Showing posts with label Sword in Stone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sword in Stone. Show all posts

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Earlier Version of “The Sword in the Stone”

A few hours ago, USA Today released an exclusive video on their website which shows a glimpse into an alternative opening to Disney’s The Sword and the Stone.

As The Sword and the Stone is being released to DVD and Blu-ray for it’s 50th anniversary this year, Disney decided it was time to show us just how different the film might have started out being….

Here’s the video they posted showing an alternative opening.

And for those of you who have forgotten, here’s the original opening leading up to Wart’s mission into the forest.

Video from YouTube.

What do you think of the alternative opening?  I personally find it interesting – Madam Mim appears slotted to be an even bigger antagonist than she is in the final version.  And the mentioned black knight… Was he changed to the random stranger at the end of the film? 

Your thoughts?

ttfn!

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Warning: Addictive Music Below!

Second Warning: There’s lots of it!

Before I got an actual Tumblr account, I would look through other Tumblr blogs, following them through Blogger.  One of my favorites was Disney With Swank.  It was while randomly scrolling through this Tumblr that I first discovered Pogo.

Who is Pogo? you ask.

His real name is Nick Bertke, and what Nick does for a living is remix movies into songs.  He does originals too, but his remixes of movie audio clips, song tracks, sound effects, etc. – he takes all those and makes them into a song – are always amazing!

[If I confused you – “His work consists of recording small sounds from a film or a specific scene, and sequencing the sounds together to form a new piece of music” (Wikipedia).]

And because I love Pogo’s mixes so well – I listen to them as I study – I figured I would share with you my favorites of his Disney-themed ones.  Obviously, he has remixes of many movies outside of Disney, but this is The Disney Freak’s Blog, after all.

Let’s start with the first one I ever heard.  And then in no particular order.

And if you start listening to them on repeat during study time like I do, it’s understandable.  I
expected you to.

Snow White: Fairest of the Remixes

Pogo’s track “Wishery” was the one I stumbled upon in Disney With Swank.  At first, I didn’t quite like it, thinking it was making fun of Snow White or something (lots of people don’t like her voice – I admit, I went through that stage once).  But then I realized the backstory to the track and began to like it.  Love the witch’s cackling at the end!

Video from YouTube.

Alice in Pogoland

Pogo’s track “Alice” was his first ever made!  Though I sometimes listen to it as I study, it’s actually one of my least favorites, mainly because of the low beat, I guess.  But I’m coming to appreciate it!  I especially enjoy how Pogo edited the video to make the movements match the music.

Video from YouTube.

Classic Remixing

Pogo’s track “Bloom” isn’t just of one movie: it’s a remix of classic Disney movies – I agree though, there is a bit of a princess-theme in there.  And I absolutely love the Cheshire Cat’s maniacal laughter towards the end.

Video from YouTube.

A Supercalafragalisticexpialadocious Remix

This is definitely one of my favorites.  I literally have the “words” memorized!  I could listen to it all day.  My absolute favorite part is…well, basically all the parts with Mr. Banks, especially his repeated 6:02 part.  Without further ado, here is Pogo’s track “Expialidocious” from Mary Poppins.

Video from YouTube.

That Doesn’t Even Rhyme!

Here is probably my favorite Pogo track.  Honestly, once I found it on YouTube over the summer, I couldn’t stop listening to it.  I’ve actually been avoiding it because I want to listen to his other tracks instead of just this one.  Simply awesome.  Here’s Pogo’s track “Uplar,” which is actually acknowledged by Disney: “He took part in a project hosted by Disney/Pixar to produce a track based on their film Up” (Wikipedia).

Video from YouTube.

White Pogo Magic

This one just makes me laugh, especially Arthur’s “Duff!” lines.  Here’s Pogo’s track “White Magic,” from The Sword and the Stone.

Video from YouTube.

It’s Aztec Gold!

Last one.  Maybe.

This one actually hasn’t been released officially yet, but someone leaked it onto YouTube, and it’s too good not to share.  I am actually listening to it on repeat right now.  My favorite part would be the repeated “You don’t know what this is, do ya? / It’s Aztec gold!”

I cannot seem to be able to put the video in the post, so here’s the link for Pogo’s “Swashbuckle.”

Two Wizards of Oz

I had to.  I just had to.  I love these two Wizard of Oz remixes too much not to share.  The second one may scar you for life, though.  I think it did for me.

Video from YouTube. The video was the winning entry in a contest for the song.

Video from YouTube. And troll faces were born.

Before you go, here’s some interesting news about a track that isn’t on YouTube: “It is suggested that ‘Ariel’, a The Little Mermaid remix, may be released by Disney to coincide with the release of the film on Blu-ray (Wikipedia).

I hope you enjoyed these tracks from Pogo!  And if you’re interested in his other works, I encourage you to just check out his YouTube channel.  He’s got a track on Cinderella, one on Monsters, Inc., and a few on the Toy Story movies, which I didn’t feature.

ttfn!  And I promise, that second Oz review post will come soon!

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Ginny Tyler Goodbye

She charmed us as the lovestruck squirrel in The Sword in the Stone who sadly was unlucky in love.

Picture from the Disney Wiki.
Ginny Tyler, a Disney Legend inductee, died earlier last month at "a Washington nursing home" (Wikipedia).  She was 86.

Tyler provided the voices of a few background characters in some Disney movies and a few Disney Parks rides.  Aside from the red-headed squirrel in The Sword in the Stone, she also voiced the singing lambs in Mary Poppins and even (uncredited) the bees from Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Trees! At the Parks, she provided voices for Enchanted Tiki Room's pre-show, Snow White's Scary Adventures, and Pirates of the Caribbean.

An interesting non-Disney role she had was the voice (uncredited) of Polynesia from Doctor Doolittle starring Rex Harrison, a movie I particularly love.

Probably her most famous role was as the "'last original Mousekeeter'" (The Disney Wiki). According to the Disney Wiki, "when the 'Mickey Mouse Club' was re-introduced for national TV syndication in 1962, Southern California viewers were treated to special new sequences in which Ginny explored Disneyland park. She interviewed cast members, ventured behind the scenes and shared the fun in almost every nook and cranny."  I believe this was perhaps her only onscreen role, as she did mostly off screen voice acting.

Farewell, Ginny Tyler, and give Walt Disney a big hug up there for us Disney Freaks down here.  We will miss you.



A quick note: I found out about her death just today in Time while waiting at the orthodontist's.  She actually died on July 13th I found out while doing research for this post, so I apologize for the, er, late obituary here.

***UPDATE***

Over at the Disney Parks Blog, the recent post on Ginny Tyler notes that she died on Friday the 13th!  What a coincidence for a woman who provided some witch cackles for Snow White's Scary Adventures.