Monday, November 2, 2015

Literary Toons: The Butter Battle Book (1989)

There hasn't been an adaptation of any of Dr. Seuss' books in some 20-odd years. The last two also marked the end of an era for the Seuss books in that they were broadcast on cable.

The Butter Battle Book premiered on TNT just in time for Thanksgiving in 1989. The Seuss family apparently had had their fill of Marvel's animation division handling their works (Marvel inherited the contract from DePatie-Freleng), and so, they turned to legendary animator Ralph Bakshi to adapt The Butter Battle Book. Charles Durning (Evening Shade) stars as the grandfather, who doubles as the narrator. The story is said to be Seuss' commentary on the Cold War, which, coincidentally, had come to an end.......



The last Seuss adaptation was Daisy-Head Mayzie, adapted by Hanna-Barbera and broadcast on TBS a few years later.

No rating.

2 comments:

SaturdayMorningFan said...

"There hasn't been an adaptation of any of Dr. Seuss' books in some 20-odd years."
I assume you mean traditionally (2D) animated adaptations? Because there were 4 since then, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Cat In the Hat (both live-action, mostly), Horton Hears a Who and The Lorax (both CGI). Of these, I've only seen Grinch in it's entirety and I kind of liked it. I saw clips of Cat and it repulsed me so much that I never entertained the idea of seeing the whole film, and I haven't gotten around to watching the 2 CGI efforts yet. I'll probably give Horton a go, but not Lorax.

hobbyfan said...

I meant aside from the theatrical releases you referenced (I've seen Horton and Cat in the Hat). I should've clarified the remark, and I haven't yet reviewed Nickelodeon's short-lived Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss.