The Big Bad Wolf returns to the forest, this time with his sons, the Three Little Wolves. Fortunately for them, Fifer & Fiddler Pig are as gullible & silly as ever...A follow-up to The Big Bad Wolf (1934) and The Three Little Pigs' second sequel, this is a very pleasant cartoon with lots of good imagination at work. The Wolf Pacifier is fascinating & must have warmed the heart of Rube Goldberg himself. This short was followed by the non-Symphony The Practical Pig (1939).
The Silly Symphonies, which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929, are among the most fascinating of all animated series. Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount, with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music. There was little plot in the early Symphonies, which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals, all moving frantically to the soundtrack.
Gradually, however, the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot, characterization & photographic special effects. The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale, Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed. It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring. In 1939, with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs successfully behind him and Pinocchio and Fantasia on the near horizon, Walt phased out the Silly Symphonies; they had run their course & served their purpose.
The Walt Disney Classics Collection is preserving this era of Disney animation with the fourth release in the Silly Symphony Series. Joining the Ugly Duckling & Mother, the Old Mill and Little Hiawatha is the Three Little Pigs from 1936 animated short, Three Little Wolves. Triumphant Trio, sculpted by Bruce Lau is Limited to Production Year 2008.
Previous Silly Symphony releases (both from the series and earlier releases from the Silly Symphony shorts) can be seen in the Silly Symphony Gallery section of the website. You can also participate in the Silly Symphony Poll at the Internet Cafe.
For those unfamiliar with the short, I've included a clip of the animated short (courtesy of YouTube.com) below:
Three Little Wolves is a Silly Symphony Cartoon ©Disney
This is a pretty cute piece!
ReplyDeleteI missed the original Three Pigs pieces (although I did collect the Enchanted Places houses). This is a great way to add the Pigs back into the collection by way of a different short, while continuing the Silly Symphony series as well.
Long may the Silly Symphonys live!
Don, I had to go back to this post, because I've really been missing releases from the Silly Symphonys.
ReplyDeleteI was watching the Dumbo disc last night that contains the Elmer and Tillie short from the SS series. What a cute short and I would think that the cuteness factor of the characters would translate into better sales for the SS series. I think they would have been more successful than (unfortunately) this pigs piece wound up being.
WDCC, please reconsider the SS! Please? Elmer and Tillie would be must haves for me! Along with a lot of other SS pieces of course! LOL
Matthew
Hi Matthew,
ReplyDeleteThanks for revisiting this entry. Like you, with each announcement, keep looking for the next Silly Symphony release. I truly do not understand why this series has not been more successful.
It really harkens to why the Walt Disney Classics Collection initially was created.
Elmer & Tillie is another favorite short of mine and would be perfect candidates for the Silly Symphony Series. Hope this series hasn't bit the dust and we still have a chance to see these characters be part of the series.
There are SO many possibilities yet for this series .. Skeleton Dance, Wynken, Blynken & Nod and Cock Robin & Jenny Wren to name a few.
The Ugly Duckling, Old Mill and Little Hiawatha were absolute winners! Such wonderful additions to the collection.
ReplyDeleteI was sincerely looking to years worth of releases to this series.
Don't see why NLE releases wouldn't work, or comissioned releases.
I hope that there's a chance that we can see more.
Matthew