Walt Disney and Europe: European Influences on the Animated Feature Films of Walt Disney [Hardcover]

Robin R. Allan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 31, 1999

Concentrating on the classic animated feature films produced under Walt Disney's personal supervision, Robin Allan examines the European influences on some of the most beloved Disney classics from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to The Jungle Book. This lavishly illustrated volume is based on archival research and extensive interviews with those who worked closely with Walt Disney.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Europe and its culture profoundly influenced Disney in the making of animated feature films from Snow White to Jungle Book and in his creation of Disneyland. Fourteen of the 17 animated features Disney produced before his death in 1966 had European (mainly folktale) sources: artistically Disney and his animators borrowed freely from the European masters (e.g., Busch, Daumier, Doré (Dore), Grandville), and he enticed artists, musicians, and writers (Dalí (Dali), Huxley, Stokowski, among many) to leave the continent to work at his studio. The European influence was also evident in Disney's WW II propaganda shorts, which drew on the satire and allegory of European political cartoons (Hogarth, Rowlandson, and Gillray; contemporaries David Low, Louis Raemakers, and George Grosz). There is no more competent researcher to handle this subject than Allan, who has dedicated most of his life to studying Disney. He combines meticulous research -- 50 interviews with Disney's relatives and coworkers, multiple screenings of animated features, extensive use of Disney archives -- with scrupulous attention to detail and accuracy and a lively, anecdote -- strewn account to give a fascinating new dimension to Disney and his work. Including hundreds of beautifully reproduced color and black -- and -- white illustrations and a 20 -- page bibliography, this book is a welcome addition to the literature on the booming field of animation.J. A. Lent, University of Western Ontario, Choice, July 2000

"There is no more competent researcher to handle this subject than Allan, who has dedicated most of his life to studying Disney. He combines meticulous research... with scrupulous attention to detail and accuracy and a lively, anecdote-strewn account to give a fascinating new dimension to Disney and his work. Including hundreds of beautifully reproduced color and black-and-white illustrations and a 20-page bibliography, this book is a welcome addition to the literature on the booming field of animation." -- Choice, July 2000

About the Author

Robin Allan lectures in film, drama, and English at Inter Theatre in Derbyshire, U. K. He has published a number of articles on Disney and two children's books.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: John Libbey Publishing (October 31, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 025333652X
• ISBN-13: 978-0253336521
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,357,459 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must read" for film buffs and Disney fans., February 3, 2000

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Walt Disney and Europe: European Influences on the Animated Feature Films of Walt Disney (Paperback)

Robin Allan's Walt Disney And Europe: European Influences On The Animated Feature Films Of Walt Disney is carefully based on archival research and extensive interviews with those who worked closely with Walt Disney. Concentrating on the classic animated feature films produced under Walt Disney's personal supervision, Walt Disney And Europe examines the European influences on some of the most beloved Disney classics from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" to "The Jungle Book". With its painstaking attention to detail and meticulous research, Walt Disney And Europe will prove to be of immense interest to students of cinematic history in general, and the work of the Disney Studios in particular.