Progress City, U.S.A.

Jim Fanning over at Tulgey Wood jogged my memory by posting an article he had written about the old Disney Christmas special “From All Of Us To All Of You”. The special, which first aired on Walt Disney Presents in 1958, featured Jiminy Cricket as Master of Ceremonies as he introduced a series of holiday-themed clips from Disney features and shorts. Newly produced animation linked the shorts and featured Cricket, Tinkerbell, and Mickey Mouse as a very enthusiastic one-man orchestra.

Much like Disney’s Halloween Treat, this program was re-aired regularly for years afterward back in the days when Disney actually tried to air Disney-related programming. Parts of it were re-sourced for a Disney Channel special in the early 1980’s and a later home video release. It was also shown on syndicated re-runs of the Disney anthology program, where it became a staple of my childhood. In fact, all these years later the theme song tends to run through my mind during the holidays. Any chance this might show up on the Disney Channel this year? Nah, I didn’t think so…

Here’s our emcee Jiminy Cricket singing the theme for the special. Happy holidays, everyone!

For a long time, Disney didn’t really do Halloween. Disney is more of a Christmas kind of organization. But laced throughout Disney history are some nice, moody spooks suitable for the season (aside from the blinding terror of Bambi, of course)…

Foremost in my mind when I think of Disney and Halloween is a little special that used to show around this time called “Disney’s Halloween Treat” and later “A Disney Halloween.” The difference between these two specials was the host; in “Halloween Treat” we were welcomed by a hilarious pumpkin puppet (I’m of the opinion that anything in the world, funny or unfunny, is made a million times funnier by enacting it with a puppet), while “Disney Halloween” was hosted by the Magic Mirror from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Both shows were clip compilations of various spooky and supernaturally themed scenes from old Disney films, and the specials aired in various formats and venues from 1982 until the 1990’s. Now, of course, Disney would never be caught dead showing something ancient (read: pre-1995) on ABC or the Disney Channel; “Disney Halloween” would get bumped for “Haunted High School Musical.” But we have the internets!

Featured in the show were a number of films and shorts, but a few are notable in the classic Disney canon. Lonesome Ghosts is perhaps the most famous, with Our Heroes as proto-Ghostbusters back in the era when Mickey was interesting, but my favorite was always Trick or Treat, starring the inestimable Donald Duck. Directed by legendary Duck director Jack Hannah, and concurrently adapted into comic form by the great Carl Barks, the short isn’t seen nearly as often as it should be.