"101 Dalmatians" - The Spotty, Furry and Successful Second Canine Feature From Disney Who`s Become an Instant Classic

Hi folks! Welcome to my My Own Personal Nerdy Disney and Animation Scrutinizing Analysis blog. A blog where I'm analyzing several Disney films, Disney or Animation in general! These entries are just meant to be my analyses. Not reviews or statements. Just fun analyses! Though I'll make some personal remarks now and then, the content of these entries are meant to be depicted objectively. They're made for entertainment purpose only and the pictures/clips are copyright Disney or other companies. 

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And finally; If you haven't seen the films, beware of spoilers! And the funny lines aren't meant to be nothing than funny. So I hope you won't find them offensive. If so, I apologize

 

 

It`s going to be hard to get you all home :)

 

 

It`s not the Pokemon tagline
Gotta Catch `Em All :)

Disney has always been associated with animals. It shouldn`t be a strange staple, since animals and animation pretty are much meant for each other. While the Revival period has seen the release of the anthrophomorphic Zootopia, it`s been a while since we`ve had a picture from with naturalistic animals from Disney. Prior to the 1960`s, there had been various features starring animals (yes, we`re counting the package features). But there was one certain feature which starred canines and would highly influence one upcoming canine feature which this entry is about. Yet the 60`s was a intersting time for Disney. It was the last decade Walt lived, but it was a time where Walt`s interest in animation was lukewarm (and yes, Walt was urged by others to focus on his other properties). Only four features were released was released on that decade (if you`ll count Mary Poppins, who`s been labeled as a classic).

How are we going to escape
from them? :)

Released in January 1961, One Houndred and One Dalmatians (which happens to be it`s original title, despite how it`s numeral title has also been used) was the very first feature that was released that decade. Directed by veteran directors at the time Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, and Wolfgang Reitherman. But it happened to be among Disney`s most influential pictures. It`s one of the most beloved and was the highest grossing movie of 1961. But it was also an innovative picture at the same time. It was stylistically and tone-wise a departure from what Disney had done. Yet what was innovative about it, was it`s technical advances and the invention of the Xerox process. While the techical innovation wasn`t just a good thing, there`s no change that Dalmatians had an distinctive look that pretty much defined the upcoming Disney features. And changed the look for the usual Disney fare. Coming off the heels of the highly ambitious, yet underperforming Sleeping Beauty, Dalmatians pulled the studio out of the financial slump caused by it. Yet Dalmatians was essentially a departure from Beauty in terms of it`s sheer perfection and was a lighter movie for the Disney crew to work on. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

The Visuals

 

I thought the clock
was a human :)

101 Dalmatians has always been labeled as a departure from what Walt had done earlier (which excited the crew at Disney). And frankly, it`s easy to see why. But is it truly a departure? Yes and no. The most distinctive about it, is (as aforementioned) it's visual style. Before Dalmatians, the animation was inked and painted traditionally by hand. After Sleeping Beauty, the Disney Company considered to close down the animation department (which is why the staff was reduced, to cut costs). Which fortunately Dalmatians prevented them from doing. Yet Dalmatians was also heavily influenced by Beauty, stylistically. Their style went from being full-blown and elaborate to being more stylished and contemporary.

Before 1961, it would have been impossible to animate one spotted dog, let alone 101. Yet Xerox didn`t only made it possible, but made the animation devoided of sharp lines. Xerox was first used in the Dragon sequence as a test on Beauty and the Goliath II short). What Xerox actually did, was to transfer the animators drawings directly into cels and eliminating the inking process. 

Well, in Wonderland you
would`ve been able to do what
I`m doing ;)

This is actually going
to be shown at our
Wedding speech. But
hey, it was Pongo`s
fault :)

It was a look that Walt certainly hated (much to the surprise of the staff, which may be one reason for why it wasn`t one of his favorites. Though the liked the movie later on). Still, for Dalmatians it makes good fit for it`s rugged London setting. Yet the animators acutally loved the style, for allowing more of their work shine (which was also why the animators were urged to draw well all the time). One problem with Xerox that it wasn`t a truly delineation between the lines of the backgrounds and characters. Yet it was an innovation that saved a lot of time and money.

The technique was perfect for a film which dozens of spotted dogs appeared on screen at once. The animators could draw a small group of dogs, and the camera could repeat the group to fill the scene. And yes, Dalmatians does feature a lot of recycled animation (which would become recurring habbit for the following Disney features to come). It was Ken Anderson who proposed Xerox. And Walt didn`t forgive Anderson for it until the very end. And sure, the design of the humans does resemble the ones from Beauty. Anita looks like she could`ve been a distant cousin of Princess Aurora (and also had her live action model, Helene Stanley). Whereas Nanny looks like a distant cousin from the Goodfairies (which one of their voice actresses, Barbara Luddy, did the live referencing for).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time Setting & Parenthood

Yes, we`re glued together :)

At least it`s not Zorro that
we`re watching ;)

Another thing that made 101 Dalmatians distinctive is that it
was actually set in the present time. While it certainly wasn`t the very first Disney feature to do (Dumbo was), it was certain more evident in Dalmatians. By showing the characters watching television and having contemporary components that made the film more current. While such a approach could always risk to date the film, at least it`s something that distinguishes Dalmatians.

Another thing that differentiates Dalmatians is a rare feature which features about the protagonsits` parenthood. Which is truly something that is rarely seen in Disney. When parenthood usually happens with lead characters in Disney, it`s often at the end of the movies (The Lion King, Bambi and Lady & The Tramp). Whereas Dalmatians is essentially about the leads reproducing in the beginning of the story. Another film that would follow that pattern would be the following The Aristocats, who would heavily borrow components from Dalmatians. But hey, Dalmatians did precede it almost a decade, so there`s nothing wrong about Aristocats borrowing from it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Music

 

Well, I`m a pup, so I must
read human letters closely :)

What also differentiates Dalmatians is the amount of songs. There are only three songs popping up: The famous Cruella de Vil, Kanine Krunchies and Dalmatian Plantation. To have a feature that was almost absent of songs was certainly a departure for Walt at the time. As songs had usually provided a big part of the narrative (with the exception of Fantasia, though it still doesn`t count, since it`s compilation of classical music). Which is somewhat a irony, since Roger Racliffe (the first Disney character to have that name) is a songwriter.

Yeah, since those dogs are
framed in the picture, I can
smoke on them :)

Yet there`s no doubt that Cruella is the stand out piece of the picture and has managed to have a life of it`s own (which has been re-recorded various times, by Dr. John, Lalaine, Hayden Panettiere and Selena Gomez). And Cruella was rewritten trice and was originally going to be more darker (it was going to see her created out of a graveyeard). The other version was a nonsense version. And just when songwriter Mel Leven was going to leave to play the song for Walt, he decided to do Cruella as a bluesy version (which was the final version that he spent 45 minutes to do). However, it`s remarkable how Roger is the performer of both of two numbers (Krunchies is a commerical, after all), while none of our canines sings whatsoever. 

It`s a gathering of both
dalmatians and labradors :)

But unusual for a Disney picture, the songs was written by a single person, who wrote both music and lyrics. Leven had worked for the UPA animation and animators had recommended him to Walt. But Leven didn`t like Dalmatian Plantation, which Bill Peet asked to include a lot of Dalmatian-ation rhymes. The first version (called Dalmatian Plantation 1) was exchanged because Peet wanted a different version. Peet wanted to end the movie with a song that emphazised crimes. And regarding Krunchies, it took Leven only a few minutes to write it down and take it to Walt (it was meant to mirror current commercials, taking the silliness far. And it was sung by Lucille Bliss, Anastasia in Cinderella). The Sherman Brothers had written a song that was going to open the movie. But it never made it for unknown reasons. However, regular Disney composer at the time, George Burns, composed the music and provided musical cues that would be reused in The Jungle Book and Robin Hood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Second Disney Animated Feature Starring Canines

We`re desperate to be bought,
that`s why we couldn`t care
less if we look sullen :)

And sure, as aforementioned, Dalmatians is instantly comparable to Lady & The Tramp, for starring canines. While Dalmatians never becomes a carbon copy of Tramp, they still have many components in common. Just like Tramp, Dalmatians is executed from the dogs point of view. But here in a more clever and meta way. Both films even ends with a Christmas scene. And yes, as well known, characters from Tramp makes an cameo in a clever scene, (which is the original Jock cleanup from Tramp)

I don`t want you to slide :)
Nuff said :)

Yet Dalmatians plays various nods to Walt`s predecessors in many
ways: The scene where Seargant Tibs (who for some reason was my favorite character as a child) sneaks in the window, is a nod to the same scene which Figaro does the same in Pinocchio. And the scenes in the ice and the snowstorm does recall Bambi.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Narration & Setting

What makes also makes Dalmatians distinctive is how the film makes Pongo (voiced by Aussie actor Rod Taylor) the narrator. At least for a while. The way of giving him the narration gives many possibilites for meta. But Dalmatians is truly the first film where the lead character gets to narrate and not relying on an outside narrator or a sidekick (like Jiminy Cricket in Pinocchio).

This was made to make it
impossible to count us :)

Yes, it`s dog cookies, not
for humans :)

It`s also remarkable how Dalmatians is the third film that it`s set in England (the first being Alice in Wonderland and the following Peter Pan). And just like both of them, it`s based on a childrens story. But regarding that, it`s noteworthy how some characters are given English accents, while others are striktly American. It`s truly something that would make purists whine. But hey, sometimes animation does allow for such anachronism. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Genre

 

I`m trying to act like Mona
Lisa in Scream :)

Another departure with Dalmatians is pretty much it's genre. It`s
pretty much a blend of both a comedy and a thriller. While Walt`s earliest films tried to be essentially a variety of different tones and genres, there was a certain decrease of the darkness during the 50`s (with the exception of Sleeping Beauty).

We made everything white,
due to us being dalmatians :)

Dalmatians is essentially light and frivolous in tone and frankly derpived of gravity. Which is something that the film has been cherished for. Even the opening titles are incredibly cartoony and literal. Yet when the plot truly strikes, the film allows itself to be a thriller. Sure there were suspensful elements in Walt`s previous films. But there was more to Dalmatians than there`s been to his other films.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Villains

 

This is not a cigarette,
it`s a wand ;)

I`m glad you won`t
be upon me forever :)

Of course it's impossible to talk about Dalmatians without talking about it's larger than-life villain, Cruella DeVil (voiced by Cinderella`s narrator, Betty Lou Gerson, who also narrates the What`s My Crime show that Jasper and Horace is watching and had a cameo as a beggar in Mary Poppins). Cruella has become synonymous with the film and has been ranked 39th on AFI's list of 100 Heroes and Villains. And it's frankly to see why. She is a effective and engaging villainness. And certainly one that her animator Marc Davis enjoyed working on, due to the sheer fun of it. Having both designed and single-handedly animated her, Cruella was his last assignment. And he used to laugh at her drawings. Despite having some slight similarities between them, Cruella was a departure from the contained and regal Maleficent. Davis stated that Cruella was partly inspired by Bette Davis (no relation).

While Cruella may not be my personal favorite Disney villain, she`s still effective enough to be memorable. But a remarkable thing about her is how she manages to be both comical and scary at the same time (which she successfully manages to be both). And yes, her two hair colors was actually from the book (and interpreted by Disney historians for showing her two trademarks). Though Davis also looked on hairdos from 1940 to the 60`s on magazines. Mary Wickes (Laverne in The Hunchback of Notre Dame) did the live action reference for Cruella. Davis was hesitant of pushing her design too much. But Milt Kahl (who wasn`t easy to impress) thought that she stole the show. Her coat was exaggerated to match her oversized personality. And her lining was red due to "a devil image". Gerson auditioned in front of Marc Davis. And landed on a "phony theatrical voice", someone who's set sail from New York but hasn't quite reached England". 

Davis claimed that Gerson`s

I`m just pretending
to like dogs: ) For
the sake of
marketing :)

voice "was the greatest thing he ever worked with. For giving him something to do". But funny enough, Gerson`s mother owned a Dalmatian named Spot. And despite Cruella smoking, Gerson stopped doing so and wanted to use Cruella in anti-smoking campaigns. Howard Thompson (New York Times), said that Cruella "makes Snow White`s Witch seem like Pollyanna. A sadistic Auntie Mame, drawn by Charles Addams and with a Tallulah Bankhead bass." Gerson got calls from animation houses requesting Cruella soundalikes, but she refused to rip off Cruella. Disney paid Gerson $3,500 for Cruella. But Gerson enjoyed doing the part. And said that Baby Boomers struggles to get Cruella`s hair, cigarette holder and fur coat right in Halloween parties. And yes, all of her actions on the climax had storyman Bill have trouble to choose from, so he used them all. 

As for Cruella`s two henchmen, Horace and Jasper, they may be too typical of their kinds and therefore too traditional. And while they`re not as memorable as their female boss, they`re still effective enough in their parts. Both The Colonel and Jasper were voiced by the same actor, being J. Pat O'Malley (who would voice Coronel Hathi in The Jungle Book). Horace was voiced by Frederick Worlock. And both of them was animated by John Loundsbery, Art Stevens and Eric Cleworth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Plot & Comparisons To The Original Novel

 

Well, at least I`m trying to give
my best shot :) Forgive me for
being scrawny :)

Otherwise, there`s really not much to say about the plot of 101 Dalmatians. It could easily perceived as two movies. As it starts out as a hunky-dory love story before it takes a different turn. But from an analytical point of view, Roger and Anita`s development is too rushed and contrived to be believable. Otherwise, Dalmatians is somewhat episodic in structure. Especially in the second and third acts, where some animals are presented just for a scene. But regarding it`s only feline, the neurotic Tibs, it`s remarkable how he`s a pivotal character. Regardless of the legend of that Walt hated cats, at least Tibs does the biggest deeds.

This is my equivalent of a
magic wand :) To make a
labrador white :)

As for the changes from the original novel, Perdita was originally a dalmatian which the Dearly`s (which Disney changed to Radcliffe, since Disney already had two similarly named couples) adopted and the one who gave birth to the fifteen puppies was named Missis. And Perdita was left behind on the rescue mission. But Bill Peet liked Perdita`s name so much that he gave it to Missis (despite how Dodie Smith herself disliked that change). But at least the movie followed the basic storyline (including the rolling in soot to pass as labrador). But it`s a pity that the ending of the book, where Cruella`s fur gets teared up and bankrupting her and forcing her to flee London, wasn`t used. And yes, Cruella drowned her cat because they weren`t pedigrees. (Creepy, huh?)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Behind the Scenes Information

 

Dodie Smith published The Hundred and One Dalmatians in 1956, just five years prior to Disney`s version. Smith had nine dalmatians of her own, one of them called Pongo. The birth of puppies actually happened to Smith. Her dalmatians had 15 puppies, one was born lifeless and her husband revived it. However, they sold most of them, and kept only a few. And yes, a friend of hers said (in a non-malicious manner) that the dogs would made a good coat.   

Walt read the novel in 1957 and promptly obtained the rights. And funny enough, Smith hoped that Disney would make her story into a film. Smith`s novel enjoyed a big popularity in the UK. And Dalmatians was originally scheduled for a Christmas 1960 release. Walt even sent Smith some sketches during pre-production. Smith herself saw Dalmatians at a private screening and responded to Walt swiftly (though she complained about her name being small on a credit and Walt sent her some originals from the picture as a compensation).  

It`s well known that 101 Dalmatians was written by one single man alone. Bill Peet was the very first to actually write a screenplay. He came at Disney in 1937 as an in-betweener. But worked himself up at the story. And Smith herself wrote to Peet that he had improved on her book, as with the designs than the illustrations in the book. Peet was charged with the recordings as well. Walt was always present at story meetings, regardless of his minor interest in animation. And believe it or not, when Peet was with his friend on a camera store, Walt called the store for Peet.

The Cencor Broad warned that it could offend some audiences if the dogs repated the exact words of the wedding. So that`s why the wedding was stripped down. The scene where the puppies suckle from the cows also attracted criticism, as it was deemed to be inappropriate for a children's film. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston animated the dalmatians (Frank did the scene where the puppy gets revived). While Milt Kahl did the lovebirds (Anita was originally supervised by another animator, until Walt decided that Milt should redesign her). Milt also did the scene of which Pongo licks Roger`s hand during the birth. According to Disney, the puppies had 32 spots, Pongo had 76 and Perdita had 69. 

Yet regarding all black spots in the movie, frame-by-frame, the total was 6,469,952. The dogs aren't actually white. They're very light grey. White would have been too bright on screen, and wouldn't have worked well in the snowy scenes. The process of making the picture went very fast. Clarence Nash (the voice of Donald Duck) did the dog barks. Lisa Daniels only provided about a third of Perdita's voicework in the film. Halfway through the movie's production, she got married and moved to New York City so Cate Bauer completed the vocal performance.

101 Dalmatians took three years to make and costed $ 4 Million dollars to make. During its first theatrical run, the film grossed $14 million in the United States and Canada. At the time, it was the biggest grossing animated film of all time. It was re-released theatrically in 1969, 1979, 1985, and 1991 (which was a surprise hit of that summer), grossing $41.8 million in its first 24 days, It was the first animated feature to gross over $10 million on initial release. The film since grossed well over $200 million Worldwide. And yes, Dalmatians also appealed to a dating crowd.  

Franchise/Spinoff-Properties

 

Regarding Dalmatians popularity, it`s redundant to scrutinize why it became a franchise, nonetheless. But regardless of being connected to Walt`s classic, it became a franchise on it`s own terms. Dalmatians happened to be one of the very first Disney properties to actually receive a live action treatment.

And that was long before the live action-remake became an official trend. Having already written about this live action treatment, I will try not to repeat myself too much. Other than the remake was released 35 years later and was a hit. It starred Glenn Close as Cruella, who made an inspired performance. Jeff Daniels starred as Roger. And the structure of the movie was influenced by Home Alone. However, Dalmatians received a sequel that was only made for cashgrab. In May 2021, there was a prequel of Cruella released (with Emma Stone).

Yes, even dalmatians and
other animals can play :)

As for the other spinoff-properties, the live action remake received an animated series spinoff. Released in the fall of 1997, Disney produced 52 episodes of the series. Being the first partnership between Disney and Kellogg's. It was an enjoyable spinoff which was in the style of Walt`s classic. A direct-to-video cheapquel was also made during the cheapquel phase (101 Dalmatians II Patch`s Adventure). However, Dalmatians been given another spinoff in 101 Dalmatians Street, which takes place 60 years after Walt`s classic. Released in 2019, it was made for Disney Plus. Despite how it premeired on Disney Channel first.

 

 

 

 

Epilogue

Yes, even dalmatians
can have pyjamas :)

Yes, I`m promoting smoking,
since it makes me so happy :)

No matter what, 101 Dalmatians is a beloved and cherished entry to Disney`s library. And frankly, it`s right to say that it`s deservedly so. Since I usually wrap up my entries by reminisicing my first viewings of Walt`s films, I remember getting the movie on VHS when I was very young (I don`t remember the exact age, but probably in my earliest years of school). While I didn't hate the movie, it never rocked my world. Frankly, I felt the movie felt the movie was too cold and calculated and therefore never among my favorites.

We`re trying to stare like
humans :)

However, becoming the avid Disney fan that I would eventually grow up to become, I remember getting reaccquainted with the movie again at the age of eleven (during a re-release) and actually getting a bigger appreciation for it. It was not my one of my favorites, but it still was an enjoyable romp. And frankly, that`s my overall impression by it to this day. Anyway, as this entry was written  there`s nothing left for me to wish Dalmatians Happy Past 60th Anniversary (as this entry was written to synergize with it`s 60th Anniversary) and may you continue to have many more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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References: 

101 Dalmatians Diamond Edition

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Hundred_and_One_Dalmatians

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Mouse Under Glass (David Koenig).

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Disney's Art of Animation: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules (Bob Thomas)   

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https://www.boxofficemojo.com/year/1991/

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https://archive.org/details/variety221-1961-01/page/n363/mode/2up

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https://archive.org/stream/harrisonsreports43harr#page/n13/mode/2up

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