"Inanimation"

[Ben]

Got the Night At The Museum films coming up for our movie nights, and wanted to accompany with three inanimate objects come to life shorts on the front of them.

I thought it would be nice to kind of cover the history of animation, from the 30s Midnight In A Toy Shop for the first, and the recent Tick Tock Tale for the last (also as that has the London connection).

But what for the second? I’ve looked at the three Warners books come to life ones from the late 30s (Have You Got Any Castles, Speaking Of The Weather, Book Revue), but they’re not as "right" as I remember…I do recall another similar cartoon where it was like an antiques shop or, indeed, a museum of some kind, that came to life, though I may just be mixing all those ones up!

Anyone got any ideas for a "middle" short? It would be cool if it came from later, like around the 50s, though that’s not really important, natch, as it would be color so a progression from the Disney Toy Shop opener. At the Moment I’m leaning to Castles, since it’s the funniest and the references are still probably just about known, but I’d love it if there were any others that popped in anyone's minds?

(I did think about the Fleischers' Reggedy Anns, but they’re a little dry and quite sad, not so great for a comedy pairing!) Thanks!

[James]

Pixar's got several from the 80s that might fit the bill. Of those, Red's Dream also keeps your theme of objects come to life in a shop. Skips a lot of history, but as one of the first computer animated shorts it is noteworthy.

[Ben]

Yeah, thought about those, too, but I’d like to go somewhere mid-century if possible, since Tick Tock Tale is naturally CG too.

[Randall]

Happy Harmonies' Art Gallery is a must, surely!!!! It's on the LD set, also seen here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGSwAvIy42o

If you like Raggedy Ann, there's also her Noveltoon from 1947:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2GMIstdBWo
(also on the Thunderbean Noveltoons DVD or BD)

And there's Happy Harmonies' Bottles, on the San Francisco BD, or: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPfmbq_NPrY
(has a good Halloween flavour, too)

Van Beuren's Picnic Panic, likely on the Thunderbean or Cartoons that Time Forgot discs, or:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu4lZXshcMc&t=1s

The Silly Symphony Music Land could be used in a pinch, too.

[droosan]

deleted; I don't think the suggestions I'd just made would fit exactly what you're looking for, after all. -_-

Just so this isn't a completely useless post, I will suggest Betty Boop's Museum (1932) .. even though I realize that's not a midcentury short. ^^;

[Ben]

I may go with The Art Gallery, as I’d forgotten that though I think it’s the one I was trying to remember!

The Anns are too downbeat, really, and Bottles is too weird, though I’ll def hold that back for Halloween next year!

Looking at these, I may change my whole way of thinking and just go vintage across all three films. I’ll stick with Midnight At A Toy Shop for tonight's first one, and then think I’ll do Betty's Museum (appropriate!) and The Art Gallery. Or who knows, I might go nuts and put on two cartoons a movie!

Thanks chaps!

[Ben]

So…yeah…not that you need to know, or may even be interested (!), but I’ve been going along the two shorts route, with big thanks for your suggestions.

The first Museum enjoyed Midnight In A Toy Store and Betty Boop's Museum (which was also nice to get Betty on the screen, who doesn’t get nearly enough runs) last week as early examples of black and white talkies, which our crowd very much enjoyed. Some gags even made it from Betty's cartoon into the main feature!

Last night, the Smithsonian was joined by Have You Got Any Castles and The Art Gallery, which added color and animation dimensionality, and both of which I’d forgotten were very similar shorts even outside the same framing set-up, and Gallery (a weird cartoon!) again tied in nicely with the live gallery scene in the film!

Next week, the third film's trip to London will include Red's Dream (which is always hard to pair up with anything much else!) and Tick Tock Tale on the program, which I like because of the "time" aspect important in the feature. And Red provides that fill-in between the traditional animation from before, with early CG, and the polished "now" look of Tick Tock. And that one has the London connection too!

So, thanks again! A nice complimentary selection to go with those films!