Happy Birthday, Animal Kingdom!

(Logo from the park's Wikipedia page.) Today is Earth Day! And it's also the 10th anniversary of Disney's Animal Kingdom park at Walt Disney World in Florida, a theme park featuring real live animals! (Strange coincidence, huh?) So, what does this have to do with my blog, "Toons 'n' Tunes"? Well, Disney is the studio that brought us Mickey Mouse and he and his gang are animals, so, it's only fitting that I mention this soon-to-be milestone. Unfortunately, I'm not in Animal Kingdom (or even WDW) for the festivities, but it's a note worthy celebration, so, I'll just watch the opening ceremony at the Laughing Place and listen to Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade on my iPod. (Man, I miss Expedition Everest.)

Oh, and before I forget, just so you know, "Today in Disney History" posted about Animal Kingdom, sort of a mini tribute if you will.

Giselle Gets Goofy (or "Goofy Gets Enchanted")

Over at the Disney Dreams Forum, there's a discussion about character pairings that are unlikely, otherwise known as non-canon couples. That's got me thinking about two characters I'd like to see as a couple even if it is non-canon. The reason I'm discussing it here, other than just posting my opinion, is because I'm not a member of the Disney Dreams Forum.

The non-canon couple I'd like to see is... Drum roll, please. ...Giselle and Goofy!(Promotional photo taken from the Laughing Place.)





"Gawrsh! She shore is purdy!"







Well, Goofy, looks alone is not the reason I think you two should be together.

Perhaps, I should explain why I choose Giselle for Goofy. When "Enchanted" was in theaters, I got hooked on Giselle for her innocence and charm, not to mention her bubbly personality. These were the same qualities that Goofy has, thus, making them the perfect couple. (I didn't even watch the movie until I got the DVD. LOL)

Now, I know what you're thinking: "Doesn't Goofy already have a girlfriend? What about Clarabelle Cow?" While I'm well aware that Disney has paired Goofy with Clarabelle in recent years, most notably in "Mickey, Donald, and Goofy: The Three Musketeers", Clarabelle was Horace Horsecollar's girl first, long before Goofy came along. And I don't want to put poor Goofy in a love triangle situation, so, Clarabelle can stay with Horace. Oh, and don't think I've forgotten about Sylvia Marpole, Goofy's love interest from "An Extremely Goofy Movie". Well, I haven't seen her outside of that movie, so, I'm guessing it didn't work out between her and Goofy. Long story short, Goofy needs a steady girlfriend and I've found the perfect one in Giselle.

Now, in order to make this work, the plot of "Enchanted" must be slightly changed for Goofy and Giselle to end up with each other. (The majority of this blog from this point on contains slight spoilers for the original movie, so, if you haven't seen the movie and don't want the ending spoiled, I suggest going over to Cartoon Brew and reading what Jerry Beck is up to.) For starters, Goofy takes the place of Robert, who is grounded to reality. However, Goofy is not like that by nature, so, those characteristics go to... Who else? ...his son, Max. You see, Max is naturally the most mature of the Disney characters, so, I figure when he's in the real world, he would follow its rules without question. Getting Max to believe in fairy tales, like he did when he was a child, might be one challenge not even Goofy would overcome. Once Giselle comes along however, she could convince him that it's okay to let loose and believe in "Happily ever after". (Just so you know, I'm adding Roxanne to the plot so that Max, too, can have a "Happily ever after" by movie's end.)

Now, I know that Robert has a fiancé, Nancy, but she doesn't seem right for Goofy. So, Nancy's role is minor by making her the organizer of the ball at the movie's climax. This keeps Goofy single until he meets Giselle and Prince Edward could still end up with Nancy.

One of these days, I'll get to writing my version of "Enchanted" and adding it to my Fanfiction.net site. But at least, now, you know why I think Goofy and Giselle are perfect for each other. Do you feel the same way?

Bye, Bye, Ollie

Ollie Johnston, the last of Disney's "Nine Old Men", as they're called, has gone to join the other eight in the big Animation Studio in the sky. I noticed the news of his death being scrawled on Northwest Cable News. He passed away Monday night, April 14, 2008. His most notable credits include "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", "Pinocchio", "Fantasia", "Bambi","Cinderella", and "Sleeping Beauty". He will truly be missed among the classic Disney animation fans.

The Shout Heard 'Round the World

I'm sure you all know about the infamous "Goofy Holler", right? You know, the one that goes: "Yah-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooey!" Well, I happen to come across a blog entry that compiles almost all of the Disney cartoons and movies that use the holler including the one that started it all, 1941's "The Art of Skiing". You'll find it here. There are some the author, Michael J. Ruocco, admits he forgot to mention, but I forgive him: I don't know all the clips that use the "Goofy Holler" myself. But I do know a few that are missing. The ones I remember that weren't mentioned are as follows:

1. There was another in 1949's "Goofy Gymnastics" that Mr. Ruocco somehow missed: The original version of the holler as heard in "The Art of Skiing" is used as Goofy is flung through the roof from the rings on his ceiling and falls back down.

2. Another cartoon that uses the holler from "The Art of Skiing" is 1983's "Mickey's Christmas Carol" as Goofy, portraying the ghost of Jacob Marley, falls down the stairs.

3. In the main title of "A Goofy Movie", the holler from "The Art of Skiing" helps illustrate the word "Goofy" falling and landing in between "A" and "Movie".

4. In Goofy's newest cartoon, "How to Hook Up Your Home Theater", the classic holler is used as Goofy is flung out of his house as a result of him pushing the red button on his universal remote to turn on his home theater system. Although I wonder why they didn't have Bill Farmer record the holler, hearing the original holler is a nice homage, wouldn't you agree?

Most of the hollers from this point on have been newly recorded by Bill Farmer, the current voice of Goofy. For instance:

5, 6, & 7.There's a newly recorded version in "A Goofy Movie" where Goofy and his son, Max, ride the roller coaster at an amusement park. (Goofy gets sick after that. LOL) Another newly recorded version is heard near the end right after the car explodes and sends Goofy flying, falling though the roof of Roxanne's front porch. We're not done with "A Goofy Movie" yet: the holler is heard at the end of the end credits just before they show the "Walt Disney Pictures" castle again.

8. In "Mickey, Donald, and Goofy: The Three Musketeers", Goofy lets out the holler as he falls from the crumbling stone bridge in chains. (Goofy's in the chains, not the bridge.)

9 & 10. Remember when I mentioned the short from "Disney's House of Mouse", "How to Be a Rock Star", in my post devoted to Goofy's musical talent? In the cartoon, Goofy tries to get discovered by an executive of a record company by swinging on a rope outside the window. Suddenly, the rope breaks and, yep, you guessed it, Goofy falls. Cue holler. But the hilarity doesn't stop there: The exec. heard the holler and signs Goofy up right away. And the Goof's first single? Why, a song featuring his holler, of course! (LOL)

11 & 12. In the "Mickey Mouse Works" cartoon "How to Be a Waiter" (or is it "How to Be a Movie Star"?), Goofy practices his lasso skills while filming a scene from a western movie and flies off as he lassos with his hand and feet. He soon gets tangled up in the rope and lets out the holler, and repeatedly, I might add, as the rope pulls him up and down like a yo-yo. In that same cartoon, during the Sci-Fi scene, Goofy lets out the holler after being flung into deep space.

13, 14, & 15. In the "Once Upon a Christmas" segment "Have Yourself a Very Goofy Christmas", the holler doesn't take a holiday. Goofy lets it out when he swings from the torn banner into the Lumberjack Lingerie store. He shouts out again as he is catapulted from the Christmas tree out through the roof of the mall. Later on, after Pete covers Goofy's house with snow, Goofy looks for the chimney and unwittingly falls down the hidden chimney, letting out the holler once more.

16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, & 22. There are many times the holler is used in the Playhouse Disney series "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" like in the episode "Goofy's Bird" as Goofy imagines jumping off the cliff using a pogo stick (but falling), in "Mickey's Handy Helpers" where Goofy is flung from one of the springs of the Handy Dandy Machine which makes the Handy Helpers work, and in "Mickey's Big Band Concert" as Goofy is flown out of his trombone horn via a bicycle pump. There was one episode of "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" that used the "Goofy Holler" quite a bit. In "Goofy in Training", Mickey greets us, but gets interrupted by the holler and goes and finds Goofy hanging on a branch of a tree. The second holler occurs when Goofy loses control as he practices skiing by using roller skates. The third is when he skis for real off the ski jump at the end of the ski slope. The final holler in this episode happens as Goofy falls off the cookies he climbed over in Willie the Giant's picnic.

Goofy's not the only one who does the holler. Here are some recent examples of other characters letting it out:

23. Following the scene where Goofy falls from the bridge in "Mickey, Donald, and Goofy: The Three Musketeers", Clarabelle Cow (voiced by April Winchell) does her own version of the holler ("Moo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooey!") as she jumps down to save him.

24. Goofy's son, Max (voiced by Jason Marsden), actually quotes his dad on the holler when he's taken on a joyride by a car with a mind of its own in the "House of Mouse" episode "Max's New Car". Like father, like son. ("I wish you wouldn't say that.")

25. The more recent use of the "Goofy Holler" can be found in the movie "Enchanted" as the troll is flung from the tree after Giselle and Pip jump off the same branch as the troll which prompts the troll (voiced by Fred Tatasciore) to do the holler.

There are a few more uses of the "Goofy Holler" in the "Mickey Mouse Works" cartoons and in some episodes of "House of Mouse", but I don't know which ones. Nevertheless, the "Goofy Holler" will remain, in cartoon history, as the most used vocal effect when falling down. ...and down and down. Yah-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooey!

"A Goofy Movie": Thirteenth Anniversary

On this day in 1995, Goofy's first full-length solo movie premiered in theaters. It was titled, appropriately enough, "A Goofy Movie". This movie also features and revolves around Goofy's son, Max. Although he made his debut in "Goof Troop" in 1992, it was this movie that made me love Max as much as his dad, Goofy.
The reason remember this date is because I happen to see it as I changed the day on my Disney daily calender that I got for Christmas last year. Even so, I honestly liked this movie a lot ever since I first watched it at my cousins' house in Minnesota about a decade ago. This is a fun movie, not only introducing us to Max's love interest, Roxanne, but showing us the bond between father and son.

I like how the movie shows just how much Max truly loves Roxanne, even going so far as to lie to her to keep her from seeing someone else. And when he tells the truth by movie's end, not only is she very understanding, but she also explains she liked him all along from the moment he first "Ahyucked".

However, it's Goofy and Max's relationship that really makes this movie truly memorable. Best proof of this can be found in their duet, "Nobody Else But You". Truly heartwarming.

I think this movie is definitely worth the watch. And I'm not just talking about the songs, either, although this site is called "Toons 'n' Tunes" and they are fun songs, too. You can find this on DVD as part of Disney's defunct "Gold Collection", but it's in fullscreen, so, until they re-release it the widescreen format, we'll have to settle for the fullscreen version for now. As for the soundtrack, which features the songs and score from the film, it's out of print, but you can get it at Amazon.com or find MP3s of the songs online somewhere. Even so, Goofy's first solo movie is the best yet.
UPDATE 11/01/10: I may have missed the fifteenth anniversary of the movie, but someone else didn't. Animation World Network did a great article about a live action version of the song "After Today" from "A Goofy Movie". Check it out here through YouTube. (As directed by Ted Sowards.) This version also has its own website. Take a look for yourself.

House of Mouse at Disney Parks?

I'm a fan of "Disney's House of Mouse" since it first aired on ABC on January 13th in 2001. Unfortunately, seeing new episodes of "Power Rangers" and "Pokémon" kept me from watching this show as much as I would have liked. Now that I'm on my Disney kick, I'm watching the show every morning on Toon Disney. Well, the episodes I really like. I'm recording my favorite episodes on DVD since I don't know when Disney is gonna release the series on DVD. Sure, the "House of Mouse" movies are okay ("Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse" and "Mickey's House of Villains"), but I would like to see the full series released on DVD, wouldn't you?

Whilst on the subject of "House of Mouse", I've been thinking that it should be among the Character Dining experience at the Disney Parks. Character Dining, in case you didn't know, is where you dine while the characters meet with you at your table. There are a select few restaurants in the parks that have Character Dining and I would like to see the "House of Mouse" added to that list. It would be really cool to see the costumed characters (Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, and Goofy... and maybe Goofy's son, Max) in their animated counterparts' "House of Mouse" attire. And it's always fun to watch cartoons while you eat, but this time, in a public restaurant. How cool is that? I was originally thinking it could be in Disney's Hollywood Studios (the park formally known as Disney-MGM Studios), but I don't see why it couldn't also be in Disney's California Adventure. Both those parks seem like the perfect settings for their respective "House of Mouse". Even though the show sometimes states at the beginning that the "House of Mouse" is located on Main Street or in Toontown, I think Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney's California Adventure seem more appropriate, don't you?

So, to whoever's in charge of Disney now, I hope you're reading this because this is one Disney Dream I would like to see come true sometime this century. Who else here agrees with me? Leave a comment, why don'cha?

UPDATE 2/19/09: Oh, snap! No more Toon Disney! They replaced the channel with Disney XD on February 13, 2009! That means I won't be able to watch "House of Mouse" until Disney decides to put the series on DVD. So, come on, Disney, do it already, I'm not getting any younger!

Goofy Over Goofy

Gawrsh! I've been on a Disney kick since my trip to Walt Disney World last October and it's still going strong! I guess now is as good a time as any to blog about my favorite Disney character: Goofy!
Why choose him? He makes me laugh. Ahyuck! That's the simple answer. The long answer is because I missed his 75th birthday, so, I'm making it up to him before his 76th comes up this May 25th. Another reason I like Goofy so much is because he's so gawrsh darn talented! Sure, he's a great athlete (I loved seeing all those "How To" shorts), but since this blog is called "Toons 'n' Tunes", you know I'm talking about his musical abilities.

Starting with the 1935 Mickey Mouse cartoon "The Band Concert", Goofy is among the band members playing the clarinet which leads to a cute, but cartoony duet with Clarabelle Cow: The end of her flute is in the bell of his clarinet, yet, they still play beautiful music through their instruments flawlessly. Ah, the things you can do in cartoons. There was a Goofy-like character in the cartoon playing the trombone, but his fur was too bushy for me to consider him as Goofy, too. (Screenshot from The Cartoon Review Website.)

The next cartoon worth mentioning is 1937's "Mickey's Amateurs". Here, Mickey hosts an amateur hour and among the acts is Goofy and his fifty-piece one-man-band! Among the instruments he plays are cymbals (the top end he strapped on his butt), an accordion (which he put between his legs), a trumpet, a xylophone, a trombone, a flute, a tuba (my favorite instrument!), a clarinet, a banjo, and a harmonica. He plays some other instruments, but these are the most prominent. His first song, "In The Good Ol' Summertime", goes smoothly, but when he tries to pull the lever to a faster level which ends up getting pulled out of the machine, he's forced to play "A Hot Time In The Ol' Town Tonight" at an uncontrollably fast pace until the machine breaks, literally! "Ahyuck! It busted," he says, shrugging off the disaster that he endured. What a good sport. (Screenshot from the Encyclopedia of Disney Shorts.)

Another cartoon worth mentioning is 1942's "Symphony Hour" where Goofy plays a bassoon (or is that a contrabassoon?) in an orchestra conducted by Mickey Mouse, of course. After rehearsals, the gang gets ready for the concert, but Goofy, carrying all the instruments, misses the elevator and falls down the shaft. (Yah-hoo-hoo-hoo-hooey!) While he tries to pull his hat off over his face, he, by some miracle, gets out of the way of the incoming elevator, but the instruments don't. So, the gang tries to manage the concert on the flattened instruments with hilarious results! (Screenshot by me from "Walt Disney Treasures: Mickey Mouse in Living Color Volume Two" on DVD. Of course, the "Walt Disney Treasures" titles aren't available on video, a.k.a. VHS, but you get the idea.)

Goofy made a cameo in 1952's "Pluto's Christmas Tree", playing the double bass (or bass fiddle as he might call it) and singing "Deck The Halls" with Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck outside of Mickey's house for Mickey, Pluto, Chip, and Dale. (Screenshot from the Encyclopedia of Disney Shorts.)

By the time the "Mickey Mouse Club" first aired on television screens nationwide in 1955, its intro would show Goofy back in the one-man-band habit, but this time, a bit more simplistic. A bass drum on his back has cymbals on top which clang as he marched. The same can be said for the drumstick tied to his foot by a piece of string so that it can bang the drum. Meanwhile, Goofy himself plays the following instruments in order, but not simultaneously: trombone, flute, tenor saxophone, and trumpet. The MMC intro would become edited in later episodes, removing Goofy's one-man-band performance. A shame, really. I apologize for not having screenshots since no one's taken them yet (including me), but you can see the full, extended intro (and in color, no less!) here. (Credit to kaijueguy for the vid.)

By the time Goofy got his own TV series in 1992, "Goof Troop", he again displays his musical talent, much to the embarrassment of his son, Max, who was a kid at the time. In the episode, "Shake, Rattle and Goof", Goofy wants to join Max and Pete's son, PJ, in their rock band by playing his ukulele. A ukulele in a rock band? No wonder Max is embarrassed! (Screenshot from Ultimate Disney.)

A few more notables come from the 2001 TV series, "Disney's House of Mouse", currently on Toon Disney. I apologize for the lack of screenshots for this, so, you'll just have to use your imagination. In the first cartoon, "How to Be Groovy, Cool and Fly", Goofy is dressed up as one of the Beatles (or in this case, "The Goofies") and is standing behind, of all things, a drum set. He even plays them well. Who knew Goofy got rhythm? Further on in the cartoon, Goofy's dressed as a punk rocker, sporting a wild green hairdo and of course, an electric guitar which he plays. And the right music, no doubt. See for yourself here. (Courtesy of trollheimer.) The second cartoon from "House of Mouse", "How to Be a Rock Star", revolves around rock music as Goofy attempts to become, what else, a rock star! (Personally, I would've preferred him as a country music star due to his accent.) Here, near the beginning of the cartoon, he demonstrates the various musical styles he can play other than rock: Hawaiian (he plays the ukulele), Swiss (he plays the accordion again, but this time, with his hands, not his legs), and classical, which he plays on a toy piano instead of a real one. Look here and see. (Also from trollheimer.) Outside of the cartoons, the wraparound segments show him playing the ukulele quite a bit. The first notable was when he, Mickey, and Donald pose as the Quackstreet Boys (Huey, Dewey, and Louie) when Donald's nephews briefly broke up. Another instance was when Professor Ludwig Von Drake's touch screens replaced Goofy in his waitering duties, so, he decides to help his friends with their jobs, including the Quackstreet Boys, where he jams with them on his ukulele.

The most recent musical venture comes in the current TV series, "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" on Playhouse Disney. Sure, it's a preschool series, but hey, I like it even though I'm an adult. Since this episode is fairly new, I won't give too much away, just Goofy's part. In the episode, "Mickey's Big Band Concert", Mickey and his friends form a band to play polka music in Mickey Park's big "Polka Palooza". Goofy is the trombonist of the band ("Come on, Tromboney, it's time to play."), but his trombone slide is stuck. Of course, one thing leads to another, so, although he gets the slide unstuck, he gets his butt stuck in the trombone's horn. All it takes is a bicycle pump to blow air into the trombone to get Goofy out. ("I'm so glad that ended on a happy note!") You'll have to see the rest of the episode to see Mickey's band play at the "Polka Palooza".

However, he's more than just a musician. He's a dancer, too. But since Goofy is goofy, he needed to learn how to dance in his 1953 cartoon titled, appropriately enough, "How to Dance". He learns various dances along the way. I can only remember him doing an Irish jig and maybe a little ballet. But as soon as he gets the chance to actually dance, he quickly gets smothered by couples dancing to a fun dixieland song provided by The Firehouse 5 + 2 in an animated cameo. (Screenshot from the Encyclopedia of Disney Shorts.)

He suddenly lost his two-left-feet by the time he starred in 2000's "An Extremely Goofy Movie" where he does some disco-dancing with Sylvia Marpole, the collage librarian he falls in love with. You can view that momentous scene here. (Credit to Givijoarna for the clip.)

Another moment where his dancing is center stage is the "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" episode, "Fancy Dancin' Goofy". In this episode, he gets ready for the "Fancy Dance" at the clubhouse by wearing a purple-polka-dotted tie ("I'm in style.") and learning how to fancy dance from Donald to impress Clarabelle Cow who agrees to go with him to the "Fancy Dance". Goofy even got her a daffodil to go with her yellow dress. Even in a preschool series, Goofy shows his romantic side.

Of course, we can't forget all the times Goofy sings, especially when he sings his trademark song, "The World Owes Me A Livin'", which first came from the 1934 Silly Symphony "The Grasshopper and the Ants" and was co-written by Goofy's first voice actor (and the Grasshopper's, too), Pinto Colvig. Goofy's current voice actor, Bill Farmer, is a pretty good singer, too. (And the main reason why I'm hooked on Goofy.) Proof of this can be found in "A Goofy Movie" - which he sings two songs with his son, Max, who is a teenager by now ("On The Open Road" and "Nobody Else But You") - and "Mickey, Donald, and Goofy: The Three Musketeers" - where he sings a romantic, but funny duet with Clarabelle Cow ("Chains Of Love"), voiced by April Winchell, daughter of the late Paul Winchell - as well as the aforementioned "House of Mouse" (especially the song, "Soup Or Salad, Fries Or Biscuits, Extra Olives, Donuts", a parody of the "Mary Poppins" song, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious") and "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" plus countless Disney children's music CDs such as "The Best of Children's Favorites: Mickey's Top 40" and "The Best of Children's Favorites: Pooh's Top 40".

His musical abilities don't end with the cartoons, his appearances in the theme parks allow him to dance along to the various bands the parks house. However, he gets into the act at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom during the SpectroMagic parade. (You know, the nighttime parade most people seem to miss.) On the music float of the parade, Genie, from "Disney's Aladdin", conducts a band of magical instruments like two double basses and a harp. Also in the band are Chip and Dale, both playing the piano, and, yep, you guessed it, Goofy! Here, he's the entire percussion section which includes the timpani and the xylophone. Gawrsh! Is he talented or what?

He also gets a chance to sing in "Kingdom Hearts II" with Sora and Donald during the Atlantica level. (Screenshot from Gamespot.) I don't have the game myself since I don't have a Playstation 2, but you can search for the video clips on YouTube.

Now, you can see why Goofy's my favorite Disney character. And not just because of his goof-ups (he is, after all, "Goofy"), but also because of his vast musical talent which never seems to cease. And I, for one, hope it never does. Keep the music playing, Goofy! Ahyuck!
UPDATE 5/12/08: Fanfiction.net author Jediempress added chapters to her "Kingdom Hearts" fanfic "Words are Power", two are most notable mostly because I suggested these words: "Goofy" and "Banjo". (I thought of "Banjo" because of seeing Goofy play the banjo in "Mickey's Amateurs".)