The Living Desert
Encyclopedia
The Living Desert is a 1953 American nature documentary film which shows the everyday lives of the animals of the desert of the southwestern United States
. The movie was written by James Algar
, Winston Hibler
, Jack Moffitt
(uncredited) and Ted Sears
. It was directed by Algar, with Hibler as the narrator. The film won the 1953 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
It is featured in the 2006 DVD Walt Disney Legacy Collection Volume 2: Lands of Exploration.
, were short subjects.
The film was inspired by 10 minutes of footage shot by N. Paul Kenworthy Jr., a doctoral student at the University of California at Los Angeles. Kenworthy’s footage of a battle between a tarantula
and a wasp
intrigued Disney, who funded a feature-length production following the lives of diverse desert species. Disney was highly supportive of Kenworthy’s work and its impact on nonfiction filmmaking, stating, “This is where we can tell a real, sustained story for the first time in these nature pictures.”
, which he named after the street where his office was located.
The Living Desert received some criticism for bringing unsubtle humor to its scenes of desert life – Bosley Crowther
of The New York Times
called Disney to task for adding jokey musical effects to several of the film’s scenes, including hoedown
music for a sequence involving a scorpion
battle. Nonetheless, the film was a commercial success: the US$300,000 production grossed US$4,000,000 at the box office.
, in addition to winning the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, Disney also won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom
, the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject for The Alaskan Eskimo
and the Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel) for Bear Country
.
In addition to its Oscar, the film also won the International Prize at the 1954 Cannes Film Festival
, an award at the Berlin Film Festival
and a special achievement award from the Golden Globe Awards. In 2000, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry
by the Library of Congress
as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The movie was written by James Algar
James Algar
James Algar was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He received the Disney Legends award in 1998.He was born in Modesto, California and died in Carmel, California.-Selected filmography:...
, Winston Hibler
Winston Hibler
Winston Hibler was an American screenwriter, film producer and director.He was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and died in Burbank, California.-Selected filmography:* Seal Island...
, Jack Moffitt
Jack Moffitt
Jack Moffitt is a computer scientist, software developer and entrepreneur. He is co-author of the GNU GPL licensed streaming media server Icecast and often works on software using XMPP, JavaScript and Erlang. He also worked as executive director of Xiph.Org Foundation and developer of Ogg Vorbis...
(uncredited) and Ted Sears
Ted Sears
Ted Sears was an American animator during The Golden Age of American animation. Sears worked for the Fleischer Studios in the late-1920s and early-1930s, and was hired away from Max Fleischer to work at the Walt Disney studio in 1931.As the first head of Disney's story department, Sears did...
. It was directed by Algar, with Hibler as the narrator. The film won the 1953 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
It is featured in the 2006 DVD Walt Disney Legacy Collection Volume 2: Lands of Exploration.
Production
The Living Desert was the first feature-length film in Disney’s True-Life Adventures series of documentaries focusing on zoological studies; the previous films in the series, including the Academy Award-winning Seal IslandSeal Island
Seal Island is a small land mass located 5.7 km off the northern beaches of False Bay, near Cape Town, in South Africa. The island is so named because of the great number of Cape Fur Seals that occupy it. There are a few sea birds as well. It is an outcrop of the Cape granite and rises no more...
, were short subjects.
The film was inspired by 10 minutes of footage shot by N. Paul Kenworthy Jr., a doctoral student at the University of California at Los Angeles. Kenworthy’s footage of a battle between a tarantula
Tarantula
Tarantulas comprise a group of often hairy and often very large arachnids belonging to the family Theraphosidae, of which approximately 900 species have been identified. Some members of the same Suborder may also be called "tarantulas" in the common parlance. This article will restrict itself to...
and a wasp
Tarantula hawk
A tarantula hawk is a spider wasp which hunts tarantulas as food for its larvae. Tarantula hawks belong to any of the many species in the genera Pepsis and Hemipepsis in the family Pompilidae ....
intrigued Disney, who funded a feature-length production following the lives of diverse desert species. Disney was highly supportive of Kenworthy’s work and its impact on nonfiction filmmaking, stating, “This is where we can tell a real, sustained story for the first time in these nature pictures.”
Release
Prior to the production of The Living Desert, Disney was releasing his films through RKO Radio Pictures. But due to a long-frayed relation with the studio, which had little enthusiasm for the producer's documentary releases, Disney opted to sever his relation with RKO and create his own distribution subsidiary – Buena Vista DistributionBuena Vista Distribution
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures is a motion picture and television feature distribution company owned by Disney Enterprises, Inc. Buena Vista International was the international distribution arm, Buena Vista Home Entertainment was the firm's video and DVD distribution arm, and Buena Vista...
, which he named after the street where his office was located.
The Living Desert received some criticism for bringing unsubtle humor to its scenes of desert life – Bosley Crowther
Bosley Crowther
Bosley Crowther was a journalist and author who was film critic for The New York Times for 27 years. His reviews and articles helped shape the careers of actors, directors and screenwriters, though his reviews, at times, were unnecessarily mean...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
called Disney to task for adding jokey musical effects to several of the film’s scenes, including hoedown
Hoedown
A Hoedown is a type of American folk dance or square dance in duple meter, and also the musical form associated with it.-Overview:The most popular sense of the term is associated with Americans in rural or southeastern parts of the country, particularly Appalachia. It is a dance in quick movement...
music for a sequence involving a scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
battle. Nonetheless, the film was a commercial success: the US$300,000 production grossed US$4,000,000 at the box office.
Honors
The Academy Award that Disney earned for The Living Desert helped the producer make history as the individual with the most Oscar wins in a single year. At the 26th Academy Awards26th Academy Awards
The 26th Academy Awards honored the best in films of 1953.The second national telecast of the Awards show draws an estimated 43,000,000 viewers. Shirley Booth, appearing in a play in Philadelphia, presents the Best Actor award through a live broadcast cut-in, and privately receives the winner's...
, in addition to winning the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, Disney also won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom
Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom
Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom is an educational Adventures in Music animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions, and originally released to theaters by Buena Vista Distribution on November 10, 1953...
, the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject for The Alaskan Eskimo
The Alaskan Eskimo
The Alaskan Eskimo is a 1953 short documentary film produced by Walt Disney. It won an Academy Award at the 26th Academy Awards in 1954 for Documentary Short Subject.-External links:...
and the Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel) for Bear Country
Bear Country
Bear Country was one of the lands at the Disneyland Resort in California.-History:Bear Country existed just beyond the Haunted Mansion on the former Indian Village site. It was created specifically for the Country Bear Jamboree, which opened March 4, 1972...
.
In addition to its Oscar, the film also won the International Prize at the 1954 Cannes Film Festival
1954 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Jean Cocteau *Jean Aurenche *André Bazin *Luis Buñuel*Henri Calef *Guy Desson *Philippe Erlanger *Michel Fourre-Cormeray *Jacques-Pierre Frogerais...
, an award at the Berlin Film Festival
4th Berlin International Film Festival
The 4th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from June 18 to June 29, 1954.-Films in competition:* Det stora äventyret by Arne Sucksdorff* Hobson's Choice by David Lean* Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa...
and a special achievement award from the Golden Globe Awards. In 2000, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
by the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
External links
- The Living Desert at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...