The 1940 version of Pinocchio: How the premiere of the Disney film ended in violence, alcohol and abuse

In the flurry of inspiration for Disney films, fairy tales, fairy tales or not, naturally stand out and draw heavily from the writings of authors such as Charles Perrault, the Brothers Grimm; Hans Christian Andersen, author She wore a mermaid. or Carlo Collodi, the author The Adventures of PinocchioIt was written and published in 1881-1882 serially in an Italian newspaper.

A literary monument of great darkness

A masterpiece of children’s literature, Pinocchio is one of the best-selling Italian literary works of the 20th century in the country. There we find the movie trio, namely Doll, Geppetto and Jiminy Cricket, who have a much less important role than in the Disney film and only appear in Chapter 4.

In the fairy tale, Pinocchio is a terrible rascal who always does what he wants, constantly lies and disobeys his elders. Worse, he doesn’t seem to learn or retain any lessons from his misfortune. He ignores Jiminy Cricket, to the point of throwing a hammer at him, which destroys him. Radical.

Later, during the trip, he accidentally burns his feet: “Having no strength left to stand up, Pinocchio sat down on a small chair and put his two legs on the stove to dry. Finally he fell asleep and lay on the wooden legs in his sleep. Slowly, very slowly, they turned black and turned to ashes.”

Geppetto may lovingly build him new legs, but Pinocchio runs away from home just as dry. Poor Geppetto finds himself arrested and imprisoned after Pinocchio claims that the old man mistreated him…

We also find Jiminy Cricket later in the story, this time as a ghost trying (again!) to dissuade Pinocchio from the advice of shady individuals who claim that planting gold coins in the ground can make a golden tree grow…

Of course, the insufferable doll doesn’t care, to the point of eventually being hanged by these evil individuals. Originally, this ending, of insane darkness, was supposed to be the end of Carlo Collodi’s story. But the editor of the newspaper in which this tale was published frowned and asked the author to revise his copy by changing the ending, which he wanted to be lighter and more optimistic. Hence the idea of ​​the blue fairy saving the doll from certain death.

A battalion of little people to animate

If the Disney version cuts down significantly on the original work – and we understand that it still retains some of the darkness and even some of the brutality. Based on the critical and public triumph of his first animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt Disney now has his sights set on something much bigger.

Thus, he hires a battalion of 1,000 animators to produce a feature film every 6 months. In this way, three feature films are made: Bambi, Fantasia and Pinocchio. The budget of the latter is exploding Snow WhiteThe production of which already required the mortgage on Walt Disney’s house.

On February 7, 1940, Disney and RKO, the distributor of his films, arranged a screening. Pinocchio At a prestigious venue: Center Theater in New York. You have to hit as hard Snow White, which enjoyed a five-week exposure at New York’s Radio City Music Hall; A great first for this mythical room.

There are even plans to put small dishes into big ones, a buffet, as well as plenty of alcohol. Eleven short people are also employed. Dressed as Pinocchio, perched on the awning of the room, they are in charge of the animation, only for the children to wait in line with their parents.

The day is endless for them, stuck on this fake roof, except that they have to wear an impractical suit in the oppressive heat. It is still planned to provide them with food and alcoholic beverages. In this case, gin and whiskey. Not the best idea…

The eleven dwarves soon became drunk. From the beginning of the afternoon, they get naked, start fighting with each other, playing tricks. Don’t forget, I bear witness below, the dumbfounded crowd attending this spectacle. He even takes a few rounds of abuse. Parents are understandably appalled at the spectacle offered by this now-free gang.

The police are called in to help put an end to this circus, which we imagine is a bit embarrassing for Disney. While climbing up the awning using a ladder, the police attempt to arrest the eleven ruffians, who start running in all directions to escape. They will eventually be put under cushion conditions.

Unfortunately, there is no visible image of this preview, except for the rare photo that is partially visible above. Not bad at all for a firm with big ears…