The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)

Directors:

James Algar
Clyde Geronimi

Writers:

Washington Irving (story)
Kenneth Grahame (story)

Release Date:

5 October 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

HEAR BING SING: "THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN" "KATRINA" "ICHABOD CRANE" (original print media ad - all caps)

Plot:

Two animated adaptions of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "The Wind in the Willows."

Plot Keywords:

Headless Horseman | Car | Grand Theft Auto | Teacher | Based On Short Story

Awards:

Won Golden Globe.

Cast

Bing Crosby	...	Narrator (segment "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow")
Basil Rathbone	...	Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")
Eric Blore	...	Mr. Toad (voice)
J. Pat O'Malley	...	Cyril Proudbottom (voice) (as Pat O'Malley)
John McLeish	...	Prosecutor (voice) (as John Ployardt)
Colin Campbell	...	Mole (voice)
Campbell Grant	...	Angus MacBadger (voice)
Claud Allister	...	Rat (voice) (as Claude Allister)
The Rhythmaires	...	Additional voices (voice)

Also Known As:

Ichabod and Mr. Toad (USA) (promotional title)
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (USA) (TV title)
Two Fabulous Characters (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

68 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-3 (2006) | USA:Approved (certificate #12133) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1971)

Company:

Walt Disney Pictures

Trivia:

Disney's original title for the movie was, "Two Fabulous Characters." Apparently, the only reason these two stories are linked together is the fact that their main characters are "prone to disaster".

Goofs:

Continuity: When Mr. Toad first sees a motorcar, his trousers change from grey to orange between shots.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: If you were asked to choose the most fabulous character in English literature, who would it be? Robin Hood? King Arthur? Becky Sharp? Sherlock Holmes? Oliver Twist, perhaps? Well, any one of them would be an excellent choice. Still, for the most fabulous character of all, I would nominate...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Beauty and the Beast (1991)

Soundtrack:

Merrily on Our Way

Two Wild - And Very Different - Rides

From English and American literature come two fabulous characters who will forever excite readers with THE ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD.

This was the last of Disney's compilation or anthology films - a form necessitated by the exigencies of the War years - and is actually a double featurette. Both halves would eventually be spun off into individual short subjects and work very well independently of each other. Their connections are quite tenuous: besides featuring 'fabulous characters' each story showcases a celebrated wild ride - one of which would, indeed, provide a long-lasting 'dark show' attraction at Disneyland.

First up is THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS, which gives a drastically shortened & much revised view of Kenneth Grahame's classic book, focusing entirely on the chapters dealing with the exploits of the marvelous Mr. Toad and the troubles arising from his fixation with motorcars & speed (although much more time is spent showing him in his canary-coloured gypsy cart). As such, it is a fine introduction to Toad Hall, but one can only wonder what Disney would have done with a feature length animated film that included the bucolic charm of the novel, the glories of the Riverbank & the terrors of the Wild Wood as well as the high jinks. The production values are excellent, with narration by the inimitable Basil Rathbone, and Eric Blore & J. Pat O'Malley obviously have a high time voicing the wanton Toad and his equine pal Cyril Proudbottom, but a true fan of Grahame's original creation can't help longing for a little more...

Washington Irving's famous story, THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW, comes alive in the second half of the movie. Bing Crosby's singing narration and the top-notch animation tell a tale of humor and genuine fright. Ichabod Crane, the pedantic pedagogue, is a triumph of the animators' art, while the film's climax - the ride through the Hollow & the appearance of the hideous Hessian - is a celebration of pacing and stylistic understatement. Based on material much shorter than Grahame's, the plot fits into the half hour time slot more easily and still has the luxury of introducing a wholly original & hilarious minor character in the chubby little Tilda, who completely steals the dancing sequence. It is the Horseman, however, who should remain the longest in the viewer's uneasy dreams - the embodiment of every Halloween nightmare.