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The Thief and the Cobbler: Recobbled Director's Cut (Released) — Page 24

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Many, many, many thanks John! You done good. Sorry about all the tragedy in your life at the mo.


Yeah, I'm still getting thrown out of my apartment. Can't think about that ... gotta animate for the presentation saturday. Wish I had $$.
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I've been a fan of this movie since i read an article about it in some animation magazine in the late 80s (forget the name). I even bought a copy of the VHS tape when it was released, and loved the day that I got a copy of the workprint and extras off myspleen.

But today I watched the trailer.....

Oh....My....GOD!!! I must get a copy of this, and the extra disks (regardless of number). Is there a PIF chain started yet or is is ocp still working on the main movie part (on page 9 of reading the thread now). BTW ocp, I've really enjoyed some of your other dvds that you've put out. Top notch work man. Good luck with the living situation, bro.

God I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of this.....

I've got better things to do tonight than die! - Springer, Transformers the Movie

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By the way, Garrett, you've got that Wikipedia article now.

I used to be very active on this forum. I’m not really anymore. Sometimes, people still want to get in touch with me about something, and that is great! If that describes you, please email me at [my username]ATgmailDOTcom.

Hi everybody. You’re all awesome. Keep up the good work.

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Ok, I'm preparing the clips...

how much "leader" do you need on the clips... like, 5 seconds on the start and end? Would it be easiest to have all the clips separately?


By the way, I just noticed one altered gag in the workprint. In the script, the bit with King Nod and the maiden under the canopy... it's left to the imagination what's going on. In the script, it seems like there was supposed to be a gag showing that she's really rubbing Nod's feet. It looks like there was a lot more of a running gag with Yum-Yum breaking her shoes. There's also a short scene with Zig-Zag being pampered by his minions...

A lot of this script-only material is terrific, so I wonder why it wasn't even storyboarded. I really suspect a lot of it was at least intended to be in the film because it seems to link up some awkward parts better. It's also interesting to see how scenes were moved around like "Your name is Tack?" moved way back to the scene with Tack fixing Yum-Yum's shoe instead of after "Go away, bird of evil!"

The whole shapeshifting scene is really goofy, too. It seems like that and the sorcery stuff with Zig-Zag during the war machine sequence were cut out to downplay any real sort of magic. Neither really seem to fit the tone of the film.
"I was a perfect idiot to listen to you!"
"Listen here, there ain't nothing in this world that's perfect!"

- from The Bank Dick
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My, my... script-type stuff? I want to see this stuff.
You know, when I watched the film as a kid, I was always really amused by the idea that Zig-Zag was a really lousy sorceror ... if he'd have done anything that was actually any good, I would have been a little disappointed, I think. Go figure. Now, though, I'd kind of like to see it, just to see it.

I will never understand why the scene of Yum Yum breaking her shoes was cut... It's cute and funny and gives her a lot more personality than any of the cookie-cutter sort of charactization they tried to give her in the released version... and that great bit of the Thief, too. Gah.

I can't talk about this right now. Grr.

And, it isn't really relevant, but I borrowed my daddy's dvd copy of Murder on the Orient Express and had a look at the opening sequence. There isn't any 'cartoon' animation; it's a montage of newspaper clippings, essentially, but I've always liked it, and now I know why, I guess. There is an odd little drawing in it, though - - wonder who did that?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/pirateprincesseldorado/newspaper.jpg

Anyway, I've sent off the Roy Naisbitt phone convo -- I hope it's alright, for a start. But I've started imprinting this british accent, and it's showing up in my speech a little bit, now, and...I need some sleep. But after that I'll listen to the Alex Williams convo... if that's too hard to hear, well, I'll be happy to make it up on doing something else, if anything's needed.
Surprised, aren't you? I knew you would be.
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Elly--

Hold of a minute before you start anything else. I finished the transcription of The Thief Who... documentary, and there might be a couple things I need to polish, but that'll take no time at all. I already volunteered to do another transcription, so let's wait until Garrett parcels these things out so we don't end up doubling up on stuff.

Garrett-

A list of what you still need transcribed would be helpful in getting all this stuff organized.
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No worries, tweaker - - I wouldn't have gotten to anything before tomorrow night, I think. And I'm happy to hold off until something's needed for sure.
Surprised, aren't you? I knew you would be.
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Originally posted by: ocpmovie
In that case, you've got mail. =)


This past week, Jonathan Sloman featured a segment about The Thief, on his and Julian Goford's radio program SMARTER THAN THE AVERAGE. Show Two went out on Monday the 3rd of April 2006 on Resonance 104.4fm in the UK.

Download an .mp3 of Show Two at http://www.sendspace.com/file/j8ramh [65.7MB]

Exclusive online version, featuring over ten minutes of material never broadcast!

Website:
http://uk.geocities.com/smarterthanthe/

A clip from "I Drew Roger Rabbit" was played, and the boys read out some copy which I helped write. This project was plugged, pluggity plug. There are also some other fun segments including a Bill Watterson one - he makes a Thief joke later in a segment on Disney.

Love their slam at "Oliver & Company".

Still, I can't help but state I miss the 80's.
Yours truly,
Chris Sobieniak

For more mindless entertainment....
My LiveJournal Page
The Online Video Depository - For all your daily video needs!
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The "Murder on the Orient Express" opening picture looks vaguely like Edward Gorey.
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Originally posted by: EllyDorado
And, it isn't really relevant, but I borrowed my daddy's dvd copy of Murder on the Orient Express and had a look at the opening sequence. There isn't any 'cartoon' animation; it's a montage of newspaper clippings, essentially, but I've always liked it, and now I know why, I guess. There is an odd little drawing in it, though - - wonder who did that?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v378/pirateprincesseldorado/newspaper.jpg

Given that, I would like to add I just watched the opening of my copy of "Don't Drink The Water". There wasn't really much animation in it other than a lot fo stock shots, clips of the actors from photos of their trip, and the credits that were written in a multi-lingual fashion in a font resembling a typewriter/stamp fashion seein in passports.
Yours truly,
Chris Sobieniak

For more mindless entertainment....
My LiveJournal Page
The Online Video Depository - For all your daily video needs!
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Kay, as requested, I've started on the Alex Williams phone conversation. It's considerably harder to work with than the Naisbitt one, but it's also half as long, so... I'll manage.

Also, Garrett -- how did your pitch session-whatever for your animation go (that was today, wasn't it)? Don't leave us in suspense.
Surprised, aren't you? I knew you would be.
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Thanks for caring. =)


**** MASSIVELY OFF TOPIC AND PERSONAL - Thief stuff continues after this. ****


Yeah, the pitch session was tonight ... and my desire to come up with some kind of trailer for two animated pilots that haven't been animated yet is why I haven't replied in this thread in a in a couple days! Was working hard. Drawing like mad ...

So I did manage to create two very rough trailers - not finished animation by any means, but they give some of the flavor of The Chosen Ones and Dance With Grandpa.

Here, actually - have a look:

http://orangecow.org/videos/chosenonestrailer.mov

The Chosen Ones - Cody, a 24 year old slacker, is thrown out of his aunt & uncle's house, and winds up homeless on the street. He meets Juliet, an eccentrically brilliant poet whose apartment has been blown up (actually by aliens, but only we know that) and who is also homeless ... they strike up a friendship and wind up getting an apartment, next door to Rex Roper, who lives with an alien named Jefferson and a robot named Lionel, and who in his spare time battles intergalactic crime. Together they will save the world from alien invasion, along with the usual trials and tribulations of twentysomething life. A heartfelt comedy.

http://orangecow.org/videos/grandpatrailer.mov

Dance With Grandpa - A rather strange little sketch comedy show. We are the laughing few who understand your soul's torment, sent from hell to love you. In the vein of David Lynch and The Muppet Show.

http://orangecow.org/videos/squiffytoon.rm

Squiffy the Derelict Cat - I animated this back in 2002 - I didn't write it (apart from the scene with the prostitute) - but I showed it tonight as a sample of my work.


Anyway, I had those ready to go .... and the pitch session was a very strange experience. It was for the Animation Co-Op at awn.com .... six people were pitching ideas looking for artists, and I was two of them. I was there with Daniel Geduld who is doing voices for both shows but mostly Grandpa, which he's also writing stuff for ....

The first guy to go was a clearly insane man whose previous film was about LSD. Looking like a cross between the seventh and eigth Doctor Whos, he pitched a story about the Buddhist God of Booze, who wants to enter a contest for the best moustache, but is destroyed by a jealous horse - then Buddha rides on a motorcycle. The end?

Um, yeah. I can't describe how insane this pitch was. It was also illustrated by various terrible drawings, and one quite good piece of computer animation. Pretty much everyone was pitching 3D material, so it didn't matter that none of them could really draw. It was very strange to see that lack of interest in good artwork in an animation pitch session. Sign of the times. I recall Richard Williams writing about this once too.

I don't do 3D, so I guess I'm a dinosaur already.

The next guy was a radio host who had recorded something like 5,000 episodes of something incredibly uninteresting. He couldn't draw and wanted someone to animate it for him. He'd been shopping this round for 17 years, and been optioned and rejected by every network. "You had your chance," was my comment.

Then there was quite a nice Silly Symphonies type piece called Birdland Swing, by some renegade ex-Toy story 3 employees. Once again, the artwork was bad, but it was a 3d piece so that doesn't matter anymore. Would like to see this, as it looked like a throwback and very entertaining. The storyboards got laughs, which is a good sign.

Then I was up. Hm.


I'm normally pretty good at off the cuff public speaking ... at least I can be pathetic and funny ... but it was hard to get the audience interested, and on my side. Their minds were elsewhere. LA audience. Er.

I asked, any fans of The Thief and the Cobbler in the house? Yeah, I had brought 5 copies of The Recobbled Rough Cut. If nothing else I could be the only one there to give out free gifts. At least 9 people raised their hands - 5 people got copies.

Audience still not with me, despite free gifts. Can't buy me love.

Played Dance with Grandpa trailer. The sound quality was awful, the bass thrown way up and everything so distorted you could hardly understand it. Damn. I wasn't that happy with this trailer anyway. Got a couple scattered laughs, but er.

Started to explain Dance With Grandpa, then realized there was no explanation for Dance With Grandpa. Started to tell the story of The Chosen Ones instead, where my heart really lies.

Funny thing - there was a fellow in the audience, who presented later ... who is almost finished with a flash-animated feature called The Chosen ONE. He has an all-star voice cast (Tim Curry! Laura Prepon! Lance Hendriksen! Debra Wilson! Chris Sarandon!) .... although the animation is, well, Flash. I knew about this film because of all the bizarre similarities between it and my own baby, The Chosen OneS. We had been throwing round ideas, as a gag, of which celebrities we'd cast in it if it were a big budget feature. Laura Prepon got a nod for my lead, Juliet. Well, Laura Prepon is already in The Chosen ONE. I read up on this and the similarities were ridiculous ... slacker with sideburns thrown out of where he is, genius girl with glasses, Robot Wars, "sarcasm in place of makeup" ... replace aliens (in my script) with religion (in theirs) and you've got more similarities than Aladdin and The Thief.

So.

Ah.

I was presenting my baby the same night as he was presenting its parallel universe twin. Great.


I explained that I was really looking for animators, anyone to help out, explained the plot briefly, said that it was basically cramming everything I loved into one story, and trying to convey how heartfelt the project is.

Played the clip.


The sound was so warped and distorted that you couldn't make out half the dialogue. And guess what - the entire trailer is just dialogue, with no real animation. So I was screwed, basically. Its entire entertainment value was ruined by crappy A/V quality.

No laughter when I wanted it - there was laughter when the Beatles' Golden Slumbers kicked in, which is somewhere I didn't really want anyone to laugh, but oh well.


Oh well indeed.


I opened it up to questions from the audience. There were very few. I wound up finishing early, which I never ever do.

Sigh.

The next guy came up to show his project Nubbinwood, a computer animated feature concept which he's doing as a short. It was brilliant and blew everything else we saw that night out of the water. It was just 2 minutes of gorgeous visuals (like Ice Age crossed with Nick Park). The sound was inaudible, and it didn't matter. Wish that had been true of mine. He opened the room up to questions and the comments were just praising him for being a genius.

On some level, we all want to be "that guy." The brilliant guy. I've directed seven features and thirty shorts, written dozens of screenplays, and I wouldn't have done that if I didn't think I was a creative guy with talent and a lot to say, but I've never gotten to be "that guy," who nobody has any comments on except to say they're now his biggest fan. I'm "that guy" whose work no one watches, understands, or has any comments on. "That guy" who's an east coast man at heat and has never been understood by pretty much anyone in Los Angeles.

Anyway.

The "alternates" were two flash-animated ditties, both pretty ... a short about a flower, and the first five minutes of The Chosen ONE. I spoke with the creator of this afterward, but did not touch him, because if you actually touch your doppelganger, or negative self, matter would meet antimatter and we would both disappear in a flash of logic.

I hung around afterward, and almost no one talked to me. I stood in silence and eventually talked to a couple of people.

Daniel, who drove me there, had to go because he was really tired. I had decided to stay to see the Chosen ONE, despite having no idea how I was going to get home. I sat on a bench waiting for a bus, not knowing where the bus would be going. An Irish woman saw me sitting there, and asked if I needed a ride. She was going in my direction, and took me home.

Whew. What a relief. Sometimes I feel blessed or lucky, and sometimes I feel exactly the opposite. Guess that's life. The positives and negatives in my life are constantly crashing. My highs high, my lows low.

The nice thing about this pitch session is that it forced me to get these little trailers in shape. I slapped them together in a matter of a few days and they're not very good, but they're a start. It forced me to START and put something on video. My goal is now to animate the trailers themselves, fully and gorgeously.

Shouldn't be impossible just to do some trailers. Trailers aren't super long ....


Wish me luck ... and hey, if anyone's an artist wanting a project ... =D






**** END PERSONAL POST. THIEF STUFF CONTINUES AS SCHEDULED BELOW. ***
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Catching up on replies ...

Thanks for the title sequence info Chris & Elly! A lot of the title sequences the studio did are good, but not really animated enough to include on an animation compilation. I felt the same way about What's New Pussycat? and Casino Royale which do have animation in them. Hmm.

Eric Campbell -- Ha! He's a dead ringer for Mighty One Eye. Could be, could be.

I could add that to my list of THINGS TO ASK RICHARD IF I EVER TALK TO HIM.

My first two being:

1. Who voiced Nasrudin?

2. Who voiced the Nurse/Nanny?




>>A list of what you still need transcribed would be helpful in getting all this stuff organized.


Well ... the most important thing is the Clapperboard documentary, but I don't really have a proper copy of that yet, and won't for a month (it has to be converted from PAL). I posted an attempt at capturing the audio from PAL using an NTSC deck earlier but it's so garbled due to the PAL/NTSC trouble that it's kind of unlistenable.


So, in a month, if someone could do the Clapperboard doc I'd be much obliged. =D


Elly is doing the Alex Williams phone conversation - good luck on that! I know it's not an easy one.

Chase Mixon, I believe, is doing the Alex Williams interview.

Bobby Youngblood and his brother are doing the last few minutes of I Drew Roger Rabbit.



So hopefully those three will be in soon, as those are all VERY important.


Thank you all so much! I can't describe how much of a help this is. These transcripts are the entire cornerstone of what I'm trying to do with the book and documentary. With these transcribed I can pull quotes and start to shape it into something. You are the wind beneath my wings? Heh. They will of course be nice to post on the web too.


By the way, the insane amount of text and images I'm collecting related to The Thief ... I'm collecting this all in one folder, and this will be released as The Thief DVD-ROM extras in this DVD set. In fact, it already has been - every time I've sent out copies of the workprint itself (or the Calvert WIP), I've included my "collection so far" of images and text with it. The library keeps growing!


I mailed about 13 packages the other day ... mostly large packages of 10 Thief related DVDs, all given as free gifts. I've given out about 300 free Thief DVDs. No wonder I'm broke and getting thrown out of my apartment. =\

Yeah, I'm doing my best to saturate the market, so to speak. Of course I gave out five "Recobbled"s at the Animation Co-Op tonight. I want this cut to suddenly be EVERYWHERE. =D It does a service to the fans to quietly and suddenly replace ALL the horrible bootlegs of The Thief that are out there with our shiny new cut.


Replying to more posts:


>> Oh....My....GOD!!! I must get a copy of this, and the extra disks (regardless of number). Is there a PIF chain started yet or is is ocp still working on the main movie part (on page 9 of reading the thread now). BTW ocp, I've really enjoyed some of your other dvds that you've put out. Top notch work man. Good luck with the living situation, bro.


Thanks! Glad you're enjoying! =D There will be at least 10 discs for this film, all of them quite good. I'm still working on my final cut of the film, but a rough cut has been released. I don't do PIF distribution. I mail discs directly. The main feature will be posted at myspleen.net for your torrenting pleasure.



>> By the way, Garrett, you've got that Wikipedia article now.


Oh my! Thank you! =D They'll probably delete it again, but thanks for making me feel internet famous for two seconds again. If they delete me again, I wonder if a Deleted Magic article could stay up. They deleted that too before, mainly because I was the one copying/pasting it!

Between that and The Mask Workprint, it was a good day - thanks Alex!


>> how much "leader" do you need on the clips... like, 5 seconds on the start and end? Would it be easiest to have all the clips separately?

Easiest would be no leader, each clip separately. Thanks!


>>By the way, I just noticed one altered gag in the workprint. In the script, the bit with King Nod and the maiden under the canopy... it's left to the imagination what's going on. In the script, it seems like there was supposed to be a gag showing that she's really rubbing Nod's feet. It looks like there was a lot more of a running gag with Yum-Yum breaking her shoes. There's also a short scene with Zig-Zag being pampered by his minions...

And dialogue playing on "Roofless"/"Ruthless" ... and a lot of stuff ...

>> A lot of this script-only material is terrific, so I wonder why it wasn't even storyboarded.

Well, film is a visual medium. I think he animated and storyboarded what he felt was most visual.


>> The whole shapeshifting scene is really goofy, too. It seems like that and the sorcery stuff with Zig-Zag during the war machine sequence were cut out to downplay any real sort of magic. Neither really seem to fit the tone of the film.

I like the shapeshifting scene, it would have fit ... it's very Aladdin though! I imagine it being animated like a similar scene with Abu. Come to think of it, that stuff with Zigzag is kind of Aladdiny too ... you're right, having overt "magic" in this film is different from how it turned out. The film does have a more realistic tone. It works, but hey, I dig magic.

A bit like how, in the Lord of the Rings, Gandalf never, say, changes anyone into a frog. Whereas they'd do that in Harry Potter. Definitely shows one is more adult than the other.



>> My, my... script-type stuff? I want to see this stuff.

For your perusal:
http://orangecow.org/thief/Thiefscript.RTF

Always more fun in this directory:
http://orangecow.org/thief/


>> You know, when I watched the film as a kid, I was always really amused by the idea that Zig-Zag was a really lousy sorceror ... if he'd have done anything that was actually any good, I would have been a little disappointed, I think.

Come to think of it, I agree. Never thought about that before. His magic is of the flashing lights, smoke and mirrors variety. Like a real stage magician.

>> I will never understand why the scene of Yum Yum breaking her shoes was cut... It's cute and funny and gives her a lot more personality than any of the cookie-cutter sort of charactization they tried to give her in the released version... and that great bit of the Thief, too. Gah.


Oh dear. More love for the shoe breaking scene. First Patrick, then Roy Naisbitt, now Elly. =) So much love for the shoe breaking scene.

It's cute and all, but if I were Fred Calvert (and I am, in my nightmares) that's the FIRST scene I would cut.

Take that, shoes!

The scene does nicely cement what one reviewer said about the film (quite aptly), which is that this is a film about obsession. This scene shows plainly that Yumyum is obsessed with Tack. Which is nice.


>> But I've started imprinting this british accent, and it's showing up in my speech a little bit, now, and...I need some sleep.

Oh dear.

That happened to me when I listened to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy too much in high school. I can still talk like Peter Jones at the drop of a hat. (Imagine that last line said in a Peter Jones voice.)


Maybe I should have done Jefferson (from The Chosen Ones) as Peter Jones instead of a stock phony-Brit voice.


>>Love their slam at "Oliver & Company".
Still, I can't help but state I miss the 80's.



Don't say that out loud. =)


I miss certain pop culture things from the 80s and 90s, but not the actual decades. Well, the 90s wasn't bad, better than this decade kinda.


From years of Oliver and Company trailers, I'd remembered Billy Joel's song "Why Should I Worry?" as a highlight. I was sad to actually hear it again in that episode and realize how completely crap it was. The very worst of 80s synch arrangement, a lackluster vocal and the least interesting "verses" I've heard in some time.

I prefer just remembering this song for its hook, which any drunken idiot can sing with an intensity that Mr. Joel didn't quite conjure here.

Drink!





LASTLY BUT NOT LEASTLY:



I'm meeting, hopefully, with Andreas Wessel-Therhorn tomorrow. Well, actually it is tomorrow. In a few hours, then. I should get some more sleep. I'm still sleeping in 4-hour shifts or something.

Andreas is the animator who mainly animated Zigzag's lackeys, Goblet, Gopher, Slap and Tickle. He has saved some artwork from the film and will show it to me.

We were supposed to meet at a coffee shop last week, but due to bus troubles and daylight savings confusion I was late and missed him. This time I'm meeting him at his house, where hopefully he'll still be if for some reason I'm late again - which I won't be!
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Is there anything I can do to help? I know that most of the transcipts are done, but I'm pretty much willing to do anything to help you with this massive project. Have you heard back from Roy Disney yet? With all the people you've met and talked to in the past couple of months, I have to say that I am indeed very jealous, my friend. ^_^ Seriously, if I can help in anyway, please let me know.

I've got better things to do tonight than die! - Springer, Transformers the Movie

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*Giggles* Yeah, you know -- maybe you should start giving applications for a gardener or cook or someone to build you a house or something -- I think people might do it. Strike while the iron is hot, you know.

Anyway, I'm sorry to hear that your pitch session was somewhat nerve-wracking and all that. But you know, if you didn't catch a big break on this and attract a lot of interest, at least you've started and gotten some work done, so now you can build on that and show everyone what they were missing at a later point in time.

Anyway, thanks for that link -- now I can watch OR read up on the Thiefy Cobblery goodness. Score!

Got about seven minutes of the Alex Williams convo done... I'm really just picking at it slowly, and boy, will there be a lot of corrections to make... but it's a start.

So, let us know how your meeting with Mr. Wessel-Therhorn turns out.
Surprised, aren't you? I knew you would be.
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http://www.meritline.com/ritek-dvd-blank-media.html

For quality media that is cheap. I'm sure it's cheaper than buying 100 packs in stores. I've been ordering and using these discs for years and seriously only had like 3 bad burns I can remember. That's after using literally 1000s.
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The reason they probably deleted what you wrote before is because it's a rule on the Wikipedia that you can't write articles about yourself or the works you've done. If someone else does it, and it seems legit, it stays up.

I used to be very active on this forum. I’m not really anymore. Sometimes, people still want to get in touch with me about something, and that is great! If that describes you, please email me at [my username]ATgmailDOTcom.

Hi everybody. You’re all awesome. Keep up the good work.

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I found that I can't export to m2v in Vegas... would AVI be fine?
"I was a perfect idiot to listen to you!"
"Listen here, there ain't nothing in this world that's perfect!"

- from The Bank Dick
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Hi everybody, just wanted to say how excited i was to stumble across this forum. I am very pleased and thankful for anyone who has worked on this 'recobbled' version of richard williams classic!

Sorry if I'm being a pest, but I didn't have the patience to read every page of this conversation and I had a question:

where can I get my hands on the latest Recobbled version?

if anyone could direct me where to download or purchase this, I would be very grateful. Thanks again.
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justbanter-

Right now, your best bet would be through "ocpmovie", as he's the guy that's doing it. Go into your profile and click the "On" button next to "Allow private messages". Then on this page, find one of OCP's posts, and look at the top right side of it. You'll see a line of little icons. Click the one that is second from the right that looks like a padlock--this is the link to send him a private message. Let him know that you're interested in getting a hold of it, and he'll send you the details. He charges 10 bucks a disc to cover materials and shipping fees, and to help fund his projects a tiny bit.
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Tweaker - Ixnay on the entay uxbay. =) I've gotten in trouble with Jay and Moth3r before for even implying the obvious there. (Although with having sent out 300ish free Thief discs these past few months, I should be allowed to scream it from the rooftops now. Heh.)

Folks wanting more info can email me at tygerbug (at) yahoo.com.

Yeah, info, that's the ticket.

>> I found that I can't export to m2v in Vegas... would AVI be fine?

If it's basically uncompressed, yeah that's fine. My preferred codec is PhotoJPEG if you can manage that!



BIG NEWS.

I met with Andreas Wessel-Therhorn today. Very nice guy, currently working on Disney's Mermaid 3.

For The Thief, he animated Zigzag's lackeys Goblet, Gopher, Tickle and Slap, apart from their first shot which Alex Williams did, and also did a lot of background characters, a whole scene of Zigzag, Phido and the lackeys with the balls, and a lot of other stuff.

From his desk he could see both Richard and Roy working, so he had a lot of stories to tell. I didn't get him on tape telling them, but what he told me was quite remarkable - many amusing and sad stories detailing the unique madness of this film.


He's been burning copies of Recobbled and Raggedy Ann for friends, with his own cover art. =)

I showed him my own cover art for Recobbled, and he liked it, but pointed out that I'd drawn the Thief's left foot wrong, which I most definitely had. He drew a quick one which was completely on model.

He scanned his Thief crew jacket for me, which he's emailing.


My brain is full with the remarkable stories he told ... but the big news is this.



He had a big box full of original artwork from the film. He ran around and saved a lot, that last day. He has the entire Ken Harris scene of the Thief crawling down a tree, pencils, all of it. Color poster art for Once and The Thief Who Never Gave Up. A few cels of background characters. Xeroxed model drawings of most every character. Pencil sheets of the lackeys especially of course. A lot of old Art Babbit pencils from the Nasrudin version of the film - of Zigzag and the lackeys in an early form, and of Tack in a VERY early form.

Lots of concept art of Yumyum, who was designed very very late in the game indeed. You can trace her progression. He notes that her breasts got bigger every time. The first shot of Yumyum animated was the shot of her receding into the distance with light on her ("Oh, rose of the land ...") - A shot which is slightly off model, being the test.


Here's the big news. He let me borrow this entire HUGE BOX OF ARTWORK.


I'm scanning the ENTIRE BOX.






...







I'm looking at it right now. It's right here. And it's a beauty.



Oh, and he has some pencil tests on old-style professional videotape. 3/4" I think? Might be able to get these from him. He also has the Warner Bros. trailer which Roy sent me as PAL .... He has it as NTSC somewhere.


He was glad to see his animation of Phido flying to Zigzag's tower in Simon's reel of camera tests. =)




Sooo ... more random info before I forget.



The tall guy who claps his hands together is named "Gort." Andreas animated him and the "little gong guy" in the king scene (Alex did the gong guy in the opening scene, since that was Alex's sequence).


Tim Watts did a lot of work on King Nod. Another German fellow whose name I've already forgotten did most of the stuff with the One Eye soldiers getting killed. Richard Williams did the first part of the Thief/Tack chase, and Dean Roberts did the staircase part, the "swimming pool" like shot, and etc. Andreas did The Thief crashing through the stained glass windows.

He kept pointing out who did what and I've already forgotten.

He did say that the Zigzag drawing John Loter has is probably not by Dick. He said who he thought it was by. But I'm so bad with names. I can get some of this in print maybe.



KNOW YOUR LACKEYS

http://orangecow.org/thief/thiefpic30.jpg
http://orangecow.org/thief/thiefpic10.jpg
Left to right: Goblet, Gopher, Slap and Tickle


Goblet - the brains of the operation. Voiced by Kenneth Williams. He plans to become Grand Vizier himself someday. Striped pants. Black rings. Purple skin.

Gopher - tall and clownllike, with an upward-pointed nose. Polka dot pants, he prances in a clownlike fashion. Red rings. Pink skin. Voiced by Stanley Baxter.

Slap - the "muscle" of the group perhaps. Very short - Art Babbit originally drew him like a pig, and that remains in his design. Black rings. Grey skin. Voiced by Stanley Baxter.

Tickle - Shy, foppish and effeminate. Art Babbit drew him as more snakelike and evil looking, he was made more comical in the redesign. His corkscrew nose, eyelashes and buckteeth define him. Green skin. Green rings. Voiced by Kenneth Williams.
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Is the Complete Richard Williams DVD collection going to be free, and if so, how can I get it?
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The Recobbled Cut itself will probably be available at myspleen.net. The complete collection, in DVD format, is too large to distribute in that fashion and you'll have to get it from me.
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Voice notes:


Andreas isn't sure, but he believes that Joan Sims also played the Nurse/Nanny.

He also isn't sure Sean Connery ever actually recorded his part - that it was possibly an impersonator with the plan to get Connery later.

Now THAT I have to ask Dick, because Dick would know .... someday ....

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If that's the case, how can I get it from you when it's ready? Do I have to post Blank DVDs to put the films on, and if so, where do I post them?
P.S. Is the collection Free to obtain?