TaleSpin

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TaleSpin

Characters of TaleSpin
Genre Animated series
Creator(s) Jymn Magon
Mark Zaslove
Starring Ed Gilbert
R.J. Williams
Sally Struthers
Janna Michaels
Pat Fraley
Jim Cummings
Tony Jay
Country of origin Flag of United States United States
No. of episodes 65
Production
Running time 22 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel first-run syndication
Original run September 9, 1990 – August 8, 1991
Links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

TaleSpin was a half-hour American animated television series spin-off of The Jungle Book that first aired as part of The Disney Afternoon. The name of the show is derived from "tailspin," defined as "the rapid descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral."

After a preview of The Disney Afternoon that aired on the Disney Channel in May 1990, the series began its run in September of the same year. The original concept was embodied in the introductory television movie Plunder and Lightning, which was re-edited into four half-hour episodes for reruns. The show was often seen either on its own as a half-hour show, or as part of the two-hour syndicated series The Disney Afternoon. TaleSpin ended on its 65th episode which ran in 1991. However, reruns continued to be shown on The Disney Afternoon through 1994. Afterwards, it was moved into Disney Channel and later into Toon Disney. It is currently shown on Toon Disney at 12:30 in the afternoon, Eastern time.

Several of the characters are loosely based on characters from Disney's animated film version of The Jungle Book: in particular Baloo, the hot-shot pilot hero of the series; Louie, the owner of Baloo's favorite bar; and Shere Khan, a business tycoon who appears in many episodes.

Also, many of the series concepts seem to be based on the 1982 ABC series Tales of the Gold Monkey, including the main concept of a cocky Flying boat cargo pilot and his rocky relationship with his girlfriend, his scatterbrained mechanic sidekick, the era and designs of the aircraft and costumes, the Pacific Islands setting, the secondary character relationships, even the visual appearance of the lagoon. Also, the protagonists of both series fly planes named for waterfowl (Cutter's Goose and Sea Duck) and are regular denizens of taverns named "Louie's."

The series was largely developed by writers Jymn Magon and Mark Zaslove, who were also the Supervising Producers on the series as well as Story Editors. There were four production teams, each one headed by a Producer/Director: Robert Taylor, Larry Latham, Jamie Mitchell and Ed Ghertner.

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

TaleSpin is set in the fictional city-state of Cape Suzette (a pun on the pancake dish, Crêpe Suzette), a harbor town protected by giant cliffs through which only a small opening exists. The opening in the cliffs is guarded by anti-aircraft artillery, preventing flying rabblerousers or air pirates from entering the city. Characters in the world of TaleSpin are anthropomorphic animals. The timeframe of the series is never specifically addressed, but appears to be in the mid to late 1930s; the helicopter and jet engine are experimental devices and most architecture is reminiscent of the art deco style of that period. "The great war" ended "nearly 20 years ago", and radio is the primary mass medium (In one episode, the local station is identified as "K-CAPE"). Also, in one episode the characters talk about the newly invented jet-motor and the possibility of flying faster than the speed of sound.

The series centered on the adventures of bush pilot Baloo the bear, whose air cargo freight business is bought out by Rebecca Cunningham, and renamed 'Higher for Hire'. An orphan boy and former air pirate, Kit Cloudkicker, attaches to Baloo and becomes his navigator. Together, they are the crew of Higher for Hire's only aircraft, a modified Conwing L-16 named the Sea Duck. From there, the series follows the ups and downs of Higher for Hire and its staff.

Their adventures often involve encounters with a gang of air pirates led by the histrionic Don Karnage, or with representatives of Thembria, a parody of the Stalinist Soviet Union inhabited by anthropomorphic warthogs.

The relationship between Baloo and Rebecca owes something to the screwball comedy films of the 1930s. It's even more closely patterned after the later years of the television sitcom Cheers—in both shows, a buttoned-down businesswoman named Rebecca takes the reins of a struggling company, then hires its previous owner (a fun-loving but irresponsible slacker) to do most of the work for her.

A video game by Capcom was also released on several platforms, including NES, Game Boy, Sega Genesis and Turbo Grafx 16.

Famed Uncle Scrooge comic writer and artist Don Rosa contributed with episode 5 "I Only Have Ice for You" and episode 10 "It Came From Beneath the Sea Duck".

Disney released the first 27 episodes (including the 4-part pilot) of TaleSpin on August 29, 2006 (see "DVD release"). There is no word yet on whether the controversial episodes (see "Controversy" below) will see an eventual DVD release in a Volume 2 set.[1] Tale Spin Airs Monday-Friday at 12:30pm.

[edit] Characters (Actors)

Baloo in the opening title screen
Baloo in the opening title screen

[edit] Higher for Hire

  • Baloo (Ed Gilbert), based primarily on the sloth bear from Disney's The Jungle Book, but with a flight cap and a yellow shirt (and four-fingered hands instead of his Jungle Book counterpart's claws). Although lazy and unreliable, he is also an excellent pilot capable of the most daring maneuvers in the air (and the courage to do them). Some of his mannerisms survive from The Jungle Book, including his nickname of "Papa Bear" by Kit, which Mowgli gave him. In Tale Spin Baloo (supposedly) comes from rich ancestry since in the Episode The Balooest Of The Bluebloods he inherited 500 million dollars (only to lose it at show's end, thus restoring the status quo). He also calls Kit "Little Britches," as he did Mowgli. His name comes from the Hindi word for bear: bhālū (Hindi: भालू /bʰɑːluː/).
  • Kit Cloudkicker (R.J. Williams, Alan Roberts), a young, orphaned brown bear standing at roughly half Baloo's size, and former member of the Air Pirates. He typically wears a blue baseball cap with red rim and a green sweater. He is skilled at cloud surfing. Kit looks to Baloo as a father figure, and usually flies as the navigator of the Sea Duck.
  • Rebecca Cunningham (Sally Struthers), a petite brown bear with long brown hair, who usually wears slacks, a white shirt, and a reddish-pink jacket. A shrewd businesswoman with an MBA, she buys 'Baloo's Air Service' and his plane, creating the air cargo company Higher For Hire. Her ambition and penchant for recklessness has caused trouble for the company at times, such as in "A Touch of Glass" when she cashed in the Sea Duck's insurance policy to pay for expensive ads targeted at affluent clientele, and in "The Bigger They Are the Louder They Oink" when she went into the truffle-gathering business. Although she originally relegated herself to the administrative and sales functions of the business, the series shows she eventually learns to be a capable pilot in her own right. Rebecca's desire to get in the cockpit was sparked by the events of "Feminine Air", in which Higher for Hire lost business due to the chauvinistic machinations of a male pilot who made fun of Baloo flying for a "skirt". She can also have quite a temper at times; usually it is Baloo's laziness and carefree attitude towards his responsibilities that sets it off. Rebecca lives with her daughter Molly in an apartment in an upscale part of Cape Suzette, overlooking a waterfall.
  • Molly Cunningham (Janna Michaels), Rebecca's daughter. An adventurous child who's not afraid to speak her mind. Molly has yellow fur and sometimes pretends she is 'Danger Woman' (the hero of a popular kids radio program) while seeking adventure along with Kit and Baloo. No mention was ever made of Molly's father.
  • Wildcat (Pat Fraley), a clueless and gangly lion who typically wears a mechanic's outfit. Officially the Higher for Hire mechanic, pure intelligence is not his forte, but he's extremely adept at fixing devices. His brilliance at anything mechanical allows him to fix smashed telephones in three seconds and he is one of the few people in the entire Talespin universe who can build an "overdrive" for airplanes. He has a lispy voice and resembles Tigger of the Winnie The Pooh series.

[edit] Air Pirates

  • Don Karnage (Jim Cummings), the leader of the air pirates, and the master of the massive pirate airship 'Iron Vulture'. He is some sort of canine, but it's not clear exactly what species he is; jackal, dingo, fox and coyote are all popular theories, although the writers have stated that he is a wolf. He has a strong accent, but again, precisely which country is difficult to tell (probably a Spanish accent). He speaks /t/ and /d/ as dental consonants rather than the normal English Alveolar consonants. When dogfighting he flies a hybrid that appears to be based on a low-wing monoplane but with wings added so that it is actually a triplane. Voice actor Jim Cummings has cited Ricky Ricardo as an inspiration, but there are numerous influences present, including Billy Crystal's Saturday Night Live character Fernando. His accent and phraseology have some similarities with Strong Bad, a character from Homestar Runner, and it is possible that this is an homage to Don Karnage.
  • Mad Dog (Charlie Adler), scrawny canine with a "Fu Manchu" style mustache, usually seen in the company of Dumptruck. Has a whiny, nasal voice. Due to his puny, slender build, some believe he is actually a ferret or weasel. Not a very threatening presence.
  • Dumptruck (Chuck McCann), appearing to be second in command to Don Karnage since he was made captain of the Iron Vulture by Don Karnage in his absence in one episode, he is a dog who speaks with a thick Swedish-Dutch accent and wears a top hat. While being among one of the most ruthless of the air pirates, he is also one of the stupidest. Has a habit of exclaiming "Yumpin' Yimminy!" when surprised or in a crisis.
  • Gibber (Chuck McCann), the pirate who whispers advice and such into Karnage's ear. He has never spoken a word louder than his mumbles.
  • Hacksaw (Charlie Adler), the big yellowish colored pirate who has sticks of dynamite strapped around his arms and has his ears tied together. He isn't one of the smartest pirates, and is a bit on the twitchy side. Speaks with a whining, cockney accent.
  • Ratchet (Rob Paulsen), the mechanic of the group who helped put together the lightning gun in Plunder & Lightning.
  • Hal (Frank Welker), large (rivals Dumptruck in size), overweight, tan cat; possibly the only feline member of Karnage's crew. Seen in only a few episodes, his only major role in the series (and probably the only one where he spoke) was when he accompanied Dumptruck and Mad Dog on their mission to take over the cliff guns (see episode "Jumping the Guns").
  • Sadie (Chuck McCann), the short, fat, brown pirate who has a grey moustache and wears a Viking helmet.
  • Jacques ("Scottie"), the main pilot of the Iron Vulture. Despite being a Scottish terrier, he's actually French.
  • Will, Don Karnage's second mate, seen briefly in the episode "In Search of Ancient Blunders" as part of a single gag: Don Karnage ordered his crew to "fire at will", but they began shooting at Will instead of the Sea Duck. ("Nooo, do not fire at 'Will', he is my second mate! FIRE AT THE SEA DUCK!!")

[edit] Thembrians

  • Col. Ivanod Spigot (Michael Gough), an unnaturally short warthog with a Napoleon complex who is the head of Thembria's "Glorious People's" Air Force. He considers himself to be highly infamous, and always introduces himself thusly: "Perhaps you've heard of me?" His grandmother was, apparently, devoured by polar bears. Whether as punishment for losing a national artifact (as that is the crime that warrants that punishment) or accident is unknown.
    • Episodes:
      • "Blue Monday"
      • "Flight of the Snow Duck"
      • "Flying Dupes"
      • "The Golden Sprocket of Friendship"
      • "Gruel and Unusual Punishment"
      • "A Spy In The Ointment"
      • "The Time Bandit"
      • "Flight School Confidential"
  • Sgt. Dunder (Lorenzo Music), Spigot's second-in-command. He is gregarious and somewhat dense, and nowhere near as evil and ruthless as Spigot is. In fact, he is close friends with Baloo and Kit.
    • Episodes:
      • "The Idol Rich"
      • "Flight of the Snow Duck"
      • "Flying Dupes",
      • "The Golden Sprocket of Friendship"
      • "Gruel and Unusual Punishment"
      • "A Spy In The Ointment"
      • "The Time Bandit"
      • "Flight School Confidential"
  • The High Marshal, the highest-ranking military official in Thembria, he appears to serve as the country's strongman; vaguely resembles Leonid Brezhnev, with his bushy eyebrows. He is dour and humorless and dislikes Spigot. He is married to an equally humorless unnamed female Thembrian who is strong enough to knock him out with a single punch.
    • Episodes:
      • "Flying Dupes"
      • "The Time Bandit"
      • "A Spy In The Ointment"
      • "Flight School Confidential"
  • Prof. Crackpotkin, a mad scientist interred at Bedevilled Island Maximum Security Prison for terrorist acts. He hates gruel, and has been shown to be willing to commit suicide in order to destroy Thembria's gruel reserves with no regard for the resultant collateral damage.
    • Episode:
      • "Gruel and Unusual Punishment".
  • Warden Slammer, the stern warden of Bedevilled Island Maximum Security Prison. Although at first he seems ruthless, he is eventually revealed to be a more-or-less fair and levelheaded individual (certainly he was right about what a ruthless maniac Crackpotkin was).
    • Episode:
      • "Gruel and Unusual Punishment".

[edit] Khan Industries

  • Shere Khan (Tony Jay), a tiger who also appeared in The Jungle Book, but here stands upright and wears a business suit. Khan is a ruthless and extremely wealthy businessman who is the dominant economic force in Cape Suzette. His appearance and personality in the series can arguably be based upon the comic book villain Lex Luthor. Khan takes enjoyment out of running small companies out of business, and has occasionally hired the Air Pirates to hijack cargo ships and ensure their collapse. However, when the Air Pirates no longer suit him or when they directly threaten his business, Khan has a private navy and air force to pursue them. Notably, in this incarnation Khan does not always act as an outright villain, and seems to operate purely for profit, rather than any particular desire to be evil, as well as having a poorly defined yet iron-clad sense of honor. This includes largely treating his staff well as with the comment, "I desire only money and power. Unpresentable employees provide me with neither" (from "Citizen Khan"). The name is derived from Hindi: Shere or Sher, i.e., a lion/tiger (Hindi: शेर; Urdu: شیر‎; IPA: [ʃeːr]), and Khan, i.e., a South Asian title or surname (Hindi: ख़ान; Urdu: خان‎; IPA: [xɑːn]).
    • Episodes:
      • "Plunder & Lightning" parts 1-4
      • "Whistlestop Jackson, Legend"
      • "Citizen Khan"
      • "Bullethead Baloo"
      • "Baloo Thunder"
      • "On A Wing And A Bear"
      • "Save The Tiger"
      • "Louie's Last Stand"
      • "From Here To Machinery"
      • "A Bad Reflection On You" parts 1 & 2.
  • Buzz (Kenneth Mars), a short purple-haired bird of indeterminate species who is Khan's in-house inventor as well as an old friend of Baloo's. A self-described "loyal company man", he is also the captain of the company chess team. Buzz's most noted invention is a prototype helicopter which promises to allow his employer to be the first marketer of a revolutionary new kind of aircraft.
    • Episodes:
      • "Baloo Thunder"
      • "Bullethead Baloo"
  • Mrs. Snarly (Jennifer Darling), Khan's ruthless and loyal elderly secretary. She is (apparently) a shrew.
    • Episodes:
      • "Baloo Thunder"
      • "On A Wing And A Bear"
      • "Bullethead Baloo"
  • Dr. Debolt (Rob Paulsen), Khan's head mad scientist, a very insane rabbit who created the sub-electron amplifier, which was then stolen by Don Karnage and later used to power the lightning gun weapon.
    • Episodes:
      • "Plunder & Lightning" parts 3 & 4.
  • Douglas "Dougie" Benson (Mark L. Taylor), a tabby cat and an investor in the company who lost his job as a result of a combination of bad investments (like glow-in-the-dark sunglasses), forging Khan's signature and flagrant misuse of Khan's private Air Force for personal gain. His quick temper and somewhat clumsy antics were a constant source of laughs for those around him (especially Khan's elite pilots), something he could absolutely not stand. Was constantly heard shouting "STOP THAT LAUGHING!!" at the top of his lungs.
    • Episode:
      • "Louie's Last Stand".
  • Mr. Perry (Michael Bell), a scheming and sharply-dressed cheetah who was cooperating with Khan's rival, the Miniversal Corp., to steal a top-secret helicopter.
    • Episode:
      • "Baloo Thunder".
  • Walters (Phil Crowley), a panther investor who was Douglas Benson's aide and confidant.
    • Episode:
      • "Louie's Last Stand".
  • Garth and Gus (Patric Zimmerman and Tony Pope), Khan's well-dressed tiger and panther goons who he sent to teach Baloo a lesson after the bear foolishly took advantage of Khan.
    • Episode:
      • "Save The Tiger".

[edit] Others

  • Louie (Jim Cummings), also from The Jungle Book, is an orangutan who wears a Hawaiian shirt and owns the island restaurant 'Louie's', located near but outside the protection of Cape Suzette. The restaurant is populated by Louie's relatives.
  • Trader Moe (Jim Cummings), an international criminal alligator who is always accompanied by a hulking rhinoceros and gorilla who are known only as "The Goons".
    • Episodes:
      • "Double or Nothing"
      • "Golden Sprocket of Friendship"
      • "Time Waits For No Bear"
  • Covington (Jim Cummings), a smooth-talking jaguar con-artist who attempted to take advantage of Rebecca. Was trying to recover an ancient figurine from Molly, which pointed the way to a rich treasure.
    • Episode:
      • "Mollycoddled"
  • Daring Dan Dawson (Cam Clarke), sleazy owner and lead performer of an aerial circus. Appears to be a ferret wearing an old fashioned aviator's cap and goggles. Nearly destroyed the father / son bond between Kit and Baloo through manipulation and outright lies, briefly convincing Kit to run away and join his circus.
    • Episode:
      • "Stormy Weather"
  • Howard Huge (Charlie Adler), a maniacal hippo airplane designer. His name is an obvious pun on famed aviation pioneer Howard Hughes. When Baloo encountered him, he was kidnapping pilots and stripping their planes for parts and materials to build a gigantic flying wing, which he called the "Titanium Turkey".
    • Episode:
      • "Bearly Alive")
  • Jack Case (Brian Cummings), a semi-villainous rabbit and would-be spy, currently imprisoned in Thembria. Was actually a mailman who accidentally sent the wrong package to the High Marshal. Planning to switch the wrong package for the right one, he convinced Rebecca that he was a government spy and that as a "matter of national security", he needed to be flown into Thembria. Shortly afterward, it was revealed that Case was a fraud: the package contained expensive fishing worms for the Thembrian High Marshall. Case endangered Baloo and Rebecca by getting them caught up in his espionage fantasies and making Colonel Spigot think they were involved in a bomb plot against the High Marshall, and in return they left him behind when they fled Thembria. Case is believed to have been incarcerated in a Thembrian prison for his irresponsible actions following his capture by Thembrian forces. His fate after this is not known.
    • Episode:
      • "A Spy In The Ointment"
  • Dr. Axolotl (Rodger Bumpass), a psychotic lizard inventor who sought revenge against Shere Khan with his killer robot, M.E.L.
    • Episode:
      • "Bullethead Baloo"
  • Dr. Zibaldo (Dan Castellaneta), a short , manic fox mad scientist who invented a shrink ray for the purpose of fitting his clothes into luggage easier. After a mishap in which Molly Cunningham was accidentally shrunk, he abandoned his research in favor of a new "crackpot" idea: television. Needless to say, Baloo & company were not impressed.
    • Episode:
      • "The Incredible Shrinking Molly"
  • Prof. Martin Torque, a doberman inventor who sought to put Higher For Hire (and every other freelance cargo service in Cape Suzette, for that matter) out of business with his "Auto-Aviator": a coldly efficient robotic pilot.
    • Episode:
      • "From Here To Machinery"
  • Detective Thursday, a hardboiled canine detective who apparently runs a secret branch of the Cape Suzette police force, which is headquartered beneath a Laundromat. Highly reminiscent of Humphrey Bogart. His main underlings are Officer Malarky and Gertalin.
    • Episode:
      • "Vowel Play"
  • Heimlich Menudo (Kenneth Mars), a leopard criminal who is absolutely obsessed with diamonds, to the point that he practically worships them. Even has diamonds for teeth. He and his henchman Weazell (David L. Lander) tried to steal all the diamonds in Cape Suzette using a highly ambitious plan he called "The Heimlich Maneuver".
    • Episode:
      • "Vowel Play"
  • Mr. Sultan, the president of Shere Khan's rival, the Miniversal Corporation. An elderly tiger, he paid Mr. Perry to steal Buzz's top secret helicopter prototype and apparently planned to pass it off as his own company's design.
    • Episode:
      • "Baloo Thunder"
  • Katie Dodd (Ellen Gerstell), a fox archaeologist who discovered the lost city of Tinabula. This feisty redhead has as much attitude as she does looks and intelligence; not afraid to tell any man to go jump in a lake. However, this did not stop Baloo and Louie from showing off and competing, futily, for her attention.
    • Episodes:
      • "For Whom The Bell Klangs" parts 1 & 2
  • Myra (Liz Georges), a fox, is the State Archaeologist and Minister of Culture in the tiny desert country of Aridia. Though not canon, many fans believe that her last name is Foxworthy. A genuinely nice, albeit somewhat absentminded woman, her sunny disposition is nearly the exact polar opposite of Katie Dodd. Normally slow to anger, but not afraid to stand up and show some backbone when it really counts.
    • Episode:
      • "In Search of Ancient Blunders"
  • Owl Capone- A diminutive gangster seen in only one episode, obviously parodying the real-life gangster "Scarface" Al Capone. He overtakes the "Spruce Moose" (read "Spruce Goose"), which is a giant airplane where Baloo and Rebecca go out on a date. Capone steals jewelry from most of the people there, and takes the people in the plane hostage.
    • Episode:
      • "My Fair Baloo"
  • Klang (Tim Curry)- Leader of a cult-like organization seeking the secret weapon hidden in the lost city of Tinabula. He is a green cobra with a black cloak, warlock-like hat, metallic jaw (capable of crushing hard objects with his bites), metallic limbs, and speaks with a metallic echo to his voice (the abundance of metal being the basis for his name). He managed to pose quite a threat, and even obtained the lost city's weapon (a destructive bell that utilized sonic waves), but was defeated when the weapon backfired and buried the city. Afterward, his metallic parts fell off, revealing him to simply be a regular, albeit oversized, cobra.
    • Episodes:
      • "For Whom The Bell Klangs" parts 1 & 2
  • Ace London (Phil Hartman) - A highly arrogant, yet highly regarded gray wolf test pilot who makes fun of Baloo and his capabilities after losing a game of billiards then accidentally switches Baloo's cargo of pickles with a top-secret jet engine. When Don Karnage tries to steal the engine, the true test of the two pilots begins.
    • Episode:
      • "Mach One for the Gipper"
  • Whistlestop Jackson - Baloo's childhood hero, Whistlestop was a "hero to millions" and a "legend in his own time" for his aviation mastery and trademark bi-plane. As a young man, he once beat out start-up entrepreneur Shere Khan on an air cargo contract, leaving Khan a bitter rival. However, by the time Rebecca hires him to be Higher for Hire's Vice President, Whistlestop's skills were sorely obsolete and he did business solely based on his reputation. Although Baloo's opinion of Whistlestop was deflated when the aging pilot bungled a trial flight of the Sea Duck, the two made up and again beat Khan in securing another lucrative air cargo contract.
    • Episode:
      • "Whistlestop Jackson, Legend"
  • Cool Hands Luke - A pun on the book and film Cool Hand Luke. Cool Hands is a large polar bear, rivaling Baloo in size, and has a highly aggressive and chauvinistic attitude. He makes fun of the fact that Baloo works for a woman, and presses the issue to drive business away from Higher for Hire. His winning streak in the Air Scavenger Race (achieved through cheating) was broken when Rebecca and Baloo beat him and revealed him to be a fraud.
    • Episode:
      • "Feminine Air"

[edit] Episodes

Main article: List of TaleSpin episodes

[edit] DVD release

DVD Name Cover Art Release Date Eps#
Volume One August 29, 2006 23eps. with 4-part pilot.

[edit] Controversy

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Two episodes of Talespin drew varied amounts of controversy, enough for one episode to be temporarily banned and the other to be permanently banned.

The first of these, the episode "Last Horizons", was temporarily banned and taken off the air. Investigation of the event has since revealed that the reason for its temporary removal was the alleged stereotyping of Asians. The villain in the episode is an anthropomorphic panda Emperor named Wan Lo (voiced by actor Robert Ito) living in a mock-pre-WWII Asian nation called "Panda-La", who takes Baloo into his country to exploit his naiveté and attacks Cape Suzette.

The fictitious nation may have been a take on Japan, which attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. That incident ushered America's entry into the Second World War.

The second episode, titled "Flying Dupes" was aired for the first time on August 8th 1991 and was immediately pulled from the lineup afterward, not to be seen again for more than ten years. It made a brief re-appearance on Toon Disney several years ago, possibly by mistake, and has never been re-aired since. Considered by Disney to be a banned episode, the apparent reason for this episode's permanent removal from the airwaves is the terrorist theme associated with it. Despite this ban, the episode was aired repeatedly by independent stations, including Seattle-based KSTW-TV and Family Channel in Canada. They also get aired on German TV (dubbed) practically anytime the series gets broadcast.

The general synopsis of the episode starts with Baloo being asked to deliver a goodwill present (a cuckoo clock he is told) to the High Marshall of Thembria from Cape Suzette. Baloo is unaware until the end of the episode that the package really contains a time bomb planted by munitions manufacturers who wish to provoke a war between Thembria and Cape Suzette in order to boost weapons sales.

[edit] Voice impersonation

Another controversy related to TaleSpin involved the character Louie. In 2001, the widow of Louis Prima, who had voiced the scat singing orangutan in The Jungle Book, filed suit against Disney for "breach of contract, non-payment of royalties, unjust enrichment, fraud and negligent misrepresentation". At issue were back royalties owed for profits made from video and DVD sales of The Jungle Book and unauthorized use of her husband's voice and its likeness in shows like TaleSpin (Jim Cummings' impersonation of Prima's voice was near-perfect). Although the case was eventually settled out of court, Disney has since chosen to avoid any further trouble and has refrained from using the character in anything else. It was due to this lawsuit that Louie was conspicuously absent from The Jungle Book 2 (2003); he is the only major Jungle Book character to never have appeared in the 2003 film.

[edit] Comics

A monthly comic book based on the show was published by Disney Comics in 1991, running for seven issues (eleven, counting a four-issue mini-series based on the series premiere). Bobby JG Weiss was the writer for issues 1-4 and 6-7. As issue 5 was adapted from the episode 41, The Old Man And The Sea Duck, Bobby only is credited for adaptation.

The comic's cancellation seven months later terminated several planned stories that would have revealed pieces of background for the main characters. Issue 7 explored Kit's past, and how he joined up with the pirates. According to the letter page in #3, a planned story for the comic's annual would have explored the origin of the Iron Vulture. #4-7 would have letters answered by the characters so to speak.

Subsequent comic stories were also printed in Disney Adventures from 1990 to 1995 then re-appeared in the Summer 2006 Disney Adventures Comic Zone Magazine, as well as in the Disney Afternoon comic book published by Marvel Comics.

[edit] TaleSpin #8

While issue #8 of the monthly comic series never made it to print, the end of issue #7 included a preview for it:

"Spies in Cape Suzette?! There are some mighty mysterious folk sniffing around Shere Khan Industries. When Special Agent Booker shows up to handle the problem he finds that battling foreign agents is easier than dealing with Baloo as an assistant in... THE SPY WHO BUGGED ME!"

[edit] Trivia

  • Phil Harris, who voiced Baloo in the original Jungle Book, was to have reprised his role for TaleSpin. After only one recording session, however, it was found that he had aged too much and could no longer do the voice correctly.[citation needed] To perfect his rendition of Baloo's voice, Ed Gilbert studied recordings of Phil Harris.
  • Prior to Talespin, voice actors Ed Gilbert and R.J. Williams starred as father and son in the NBC cartoon Kissyfur. In another odd coincidence, both actors were cast as bears.
  • The series was partially based on a defunct aspect of the DuckTales series; namely, that Launchpad McQuack was originally conceived as the operator of an air cargo service. Though finding his way into Darkwing Duck, McQuack was never slated for the Tale Spin.
  • At some point during the series, Baloo and Rebecca's relationship matures into a strong friendship. In "Mommy For a Day", Baloo reluctantly accompanies Rebecca on a shopping spree. However, in "Her Chance to Dream", Baloo becomes unusually jealous when Rebecca is courted by the ghost of a Victorian era sea captain. In the beginning of "A Star Is Torn", the two have a dinner date as "friends". Baloo's statement to Rebecca of "Remember the last time we went out?" suggests that this is not their first date. In "Feminine Air", when Rebecca reveals that she could tell her co-pilot "Tan Margret" was really Baloo in drag, she calls Baloo her "best friend".
  • Kit Cloudkicker's first name is leftover from a never produced Disney TVA series called "Metro Mice" which starred two mice detective: Colt Chedderson and Kit Colby. Metro Mice eventually evolved into Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers.
  • Don Karnage's massive airship, the Iron Vulture was originally going to be called the Sky Shark. It also had a much more fishlike appearance in the early concept art.
  • It is believed by some that four episodes are set prior to "Plunder & Lightning" (the four-part miniseries pilot), when 'Baloo's Air Service' was still in operation. They are:
    • "For Whom the Bell Klangs" parts 1 & 2
    • "The Road To Macadamia"
    • "Jumping the Guns"
  • Baloo is the only character to appear in all 65 episodes
  • In one episode of the Aladdin cartoon the Genie, Princess Jasmine, Abu and Iago attempt to stop an evil genie by flying a plane very similar in design to the Sea Duck. Genie is dressed as Baloo, and resembles him facially; Jasmine is dressed like Rebecca, Abu like Louie, and Iago like Kit.

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.ultimatedisney.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14984

[edit] External links


The Disney Afternoon
Aladdin • Bonkers • Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers • Darkwing Duck • Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears • Doug • DuckTales • Gargoyles • Goof Troop • Hercules: The Animated Series • The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa • Mighty Ducks • 101 Dalmatians: The Series • Quack Pack • The Schnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show • TaleSpin  		 The Disney Afternoon
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