The Ballad of Little Joe
Encyclopedia
The Ballad of Little Joe is the 20th episode in the VeggieTales
series. It is subtitled "A Lesson in Facing Hardship". It was released in late 2003 on DVD
and VHS
format. The story is a parody
of the American Western
and also a retelling of the Bible
story of Joseph. Running time is approximately 35 minutes.
story would be best while Larry stands by a promise that the Veggies do a Western
. A compromise is reached: the resulting story, "The Ballad of Little Joe", is a Western-style Bible story.
The story follows the Biblical account of Joseph
and his multi-colored coat from the Book of Genesis. As the story begins we are introduced to the brothers (played by the French Peas) and then to Little Joe (Larry) who is very different indeed. Among his unique skills are the abilities to solve problems, organize resources, and interpret dreams. We soon learn that it is Joe's birthday, and the brothers' father (Pa Grape) lavishes attention and gifts upon him.
When Joe foretells a time when his brothers will bow down before him, their jealousy turns to spite, and they decide to sell him into slavery. He ends up working at a saloon for Mr. McPotipher (Scooter Carrot), and his unique skills quickly make him an invaluable employee. Also working at the saloon is Kitty (Madame Blueberry) who entertains the patrons from the stage. She also becomes jealous of Joe when he is named Employee of the Month in her place. She frames him and he is imprisoned for the theft of gold, a crime he did not commit.
Joe keeps a positive attitude in jail and is able to help two inmates who have been haunted by dreams. His predictions come true: one is released, and the other, presumably, is executed. When his reputation comes to the attention of the Mayor (Mr. Nezzer), Joe is summoned to interpret a particularly disturbing dream of the latter, in which seven fat cows are devoured by seven scrawny cows. Joe understands immediately and warns the Mayor: there will be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine; fill the storehouses now so you will be prepared.
Joe is put in charge of distributing the grain during the years of famine. When he recognizes his own family has come to procure food, he is overcome with emotion. He wants to reveal himself to them, but first needs to know if they have changed. He devises a plan where he frames the youngest brother, Benjamin, for theft to see how they respond. When all the brothers insist on taking the fall in his place and rue the previous loss of another brother, Joe reveals his identity. The story concludes with the happy reunion.
DVDs with a variety of additional features intended to appeal to both children and adults alike. This section itemizes the content of the DVD.
VeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American series of children's computer animated films featuring anthropomorphic vegetables in stories conveying moral themes based on Christianity...
series. It is subtitled "A Lesson in Facing Hardship". It was released in late 2003 on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
format. The story is a parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the American Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
and also a retelling of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
story of Joseph. Running time is approximately 35 minutes.
Synopsis
In the opening countertop segment, Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber argue about how best to convey "a lesson in facing hardship". Bob insists that a BibleBible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
story would be best while Larry stands by a promise that the Veggies do a Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
. A compromise is reached: the resulting story, "The Ballad of Little Joe", is a Western-style Bible story.
The story follows the Biblical account of Joseph
Joseph (Hebrew Bible)
Joseph is an important character in the Hebrew bible, where he connects the story of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in Canaan to the subsequent story of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt....
and his multi-colored coat from the Book of Genesis. As the story begins we are introduced to the brothers (played by the French Peas) and then to Little Joe (Larry) who is very different indeed. Among his unique skills are the abilities to solve problems, organize resources, and interpret dreams. We soon learn that it is Joe's birthday, and the brothers' father (Pa Grape) lavishes attention and gifts upon him.
When Joe foretells a time when his brothers will bow down before him, their jealousy turns to spite, and they decide to sell him into slavery. He ends up working at a saloon for Mr. McPotipher (Scooter Carrot), and his unique skills quickly make him an invaluable employee. Also working at the saloon is Kitty (Madame Blueberry) who entertains the patrons from the stage. She also becomes jealous of Joe when he is named Employee of the Month in her place. She frames him and he is imprisoned for the theft of gold, a crime he did not commit.
Joe keeps a positive attitude in jail and is able to help two inmates who have been haunted by dreams. His predictions come true: one is released, and the other, presumably, is executed. When his reputation comes to the attention of the Mayor (Mr. Nezzer), Joe is summoned to interpret a particularly disturbing dream of the latter, in which seven fat cows are devoured by seven scrawny cows. Joe understands immediately and warns the Mayor: there will be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine; fill the storehouses now so you will be prepared.
Joe is put in charge of distributing the grain during the years of famine. When he recognizes his own family has come to procure food, he is overcome with emotion. He wants to reveal himself to them, but first needs to know if they have changed. He devises a plan where he frames the youngest brother, Benjamin, for theft to see how they respond. When all the brothers insist on taking the fall in his place and rue the previous loss of another brother, Joe reveals his identity. The story concludes with the happy reunion.
Cast of Characters
- Larry The Cucumber as Joseph (Little Joe)
- Junior Asparagus as Benjamin
- Jean Claude as Jude
- Phillipe as Reuben
- More Peas as Joe's other brothers
- Pa Grape as Little Joe's father
- Mr. Lunt as a servant at the ranch
- Scallions as the desperados
- Madame Blueberry as Miss Kitty
- Scooter Carrot as McPotipher
- Bob the Tomato as Sheriff Bob
- Jimmy Gourd as the baker
- Jerry Gourd as the blacksmith
- Mr. Nezzer as the Mayor
- Archibald Asparagus as the banker
- Carrots as citizens of Dodgeball City
Segments
- Opening Countertop
- The Ballad of Little Joe (Part I)
- Silly SongSilly Songs with LarrySilly Songs with Larry is a regular feature in the Big Idea's popular 3D cartoon series VeggieTales. It generally consists of Larry the Cucumber singing either alone or with some of the other Veggie characters. Occasionally, another character or an ensemble gets the lead vocal. It is occasionally...
: Bellybutton - The Ballad of Little Joe (Part II)
- Closing Countertop
Songs
In addition to the ubiquitous "VeggieTales Theme" and "What We Have Learned," this episode contains the following songs:- Happy Ki-Yi Birthday, sung by the French Peas and Mr. Lunt
- Dream of a Dozen Cactus, sung by Little Joe
- Oh Little Joe I, sung by McPotipher and patrons of the Rootin' Tootin' Pizza Place
- I'm Blue, sung by Miss Kitty
- Oh Little Joe II, sung by Little Joe, Sheriff Bob, the Baker, and the Blacksmith
- Mayor's Dream, sung by the Mayor
- Bellybutton (Silly SongSilly Songs with LarrySilly Songs with Larry is a regular feature in the Big Idea's popular 3D cartoon series VeggieTales. It generally consists of Larry the Cucumber singing either alone or with some of the other Veggie characters. Occasionally, another character or an ensemble gets the lead vocal. It is occasionally...
), sung by Boyz in the Sink
DVD Content
Big Idea has consistently packed the VeggieTalesVeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American series of children's computer animated films featuring anthropomorphic vegetables in stories conveying moral themes based on Christianity...
DVDs with a variety of additional features intended to appeal to both children and adults alike. This section itemizes the content of the DVD.
Chapters
- 1. Main Titles
- 2. CowBoy Brothers
- 3. Dream Of A Dozen Cactus
- 4. Oh Little Joe I
- 5. "Belly Button"
- 6. Oh Little Joe II
- 7. The Mayor's Dream/Oh Little Joe III
- 8. Family Again/End Titles