After a nervous start, I was finally beginning to feel comfortable on the story crew of “The Jungle Book.” After being given an outline by writer Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry and I began story boarding Mowgli’s second encounter with Kaa the snake. With the sudden departure of story legend Bill Peet, we were all in the process of rethinking much of the movie.
Floyd story sketch of Shere Kahn
Since Vance and I were busy trying to shape our own segment of the film, I never took the time to check out the “Rocky the Rhino” sequence being boarded across the hall. Before we knew it, the sequence had been approved to go to reels, and Walt Disney would soon be coming in for a screening. I confess I was pretty relaxed about this screening with The Old Maestro. Walt would be focused on someone else’s work, and not ours. If you were a Disney storyman, it always felt good when someone else’s butt — not your own — was on the line.
I don’t ever recall a morning meeting with Walt Disney. Every meeting I attended was in the afternoon. Maybe the boss felt more relaxed in the afternoon having gotten the morning’s business out of the way. In any event, this meeting would be held in screening room 11 on the third floor of the Animation Building. Our director Woolie Reitherman and most of the crew were in good spirits. At last the picture seemed to be moving in the right direction, and Walt had been pleased with our progress. There was a feeling of optimism and confidence this day, but soon all that was about to change.
I arrived late for the screening, and took a seat near the rear of the room. I made it a point to never be in Walt’s line of sight less the Old Maestro might notice me, or God forbid, ask me a question. As the sequence played out on screen, it was expected that there would be a few shills in the audience with their obligatory laughs. However, there wasn’t a sound from Walt who continued to sit and watch in silence.
For those not familiar with this never-before-seen sequence, it’s not unlike many of the other meetings with critters Mowgli and Baloo encounter on the way back to the man village. Rocky is a dim-witted rhinoceros voiced by radio and television comedian Frank Fontaine. Those old enough might remember Frankie as “Crazy Guggenheim” on the old “Jackie Gleason Show.” Those even older might remember his radio stint on the Jack Benny Program.
In any case, Fontaine did his best voicing the mentally challenged beast as he played out his jungle shtick. The comedian had an idiotic laugh that always garnered laughs from the television and radio audiences, but unfortunately was lost on Walt Disney. The boss shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and muttered under his breath. In short order it was clear that Disney wasn’t finding this bone headed beast all that funny. To be fair, the story artist’s drawings were pretty darn funny, and the sequence wasn’t all that bad if you watched it with the sound turned off. However, this wasn’t a silent movie, and Frankie Fontaine was not amusing Walt.
Some of the key characters from Disney’s The Jungle Book, including Rocky the Rhino” (Center). Drawing by Ken Anderson
Of course, one might think that all that was needed was a casting change, right? Simply audition another voice actor and Viola! Problem solved. Not in this case, I’m afraid. Walt was so annoyed by the moronic rhino that he wanted the beast cut from the picture. This truly disappointed master animator Milt Kahl who had looked forward to animating the silly critter. He had even completed a model sheet for “Rocky the Rhino.” A model sheet that would never be used in the making of “The Jungle Book.”
Of course, that model sheet still exists today. On a recent visit to Disney Feature Animation I saw a young intern working on a scene with the dear departed rhino. He wanted to know why he had a model sheet of a character never used in the Disney classic. I realized he had no idea why the rhino was cut from the film. Of course, unlike the young intern, you now know the rest of the story.
With no rhino to animate, what was poor directing animator Milt Kahl to do? Tackle another character, of course. And boy did we have a character for him. While storyboarding the villainous tiger, Shere Kahn, a question arose. Who would voice the smooth, sophisticated scoundrel? I remember both Vance and I said the same name almost instantaneously. George Sanders! Who else but George Sanders?
Of course, in big time Hollywood no one ever does things the easy way. Why the studio went through a long list of actors they considered for the role I’ll never know. In time, even they came back to the obvious choice for the tiger. George Sanders would voice Shere Kahn.
Hollywood’s favorite scoundrel, George Sanders
I still remember the scene and the wonderful encounter Shere Kahn has with Kaa the snake. We tried to make our story sketches of the conversation between the snake and tiger entertaining of course. However, who could have imagined what Milt Kahl would do with our simple sketches? As always, in the old days, the story sketch was simply the starting point. Vance and I simply set things up, and the animators followed through. All that inspired business with the tiger questioning Kaa was the genius of Milt Kahl. Milt developed those scenes, and made them his own. Some thirty years have passed, and those scenes still blow me away.
Floyd story sketch of Shere Kahn and Kaa
Yet, our day of reckoning was still to come and a date had been set for Walt Disney to take a look at our sequence. Like so many others, I began to get the pre-Walt jitters as the meeting date approached. As usual, Vance Gerry was as mellow as always. I don’t think it would have made any difference if our meeting had been with the Pope. Nothing seemed to faze Vance as we prepared our boards for the upcoming Walt meeting. Lucky for me, Vance was the senior storyman. So he, not myself would be pitching to the Old Maestro.
A meeting with Walt was not something easily obtained. Because of his busy schedule, we had already waited a week or two. Now, the outer doors could be heard swinging open, and Disney’s signature raspy cough announced his arrival. As usual, Walt attended story meetings alone. No entourage, sycophants, or “yes men” were needed. We were about to hear the verdict on our newest sequence in “The Jungle Book,” and it would come from Walt Disney himself.
In the final installment of this series … Vance Gerry pitches to Walt, a recording session with Sterling Holloway, and Disney finds a way to get Mowgli home.
Did you enjoy the latest installment of Floyd’s four-part series about the production of “The Jungle Book”? … Speaking of multi-part stories, 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.