Monday, December 22, 2003

Harold von Braunhut

Quite a few folks have e-mailed me links to obits like this one for Harold von Braunhut, the man who invented and marketed the "Amazing Sea Monkeys." Most of the pieces spoke admiringly of his ability to merchandise odd items, and I suppose that's worthy of a salute. But I wonder how many children were traumatized at an early age because they sent their allowances off to order the Amazing Sea Monkeys and learned that advertising does not always convey the exact truth. The Amazing Sea Monkeys were not monkeys and they did not come from the sea. Worse, they did not become goofy little families with hair ribbons and blonde hair and happy (or even any) faces as seen in the ads. (If you'd like to see what a real "Sea Monkey" looks like, go to this site.) Mr. von Braunhut's x-ray specs also did not let you see through walls or clothing, either.

As a matter of fact, if you put on the x-ray specs, you still couldn't see the joyous expressions of the Sea Monkeys, which were about half the size of ants, if that large. Neither purchase gave you more than about three minutes of semi-enjoyment, followed by an overwhelming feeling of having been taken, plus one or more parents saying, "Let this be a valuable lesson to you." That was about all the Sea Monkeys were good for, except that for a time, the Denny's restaurant chain was breading and deep-frying them and serving five on a plate with cole slaw as their Fisherman's Seafood Platter. You know, they weren't bad that way.

• Posted at 11:47 PM · LINK

Unsteady Eddie

I had a pretty good time watching The Haunted Mansion, the new movie based on the Disneyland attraction of the same name. I liked that the special effects blended so seamlessly with reality. I liked that the film started slow and gave you the chance to get to know the people before zombies began chasing them. I liked that Eddie Murphy played a reasonably intelligent person and didn't turn into Mantan Moreland when the ghosts began flying. Come to think of it, I liked that the subtle racial aspects of the plot were never even mentioned.

I especially liked that there was a plot — a fairly solid one, given that the film was based on just about nothing, and that films that are heavy in visual effects often skip over that teensy aspect of moviemaking. (Quick summary: Murphy and his wife, played by Marsha Thomason, are realtors who get the chance to broker a huge, mega-commission mansion. They and their kids get trapped inside for a night along with a spooky butler, the master of the house who thinks Murphy's wife is his long lost love, and a mess of ghosts, one of whom is Wallace Shawn. If I tell you any more than that, I'll kill it for you.)

Let's see...what else did I like? I liked the fact that in the end credits, long after everyone had left and the ushers were sweeping up popcorn boxes around me, I saw the filmmakers make special recognition of the late Paul Frees and the still-with-us Thurl Ravenscroft. Paul, of course, was the narrator of the Disneyland ride, and the opening lines of the film are uttered by Corey Burton, flawlessly imitating Paul. Thurl Ravenscroft is one of Hollywood's great vocalists, best known for providing the voice of Tony the Tiger, and for singing "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch," in the Chuck Jones animation of How the Grinch Stole You-Know-What. Thurl, who will be honored with a special trophy at the Annie Awards in February, was the bass voice on hundreds of records and film soundtracks during his career. This website chronicles a small percentage of his amazing body of work.

Thurl is heard all over Disneyland — on the Disneyland Railroad, in the Pirates of the Carribean, everywhere. In the Haunted Mansion, Thurl is heard as the main voice in the song, "Grim, Grinning Ghosts," and his face is seen on one of the singing busts. (The busts are in the movie, by the way. In fact, they provide a couple of the best moments.)

I don't have a lot more to say about the film because, like I said, you'll enjoy it more if you go in, not knowing what to expect. But it's been a while since I saw a movie so filled with special effects that made me forget I was looking at special effects.

• Posted at 10:28 PM · LINK

Walt Writes

Phil Sears is an autograph collector who specializes in genuine signatures of Walt Disney. Over at his website, he's posted a long, handwritten letter by Walt. It was penned in 1923 and it's to the parents of the little girl who played Alice in his semi-animated films. It's an interesting look into the mind of Mr. Disney and you can see it here.

• Posted at 9:32 PM · LINK

Near Normality

Still getting things repaired. We are running on the new 2.65 version of the Movable Type weblog software, which was released today. (The reason it took so long was that rather than install the previous version, I decided to wait for 2.65.) Anyway, I have to finish an assignment and then I'll get the Search function working again and all will be reasonably back to normal. Thank you for your patience.

• Posted at 7:15 PM · LINK

If You Can Read This...

...then things are almost fixed here.

• Posted at 5:59 PM · LINK