A page spread from the Golden book of Pater Pan. We had this one in the house when I was a kid, and I was nuts about it. The finished film has scenes that come as close as any in Disney's canon to matching the appeal of the visual development artwork.
Finally back in Los Angeles, and back to work.
Paris is unsurprisingly everything everyone says it is and more. It fills the mind and heart with a burning love for and appreciation of the beauty that is everywhere apparent--and not just in the concrete surroundings.
But right now, it's the interminable plane ride back that has me writing, with a question tossed out to all and sundry--I know someone knows this.
The in-flight entertainment included french and english versions of Disney's 1953 "Peter Pan". Since the flight was over 12 hours long(I'm still recovering)I had several opportunities to watch it in various pieces.
Now I can't get "You Can Fly!" out of my head(thank you, Sammy Fain)--and also would very much like to know:
Who animated the youngest Darling child, Michael?
He really struck me as being particularly solid and well done; even though he has only a supporting role he rings totally true as an about-3-and-a-half year old boy--and is completely charming(to me, anyway). Whoever did that work deserves a hand...Lounsbery perhaps?
I hadn't realized how long it's been since I'd seen the film. For me it has some of the most successful art direction and design of any of the features, if it's not a classic of the order of "Pinocchio" it's still able to inspire delight, in some scenes simply to look at.
And again, here's a Disney animated feature where the credits manage to evoke a sense of wistfulness, grace and anticipation for the story--the credits! This by a combination of absolutely gorgeous paintings, length of shots, choice of shots, and naturally the music score--all perfect.
This reminded me that I've intended for months to do a post about credits--how good they can be, and how frequently they're a missed chance for additional filmmaking in today's cinema, especially in animation.
So, who did animate Michael?