From "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad"

Release Date October 5, 1949

Synopsis

An adaptation of an episode from the famous children's book featuring the irrepressable Mr. Toad and his infatuation with a motor car. Fortunately, he has good friends who fall in to help when the ownership of his ancestral home, Toad Hall, is in peril.

Characters

Angus MacBadger

Court Clerk

Cyril Proudbottom

Doctor

J. Thaddeus Toad

Judge

Mole

The Weasels

Winkie

Rat

Videos

Walt Disney Mini-Classics : The Wind in the Willows

United States Release

German Release

Italian Release

United States

The Wind in the Willows starring J. Thaddeus Toad

Favorite Stories : The Wind in the Willows

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

Italy

L'apprendista Stregone e Altre Storie

Laserdiscs

United States

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

DVD

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

Timeless Tales : Volume 2

Technical Specifications

Color Type : Technicolor

Animation type : Standard

Sound mix : Mono

Aspect ration : 1.37 : 1

Negative format : 35mm

Print format : 35mm

Cinematographic process : Spherical

Original language : English

Released by RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.

Comments

Released as half of the feature "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad."

From Ryan : This and "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" were released together as the feature film "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad." I enjoy this short, but not as much as "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Some of these characters appeared in the 1983 short "Mickey's Christmas Carol."

From Candy : I love "The Wind in the Willows," but I like to call it simply "Mr. Toad." This had some great characters and scenarios. I read an interesting reference to this featurette cartoon in Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. There is a scene in "The Wind in the Willows" where Angus MacBadger tells Rat and Mole that something's got to be done about Toad because he is out of control and spending too much money. In The Illusion of Life, Frank and Ollie said that this line was inspired by Walt Disney's brother Roy, who was always telling the animators, "Something's got to be done about Walt. He's spending too much money ( on the films)."

I always thought that the character of Rat had been inspired just a little bit by Walt's own father, who had been a strict Victorian. In the film, Rat was portrayed as a no-nonsense Victorian character who was always lecturing Toad about his "reckless behavior."

Overall, this film had some great moments. It's too bad that it's not better known among Disney fans. It deserves to be right up there with the classics. It has all the elements of the Disney greats; a good story, emotional power, and a moral message. Leonard Maltin said in The Disney Films that this film, Ichabod and Mr. Toad, deserves more attention than it has gotten and that it is one of the Disney classics.

From Baruch Weiss : Another great short. I first saw it on those "Walt Disney Mini Classic" videos.

From Brian Swan : All things considered, I must consider this to be one of Disney's weaker attempts. I think it missed the tone of the book almost entirely, and is come out especially weak when paired (as it was originally released) with the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I had originally seen it when it was released on one of the anthology collections, and I DID purchase it when it was released in it's original "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad" - but is certainly not one that I watch very frequently. Actually, I think the rides at Disneyland and WDW are the best things that have come of it...

Mr. Toad rides Cyril Proudbottom
Animation sketch courtesy of
Van Eaton Galleries

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