Great idea for a nice little series, Jeff.

Roger Rabbit wasn't just everywhere in the parks, though; as you mentioned, he had theatrical shorts, and he was also given a very primary place in the Mickey's 60th Birthday TV special- something I wish I could find a copy of, because I thought about it the other day when Jim posted his Roger Rabbit story, and I've been wanting to watch it again since.

The fact that the only place you can see Roger now is at the 80's section of Pop Century...kinda sums it up right there:
Judging from the reactions in the "Lost funeral" article, the movie hasn't aged well--Everybody went crazy over the "Mix of animation" and "All the cameos", but even at the time, can't recall anyone saying the actually LIKED Roger as a breakout character, except as a tied-in representational symbol of a Film They Thought Was Cool.

Leaving aside the whole "Changed from the book" issue that mixed up who the character was, the whole point of the movie was, we were initially supposed to -HATE- Roger:
Given that the story was from Eddie Valliant's toon-hating viewpoint, the movie-Roger was initially Every Obnoxious Cartoon Cliche' From Heck, and Valiant was stuck shackled to him...And the movie's shrill, in-your-face Tex Avery-centric view of cartoons didn't immediately endear him any to us personally by the end of the movie, so much that we wanted spinoffs and park appearances by him.

...Yes, Mike & Jeff, we all went gaga over the movie at the time, but let's not make a fool of ourselves reading too much into that.

My wife is Austrian and had never seen the film.  It was on TV one Sunday and I said "you have to see this!  this movie is great!" (it's been years since I saw the film).  After 20 minutes, her response was that Roger was too irritating to endure for the duration of a full film.  And listening to his shrill voice and over-the-top mannerisms, I unfortunately had to concur with her and we switched to baseball.

DerekJ is right- Roger was supposed to be an amalgamation of everything there is to hate about irritating cartoon characters.  Aside from the whole "look! Daffy AND Donald!  Mickey AND Bugs!" moments (and a swell song to close the preceedings), I have to say that Roger wasn't destined or created to be an icon (despite my previous nostalgic belief Disney had let a good rabbit get away...)  

Disneyland still has Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin in Toontown.  At least he still has his own attraction.  I don't think Roger is annyoing...I think he's cute.  And, I wish characters didn't leave the parks...where did Roger go?  Is there a retirement home for certain characters from the parks?  I would love to meet him (not to mention Gurgi from "The Black Cauldron", who, in 1985, could be found in Tokyo).  I agree with Anonymouse- nice idea for a series!

Well, I suppose no generalization should be made on the other way around as well. If there are some who believe WFRR was a fad, there are plenty others who enjoyed and loved the movie and feel many more good things could have come from that. Was Roger annoying? Sure, but it doesn't mean he wasn't likeable in his own way. Not to mention having Roger around also mean having the others from the movie, like Jessica and Baby Herman. Anyone here like "Bonkers"? I barely watched an episode, but I bet I'd know it all by heart if it had starred Roger instead, like it was meant to. But as always, the Mighty Green$ kill all good things.

Thank You for finally writing some articals on my favorite Disney character.  Roger Rabbit is one of Disney's best movies they ever made.  I don't know how anyone can say Roger aged poorly.  Its just as great as the day it first came out.  All of my friends still watch Roger on a regular basis and were all in our late 20's.  If Iger could make up with Spieldberg or possably get full control of Roger I would be the happiest person the world.  Roger has so much potential that is going to waste.  

What no one has mentioned is that Roger wasn't the only thing that made WFRR such a gem for the theme parks.  The movie also provided the much needed mythology that connected the real world with the toon world.  If it weren't for WFRR, there would be no Toon Town.  By having this mythology, it opened up the door for Disney to "logically" bring their guests into the world of the toon, and gave all of the characters a back story.  

As for Roger, sure he's annoying, just like an overly energetic kid is annoying, but that's essentially what he is.  He's the embodiment of pure innocence.  All he wants to do is to make people laugh.  If you ask me, the world could use a little more Roger these days.

I agree with those here who say that Roger was over-the-top, but worse, the moments in the film in which he could have been made more endearing were badly written. For instance: when Eddie's in the movie house telling Roger about his brother's death - initially Roger is horrified, and breaks down crying: "No wonder you hate me! If a toon killed my brother I'd hate me too." Then Eddie says "I don't hate you" and Roger says "Apology accepted!" and he's irritating again. Suddenly the sad conversation is All About Roger. That was a real misstep. It's too bad, because the scene in the producer's office, and afterward, when Roger is weeping over his "unfaithful" wife, are genuinely touching. I have a feeling that the movie's writers were afraid to get too Disney - or Chuck Jones - and threw in Averyisms every time they thought the movie would get too sentimental. Or something. Anyway, I too tried to watch WFRR a couple of weeks ago, and I got as far as that scene in the producer's office and then tuned away.

As for Roger disappearing from WDW...last time I was there I DID see a sign somewhere with Roger on it, but otherwise he's nowhere to be seen. Isn't that because Stephen Spielberg had a falling out with the Disney suits or something? Hopefully part II of this article will clear things up...

Never cared much for the movie or for Roger Rabbit, though I have no disrespect to anyone who felt differently.  

Roger reminds me of Screwball Squirrel . . . crazy and obnoxious, but lacking in that "star" quality that makes him worth seeing in more than 2 or 3 cartoons.  I think it's that he never STOPS going all Tex Avery on us.  A wild take or two can be hilarious.  400 of them in rapid-fire succession is overkill.  

He behaved the way he did just because that's the way cartoons behave.  His actions arose out of his identity as a cartoon, not out of any actual personality or motivation.  So I didn't "buy" him.

This sounds mega interesting. I've always wondered about Roger's dissapearance myself. I'm really looking forward to this series.

I think the problem started when Disney and Speilberg had trouble seeing eye to eye on how to handle the sequel/prequel. I don't think Eisner was happy about having to get an OK from Amblin every time Roger was used somewhere. The rift became a permanant split when Katzenberg left the studio to form Dreamworks with Speilberg. Right after that, Roger was just slowly phazed out, and all further production on shorts were halted entirely.

Say what you will about Disneyland's old Parade of the Stars...

...but at least Roger Rabbit had a stable place in the lineup of Finale characters from opening day in 2000 until the parade closed in 2004. :-p

Jeff, you also forgot to mention that Roger (until a few years ago) also appeared in SpectroMagic (he has now been replaced by the Genie). And while Roger is rare, they just came out with an all new clothing line featuring Jessica. They are rather 'suggesting' items which usually feature Jessica & some saying like "Climb Mountain Peaks" (or something like that).

Great fun article Jeff,its one of the topics I was only recently talking about online in another forum.

Roger is still heavily featured in both the Anaheim & Tokyo Toon Towns.However as a walk around character he's no where to be found except in the final float of the Dream Lights parade at Tokyo Disneyland.

I hope one day Roger can return to the parks in a larger role then he is currently.Look foward to next piece

bhb007 said:
"My wife is Austrian and had never seen the film.  It was on TV one Sunday and I said 'you have to see this!  this movie is great!' (it's been years since I saw the film).  After 20 minutes, her response was that Roger was too irritating to endure for the duration of a full film.  And listening to his shrill voice and over-the-top mannerisms, I unfortunately had to concur with her and we switched to baseball."
---
When the movie originally came out, Pauline Kael panned it as "Like having your head stuck in a pinball machine for two hours"--
Unfortunately, Robert Zemeckis liked the quote so much, he publicly took it as a compliment.  :)

blackcauldron85 said:
"Is there a retirement home for certain characters from the parks?  I would love to meet him (not to mention Gurgi from "The Black Cauldron", who, in 1985, could be found in Tokyo)."
---
Pics?  0_0  I remember Gurgi did officially have stateside park representation in the form of a Fantasyland snack station, before the 90's came and his "Munchies & Crunchies" were ousted by Mrs. Potts.
(And the DLR Toon Town was built around the time that Roger's movie came out, so, like all the Alice stuff at DLR and the Robin Hood characters at WDW, it was just a matter of cross-promotional timing.)

MKCustodial said:
Anyone here like "Bonkers"? I barely watched an episode, but I bet I'd know it all by heart if it had starred Roger instead, like it was meant to.
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I think that's for the next article, about how Disney kept having to sneak around Spielberg just to be able to market "their" half of the movie...

Nice article! I'm looking forward to the next installment of the series.

For me, Roger Rabbit, Jessica Rabbit, and Baby Herman were a one time deal. I think they did their job in the movie, and for me that's enough. I don't really have a desire or interest in seeing shorts of these characters, in wearing merchanrdise with the characters, or meeting them, but that's just me. Like so many mentioned before, the screwball, over-the-top Avery personality gets wearing, and I have no emotional investment in the characters like I do with the Fab Five and even Looney Tunes. Perhaps they did have potential, but I don't think that the characters quite met that, even in their short-lived golden era.

I do think that DrummerMan's got a point, though, that WFRR opened up the Toon Town parallel to Hollywood mythology, and that's something that I wish could be explored more by Disney.

"When the movie originally came out, Pauline Kael panned it as 'Like having your head stuck in a pinball machine for two hours' "

Don't forget that Pauline Kael never saw a movie she didn't hate, except, of course, "Nashville" and "The Godfather."

I think there needs to be a distinction made between the character and the film. The character of Roger Rabbit seems to combine the extreme aspects of all cartoon characters into one character. Thus he is very annoying, but I think that's what cartoon characters mostly are. In the film he is not meant to be Snow White, Simba, or the Beast (all complex characters), he is a low-level actor who stars in shorts. There isn't even evidence that he is even very famous in the film, as he just seems to be one of many actors doing their jobs. Perhaps he was second-tier behind Mickey, Bugs, et al. Whatever though, I think many of us loved him when we were younger and now can't stand him. However, I can still handle Roger in the film, though I do cringe at some of his lines.

I think the film has aged very well, and is still quite enjoyable. I would not call it a masterpiece, but it is probably the best film Zemeckis has ever made (and yes, better than the fluff known as "Forrest Gump"). It has many complex parts, and I still think the mix of animation and live action is very convincing, and there still has not been a better mix since then (things like Space Jam pale in comparison).

Disney has not marketed Roger to children (probably the only group who will not find him annoying), and since he is not Mickey or Donald, who are loved by all ages, then Roger will slowly sink into obscurity. Think of other annoying characters loved by children, and how many people despise them as they grow older, and that is Disney's problem with Roger.

"Disney has not marketed Roger to children (probably the only group who will not find him annoying)"

And why do you think that is? My personal opinion is because the movie is crude and has far too many adult situations. Leave that kind of marketing up to any other Animation Studio. Disney should be (and for a LONG time was) above that.

The riff was between Spielberg and Eisner over Eisner placing the next Roger Rabbit short (Roller Coaster Rabbit) on his Dick Tracy film.  Spielberg wanted this short RR film to be on the Aracnophobia film.  Eisner also didn't ask permission for useage of Roger Rabbit on ride attractions / characters.  A no-no according to the deal Disney had with Spielberg.  Thus Benny the Cab became Lenny in cartoon spin ride.  There was supposed to be a roller coaster ride & a trolley "ala star wars/back to the future" ride through toon town.   Side note: Artists should be in 75% control of Disney.  Eisner is a wanna be artist, ego driven and pompous.  He builds and destroys.  Executive SILVER SPOONED Tantrum that it was really all about Eisner.   He left a legacy and playbook which is still being followed today.  Iger "Igor" is faithful to his master.   Sad - maybe one day the evil humans will no longer be in control of toon town.  Someone grab the re-apparing ink please.

"He left a legacy and playbook which is still being followed today.  Iger "Igor" is faithful to his master.   Sad - maybe one day the evil humans will no longer be in control of toon town."
I think you are the only person I've ever seen 'dis' Iger.

mawnck said:
"Roger reminds me of Screwball Squirrel . . . crazy and obnoxious, but lacking in that "star" quality that makes him worth seeing in more than 2 or 3 cartoons.  I think it's that he never STOPS going all Tex Avery on us.  A wild take or two can be hilarious.  400 of them in rapid-fire succession is overkill. "
---
Interesting to note that even Tex Avery reportedly hated Screwy Squirrel--
He thought one or two one-shot cartoons were fine to experiement with how "extreme" they could take their gags (and that little jab at "cute" Harman-Ising in the first cartoon speaks for a generation)...But Screwy was not only unlikable, there didn't seem to be any REASON for him to keep heckling his victim, and to take the action from one gag to the next--Just a strung-along sequence of gag ideas.  Tex only did four cartoons with the character, and then dropped him.

Similarly, Roger's Baby Herman cartoons don't resemble anything coming out of the 40's or 50's--A line like "He's going back to the science lab!" sounds more at home in some 80's Cal-Arts student's kitschy over-the-top Tex-fanboy homage, which the shorts look like.  Not to mention, most cartoon characters weren't "victims" in their shorts unless they were mean characters who had it coming--That bit of hip-cynicism also comes off a little too 80's for the scenery.
I don't pretend to understand what real 40's audiences saw in Tom & Jerry, but they had a lot more audience charisma, with the same anvils.

DerekJ said:
"Pics?  0_0  I remember Gurgi did officially have stateside park representation in the form of a Fantasyland snack station, before the 90's came and his "Munchies & Crunchies" were ousted by Mrs. Potts."

There's pics on the "The Black Cauldron" DVD.

"can't recall anyone saying the actually LIKED Roger as a breakout character"

Let me go on record saying that I do. And I love the movie, too. Still think it's a great film. I hope Iger makes nice with Spielberg so that Roger can come back.

>>I still think the mix of animation and live action is very convincing<<

Funny thing about that . . . I couldn't disagree more.  I think that with the technology of the time it was about the best they could do, notwithstanding my opinion that it's better to do a good effect that you can pull off vs. reaching for a fantastic effect that you can't.  But I always, even in the theater, noticed how the actions, timing, and even appearance of the animated characters were being compromised to cover the mechanical gizmos in the live action.  Practically every effect came across as an effect . . . the filmmakers saying "look what we can almost do!"

I saw WFRR about 8 times in the theater...I just loved it.  And while most times Little Mermaid is credited with starting the 2nd golden age of animation, it was WFRR that pryed the doors open and got people excited about animation at a time when feature animation was at a pretty low point.

Hopefully with Disney getting back into doing animated shorts, we might see Roger and Baby Herman yet again.  As long as the power players can hammer out the egos....I mean deal...

&lt;i&gt;Jeff Lange returns with another fond look back at some Disney theme park history. This time around, Jeff explains how a bunch of Anaheim-based falloons eventually found their way to Florida&lt;/i&gt;

&lt;i&gt;Sharing images that Nancy Stadler snagged at SIGGRAPH, Jim Hill now offers a sneak peek of &quot;American Dog,&quot; &quot;Toy Story 3&quot; and &quot;Rapunzel&quot;&lt;/i&gt;