Song of the South (1946)

The kindly story-teller Uncle Remus tells a young boy stories about trickster Br'er Rabbit, who outwits Br'er Fox and slow-witted Br'er Bear.

Directors:

Harve Foster, Wilfred Jackson

Writers:

Dalton S. Reymond (screenplay) (as Dalton Reymond), Morton Grant (screenplay)

Stars:

Ruth Warrick, Bobby Driscoll, James Baskett

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ruth Warrick	...	Sally
Bobby Driscoll	...	Johnny
James Baskett	...	Uncle Remus / Br'er Fox (voice)
Luana Patten	...	Ginny
Lucile Watson	...	Grandmother
Hattie McDaniel	...	Aunt Tempy
Erik Rolf	...	John (as Eric Rolf)
Glenn Leedy	...	Toby
Mary Field	...	Mrs. Favers
Anita Brown	...	Maid
Georgie Nokes	...	Jake Favers (as George Nokes)
Gene Holland	...	Joe Favers
Nick Stewart	...	Br'er Bear (voice) (as 'Nicodemus' Stewart)
Johnny Lee	...	Br'er Rabbit (voice)

Storyline

The kindly story-teller Uncle Remus tells a young boy stories about trickster Br'er Rabbit, who outwits Br'er Fox and slow-witted Br'er Bear.

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Plot Keywords:

rabbit | 19th century | georgia | magical negro stereotype | interracial friendship | 

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Taglines:

We're headin' for the Laughin' Place!

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Musical

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

On the final day of shooting, animation director Wilfred Jackson discovered that the scene in which Uncle Remus sings the film's signature song, "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah", had not been properly blocked. According to Jackson, "We all sat there in a circle with the dollars running out, and nobody came up with anything. Then Walt suggested that they shoot Baskett in close-up, cover the lights with cardboard save for a sliver of blue sky behind his head, and then remove the cardboard from the lights when he began singing so that he would seem to be entering a bright new world of animation. Like Walt's idea for Bambi on ice in Bambi (1942), it made for one of the most memorable scenes in the film."

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Goofs

Before Uncle Remus tells the story about the Laughing Place, the mud on Ginny's dress disappears and reappears between shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Uncle Remus: [laughs] Yes, sir. There's other ways of learning about the behind feet of a mule then getting kicked by them. Sure as I'm named Remus. And just cause these your tales about critters like Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox. That don't mean they ain't the same like can happen to folks. So then what can't learn from a tale about critters, just ain't got they ears tuned for listening. Like as not they too busy going along all mixed up with they own troubles. Uh, like the time that Miss Sally and...

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Alternate Versions

On a 1991 British VHS release and a British television broadcast by the British Broadcasting Corporation in 2006, the "The End" card was displayed on a blue background instead of the original 1946 cream one.

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Connections

Featured in AniMat's Crazy Cartoon Cast: Tiana's Splashing Palace (2020)

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Soundtracks

Song of the South
(uncredited)
Written by Sam Coslow and Arthur Johnston
Performed by the Studio Choir

User Reviews

The True Meaning of Song of the South

I am a lifelong Southerner. No one can gainsay that slavery was a terrible thing. It is our great national sin. But to dump all of that on these delightful folk stories seems to me a bit much.

I saw Song of the South as a small child. I didn't once think how dumb Uncle Remus was; I thought how dumb the smart aleck fox was! According to the foreword in my copy of Joel Chandler Harris' volume, these stories came from Africa originally where the characters were the lion, the jackal and whatever else they used. They are the Aesop's fables of a whole culture and they deal with how one who is weak and powerless--say a slave or a small child trying to survive his parents' problems--can deal with a world and come out with a whole skin. The race is not always to the swift nor the battle to the strong is the whole theme of the Uncle Remus tales. And everybody's gotta have a laughing place if they want to stay sane in this old world.

Good on you, Uncle Remus! Good on you!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 November 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Uncle Remus

Filming Locations:

Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,203,111, 23 November 1986

Gross USA:

$37,459,346

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$37,459,346

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1