09.30.07
Geniuses Grown Fresh Daily…
During her nighttime bath, Trixie gets quite reflective. Some of the questions she’s asked us in the past are pretty fantastic. And tonight, she whipped out this little doozy:
“Do animals have belly buttons?”
Needless to say, we ran to the computer, googled placental mammals, sauntered back into the bathroom, and answered the question as if that bit of trivia had been floating around the old noggin indefinitely. Thus I have once again preserved my status as “person of omniscience.”
But it’s only a matter of time before she starts snooping around about the general characteristics of metatheria!
09.01.07
(Insert Evil Laughter)…
Saturday is list day. And today’s list is my “Favorite Animated Villains.” I am especially fond of certain types of voice work; consequently, I am always ready to appreciate a really terrific vocal performance. So here they are (in no particular order) fresh from the Disney vault:
1. Ursula voiced by Pat Carroll from The Little Mermaid
That nicotine-soaked voice; the ironic tone; the ample ch-estrogen… and the icing on the cake: the animators made her an OCTOPUS! Priceless.
2. Captain Hook voiced by Hans Conried from Peter Pan
He redefines “over the top” and it totally changed my approach to children’s theater. Hats off to you Mr. Conried. Hats off indeed.
3. Maleficent voiced by Eleanor Audley from Sleeping Beauty
To this day, this woman’s voice, coupled with the way she’s drawn, scares the s@#t out of me. Chilling. Brilliant. But chilling.
4. Gaston voiced by Richard White from Beauty and the Beast
This guy MADE the film for me. And one of the few voice-over actors who’s actually better in song than in dialogue. Hilarious. When I directed this fairy tale at the theater, a lot of people asked me why Gaston wasn’t in the play. My answer was – he wasn’t in the original fairy tale that I adapted. However, if Richard White had been available to play him for us, my show might have been titled “Gaston!”
5. Yzma voiced by Eartha Kitt from The Emperor’s New Groove
This is without a doubt the funniest performance on the list. Eartha Kitt – WHO KNEW??? I mean, really, who knew she had it in her. Patrick Warburton as Kronk is hilarious in his own right; but Eartha totally OWNS this film. I bow to you Ms. Kitt.
