''Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme'' (also known as ''Shelley Duvall's Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme'' or ''Shelley Duvall's Rock in Rhymeland'') is a 1990 American musical

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

that aired on the Disney Channel. The film stars

Shelley Duvall Shelley Alexis Duvall (born July 7, 1949) is an American actress and producer who is known for her portrayals of distinct, often eccentric characters. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Cannes Film Festival Award and a Peab ...

Little Bo Peep "Little Bo-Peep" or "Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep" is a popular English language nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 6487. Lyrics and melody As with most products of oral tradition, there are many variations to the rhy ...

and

Dan Gilroy Daniel Christopher Gilroy (born June 24, 1959) is an American screenwriter and film director. He is best known for writing and directing '' Nightcrawler'' (2014), for which he won Best Screenplay at the 30th Independent Spirit Awards, and was n ...

as Gordon Goose, the son of

Mother Goose The figure of Mother Goose is the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. As a character, she appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as a nursery rhyme. This, howeve ...

, along with a star-studded supporting cast of actors and musicians portraying a wide range of characters, mostly of Mother Goose nursery rhyme fame.

Plot

The film deals with the events surrounding Gordon Goose and Little Bo Peep, who, while still trying to find her sheep, goes to Mother Goose's house for help, only to discover her sudden absence. Bo Peep and Gordon search Rhymeland to flush out what has happened to Mother Goose, all the while watching as many Mother Goose characters begin to mysteriously disappear.

Cast of characters

The film features an all-star cast including: * Harry Anderson as

Peter Piper "Peter Piper" is an English-language nursery rhyme and well-known alliteration tongue-twister. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19745. Lyrics The traditional version, as published in John Harris' ''Peter Piper's Practical Principles of ...

* Brian Bonsall as Michael *

Elayne Boosler {{Orphan, date=July 2021 Elayne is a female given name of French origin, which means "light". The name can be a variant of Elaine or Elena. Elayne may refer to: People * Elayne Angel *Elayne Arrington * Elayne Boosler (born 1952), American comed ...

as Old Mother Hubbard *

Bobby Brown Robert Barisford Brown (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started h ...

Three Blind Mice "Three Blind Mice" is an English-language nursery rhyme and musical round.I. Opie and P. Opie, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1951, 2nd edn., 1997), p. 306. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number o ...

Art Garfunkel Arthur Ira Garfunkel (born November 5, 1941) is an American singer, poet, and actor. He is best known for his partnership with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Highlights of Garfunkel's solo music career include one top-10 h ...

as Georgie Porgie *

Teri Garr Teri Ann Garr (born December 11, 1944) is an American former actress, dancer, and comedian. She frequently appeared in comedic roles throughout her career, which spans four decades and includes over 140 credits in film and television. Her accola ...

as Jill (of

Jack and Jill "Jack and Jill" (sometimes "Jack and Gill", particularly in earlier versions) is a traditional English nursery rhyme. The Roud Folk Song Index classifies the commonest tune and its variations as number 10266, although it has been set to severa ...

) *

as Gordon Goose *

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor and playwright. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

as Lou the Lamb (of

Mary Had a Little Lamb "Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an English language nursery rhyme of nineteenth-century American origin, first published by American writer Sarah Josepha Hale in 1830. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 7622. Background The nursery rhyme was ...

) * Debbie Harry as

The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe "There was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe" is a popular English language nursery rhyme, with a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19132. Debates over its meaning and origin have largely centered on attempts to match the old woman with historical ...

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...

as Mary (of

) * David Leisure as The Newscaster/The Game Show Host * Little Richard as

Old King Cole "Old King Cole" is a British nursery rhyme first attested in 1708. Though there is much speculation about the identity of King Cole, it is unlikely that he can be identified reliably as any historical figure. It has a Roud Folk Song Index num ...

* Stephen Kearney and Neill Gladwin as The Crooked Man & His Dog/Happy 1 & 2 * Howie Mandel as

Humpty Dumpty Humpty Dumpty is a character in an English nursery rhyme, probably originally a riddle and one of the best known in the English-speaking world. He is typically portrayed as an anthropomorphic egg, though he is not explicitly described as such. ...

* Cheech Marin as The Carnival Barker *

Van Dyke Parks Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American musician, songwriter, arranger, and record producer who has composed various film and television soundtracks. He is best known for his 1967 album ''Song Cycle'' and for his collaborations with ...

as The Minister of Merriment *

Katey Sagal Catherine Louise "Katey" Sagal (; born January 19, 1954) is an American actress and singer. She is known for playing Peggy Bundy on '' Married... with Children'' (1987–1997), Leela on ''Futurama'' (1999–2003, 2008–2013, 2023), Cate Hennes ...

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary "Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" is an English nursery rhyme. The rhyme has been seen as having religious and historical significance, but its origins and meaning are disputed. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19626. Lyrics The most common m ...

* John Santucci as All the King's Men (of

) * Garry Shandling as Jack (of

) * Paul Simon as Simple Simon *

Jean Stapleton Jean Stapleton (born Jeanne Murray; January 19, 1923 – May 31, 2013) was an American character actress of stage, television and film. Stapleton was best known for playing Edith Bunker, the perpetually optimistic and devoted wife of Arc ...

Stray Cats Stray Cats are an American rockabilly band formed in 1979 by guitarist and vocalist Brian Setzer, double bassist Lee Rocker, and drummer Slim Jim Phantom in the Long Island town of Massapequa, New York. The group had numerous hit singles in th ...

(

Brian Setzer Brian Robert Setzer (born April 10, 1959) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly group Stray Cats, and returned to the music scene in the early 1990s with ...

Lee Rocker Lee Rocker (born Leon Drucker, August 3, 1961) is an American musician. He is a member of the rockabilly revival band Stray Cats. He is the son of the classical clarinetists Stanley Drucker, the late former principal clarinetist of the New Yo ...

, &

Slim Jim Phantom James McDonnell (born March 21, 1961), known by the stage name Slim Jim Phantom, is the drummer for Stray Cats. Alongside bandmates Brian Setzer and Lee Rocker, he spearheaded the neo-rockabilly movement of the early 1980s. Phantom currentl ...

) as Georgie Porgie's House Band *

Ben Vereen Benjamin Augustus Vereen (born October 10, 1946) is an American actor, dancer and singer. Vereen gained prominence for his performances in the original Broadway productions of the musicals '' Jesus Christ Superstar'', for which he received a T ...

as Itsy Bitsy Spider *

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, they comprised vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and vocalist-bassist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top developed a signature sou ...

(

Billy Gibbons William Frederick Gibbons (born December 16, 1949) is an American musician who is the guitarist and lead singer of the rock band ZZ Top. He began his career in the band the Moving Sidewalks, which recorded a full-length album entitled, ''Flas ...

, Joe Hill, & Frank Beard) as Three Men in a Tub *

Pia Zadora Pia Zadora (born Pia Alfreda Schipani, May 4, 1954) is an American actress and singer. After working as a child actress on Broadway, in regional theater, and in the film ''Santa Claus Conquers the Martians'' (1964), she came to national attention ...

as Little Miss Muffet Special guest appearances * Vance Colvig Jr. *

Paul Daniels Newton Edward Daniels (6 April 1938 – 17 March 2016), known professionally as Paul Daniels, was an English magician and television presenter. He achieved international fame through his television series ''The Paul Daniels Magic Show'', which ...

The Del Rubio Triplets The Del Rubio Triplets were an American folk/acoustic cover band who rose to fame in the 1980s due mostly to their Camp (style), campy style of dress and their cover versions of songs. They earlier performed from the 1940s through the 1960s as The ...

Warren DeMartini Warren Justin DeMartini (born April 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist for glam metal band Ratt, which achieved international stardom in the 1980s. Early life DeMartini was born on April 10, 1963, in Chicago, ...

Dweezil Zappa Dweezil Zappa (born Ian Donald Calvin Euclid Zappa; September 5, 1969) is an American rock guitarist and occasional actor. He is the son of musical composer and performer Frank Zappa. Exposed to the music industry from an early age, Dweezil deve ...

, Randy Jackson & Stephen Bray as The

Metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

Band, "The Dank" * Jennifer Evans * Seymour Heller

Changes for ''Rock 'N' Rhymeland'' (TV version)

Several edits and changes were made to the audio, musical score, and video for the TV edit. A non-comprehensive list of some of these variations appears below: * Parts of the film play in a different order: :* "Mary Had a Little Lamb" :* "Little Miss Muffet" :* "Jack & Jill" * Several scenes were completely cut: :* Mary Quite Contrary complaining about her garden :* Old Mother Hubbard and her diner :* Gordon rearranging his wardrobe :* Gordon's remark about summer vacation :* Mary and her lamb disappearing after Little Bo Peep and Gordon leave :* The Old Woman in the shoe reprimanding her many children by saying, "wait till your fathers get home," implying she has had many partners. :* Introductory speech for Old King Cole * Various music-related edits were added: :* Onscreen lyrics during the "Gordon, Won't You Come Out and Play?" dungeon metal band scene are featured with a " bouncing ball" format to follow along. :* Different musical score during the Crooked Man Chase, the Itsy Bitsy Spider scenes, the Little Miss Muffet scene, and the Cow Jumped Over the Moon scenes :* Alternative music mix for the Del Rubio Triplets opening "Hop to It" :* Alternative intro to Bobby Brown's "Three Blind Mice" :* More present and different musical score, with background music playing through most of the film as opposed to various non-musical moments in the uncut version. :* The end credits: The uncut version features an original song while the TV version features a longer version of Little Richard's "Party with the King."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mother Goose Rock 'N' Rhyme 1990 television films 1990 films 1990s adventure films 1990s fantasy comedy films 1990s musical comedy films American adventure comedy films American children's comedy films American fantasy comedy films American musical comedy films Films based on nursery rhymes Peabody Award-winning broadcasts Disney Channel original films Films about size change Films scored by Van Dyke Parks 1990 comedy films 1998 comedy films 1998 films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films