Movie Musings: Disney and More

It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad Cast

In the early 1960s, Stanley Kramer assembled together a cast of some of the biggest names in show business for what would be his very first comedy movie, It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963). The film played to great critical acclaim and it became the 3rd highest-grossing film of 1963, garnering six Academy Award Nominations, and winning the trophy for Best Sound Editing. The talented group assembled for “Mad World” (see below for the list) are connected to Disney Animation, they also have worked in other TV/film efforts. Today we’re going to explore those interesting connections among a number of stars.       

Spencer Tracy portrayed Captain T.G. Culpepper in “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World.” While Tracy never made anything for Disney, under the direction of “Mad World,” director Stanley Kramer, he made 4 films, including Inherit the Wind (1960), Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), “Mad World,” and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967). “Dinner,” was his very last movie. He passed only 5 months before it’s release on June 10th, 1967. He received Best Actor Oscar Nominations for each film, except for “Mad World.” Tracy also won 2 Best Actor Oscars for Captains Courageous (1937), and Boys Town (1938), both of which co-starred “Mad World” cast mate Mickey Rooney.

Mickey Rooney played the role of Ding Bell in “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World.” For Disney, Rooney starred in the original Pete’s Dragon (1977), and lent his voice to Adult Tod, the fox, in The Fox and the Hound (1981). Nine years after “Mad World,” Rooney lent his voice to the Scarecrow in ABC/Disney’s made-for-television movie, Journey Back to Oz (1972). The film featured the voice talents of “Mad World,” co-stars, Milton Berle, Ethel Merman, and Paul Ford. (Liza Minnelli, daughter of Rooney’s good friend and frequent co-star, Judy Garland, voiced Dorothy in that film, and Margaret Hamilton, the original “Wicked Witch of the West,” provided the voice of Auntie Em.) Rooney also performed in one episode of ABC/Disney’s The Golden Girls (1985-1992).

Buddy Hackett played Benjy Benjamin in “Mad World.” The year before “Mad World,” Hackett and Paul Ford both starred in the film adaptation of Meredith Wilson’s smash-hit Broadway musical, The Music Man (1962). Hackett also starred in Disney’s The Love Bug (1968) which was the very first installment in the “Herbie” film franchise and lent his voice to Scuttle the Seagull in The Little Mermaid (1989). He reprised Scuttle for the direct-to-video sequel, The Little Mermaid 2: Return to the Sea (2000).

Dorothy Provine portrayed Emeline Marcus-Finch in “Mad World.” Two years after “Mad World,” Provine starred in Blake Edwards’s The Great Race (1965) and Disney’s That Darn Cat! (1965). “Great Race,” featured “Mad World,” co-stars Peter Falk and Marvin Kaplan (who also acted in Disney’s original version of Freaky Friday (1976)). “Darn Cat,” featured “Mad World,” co-star William Demarest.

Jonathan Winters received a Golden Globe Nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance as Lennie Pike the truck driver in “Mad World.” Winters worked with “Mad World” co-stars Carl Reiner and Paul Ford in the movie, The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming (1966) and appeared in an episode of Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color (1954-1991). On his television show, The Jonathan Winters Show (1967-1969), “Mad World,” co-star Arnold Stang, was a regular.  

Paul Ford played Colonel Wilberforce in “Mad World.” Like Spencer Tracy, Paul Ford never made anything for Disney throughout his career either, but in addition to all of his pairings in the aforementioned paragraphs, Ford was also a regular on “Mad World,” co-star Phil Silvers’ television show, The Phil Silvers Show (1955-1959). Ford originally was lined up to play Principal McGee in Grease (1978), which would have reunited him with “Mad World,” co-star, Sid Caesar, but unfortunately passed away before production on the film even began, so the part was re-written for Eve Arden. 

   

Don Knotts, in addition to being best-known throughout the world as Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968), played the nervous motorist in “Mad World.” For Disney, Knotts starred with good friend and frequent co-star, Tim Conway in The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975) and it’s sequel, The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (1979). In between those films, he also made Gus (1976) and Hot Lead and Cold Feet (1978). One of his very last acting jobs ever, was voicing Mayor Turkey Lurkey in Disney’s Chicken Little (2005).

Charles Lane played the Airport Manager in “Mad World.” Lane starred opposite Don Knotts in The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966), played Constable Locke in The Music Man (1962), and for Disney, had bit parts in The Ugly Dachshund (1966), The Gnome-Mobile (1967) and voiced Georges Hautecourt in The Aristocats (1970).

          

Terry-Thomas played J. Algernon Hawthorne in “Mad World,” and Andy Devine played the Sheriff of Crockett County. Both Thomas and Devine lent their voices to Disney’s Robin Hood (1973). Thomas voiced Sir Hiss the snake and Devine voiced Friar Tuck.

Stan Freberg played the Deputy Sheriff in “Mad World.” Freberg voiced the Beaver in Disney’s Lady and the Tramp (1955) and narrated two compilations of Disney cartoon shorts featuring Goofy entitled, More Sport Goofy (1983) and An All New Adventure of Disney’s Sport Goofy (1987).

  

Disney voice veteran Sterling Holloway played the role of the Fire Chief in “Mad World.” Holloway voiced of Mr. Stork in Dumbo (1941), Adult Flower in Bambi (1942), Professor Holloway in The Three Caballeros (1944), the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland (1951), Kaa the snake in The Jungle Book (1967), and Roquefort the Mouse in The Aristocats (1970). He also narrated several of Disney’s lesser-known shorts including Peter and the Wolf (1946), Lambert the Sheepish Lion (1952), and Goliath 2 (1960), and he voiced Amos Mouse in a short about a fictional story about Benjamin Franklin’s friendship with talking Mouse called Ben and Me (1953). Holloway was also the original voice of Winnie the Pooh. 

It’s been more than 50 years since the release Stanley Kramer’s “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World,” but it remains one of the best comedies of all-time. It was voted #40 on the American Film Institute’s list of top 100 Laughs in 2000. While the film didn’t spawn any sequels, it did serve as inspiration for the creation of other films with similar, but different plot lines, including Scavenger Hunt (1979), Million Dollar Mystery (1987), Rate Race (2001), and Three Kings (2011).