One of the Seven Wonders of the Cinema!

Rating: 10/10 (3 October 2017)

Nowadays it's hard to imagine the impact, the popularity and the fascination cartoons and comic strips had for the American public — especially in the Golden Years from around 1930 to 1950. "All newspapers have news, but only one newspaper has The Gumps!" proudly proclaimed The Chicago Sun (and scores of affiliated newspapers across the country). Such a slogan would be meaningless to 99% of today's readers (and absolutely risible to the other 1%).
Since the 1950s, cartoons and comic strips have generally been regarded as third-rate fodder for children. However, there are always riders to every sweeping statement. The exceptions here are Fantasia (especially in its 1970's re-issue when it was taken up by the hallucinogenic generation) and "L'il Abner" which enjoyed a surprising bout of adult popularity in the 1960s and 1970s.
In my childhood days, the comic strip and the comic book were regarded as less than praiseworthy amusements that older children were encouraged to out-grow; and the theatrical cartoon was a mindless diversion for backward youngsters whose limited attention spans were incapable of taking in a whole feature like Lassie Come Home or National Velvet.
In my home town, the situation was even worse. There was never a cult following for Tex Avery, and adult cartoons like Fritz the Cat fell flat at the box-office.
Despite his macabre humor, Disney was always regarded as strictly for kids. Adults couldn't care less whether Mickey Mouse had three fingers or four, whether Bambi lost a hundred mothers, whether Snow White lived or died. Because I loved cartoons, I was regarded as brain-damaged or eccentric. Often I found myself the lone adult in an audience of irritable children who found films like "Dumbo" way above their heads.
I have similar happy memories of Pinocchio, Alice in Wonderland, Gay Purree, The Lady and the Tramp, Ichabod and Mr Toad and Mr Bug Goes To Town. (Hey There, It's Yogi Bear, and A Man Called Flintstone, I loathed. I felt they were designed for mental zombies!)
However, the animated feature I love best of all is Snow White. It's a film I can enjoy over and over. Snow White herself may be a bit pallid, but the Wicked Queen and the seven dwarfs are brilliantly characterized. The songs are a joy, the animation often dazzlingly inventive, the colors and compositions a visual delight. The story has pace, charm, atmosphere, humor and excitement. If you are immune to its call, and if its music doesn't stir your soul, you're missing one of the seven wonders of the cinema.