Friday, March 7, 2014

Tooniversary: Mr. Magoo as Noah (Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo, 1964)

Not too long from now, people will be heading to the multiplexes to see Darren Arenofsky's radical take on the Biblical story of "Noah", with Russell Crowe in the title role. It won't be the first time Hollywood's taken liberties with the Good Book, and certainly won't be the last.

In 1964, the tale of Noah's Ark, from the Book of Genesis, was adapted into an episode of The Famous Adventures of Mr. Magoo. Marvin Miller (ex-The Millionaire) is the voice of God. If you can get past Magoo (Jim Backus, Gilligan's Island)'s usual antics in the prelude, you'd be all set.



Oh, it's been years since I'd seen this in syndication. Still a treat, though. Rating: B+.

2 comments:

magicdog said...

I would recommend this over the current film. In the new big screen retelling Noah is worried about global warming (no joke!) and overpopulation.

They turned a servant of God into an environmentalist wacko!

Worse still, when the movie was screened at previews, attendees were compelled to sign non disclosure agreements. Anonymously, word has been getting out online that this new film is a joke and a slap in the face of believers.

I've seen the Magoo version and have no issues with it. All adaptations have had some of the character's tics for comedic effect, but were often true to the story being told so kids wouldn't have a problem getting the gist of it. There were plenty of dramatic and serious elements too.

hobbyfan said...

I'm on the fence on "Noah" right now. Paramount has issued disclaimers regarding content, so that's a good sign, an attempt to save the film from being an el-bomb-o.

As for Magoo, this was one of the better episodes, but as has been noted, this series lasted 1 season, when it could've gone longer. The fact that it aired on Saturday nights might be part of the reason it failed.