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132-458: By the mid-1980s, The Rescuers had become one of Disney's most successful animated releases. Under the new management of Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg , a feature-length sequel was approved, making it the first animated film sequel theatrically released by the studio. Following their duties on Oliver & Company (1988), animators Butoy and Gabriel were recruited to direct the sequel. Research trips to Australia provided inspiration for

264-555: A Who Framed Roger Rabbit franchise. However, the lackluster success of Disney's Animal Kingdom in the years after its opening, general stagnation in Disney's revenues and various corporate issues and disputes would dampen Eisner's later career. In 1993, Katzenberg had lobbied to become Eisner's second in command, which would have meant moving Frank Wells from president to vice chairman, to which Eisner 'replied that Wells would feel "hurt" in that scenario'. Coincidentally, Wells died in

396-450: A King penguin deceiving a captured polar bear into performing in shows aboard a schooner , causing the unsatisfied bear to place a bottle that would reach the mice. Fred Lucky, a newly hired storyboard artist, was assigned to develop the story adaptation, alongside Ken Anderson . This version of the story was dropped, to which Lucky explained the Arctic setting "was too stark a background for

528-482: A box-office bomb and garnered $ 47.4 million worldwide as it opened on the same day as Home Alone (which also features John Candy ) and Rocky V . In the Outback , a young boy named Cody rescues and befriends Marahute, a rare golden eagle , who shows Cody her nest and eggs and gives him one of her feathers. Cody later falls into an animal trap set by Percival C. McLeach, a local poacher who killed Marahute's mate and

660-651: A claymation show called Glenn Martin, DDS . He was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 2012. In March 2017, came the revelation that Eisner was interested in a takeover of Portsmouth F.C. , a football club in the south of England that had fallen on hard times after years of poor ownership, before being taken over by its fans. The club released a statement on March 23, 2017, that Eisner and his Tornante Company were in an exclusivity agreement. On August 3, 2017, came confirmation that Eisner and his Tornante Company had completed their purchase for

792-519: A dragonfly named Evinrude, the mice follow Medusa to the bayou . There, they learn that Medusa plans to force Penny to enter a small blowhole that leads down into a blocked-off pirates ' cave where the Devil's Eye is located. Bernard and Bianca find Penny and devise a plan of escape. They send Evinrude to alert the local animals, who loathe Medusa, but Evinrude is delayed when he is forced to take shelter from

924-562: A mockumentary style show about his takeover of the Topps Company, called "Back on Topps." In January 2022, he sold Topps to Fanatics following its loss of the Major League Baseball licensing rights. His investment firm has funded the critically acclaimed Netflix series BoJack Horseman . The College of Education at California State University, Northridge is named in his honor. In 2009, Eisner used his own money to produce

1056-399: A series of commercial and critical successes . Disney also broadened its adult offerings in film when it acquired Miramax Films in 1993. Under Eisner, Disney acquired many other media sources, including ABC , most of ESPN , Fox Family Channel (now known as Freeform) and The Muppets franchise. The ABC purchase in particular reunited Eisner with his former employer. In the early part of

1188-465: A Studio . The Rescuers was the first Disney animated film to have a sequel. After three successful theatrical releases of the original film, The Rescuers Down Under was released theatrically on November 16, 1990. The Rescuers Down Under takes place in the Australian Outback , and involves Bernard and Bianca trying to rescue a boy named Cody and a giant golden eagle called Marahute from

1320-622: A beautifully animated film that showed Disney still knew a lot about making quality children's fare even as their track record was weakening." They also praised the voice acting of the characters, and stated that the film is "a delight for children as well as adults who appreciate good animation and brisk storytelling." Ellen MacKay of Common Sense Media gave the film four out of five stars, writing, "Great adventure, but too dark for preschoolers". In his book, The Disney Films , film historian Leonard Maltin referred to The Rescuers as "a breath of fresh air for everyone who had been concerned about

1452-479: A bright spot in Disney's post-golden age." On Metacritic , the film has a weighted average score of 74 out of 100 based on 8 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". In 2008, the American Film Institute nominated The Rescuers for its Top 10 Animated Films list . Bernard and Bianca made appearances as meet-and-greet characters at Walt Disney World and Disneyland in the years following

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1584-461: A cloud of bats . The following morning, Medusa and Snoops send Penny down into the cave to find the gem. Unbeknownst to Medusa, Bianca and Bernard are hiding in Penny's dress pocket. The three soon find the Devil's Eye within a pirate skull. As Penny pries the mouth open with a sword, the mice push the gem through it, but soon the oceanic tide rises and floods the cave. The three barely manage to escape with

1716-426: A directing animator, instead of as an assistant animator. Ever since One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), animation for theatrical Disney animated films had been done by xerography , which had only been able to produce black outlines. By the time The Rescuers was in production, the technology had been improved for the cel artists to use a medium-grey toner in order to create a softer-looking line. Sammy Fain

1848-410: A film with heart and also considered it their best film without Walt Disney. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that the film received a 79% approval rating, with an average rating of 6.5/10 based on 33 reviews. The website's consensus states: "Featuring superlative animation, off-kilter characters, and affectionate voice work by Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor, The Rescuers represents

1980-429: A helicopter crash in 1994. When Eisner did not appoint Katzenberg to Wells' now available post, tensions arose between the two that led to Katzenberg's resignation. At the time, Eisner refused to pay Katzenberg his contractual bonus despite Katzenberg's offer to accept $ 60 million as a settlement, much less than was actually owed. Katzenberg was forced to take the issue to court, who ruled in his favor. The final settlement

2112-420: A huge waterfall at the end of the river he threw Cody's backpack into. He ties Cody up and hangs him over the float of crocodiles , intent on feeding Cody to them to eliminate him as a witness. Bernard, riding a razorback pig he tamed using a horse whispering technique he learned from Jake, arrives and disables McLeach's vehicle before he can succeed. McLeach then attempts to shoot the rope holding Cody above

2244-498: A lack of support by Eisner, and left Disney in December 1996, via a "no fault termination" with a severance package of $ 38 million in cash, and 3 million stock options worth roughly $ 100 million, at the time of Ovitz's departure. The Ovitz episode engendered a long-running derivative suit , which finally concluded in June 2006, almost 10 years later. Chancellor William B. Chandler III of

2376-536: A matching design. Because of the rising popularity of Australian-themed action films , and with Americans becoming more environmentally conscious, the filmmakers decided to abandon the musical format from the original film. They had decided that the placement of songs would slow down the pacing for the new film. Instead, they decided to market it as the studio's first action-adventure film, with Butoy and Gabriel taking inspiration from live-action films by Orson Welles , Alfred Hitchcock , and David Lean . It would also be

2508-413: A member of his executive team (which required multiple takes) Eisner "came across as stiff and awkward ... Disney executives ... were pretty much unanimous that the test was a failure....Eisner stubbornly persisted in the face of almost unanimous criticism." Eisner hired Michael Kay, a director of political commercials for then- U.S. Senator Bill Bradley , to help him improve his on-camera performance. As

2640-497: A more adventurous approach to color and background stylization than previous Disney efforts have displayed, with a delicate pastel palette used to wide-ranging effect." Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote that the film "doesn't belong in the same category as the great Disney cartoon features ( Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs , Bambi , Fantasia ) but it's a reminder of a kind of slickly cheerful, animated entertainment that has become all but extinct." Gene Siskel of

2772-413: A new relationship was more compelling and romantic. For the supporting characters, a pint-sized swamp mobile for the mice—a leaf powered by a dragonfly—was created. As they developed the comedic potential of displaying his exhaustion through buzzing, the dragonfly grew from an incidental into a major character. Veteran sound effects artist and voice actor Jimmy MacDonald came out of retirement to provide

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2904-524: A news report of how Penny found the Devil's Eye, which has been given to the Smithsonian Institution while it is implied that Medusa and Mr. Snoops have been arrested. It also mentions she has been adopted . The meeting is interrupted when Evinrude arrives with a call for help, sending Bernard and Bianca on a new adventure. In 1959, the book The Rescuers by Margery Sharp had been published to considerable success. In 1962, Sharp followed up with

3036-456: A pigeon was proposed (specifically one that would be catapulted, repurposing an unused gag from Robin Hood ), until Johnston remembered a True-Life Adventures film featuring albatrosses and their clumsy take-offs and landings, leading him suggest that ungainly bird instead. A scene of the mice preparing for their adventure, with Bianca choosing outfits and Bernard testing James Bond -like gadgets,

3168-445: A recall of about 3.4 million copies of the videotapes because there was a blurry image of a topless woman in the background of a scene. The image appears twice in non-consecutive frames during the scene in which Miss Bianca and Bernard are flying on Orville's back through New York City. The two images could not be seen in ordinary viewing because the film runs too fast—at 24 frames per second. On January 10, 1999, two days after

3300-492: A reported fee of £5.67 million. After college in 1964, he met his future wife, Jane Breckenridge, a Unitarian of Swedish and Scottish descent. They have three sons: Breck , Eric and Anders Eisner. The Rescuers The Rescuers is a 1977 American animated adventure comedy-drama film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution . Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor respectively star as Bernard and Bianca, two mice who are members of

3432-481: A result, The Rescuers Down Under was the first animated film for which the entire final film elements were assembled and completed within a digital environment, as well as the first fully digital feature film. However, the film's marketing approach did not call attention to the use of the CAPS process. The score for the film was composed and conducted by Bruce Broughton . Unlike the vast majority of Disney animated features,

3564-434: A result, Eisner was well-recognized by children at the company's theme parks who often asked him for autographs. During the second half of the 1980s and early 1990s, Eisner revitalized Disney. Beginning with the films Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) which was brought to Disney by Jeffrey Katzenberg and The Little Mermaid (1989) a Ron Clements idea that Eisner originally panned, its flagship animation studio enjoyed

3696-611: A result, Katzenberg decided to recall the film's television advertising. The film eventually earned $ 27.9 million in the United States and $ 47.4 million worldwide, becoming a box-office bomb . In 1991, it was the fourth highest-grossing film in Germany , with admissions of 3.1 million. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes , The Rescuers Down Under has an approval rating of 72%, based on 29 reviews, with an average score of 6.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Though its story

3828-543: A second time. The piece, inspired by Orville's take-off scene in the film, was sculpted by Ruben Procopio . The Rescuers premiered on VHS and LaserDisc on September 18, 1992 as part of the Walt Disney Classics series. The release went into moratorium on April 30, 1993. It was re-released on VHS as part of the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection on January 5, 1999, but due to a scandal

3960-466: A sequel titled Miss Bianca . That same year, the books were optioned by Walt Disney , who began developing an animated film adaptation. In January 1963, story artist Otto Englander wrote a story treatment based on the first book, centering on a Norwegian poet unfairly imprisoned in a Siberia -like stronghold known as the Black Castle. The story was revised with the location changed to Cuba , in which

4092-481: A storybook and trivia as well as an "Animals of the Outback" activity booklet. The Rescuers Down Under was released alongside The Rescuers on Blu-ray in a "2-Movie Collection" on August 21, 2012, to commemorate the first film's 35th anniversary in the United States. During its opening weekend, The Rescuers Down Under grossed $ 3.5 million, ranking fourth, after Home Alone , Rocky V , and Child's Play 2 . As

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4224-577: A string of box-office bombs in the early 2000s, public feuds with former associates such as Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steve Jobs , and dissatisfaction with Eisner's management style culminated in the "Save Disney" campaign organized by Roy E. Disney , during which Eisner rapidly lost the confidence of much of Disney's Board of Directors. As a result of the pressure from the campaign, Eisner announced in March 2005 that he would step down as CEO prematurely, handing day-to-day duties to Bob Iger before formally leaving

4356-487: A stuffed American eagle loaned from the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History and an eagle skeleton. To animate the eagle, Keane and his animation crew enlarged the bird, shrank its head, elongated its neck and wings, and puffed out its chest. Additionally, Keane had to slow the bird's wing movements to about 25–30 percent of an eagle's flight speed. Because of the excessive details on Marahute, who carried 200 feathers,

4488-483: A surprising and unprecedented 43% of Disney's shareholders, predominantly rallied by former board members Roy Disney and Stanley Gold , withheld their proxies to re-elect Eisner to the board. This vote followed a stunning rebuke of Eisner and his executive and chairman practices by both the Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass, Lewis, a shareholder advisory service. Disney's board then gave

4620-579: A telegram is sent to the Rescue Aid Society headquarters in New York City. Bernard and Miss Bianca, the RAS' elite field agents, are assigned to the mission, interrupting Bernard's attempts to propose marriage to Bianca. They go to find Orville the albatross , who aided them before, but discover that he is no longer in service and his brother Wilbur has taken over for him. Despite the harsh winter conditions in

4752-459: A total of $ 169 million after two re-releases in 1983 and 1989. Due to the film's success, a sequel titled The Rescuers Down Under was released in 1990, which made this film the first Disney animated film to have a sequel. In an abandoned riverboat in Devil's Bayou, Louisiana , a 6 year old orphan named Penny drops a message in a bottle , containing a plea for help, into the river. The Rescue Aid Society, an international mouse organization inside

4884-675: A villain in this thing. ' " The villainess and her motive to steal a diamond was adapted from the Diamond Duchess in Miss Bianca . The setting was then changed to the bayous found in the Southern United States . By August 1973, the villainess was named the Grand Duchess with Phyllis Diller cast in the role. A month later, Ken Anderson began depicting Cruella de Vil , the villainess from One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), as

5016-413: Is just a decent movie, one that feels as tiny as its leads." Conversely, Ellen MacKay of Common Sense Media gave the film four out of five stars, writing, "A rare sequel that improves on the original". Like other Disney animated characters, the characters of the film have recurring cameo appearances in the television series House of Mouse . Along with other Walt Disney Animation Studios characters,

5148-497: Is protecting Marahute's eggs; they hatch, and one of the eaglets bites him, to his dismay. The Rescuers Down Under features three characters from the first film; Bernard, Bianca and the Chairmouse, all of whom feature the same actors reprising their roles from the original 1977 film . By 1984, The Rescuers had become one of Disney's most successful recent animated films, earning $ 41 million in worldwide box office rentals. Under

5280-514: Is second-rate, The Rescuers Down Under redeems itself with some remarkable production values – particularly its flight scenes." Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 68 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times awarded the film 3 out of 4 stars and wrote, "Animation can give us the glory of sights and experiences that are impossible in

5412-730: Is underrated". In January 2006, Disney's corporate headquarters in Burbank was renamed to Team Disney – The Michael D. Eisner Building in Eisner's honor. On October 7, 2005, Eisner was a guest host for the Charlie Rose talk show. His guests were John Travolta and his ex-boss, Barry Diller . Impressed with Eisner's performance, CNBC President Mark Hoffman hired Eisner in early 2006 to host his own talk show, Conversations with Michael Eisner . The show mostly featured CEOs, political leaders, artists and actors, until its cancellation in 2009. Eisner

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5544-479: Is wanted by the Australian Rangers , while rescuing a mouse who was the bait in the trap. Realizing Cody has Marahute's feather and must know her location, McLeach kidnaps the boy and throws his backpack to a float of crocodiles . The Rangers find it and believe that Cody has been eaten. The rescued mouse hurries to an RAS outpost shortly after Cody's capture to inform the operator of the kidnapping, from which

5676-442: Is washed over the waterfall to his death. Bernard dives into the water and holds Cody long enough for Jake and Bianca to free Marahute, allowing the eagle to save Cody and Bernard just as they go over the waterfall. Bernard, desperate to prevent any further interruptions, finally proposes to Bianca; she immediately accepts, while Jake salutes him with new-found respect. Safe at last, the group departs for Cody's home. Meanwhile, Wilbur

5808-472: The Chicago Tribune gave the film two-and-a-half stars out of four writing, "To see any Disney animated film these days is to compare it with Disney classics released 30 or 40 years ago. Judged against Pinocchio, for example. The Rescuers is lightweight, indeed. Its themes are forgettable. It's mostly an adventure story." TV Guide gave the film three stars out of five, opining that The Rescuers "is

5940-533: The Star Trek film franchise, Ordinary People , Raiders of the Lost Ark , An Officer and a Gentleman , Flashdance , Terms of Endearment , Beverly Hills Cop , and Footloose , and TV shows such as Happy Days , Laverne & Shirley , Cheers and Family Ties . Diller left Paramount on September 30, 1984, and, as his protégé, Eisner expected to assume Diller's position as studio chief. When he

6072-525: The Delaware Court of Chancery , despite describing Eisner's behavior as falling "far short of what shareholders expect and demand from those entrusted with a fiduciary position...", found in favor of Eisner and the rest of the Disney board because they had not violated the duty of care owed by a corporation's officers and board to its shareholders. Despite his record of success while serving as President, CEO and Chairman of The Walt Disney Company, Eisner

6204-590: The San Diego Zoo to observe kangaroos , kookaburras , and snakes , while an iguana from Walt Disney World's Discovery Island was brought into the studio for the animators drawing Joanna. The Rescuers Down Under is notable for Disney as its first traditionally animated film using only the new computerized CAPS process. CAPS (Computer Animation Production System) was a computer-based production system used for digital ink and paint and compositing , allowing for more efficient and sophisticated post-production of

6336-515: The United Nations , finds the bottle when it washes up in New York City . The Hungarian representative, Miss Bianca, volunteers to accept the case. She chooses Bernard, a stammering janitor, as her co-agent. The two visit Morningside Orphanage, where Penny lived, and meet an old cat named Rufus. He tells them about a woman named Madame Medusa who once tried to lure Penny into her car, prompting

6468-407: The world builder video game Disney Magic Kingdoms , Bernard, Miss Bianca, Penny, Madame Medusa, and Orville appear as playable characters in the main storyline of the game, along with The Rescue Aid Society and Madame Medusa's Riverboat as attractions. Along with other Walt Disney Animation Studios characters, the main characters of the film have cameo appearances in the short film Once Upon

6600-520: The " Nine Old Men " animators, scouted for potential artists who were studying at art schools and colleges throughout the United States. More than 60 artists were brought into the training program. Then, the selected trainees were to create a black-and-white animation test, which were reviewed at the end of the month. The process would continue for several months, in which the few finalists were first employed as in-betweeners working only on nights and weekends. By 1977, more than 25 artists were hired during

6732-758: The 1990s, Eisner and his partners set out to plan "The Disney Decade" which was to feature new parks around the world, existing park expansions, new films, and new media investments. While some of the proposals were completed, most were not. Those completed included the Euro Disney Resort (now Disneyland Paris ) which was vastly over budget, and had low attendance and was acknowledged by Eisner to be his "real financial disappointment", Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney's Hollywood Studios ), Disney's California Adventure Park (now Disney California Adventure ), Disney-MGM Studios Paris (eventually opened in 2002 as Walt Disney Studios Park ), and various film projects including

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6864-455: The CEO-designate. Eisner did not initially promote Iger as a successor until after the board put pressure on Eisner to resign. To reporters and contrary to his actual intentions, Eisner remarked that "I would not have agreed to [leave] if it hadn't been Bob. Because of governance, they wanted a big search and everything. ... And by the end of the search, it was clear that I was able to convince

6996-406: The Devil's Eye diamond. Exactly 1,977 of these sculptures were made, in reference to the film's release year, 1977. The sculpture was priced at $ 299 and instantly declared retired in 2003. In November 2008, a sixth sculpture inspired by the film was released. Made with pewter and resin , Cleared For Take Off introduced the character of Orville into the collection and featured Bernard and Bianca

7128-587: The Disney animated films and making the traditional practice of hand-painting cels obsolete. The animators' drawings and the background paintings were scanned into computer systems instead, where the animation drawings were inked and painted by digital artists. The drawings were later composited with the scanned backgrounds in software to allow for digital compositing like camera positioning, camera movements, multiplane effects, and other camera techniques. Those digital files would then be recorded onto film stock . The film also uses CGI elements throughout, such as

7260-605: The Outback on film. They ventured through the Uluru , Katherine Gorge , and the Kakadu national parks , the inspiration for Hunt's initial designs emphasizing the spectrum of scale between the sweeping vistas and the film's protagonists. Serving as the supervising animator on the eagle character Marahute, Glen Keane studied six eagles residing at the Peregrine Fund in Boise, Idaho , as well as

7392-502: The Rescue Aid Society, an international mouse organization dedicated to helping abduction victims around the world. Both must free 6 year old orphan Penny (voiced by Michelle Stacy) from two treasure hunters (played by Geraldine Page and Joe Flynn ), who intend to use her to help them obtain a giant diamond. The film is based on a series of books by Margery Sharp , including The Rescuers (1959) and Miss Bianca (1962). An early version of The Rescuers entered development in 1962, but

7524-470: The Teddy Bears . Meanwhile, Robbins worked as a personal secretary to actors George Kennedy and Eva Gabor and wrote unpublished poetry. Desiring more contemporary songs for the film, Reitherman called Connors and Robbins into his office and shown them storyboards of Bernard and Bianca flying on Orville. Connors and Robbins then composed "Tomorrow Is Another Day" to accompany the scene. They later composed

7656-594: The VHS edition sold 5.2 million units in the United States, generating $ 72.8 million in revenue. Launching in January 2000, Walt Disney Home Video began the Gold Classic Collection, with The Rescuers Down Under re-issued on VHS and DVD on August 1, 2000. The DVD contained the film in its 1.66:1 aspect ratio enhanced for 16:9 television sets and 4.0 surround sound , and was accompanied with special features, including

7788-540: The acquisitions of ABC , most of ESPN and The Muppets franchise. Eisner also led major investments and expansion of the company's theme parks both domestically and globally, including the openings of Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney's Hollywood Studios) in 1989, Euro Disney (now Disneyland Paris) in 1992, Disney's Animal Kingdom in 1998, Disney's California Adventure Park and Tokyo DisneySea in 2001, Walt Disney Studios Park in 2002 and Hong Kong Disneyland in 2005. Eisner's final years at Disney were tumultuous:

7920-439: The animators." Vance Gerry , also a storyboard artist, also explained director Wolfgang Reitherman "decided not to go with Fred Lucky's version. He said, " 'It's too complicated. I want a simple story: A little girl gets kidnapped and the mice try to get her back, period. ' " According to Burny Mattinson , he stated: "Our problem was that the penguin wasn't formidable or evil enough for the audience to believe he would dominate

8052-551: The background designs. The film would also mark the full use of the Computer Animation Production System (CAPS), becoming the first feature film to be completely created digitally. The software allowed for artists to digitally ink-and-paint the animators' drawings, and then composite the digital cels over the scanned background art. The Rescuers Down Under was released to theaters on November 16, 1990, to positive reviews from critics, but it went on to become

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8184-509: The big bear. We struggled with that for a year or so. We changed the locale to somewhere in America and it was now a regular zoo and we tried to come up with something with the bear in the zoo and needing to be rescued but that didn't work either." In that version, the bear character was still retained, but was renamed Louie the Bear. Jazz singer Louis Prima was cast in the role and had recorded most of

8316-577: The board—our newly constructed board—that Bob was great." Within Disney, though, Eisner was telling Board members that Iger lacked "stature". On September 30, Eisner resigned both as an executive and as a member of the board of directors, and, severing all formal ties with the company, he waived his contractual rights to perks such as the use of a corporate jet and an office at the company's Burbank headquarters. While Eisner did much to stabilize and promote Disney in his early years as CEO, his performance in later years garnered much criticism. "Beginning with

8448-407: The chairmanship position to board member George Mitchell . However, the board did not immediately remove Eisner as chief executive. On March 13, 2005, Eisner announced that he would step down as CEO one year before his contract expired, and handed off day-to-day duties to Bob Iger , who had been serving as Disney's President and Chief Operating Officer and had just been selected by the directors as

8580-531: The character Tito on Oliver & Company , which was met with praise from general audiences, Hendel Butoy was added as the film's co-director. Meanwhile, Schneider recruited Thomas Schumacher , who had worked at the Mark Taper Forum , to serve as producer on the film. As the film's producer, Schumacher selected storyboard artist Joe Ranft to serve as story supervisor, believing he had the "ability to change and transform through excellence of idea". Throughout

8712-467: The character appeared for only seven minutes altogether, during the opening and ending sequences. Furthermore, in order to have the film finished on time, Schumacher enlisted the support of Disney-MGM Studios , which was originally envisioned to produce independent cartoon shorts and featurettes. On their first assignment on a Disney animated feature film, 70 artists contributed ten minutes of screen time, including supervising animator Mark Henn . As one of

8844-579: The character of Wilbur be written as Orville's brother, to serve as his replacement. Intentionally, the names were in reference to the Wright brothers . Members of the production team, including art director Maurice Hunt and six of his animators, spent several days in Australia to study settings and animals found in the Australian Outback to observe, take photographs, and draw sketches to properly illustrate

8976-528: The character's first theatrical appearance after a 30-year absence. The film grossed $ 21 million domestically. In 1989, the film earned $ 21.2 million domestically. The film's total lifetime domestic gross is $ 71.2 million, and its total lifetime worldwide gross is $ 169 million. To tie in with the film's 25th anniversary, The Rescuers debuted in the Walt Disney Classics Collection line in 2002, with three different figures featuring three of

9108-417: The city, he agrees to fly them to Australia as he disapproves of child abduction. There, they meet Jake, a hopping mouse who is the RAS' local regional operative. Jake becomes infatuated with Bianca and flirts with her, much to Bernard's dismay. He serves as their "tour guide" and protector in search of the boy. Wilbur accidentally bends his spinal column out of shape trying to help them, so Jake sends him to

9240-669: The company in September 2005. He went on to create the stop-motion animated sitcom Glenn Martin, DDS in 2009. Eisner was born to an affluent, secular Jewish family in Mount Kisco, New York . His mother, Margaret (née Dammann), whose family founded the American Safety Razor Company , was the president of the Irvington Institute, a hospital that treated children with rheumatic fever . His father, Lester Eisner, Jr.,

9372-418: The company's well-publicized distribution disputes with long-time production partner Pixar Animation Studios and its CEO Steve Jobs , with whom Disney had produced such animated feature film hits as Toy Story , A Bug's Life , Monsters, Inc. , and Finding Nemo , which were critically acclaimed and financially successful for both partners. On March 3, 2004, at Disney's annual shareholders' meeting,

9504-491: The company. Eisner brought in Jeffrey Katzenberg as Walt Disney Studios chairman. A couple of years after becoming chairman and CEO, Eisner became the host of The Wonderful World of Disney , making him the public face of the company as well as its top executive. Eisner was not a performer by profession, and studio management did not believe he could do the hosting job. After filming a test video with his wife Jane and

9636-530: The cost to Disney and the vitriol and publicity they generated, are without parallel in American business history. ... Eisner controlled and manipulated the board by keeping members isolated, preferring to communicate one-on-one; selectively doling out information, access and benefits ... and ruthlessly dispatching anyone who dared challenge him." In his book The Ride of a Lifetime , Bob Iger quotes Eisner answering criticism for micro-managing as saying: "Micromanaging

9768-568: The dialogue and multiple songs that were composed by Floyd Huddleston . The writers also expanded the role of his best friend, Gus the Lion. Huddleston had stated, "It's about two animals. One is Louis Prima — he's the polar bear — and Redd Foxx is the lion ...Louis gets cornered into leaving and going to the South Pole where he can make himself a bigger star. But he gets homesick; he feels fooled. They send out little mice as 'rescuers'." By November 1973,

9900-442: The diamond. Medusa betrays Snoops and hides the diamond in Penny's teddy bear, while holding Penny and Snoops at gunpoint. When she trips over a cable set as a trap by Bernard and Bianca, Medusa loses the bear and the diamond to Penny, who runs away with them. The local animals arrive at the riverboat and aid Bernard and Bianca in trapping Brutus and Nero, then set off Mr. Snoops's fireworks to create more chaos. Meanwhile, Penny and

10032-430: The effects. Additionally, the local swamp creatures were originally written as a dedicated home guard that drilled and marched incessantly. However, the writers rewrote them into a volunteer group of helpful little bayou creatures. Their leader, a singing bullfrog, voiced by Phil Harris , was cut from the film, as were lines characterizing muskrat Ellie Mae as their outspoken boss. For Bernard and Bianca's transportation,

10164-399: The field of flowers in the opening sequence, McLeach's truck, and perspective shots of Wilbur flying above Sydney Opera House and New York City. The CAPS project was the first of Disney's collaborations with computer graphics company Pixar , which would eventually become a feature animation production studio making computer-generated animated films for Disney before being acquired in 2006. As

10296-503: The film as a "bold, rousing but sometimes needlessly intense Disney animated feature" where "good fun is provided by a goofy albatross (voiced by John Candy), one in a long line of silly Disney birds". Janet Maslin , reviewing for The New York Times , praised the animation and the action sequences, though she remained critical of the storyline, labeling it "a trifle dark and un-involving for very small children"; Maslin acknowledged that its "slightly more grown-up, adventurous approach may be

10428-484: The film doesn't make particularly imaginative use of the location. Take away the accents and the obligatory kangaroos and koalas, and the story could have taken place anywhere." In a 2013 review, Josh Spiegel wrote: " The Rescuers Down Under is not the great undiscovered Disney movie, mind you. The film was done in by bad contextual timing and poor scheduling and marketing, and fans of animation would likely enjoy it for its somewhat large scope and setpieces. However, this

10560-483: The film had no songs written for it (although "Message Montage" includes a quotation from "Rescue Aid Society" by Sammy Fain , Carol Connors , and Ayn Robbins , the only musical reference to the first film ). This was the second Disney film not to include any original songs, the first one being The Black Cauldron . The score received positive critical reception, with critics singling out "Cody's Flight" for its sense of majesty, excitement, and freedom. AllMusic gave

10692-437: The film's characters, as well as the opening title scroll. The three figures were sculpted by Dusty Horner and they were: Brave Bianca , featuring Miss Bianca the heroine and priced at $ 75, Bold Bernard , featuring hero Bernard, priced also at $ 75 and Evinrude Base , featuring Evinrude the dragonfly and priced at $ 85. The title scroll featuring the film's name, The Rescuers , and from the opening song sequence, "The Journey,"

10824-534: The film's ten supervising animators, Henn animated several scenes of Bernard, Miss Bianca, and Percival C. McLeach. For the mice characters, Henn studied the mannerisms of Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor during voice recording sessions, and looked to George C. Scott 's performance in Dr. Strangelove (1964) for inspiration while animating McLeach. To create believable realism for the Australian animals, additional animators traveled to

10956-532: The founders of Creative Artists Agency , to be President with minimal involvement from Disney's board of directors (which at the time included Oscar-winning actor Sidney Poitier , the CEO of Hilton Hotels Corporation Stephen Bollenbach , former U.S. Senator George Mitchell , Yale dean Robert A. M. Stern , and Eisner's predecessors Raymond Watson and Card Walker ). Ovitz lasted only 14 months, partly due to outright hostility from Sandy Litvak and Steve Bollenbach and

11088-525: The future of animation at Walt Disney's," praises its "humor and imagination and [that it is] expertly woven into a solid story structure ... with a delightful cast of characters." Finally, he declares the film "the most satisfying animated feature to come from the studio since 101 Dalmatians ." He also briefly mentions the ease with which the film surpassed other animated films of its time. The film's own animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston stated on their website that The Rescuers had been their return to

11220-572: The henchman, the filmmakers adapted the character, Mandrake, into Mr. Snoops. His appearance was caricatured from John Culhane, a journalist, who had been interviewing animators at the Disney studios. Culhane claimed he was practically tricked into posing for various reactions, and his movements were imitated on Mr. Snoops's model sheet. However, he stated, "Becoming a Disney character was beyond my wildest dreams of glory." The writers had considered depicting Bernard and Bianca as married professional detectives, but decided that depicting them as novices in

11352-499: The highest-grossing film in West Germany for 1977, earning $ 6 million during its first 20 days of release. Altogether, it received admissions of 10.3 million. During its release, it earned $ 48–50 million in worldwide gross rentals at the box office. The Rescuers was re-released in 1983 and 1989. During its 1983 re-release, the film was accompanied with the new Mickey Mouse featurette, Mickey's Christmas Carol , which marked

11484-686: The hospital (an old ambulance). Wilbur refuses to undergo surgery (due to the doctor planning to use dangerous tools, such as a chainsaw), but his back is straightened as he fights to escape the medical mice. He flies off in search of his friends. At McLeach's hideout, Cody refuses to divulge Marahute's whereabouts. Realizing that protecting Marahute's eggs is Cody's weak spot, McLeach tricks Cody into thinking someone else killed Marahute and releases him, knowing that Cody will go to her nest. Cody does and McLeach soon captures Marahute along with Cody, Jake, and Bianca. Bernard manages to hide Marahute's eggs from McLeach. McLeach takes his captives to Crocodile Falls,

11616-413: The late '30s, the film is both a triumphant swan song and gladdening act of regeneration." Dave Kehr of The Chicago Reader praised the film as "a beautifully crafted and wonderfully expressive cartoon feature," calling it "genuinely funny and touching." Variety magazine wrote the film was "the best work by Disney animators in many years, restoring the craft to its former glories. In addition, it has

11748-581: The lavish, even reckless spending on Euro Disney, and continuing with the poorly planned and executed foray into the Internet, and perhaps worst of all, the acquisition of the Fox Family cable network - each of which is a more than $ 1 billion mistake - Eisner squandered Disney's assets. ... This is even before considering the exit of Jeffery Katzenberg, the failure to honour his contract, and the hiring and firing of Michael Ovitz, personnel and judgment errors, which, in

11880-456: The main antagonist of the film. Anderson had drawn several sketches of Cruella de Vil sporting alligator-leathered chic attire and sunglasses; one sketch depicted her wearing bell-bottom pants and platform shoes . However, several staff members such as animator Ollie Johnston stated it felt wrong to attempt a sequel for the character. Furthermore, Mattinson explained that Milt Kahl did not want to animate Cruella de Vil. "Milt, of course,

12012-452: The main characters of the film have cameo appearances in the short film Once Upon a Studio . Michael Eisner Michael Dammann Eisner (born March 7, 1942) is an American businessman and former chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company from September 1984 to September 2005. Prior to Disney, Eisner was president of rival film studio Paramount Pictures from 1976 to 1984, and had brief stints at

12144-537: The major television networks NBC , CBS , and ABC . Eisner's 21-year stint at Disney saw the revitalization of the company's poorly performing animation studios with successful films such as The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), and The Lion King (1994), a period known as the Disney Renaissance . Eisner additionally broadened the company's media portfolio by leading

12276-423: The mice commandeer Medusa's swamp-mobile, a makeshift airboat . Medusa unsuccessfully pursues them, using Brutus and Nero as water-skis. As the riverboat sinks from the fireworks' damage, Medusa crashes and is left clinging to the boat's smoke stacks. Mr. Snoops escapes on a raft and laughs at her, while the irritated Brutus and Nero turn on her and circle below. Back in New York City, the Rescue Aid Society watch

12408-436: The mice to investigate her pawn shop for clues. At the pawn shop, Bianca and Bernard discover that Medusa and her partner, Mr. Snoops, are searching for the world's largest diamond , the Devil's Eye. The mice learn that Medusa and Snoops are currently at the Devil's Bayou with Penny, whom they have kidnapped and placed under the guard of two trained crocodiles, Brutus and Nero. With the help of an albatross named Orville and

12540-521: The mice would help the poet escape into the United States. However, as the story became overtly involved in international intrigue, Disney shelved the project as he was unhappy with the political overtones. In August 1968, Englander wrote another treatment featuring Bernard and Bianca rescuing Richard the Lionheart during the Middle Ages . A total of four years were spent working on The Rescuers , which

12672-457: The most coherent, and moving from start to finish, and probably most important of all, it is also the most touching in that unique way fantasy has of carrying vibrations of real life and real feelings." Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote the film "is one of the most rousing and appealing animated features ever made by the Disney studio. The last production for several members of the original feature animation unit assembled by Walt Disney in

12804-415: The national programming director. Eisner moved up the ranks, eventually becoming a senior vice president in charge of programming and development. In 1976, Diller, who had by then moved on to become chairman of Paramount Pictures , recruited Eisner from ABC and made him president and COO of the movie studio. During his tenure at Paramount, the studio produced films such as Saturday Night Fever , Grease ,

12936-413: The new studio management of then-CEO Michael Eisner and studio chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg , it was decided that a feature-length sequel should be produced. Shortly after, the success of Crocodile Dundee (1986) had enhanced the appeal of Australian culture to a mainstream American audience. The new sequel would be set in Australia, for which writing began in 1986. When Oliver & Company (1988)

13068-493: The original film's release. While they currently do not make regular appearances at the American parks, both continue to appear regularly at Tokyo Disney Resort . Like other Disney animated characters, the characters of the film have recurring cameo appearances in the television series House of Mouse . In the Disney Infinity video games, Medusa's Swamp Mobile was introduced as a vehicle in Disney Infinity 2.0 . In

13200-405: The original." TV Guide gave the film two stars out of four, saying, "Three years in the making, it was obviously conceived during the height of this country's fascination with Australia, brought on by Paul Hogan 's fabulously successful Crocodile Dundee (1986). By 1990, the mania had long since subsided, and this film's Australian setting did nothing to enhance its box office appeal. Further,

13332-519: The piano and I play the pencil." During production, both women were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song for " Gonna Fly Now " from Rocky (1976) with Bill Conti . Original songs performed in the film include: Songs heard in the film but not released on the soundtrack include: On June 19, 1977, The Rescuers premiered at the AFI Silver Theatre in Washington, D.C. , and

13464-414: The real world, and one of those sights, in 'The Rescuers Down Under,' is of a little boy clinging to the back of a soaring eagle. The flight sequence and many of the other action scenes in this new Disney animated feature create an exhilaration and freedom that are liberating. And the rest of the story is fun, too." Likewise giving it three stars out of four, Gene Siskel of The Chicago Tribune summarized

13596-639: The reason it does not include the expected musical interludes, but they would have been welcome". A review in Variety felt the film carried "such a mediocre story that adults may duck", but nevertheless wrote that The Rescuers Down Under "boasts reasonably solid production values and fine character voices". Rita Kempley of The Washington Post praised the film as "a gorgeously drawn myth made for plucky children and very brave mice." Halliwell's Film Guide gave it two stars out of four, saying, "[This] slick, lively and enjoyable animated feature [is] an improvement on

13728-546: The recall was announced, the London newspaper The Independent reported: A Disney spokeswoman said that the images in The Rescuers were placed in the film during post-production, but she declined to say what they were or who placed them... The company said the aim of the recall was to keep its promise to families that they can trust and rely on the Disney brand to provide the best in family entertainment. The Rescuers home video

13860-399: The role of Louie the Bear had been heavily scaled back and then eliminated. In one version, the bear was meant to be Bernard and Bianca's connection to Penny. Gerry explained, "We developed the sequence where, while the two mice are searching for clues as to where Penny has been taken, they come across this bear who she had been friends with because the orphanage where Penny was living was near

13992-422: The songs. They also recomposed a new version of the "Rescuers Aid Society" song. Most of the songs they had written for the film were performed by Shelby Flint . Also, for the first time since Bambi (1942), all the most prominent songs were sung as part of a narrative, as opposed to by the film's characters as in most Disney animated films. Describing their collaborative process, Robbins noted "...Carol plays

14124-460: The soundtrack 4.5 out of 5 stars. In 2002, Walt Disney Records reissued the album on compact disc, including the Shelby Flint songs "The Journey", "Someone's Waiting for You" and "Tomorrow Is Another Day" (from The Rescuers ). In 2016, Intrada Records released the complete Broughton score, including material (in italics) not used in the movie. During the film's theatrical release, the film

14256-470: The storyboarding process, Ranft constantly bolstered the creative morale of his crew, but he rarely drew storyboard sequences himself. Ranft also had creative disagreements with the studio's management and marketing executives, including one where he and the story team advocated for an Aboriginal Australian child actor to voice Cody. According to storyboard artist Brenda Chapman , Katzenberg overrode this idea, casting "a little white blonde kid" and giving Cody

14388-474: The studio's first animated film since Bambi (1942) to have an animal rights and environmental message. In December 1988, original cast members Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor were confirmed to be reprising their roles. However, Jim Jordan , who had voiced Orville in the original film, died earlier that same year in April following a fall at his home. In acknowledgment of Jordan's death, Roy E. Disney suggested that

14520-437: The symphonic piece "The Journey" to play during the opening titles. Near the end of the film's production, Reitherman asked artist Mel Shaw to illustrate pastel sketches to accompany the music. Shaw agreed and was assisted by Burny Mattinson. Connors and Robbins wrote another song "The Need To Be Loved", but Reitherman preferred Fain's song "Someone's Waiting for You". He nevertheless asked both women to compose new lyrics for

14652-431: The training program. Among those selected were Glen Keane , Ron Clements , and Andy Gaskill, all of whom would play crucial roles in the Disney Renaissance . Because of this, The Rescuers was the first collaboration between the newly recruited trainees and the senior animators. It would also mark the last joint effort by Milt Kahl, Ollie Johnston, and Frank Thomas , and the first Disney film Don Bluth had worked on as

14784-400: The water, but Bernard tricks Joanna into crashing into McLeach, sending both of them into the water. The crocodiles turn their attention to McLeach and Joanna; behind them, Cody falls into the water as the damaged rope breaks. As Joanna flees to the bank, McLeach fends off and taunts the crocodiles, forgetting about the waterfall until it is too late. He desperately attempts to swim to shore, but

14916-450: The zoo." In the final film, the idea was reduced to a simple scene where Bernard enters a zoo and hears a lion's roar that scares him away. While promoting the release of Robin Hood (1973) in Europe, Reitherman stated: "I took Margery Sharp's books along and there was in there a mean woman in a crystal palace. When I got back I called some of the guys together and I said, 'We've got to get

15048-432: Was $ 280 million. Katzenberg went on to found DreamWorks SKG , with partners Steven Spielberg and David Geffen . Eisner recalled that " Roy E. Disney , who did not like him at all — I forget the reason, but Jeffrey probably did not treat him the way that Roy would have wanted to be treated — said to me, 'If you make him the president, I will start a proxy fight.'" Eisner then recruited his friend Michael Ovitz , one of

15180-401: Was Kahl's last film for the studio, and he wanted his final character to be his best. He was so insistent on perfecting Madame Medusa that he ended up doing almost all the animation for the character himself. The kidnapped child Penny was inspired by Patience, the orphan in the novel. The alligator characters Brutus and Nero was based on the two bloodhounds, Tyrant and Torment, in the novels. For

15312-559: Was a lawyer and regional administrator of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development . His great-grandfather, Sigmund Eisner , established a successful clothing company that was one of the first uniform suppliers to the Boy Scouts of America and his great-grandmother, Bertha Weiss, belonged to an immigrant family that established the town of Red Bank, New Jersey . Eisner has one sister, Margot Freedman. He

15444-515: Was accompanied with the live-action nature documentary film, A Tale of Two Critters (1977). By January 1979, the film had earned $ 15 million in distributor rentals from the United States and Canada, achieving the highest-gross for an animated film during its initial release. The film was the highest-grossing film in France in 1977, out-grossing Star Wars and The Spy Who Loved Me . It received admissions of $ 7.2 million. The film also became

15576-438: Was also an executive producer of the show. In March 2007, Eisner's investment firm, The Tornante Company , launched a studio, Vuguru , that produces and distributes videos for the Internet, portable media devices and cell phones. In October 2007, Eisner, through his Tornante Company investment firm, partnered with Madison Dearborn Partners in the acquisition of Topps Company , the bubble-gum and collectibles firm. He produced

15708-443: Was also known for his habit of integrating much of his Paramount films with Disney. These moves were seen as unfavorable, and led to Eisner’s isolation from other Disney executives by 1995. On November 30, 2003, Roy E. Disney , the son and nephew of co-founders Roy O. Disney and Walt Disney , respectively, resigned from his positions as Disney vice chairman and chairman of Walt Disney Feature Animation . His reasons for resigning

15840-431: Was cut for pacing. On February 13, 1976, co-director John Lounsbery died of a heart attack during production. Art Stevens , an animator, was then selected as the new co-director. After the commercial success of The Aristocats (1970), then-vice president Ron Miller pledged that new animators should be hired to ensure "a continuity of quality Disney animated films for another generation." Eric Larson , one of

15972-445: Was first hired as a lyricist and wrote two original songs "Swamp Volunteers March" and "The Rescuers Aid Society". Meanwhile, the filmmakers had listened to an unproduced musical composed by the songwriting team of Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins . Both women had first met each other in 1973 on a double date. Before then, Connors had co-composed and sang successful songs such as " To Know Him Is to Love Him " and " Hey Little Cobra " with

16104-573: Was his feeling that there was too much micromanagement within the studio, flops with the ABC television network, the company's growing timidity in the theme park business, the Walt Disney Company turning into a "rapacious, soul-less" company, Eisner's refusal to establish a clear succession plan, as well as the studio releasing a string of box-office movie failures starting in the year 2000, such as The Emperor's New Groove and Treasure Planet , and

16236-460: Was made on a budget of $ 7.5 million. During the early 1970s, The Rescuers reentered development as a project for the young animators, led by Don Bluth , with the studio planning to alternate between full-scale "A pictures" and smaller, scaled-back "B pictures" with simpler animation. The animators had selected the most recent book, Miss Bianca in the Antarctic , to adapt from. The new story involved

16368-464: Was nearly complete, Peter Schneider , then-president of Walt Disney Feature Animation, asked supervising animator Mike Gabriel if he would consider directing. At the time, Gabriel declined the offer, stating, "Well, after watching George [Scribner] , it doesn't look like it would be much fun." A few months later, Schneider called Gabriel into his office, and asked him if he would direct The Rescuers Down Under , to which Gabriel accepted. After animating

16500-504: Was passed over for the job, though, he left to look for work elsewhere and lobbied for the position of CEO of The Walt Disney Company . Following the deaths of founders Walt Disney in 1966, and Roy O. Disney in 1971, The Walt Disney Company narrowly survived several takeover attempts. Its shareholders Sid Bass and Roy E. Disney brought in Eisner (as CEO and chairman of the board) and former Warner Bros. chief Frank Wells (as president) to replace Ron W. Miller in 1984 and strengthen

16632-412: Was priced at $ 30. All figures were retired in March 2005, except for the opening title scroll which was suspended in December 2012. The Rescuers was the inspiration for another Walt Disney Classics Collection figure in 2003. Ken Melton was the sculptor of Teddy Goes With Me, My Dear , a limited-edition, 8-inch sculpture featuring the evil Madame Medusa, the orphan girl Penny, her teddy bear "Teddy" and

16764-840: Was raised on Park Avenue in Manhattan. He attended the Allen-Stevenson School kindergarten through ninth grade followed by The Lawrenceville School in 10th through his senior year and graduated from Denison University in 1964 with a bachelor's degree in English. He is a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity and credits much of his success to his time at Keewaydin Canoe Camp for boys in Vermont . After two brief stints at NBC and CBS , Barry Diller at ABC hired Eisner as assistant to

16896-490: Was recalled three days later and reissued on March 23, 1999. The Rescuers was released on DVD on May 20, 2003, as a standard edition, which was discontinued in November 2011. On August 21, 2012, a 35th-anniversary edition of The Rescuers was released on Blu-ray alongside its sequel in a "2-Movie Collection". On January 8, 1999, three days after the film's second release on home video, The Walt Disney Company announced

17028-476: Was reissued on March 23, 1999, with the nudity edited and blocked out. The Rescuers was said to be Disney's greatest film since Mary Poppins (1964), and seemed to signal a new golden age for Disney animation. Charles Champlin of the Los Angeles Times praised the film as "the best feature-length animated film from Disney in a decade or more—the funniest, the most inventive, the least self-conscious,

17160-557: Was released as a double feature with the new Mickey Mouse featurette The Prince and the Pauper . The Rescuers Down Under was released in the Walt Disney Classics video series on September 17, 1991, while The Rescuers was released on VHS a year later on September 18, 1992. Unlike the original film, however, The Rescuers Down Under was not included in the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection line. Both home video releases went into moratorium on April 30, 1993. In its original release,

17292-460: Was shelved due to Walt Disney 's dislike of its political overtones. During the 1970s, the film was revived as a project intended for the younger animators, with the oversight of the senior staff. Four years were spent working on the film. The Rescuers was released on June 22, 1977, to positive critical reception and became a box office success, earning $ 48 million against a budget of $ 7.5 million during its initial theatrical run. It has since grossed

17424-421: Was very strong against that, 'Oh, no no. We're gonna have a new character. I'm not gonna do Cruella'," Mattinson recalled, "Because he felt that Marc [Davis] had animated Cruella beautifully. He was not gonna go and take his character." The new villain was named Madame Medusa, and her appearance was based on Kahl's then-wife, Phyllis Bounds (who was the niece of Lillian Disney ), whom he divorced in 1978. This

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