The Fairest Films of All: The Imagineering Film Club

rabb.it Wizard of Oz Stream times

  • 7:00 PM EST with an Encore at 9:00 EST

    Votes: 3 75.0%

  • 8:00 PM EST with an Encore at 10:00 EST

    Votes: 1 25.0%

  • 9:00 PM EST only

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    4
  • Poll closed .
Suchomimus

Suchomimus

Well-Known Member
mickeyfan5534 said:
Some more trivia about this week's film:
Production costs for the film were around $2,777,000
Shirley Temple was originally tapped to play Dorothy when the film was being produced by Fox. Garland replaced Temple when production moved to MGM
Over the Rainbow was almost cut from the film
Adriana Caselotti, better known as the voice of Snow White makes a vocal cameo during "If I Only Had a Heart"
The ruby slippers were size 5
The Smithsonian exhibit housing Dorothy’s red slippers is so popular, the carpet in front of the slippers has been replaced numerous times due to wear and tear.
The Munchkins were played by a troupe called the Singer Midgets, named for their manager Leo Singer. They were from Europe, and “a number of the Munchkins took advantage of the trip to immigrate and escape the Nazis,” according to the Internet Movie Database. Their voices were dubbed because many of them couldn’t speak English very well.
The Cowardly Lion was originally going to be played by the real-life MGM lion.
The ruby slippers on display in the Smithsonian are mismatched.


The original draft of the film was based around the 1902 musical extravaganza written by L. Frank Baum and with music by Paul Tietjens. It starred Anna Laughlin as Dorothy Gale, Fred Stone as the Scarecrow and David C. Montgomery as the Tin Woodman. Arthur Hill played the Cowardly Lion, but in this version his role was reduced to a bit part. The Wicked Witch of the West is mentioned but does not appear in this version, and Toto was replaced by a cow named Imogene. An element from the show – the snowfall caused by the Good Witch of the North, which defeats the spell of the poppies that had put Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion to sleep – was later used in the classic 1939 movie. Other new characters in the piece are King Pastoria II and his girlfriend, Trixie Tryfle, Cynthia Cynch, Sir Dashemoff Daily, Sir Wiley Gyle, and General Riskitt. Dorothy Gale's surname was introduced in this piece. It was not mentioned in the original novel, though it is mentioned in the 1907 book Ozma of Oz. The main plot of the show, as recounted in newspapers of the time, is Pastoria's attempts to regain the throne from the Wizard of Oz. The original protagonists' search for the Wizard puts them on the wrong side of the law.

For more information on the once popular show, here's the wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wizard_of_Oz_(1902_musical)
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mickeyfan5534

mickeyfan5534

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thinking about where Land of Oz could go in IoA, The Lost Continent could actually work. The Poseidon's Fury show building is massive and could either have a large E-ticket or a mega-E if it swallowed the Sinbad theatre as well. Another option is to transform the Sinbad theatre into an Oz tribute show.
 
tcool123

tcool123

Well-Known Member
mickeyfan5534 said:
Thinking about where Land of Oz could go in IoA, The Lost Continent could actually work. The Poseidon's Fury show building is massive and could either have a large E-ticket or a mega-E if it swallowed the Sinbad theatre as well. Another option is to transform the Sinbad theatre into an Oz tribute show.
Click to expand...
How something a bit more....

tumblr_m9fwsyt0qr1r33qkgo1_500.gif


;)

I think a Wicked best of musical could work in Islands providing the park with a new great show.

For a flat ride idea how about riding in mini hot air balloons ala Flik's Flyers?
 
mickeyfan5534

mickeyfan5534

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
tcool123 said:
I think a Wicked best of musical could work in Islands providing the park with a new great show.
Click to expand...
Wicked is a great show but it kind of convolutes the story the land tells. Not to mention how difficult it would be to shorten the show to 30-ish minutes. I’d rather do a best-of show of the movie and make the E-ticket a journey through Oz.
 
D Hulk

D Hulk

Well-Known Member
mickeyfan5534 said:
Indeed we do. There's also going to be some very difficult projects that might not fit theme parks, so I encourage people to think outside of theme parks and stretch the idea of Imagineering.
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We're all gonna have some very different responses to the various films and how to Imagineer them!

My general intent is to basically just Blue Sky everything - assuming each movie has a massive budget and a park (or other location) where it already fits perfectly. Other posters are thinking e.g. how to fit Oz into IOA, which is a perfectly realistic approach. I'm most interested in any given film's adaptation potential altogether, wherever that may lead.

This being said, some more Oz land ideas:

Use a Kansas twister ride to transition guests from sepia tone Kansas to colorful Oz. Maybe like a spinning house flat ride with more screen effects. Of course walkable pathways lead straight into Oz too.

Big E-ticket suspended dark ride in the Wizard's hot air balloons, flying over the various lands. Like a 21st-century version of Peter Pan's Flight or E.T.

In the Wicked Witch's sub-land, a suspended family coaster where the Flying Monkeys pick us up and fly around.

Live musical performances in the Munchkins' town. The movie has some of cinema's most beloved original songs, so a live venue for them seems a natural. (I'm less keen on introducing later adaptations like Wicked, simply to play the fullest tribute to the classic MGM film instead.)

If we're doing a whole land, there's wonderful potential for spontaneous guest interaction with walkaround characters, particularly them meeting (and teaming up with) the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion.

And @kmbmw777 suggests adding an in-land hotel, the Emerald City fits that need.
 
mickeyfan5534

mickeyfan5534

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Hello Imagineers and welcome back to the movie vault! This week's film is one of my personal favorites. Boy meets girl, girl has beautiful voice, costar has a terrible voice. A plan is hatched and hijinks and one of the most famous song sequences in film ensue. That's right, it's Singin' in the Rain starring Gene Kelley, Donald O'Connor, and most importantly, the recently passed Debbie Reynolds in her star making role.
Singing_in_the_rain_poster.jpg

It's a member's choice project this week, and I'm going to let y'all battle it out to decide what it will be. Keep in mind, don't limit yourself to just attractions and theme parks. Go big with your ideas. Our film club stream of Singin' in the Rain will be Tuesday, 10/23 and I've elected to make it the same time as last week's Wizard of Oz stream.

And now for our regularly scheduled facts.
Gene Kelly insulted Debbie Reynolds for not being able to dance. Fred Astaire, who was hanging around the studio, found her crying under a piano and helped her with her dancing.
Debbie Reynolds remarked many years later that making this movie and surviving childbirth were the two hardest things she's ever had to do.
For the "Make Em Laugh" number, Gene Kelly asked Donald O'Connor to revive a trick he had done as a young dancer, running up a wall and completing a somersault. The number was so physically taxing that O'Connor, who smoked four packs of cigarettes a day at the time, went to bed (or may have been hospitalized, depending on the source) for a week after its completion, suffering from exhaustion and painful carpet burns. Unfortunately, an accident ruined all of the initial footage, so after a brief rest, O'Connor--ever the professional--agreed to do the difficult number all over again.
After they finished the "Good Morning" number, Debbie Reynolds had to be carried to her dressing room because she had burst some blood vessels in her feet. Despite her hard work on the "Good Morning" number, Gene Kelly decided that someone should dub her tap sounds, so he went into a dubbing room to dub the sound of her feet as well as his own.
Debbie Reynolds was only 19 when she was cast in the film. She lived with her parents at the time and often woke up at 4 AM to get to the studio on time. She also occasionally slept in the studio to avoid the commute.
A microphone was hidden in Debbie Reynolds' blouse so her lines could be heard more clearly. During one of the dance numbers, her heartbeat can be heard, mirroring what happens to Lina Lamont in the movie itself.
Donald O'Connor admitted that he did not enjoy working with Gene Kelly since Kelly was somewhat of a tyrant. O'Connor said that for the first several weeks he was terrified of making a mistake and being yelled at by Kelly.
The Singin' in the Rain dance was completely improvised by Gene Kelley and was the only take done.
The script was written after the songs, and so the writers had to generate a plot into which the songs would fit.
The screenwriters bought a house in Hollywood from a former silent film star who lost his wealth when the innovation of sound film killed his career. This was part of the inspiration for the film.
In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #5 Greatest Movie of All Time.
This was the seventh time the song "Singin' in the Rain" was used on the big screen. In "The Old Dark House", Melvyn Douglas enters singing this song, somewhat inebriated. It was introduced in The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) when it was sung by the MGM roster in front of a Noah's Ark backdrop. A clip from that footage was later used in Babes in Arms (1939). Jimmy Durante sang it briefly in Speak Easily (1932). Judy Garland sang it in Little Nellie Kelly (1940). The song was also featured as an elaborate musical sequence performed by William Bendix and cast in The Babe Ruth Story (1948).
The film rang up a final price tag of $2,540,800, $157,000 of which went to Walter Plunkett's costumes alone. Although the final price overshot MGM's budget by $665,000, the studio quickly realized the wisdom of its investment when the film returned a $7.7-million profit upon its initial release.
Like Lina Lamont, when sound films arrived, many silent screen actors lost their careers because their voices didn't match their screen personas. The most famous example is silent star John Gilbert. However, it wasn't the sound of his voice that killed his career; it was the rumored behind-the-scenes backstabbing (speeding up of his voice by sound technicians, on direct orders from someone with an agenda) and the ridiculously florid lines he had to say. The lines that Gene Kelly's character speaks in "The Dueling Cavalier" are based on the types of lines that killed John Gilbert's career. Gilbert's actual lines as a mock Romeo in the "William Shakespeare Scene" in The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) is an example of this.
The "Broadway Ballet" sequence took a month to rehearse, two weeks to shoot, and cost $600,000, almost a fifth of the overall budget.
For the dream segment within the "Broadway Ballet" sequence, Gene Kelly choreographed a scarf dance, using an enormous 50-foot veil of white China silk attached to Cyd Charisse's costume.
In the steamy "Vamp Dance" segment of the "Broadway Melody Ballet" with Cyd Charisse and Gene Kelly, reviewers from both the Production Code and the Catholic Church's Legion of Decency objected to a brief, suggestive pose or movement between the dancers. Although there is no precise documentation of what or where it was, close examination of footage toward the end of the dance shows an abrupt cut when Charisse is wrapped around Kelly, indicating the probable location.
 
Disney Dad 3000

Disney Dad 3000

Well-Known Member
mickeyfan5534 said:
Hello Imagineers and welcome back to the movie vault! This week's film is one of my personal favorites. Boy meets girl, girl has beautiful voice, costar has a terrible voice. A plan is hatched and hijinks and one of the most famous song sequences in film ensue. That's right, it's Singin' in the Rain starring Gene Kelley, Donald O'Connor, and most importantly, the recently passed Debbie Reynolds in her star making role.
Singing_in_the_rain_poster.jpg

It's a member's choice project this week, and I'm going to let y'all battle it out to decide what it will be. Keep in mind, don't limit yourself to just attractions and theme parks. Go big with your ideas. Our film club stream of Singin' in the Rain will be Tuesday, 10/23 and I've elected to make it the same time as last week's Wizard of Oz stream.

And now for our regularly scheduled facts.
Gene Kelly insulted Debbie Reynolds for not being able to dance. Fred Astaire, who was hanging around the studio, found her crying under a piano and helped her with her dancing.
Debbie Reynolds remarked many years later that making this movie and surviving childbirth were the two hardest things she's ever had to do.
For the "Make Em Laugh" number, Gene Kelly asked Donald O'Connor to revive a trick he had done as a young dancer, running up a wall and completing a somersault. The number was so physically taxing that O'Connor, who smoked four packs of cigarettes a day at the time, went to bed (or may have been hospitalized, depending on the source) for a week after its completion, suffering from exhaustion and painful carpet burns. Unfortunately, an accident ruined all of the initial footage, so after a brief rest, O'Connor--ever the professional--agreed to do the difficult number all over again.
After they finished the "Good Morning" number, Debbie Reynolds had to be carried to her dressing room because she had burst some blood vessels in her feet. Despite her hard work on the "Good Morning" number, Gene Kelly decided that someone should dub her tap sounds, so he went into a dubbing room to dub the sound of her feet as well as his own.
Debbie Reynolds was only 19 when she was cast in the film. She lived with her parents at the time and often woke up at 4 AM to get to the studio on time. She also occasionally slept in the studio to avoid the commute.
A microphone was hidden in Debbie Reynolds' blouse so her lines could be heard more clearly. During one of the dance numbers, her heartbeat can be heard, mirroring what happens to Lina Lamont in the movie itself.
Donald O'Connor admitted that he did not enjoy working with Gene Kelly since Kelly was somewhat of a tyrant. O'Connor said that for the first several weeks he was terrified of making a mistake and being yelled at by Kelly.
The Singin' in the Rain dance was completely improvised by Gene Kelley and was the only take done.
The script was written after the songs, and so the writers had to generate a plot into which the songs would fit.
The screenwriters bought a house in Hollywood from a former silent film star who lost his wealth when the innovation of sound film killed his career. This was part of the inspiration for the film.
In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #5 Greatest Movie of All Time.
This was the seventh time the song "Singin' in the Rain" was used on the big screen. In "The Old Dark House", Melvyn Douglas enters singing this song, somewhat inebriated. It was introduced in The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) when it was sung by the MGM roster in front of a Noah's Ark backdrop. A clip from that footage was later used in Babes in Arms (1939). Jimmy Durante sang it briefly in Speak Easily (1932). Judy Garland sang it in Little Nellie Kelly (1940). The song was also featured as an elaborate musical sequence performed by William Bendix and cast in The Babe Ruth Story (1948).
The film rang up a final price tag of $2,540,800, $157,000 of which went to Walter Plunkett's costumes alone. Although the final price overshot MGM's budget by $665,000, the studio quickly realized the wisdom of its investment when the film returned a $7.7-million profit upon its initial release.
Like Lina Lamont, when sound films arrived, many silent screen actors lost their careers because their voices didn't match their screen personas. The most famous example is silent star John Gilbert. However, it wasn't the sound of his voice that killed his career; it was the rumored behind-the-scenes backstabbing (speeding up of his voice by sound technicians, on direct orders from someone with an agenda) and the ridiculously florid lines he had to say. The lines that Gene Kelly's character speaks in "The Dueling Cavalier" are based on the types of lines that killed John Gilbert's career. Gilbert's actual lines as a mock Romeo in the "William Shakespeare Scene" in The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) is an example of this.
The "Broadway Ballet" sequence took a month to rehearse, two weeks to shoot, and cost $600,000, almost a fifth of the overall budget.
For the dream segment within the "Broadway Ballet" sequence, Gene Kelly choreographed a scarf dance, using an enormous 50-foot veil of white China silk attached to Cyd Charisse's costume.
In the steamy "Vamp Dance" segment of the "Broadway Melody Ballet" with Cyd Charisse and Gene Kelly, reviewers from both the Production Code and the Catholic Church's Legion of Decency objected to a brief, suggestive pose or movement between the dancers. Although there is no precise documentation of what or where it was, close examination of footage toward the end of the dance shows an abrupt cut when Charisse is wrapped around Kelly, indicating the probable location.
Click to expand...

One of my all time favorites. Love the music. Love the comedy. Love the dancing. Just good entertainment.
 

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