| Trick or Treat | |
|---|---|
| Donald Duck series | |
Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Jack Hannah |
| Produced by | Walt Disney |
| Story by | Ralph Wright |
| Voices by | June Foray Clarence Nash The Mellowmen |
| Music by | Paul J. Smith |
| Animation by | Volus Jones Bill Justice George Kreisl Don Lusk Dan MacManus (effects) |
| Layouts by | Yale Gracey |
| Backgrounds by | Yale Gracey |
| Studio | Walt Disney Production |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
| Release date(s) | October 10, 1952 (USA) |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 8 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Uncle Donald's Ants |
| Followed by | Don's Fountain of Youth |
Trick or Treat is a 1952 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon, which takes place on Halloween night, follows a series of pranks between Donald Duck and his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie who are aided by Witch Hazel. The film was directed by Jack Hannah and features the voices of Clarence Nash as Donald and his nephews, and June Foray as Hazel. The film introduced the song "Trick or Treat for Halloween" which was written by Paul J. Smith and performed by The Mellowmen.[1][2]
Contents |
The film opens with the song "Trick or Treat for Halloween," the lyrics of which tell the story's lesson – one must be generous on Halloween or face trouble.
One Halloween night, Witch Hazel observes Huey, Duey, and Louie going trick-or-treating. The trio, dressed as a ghost, a devil, and a wizard, go up to the door of their uncle Donald Duck's house under a covered porch and ring the bell. But instead of giving them the traditional candy, Donald explodes firecrackers in their bags, then pulls a string leading to a rigged bucket of water hanging under the porch roof and tips it on the boys. Donald laughs, and the discouraged nephews go and sit on the curb.
But Hazel, who was secretly watching the drama unfold, tries to comfort the boys. When she discovers that they believe in "real witches," she decides to help them get their treats from Donald after all. At first Hazel tries to convince Donald herself, but he dumps another bucket of water on her. Realizing that the job may be harder than she thought, she turns to her magic.
At another location, the nephews watch Hazel concoct a magic potion in a large cauldron. In a scene paying homage to Shakespeare's MacBeth (see Three Witches), Hazel adds ingredients somewhat toned down from the play. ("Eye of needle, tongue of shoe, hand of clock that points at two!" etc.) Hazel fills a spray bottle of the potion and returns to Donald's house with the nephews.
Hazel sprays a Jack-o'-lantern and three fence posts with the potion and they become an animated chorus of ghosts singing the theme song. A terrified Donald instantly agrees to treat the boys, but when Hazel refers to him as a pushover, he changes his mind. Donald locks his pantry and swallows the key. Hazel then uses the potion on Donald's feet, and commands them to "kick out that key." But when the key is kicked out, Donald throws it under the pantry door. Hazel then orders Donald's feet to "smash that door down" with Donald. After several attempts, Donald finally breaks down the pantry door and is left unconscious on the floor.
In the end, Huey, Duey, and Louie collect their treats and Hazel departs. A final shot shows the enchanted Jack-o'lantern suddenly pop onto the screen saying "Boo!"
A print adaptation by Carl Barks was published simultaneously in the Donald Duck comic book. Barks was given a storyboard of the film by Ralph Wright while production of the film was still in progress. Barks was asked to create a 32-page comic adaptation, yet Barks didn't believe he had enough material. In the end he wound up making a lot of his own material, even creating new characters such as Smorgie the Bad.
When the final product was sent to the publisher, Barks' segment with Smorgie was rejected, and the story was cut to 27 pages. To fill out the rest of the comic book, Barks created an additional story called "Hobblin' Gobblins." The original story was later restored with the publication of the Carl Barks Library.[3]
Disneyland Records also produced an audio adaptation that was narrated by Ginny Tyler who also voices Witch Hazel. This version was 12 minutes long and also included a song and story from the Haunted Mansion Disneyland attraction.[4]