jim for writing it.

Disney CEO: “Don’t Expect to See [Song of the South] Again”

Disney’s annual shareholder meeting was held this year on March 23rd in Salt Lake City, Utah. Once again, Disney CEO Robert Iger has dismissed the possibility of releasing Song of the South on DVD. Since 2006, shareholders have annually raised the question at every shareholder meeting. In 2006 and 2007, Iger assured shareholders that they were taking another look at the film due to the “numerous requests” they received. By 2008, however, his tone began to change, and by 2010, he was calling the movie “antiquated” and “fairly offensive”. And now, for 2011’s response—shareholder Matthew Hansen was able to squeeze in the meeting’s final Q&A question:

Hansen: My name is Matthew Hansen; I’m a shareholder here locally. This year is a large anniversary for one of Disney’s classic films. Disney restoration team artistic supervisor Dave Bossert recently said, ‘There’s been a lot of internal discussion about it, and at some point we’re going to do something about it. I don’t know when, but we will. We want people to see it because we realize it’s a big piece of company history and we want to do it the right way.’ With this year being the 65th anniversary of Song of the South, I was wondering when we might see that. [Applause]

Iger: [laughs] We almost got through the meeting! I thought you were going to say it’s the 60th anniversary of Peter Pan, I was kind of hoping for that. I said last year at our shareholder’s meeting that I had watched Song of the South again and, even though we’ve considered from time to time bringing it back, I didn’t think it was the right thing for the company to do. It was made in a different time. Admittedly you could use that as context, but I just felt that there are elements to the film, while it was a relatively good film, that wouldn’t necessarily sit right or feel right to a number of people today. And, just felt that it wouldn’t be in the best interest of our shareholders to bring it back, even though there would be some financial gain. Sometimes you make sacrifices on the financial side to do what you believe is right and that’s an example of that.

Hansen: Would it be possible to have, kind of how they have the Disney exclusive videos that aren’t available in stores?

Iger: I just don’t feel that it’s right for us to use company resources to make it 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.

So there you have it, folks. An audio archive of the shareholder meeting is available here:
http://a.media.global.go.com/investorrelations/Disney_2011_ASM.mp3

Special thanks goes out to Matthew for posing the question, and for notifying me!