Walt Disney’s The Sword in the Stone was released in 1963 as Walt Disney’s 18th full-length animated feature. Who knew that this feature would turn into such an iconic film as everyone fell in love with the scrawny 12-year-old boy and an incomparable wizard. Set in England, viewers tag-along on the journey as the “future King Arthur” is taught king life lessons from the witty, yet wise, wizard named Merlin. Through his life lessons the young boy, nicknamed Wart, is led to extract a mighty sword from an enchanted stone. Here are 10 more fun facts about Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone.
A Legend is Sung of When England was Young. Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone is based on author T.H. White’s novel, The Once and Future King, published in 1938. Walt was quick to obtain screen rights in 1939, but decades would pass before work officially began on the animated film. Story artist, Bill Peet, tried to remain true to the story but knew adapting the complex book would be challenging. As he reworked the story the humorously tale contrasting the fifth century emerged. Walt explains the story more as one that “takes place at a time when England was ruled by might alone. But Merlin can see into the future and a time must come when brains triumph over brawn. So, he sets out to educate the future king in his own peculiar way.”
Walt was an Inspiration for Merlin. When adapting the literary work Peet incorporated Walt Disney into the character of Merlin. Peet recalls, “Walt the wizard never knew that I patterned Merlin the magician after him when I wrote the script.” Peet goes on to explain that T.H. White described the wizard as “a crusty old curmudgeon, argumentative and temperamental, playful at time, and extremely intelligent.” Peet went on to say, “Walt was not curmudgeon and he had no beard, but he was a grandfather and had much more character. I even borrowed Walt’s nose.”
Milt Kahl is a master of magic in motion. Master animator Milt Kahl described Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone as one of his favorite projects. Fellow members of Disney’s elite Nine Old Men animation team sang their praises for the master animator. According to animation team members Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, “Sir Ector and Sir Kay were the best humans ever don’t at the studio. They were done without benefit of live action or the support of reference material.” Kahl credits his success to enjoying the project, “I liked the characters very much. We made Merlin kind of a doddering magician. I thought that’s where he had his charm because he was so bumbling.”
The Voice of the Wizard. The voice actor behind the lovable wizard Merlin is none other than versatile performer Karl Swenson. Best known for his recurring role as Lars Henson on Little House on the Prairie, Swenson was a versatile performer. Swenson was skilled at creating vocal characterizations due to his career as an actor during the golden age of radio.
The Owl, and the Rabbit. Karl Swenson recommended the voice actor, Junius Matthews, pointing out that he was a versatile voice actor. Matthews was originally cast as the voice of Merlin but switched roles with Swenson and became the voice of Merlin’s owl. Matthews would later be cast as the voice of rabbit in the Winnie the Pooh featurettes.
Archimedes. Supervising animator Ollie Johnston brought to life one of his “all-time favorite scenes of his own animation”. That scene is that of Archimedes convulsed with laughter when Merlin crashes his model airplane. During this scene, Matthews “sustained this infectious laugh for over 20 seconds without letting it feel forced or insincere”, according to Johnston. Johnston added, “Merlin, who had bickered with Archimedes throughout the picture, could think of no way to retaliate other than to puff on his pipe and look very irritated.”
Magical Animal Creations. As many Disney fans know, animals play an important role in Disney’s animation. Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone is no exception. Johnston explains, “Peet gave us the wizard’s duel. In the fast-paced skirmish of wizardly wits, Merlin and Mim try to outwit each other by transforming themselves into a series of unexpected animals.” Animators created 15 different animal personae for the battling magicians, with each creature maintaining personality and visual characteristics of Merlin and Mim.
The voice of young Wart. Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone took three years to produce. Due to this the original voice actor’s, Rickie Sorensen, voice changed over time. This led to director, Reitherman, to cast his own sons, Richard and Robert to complete the role.
Boy squirrel and girl squirrel meet. In one of the scenes Merlin changes himself and Wart into squirrels. The original scene was meant to focus on the squirrels trying to avoid the hungry wolf who is seen at different points in the film. However, the chattering voice of the girl squirrel led Frank Thomas to re-work the entire concept, changing it into the bittersweet encounter we know today.
Musical melodies in Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone. The 18th full-length animated feature was the first to include songs by Disney’s newly signed songwriters, Richard and Robert Sherman. The brothers wrote six songs for the iconic classic. The Sherman brothers knew the importance of animated film songs, which is why they came up with meaningful songs like “A Most Befuddling Thing” or “Higitus Figiuts”.
And there you have it folks, 10 fun facts about Walt Disney’s Sword in the Stone. Were any of the facts surprising to you? There were a few I didn’t know, like there were three voice actors for Wart.
Source: D23
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