#Verna Felton

[in-love-with-movies]

Cinderella (1950)

[citizenscreen]

Verna Felton, actor/Disney voice legend, was #botd in 1890

Elephant Matriarch/Mrs. Jumbo in DUMBO (1941)

Fairy Godmother in CINDERELLA (1960)

Queen of Hearts in ALICE IN WONDERLAND (1951)

Aunt Sarah in LADY AND THE TRAMP (1955)

Fora in SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959)

Winifred in THE JUNGLE BOOK (1967)

[chaptertwo-thepacnw]

[princess-ibri]

If there was a Disney adaptation of the first Wizard of Oz book released in the 50s, I nominate Verna Felton to be the voice of Theodora aka the Wicked Witch of the West!

Oh she'd likely do a very good job had things gone that way. She did excellent work in so many classic Disney movies 👌

[oldshowbiz]

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

The Jungle Book (1967, Wolfgang Reitherman)

21/09/2024

[mikyapixie]

66 years ago today Sleeping Beauty released in theaters!!!

[letterboxd-loggd]

Picnic (1955) Joshua Logan

June 25th 2023

[camyfilms]

SLEEPING BEAUTY 1959

The princess shall indeed grow in grace and beauty, beloved by all who know her. But. Before the sun sets on her 16th birthday, she shall prick her finger - on the spindle of a spinning wheel - and die!

[adamwatchesmovies]

Cinderella (1950)

Sumptuously animated, with iconic images and memorable songs, Cinderella exemplifies the golden age of Disney Animation. Adults will be filled with warm nostalgia while watching - even if they didn’t grow up with the film. Kids will be delighted. Smart choices throughout make it an old-fashioned picture with lasting appeal

Orphaned and now living with her cruel stepmother (voiced by Eleanor Audley) and two wicked stepsisters (voiced by Helene Stanley and Rhoda Williams), Cinderella (voiced by Ilene Woods) is now a servant in her own home. Though forced to perform endless chores and suffer unjust punishments, Cinderella never loses hope that someday her dreams will come true. When the King (voiced by Luis van Rooten) organizes a royal ball to find a suitable wife for his son, Lady Tremaine becomes determined to prevent Cinderella from attending.

Cinderella is very much a classic fairy tale. The story is timeless and easy to latch onto. It’s also very much a product of its time. The protagonist is not an active participant in their own story. Today, a strong female character might use her wits to get herself out of a jam or just punch the bad guy in the face. It’s no spoiler to tell you that Cinderella’s salvation is kind of just served to her on a platter through the magic of her fairy godmother (voiced by Verna Felton)… but that's oversimplifying it. The story’s message is that even if others treat you like dirt, you shouldn’t hold a grudge and remain kind. The moral is taken to an extreme but it’s a good lesson to teach - far more applicable to real life than you'd think.

This is a rather straightforward retelling of the fairytale by Charles Perrault but key additions and choices make it stand out. First, the animated medium. Every frame of Cinderella is so crisp it looks like it was made yesterday. The colours are wonderful. The characters are delightfully expressive. The movements are smooth, everyone is always on-model and it’s a delight to simply watch the story play out. The chateau is filled with all sorts of details that make it feel like it used to be majestic but is slowly rotting away, like the huge mouse population that moves through its corridors through endless - and varied - secret passages. You can tell the artists had a blast coming up with new ways for Jaq, Gus (voice by Jimmy MacDonald) and the other mice to make their way from one room to another.

Another memorable aspect of Cinderella is the musical numbers. Ask anyone. They’ll tell you Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo is the best piece but over the years So This is Love has grown on me as much as A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes. Special attention should also be given to Oh Sing Sweet Nightengale, in which Cinderella sings harmony with herself in a clever manner that also utilizes the animated medium to its full potential.

Cinderella is a lovely person. She’s meek but kind and patient, with neverending empathy for those around her. Seeing her constantly beaten down breaks your heart. While she could be described as a bit bland as far as heroines go, the same can’t be said about the film's chief villain, Lady Tremaine. Modeled after and voiced by the same woman who would later bring Maleficent to life, she steals every scene she’s in. You hate her but wouldn't dare look away for a moment.

There is one scene, in particular, that stood out to me during this viewing. It’s not a big memorable moment but it exemplifies the care that was put into the film. In it, Cinderella walks up a flight of stairs with a tea set on a tray. She's being followed by Lady Tremaine’s cat, Lucifer, who knows a mouse is hiding beneath one of the cups. The cat is about to get his prey when Cinderella’s shoe suddenly slips off. She turns around to put it back on, spinning the tray and making Lucifer grab the wrong cup in the process. His bewilderment makes us laugh and the scene also foreshadows the famous slipper that will be left behind later in the film.

Cinderella is what you picture when you hear the words “Classic Disney”. it’s gorgeous, contains plenty of laughs, and offers just enough heartbreaks to keep you in suspense until the happy ending you've been promised. The songs are memorable, as are the characters - even if sometimes they’re little more than archetypes. Not every movie should be like Cinderella but if you want to tell an old fairytale, do it like this. (On Blu-ray, March 12, 2021

[twittercomfrnklin2001-blog]

Don't Bother to Knock

I would guess that most of the supporting players in Roy Ward Baker’s DON’T BOTHER TO KNOCK (1952, Criterion Channel, TCM, YouTube, On Demand) are better actors than leading lady Marilyn Monroe. In her film debut, Anne Bancroft, as a hard-luck saloon singer trying to break it off with pilot Richard Widmark because he doesn’t have a heart, makes a lot out of an underwritten role and is a knockout lip-synching her songs (dubbed by Eve Marley). But none of them command the camera the way Monroe does (Bancroft would learn to later in her career). Monroe’s role as a mentally disturbed woman whose elevator operator uncle (Elisha Cook, Jr.) gets her a job babysitting at his hotel is the Hollywood version of insanity, which basically means she can do anything they need her to do — dress up in her employers’ things, bully the little girl, mistake Widmark for her dead fiancé — as long as it moves the plot. And what a plot! Basically, Monroe’s Nell suffers dreadfully so Widmark can become a better person. I suppose if you remade the film today she’d have to be gay or a person of color. Anyway, Monroe has effective moments, but it’s all bits. The character as written is an array of tics anyway, but because of Monroe’s bad memory, nerves and reliance on acting coach (and possibly lover) Natasha Lytess, she can’t tie it together. There’s no throughline to her performance. Yet it’s fascinating to see how easily all the mannerisms that made her a star in comedies lend themselves to her role as a psychotic. With all the problems dealing with Monroe, Baker can’t give the film much tension, though there’s one effective scene with the little girl (Donna Corcoran) leaning out the hotel window to spy on other tenants as Monroe fights the urge to push her. Baker and cinematographer Lucien Ballard get some effective shots, particularly some off-kilter close-ups of Monroe. But they also have to include some cheesecake, which now feels exploitative. Widmark is good as ever and makes his character arc clear, and there are nice bits from Gloria Blondell as the hotel lounge’s photographer, Willis Bouchey as the bartender and Verna Felton as a nosy hotel resident. The film also has a terrific score by Lionel Newman, whose opening title music promises a better movie than this one.

[travsd]

The Voice of Verna Felton

The final screen credit of Verna Felton (1890-1966), as Winifred the Elephant in Walt Disney’s The Jungle Book (1967) makes a good touchstone for exploring the rest of her career. She specialized in bellowing, blustery biddies on stage, in radio, TV and film, both live action and animated. Disney loved her, and also employed her as a voiceover actress in Dumbo (1941), Cinderella (1950), Alice in…

[citizenscreen]

(Original caption) Famous face - Of course, you know her. She's Verna Felton, favorite comedienne in television and motion pictures. Not to mention being the Honorary Mayor of North Hollywood and an excellent cook as she demonstrates here. She is preparing to make Potato Gnocchi, putting the potatoes through the ricer first.

[character-actor-tournament]

Round 2, match 15

John Carradine vs Verna Felton

[jackbatchelor3]

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo (The Magic Song) Verna Felton Cinderella 75

👸👠

[oldshowbiz]

1959.

The Beatnik episode of December Bride.