The New Spirit (1942)

Animated documentary promoting timely filing and payment of Federal income taxes, demonstrated by Donald Duck's difficulties with his tax return.

Stars:

Cliff Edwards, Clarence Nash, Fred Shields

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Cliff Edwards	...	(singing voice) (uncredited)
Clarence Nash	...	Donald Duck (voice) (uncredited)
Fred Shields	...	Radio Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
The Sportsmen Quartet	...	Singing Group (uncredited)

Storyline

This short was made expressly for and under the auspices of War Activities Committee of the U. S. Treasury Department, and was distributed to theatres at no charge by only National Screen Services, since the War Activities Committee nor the U. S. Treasury Department had no film-exchange offices nor a theatre-distribution set-up. The premise is that it would take 'taxes to beat the axis', and Donald Duck is a reluctant tax-payer until he listens to a radio broadcast concerning the importance of all U.S. citizens to pay their share of taxes, and Donald gets into a conversation with the radio commentator, and learns why it is important to pay taxes to beat the axis.

---

Plot Keywords:

taxes | duck | axis | radio commentator | commentator | 

---

Genres:

Documentary | Animation | Short | War | Comedy | Drama

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 1942 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

U.S. Department of the Treasury, Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

7 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the commissioner, The US Secretary of the Treasury, learned of the proposal of using Donald Duck as the feature character of the film, he insisted on a generic "Mr. Taxpayer" character instead. Walt Disney managed to convince him that using one of the studio's most popular characters would make for a more entertaining film and therefore, give a more effective message to the audience.

---

Connections

Edited into Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color: How to Relax (1957)

User Reviews

Very well made and fascinating

Donald Duck has always been one of my favourites, which is reason enough to see The New Spirit. The message is interesting for the time, but feels dated I agree by today's standards. But other than that, there is very little to criticise. The animation is wonderful with lots of colour and detail, the war-like images are almost harrowing while the music is lush and catchy. The New Spirit has some fine moments like the ending and particularly the almost surreal part where the writing accessories come to life, and while things get more serious after a subtly humorous start it gets its point across without feeling too heavy-handed. Donald is strongly characterised, with his fever-pitch enthusiasm steadily wavering, and comes across as a very relevant spokesperson.

All in all, well made and fascinating if with a dated message. 8/10 Bethany Cox