Babes in Toyland
Victor Herbert's operetta Babes in Toyland brought
classic Mother Goose characters together through story and song.
The opera had already been brought to the silver screen once in
1934 (Laurel and Hardy starred), but Walt Disney felt the time was
right for a new Technicolor version starring Ray Bolger, Tommy
Sands and ex-Mouseketeer Annette Funicello.
Mary Contrary (Funicello) and Tom Piper (Sands) are engaged to
be married, but wicked Barnaby (Bolger) wants Mary as his own. To
achieve his nefarious purposes, Barnaby hires bumbling henchmen
Gonzorgo and Roderigo to drown Tom, but the two decide they could
turn a higher profit by selling Tom to gypsies instead.
Tommy, disguised as an old woman, returns to save Mary, but the
two must first rescue Mary's younger siblings from the Forest of
No Return. The journey carries everyone to Toyland for a climactic
battle involving shrink rays, toy soldiers and Victor Herbert's
rollicking music.
The timeless story was a Christmas treat when Disney released
it in December 1961, and it has remained a family favourite ever
since. A TV-miniseries remake (starring Drew Barrymore, Eileen
Brennan, 'Pat' Morita and then-unknown Keanu Reeves) debuted in
1986, followed by an animated version in 1997.
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