The Phantom Tollbooth (film)
Encyclopedia
The Phantom Tollbooth is a 1970 American live-action/animated film
based on Norton Juster's
1961 children's book The Phantom Tollbooth
. This film was produced by Chuck Jones
at MGM Animation/Visual Arts
. Jones also directed the film, save for the live action bookends directed by fellow Warner Bros. Cartoons
alum Dave Monahan. The film was released to theaters by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
on November 7, 1970, and was the last MGM feature film release to include animated segments. MGM's United Artists
subsidiary would release its first fully animated film The Secret of NIMH
in 1982
Completed by 1969, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer held the film up for release until late 1970 due to internal problems. The animation studio closed soon after the film's release, with MGM leaving the animation business for good. Juster had no input into the film adaptation, and has stated that he is not particularly fond of it.
Accompanied by a watchdog called Tock (due to a large clock face embedded into his body), Milo has a series of adventures in places like the Mountains of Ignorance, the Doldrums, Dictionopolis, Digitopolis, and the Castle in the Air. Together they must rescue the Princesses Rhyme and Reason, who are being held captive in Castle in the Air, and restore order to the Kingdom of Wisdom. The many eccentric characters they meet include the noisy Dr. Dischord, the Mathemagician, King Azaz, the Senses Taker, and Officer Short Shrift.
format in 1992 by Turner Entertainment. It is being issued on re-mastered DVD by Warner Bros. Archive.
began development of a remake of The Phantom Tollbooth for Warner Bros.
(current owner of the film) with the first draft of the script written by Alex Tse
.
Live-action/animated film
A live-action/animated film is a motion picture that features a combination of real actors or elements: live-action and animated elements, typically interacting.-History:...
based on Norton Juster's
Norton Juster
Norton Juster is an American architect and author. He is best known as an author of children's books, including The Phantom Tollbooth and The Dot and the Line.- Biography :...
1961 children's book The Phantom Tollbooth
The Phantom Tollbooth
The Phantom Tollbooth is a children's adventure novel and modern fairy tale published in 1961, written by Norton Juster and illustrated by Jules Feiffer. It tells the story of a bored young boy named Milo who unexpectedly receives a magic tollbooth one afternoon and, having nothing better to do,...
. This film was produced by Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
at MGM Animation/Visual Arts
MGM Animation/Visual Arts
MGM Animation/Visual Arts was an animation studio established in 1962 by animation director/producer Chuck Jones and producer Les Goldman as Sib Tower 12 Productions...
. Jones also directed the film, save for the live action bookends directed by fellow Warner Bros. Cartoons
Warner Bros. Cartoons
Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was the in-house division of Warner Bros. Pictures during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in American media history, Warner Bros. Cartoons was primarily responsible for the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical...
alum Dave Monahan. The film was released to theaters by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
on November 7, 1970, and was the last MGM feature film release to include animated segments. MGM's United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
subsidiary would release its first fully animated film The Secret of NIMH
The Secret of NIMH
The Secret of NIMH is a 1982 animated film directed by Don Bluth in his directorial debut. It is an adaptation of Robert C. O'Brien's 1971 children's novel Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. The film was produced by Aurora Pictures and released by United Artists. While released to critical acclaim,...
in 1982
Completed by 1969, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer held the film up for release until late 1970 due to internal problems. The animation studio closed soon after the film's release, with MGM leaving the animation business for good. Juster had no input into the film adaptation, and has stated that he is not particularly fond of it.
Plot
Milo, a bored, lonely boy who lives in a San Francisco apartment block all by himself, is surprised by the sudden arrival of a large, gift-wrapped package. Inside is a tollbooth, which turns out to be a gateway into a magical parallel universe. As Milo passes through the tollbooth, the character moves from live action to animation, and his toy car transports him to the enchanted Kingdom of Wisdom and the cities of Digitopolis and Dictionopolis.Accompanied by a watchdog called Tock (due to a large clock face embedded into his body), Milo has a series of adventures in places like the Mountains of Ignorance, the Doldrums, Dictionopolis, Digitopolis, and the Castle in the Air. Together they must rescue the Princesses Rhyme and Reason, who are being held captive in Castle in the Air, and restore order to the Kingdom of Wisdom. The many eccentric characters they meet include the noisy Dr. Dischord, the Mathemagician, King Azaz, the Senses Taker, and Officer Short Shrift.
Cast
- Butch PatrickButch PatrickButch Patrick is a former American child actor. He is widely known for his role on the TV show The Munsters where he played Eddie Munster, the son of Herman and Lily Munster...
as Milo - Mel BlancMel BlancMelvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
as Officer Short Shrift, The Dodecahedron, The Demon of Insincerity - Daws ButlerDaws ButlerCharles Dawson "Daws" Butler was a voice actor originally from Toledo, Ohio. He worked mostly for Hanna-Barbera and originated the voices of many famous animated cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, and Huckleberry Hound.Daws Butler trained many working actors...
as Whether Man, The Terrible Trivium, The GelatinGelatinGelatin is a translucent, colorless, brittle , flavorless solid substance, derived from the collagen inside animals' skin and bones. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar...
ous Giant, Senses Taker - Candy CandidoCandy CandidoCandy Candido was an American radio performer, bass player, vocalist and animation voice actor, best remembered for his famous line, "I'm feeling mighty low."...
as Awful Dynne - Hans ConriedHans ConriedHans Georg Conried, Jr. was an American comedian, character actor and voice actor.-Early years:He was born on April 15, 1917 in Baltimore, Maryland to Hans Georg Conried, Sr. and Edith Beyr Gildersleeve. His mother was a descendant of Pilgrims, and his father was a Jewish immigrant from Vienna,...
as King Azaz, The Mathemagician - June ForayJune ForayJune Foray is an American voice actress, best known as the voice of many animated characters...
as Princess of Pure Reason, Faintly Macabre, voice of Ralph - Patti Gilbert as Princess of Sweet Rhyme
- Shepard MenkenShepard MenkenShepard Menken was an American voice actor and character actor.Menken began his career at the age of 11, when he started appearing on children's radio programs...
as Spelling Bee - Cliff NortonCliff NortonClifford Charles "Cliff" Norton was an American character actor and radio announcer who had appeared in various movies and television series over a career that spanned over 40 years. He was probably best known as the announcer for Dave Garroway's radio program...
as Kakofonous A. Dischord, Tollbooth Speaker, Chroma the Great - Larry ThorLarry ThorLarry Thor was a film actor and radio personality.Born: August 27, 1916, Canada Date of Death: March 15, 1976, Santa Monica, California- Radio career :* Announcer on CBS Radio's "The Adventures of Rocky Jordan" ....
as Tock the Watchdog - Les TremayneLes TremayneLes Tremayne was a radio, film, and television actor. Born Lester Tremayne in England, he moved with his family at the age four to Chicago, where he began in community theatre. He danced as a vaudeville performer and worked as amusement park barker...
as Humbug - Thurl RavenscroftThurl RavenscroftThurl Arthur Ravenscroft was an American voice actor and singer best known as the deep voice behind Tony the Tiger's "They're grrreat!" in Frosted Flakes television commercials for more than five decades. Ravenscroft was also known, however uncredited, as the vocalist for the song "You're a Mean...
, Mel BlancMel BlancMelvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
as The Lethargians
Home release
The film was released in VHSVHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
format in 1992 by Turner Entertainment. It is being issued on re-mastered DVD by Warner Bros. Archive.
Remake
In February 2010, director Gary RossGary Ross
Gary Ross is an American writer, director, and actor. He is best known for directing Pleasantville and Seabiscuit, both of which featured Tobey Maguire in the lead role...
began development of a remake of The Phantom Tollbooth for Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
(current owner of the film) with the first draft of the script written by Alex Tse
Alex Tse
Alex R. Tse is an American screenwriter who grew up in San Francisco and attended Emerson College in Boston. His first script to be produced was Sucker Free City, a Showtime television movie directed by Spike Lee and released in 2004...
.