Horton Hears a Who! (TV special)
Encyclopedia
Horton Hears a Who! is a 1970 television half-hour long special based on the Dr. Seuss
book of the same name, Horton Hears a Who!
. It was produced and directed by Chuck Jones
- who previously produced the Seuss special How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
- for MGM Television
. The special contains songs with lyrics by Seuss and music by Eugene Poddany, who would later write songs for Seuss' book, The Cat in the Hat Song Book.
Today, the rights to the special are owned by Turner Entertainment
, as the latter owns the pre-1986 MGM library.
splashing in the watering hole of the Jungle of Nool on the fifteenth of May when he hears a person calling for help. The sound is coming from a small dust speck. , an astronomer
on the speck, believes that there's a world beyond the speck, but the rest of the Whos don't believe him at first. He explains to Horton that the speck is in danger if it's floating around. "A person's a person, no matter how small," says Horton as he decides to save the Whos. But the other jungle
citizens don't believe him as they are unable to see them and can't hear as well. Meanwhile, the citizens of Whoville refuse to believe the existence of Horton, but eventually they do. Jane Kangaroo
, the Wickersham brothers,and the Black-Bottomed Eagle are Horton's main and worst tormentors, but at last, the Whos make themselves heard. At the end of the special, Dr. Hoovey is relaxing in his chair, exhausted from the ordeal, when he sees a small speck of dust and hears a "Help!" on it, and says the final line: "Oh, no!"
and DVD
releases of How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, and was released on its own DVD on March 4, 2008. Bonus features include a songs-only version, the cartoons inspired by Horton Hatches the Egg
, The Butter Battle Book
, and Daisy-Head Mayzie, and the 1994 documentary In Search of Dr. Seuss
. It was also made available in high definition Blu-ray Disc
on October 6, 2009 with all the bonus features except Horton Hatches the Egg, a DVD
of the special, and a Digital Copy
.
Dr. Seuss
Theodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
book of the same name, Horton Hears a Who!
Horton Hears a Who!
Horton Hears a Who! is a 1954 book by Theodor Seuss Geisel, under the name Dr. Seuss. It is the second Seuss book to feature Horton the Elephant, the first being Horton Hatches the Egg...
. It was produced and directed by Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
- who previously produced the Seuss special How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (TV special)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is a 1966 American animated television special directed by Chuck Jones. It is based on the homonymous children's book by Dr. Seuss, the story of The Grinch trying to take away Christmas from the townsfolk of Whoville below his mountain hideaway...
- for MGM Television
MGM Television
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television is an American television production/distribution launched in 1955 and a subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc....
. The special contains songs with lyrics by Seuss and music by Eugene Poddany, who would later write songs for Seuss' book, The Cat in the Hat Song Book.
Today, the rights to the special are owned by Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. is an American media company founded by Ted Turner. Now owned by Time Warner, the company is largely responsible for overseeing its library for worldwide distribution Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. (commonly known as Turner Entertainment Co.) is an American...
, as the latter owns the pre-1986 MGM library.
Plot
Horton is an elephantElephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
splashing in the watering hole of the Jungle of Nool on the fifteenth of May when he hears a person calling for help. The sound is coming from a small dust speck. , an astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
on the speck, believes that there's a world beyond the speck, but the rest of the Whos don't believe him at first. He explains to Horton that the speck is in danger if it's floating around. "A person's a person, no matter how small," says Horton as he decides to save the Whos. But the other jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
citizens don't believe him as they are unable to see them and can't hear as well. Meanwhile, the citizens of Whoville refuse to believe the existence of Horton, but eventually they do. Jane Kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...
, the Wickersham brothers,and the Black-Bottomed Eagle are Horton's main and worst tormentors, but at last, the Whos make themselves heard. At the end of the special, Dr. Hoovey is relaxing in his chair, exhausted from the ordeal, when he sees a small speck of dust and hears a "Help!" on it, and says the final line: "Oh, no!"
Production notes
- Some animated cells featuring noisemaking instruments were reused from the 1966 television special How the Grinch Stole Christmas!How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (TV special)How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is a 1966 American animated television special directed by Chuck Jones. It is based on the homonymous children's book by Dr. Seuss, the story of The Grinch trying to take away Christmas from the townsfolk of Whoville below his mountain hideaway...
. - The Mellomen, including Thurl RavenscroftThurl RavenscroftThurl Arthur Ravenscroft was an American voice actor and singer best known as the deep voice behind Tony the Tiger's "They're grrreat!" in Frosted Flakes television commercials for more than five decades. Ravenscroft was also known, however uncredited, as the vocalist for the song "You're a Mean...
, a singer on How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, performed another song for Horton Hears A Who!. - Both Chuck Jones and Ted Giesel are famous for their styles of eye pupils. Ted Giesel used horseshoe shaped pupils while Chuck Jones used large circular pupils with solid colors. Both of these types of pupils are used in this cartoon as well as the 1966 special, and even a combined pupil.
- The song "Be Kind to Your Small Person Friends" is sung to the tune of "Stars and Stripes Forever".
- This is the last Dr. Seuss TV special and also the last TV special produced by MGM Animation/Visual ArtsMGM Animation/Visual ArtsMGM Animation/Visual Arts was an animation studio established in 1962 by animation director/producer Chuck Jones and producer Les Goldman as Sib Tower 12 Productions...
. In The Cat in the HatThe Cat in the Hat (TV special)The Cat in the Hat is an animated musical television special first aired on CBS on March 10, 1971, based on the 1957 Dr. Seuss' children's book of the same name and produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises...
, the studio change to DePatie-Freleng EnterprisesDePatie-Freleng EnterprisesDePatie-Freleng Enterprises was a Hollywood-based animation production company, active from 1963 to 1981. They produced theatrical cartoons, animated series, commercials, title sequences and television specials. Notable among these is The Pink Panther film titles and cartoon shorts and the Dr....
. - This is also the last Dr. Seuss CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television special to feature the 1966-1970 Cat in the Hat Productions logo. - This is also the last Dr. Seuss CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television special to be directed by Chuck JonesChuck JonesCharles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
. Jones died on February 22, 2002.
Home video releases
The special was frequently included on home video laserdiscLaserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
releases of How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, and was released on its own DVD on March 4, 2008. Bonus features include a songs-only version, the cartoons inspired by Horton Hatches the Egg
Horton Hatches the Egg
Horton Hatches the Egg is a children's book by Dr. Seuss, first published in 1940. The character Horton appeared again in Horton Hears a Who!, published in 1954...
, The Butter Battle Book
The Butter Battle Book
The Butter Battle Book is a rhyming story written by Dr. Seuss. It was published by Random House Books for Young Readers on January 12, 1984. It is an anti-war story; specifically, a parable about arms races in general, mutually assured destruction and nuclear weapons in particular...
, and Daisy-Head Mayzie, and the 1994 documentary In Search of Dr. Seuss
In Search of Dr. Seuss
In Search of Dr. Seuss is a feature film chronicling the adventures of a news reporter who enters the world of Dr. Seuss by opening a magical book. It came to DVD in 2003 and again in 2008 as a bonus feature for the TV movie Horton Hears a Who!.-Plot:A reporter named Kathy Lane comes to Theodor...
. It was also made available in high definition Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
on October 6, 2009 with all the bonus features except Horton Hatches the Egg, a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
of the special, and a Digital Copy
Digital copy
Digital Copy provides consumers who purchase a film on DVD or Blu-ray Disc with an additional, digital copy of the movie for devices capable of operating with a file in contrast to a DVD.-Features:...
.
Cast
- Hans ConriedHans ConriedHans Georg Conried, Jr. was an American comedian, character actor and voice actor.-Early years:He was born on April 15, 1917 in Baltimore, Maryland to Hans Georg Conried, Sr. and Edith Beyr Gildersleeve. His mother was a descendant of Pilgrims, and his father was a Jewish immigrant from Vienna,...
as Narrator / Horton / Dr. H. Hoovey - Chuck JonesChuck JonesCharles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
as Junior Kangaroo / Whizzer McWoff / JoJo - June ForayJune ForayJune Foray is an American voice actress, best known as the voice of many animated characters...
as Jane Kangaroo / Birds - The MellomenThe MellomenThe Mellomen were a popular singing quartet active from the late 1940s through the mid-1970s. The group was founded by Thurl Ravenscroft and Max Smith in 1948. The Mellomen recorded under a variety of names, including Big John & The Buzzards, The Crackerjacks, The Lee Brothers, and The Ravenscroft...
as Wickersham brothers - The MGM Chorus as Whoville
External links
- Horton Hears a Who! at the Internet movie database