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Doctor Dolittle (film)
Encyclopedia
Doctor Dolittle is a 1967 American musical film
directed by Richard Fleischer
and starring Rex Harrison
, Samantha Eggar
, Anthony Newley
and Richard Attenborough
. It's adapted by Leslie Bricusse
from the novel series by Hugh Lofting
, primarily The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle
, The Story of Doctor Dolittle
, and Doctor Dolittle's Circus
. Doctor Dolittle
is taught by his pet parrot Polynesia how to talk to animals and embarks with his friends on a series of adventures.
The film had a notoriously protracted production with numerous setbacks along the way such as complications from poorly chosen shooting locations and the numerous technical difficulties inherent with the large number of animals required for the story. Rex Harrison was so difficult as the lead throughout the production that he was temporarily replaced by Christopher Plummer
until he promised to be more cooperative. The film exceeded its original budget of $6 million by three times, and only recouped $9 million upon release in 1967.
The film received generally negative critical reviews, but through the studio's intense lobbying, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture
and won awards for Best Original Song
and Best Visual Effects.
A comedy film of a similar title, Doctor Dolittle
, also based on the character, was later released in 1998.
man Matthew Mugg (Anthony Newley
) takes his young friend Tommy Stubbins (William Dix) to visit eccentric Doctor John Dolittle (Rex Harrison
), explaining to the young boy that, eccentric or not, why Doolittle is My Friend the Doctor. It is Matthew's wish that the Doctor tend to an injured duck Tommy has found and upon arrival, Tommy finds that Dolittle, a former people's physician
, lives with a houseful of animals - pigs, sheep, goats, ducks, horses, cows, a chimpanzee named Chee-Chee (Cheeta
), a dog named Jip, and a talking parrot named Polynesia (the uncredited voice of Ginny Tyler
) among them.
The night is stormy, so Tommy and Matthew stay with Dolittle. He tells them the story of how he learned to speak animal languages, almost 500 at last count. He was once a doctor, but he preferred animals to people. He kept a menagerie, which was causing havoc and losing him patients. A casual comment by Polynesia revealed that animals can talk to each other, prompting Dolittle to study the languages of the animals so that he could become an animal doctor instead. The following day, a short sighted horse named Tubble seeks Dolittle's assistance, but the horse's owner - General Bellowes (Peter Bull
) - takes offence to Dolittle's notions of talking animals. Bellowes' niece Emma Fairfax (Samantha Eggar
) chides Dolittle for his irresponsibility and rudeness to her uncle. Matthew becomes somewhat smitten with her.
Long Arrow, a friend of Dolittle's, sends him the rare two-headed Pushmi-Pullyu, a creature that looks like a llama
with a head on each end of its body, from Tibet
. Matthew, Tommy and Dolittle take the creature to a nearby circus, run by the lovable yet greedy Albert Blossom (Richard Attenborough
), who makes the Pushmi-Pullyu the star attraction. Meanwhile, the doctor befriends a circus seal
named Sophie who longs to return to her husband. He sneaks her away and throws her into the ocean from some cliffs. However, two fishermen mistake the seal for a woman, and haul Doctor Dolittle off to court. Dolittle is horrified to learn that General Bellowes is the judge. Dolittle proves he can converse with animals, but the judge and jury agree that Dr. Dolittle belongs in a lunatic asylum. Dolittle's friends break him out of prison, and he, Matthew, Tommy, Polynesia, Chee-Chee and Jip take the doctor's ship, the Flounder, out onto the ocean to search for the legendary Great Pink Sea Snail. Emma sneaks aboard as well. After sticking a hatpin at random into an atlas to determine their destination, they set their course for Sea-Star Island, a floating island.
The ship is torn apart during a fierce storm, but everyone makes it to what turns out to be Sea-Star Island. The party is met by the natives
, who are highly educated and cultured due to all the flotsam and jetsam
that have floated ashore from shipwrecks over the centuries; their leader is William Shakespeare the Tenth (Geoffrey Holder
). Sea-Star Island is endangered by climate changes due to its drifting further north than usual into colder waters. When Dolittle persuades a friendly whale to help push the island south, a balancing rock is shaken into fire mountain and the party are sentenced to "the death of ten thousand screams." However, when the whale pushes the island so that it rejoins the mainland, the doctor and his friends are freed. While treating the animals on the island, Dolittle encounters a surprise patient - the Great Pink Sea Snail itself, who has caught a severe cold. Dolittle cures him and discovers that the snail's shell is watertight and can carry passengers. Dolittle sends Matthew, Tommy, Emma, Polynesia, Chee-Chee, and Jip back to England with the snail.
Doctor Dolittle himself cannot go back, since he is still a wanted man; furthermore, he wishes to investigate the natives' stories of the Giant Lunar Moth
. As his friends leave, however, Dolittle finds he is not so impervious to feelings as he thought and pens a letter to Emma. Dolittle is still living amongst the tribe when Sophie the seal turns up, accompanied by her husband, with a message: the animals of England have gone on strike
without him, the people have changed their views towards him, and even Bellowes has agreed to pardon him if he returns home. Dolittle and the tribesfolk then construct a saddle for the Giant Lunar Moth, and he flies back to England over the end credits and choral reprise of "My Friend the Doctor".
Both "Where Are the Words?" and "Something in Your Smile" were cut from the general release version of the film, and continue to be missing from all home video versions on VHS, laserdisc, and DVD.
The film's 1967 release was accompanied by an enormous media blitz, with over a million copies of the soundtrack
issued to stores. The advertising campaign failed, and soundtracks from the original release could be found in "bargain bins" for decades after the film's theatrical run.
was originally chosen to write the script, but was fired by producer Arthur P. Jacobs
on May 7, 1965 for his endless procrastination. Jacobs then tried to get the Sherman Brothers
, but they were tied to Walt Disney
. Instead, Lerner was replaced by Leslie Bricusse
, who was in high demand after his success with the musical Stop the World - I Want to Get Off
. This gave Rex Harrison the chance to sit out his contract, and he was to be replaced by Christopher Plummer
, but when Harrison agreed to stay, the producers paid Plummer his total agreed-upon salary to leave the production. The film was originally budgeted at $6 million, but the budget eventually tripled.
The village scenes were filmed in the village of Castle Combe
in Wiltshire
. Unfortunately, the producers did not anticipate that the necessary trained animals for the production would all have to quarantined upon entering the UK, forcing them all to be replaced with other animals at considerable and redundant expense to meet regulations. Furthermore, the producers chose to ignore climate reports of the area's frequently rainy summers and were frustrated with the resulting weather continually interfering with shooting, while also caused health problems with the animals. In addition, the producers' arbitrary set design decisions such as removing TV aerials from personal residences in town irritated the population. This antipathy went to as far as an artificial dam built by the production on the Castle Combe set being blown up by British Army officer (and future explorer) Ranulph Fiennes
, using explosives he obtained from being in the service, because he believed it ruined the village. Eventually, the producers decided to rebuild relevant sets back in California for costly reshoots.
The film was also shot in Marigot Bay
, Saint Lucia
; this location was equally difficult, with considerable problems with insects and frequent tropical storms halting production. In addition, Rex Harrison was becoming more difficult still, with frequent drunkenness, continually denigrating his co-stars, and isolating himself on a three mast ship he used for his personal accommodation, which he deliberately steered into camera range during a shoot and refused to move for hours. Furthermore, the finale scene of the characters sailing home on a giant snail was complicated not only by the poor design of the large prop, but because the locals, who had just suffered a children's gastrointestinal illness epidemic caused by freshwater snails, took it as a personal insult severe enough to have mobs throw rocks at it. The Marigot Bay Hotel, now located there, has the Pink Snail Champagne Bar in honor of Dr. Dolittle. The walls of the bar are adorned with original pictures from the film.
It was photographed in 70 mm Todd-AO
by Robert Surtees
.
Just prior to release, 20th Century Fox
was sued for $4.5 million by Helen Winston, a previous would-be producer, when she discovered an original plot point from her own rejected screenplay written by Larry Watkin, of animals threatening to go on strike on Dolittle's behalf, was used in the film. It turns out Bricusse, who had read Winston's script, assumed it was from the books and included it in his own treatment by mistake. Since the producers only had rights to the content of the original books, they had no legal defense and were forced to settle out of court.
, Dr. Dolittle, was released in 1998. This remake was directed by Betty Thomas
and was a box office success as compared to the bomb
that the original was. This film inspired two sequel
s, one theatrical and one direct-to-video
.
was marginally better received enough to be approved as the final cut.
In his annual Movie Guide
, critic and historian Leonard Maltin
called the film a "colossal dud". Maltin admired the film's photography
, but was quick to point out how it nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox Studios
. He admitted, however, that "The movie has one merit: If you have unruly children, it may put them to sleep." Other critics were similarly harsh.
Furthermore, the film also faced strong competition with the Walt Disney
animated feature film, The Jungle Book
opening on the same week to considerable critical acclaim and children's audience enthusiasm. To make matters worse, Doctor Dolittles appeal as family fare was seriously undermined as the film's publicity drew attention to the original books and its virulent racist content, which drew calls to have them removed from public schools.
When Oscar nomination time came around, according to the book Behind the Oscar, Fox mounted an unparalleled nomination campaign at which Academy members were wined and dined. As a result, the film was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, in what is considered a major example by some of how a Best Picture nomination can be acquired based on blatant campaigning rather than artistic merit.
A number of critics found the film's musical score by Leslie Bricusse
"too sophisticated for the kiddies".
in favor of the more general release which continues to this day. The resulting poor sales of related merchandise also significantly discouraged enthusiasm for similar forms of marketing until George Lucas
took advantage of the attitude to gain those rights and profited spectacularly with his 1977 film Star Wars
.
In 1998, the film was adapted into a stage musical, starring Phillip Schofield
as Doctor Dolittle, a pre-recorded Julie Andrews
as the voice of Dolittle's parrot Polynesia, and the animatronic wizardry of Jim Henson's Creature Shop
. The show ran for 400 performances in London's West End and at the time was one of the most expensive musicals ever produced. The musical also starred Bryan Smyth
, a former milkman and full time actor and singer who then went on to host his own TV game show for RTE
.
A newly recorded version of "Beautiful Things" was used in a Christmas
2008 TV commercial
campaign for the United States
retail chain
Kohl's
.
for Best Effects, Special Effects
and Best Music, Song (Leslie Bricusse for "Talk to the Animals").
It was nominated for Best Picture
, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration
(Mario Chiari
, Jack Martin Smith
, Ed Graves
, Walter M. Scott
, Stuart A. Reiss
), Best Cinematography
, Best Film Editing
, Best Music, Original Music Score
, Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment and Best Sound
.
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
directed by Richard Fleischer
Richard Fleischer
-Early life:Fleischer was born in Brooklyn, the son of Essie and animator/producer Max Fleischer. He started in motion pictures as director of animated shorts produced by his father including entries in the Betty Boop, Popeye and Superman series.His live-action film career began in 1942 at the RKO...
and starring Rex Harrison
Rex Harrison
Sir Reginald Carey “Rex” Harrison was an English actor of stage and screen. Harrison won an Academy Award and two Tony Awards.-Youth and stage career:...
, Samantha Eggar
Samantha Eggar
Samantha Eggar is an English film, television and voice actress.-Early life:She was born Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar in Hampstead, London to an Anglo-Irish father and a mother of Dutch and Portuguese descent...
, Anthony Newley
Anthony Newley
Anthony George Newley was an English actor, singer and songwriter. He enjoyed success as a performer in such diverse fields as rock and roll and stage and screen acting.-Early life:...
and Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
. It's adapted by Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse is an English composer, lyricist, and playwright.Although best known for his partnership with Anthony Newley, Bricusse has worked with many other composers. He was educated at University College School in London and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge...
from the novel series by Hugh Lofting
Hugh Lofting
Hugh John Lofting was a British author, trained as a civil engineer, who created the character of Doctor Dolittle — one of the classics of children's literature.-Personal life:...
, primarily The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle
The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle
The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle was the second of Hugh Lofting's Doctor Dolittle books to be published, coming out in 1922. It is nearly four times longer than its predecessor and the writing style is pitched at a more mature audience. The scope of the novel is vast; it is divided into six parts and...
, The Story of Doctor Dolittle
The Story of Doctor Dolittle
The Story of Doctor Dolittle, Being the History of His Peculiar Life at Home and Astonishing Adventures in Foreign Parts , written and illustrated by Hugh Lofting, is the first of his Doctor Dolittle books, a series of children's novels about a man who learns to talk to animals and becomes their...
, and Doctor Dolittle's Circus
Doctor Dolittle's Circus
Doctor Dolittle's Circus, written by Hugh Lofting and published in 1924 by Lippincott, is set in England sometime between the original story and the later voyages narrated by Stubbins.-Plot summary:...
. Doctor Dolittle
Doctor Dolittle
Doctor John Dolittle is the central character of a series of children's books by Hugh Lofting starting with the 1920 The Story of Doctor Dolittle. He is a doctor who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in their own languages...
is taught by his pet parrot Polynesia how to talk to animals and embarks with his friends on a series of adventures.
The film had a notoriously protracted production with numerous setbacks along the way such as complications from poorly chosen shooting locations and the numerous technical difficulties inherent with the large number of animals required for the story. Rex Harrison was so difficult as the lead throughout the production that he was temporarily replaced by Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
until he promised to be more cooperative. The film exceeded its original budget of $6 million by three times, and only recouped $9 million upon release in 1967.
The film received generally negative critical reviews, but through the studio's intense lobbying, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
and won awards for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
and Best Visual Effects.
A comedy film of a similar title, Doctor Dolittle
Doctor Dolittle (film)
Doctor Dolittle is a 1967 American musical film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Rex Harrison, Samantha Eggar, Anthony Newley and Richard Attenborough. It's adapted by Leslie Bricusse from the novel series by Hugh Lofting, primarily The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle, The Story of Doctor...
, also based on the character, was later released in 1998.
Plot
During the early Victorian period, in the town of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh, England IrishIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
man Matthew Mugg (Anthony Newley
Anthony Newley
Anthony George Newley was an English actor, singer and songwriter. He enjoyed success as a performer in such diverse fields as rock and roll and stage and screen acting.-Early life:...
) takes his young friend Tommy Stubbins (William Dix) to visit eccentric Doctor John Dolittle (Rex Harrison
Rex Harrison
Sir Reginald Carey “Rex” Harrison was an English actor of stage and screen. Harrison won an Academy Award and two Tony Awards.-Youth and stage career:...
), explaining to the young boy that, eccentric or not, why Doolittle is My Friend the Doctor. It is Matthew's wish that the Doctor tend to an injured duck Tommy has found and upon arrival, Tommy finds that Dolittle, a former people's physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, lives with a houseful of animals - pigs, sheep, goats, ducks, horses, cows, a chimpanzee named Chee-Chee (Cheeta
Cheeta
Cheeta is a chimpanzee character appearing in numerous Hollywood Tarzan movies of the 1930s–1960s as well as the 1966–1968 television series, as the ape sidekick of the title character, Tarzan...
), a dog named Jip, and a talking parrot named Polynesia (the uncredited voice of Ginny Tyler
Ginny Tyler
Ginny Tyler is a Native American voice actress who appeared in dozens of cartoons and animated films from 1957 to 1992. In 2006, she was inducted into the Disney Legends program.-Life and work:...
) among them.
The night is stormy, so Tommy and Matthew stay with Dolittle. He tells them the story of how he learned to speak animal languages, almost 500 at last count. He was once a doctor, but he preferred animals to people. He kept a menagerie, which was causing havoc and losing him patients. A casual comment by Polynesia revealed that animals can talk to each other, prompting Dolittle to study the languages of the animals so that he could become an animal doctor instead. The following day, a short sighted horse named Tubble seeks Dolittle's assistance, but the horse's owner - General Bellowes (Peter Bull
Peter Bull
Peter Cecil Bull, DSC was a British character actor.- Biography :He was the fourth and youngest son of Hammersmith MP Sir William James Bull, 1st Bt..Bull was educated at Winchester College...
) - takes offence to Dolittle's notions of talking animals. Bellowes' niece Emma Fairfax (Samantha Eggar
Samantha Eggar
Samantha Eggar is an English film, television and voice actress.-Early life:She was born Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar in Hampstead, London to an Anglo-Irish father and a mother of Dutch and Portuguese descent...
) chides Dolittle for his irresponsibility and rudeness to her uncle. Matthew becomes somewhat smitten with her.
Long Arrow, a friend of Dolittle's, sends him the rare two-headed Pushmi-Pullyu, a creature that looks like a llama
Llama
The llama is a South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since pre-Hispanic times....
with a head on each end of its body, from Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
. Matthew, Tommy and Dolittle take the creature to a nearby circus, run by the lovable yet greedy Albert Blossom (Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
), who makes the Pushmi-Pullyu the star attraction. Meanwhile, the doctor befriends a circus seal
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
named Sophie who longs to return to her husband. He sneaks her away and throws her into the ocean from some cliffs. However, two fishermen mistake the seal for a woman, and haul Doctor Dolittle off to court. Dolittle is horrified to learn that General Bellowes is the judge. Dolittle proves he can converse with animals, but the judge and jury agree that Dr. Dolittle belongs in a lunatic asylum. Dolittle's friends break him out of prison, and he, Matthew, Tommy, Polynesia, Chee-Chee and Jip take the doctor's ship, the Flounder, out onto the ocean to search for the legendary Great Pink Sea Snail. Emma sneaks aboard as well. After sticking a hatpin at random into an atlas to determine their destination, they set their course for Sea-Star Island, a floating island.
The ship is torn apart during a fierce storm, but everyone makes it to what turns out to be Sea-Star Island. The party is met by the natives
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
, who are highly educated and cultured due to all the flotsam and jetsam
Flotsam and jetsam
In maritime law, flotsam, jetsam, lagan and derelict describe specific kinds of wreck.The words have specific nautical meanings, with legal consequences in the law of admiralty and marine salvage....
that have floated ashore from shipwrecks over the centuries; their leader is William Shakespeare the Tenth (Geoffrey Holder
Geoffrey Holder
Geoffrey Richard Holder is a Trinidadian actor, choreographer, director, dancer, painter, costume designer, singer and voice-over artist.-Early life:...
). Sea-Star Island is endangered by climate changes due to its drifting further north than usual into colder waters. When Dolittle persuades a friendly whale to help push the island south, a balancing rock is shaken into fire mountain and the party are sentenced to "the death of ten thousand screams." However, when the whale pushes the island so that it rejoins the mainland, the doctor and his friends are freed. While treating the animals on the island, Dolittle encounters a surprise patient - the Great Pink Sea Snail itself, who has caught a severe cold. Dolittle cures him and discovers that the snail's shell is watertight and can carry passengers. Dolittle sends Matthew, Tommy, Emma, Polynesia, Chee-Chee, and Jip back to England with the snail.
Doctor Dolittle himself cannot go back, since he is still a wanted man; furthermore, he wishes to investigate the natives' stories of the Giant Lunar Moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
. As his friends leave, however, Dolittle finds he is not so impervious to feelings as he thought and pens a letter to Emma. Dolittle is still living amongst the tribe when Sophie the seal turns up, accompanied by her husband, with a message: the animals of England have gone on strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
without him, the people have changed their views towards him, and even Bellowes has agreed to pardon him if he returns home. Dolittle and the tribesfolk then construct a saddle for the Giant Lunar Moth, and he flies back to England over the end credits and choral reprise of "My Friend the Doctor".
Cast
- Rex HarrisonRex HarrisonSir Reginald Carey “Rex” Harrison was an English actor of stage and screen. Harrison won an Academy Award and two Tony Awards.-Youth and stage career:...
- Doctor John DolittleDoctor DolittleDoctor John Dolittle is the central character of a series of children's books by Hugh Lofting starting with the 1920 The Story of Doctor Dolittle. He is a doctor who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in their own languages... - Samantha EggarSamantha EggarSamantha Eggar is an English film, television and voice actress.-Early life:She was born Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar in Hampstead, London to an Anglo-Irish father and a mother of Dutch and Portuguese descent...
- Emma Fairfax - Anthony NewleyAnthony NewleyAnthony George Newley was an English actor, singer and songwriter. He enjoyed success as a performer in such diverse fields as rock and roll and stage and screen acting.-Early life:...
- Matthew Mugg - Richard AttenboroughRichard AttenboroughRichard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough , CBE is a British actor, director, producer and entrepreneur. As director and producer he won two Academy Awards for the 1982 film Gandhi...
- Albert Blossom - Peter BullPeter BullPeter Cecil Bull, DSC was a British character actor.- Biography :He was the fourth and youngest son of Hammersmith MP Sir William James Bull, 1st Bt..Bull was educated at Winchester College...
- General Bellowes - Muriel LandersMuriel LandersMuriel Landers was an American actress, singer and dancer. She made over 30 film and television appearances between 1950 and 1971.-Career:...
- Mrs. Blossom - William Dix - Tommy Stubbins
- Geoffrey HolderGeoffrey HolderGeoffrey Richard Holder is a Trinidadian actor, choreographer, director, dancer, painter, costume designer, singer and voice-over artist.-Early life:...
- William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
X - Portia NelsonPortia NelsonPortia Nelson was an American popular singer, songwriter, actress, and author. She was best known for her appearances in the most prestigious 1950s cabarets, where she sang an elegant repertoire in a soprano noted for its silvery tone, perfect diction, intimacy, and meticulous attention to words...
- Sarah Dolittle - Norma VardenNorma VardenNorma Varden was an English actress with a long film career in Hollywood.Born in London, the daughter of a retired sea-captain, Varden was a child prodigy. She trained as a concert pianist in Paris and performed in England before deciding to take up acting...
- Lady Petherington - Ginny TylerGinny TylerGinny Tyler is a Native American voice actress who appeared in dozens of cartoons and animated films from 1957 to 1992. In 2006, she was inducted into the Disney Legends program.-Life and work:...
(uncredited) - voice of Polynesia
Musical numbers
- "Overture"
- "My Friend the Doctor" - Matthew
- "The Vegetarian" - Dolittle
- "Talk to the Animals" - Dolittle, Polynesia
- "If I Were a Man" - Emma
- "At the Crossroads" - Emma
- "I've Never Seen Anything Like It" - Blossom, Dolittle, Matthew
- "Beautiful Things" - Matthew
- "When I Look in Your Eyes" - Dolittle
- "Like Animals" - Dolittle
- "After Today" - Matthew
- "Fabulous Places" - Dolittle, Emma, Matthew, Tommy
- "Where Are the Words?" (deleted sceneDeleted sceneIn Entertainment, especially the film and television industry, Deleted scenes are parts of a film removed or censored from or replaced by another scene in the final "cut", or version, of a film...
) - "I Think I Like You" - Dolittle, Emma
- "Doctor Dolittle" - Matthew, Tommy, Emma, the Islanders
- "Something in Your Smile" (deleted scene) - Dolittle
- "My Friend the Doctor" (reprise) - Company
Both "Where Are the Words?" and "Something in Your Smile" were cut from the general release version of the film, and continue to be missing from all home video versions on VHS, laserdisc, and DVD.
The film's 1967 release was accompanied by an enormous media blitz, with over a million copies of the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
issued to stores. The advertising campaign failed, and soundtracks from the original release could be found in "bargain bins" for decades after the film's theatrical run.
Production
Alan Jay LernerAlan Jay Lerner
Alan Jay Lerner was an American lyricist and librettist. In collaboration with Frederick Loewe, he created some of the world's most popular and enduring works of musical theatre for both the stage and on film...
was originally chosen to write the script, but was fired by producer Arthur P. Jacobs
Arthur P. Jacobs
Arthur Jacobs was a twentieth century film producer responsible for numerous classic films of the 1960s and 1970s, including the Planet of the Apes series, Doctor Dolittle, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, Play It Again, Sam and Tom Sawyer...
on May 7, 1965 for his endless procrastination. Jacobs then tried to get the Sherman Brothers
Sherman Brothers
The Sherman Brothers are an American songwriting duo that specialize in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman ....
, but they were tied to Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
. Instead, Lerner was replaced by Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse is an English composer, lyricist, and playwright.Although best known for his partnership with Anthony Newley, Bricusse has worked with many other composers. He was educated at University College School in London and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge...
, who was in high demand after his success with the musical Stop the World - I Want to Get Off
Stop the World - I Want to Get Off
Stop the World – I Want to Get Off is a musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley.Set against the backdrop of a circus, it focuses on Littlechap, whose first major step towards improving his lot is to marry Evie, his boss's daughter...
. This gave Rex Harrison the chance to sit out his contract, and he was to be replaced by Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
, but when Harrison agreed to stay, the producers paid Plummer his total agreed-upon salary to leave the production. The film was originally budgeted at $6 million, but the budget eventually tripled.
The village scenes were filmed in the village of Castle Combe
Castle Combe
Castle Combe is a small village in Wiltshire, England, with a population of about 350. It is renowned for its attractiveness and tranquillity, and for fine buildings including the medieval church. The 14th century market cross, erected when the privilege to hold a weekly market in Castle Combe was...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. Unfortunately, the producers did not anticipate that the necessary trained animals for the production would all have to quarantined upon entering the UK, forcing them all to be replaced with other animals at considerable and redundant expense to meet regulations. Furthermore, the producers chose to ignore climate reports of the area's frequently rainy summers and were frustrated with the resulting weather continually interfering with shooting, while also caused health problems with the animals. In addition, the producers' arbitrary set design decisions such as removing TV aerials from personal residences in town irritated the population. This antipathy went to as far as an artificial dam built by the production on the Castle Combe set being blown up by British Army officer (and future explorer) Ranulph Fiennes
Ranulph Fiennes
Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet, OBE , better known as Ranulph Fiennes, is a British adventurer and holder of several endurance records. He is also a prolific writer. Fiennes served in the British Army for eight years including a period on counter-insurgency service while...
, using explosives he obtained from being in the service, because he believed it ruined the village. Eventually, the producers decided to rebuild relevant sets back in California for costly reshoots.
The film was also shot in Marigot Bay
Marigot Bay
Marigot Bay is located on the western coast of the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia, 3.75 miles southwest from Castries and a short distance from the Saint Lucian National Marine Reserve...
, Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
; this location was equally difficult, with considerable problems with insects and frequent tropical storms halting production. In addition, Rex Harrison was becoming more difficult still, with frequent drunkenness, continually denigrating his co-stars, and isolating himself on a three mast ship he used for his personal accommodation, which he deliberately steered into camera range during a shoot and refused to move for hours. Furthermore, the finale scene of the characters sailing home on a giant snail was complicated not only by the poor design of the large prop, but because the locals, who had just suffered a children's gastrointestinal illness epidemic caused by freshwater snails, took it as a personal insult severe enough to have mobs throw rocks at it. The Marigot Bay Hotel, now located there, has the Pink Snail Champagne Bar in honor of Dr. Dolittle. The walls of the bar are adorned with original pictures from the film.
It was photographed in 70 mm Todd-AO
Todd-AO
Todd-AO is a post-production company founded in 1953, providing sound-related services to the motion picture and television industries. The company operates three facilities in the Los Angeles area.-History:...
by Robert Surtees
Robert Surtees (cinematographer)
Robert L. Surtees, A.S.C. was an American cinematographer who won Academy Awards three times, for the films King Solomon's Mines, The Bad and the Beautiful and the 1959 version of Ben Hur.His son Bruce is also a cinematographer.-Cinematography:Robert L...
.
Just prior to release, 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
was sued for $4.5 million by Helen Winston, a previous would-be producer, when she discovered an original plot point from her own rejected screenplay written by Larry Watkin, of animals threatening to go on strike on Dolittle's behalf, was used in the film. It turns out Bricusse, who had read Winston's script, assumed it was from the books and included it in his own treatment by mistake. Since the producers only had rights to the content of the original books, they had no legal defense and were forced to settle out of court.
Remake
A remake starring Eddie MurphyEddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
, Dr. Dolittle, was released in 1998. This remake was directed by Betty Thomas
Betty Thomas
Betty Thomas is an American actress and director in television and motion pictures.-Life and career:Born Betty Thomas Nienhauser in St. Louis, Missouri, Thomas graduated from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree...
and was a box office success as compared to the bomb
Box office bomb
The phrase box office bomb refers to a film for which the production and marketing costs greatly exceeded the revenue regained by the movie studio. This should not be confused with Hollywood accounting when official figures show large losses, yet the movie is a financial success.A film's financial...
that the original was. This film inspired two sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
s, one theatrical and one direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
.
Reception
The film's first sneak preview in September, 1967 at the Mann Theatre in Minneapolis proved to be an alarming failure: for instance, the audience had few children, indicating little interest in the source material with its intended primary audience. Furthermore, the general audience response was muted during the screening while comment cards rated it poorly with frequent complaints about the film's excessive length. A shortened edit of the film previewed in San Francisco was no more successful while a still shorter edit previewed in San JoseSan José
San José, or San Jose, is the Spanish for Saint Joseph. It usually refers to one of two major cities. These are:*San José, Costa Rica, the capital of Costa Rica*San Jose, California, the tenth-most populous city in the United States...
was marginally better received enough to be approved as the final cut.
In his annual Movie Guide
Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide
Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide is a book-format collection of movie capsule reviews that began in 1969 and has been updated yearly since 1978. It was originally called TV Movies, which became Leonard Maltin's TV Movies and Video Guide, which then became Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide...
, critic and historian Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
called the film a "colossal dud". Maltin admired the film's photography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
, but was quick to point out how it nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox Studios
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
. He admitted, however, that "The movie has one merit: If you have unruly children, it may put them to sleep." Other critics were similarly harsh.
Furthermore, the film also faced strong competition with the Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
animated feature film, The Jungle Book
The Jungle Book (1967 film)
The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Released on October 18, 1967, it is the 19th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was inspired by the stories about the feral child Mowgli from the book of the same name by...
opening on the same week to considerable critical acclaim and children's audience enthusiasm. To make matters worse, Doctor Dolittles appeal as family fare was seriously undermined as the film's publicity drew attention to the original books and its virulent racist content, which drew calls to have them removed from public schools.
When Oscar nomination time came around, according to the book Behind the Oscar, Fox mounted an unparalleled nomination campaign at which Academy members were wined and dined. As a result, the film was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, in what is considered a major example by some of how a Best Picture nomination can be acquired based on blatant campaigning rather than artistic merit.
A number of critics found the film's musical score by Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse is an English composer, lyricist, and playwright.Although best known for his partnership with Anthony Newley, Bricusse has worked with many other composers. He was educated at University College School in London and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge...
"too sophisticated for the kiddies".
Influence
The failure of the film is credited with hastening the demise of the roadshow theatrical releaseRoadshow theatrical release
A roadshow theatrical release was a term in the American motion picture industry for a practice in which a film opened in a limited number of theaters in large cities like Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, Dallas, and San Francisco for a specific period of time before the...
in favor of the more general release which continues to this day. The resulting poor sales of related merchandise also significantly discouraged enthusiasm for similar forms of marketing until George Lucas
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
took advantage of the attitude to gain those rights and profited spectacularly with his 1977 film Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
.
In 1998, the film was adapted into a stage musical, starring Phillip Schofield
Phillip Schofield
Phillip Bryan Schofield is an English broadcaster and television personality best known for presenting shows such as This Morning, Dancing on Ice, and various game shows including The Cube.-Early life and career:...
as Doctor Dolittle, a pre-recorded Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Dame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...
as the voice of Dolittle's parrot Polynesia, and the animatronic wizardry of Jim Henson's Creature Shop
Jim Henson's Creature Shop
Jim Henson's Creature Shop is a company founded in 1979 by puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets, and Frank Oz.It was originally created as a result of the observation that the team that had been put together for The Dark Crystal was extremely hard to recreate for Labyrinth, since the...
. The show ran for 400 performances in London's West End and at the time was one of the most expensive musicals ever produced. The musical also starred Bryan Smyth
Bryan Smyth
Bryan Smyth is an Irish singer, television presenter, and actor and Artist. He was born in Dublin, Ireland.- Biography :Smyth came to light as a singer at a young age; as a boy soprano he found himself in demand in many churches in Dublin. He studied singing at the Leinster School of Music &...
, a former milkman and full time actor and singer who then went on to host his own TV game show for RTE
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
.
A newly recorded version of "Beautiful Things" was used in a Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
2008 TV commercial
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
campaign for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
retail chain
Chain store
Chain stores are retail outlets that share a brand and central management, and usually have standardized business methods and practices. These characteristics also apply to chain restaurants and some service-oriented chain businesses. In retail, dining and many service categories, chain businesses...
Kohl's
Kohl's
Kohl's Corporation is an American department store chain headquartered in the Milwaukee suburb of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, operating , 1,089 stores in 49 states. In 1998, it entered the S&P 500 list, and is also listed in the Fortune 500...
.
Academy Awards
The film won Academy AwardsAcademy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for Best Effects, Special Effects
Academy Award for Visual Effects
The Academy Award for Visual Effects is an Academy Award given for the best achievement in visual effects.-History of the award:The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first recognized the technical contributions of special effects to movies at its inaugural dinner in 1928, presenting a...
and Best Music, Song (Leslie Bricusse for "Talk to the Animals").
It was nominated for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration
Academy Award for Best Art Direction
The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art direction on a film. The films below are listed with their production year, so the Oscar 2000 for best art direction went to a film from 1999...
(Mario Chiari
Mario Chiari
Mario Chiari was an Italian production designer and art director. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film Doctor Dolittle.-Selected filmography:...
, Jack Martin Smith
Jack Martin Smith
Jack Martin Smith was a highly successful Hollywood art director with over 130 films to his credit and nine Academy Award nominations which ultimately yielded three Oscars.-MGM:...
, Ed Graves
Ed Graves
Ed Graves was an American art director. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film Doctor Dolittle.-External links:...
, Walter M. Scott
Walter M. Scott
Walter M. Scott was an Academy Award-winning set decorator who worked on films such as The Sound of Music and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid....
, Stuart A. Reiss
Stuart A. Reiss
Stuart A. Reiss is an American set decorator. He won two Academy Awards and was nominated for four more in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:...
), Best Cinematography
Academy Award for Best Cinematography
The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work in one particular motion picture.-History:...
, Best Film Editing
Academy Award for Film Editing
The Academy Award for Film Editing is one of the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Nominations for this award are closely correlated with the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since 1981, every film selected as Best Picture has also been nominated for the Film Editing...
, Best Music, Original Music Score
Academy Award for Original Music Score
The Academy Award for Original Score is presented to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer.-Superlatives:...
, Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment and Best Sound
Academy Award for Sound
The Academy Award for Sound Mixing is an Academy Award that recognizes the finest or most euphonic sound mixing or recording, and is generally awarded to the production sound mixers and re-recording mixers of the winning film. Compare this award to the Academy Award for Sound Editing...
.