SpornFilms 03 Jan 2009 10:49 am
HBO Storybook
- For years, I did a number of half-hour shows for HBO which often were musicals. I was able to hire some of Broadway’s best composers and talent and work with a great staff of artists to turn out a number of these films. They’ve become perennials on HBO Family and have cycled there for some time now.
For those with HBO, let me point out that a number of these films will be shown tomorrow, Sunday January 4th, as sort of a Michael Sporn Block. Two of them, The Red Shoes and The Dancing Frog, are included in the 6 disc dvd set that just came out, but some are still owned by HBO and haven’t been released. (I’ve linked all of the titles to a credit list for each film.) Here’s the schedule:
- LYLE LYLE CROCODILE
2:00 PM HBO Family – EAST
5:00 PM HBO Family – WEST
THE STORY OF THE DANCING FROG
2:30 PM HBO Family – EAST
5:30 PM HBO Family – WEST
THE RED SHOES
3:00 PM HBO Family – EAST
6:00 PM HBO Family – WEST
EARTHDAY BIRTHDAY
3:30 PM HBO Family – EAST
6:30 PM HBO Family – WEST
MIKE MULLIGAN & HIS STEAMSHOVEL
4:00 PM HBO Family – EAST
7:00 PM HBO Family – WEST
Here are a couple of stills from some of these films:
“There were evergreens shining like jewels high on a tower rooftop; dazzling window displays;
Central Park, looking magical and majestic.”
These are the lines of narration that greeted me when I initially read the “Narration Script” Maxine Fisher had written for The Red Shoes.
Ossie Davis did a wonderful reading for us.
This is a picture of the real star in front of Trump Tower on 57th St.
This is a strong transitional moment in Lyle Lyle Crocodile. They’ve just discovered a crocodile living in their house, and Mrs. Primm sings a narrative song telling all that’s happened since they’ve moved in to share the house with Lyle.
I’ve loved this set up by Bridget Thorne since first seeing it.
John Dilworth animated a very strong scene exactly right.
It grew out of a conversation with Bridget talking about something her son did. It was so right to place the two characters, about to be separated, on opposite sides of a door, while the boy sang about separation.
It also gave me the opportunity for split screens – for some reason this is a cinematic device I just love.
The illustrations in the book of Mike Mulligan and His Steamshovel include a lot of white and odd framing. It also had very tiny people throughout. There was never a close up of Mike Mulligan or any of the humans in the story. Even MaryAnn, the steamshovel, was often small in her surroundings.
This meant devising the entire film around some odd framing. It also meant a complicated design of the characters so that they would look as though they’d popped from the book, but, in reality, were wholly new designs.
Liz Seidman did a superb job of accomplishing both of these problems even as she supervised the entire production for me.
on 03 Jan 2009 at 11:06 am 1.Jerry Edwards said …
I’ve always LOVED your musical HBO version of Mike Mulligan and His Steamshovel. I taped it on VHS off HBO years ago and still much enjoy watching it – along with one of my other faves of your work Abel’s Island. I was thrilled to buy Abel’s Island on DVD a few months back. WHEN / IF HBO ever releases Mike on DVD, I’ll definitely buy it. Even though I have the Mike Mulligan book, I hadn’t thought to compare the film and the book closely. I’ve always felt everyone involved captured the feel of the book and the story wonderfully!!! So here’s my long overdue THANKS for the pleasure Mike’s Mulligan has given me all these years!!
on 04 Jan 2009 at 10:51 am 2.Elliot Cowan said …
I did not know Mike Mulligan had been animated.
It was a book that I was obsessed with as a kid.
on 05 Jan 2009 at 2:18 pm 3.Masako said …
Oh wow…Mike Mulligan! It’s been many many years since the last time I watched it. It still looks good, funny and so poignant. Thank you for the alert.