The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Directors:

James Algar
Clyde Geronimi

Writers:

Washington Irving (story)
Kenneth Grahame (story)

Release Date:

5 October 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

HEAR BING SING: "THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN" "KATRINA" "ICHABOD CRANE" (original print media ad - all caps)

Plot:

Two animated adaptions of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "The Wind in the Willows."

Plot Keywords:

Headless Horseman | Car | Grand Theft Auto | Teacher | Based On Short Story

Awards:

Won Golden Globe.

Cast

Bing Crosby	...	Narrator (segment "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow")
Basil Rathbone	...	Narrator (segment "The Wind in the Willows")
Eric Blore	...	Mr. Toad (voice)
J. Pat O'Malley	...	Cyril Proudbottom (voice) (as Pat O'Malley)
John McLeish	...	Prosecutor (voice) (as John Ployardt)
Colin Campbell	...	Mole (voice)
Campbell Grant	...	Angus MacBadger (voice)
Claud Allister	...	Rat (voice) (as Claude Allister)
The Rhythmaires	...	Additional voices (voice)

Also Known As:

Ichabod and Mr. Toad (USA) (promotional title)
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (USA) (TV title)
Two Fabulous Characters (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

68 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-3 (2006) | USA:Approved (certificate #12133) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1971)

Company:

Walt Disney Pictures

Trivia:

Disney's original title for the movie was, "Two Fabulous Characters." Apparently, the only reason these two stories are linked together is the fact that their main characters are "prone to disaster".

Goofs:

Continuity: Immediately after Katrina distracts Brom in the midst of punching Ichabod, Brom punches a tree trunk instead. While the frame vibrates from impact, Brom's coon-skin hat vanishes in thin air.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: If you were asked to choose the most fabulous character in English literature, who would it be? Robin Hood? King Arthur? Becky Sharp? Sherlock Holmes? Oliver Twist, perhaps? Well, any one of them would be an excellent choice. Still, for the most fabulous character of all, I would nominate...

Movie Connections:

Featured in DisneyPedia: The Life of a Pirate Revealed (2003) (V)

Soundtrack:

The Headless Horseman

Makes excellent viewing for Halloween...good mixture of mirth, madness and fright...

The Disney animators were still at the height of their genius when they made this double featurette based on classic American folklore. The clever humor and artful animation brighten both tales, but it's likely to be the Ichabod tale based on "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" that you're going to remember...especially for that final confrontation of the frightened Ichabod with the Headless Horseman! And there hasn't been a funnier minor character in a Disney film than the chubby Tilda who finds herself being whirled onto the dance floor by Bram Bones when he seeks revenge on Ichabod. This sequence is one of the funniest ever in a Disney film and is followed by the payoff "fright" sequence as Ichabod makes his way home after the party.

The toad story is a bit ponderous but is also brightened by clever animation and bits of humor with some droll voice overs supplied by Eric Blore and Pat O'Malley.

It's pure fantasy with all the Disney magic on hand. And that final encounter with the Headless Horseman makes this ideal for viewing on Halloween!