Dedicated to the great merchandising empire of The Mouse between 1928 and 1958, this book looks at Mickey Mouse books and magazines (yeah, watches, too); Donald Duck castile soap figures; Bambi pencil sharpeners (ouch); rubber Dopey dolls; and Goofy wind- up action toys. And it does it with a straight face, which the gazillions of dollars spent on the stuff no doubt warrants. The authors, who write frequently on pop culture, tell the story of Disney merchandising and how the company used its characters during WW II for army training films and for morale on the home front. (The illustration for the sheet music of Oliver Wallace's ``Der Fuehrer's Face'' shows the intrepid Donald Duck flinging a giant tomato, pow!, right in der Fuehrer's face.) A time capsule of images and characters that are an integral part of American culture, the book is a testament to an even more integral part- -merchandising (exemplified by the book's publisher itself; Hyperion is a division of Disney Book Publishing).
Pub Date: Dec. 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-7868-6054-5
Page Count: 200
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1994
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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