Issue 27 – Index of selected articles

A reappraisal of Disney’s Melody Time Robin Allan reassesses one of Walt Disney’s neglected animated feature films; it was not a success either critically or commercially, and like its predecessor Make Mine Music (1946) with which it is often confused, it has never been reissued as a whole, nor has it been given the critical … Read more

A reappraisal of Disney’s Melody Time

Time for Melody by Robin Allan The fortieth anniversary of Melody Time (1948) serves as an opportunity – and much more than an excuse – to reassess one of Walt Disney’s neglected animated feature films; it was not a success either critically or commercially, and like its predecessor Make Mine Music (1946) with which it … Read more

A reappraisal of Disney’s Melody Time – Page 2

There were more package films to follow: Song of the South (1946), Fun and Fancy Free (1947), Melody Time (1948), and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr Toad (1949). All these films are interesting, but for experiment and adventure in animation Melody Time is the most rewarding. It lacks The musical quality of Make Mine … Read more

A reappraisal of Disney’s Melody Time – Page 5

Trees (Director Hamilton Luske) This is a visualisation of Joyce Kilmer’s famous poem, with Oscar Rasbach’s music, sung by Fred Waring’s Pennsylvanians. The music is too lush and we are subjected to one of those lapses in taste to which Disney is prone, but otherwise, this little section is a gem. It is the direct … Read more

Martin Cheek stop-frame puppet animation

No strings attached! Martin Cheek Puppet Animation has specialised in stop-frame puppet animation films since 1982. Martin Cheek is a puppet maker and animator who works on commercials while developing children’s programmes for television from his own and other ideas through a new company called “Cheeky Films”, reports David Jefferson. Martin Cheek has a studio … Read more