One Hundred and One Dalmatians
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''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (also simply known as ''101 Dalmatians'') is a 1961 American
animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...
adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
produced by
Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...
and based on the 1956 novel ''
The Hundred and One Dalmatians ''The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' is a 1956 children's novel by Dodie Smith about the kidnapping of a family of Dalmatian puppies. It was originally serialized in ''Woman's Day'' as ''The Great Dog Robbery'', and details the adventures of ...
'' by
Dodie Smith Dorothy Gladys "Dodie" Smith (3 May 1896 – 24 November 1990) was an English novelist and playwright. She is best known for writing ''I Capture the Castle'' (1948) and the children's novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1956). Other works ...
. The 17th Disney animated feature film, it was directed by
Hamilton Luske Hamilton Somers Luske (October 16, 1903 – February 19, 1968) was an American animator and film director. Career He joined the Walt Disney Productions animation studio in 1931 and he was soon trusted enough by Walt Disney to be made supervising ...
,
Clyde Geronimi Clito "Clyde" Geronimi (June 12, 1901 – April 24, 1989), known as Gerry, was an American animation director. He is best known for his work at Walt Disney Productions. Biography Geronimi was born in Chiavenna, Italy, immigrating to the United S ...
and
Wolfgang Reitherman Wolfgang Reitherman (June 26, 1909 – May 22, 1985), also known and sometimes credited as Woolie Reitherman, was a German–American animator, director and producer and one of the " Nine Old Men" of core animators at Walt Disney Productions. H ...
and written by Bill Peet, and features the voices of Rod Taylor, Cate Bauer,
Betty Lou Gerson Betty Lou Gerson (April 20, 1914 – January 12, 1999) was an American actress, predominantly active in radio but also in film and television and as a voice actress. She is best known as the original voice of Cruella de Vil from the Disney anima ...
, Ben Wright, Lisa Davis, and
Martha Wentworth Verna Martha Wentworth (June 2, 1889 – March 8, 1974) was an American actress. Her vocal variety led to her being called the "Actress of 100 Voices". Biography Wentworth was born on June 2, 1889 in New York City. After graduating from ...
. The film's plot follows a litter of Dalmatian puppies who are kidnapped by the villainous
Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...
("deVille"), who wants to make their fur into coats. Their parents, Pongo and Perdita, set out to save their puppies from Cruella, in the process of rescuing 84 additional ones that were bought in pet shops, bringing the total of Dalmatians to 101. The film was originally released in theaters on January 25, 1961, and was a box office success, pulling the studio out of the financial slump caused by ''
Sleeping Beauty ''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess cu ...
'', a costlier production released two years prior, and became the eighth highest-grossing film of the year in the North American box office. Aside from its box-office revenue, the employment of inexpensive animation techniques—such as using
xerography Xerography is a dry photocopying technique. Originally called electrophotography, it was renamed xerography—from the roots el, ξηρός, label=none ''xeros'', meaning "dry" and -γραφία ''-graphia'', meaning "writing"—to emphasize ...
during the process of inking and painting traditional animation cels—kept production costs down. Disney later released a live-action remake titled '' 101 Dalmatians'' in 1996 and its sequel '' 102 Dalmatians'' in 2000. A
direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...
animated sequel to the 1961 film titled '' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure'' was released in 2003. A live-action reboot titled '' Cruella'' directed by
Craig Gillespie Craig Gillespie (born 1 September 1967) is an Australian-American film, television, music video, and commercial director. He is best known for directing the films ''Lars and the Real Girl'' (2007), ''Fright Night'' (2011), ''I, Tonya'' (2017) ...
was released on May 28, 2021, in theaters and on
Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...
with Premier Access
simultaneously Simultaneity may refer to: * Relativity of simultaneity, a concept in special relativity. * Simultaneity (music), more than one complete musical texture occurring at the same time, rather than in succession * Simultaneity, a concept in Endogene ...
.


Plot

Aspiring songwriter Roger Radcliffe lives in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, in a bachelor flat with his pet dalmatian, Pongo. Deciding both of them need a "mate", Pongo watches women and their dogs in the street. Noticing Anita and her Dalmatian Perdita, he drags Roger to the park to arrange a meeting. Roger and Anita fall in love, and soon marry, with Pongo and Perdita attending. The pair hires a
nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...
and moves to a small townhouse near
Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
. After Perdita becomes pregnant with a litter of 15 puppies, Anita's fur-obsessed former schoolmate,
Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...
, arrives and demands to know when the puppies will arrive. Roger responds by writing a jazzy song mocking her. When the puppies are born, Cruella returns, demanding to buy them. Roger firmly denies her request; Cruella swears revenge, and storms out. A few months later, Cruella hires brothers Horace and Jasper Baddun, two
burglar Burglary, also called breaking and entering and sometimes housebreaking, is the act of entering a building or other areas without permission, with the intention of committing a criminal offence. Usually that offence is theft, robbery or murd ...
s, to steal the puppies. When Scotland Yard is unable to find the puppies, Pongo and Perdita use the "Twilight Bark", a canine gossip line, to solicit help from the other dogs in London. Colonel, an
old English sheepdog The Old English Sheepdog is a large breed of dog that emerged in England from early types of herding dog. Obsolete names for the breed include Shepherd's Dog and . The nickname ''Bob-tail'' (or ''Bobtail'') originates from how dogs of the bre ...
, along with his compatriot Sergeant Tibbs, a tabby cat, investigate the nearby "Old De Vil Place", where puppies had been heard barking two nights earlier. Tibbs learns they are going to be made into dog-skin
fur coat Fur clothing is clothing made from the preserved skins of mammals. Fur is one of the oldest forms of clothing, and is thought to have been widely used by people for at least 120,000 years. The term 'fur' is often used to refer to a specific i ...
s, after which Colonel sends word back to London. Pongo and Perdita leave through a back window and begin a long cross-country journey, crossing an icy river and running through the snow towards Suffolk. Meanwhile, Tibbs overhears Cruella ordering the Badduns to kill the puppies that night out of fear the police will soon find them. In response, Tibbs helps the puppies escape through a hole in the wall, but the Baddun brothers notice and give chase. Pongo and Perdita break into the house and confront the Baduns just as they are about to kill the puppies. While the adult dogs attack the two men, Colonel and Tibbs guide the puppies from the house. After a happy reunion with their own puppies, Pongo and Perdita discover there are 84 more puppies with them. Shocked at Cruella's plans, they decide to adopt all of them, certain that Roger and Anita would never reject them. The Dalmatians start their homeward trek, pursued by the Baddun brothers. They take shelter from a blizzard in a
dairy farm Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a history th ...
with a friendly
collie Collies form a distinctive type of herding dogs, including many related landraces and standardized breeds. The type originated in Scotland and Northern England. Collies are medium-sized, fairly lightly-built dogs, with pointed snouts. Man ...
and three cows, then make their way to Dinsford, where they meet a Black Labrador waiting for them in a
blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...
's shop. Cruella and the Baddun brothers arrive, prompting Pongo to have his entire family roll in a
soot Soot ( ) is a mass of impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons. It is more properly restricted to the product of the gas-phase combustion process but is commonly extended to include the residual pyrolysed ...
y fireplace to disguise themselves as other Labradors. The Labrador helps them board a moving van bound for London, but melting snow falls on Lucky and clears the soot off of him. Enraged, Cruella pursues the van in her car and rams it, but the Baduns, who try to cut it off from above, end up colliding with her. Both vehicles crash into a ditch. Cruella yells in frustration as the van drives away. In London, a depressed Nanny and the Radcliffes try to enjoy
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
, and the wealth they have acquired from the song about Cruella, which has become a big radio hit. The soot-covered Dalmatians suddenly flood the house. Upon removing the soot and counting the massive family of dogs, Roger chooses to use his songwriting royalties to buy a big house in the country so they can keep all 101 dalmatians.


Cast

* Rod Taylor as Pongo, Roger's pet, Perdita's mate, and the father of 15, and adopted father of the eighty-four orphaned puppies. * Lisa Daniels and Cate Bauer as Perdita, Anita's pet, Pongo's mate, and the mother of 15 and adopted mother of 84 orphaned puppies. She is an amalgamation of the characters "Perdita" and "Missis" from the original novel. *
Betty Lou Gerson Betty Lou Gerson (April 20, 1914 – January 12, 1999) was an American actress, predominantly active in radio but also in film and television and as a voice actress. She is best known as the original voice of Cruella de Vil from the Disney anima ...
as
Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...
, a spoiled heiress who "worships fur" and hates being denied or disobeyed. She drives a burgundy car similar to a
Mercedes-Benz 500K The Mercedes-Benz 500K (W29) is a grand touring car built by Mercedes-Benz between 1934 and 1936. First exhibited at the 1934 Berlin Motor Show, it carried the factory designation W29. Distinguished from the 500 sedan by the "K" for ''Kompress ...
Cabriolet. **Gerson also voiced Miss Birdwell, a panelist on the show "What's My Crime?". **
Mary Wickes Mary Wickes (born Mary Isabella Wickenhauser; June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American actress. She often played supporting roles as prim, professional women, secretaries, nurses, nuns, therapists, teachers and housekeepers, who made ...
served as Cruella's live-action model. * Ben Wright as Roger Radcliffe, Pongo's owner and Anita's husband. He works as a songwriter and later creates a hit song about Cruella de Vil, whom he dislikes and does not trust. ** Bill Lee provided Roger's singing voice. * Lisa Davis as Anita Radcliffe, Perdita's owner and Roger's wife. She is, like Perdita, a gentle person. She feels inclined to give Cruella the benefit of the doubt, as they went to school together. **
Helene Stanley Helene Stanley (born Dolores Diane Freymouth; July 17, 1929 – December 27, 1990) was an American actress. She is best known for being the live model for Cinderella, Aurora, and Anita Radcliffe. Early life Stanley was born in Gary, Indiana. ...
served as Anita's live-action model. *
Frederick Worlock Frederick Worlock (December 14, 1886 – August 1, 1973) was a British-American actor. He is known for his work in various films during the 1940s and 1950s, and as the voice of Horace in '' One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1961). Career On st ...
as Horace Baddun, one of the Baddun brothers. He is more intelligent than his brother (he figures out all the dogs' plots) but completely cowed by Jasper's overwhelming personality into thinking he is stupid. He loves "What's My Crime?", a spoof of the then-popular TV gameshow ''
What's My Line? ''What's My Line?'' is a panel game show that originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent U.S. revivals. The game uses celebrity panelis ...
''. **Worlock also voiced Inspector Graves, a panelist on the show "What's My Crime?". * J. Pat O'Malley as Jasper Baddun, one of the Baddun brothers. He is a fast talker and aggressive bully who completely disregards the possibility of intelligence in dogs. He also loves "What's My Crime?" and drives a brown van with loose/broken fenders. **O'Malley also voiced the Colonel, an Old English Sheepdog who is part of the Twilight Bark. He, Tibbs, and Captain allow the Dalmatian family to stay in their barn one night and attack the Badduns to buy Pongo and Perdy time to escape. *
Martha Wentworth Verna Martha Wentworth (June 2, 1889 – March 8, 1974) was an American actress. Her vocal variety led to her being called the "Actress of 100 Voices". Biography Wentworth was born on June 2, 1889 in New York City. After graduating from ...
as Nanny, the Radcliffes' elderly cook and housekeeper. She is very maternal and fussy, detests Cruella, and is very attached to the puppies. **Wentworth also voiced Queenie, one of three cows who allow the puppies to stay in their barn and drink their milk. **Wentworth voiced Lucy the White Goose as well. Lucy is a friend of Old Towser. *
Thurl Ravenscroft Thurl Arthur Ravenscroft (; February 6, 1914May 22, 2005) was an American actor and bass singer. He was known as one of the booming voices behind Kellogg's Frosted Flakes animated spokesman Tony the Tiger for more than five decades. He was al ...
as Captain, a
gray horse A gray horse (or grey horse) has a coat color characterized by progressive depigmentation of the colored hairs of the coat. Most gray horses have black skin and dark eyes; unlike some equine dilution genes and some other genes that lead to depig ...
who aids Pongo, Perdy, Sergeant Tibbs and Colonel. *
David Frankham David Frankham (born 16 February 1926) is a British retired actor. After serving in India and British Malaya, Malaya in the Second World War, Frankham worked first as a news reader, and then a writer, interviewer and producer for the BBC from 1 ...
as Sergeant Tibbs, a
tabby cat A tabby is any domestic cat (''Felis catus'') with a distinctive 'M'-shaped marking on its forehead; stripes by its eyes and across its cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail; and (differing by tabby type), characteristic striped, d ...
who is the first to discover the puppies' whereabouts and masterminds their escape from the Old de Vil Place. *
Mimi Gibson Mimi Gibson is an American real estate agent and a former child actress, from 1951 to 1968. Early life After the early death of her father, her mother, Agnes Gibson, took Mimi and her sister to Los Angeles. At only 18 months, she was a popular c ...
as Lucky, one of Pongo and Perdita's litter, who has a horseshoe of spots on his back. He loves watching TV and struggles the most on the journey home. * Barbara Beaird as Rolly, a puppy who is always hungry and is shown as pudgier than the rest of the puppies. He even risks stealing food from Horace and is usually in some trouble. * Mickey Maga as Patch, a puppy who loves Thunderbolt and has a spot on his eye. Patch is often seen barking and growling at threats. He is the main character of '' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure''. * Sandra Abbott as Penny. * Tudor Owen as Old Towser, a
bloodhound The bloodhound is a large scent hound, originally bred for hunting deer, wild boar and, since the Middle Ages, for tracking people. Believed to be descended from hounds once kept at the Abbey of Saint-Hubert, Belgium, in French it is called, ...
who helps spread the news about the stolen puppies. * George Pelling as Danny, a
Great Dane The Great Dane is a large sized dog breed originating from Germany. The Great Dane descends from hunting dogs from the Middle Ages used to hunt wild boar and deer, and as guardians of German nobility. It is one of the largest breeds in the worl ...
who aids Pongo and Perdita and is one of the first dogs to answer Pongo's Twilight Bark message. *
Junius Matthews Junius Conyers Matthews (June 12, 1890 – January 18, 1978) was an American actor in films, theater, radio and television. He was the voice of Archimedes the Owl in Disney's ''The Sword in the Stone (1963 film), The Sword in the Stone'' in 196 ...
as Scottie, Danny's terrier friend. *
Queenie Leonard Queenie Leonard (born Pearl Walker; 18 February 1905 – 17 January 2002) was a British actress. She was the last surviving cast member of ''And Then There Were None'' (1945) until her death in 2002. Biography She was born as Pearl Walk ...
as Princess, one of the three cows who help the puppies. *
Marjorie Bennett Marjorie Bennett (15 January 1896 – 14 June 1982) was an Australian actress who worked mainly in the United Kingdom and the United States. She began her acting career during the silent film era. Career Bennett was born in York in Western ...
as Duchess, one of the three cows who help the puppies. *
Barbara Luddy Barbara Luddy (May 25, 1908 – April 1, 1979) was an American actress best known for her voiceover work for Walt Disney Studios in the 1950s and 1970s. Biography Born in Great Falls, Montana, Luddy was the daughter of Will and Molly Luddy of ...
as Rover, one of the 84 Dalmatian puppies that Cruella bought. * Rickie Sorensen as Spotty, one of the 84 Dalmatian puppies that Cruella bought. *
Tom Conway Tom Conway (born Thomas Charles Sanders, 15 September 1904 – 22 April 1967) was a British film, television, and radio actor remembered for playing private detectives (including The Falcon, Sherlock Holmes, Bulldog Drummond, and The Saint) ...
as the
Collie Collies form a distinctive type of herding dogs, including many related landraces and standardized breeds. The type originated in Scotland and Northern England. Collies are medium-sized, fairly lightly-built dogs, with pointed snouts. Man ...
, who offers the Dalmatians shelter for the night at a
dairy farm Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a history th ...
. ** Conway also voiced the Quizmaster, the host of "What's My Crime?". * Ramsay Hill as the Labrador Retriever in Dinsford, who helps load the puppies into the moving van. * Paul Wexler as the Mechanic who fixes the van. *
Basil Ruysdael Basil Spaulding Millspaugh (July 24, 1878 – October 10, 1960), known as Basil Ruysdael, was an American actor and opera singer. Early life Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, as Basil Spaulding Millspaugh, Ruysdael was the son of Dr and Mrs Char ...
as the driver of the moving van. *
Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...
as Dirty Dawson, the villain in the "Thunderbolt" TV show. Frees has no spoken dialogue in the film, only laughter. *
Lucille Bliss Lucille Theresa Bliss (March 31, 1916 – November 8, 2012) was an American actress, known in the Bay Area and in Hollywood as the "Girl With a Thousand Voices". A New York City native, Bliss lent her voice to numerous television characters, in ...
as TV Commercial Singer, who sings the "Kanine Krunchies" jingle.


Production


Story development

Dodie Smith wrote the book ''
The Hundred and One Dalmatians ''The Hundred and One Dalmatians'' is a 1956 children's novel by Dodie Smith about the kidnapping of a family of Dalmatian puppies. It was originally serialized in ''Woman's Day'' as ''The Great Dog Robbery'', and details the adventures of ...
'' in 1956. When
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
read it in 1957, it immediately grabbed his attention, and he promptly obtained the rights. Smith had always secretly hoped that Disney would make it into a film. Disney assigned Bill Peet to write the story, which he did, marking the first time that the story for a Disney animated film was written by a single person. Writing in his autobiography, Peet was tasked by Disney to write a detailed screenplay first before storyboarding. Because Peet never learned to use a typewriter, he wrote the initial draft by hand on legal paper. He condensed elements of the original book while enlarging others, some of which included eliminating Cruella's husband and cat, as well merging the two mother Dalmatians, birth mother Missis and adopted mother Perdita, into one character. Another notable character loss was Cadpig, the female runt of Pongo and Missis' puppies, whose traits were transferred between Lucky and the newly established Penny in the film (although it is never indicated outright that Cadpig was dropped); the Colonel's cat assistant was re-gendered from being a female by the name of Lieutenant Willow in the book, and Horace Baddun was renamed from Saul to presumably make him sound more akin in tone to Jasper. Bill Peet did retain a scene in which Pongo and Perdita exchange wedding vows in unison with their owners, by which the censor board warned that it might offend certain religious audiences if the animals repeated the exact words of a solemn religious ceremony. The scene was reworked to be less religious with Roger and Anita dressed in formal clothes. Two months later, Peet completed the manuscript and had it typed up. Walt said the script was "great stuff" and commissioned Peet to begin storyboarding. Additionally, Peet was charged with recording the voice-over process. Although Disney had not been as involved in the production of the animated films as frequently as in previous years nevertheless, he was always present at story meetings. When Peet sent Dodie Smith some drawings of the characters, she wrote back saying that he had improved her story and that the designs looked better than the illustrations in the book.


Animation


Art direction

After ''
Sleeping Beauty ''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess cu ...
'' (1959) disappointed at the box-office, there was some talk of closing down the animation department at the Disney studio. During the production of it, Disney told animator
Eric Larson Eric Cleon Larson (September 3, 1905 – October 25, 1988) was an American animator for the Walt Disney Studios starting in 1933, and was one of the " Disney's Nine Old Men". Biography Born in Cleveland, Utah, Larson was the son of Dani ...
: "I don't think we can continue; it's too expensive." Despite this, he still had deep feelings towards animation because he had built the company upon it.
Ub Iwerks Ubbe Ert Iwwerks (March 24, 1901 – July 7, 1971), known as Ub Iwerks ( ), was an American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, and special effects technician. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Iwerks grew up with a contentiou ...
, in charge of special processes at the studio, had been experimenting with
Xerox Xerox Holdings Corporation (; also known simply as Xerox) is an American corporation that sells print and electronic document, digital document products and services in more than 160 countries. Xerox is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut (ha ...
photography to aid in animation. By 1959, he had modified a Xerox camera to transfer drawings by animators directly to animation cels, eliminating the inking process, thus saving time and money while preserving the spontaneity of the penciled elements. However, because of its limitations, the camera was unable to deviate from a black scratchy outline and lacked the fine lavish quality of hand inking. Disney would first use the Xerox process for a thorn forest in ''Sleeping Beauty'', and the first production to make full use of the process was ''
Goliath II ''Goliath II'' is a 1960 American animated comedy short film produced by Walt Disney Productions. Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman and written by Bill Peet, it is narrated by Sterling Holloway and stars the voices of Kevin Corcoran, Barbara Jo A ...
''. For ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'', one of the benefits of the process was that it was a great help towards animating the spotted dogs. According to Chuck Jones, Disney was able to complete the film for about half of what it would have cost if they had had to animate all the dogs and spots. Ken Anderson proposed the use of the Xerox on ''Dalmatians'' to Walt, who was disenchanted with animation by then, and replied "Ah, yeah, yeah, you can fool around all you want to". For the stylized art direction, Anderson took inspiration from British cartoonist
Ronald Searle Ronald William Fordham Searle, CBE, RDI (3 March 1920 – 30 December 2011) was an English artist and satirical cartoonist, comics artist, sculptor, medal designer and illustrator. He is perhaps best remembered as the creator of St Trinian's S ...
, who once advised him to use a Mont Blanc pen and India ink for his artwork. In addition to the character animation, Anderson also sought to use Xerography on "the background painting because I was going to apply the same technique to the whole picture." Along with color stylist
Walt Peregoy Alwyn Walter "Walt" Peregoy (November 17, 1925 – January 16, 2015) was an American artist who was a color stylist and background artist for animated cartoons. Among the studios he worked for were Walt Disney Productions 1951–1964, 1974–19 ...
, the two had the line drawings be printed on a separate animation cel before being laid over the background, which gave the appearance similar to the Xeroxed animation. Disney disliked the artistic look of the film and felt he was losing the "fantasy" element of his animated films. In a meeting with Anderson and the animation staff concerning future films, Walt said, "We're never gonna have one of those goddamned things" referring to ''Dalmatians'' and its technique, and stated, "Ken's never going to be an art director again." Ken Anderson took this to heart, but Walt eventually forgave him on his final trip to the studio in late 1966. As Anderson recalled in an interview:
He looked very sick. I said, "Gee, it's great to see you, Walt," and he said, "You know that thing you did on ''Dalmatians''." He didn't say anything else, but he just gave me this look, and I knew that all was forgiven and in his opinion, maybe what I did on ''Dalmatians'' wasn't so bad. That was the last time I ever saw him. Then, a few weeks later, I learned he was gone.


Live-action reference

As with the previous Disney films, actors provided live-action reference in order to determine what would work before the animation process begun. Actress
Helene Stanley Helene Stanley (born Dolores Diane Freymouth; July 17, 1929 – December 27, 1990) was an American actress. She is best known for being the live model for Cinderella, Aurora, and Anita Radcliffe. Early life Stanley was born in Gary, Indiana. ...
performed the live-action reference for the character of Anita. She did the same work for the characters of
Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
and Princess Aurora in ''Sleeping Beauty''. Meanwhile,
Mary Wickes Mary Wickes (born Mary Isabella Wickenhauser; June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American actress. She often played supporting roles as prim, professional women, secretaries, nurses, nuns, therapists, teachers and housekeepers, who made ...
provided the live-action reference for Cruella de Vil.


Character animation

Marc Davis was the sole animator on Cruella De Vil. During production, Davis claimed her character was partly inspired by
Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...
(no relation),
Rosalind Russell Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...
, and
Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several prominent films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's '' L ...
. He took further influence from her voice actress,
Betty Lou Gerson Betty Lou Gerson (April 20, 1914 – January 12, 1999) was an American actress, predominantly active in radio but also in film and television and as a voice actress. She is best known as the original voice of Cruella de Vil from the Disney anima ...
, whose cheekbones he added to the character. He later complimented, " at ervoice was the greatest thing I've ever had a chance to work with. A voice like Betty Lou's gives you something to do. You get a performance going there, and if you don't take advantage of it, you're off your rocker". While her hair coloring originated from the illustrations in the novel, Davis found its disheveled style by looking "through old magazines for hairdos from 1940 till now". Her coat was exaggerated to match her oversized personality, and the lining was red because "there's a devil image involved".


Casting

Before starring in high-profile roles such as '' The Birds'' and ''
The Time Machine ''The Time Machine'' is a science fiction novella by H. G. Wells, published in 1895. The work is generally credited with the popularization of the concept of time travel by using a vehicle or device to travel purposely and selectively for ...
'', Australian actor Rod Taylor had extensive radio experience and then was cast as Pongo. The filmmakers deliberately cast dogs with deeper voices than their human owners, so they had more power. Walt Disney originally had Lisa Davis read for the role of Cruella De Vil, but she did not think that she was right for the part, and wanted to try reading the role of Anita. Disney agreed with her after the two of them read the script for a second time. Betty Lou Gerson, who was previously the narrator for ''
Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
'', auditioned for the role of Cruella De Vil in front of Marc Davis and sequence director
Wolfgang Reitherman Wolfgang Reitherman (June 26, 1909 – May 22, 1985), also known and sometimes credited as Woolie Reitherman, was a German–American animator, director and producer and one of the " Nine Old Men" of core animators at Walt Disney Productions. H ...
, and landed it. While searching for the right accent of the character, Gerson landed on a "phony theatrical voice, someone who's set sail from New York but hasn't quite reached England". During the recording process, she was thought to be imitating
Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several prominent films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's '' L ...
. However, Gerson disputed, "Well, I didn't intentionally imitate her...I was raised in Birmingham, Ala., and Tallulah was from Jasper, Ala. We both had phony English accents on top of our Southern accents and a great deal of flair. So our voices came out that way". In addition to voicing Mrs. Birdwell, Gerson finished recording in fourteen days.


Music

To have music involved in the narrative, Peet used an old theater trick by which the protagonist is a down-and-out songwriter. However, unlike the previous animated Disney films at the time, the songs were not composed by a team, but by
Mel Leven Melville A. Leven (11 November, 1914–17 December, 2007) was an American composer and lyricist who had a long association with the Walt Disney Company, although he also wrote songs for Peggy Lee ("Every Time"), The Andrews Sisters ("Commoners B ...
who composed both lyrics and music. Previously, Leven had composed songs for the UPA animation studio in which animators, who transferred to work at Disney, had recommended him to Walt. His first assignment was to compose "Cruella de Vil," of which Leven composed three versions. The final version used in the film was composed as a "bluesy number" before a meeting with Walt in forty-five minutes. The other two songs included in the film are "Kanine Krunchies Jingle" (sung by
Lucille Bliss Lucille Theresa Bliss (March 31, 1916 – November 8, 2012) was an American actress, known in the Bay Area and in Hollywood as the "Girl With a Thousand Voices". A New York City native, Bliss lent her voice to numerous television characters, in ...
, who voiced Anastasia Tremaine in Disney's 1950 film ''
Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
''), and "Dalmatian Plantation" in which Roger sings only two lines at its closure. Leven had also written additional songs that were not included in the film. The first song, "Don't Buy a Parrot from a Sailor," a
cockney Cockney is an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term "Cockney" has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End, or ...
chant, was meant to be sung by Jasper and Horace at the De Vil Mansion. A second song, "Cheerio, Good-Bye, Toodle-oo, Hip Hip!" was to be sung by the dalmatian puppies as they make their way into London. A third song titled "March of the One Hundred and One" was meant for the dogs to sing after escaping Cruella by van. Different, longer versions of "Kanine Krunchies Jingle" and "Dalmatian Plantation" appear on the
Disneyland Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its r ...
read-along album based on the film. The Sherman Brothers wrote a title song, "One Hundred and One Dalmatians", but it was not used in the film. The song has been released on other Disney recordings, however.


Release

''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' was first released in theaters on January 25, 1961. The film was re-released theatrically in 1969, 1979, 1985, and 1991. The 1991 reissue was the 20th highest-grossing film of the year for domestic earnings.


Home media

''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' was first released on VHS on April 10, 1992, as part of the
Walt Disney Classics Walt Disney Classics (also known as The Classics from Walt Disney Home Video) is a discontinued video line launched by Walt Disney Telecommunications and Non-Theatrical Company to release Disney animated features on home video. The last title i ...
video series. By June 1992, it had sold 11.1 million copies. At the time, it was the sixth best-selling video of all time. It was re-released on March 9, 1999, as part of the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection video series. Due to technical issues, it was later released on
LaserDisc The LaserDisc (LD) is a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium, initially licensed, sold and marketed as DiscoVision, MCA DiscoVision (also known simply as "DiscoVision") in the United States in 1978. Its diam ...
and was delayed numerous times before its release on DVD. The film was re-released on VHS, and for the first time on DVD, in December 1999, as a Walt Disney Limited Issue for a limited 60-day time period before going into moratorium. A two-disc Platinum Edition DVD was released on March 4, 2008. It was released on Blu-ray Disc in the United Kingdom on September 3, 2012. A Diamond Edition Blu-ray of the film was released in North America on February 10, 2015. A Limited Edition from Disney Movie Club was released on Blu-ray and DVD combo on November 6, 2018. Then it was re-released on HD digital download and Blu-ray on September 24, 2019, as part of the Walt Disney Signature Collection.


Reception


Box office

During its initial theatrical run, the film grossed $14 million in the United States and Canada, which generated $6.2 million in distributor rentals. It was also the most popular film of the year in France, with admissions of 14.7 million ranking tenth on their all-time list. The film was re-released in 1969, where it earned $15 million. In its 1979 theatrical re-release, it grossed $19 million, and in 1985, the film grossed $32 million. During its fourth re-release in 1991, it grossed $60.8 million. Prior to 1995, the film had grossed $86 million overseas. In 1995, it grossed $71 million overseas bringing its international total to $157 million. The film's total domestic lifetime gross is $145 million, and its total worldwide gross is $303 million. Adjusted for inflation, and incorporating subsequent releases, the film has a lifetime gross of $900.3 million.


Critical reaction

In its initial release, the film received critical acclaim from critics, many of whom hailed it as the studio's best release since ''
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is a 19th-century German fairy tale that is today known widely across the Western world. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' and numbered as T ...
'' (1937) and the closest to a real "Disney" film in many years. Howard Thompson of ''
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'' wrote, "While the story moves steadily toward a stark, melodramatic "chase" climax, it remains enclosed in a typical Disney frame of warm family love, human and canine". However, he later opined that the " ngs are scarce, too. A few more would have braced the final starkness". ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' claimed that "While not as indelibly enchanting or inspired as some of the studio's most unforgettable animated endeavors, this is nonetheless a painstaking creative effort". ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' praised the film as "the wittiest, most charming, least pretentious cartoon feature Walt Disney has ever made". ''
Harrison's Reports ''Harrison's Reports'' was a New York City-based motion picture trade journal published weekly from 1919 to 1962. The typical issue was four letter-size pages sent to subscribers under a second-class mail permit. Its founder, editor and publisher ...
'' felt all children and adults will be "highly entertained by Walt Disney's latest, a semi-sophisticated, laugh-provoking, all cartoon, feature-lengther in Technicolor." Dodie Smith also enjoyed the film where she particularly praised the animation and backgrounds of the film. Contemporary reviews have remained positive. Reviewing the film during its 1991 re-release, Roger Ebert of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago ...
'', while giving the film three stars out of four, asserted that "it's an uneven film, with moments of inspiration in a fairly conventional tale of kidnapping and rescue. This is not one of the great Disney classics - it's not in the same league with ''Snow White'' or ''Pinocchio'' - but it's passable fun, and will entertain its target family audiences." ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
'' film critic Gene Siskel, in his 1991 review, also gave the film three stars out of four. Ralph Novak of ''
People A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
'' wrote "What it lacks in romantic extravagance and plush spectacle, this 1961 Disney film makes up for in quiet charm and subtlety. In fact, if any movie with dogs, cats, and horses who talk can be said to belong in the realm of realistic drama, this is it". However, the film did receive a few negative reviews. In 2011, Craig Berman of
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ranked it and its 1996 remake as two of the worst children's films of all time, saying that, "The plot itself is a bit nutty. Making a coat out of dogs? Who does that? But worse than Cruella de Vil's fashion sense is the fact that your children will definitely start asking for a Dalmatian of their own for their next birthday". The
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website
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
reported the film received an approval rating of based on reviews with an average score of . The website's critical consensus reads, "With plenty of pooches and a memorable villain (Cruella De Vil), this is one of Disney's most enduring, entertaining animated films."
Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...
ranked 39th on AFI's list of "100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains".


Legacy


Live-action remake and its sequel

Since the original release of the film, Disney has taken the property in various directions. The earliest of these endeavors was the 1996 live-action remake, '' 101 Dalmatians'', which starred
Glenn Close Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Close has garnered numerous accolades, including two Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards ...
as Cruella De Vil. Unlike the original film, none of the animals had speaking voices in this version. Its success in theaters led to '' 102 Dalmatians'', released on November 22, 2000.


TV series

After the first live-action version of the film, an animated series titled '' 101 Dalmatians: The Series'' was launched. The characters' designs were stylized further to allow for economic animation and to appeal to contemporary trends. '' 101 Dalmatian Street'' is the second TV series with a plot in the 21st century, with a new art style and a concept loosely based on the source material. Set 60 years after the original animated film, the show focuses on Dylan and Dolly, (who are both descendants of Pongo and Perdita) caring for their 97 younger siblings who all live without a human in Camden Town.


Sequel

'' 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure'', the official sequel to the original animated film, was released
direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy wa ...
on January 21, 2003.


Live-action reboot

In 2021, Disney released another live-action film that focuses on the origin of
Cruella de Vil Cruella de Vil is a fictional character in British author Dodie Smith's 1956 novel '' The Hundred and One Dalmatians''. A pampered and glamorous London heiress and fashion designer, she appears in Walt Disney Productions' 17th animated feature ...
. Emma Stone plays Cruella and
Alex Timbers Alex Timbers (born August 7, 1978) is an American writer and director and the recipient of Tony, Golden Globe, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and London Evening Standard Awards, as well as two OBIE and Lucile Lortel Awards. He is the recipie ...
was in negotiations to direct the film, but he left directing duties for ''Cruella'' due to scheduling conflicts and was replaced by the ''
I, Tonya ''I, Tonya'' is a 2017 American biographical film directed by Craig Gillespie and written by Steven Rogers. It follows the life and career of the American figure skater Tonya Harding and her connection with the 1994 attack on her rival Nancy ...
'' director
Craig Gillespie Craig Gillespie (born 1 September 1967) is an Australian-American film, television, music video, and commercial director. He is best known for directing the films ''Lars and the Real Girl'' (2007), ''Fright Night'' (2011), ''I, Tonya'' (2017) ...
in December 2018. Emma Thompson portrays Baroness von Hellman, while
Paul Walter Hauser Paul Walter Hauser (born October 15, 1986) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his supporting roles in the films '' Cruella'', ''I, Tonya'', '' Late Night'', ''BlacKkKlansman'', and ''Da 5 Bloods''. In 2019, Hauser had his breakout ...
joined the project, revealed to be as Horace, with Joel Fry cast as Jasper. The film was originally scheduled to be released on December 23, 2020, but was delayed to May 28, 2021.


See also

*
List of highest-grossing animated films Included in the list are charts of the top box-office earners, a chart of high-grossing animated films by the calendar year, a timeline showing the transition of the highest-grossing animated film record, and a chart of the highest-grossing animate ...
*
List of highest-grossing films in France The following is a list of the films with the most cinema admissions in France, as of 31 July 2022. :''Background colour indicates films currently in cinemas The website for the above table lists ''La Grande Illusion'' (1937) with an estimated ...
* List of American films of 1961 * List of animated feature films of the 1960s *
List of Walt Disney Pictures films This is a list of films produced by and released under the Walt Disney Pictures banner (known as that since 1983, with ''Never Cry Wolf'' as its first release) and films released before that under the former name of the parent company, Walt ...
*
List of Disney theatrical animated features This list of theatrical animated feature films consists of animated films produced or released by The Walt Disney Studios, the film division of The Walt Disney Company.This list does not include films or specials streamed on Disney+ as Disne ...
*


Notes


References


External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:One Hundred And One Dalmatians 101 Dalmatians films 1960s American animated films 1960s children's adventure films 1960s children's animated films 1960s children's comedy films 1961 adventure films 1961 animated films 1961 comedy films 1961 films 1960s English-language films American adventure comedy films American children's animated adventure films American children's animated comedy films American animated feature films Animated films about dogs Films about pets Animated films based on children's books Animated films based on novels Animated films set in London Children's comedy-drama films Animated films about families Films adapted into comics Films adapted into television shows Films based on British novels Films directed by Clyde Geronimi Films directed by Hamilton Luske Films directed by Wolfgang Reitherman Films produced by Walt Disney Films scored by George Bruns Films set in abandoned houses Films set in country houses Films set in Suffolk Rotoscoped films Walt Disney Animation Studios films Walt Disney Pictures animated films