TaleSpin is an American animated television series based in the fictional city of Cape Suzette. It first aired in 1990 as part of The Disney Afternoon starring characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature The Jungle Book. The name of the show is a play on tailspin; the rapid, often fatal, descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral. The two words in the show's name, tale and spin are a way to describe telling a story. The show is one of the nine Disney Afternoon shows to use established Disney characters as the main characters, with the others being Darkwing Duck, DuckTales, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, Goof Troop, Bonkers, Quack Pack, Aladdin, and Timon & Pumbaa.
Background
After a preview of The Disney Afternoon that aired on the Disney Channel in May 1990, the series began its run in September of the same year. The original concept was embodied in the introductory television movie Plunder and Lightning which was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (Prime Time for Programming One Hour or More) in 1991 and was later re-edited into four half-hour episodes for reruns. The show was often seen either on its own as a half-hour show, or as part of the two-hour syndicated series The Disney Afternoon. TaleSpin ended on its 65th episode which ran in 1991, later nominated for another Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (Entire Series) in the same year. However, reruns continued to be shown on the Disney Afternoon through 1994. Afterwards, it was moved to the Disney Channel and later to Toon Disney.
This show is currently airing on:
- Disney Channel: Germany (occasionally), India, Russia, and Serbia
- Disney Cinemagic: France
Several of the characters are loosely based on characters from Disney's animated film version of The Jungle Book: in particular Baloo, the hot-shot pilot hero of the series; Louie, the owner of Baloo's favorite bar; and Shere Khan, a business tycoon who appears in many episodes. Kit seems to be a stand-in for Mowgli, since Baloo calls him by the same nicknames his Jungle Book counterpart called Mowgli, like "Little Britches" and "Baby Bear".
Also, many of the series concepts seem to be based on the 1982 ABC series Tales of the Gold Monkey, including the main concept of a cocky flying boat cargo pilot and his rocky relationship with his girlfriend, his scatterbrained mechanic sidekick, the era and designs of the aircraft and costumes, the Pacific Islands setting, the secondary character relationships, even the visual appearance of the lagoon. Also, the protagonists of both series fly planes named for waterfowl (Cutter's Goose and Sea Duck) and are regular denizens of taverns named "Louie's."
There are also many similarities to Hayao Miyazaki's film Porco Rosso about an anthropomorphic pig who flies a seaplane and fights air pirates. While the film was released in 1992 (two years after TaleSpin had already aired) Porco Rosso is based on Miyazaki's manga, Hikōtei Jidai which was first published in 1989.
The series was largely developed by writers Jymn Magon and Mark Zaslove, who were also the Supervising Producers on the series as well as Story Editors. There were four production teams, each one headed by a Producer/Director: Robert Taylor, Larry Latham, Jamie Mitchell and Ed Ghertner.
Synopsis
- Main article: TaleSpin episode list
TaleSpin is set in the fictional city - state of Cape Suzette (a pun on the pancake dish, Crêpe Suzette), a harbor town protected by giant cliffs through which only a small opening exists. The opening in the cliffs is guarded by anti-aircraft artillery, preventing flying rabblerousers or air pirates from entering the city. Characters in the world of TaleSpin are anthropomorphic animals. The timeframe of the series is never specifically addressed, but appears to be in the mid to late 1930's, probably the year 1937; the helicopter and jet engine are experimental devices and most architecture is reminiscent of the art deco style of that period. World War I ended "nearly 20 years ago", and radio is the primary mass medium (In one episode, the local station is identified as "K-CAPE"). Also, in one episode the characters talk about the newly invented jet-motor and the possibility of flying faster than the speed of sound.
The series centered on the adventures of bush pilot Baloo the bear, whose failing air cargo freight business is bought out by Rebecca Cunningham, and renamed 'Higher For Hire'. An orphan boy and former Air Pirate, the ambitious Kit Cloudkicker, attaches to Baloo and becomes his navigator. He sometimes calls him "Papa Bear". Together, they are the crew of Higher for Hire's only aircraft, a modified Conwing L-16 named the Sea Duck. From there, the series follows the ups and downs of Higher for Hire and its staff, sometimes in the vein of old action-adventure film serials of the 1930s and '40s like Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Their adventures often involve encounters with a gang of Air Pirates led by Don Karnage, representatives of Thembria, which is a parody of the Stalinist Soviet Union inhabited by anthropomorphic warthogs, or other, often even stranger obstacles.
The relationship between Baloo and Rebecca owes something to the screwball comedy films of the 1930's. It's even more closely patterned after the later years of the television sitcom Cheers—in both shows, a buttoned-down businesswoman named Rebecca takes the reins of a struggling company, then hires its previous owner (a fun-loving but irresponsible slacker) to do most of the work for her.
A video game by Capcom was also released on the NES and Game Boy. Sega produced a different version for the Sega Genesis and Sega Game Gear. A third incarnation was produced by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-16.
Famed Uncle Scrooge comic writer and artist Don Rosa contributed with episode 5, "I Only Have Ice for You" and episode 9, "It Came From Beneath the Sea Duck".
Home video releases
- Main article: TaleSpin videography
Controversy
Banned episodes
Two episodes of TaleSpin drew varied amounts of controversy, enough for one episode to be temporarily banned and the other to be permanently banned.
The first of these, the episode "Last Horizons", was temporarily banned and taken off the air. Investigation of the event has since revealed that the reason for its temporary removal was the alleged stereotyping of Asians. The villain in the episode is an anthropomorphic panda Emperor named Wan Lo (voiced by actor Robert Ito) living in a mock-pre-WWII Asian nation called "Panda-La", who takes Baloo into his country to exploit his naiveté and attacks Cape Suzette. There is a reference how their lust for conquest is not shared by all of their species with "Good Pandas especially dislike us."
The fictitious nation may have been a take on Japan, which attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. That incident ushered America's entry into the Second World War.
The second episode, "Flying Dupes" (coincidentally the last of the series) was aired for the first time on August 8, 1992 and immediately pulled from the lineup, not to be seen again for over a decade. It aired once on Toon Disney, possibly by mistake, and has never been re-broadcast since. Considered by Disney to be a banned episode, the apparent reason for this episode's permanent removal from the airwaves is the terrorist theme associated with it. Despite this ban, the episode was aired repeatedly by independent stations, including Seattle-based KSTW-TV and Family Channel in Canada. The two banned episodes are also aired on German TV (dubbed) whenever the series is broadcast.
The general synopsis of the episode begins with Baloo being asked to deliver a goodwill present (a cuckoo clock, he is told) to the High Marshall of Thembria from Cape Suzette. Baloo is unaware until the end of the episode that the package actually contains a time bomb planted by munitions manufacturers who wish to provoke a war between Thembria and Cape Suzette in order to boost weapons sales. It's also possible the 9/11 attacks contributed to the permanent ban.
Voice impersonation
Another controversy related to TaleSpin involved the character Louie. In 2001, the widow of Louis Prima, who had voiced the scat singing orangutan in The Jungle Book, filed suit against Disney for "breach of contract, non-payment of royalties, unjust enrichment, fraud and negligent misrepresentation". At issue were back royalties owed for profits made from video and DVD sales of The Jungle Book and unauthorized use of her husband's voice and its likeness in shows like TaleSpin (Jim Cummings' impersonation of Prima's voice was near-perfect).
Although the case was eventually settled out of court, Disney has since chosen to avoid any further trouble and has refrained from using the character in anything else. It was due to this lawsuit that Louie was conspicuously absent from The Jungle Book 2 (2003); he is the only major Jungle Book character to not appear in the 2003 film. Additionally, an episode of House of Mouse included a similar-looking character referred to as Louie's twin brother, King Larry.
Comics
- Main article: TaleSpin (comic book)
A monthly comic book based on the show was published by Disney Comics in 1991, running for seven issues (eleven, counting a four-issue mini-series based on the series premiere). Bobby JG Weiss was the writer for issues 1-4 and 6-7. As issue 5 was adapted from the episode 41, "The Old Man and the Sea Duck", Weiss only is credited for adaptation.
The comic's cancellation seven months later terminated several planned stories that would have revealed pieces of background for the main characters. Issue 7 explored Kit's past, and how he joined up with the pirates. According to the letter page in #3, a planned story for the comic's annual would have explored the origin of the Iron Vulture. #4-7 would have letters 'answered' by the characters.
Subsequent comic stories were also printed in Disney Adventures from 1990 to 1995, one of which was notably reprinted in the Summer 2006 issue of Disney Adventures Comic Zone Magazine. Two new stories also appeared in The Disney Afternoon comic book published by Marvel Comics.
Fan Video Game
A PC video game is currently being developed by fans, and a prototype version has been released on January 2012. The final game will be an adventure point & click with platform and shoot 'em up levels.
Relationship
At some point during the series, Baloo and Rebecca's relationship matures into a strong friendship. In "It Came from Beneath the Sea Duck", Baloo reluctantly accompanies Rebecca on a shopping spree; in "Her Chance to Dream", Baloo becomes slightly jealous when Rebecca is courted by the ghost of a Victorian era sea captain; in the beginning of "A Star is Torn", the two have a dinner date as "friends". Baloo's statement to Rebecca of "Remember the last time we went out?" suggests that this is not their first date; In "Feminine Air", when Rebecca reveals that she could tell her co-pilot "Tan Margret" was really Baloo in drag, she calls Baloo her "best friend"; "Gruel and Unusual Punishment" both Baloo and Rebecca ready themselves to go the annual Pilot's Ball with her getting a new dress (which is a leftover from "Her Chance to Dream"), and him losing weight when she threatens to take someone else and they get just a little bit closer (but not a lot) in the closing moments of "My Fair Baloo." In addition, at the end of "Lost Horizons," Rebecca clearly shouts with joy at Baloo's escape from certain death, "I love you, Baloo!"
Videos
(Contains some footage that was used in the opening sequence)
Trivia
- Pat Fraley and Ed Gilbert also worked on the unrelated Filmation TV show BraveStarr.
- R.J. Williams and Ed Gilbert also worked on the unrelated TV show Kissyfur.
- The show was originally supposed to be a DuckTales spin-off featuring Launchpad McQuack, but was changed to characters from The Jungle Book due to the success of the 1990 theatrical re-release of the film.
- Even though Talespin was replaced by Aladdin in the Disney Afternoon in 1994, its characters Baloo and Louie still appeared in Mickey's Starland Show which ran until 1996.
- The youngest known male voice is Whitby Hertford, who played the voice of Ernie. [8 years old]
- Jim Cummings did the most male voices for TaleSpin with nearly 40 different voices overall.
- Donald Duck Comics writer Don Rosa wrote two episodes for TaleSpin: "I Only Have Ice For You" and "It Came From Beneath the SeaDuck".
- There were a total of five directors in TaleSpin.
- TaleSpin was the only series to hire an Eastern European writer (Martin Donoff).
- There were a total of just seven story editors for the entire TaleSpin series.
- Jim Cummings is the only voice who plays the role of two of the main characters in TaleSpin. (Don Karnage and Louie.
- TaleSpin was partially based on 80's TV series "Tales Of The Golden Monkey" with Stephen Collins, the dad from "7th Heaven", which was watched a hell of a lot more than "Tales Of The Golden Monkey".
- The series was set in the harbor town of Cape Suzette, a take off on the pancake dish "crepe suzette". Slap your knees in hilarity of that delicious pun. *Wiping away tear*
- TaleSpin's main cast actually came from Disney's 1967 classic "young boy raised by forest creatures that don't violently maul him and him drag his carcass to their young...except for that one tiger that wants to" The Jungle Book. Many were surprised that the titular character of Mowgli, the young wild haired youth was left out of the TaleSpin series as his chemistry with the burly bear Baloo was defined as one of the best parts of the successful film.
External links
- Ask the creator Jymn Magon on TaleSpin Source
- The TaleSpin Sourcepage
- http://cloudkicker.50webs.com/Editorials/40facts.htm
- http://www.cracked.com/funny-1752-talespin/
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