Sleeping Beauty (1959)

Director:

Clyde Geronimi

Writers:

Erdman Penner (story)
Charles Perrault (story)
(more)

Release Date:

6 February 1959 (Brazil)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Now the magic moment! Full-length feature fantasy - Beautiful beyond belief

Plot:

A snubbed malevolent fairy casts a curse on a princess that only a prince can break, with the help of three good fairies.

Plot Keywords:

Prince | Fairy | Princess | King | Birthday

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Mary Costa	...	Princess Aurora (voice)
Bill Shirley	...	Prince Phillip (voice)
Eleanor Audley	...	Maleficent (voice)
Verna Felton	...	Flora (voice)
Barbara Luddy	...	Merryweather (voice)
Barbara Jo Allen	...	Fauna (voice)
Taylor Holmes	...	Stefan (voice)
Bill Thompson	...	Hubert (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bill Amsbery	...	Maleficent's Goon (voice) (uncredited)
Candy Candido	...	Maleficent's Goon (voice) (uncredited)
Pinto Colvig	...	Maleficent's Goon (voice) (uncredited)
Dal McKennon	...	Owl (voice) (uncredited)
Marvin Miller	...	Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Thurl Ravenscroft	...	Singer (voice) (uncredited)

Directed by
Clyde Geronimi		(supervising)

Writing credits
Erdman Penner		(story adaptation)
Charles Perrault		(story "Sleeping Beauty")
Joe Rinaldi		(additional story) &
Winston Hibler		(additional story) &
Bill Peet		(additional story) &
Ted Sears		(additional story) &
Ralph Wright		(additional story) &
Milt Banta		(additional story)

Original Music by
Jack Lawrence		(musical score) (uncredited)

Film Editing by
Roy M. Brewer Jr.
Donald Halliday

Production Design by
Ken Anderson
Don DaGradi

Production Management
Ken Peterson	....	production supervisor

Sound Department
Robert O. Cook	....	sound supervisor

Visual Effects by
Jack Boyd	....	effects animator
Jack Buckley	....	effects animator
Ub Iwerks	....	special processes
Eustace Lycett	....	special processes
Dan MacManus	....	effects animator
Joshua Meador	....	effects animator
Bob Abrams	....	effects animator (uncredited)
Abra Grupp	....	digital paint artist (restored version) (uncredited)
Dorse A. Lanpher	....	assistant effects animator (uncredited)

Animation Department
Hal Ambro	....	character animator
Dick Anthony	....	background artist
Ray Aragon	....	layout artist
Frank Armitage	....	background artist
Bob Carlson	....	character animator
Eric Cleworth	....	character animator
Tom Codrick	....	layout artist
Basil Davidovich	....	layout artist
Marc Davis	....	directing animator
Al Dempster	....	background artist
Eyvind Earle	....	color stylist
Blaine Gibson	....	character animator
Don Griffith	....	layout artist
Victor Haboush	....	layout artist
Joe Hale	....	layout artist
Jack Huber	....	layout artist
Ralph Hulett	....	background artist
Ken Hultgren	....	character animator
Ollie Johnston	....	directing animator
Homer Jonas	....	layout artist
Milt Kahl	....	directing animator
John Kennedy	....	character animator
Hal King	....	character animator
Fred Kopietz	....	character animator
Bill Layne	....	background artist
John Lounsbery	....	directing animator
Don Lusk	....	character animator
Fil Mottola	....	background artist
George Nicholas	....	character animator
Ernie Nordli	....	layout artist (as Erni Nordli)
Ken O'Brien	....	character animator
Tom Oreb	....	character stylist
Walt Peregoy	....	background artist
Anthony Rizzo	....	background artist
John Sibley	....	character animator
McLaren Stewart	....	layout artist
Henry Tanous	....	character animator
Frank Thomas	....	directing animator
Richard H. Thomas	....	background artist
Harvey Toombs	....	character animator
Thelma Witmer	....	background artist
Robert W. Youngquist	....	character animator (as Bob Youngquist)
Don Bluth	....	assistant animator (uncredited)
Chuck Jones	....	layout artist (uncredited)
Gary Mooney	....	assistant animator (uncredited)
Floyd Norman	....	clean-up artist (uncredited)
Floyd Norman	....	inbetween artist (uncredited)
Phil Roman	....	assistant animator (uncredited)

Casting Department
Ken Peterson	....	casting: animation artists (uncredited)

Music Department
Tom Adair	....	songs
George Bruns	....	songs
Sammy Fain	....	songs
Winston Hibler	....	songs
Evelyn Kennedy	....	music editor
Jack Lawrence	....	songs
Erdman Penner	....	songs
John Rarig	....	choral arrangement
Ted Sears	....	songs
Frederick Stark	....	conductor (uncredited)

Other crew
Les Clark	....	sequence director
Walt Disney	....	presenter
Eric Larson	....	sequence director
Wolfgang Reitherman	....	sequence director
Eleanor Audley	....	live action model: Maleficent (uncredited)
Frances Bavier	....	live action model: Fairy (uncredited)
Madge Blake	....	live action model: Fairy (uncredited)
Spring Byington	....	live action model: Fairy (uncredited)
Jane Fowler	....	live action model: Maleficent (uncredited)
Ed Kemmer	....	live action model: Prince Phillip (uncredited)
Helene Stanley	....	live action model: Princess Aurora (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Walt Disney Productions

Distributors

• Buena Vista Film Distribution Company (1959) (worldwide) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista Film Distribution Company (1979) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Buena Vista International (1995) (Austria) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Finnkino (1995) (Finland) (theatrical)
• RKO (1960) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Suomi-Filmi (1959) (Finland) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1998) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (BVHE) (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2002) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (????) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Gativideo (19??) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Gativideo (2008) (Argentina) (DVD) (platinum edition)
• Walt Disney Home Video (????) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Germany) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Finland) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (UK) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (UK) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD)
• Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)

Other Companies

• Berlin Symphony Orchestra  score recorded by (uncredited)
• Cinesite  restoration work
• Panavision  process lenses

Runtime:

75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo (original release) | 70 mm 6-Track (RCA Sound Recording) (70 mm prints) | Dolby Digital (DVD version) | Mono (35 mm prints) (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:o.Al. | Iceland:L | Portugal:M/6 | South Korea:All | USA:G (re-rating) (1970) | Canada:G (video rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #19062) (original rating) | Finland:K-3 (2008) (DVD release) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-8 (1959) | Peru:PT | Spain:T | Sweden:7 (re-release) | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | Brazil:Livre

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

The first Disney animated feature to be created for the 70mm format.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the beginning of the movie, King Hubert and young Prince Phillip approach the throne together. In the next shot, King Hubert is already in front of the throne, but Prince Phillip approaches the throne a second time.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: In a faraway land, long ago, there lived a King and his fair Queen. Many years they had longed for a child, and finally their wish was granted. A daughter was born, and they called her Aurora. Yes, they named her after the dawn, for she filled their lives with sunshine. Then a great holiday was proclaimed throughout the land, so that all of high or low estate could pay homage to the infant Princess. And our story begins on that most joyful day...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Enchanted (2007)

Soundtrack:

The Skumps Song

"You know, sometimes I don't think she's very happy."

I grew up in the Disney era where "Little Mermaid," "Beauty and the Beast," "Aladdin" and "The Lion King" reigned supreme among me and my elementary school pals (and to this day, if you ask one of my peers what their favorite Disney movie is, it's probably one of those or one of the Disney-Pixar creations).

But one Disney film has always remained my utter favorite and that is, indeed, "Sleeping Beauty."

Like most children, I grew up watching Disney movies -- everything from animated films like "Snow White" to "Lady and the Tramp," the semi-animated like "Mary Poppins" and "Bedknobs and Broomsticks," and the non-animated such as "The Parent Trap" and "Old Yeller." But "Sleeping Beauty" remains my favorite animated movie and you'd better believe at seventeen years of age, I'm still watching it. I cannot believe how the animation has been knocked in some reviews -- it's beautiful! They captured the medieval period so well and even the people look like, well, people. The score is beautiful and the songs "I Wonder" and "Once Upon a Dream" are sung wonderfully by Mary Costa. What a voice! Aurora is by far one of the prettiest Disney princesses (one thing that initially drew me to the movie as a child), following the formula with those trademark doe-eyes that Disney bestows upon all of their princesses and heroines. Prince Phillip actually does more than just show up to sing a song and say one line, a welcome change that answers the age old question, "What does she see in him anyway?" The three fairies are delightful (I always wanted to be Fauna!) and funny. And of course, there's the quintessential villain -- Maleficent. She scared me when I was younger and when I view the film now, no wonder. (For the longest time, I was also scared of Eleanor Audley period, but she's truly a marvelous actress.) And when Phillip kills her -- yeah, you'd better believe that's some scary business.

The story is beautiful and funny, the animation is divine, the music ethereal, and the voice talents extraordinary. This is a personal favorite and it comes highly recommended!