Q : I am doing a research paper on Disney films made during WWII, specifically those designed to help the war effort. Do you have any information about why Walt Disney wanted to make films like Der Fuehrer’s Face, and why Donald Duck was used in a number of these films?
Debra, Sacramento, California
A: A wave of patriotism swept the nation during World War II, and Walt Disney was one of many caught up in it. He vowed to do what he could to help the war effort, spearheading the production of training and propaganda films by his studio and the designing of military insignia for fighting units. By the 1940s, Donald Duck had become the most popular character at the Disney Studio, and since he had an explosive temperament, he seemed a natural for war-related cartoons.
Q : I have read that The Three Caballeros features a musical composition called “Pandeiro & Flute,” written by Benedito Lacerda. Can you tell me where in the film this piece can be heard, and when it was written?
Jeremiah, Fairfax, Virginia
A: While written by Lacerda (1903-1958) and licensed by Disney, it was developed by Charles Wolcott and Lacerda was uncredited. The piece appears at the end of the Baia train sequence and just before the “Os Quindins de Ya-Ya” sequence. A pandeiro is a Brazilian version of a tambourine.
Q : I am looking for the Pigs is Pigs poem I used in elementary school for a public speaking event. It was in a red hardcover Disney book that had many stories in it. Is there a copy of that book out there somewhere for purchase or even just a copy of the poem version for my students to use in the same way?
Annette, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
A: This poem was created by the Disney story team for our 1954 cartoon, based on the well-known story by Ellis Parker Butler. It was indeed published in the Golden Press book, Walt Disney’s Story Land, first published in 1961 and kept in print into the 1990s.
Q : I have always been curious as to why most Disney characters have fathers, but not mothers? Is there some significance to that, or just coincidence? The few that have mothers, usually die, such as Nemo’s mom and Bambi’s mom. Always wanted to know.
Dawn, Stoughton, Massachusetts
A: Regarding the animated features, you are forgetting mothers in such films as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (stepmother), Dumbo, Cinderella (stepmother), Peter Pan, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, One Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Lion King, Hercules, Mulan, Toy Story, The Incredibles, and The Princess and the Frog. Even Rapunzel in Tangled had her Mother Gothel, not to mention her real mother.
Q : Dave, in a recent answer to a question about the actors who provided voices for the Dumbo animated feature, you mentioned the elephants Matriarch, Fidgity, Giddy, and Prissy, and then said, “good luck to anyone who knows which elephant is which.” That answer, of course, begs the question: Do you know which is which?
Jim, Cape Canaveral, Florida
A: In doing more research, I see that the elephants have not always been referred to by the same names. Fidgity and Giddy were also called Catty and Giggles. According to John Grant in his Encyclopedia of Walt Disney’s Animated Characters, at the beginning of the film, Matriarch has the pink-violet headdress, Catty has the yellow, Giggles the blue, and Prissy the red. Matriarch is the leader of the group; when the stork asks if she is the one receiving the baby, she haughtily replies, “Certainly Not.” Prissy’s reply is “The very idea!” Later on, when the elephants first see Dumbo’s huge ears, Catty is the one who says in an undertone, “Just look at those E.A.R.S.,” with Giggles responding, “Those what? Oh, ears!”
Q : I have a question with regard to the 16mm Disney films that were available to order for schools back in the ’70s. I have a friend who called me and has acquired a copy of the Disney film, Make Mine Music, part 1 and part 2, 16mm reels. The box says that it was shipped on 5/21/1974 from Burbank, CA on Riverside Dr. They wanted to know what the reels are worth today?
Peter, Monrovia, California
A: The film was released on DVD in 2006, so there would be little interest in a 16mm film print.  Besides, that is a copyrighted film that is technically the property of The Walt Disney Company, so sale of it is not legal.
Q : I have vague recollections of live-action Disney movies geared more to the teen set, Watcher in the Woods, Child of Glass, etc. What were some of the other titles, and how many are available today? Thanks.
Jenny, Chaska, Minnesota
A: I assume you are referring to films that had teenage actors in the lead role, and many Disney films fit that criteria. The two you cited are from the late 1970s and early 1980s. You might include such other titles from that era as Tex, Midnight Madness, Freaky Friday, Candleshoe, Return to Oz, The Journey of Natty Gann, Ride a Wild Pony, My Science Project, Flight of the Navigator, and the Witch Mountain films. Some of these are currently available on DVD.
Q : Does anyone remember the name of a cartoon movie I’ve only seen once in my life? It is about a boy and sister and it was in the winter and he got an ice sliver in his eye that the Snow Queen sent. And he turned mean to his sister and was put under a spell and he forgot he had a sister, but she kept looking for him and they broke the spell. I think it was a Disney movie but I’m not sure, and I’ve never found it or seen it again. I’d like to find it and watch it with my grandkids. I know it’s been over 50 years and it’s an old memory, but does anyone else remember that movie, because I know every Edgecumbe kid saw it. I’d love to get a copy of it and pass it on to my grandkids.
William, Anchorage, Alaska
A: You are thinking of Hans Christian Andersen’s story, The Snow Queen. It was not made into a movie by Disney, but there was a well-known Russian-made animated film in 1957 that was dubbed into English and had a wide release in the U.S. in 1959. Disney Legend Tommy Kirk provided one of the voices. There have been other filmed versions of the story, most of which have been released on DVD, including a 2002 television movie, starring Bridget Fonda.