Silly Symphony


Silly Symphony is a series of 75 animated musical short films produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939. As their name implies, the Silly Symphonies were originally intended as whimsical accompaniments to pieces of music. As such, the films usually had independent continuity and did not feature continuing characters, unlike the Mickey Mouse shorts produced by Disney at the same time. The series is notable for its innovation with Technicolor and the multiplane motion picture camera, as well as its introduction of the character Donald Duck making his first appearance in the Silly Symphony cartoon The Wise Little Hen in 1934. Seven shorts won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
The series also spawned a Disney media franchise that included the Silly Symphony newspaper comic strip distributed by King Features Syndicate, the Dell comic book series Silly Symphonies, as well as several children's books, many of which were based on Silly Symphony cartoons.
The Silly Symphonies returned to theatres with its re-issues and re-releases, and eventually tied with Joseph Barbera and William Hanna's Tom and Jerry's record for most Oscar wins for a cartoon series in the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film category.

Production

Within the animation industry, the series is known for its use by Walt Disney as a platform for experimenting with processes, techniques, characters, and stories in order to further the art of animation. It also provided a venue to try out techniques and technologies, such as Technicolor, special effects animation, and dramatic storytelling in animation, that would be crucial to Disney's plans to eventually begin making feature-length animated films.
Shortly after the switch to United Artists, the series became even more popular. Walt Disney had seen some of Dr. Herbert Kalmus' tests for a new three-strip, full-color Technicolor process, which would replace the previous two-tone Technicolor process. Disney signed a contract with Technicolor which gave the Disney studio exclusive rights to the new three-strip process through the end of 1935, and had a 60% complete Symphony, Flowers and Trees, scrapped and redone in full color. Flowers and Trees was the first animated film to use the three-strip Technicolor process, and was a phenomenal success. Within a year, the now-in-Technicolor Silly Symphonies series had popularity and success that matched that of the Mickey Mouse cartoons. The contract Disney had with Technicolor would also later be extended another five years as well.
The success of Silly Symphonies would be tremendously boosted after Three Little Pigs was released in 1933 and became a box office sensation; the film was featured in movie theaters for several months and also featured the hit song that became the anthem of the Great Depression, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf". Several Silly Symphonies entries, including Three Little Pigs, The Grasshopper and the Ants, The Tortoise and the Hare, The Country Cousin, The Old Mill, Wynken, Blynken, and Nod, and The Ugly Duckling, are among the most notable films produced by Walt Disney.
Due to problems related to Disney's scheduled productions of cartoons, a deal was made with Harman and Ising to produce three Silly Symphonies: Merbabies, Pipe Dreams, and The Little Bantamweight. Only one of these cartoons, Merbabies, ended up being bought by Disney, the remaining two Harman-Ising Silly Symphonies were then sold to MGM who released them as Happy Harmonies cartoons. Disney ceased production of Silly Symphonies in 1939.

Distribution

The series was first distributed by Pat Powers from 1929 to 1930 and released by Celebrity Productions indirectly through Columbia Pictures. The original basis of the cartoons was musical novelty, and the musical scores of the first cartoons were composed by Carl Stalling.

Columbia Pictures

After viewing "The Skeleton Dance", the manager at Columbia Pictures quickly became interested in distributing the series, and gained the perfect opportunity to acquire Silly Symphonies after Disney broke with Celebrity Productions head Pat Powers after Powers signed Disney's colleague Ub Iwerks to a studio contract. Columbia Pictures agreed to pick up the direct distribution of the Mickey Mouse series on the condition that they would have exclusive rights to distribute the Silly Symphonies series; at first, Silly Symphonies could not even come close to the popularity Mickey Mouse had. The original title cards to the shorts released by Celebrity Productions and Columbia Pictures were all redrawn after Walt Disney stopped distributing his cartoons through them. Meanwhile, more competition spread for Disney after Max Fleischer's flapper cartoon character Betty Boop began to gain more and more popularity after starring in the cartoon Minnie the Moocher; by August 1932, Betty Boop became so popular that the Talkartoon series was renamed as Betty Boop cartoons.

United Artists

In 1932, after falling out with Columbia Pictures, Disney began distributing his products through United Artists. UA refused to distribute the Silly Symphonies unless Disney associated Mickey Mouse with them somehow, resulting in the "Mickey Mouse presents a Silly Symphony" title cards and posters that introduced and promoted the series during its five-year run for UA. United Artists also agreed to double the budget for each cartoon from $7,500 to $15,000.

RKO Radio Pictures

In 1937, Disney signed a distribution deal with RKO Radio Pictures to distribute the Silly Symphony cartoons, along with the Mickey Mouse series. RKO would continue to distribute until the end of the series in 1939.

Home media

Several Symphonies have been released in home media. For instance, the original Dumbo VHS included Father Noah's Ark, The Practical Pig and Three Orphan Kittens as bonus shorts to make up for the film's short length. In the UK, several Symphonies were released in compilations under Walt Disney Home Video's "Storybook Favourites" brand. The three "Storybook Favourites Shorts" volumes released included among others, Three Little Pigs, The Tortoise and the Hare and the remake of The Ugly Duckling. Most home media releases of various Disney films also include Symphonies as bonus shorts.
On December 3, 2001 - two days before the 100th anniversary of Walt Disney's birth - Disney released "" as part of its DVD series "Walt Disney Treasures". On December 19, 2006, "" was released, completing the collection and allowing the cartoons to be completely available to the public.

List of films

The Silly Symphonies are listed here in production order.
#FilmOriginal release dateDirectorMusicNotesRunning time Based on
1'
  • First entry in the Silly Symphony series.
  • The soundtrack was recorded in February 1929 in New York.
5:31
2El Terrible Toreador
  • The first Silly Symphony to have its soundtrack recorded in Los Angeles.
    		• 6:14
    3Springtime
  • Scenes from this film appeared in the 1961 film One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
    		• 6:14
    4Hell's Bells5:49
    5'5:57
    6Summer5:51
    7Autumn
  • The last Silly Symphony to be completed before Ub Iwerks and Carl Stalling left the studio. Their sudden departures caused delays in production.
    		• 6:24
    8Cannibal Capers
  • Production on this and several other Silly Symphonies were delayed due to the sudden departures of Ub Iwerks and Carl Stalling.
    		• 5:56
    9Night
  • Originally released with blue tinting.
  • Due to production delays, this film was postponed from its original announced release date of April 10th.
    		• 6:53
    10Frolicking Fish
  • Originally released with green tinting.
  • It was on this film that animator Norm Ferguson discovered the "follow-thru" animation technique that allowed for characters to move more naturally.
  • Due to production delays, this film was postponed from its original announced release date of May 8th.
    		• 6:02
    11Arctic AnticsBurt Gillett
    • The animators' draft lists Ub Iwerks as the director, even though he left the studio before animation began.
    • Due to production delays, this film was postponed from its original announced release date of June 5th.
    		7:00
    12Midnight in a Toy Shop
  • Due to production delays, this film was postponed from its original announced release date of July 3rd.
    		• 7:34
    13Monkey Melodies
  • Due to production delays, this film was postponed from its original announced release date of August 10th.
    		• 7:00
    14Winter
    15Playful Pan
    16Birds of a Feather
    17Mother Goose MelodiesMother Goose
    18'
    19'
    20'
  • The film's working title was The Cat's Out, and the current vault print features that title in its credits. However, it was copyrighted and released as The Cat's Nightmare.
    • 21Egyptian Melodies
    22'
    23'
    24'
    25'The Ugly Duckling
    26'
  • The last Silly Symphony to be distributed by Columbia Pictures.
    • 27'
  • The first Silly Symphony to be distributed by United Artists.
    • 28Just Dogs
  • The first appearance of Pluto without Mickey Mouse.
    • 29Flowers and Trees
  • Winner of the inaugural Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
  • The first film to be produced in three-strip Technicolor.
    • 30Bugs in Love
  • The last Silly Symphony to be produced in black-and-white.
    • 31King Neptune
    32Babes in the Woods*The last Silly Symphony to be recorded with Cinephone.Hansel and Gretel
    33Santa's Workshop
  • The first Silly Symphony to be recorded with RCA Photophone.
    • 34Birds in the SpringFrank Churchill
    35Father Noah's ArkNoah's Ark
    36Three Little Pigs
    • Winner of the 1932-33 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
    • From this film came the Disney studio's first hit song, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?".
    		Three Little Pigs
    37Old King ColeBert Lewis
    38Lullaby Land
    Leigh Harline
    39'
    40'
    • Was originally supposed to be released after The China Shop, but production was moved ahead in order to have it ready for a Christmastime release. As a result, both films were given each other's production numbers.
    41'
    42'
  • The song featured in the film, "The World Owes Me a Living", would become a recurring theme for Goofy. Coincidentally, Pinto Colvig, the voice of Goofy, also voiced the Grasshopper in this film.
    • 43Funny Little Bunnies
  • Was originally supposed to be released after The Big Bad Wolf, but production was moved ahead in order to have it ready for an Easter release. As a result, both films were given each other's production numbers.
    • 44'Little Red Riding Hood
    45'
  • The debut appearance of Donald Duck.
  • Was originally supposed to be released after The Flying Mouse, but production was moved ahead for reasons unknown. As a result, both films were given each other's production numbers.
    		• The Little Red Hen
    46'Bert Lewis
    47Peculiar Penguins
    48'
    49'
    50'
    51'
    52Water Babies
    53'
  • According to the Film Superlist: 1894-1939, this cartoon entered the public domain in 1963 when its copyright was not renewed.
    • 54Who Killed Cock Robin?
  • Nominated for the 1935 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
  • Named one of the ten best films of 1935 by.
  • Scenes from this film appeared in the 1936 film Sabotage.
    • 55Music Land
    56Three Orphan Kittens
  • Winner of the 1935 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
    • 57Cock o' the WalkAlfred Hay Malotte
    58Broken Toys
    • Was originally intended to follow Elmer Elephant and Three Little Wolves, but production moved ahead to have the film ready for a Christmastime release. As a result, this and the latter film switched production numbers.
    59Elmer Elephant
    60Three Little WolvesThe Boy Who Cried Wolf
    61Toby Tortoise Returns
    62Three Blind Mouseketeers
    63'Wilfred Jackson
    64Mother Pluto
  • Originally designated part of the Mickey Mouse series, it was reclassified as a Silly Symphony just before release, with its original production number going to Don Donald.
    • 65More Kittens
  • The film's production number was originally assigned to the Donald Duck short Don Donald.
    • 66Woodland Café
    67Little Hiawatha
  • The last Silly Symphony to be distributed by United Artists.
    		• The Song of Hiawatha
    68'
  • The first Silly Symphony to be distributed by RKO Radio Pictures.
  • Winner of the 1937 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
  • First use of the multiplane camera
    • 69Wynken, Blynken and Nod
    70Moth and the FlameBurt Gillett
    Dick Heumer
    71Merbabies, Vernon Stallings
    72Farmyard Symphony
    73Mother Goose Goes Hollywood
  • Nominated for the 1938 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
  • The most expensive Silly Symphony produced, its negative cost totaling $69,307.87.
    • 74'Paul Smith
    • The Silly Symphony name doesn't appear on the opening titles, and is instead labeled a Three Little Pigs cartoon.
    75Clyde Geronimi
    • Winner of the 1939 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
    • Final entry in the Silly Symphony series, though it is labeled as a one-shot cartoon instead.
    		The Ugly Duckling

    Reception

    Disney's experiments were widely praised within the film industry, and the Silly Symphonies won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film seven times, maintaining a six-year-hold on the category after it was first introduced. This record was matched only by MGM's Tom and Jerry series during the 1940s and 1950s.

    Legacy

    The Symphonies changed the course of Disney Studio history when Walt's plans to direct his first feature cartoon became problematic after his warm-up to the task The Golden Touch was widely seen as stiff and slowly paced. This motivated him to embrace his role as being the producer and providing creative oversight for Snow White while tasking David Hand to handle the actual directing.
    Silly Symphonies brought along many imitators, including Warner Bros. cartoon series Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, MGM's Happy Harmonies, and later, Universal's Swing Symphony.
    Years later after the Silly Symphonies ended, Disney occasionally produced a handful of one-shot cartoons, playing the same style as the Silly Symphony series. Unlike the Silly Symphonies canon, most of these "Specials" have a narration, usually by Disney legend Sterling Holloway.
    The 1999–2000 television series Mickey Mouse Works used the Silly Symphonies title for some of its new cartoons, but unlike the original cartoons, these did feature continuing characters.

    Comic adaptations

    A Sunday Silly Symphony comic strip ran in newspapers from January 10, 1932 to July 12, 1942. The strip featured adaptations of some of the Silly Symphony cartoons, including Birds of a Feather, The Robber Kitten, Elmer Elephant, Farmyard Symphony and Little Hiawatha. This strip began with a two-year sequence about Bucky Bug, a character based on the bugs in Bugs in Love.
    There was also an occasional Silly Symphonies comic book, with nine issues published by Dell Comics from September 1952 to February 1959. The first issue of this anthology comic featured adaptations of some Silly Symphony cartoons, including The Grasshopper and the Ants, Three Little Pigs, The Goddess of Spring and Mother Pluto, but it also included non-Symphony cartoons like Mickey Mouse's Brave Little Tailor. By the third issue, there was almost no Symphony-related material in the book; the stories and activities were mostly based on other Disney shorts and feature films.