Remember the touching scene in “The Lion King” where Mufasa speaks to his son from the hereafter? The words, “Remember who you are,” were a reminder to the adult Simba — the troubled son who had lost his way. Isn’t it ironic that Disney, after releasing this spectacular animated motion picture that entertained audiences around the world and made tons of money, would have forgotten this all-important message?
Copyright 1994 Disney Enterprises
If you happen to be up on the latest news from the Mouse House, you’ll be aware that the Disney Company recently had a major layoff. While I take no delight in hundreds of people being given pink slips, please forgive me if I say, this is a good thing. If you’re not sure where I’m going with this, let me explain. This layoff is a good thing because it signals that the Disney Company has finally come around to realizing that they’ve been doing something wrong, and they’ve been doing it wrong for quite a while. The fact that the powers that be have decided to make corrections is a sign that at last they’re finally getting it.
Let’s go back to the nineteen sixties and a story meeting with the Old Maestro himself. The writer and director of the film were pitching a sequence in an upcoming motion picture to Walt. The male lead and his female companion had accidentally been moved into a very funny, but somewhat adult situation. The director, knowing that the situation would ultimately prove to be innocent, felt safe in pitching the rather sophisticated scene to Walt. In case some of you are unaware, let me state that Walt Disney was no prude. As a matter of fact, Walt thought the “business” was cute and funny, and laughed out loud at the gag. Not known for effusive compliments, the boss thought that the idea was good. And then — he cut it from the picture.
Walt Disney knew his audience and what they expected from a movie that bore his famous name. He knew that his audience would be made up of everyone from junior to grandma, and he wasn’t about to risk making anyone even slightly uncomfortable while viewing this movie. The scene was cut from the film because Disney was the final arbiter of taste at his company, and he took that responsibility seriously. It had taken decades to build the Disney name. A name that people knew meant quality, creativity and most of all, family entertainment. Why would anyone risk damaging something so important? Why alienate the market the master storyteller took so long to build? Why try to be something you’re obviously not?
When the “smart guys” took over in the early eighties they thought Disney could be all things to all people. In their MBA wisdom, they saw the Mouse House restricting itself to primarily one market. Why settle for one market when you can have it all? Clearly, they were on dangerous ground, and those other deeply coveted markets never did yield what was promised. Unfortunately, what was gained was a lot of disenchantment from the Disney faithful who saw their beloved family company inching ever closer to the “Dark Side.” While I have no beef with brilliantly conceived films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “Sin City,” would Walt Disney have made them? As for those who say, those cutting edge films were not released under the Disney label, your point is well taken. However, I wonder how any many of you would have felt comfortable pitching those ideas to Walt?
Copyright Floyd Norman
Of course, staying ahead of the competition is something all companies have to deal with. I’m sure you’re well aware of another nameless animation house that always seemed to have a movie somewhat similar to the mouse’s offering. Well, a few years ago I sat in a meeting as two hyped up Disney executives explained how they were going to blow away the competition by doing something that would catch the “copy cats” by surprise. Disney was going to move in a bold new direction. They were going to explore new ideas and techniques, and catch the competition totally off guard. They came up with a bold new movie all right, and true to their word it was unlike anything we had seen before. Unfortunately, in doing so they headed in the wrong direction. A sad fact the filmmakers learned the hard way when Roy Edward Disney shut their picture down. When working for Disney, one might be advised to make a Disney movie.
Today, an idea conceived back in the sixties is bringing in tons of money for the Disney Company. I was next door to Marc Davis when the Disney Master began doing his first sketches for a proposed theme park ride called, “Pirates of the Caribbean.” Eventually, Marc Davis left D-Wing and moved to Walt Disney Imagineering in Glendale where this incredible attraction was brought to life by hundreds of talented Disney artists, craftsmen and technicians. But, the magic didn’t end there. Decades later, “Pirates of the Caribbean” found new life as a Disney motion picture bringing in even more money for the Mouse House. Perhaps this, more than anything else was the wake up call Disney needed. Why waste time pursuing seedy adult films when there is a waiting and eager market for family themed entertainment? Add to that, these projects generate all kinds of additional product that enhance the bottom line. Toys, music, books, and apparel are only the tip of the iceberg. Isn’t it clear that when Disney does what it does best, good results are bound to follow?
So, even though layoffs are always sad news, the upside is the Mouse House is now going to focus on their core business. With “Cars” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” proving to be definite summer hits, family friendly films seem like a pretty good idea, don’t you think? It’s almost as though some executive popped a copy of “The Lion King” in the DVD player and heard Mufasa tell Simba, “Remember who you are.” Good advice for a company that momentarily lost its way, but now sees the light. Provide quality family entertainment and the audience will always be there for you.
Of course, Walt Disney could have told you that over thirty years ago.
Did you enjoy Floyd’s column today about how the Walt Disney Company seems to be remembering what it is? Well, if so … Then you need to remember that Mr. Norman has three (count ’em — three!) great collections of his cartoons currently on the market. All of which take an affectionate look at his career in animation.
These include Floyd’s original collection of cartoons and stories — “Faster! Cheaper! The Flip Side of the Art of Animation” (which is available for sale over at John Cawley’s excellent www.cataroo.com web site) as well as two follow-ups to that book, “Son of Faster, Cheaper” & “How the Grinch Stole Disney.” Which you can purchase by heading over to the Afrokids.com website.