Tom thumb (film)
Encyclopedia
Deliberately uncapitalised, tom thumb is a 1958 fantasy
-musical film
directed by George Pal
and released by MGM. It was based on the fairy tale
of the same name
. The film is about a tiny man who manages to outwit two thieves determined to make a fortune from him.
It starred Russ Tamblyn
in the title role, with a largely British
supporting cast (it was filmed in both Hollywood and London
), including Bernard Miles
and Jessie Matthews
as Tom Thumb's adoptive
parents, and comic actors Terry-Thomas
and Peter Sellers
as the villainous duo who try to exploit the tiny hero for profit.
Director Pal worked with cinematographer
Georges Périnal
, animators Wah Chang
and Gene Warren
, art director
Elliot Scott
and special effects artist Tom Howard to create the animated
and fantasy sequences. Ken Jones wrote the music and Peggy Lee
wrote the songs.
The film is referenced in The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
(1962) and Pinkeltje
(1978). The film is also featured in That's Dancing!
(1985)
The film is also known as Der kleine Däumling in West Germany, El pequeño gigante in Spain, Hüvelyk Matyi in Hungary, Le meravigliose avventure di Pollicino in Italy, Les aventures de Tom Pouce in France, O Pequeno Polegar in Brazil, Peukaloinen in Finland and Tummeliten in Sweden.
The filming locations for the movie were in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA and London, England, UK.
, the film won an Oscar for Tom Howard in the category of Best Effects, Special Effects.
At the 1959 BAFTA Awards, Terry Thomas was Nominated for a BAFTA Film Award in the category of Best British Actor.
At the 1959 US Golden Globes, the film was nominated for Best Motion Picture - Musical.
At the 1959 Laurel Awards
, the film was nominated for Top Musical, while Russ Tamblyn was nominated for a Golden Laurel for Top Male Musical Performance.
At the 1959 US Writers Guild of America
Ladislas Fodor was nominated for a WGA Award (Screen) for Best Written American Musical.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
-musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
directed by George Pal
George Pál
George Pal , born György Pál Marczincsak, was a Hungarian-born American animator and film producer, principally associated with the science fiction genre...
and released by MGM. It was based on the fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
of the same name
Tom Thumb
Tom Thumb is a character of English folklore. The History of Tom Thumb was published in 1621, and has the distinction of being the first fairy tale printed in English. Tom is no bigger than his father's thumb, and his adventures include being swallowed by a cow, tangling with giants, and becoming a...
. The film is about a tiny man who manages to outwit two thieves determined to make a fortune from him.
It starred Russ Tamblyn
Russ Tamblyn
Russell Irving "Russ" Tamblyn is an American film and television actor, who is arguably best known for his performance in the 1961 movie musical West Side Story as Riff, the leader of the Jets gang....
in the title role, with a largely British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
supporting cast (it was filmed in both Hollywood and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
), including Bernard Miles
Bernard Miles
Bernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE was an English character actor, writer and director. He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959, the first new theatre opened in the City of London since the 17th century....
and Jessie Matthews
Jessie Matthews
Jessie Matthews, OBE was an English actress, dancer and singer of the 1930s, whose career continued into the post-war period.-Early life:...
as Tom Thumb's adoptive
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
parents, and comic actors Terry-Thomas
Terry-Thomas
Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens was a distinctive English comic actor, known as Terry-Thomas. He was famous for his portrayal of disreputable members of the upper classes, especially cads and toffs, with the trademark gap in his front teeth, cigarette holder, smoking jacket, and catch-phrases such as...
and Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
as the villainous duo who try to exploit the tiny hero for profit.
Director Pal worked with cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
Georges Périnal
Georges Périnal
Georges Périnal was a French cinematographer.- Partial filmography :* The Blood of a Poet * Under the Roofs of Paris * À nous la liberté * Catherine the Great...
, animators Wah Chang
Wah Chang
Wah Ming Chang was a Chinese American designer, sculptor, and artist. He is known primarily for his sculpture and the props he designed for Star Trek , including the tricorder, and communicator...
and Gene Warren
Gene Warren
Gene Warren, Sr. won an Academy Award for the special effects on George Pal's The Time Machine in 1960. He also contributed to such projects as Land of the Lost, Man from Atlantis, and The Crow: City of Angels...
, art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
Elliot Scott
Elliot Scott
Elliot Scott was an English art director. He was nominated for three Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:Scott was nominated for three Academy Awards for Best Art Direction:...
and special effects artist Tom Howard to create the animated
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
and fantasy sequences. Ken Jones wrote the music and Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
wrote the songs.
The film is referenced in The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is a 1962 American film directed by Henry Levin and George Pal. The latter was the producer and also in charge of the stop motion animation. The film was one of the highest grossing films of 1962. It won one Oscar and was nominated for three additional...
(1962) and Pinkeltje
Pinkeltje (film)
Pinkeltje is a 1978 Dutch film directed by Harrie Geelen. The movie is based on the books of Dutch writer Dick Laan about the fictional character Fingerling .-Cast:* Aart Staartjes ...Pinkeltje...
(1978). The film is also featured in That's Dancing!
That's Dancing!
That's Dancing! is a 1985 retrospective documentary produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer that looked back at the history of dancing in film. Unlike the That's Entertainment! series, this film did not focus specifically on MGM films and included more recent performances by the likes of John Travolta and...
(1985)
The film is also known as Der kleine Däumling in West Germany, El pequeño gigante in Spain, Hüvelyk Matyi in Hungary, Le meravigliose avventure di Pollicino in Italy, Les aventures de Tom Pouce in France, O Pequeno Polegar in Brazil, Peukaloinen in Finland and Tummeliten in Sweden.
The filming locations for the movie were in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA and London, England, UK.
Cast
- Russ TamblynRuss TamblynRussell Irving "Russ" Tamblyn is an American film and television actor, who is arguably best known for his performance in the 1961 movie musical West Side Story as Riff, the leader of the Jets gang....
- Tom Thumb - Alan YoungAlan YoungAlan Young is an English-Canadian actor and voice actor, best known for his role as Wilbur Post in the television series Mister Ed and as the voice of Scrooge McDuck in Disney films, TV series and video games...
- Woody - June ThorburnJune ThorburnJune Thorburn was a popular English actress whose career was cut short by her death in an air crash.-Early life:Thorburn was born in Karachi when the city was still in a non-independent India...
- Forest Queen - Terry-ThomasTerry-ThomasThomas Terry Hoar Stevens was a distinctive English comic actor, known as Terry-Thomas. He was famous for his portrayal of disreputable members of the upper classes, especially cads and toffs, with the trademark gap in his front teeth, cigarette holder, smoking jacket, and catch-phrases such as...
- Ivan - Peter SellersPeter SellersRichard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
- Antony - Bernard MilesBernard MilesBernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE was an English character actor, writer and director. He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959, the first new theatre opened in the City of London since the 17th century....
- Jonathan(Tom's Father) - Jessie MatthewsJessie MatthewsJessie Matthews, OBE was an English actress, dancer and singer of the 1930s, whose career continued into the post-war period.-Early life:...
- Anne (Tom's Mother) - Ian WallaceIan Wallace (singer)Ian Bryce Wallace OBE was a British bass-baritone opera and concert singer, actor and broadcaster of Scottish extraction....
- The Cobbler - Peter ButterworthPeter ButterworthPeter William Shorrocks Butterworth was an English comedy actor and comedian, best known for his appearances in the Carry On series of films. He was also a regular on children's television and radio and appeared in seven early episodes of Doctor Who in 1965 as the 'The Meddling Monk'...
- Kapellmeister - Peter BullPeter BullPeter Cecil Bull, DSC was a British character actor.- Biography :He was the fourth and youngest son of Hammersmith MP Sir William James Bull, 1st Bt..Bull was educated at Winchester College...
- Town Crier - Stan FrebergStan FrebergStanley Victor "Stan" Freberg is an American author, recording artist, animation voice actor, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer, and advertising creative director whose career began in 1944...
- Yawning man (voice) - Dal McKennon - Con-Fu-Shon (voice)
Soundtrack
- "tom thumb's Tune"
- Music and Lyrics by Peggy Lee
- Sung and danced by Russ Tamblyn and the Puppetoons
- "After All These Years"
- Music by Fred Spielman
- Lyrics by Janice Torre
- Sung by Jessie Matthews (dubbed by Norma Zimmer)
- "Talented Shoes"
- Music by Fred Spielman
- Lyrics by Janice Torre
- "The Yawning Song"
- Music by Fred Spielman
- Lyrics by Kermit Goell
- Sung by Stan Freberg
- "Are You a Dream"
- Music and Lyrics by Peggy Lee
Awards
At the 1959 US Academy AwardsAcademy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
, the film won an Oscar for Tom Howard in the category of Best Effects, Special Effects.
At the 1959 BAFTA Awards, Terry Thomas was Nominated for a BAFTA Film Award in the category of Best British Actor.
At the 1959 US Golden Globes, the film was nominated for Best Motion Picture - Musical.
At the 1959 Laurel Awards
Laurel Awards
The Laurel Awards were cinema awards to honor pictures, actors, actresses, directors and composers. This award was created by Motion Picture Exhibitor magazine, and ran from 1958 to 1968, then 1970 and 1971....
, the film was nominated for Top Musical, while Russ Tamblyn was nominated for a Golden Laurel for Top Male Musical Performance.
At the 1959 US Writers Guild of America
Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different US labor unions:* The Writers Guild of America, East , representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi....
Ladislas Fodor was nominated for a WGA Award (Screen) for Best Written American Musical.
External links
- Tom Thumb at Rotten Tomatoes
- Tom Thumb at Yahoo! Movies
- Tom Thumb at Answers.com
- Tom Thumb at Turner Classic Movies
- Tom Thumb at Toonerific Cartoons
- Tom Thumb at Soundtrack Collector
- Tom Thumb at Moria.co.nz
- Tom Thumb at RopeOfSilicon.com
- Tom Thumb at Kiddie Matinee
- Tom Thumb at VideoHound's MovieRetriever.com
- Tom Thumb (Der kleine Däumling) at Zelluloid.de (German)
- Tom Thumb (Der kleine Däumling) at MovieMaster.de (German)