Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-12-05
Walt Disney
Still Belongs.
To Us All
He's Back on The Beam
After Vague lnterlude

BY wESTBROOK PEGLER


will be happy to learn that
he is back on the beam after an q
alarming venture into the Cod
knows-what and is again tho
Disney of Mickey Mouse. Dom
aid Duck, the Pigs and-Snow
White.
The man who is the author or
more gross tonnage of innocent
fun. untroubled by the slightest
suggestion of politics or social
significance, than any other
human being who ever lived.
including Mother Goose. re-
turns to his people with his new
film called "Dumbo," and / defy
any one 10 discern anywhere in
this entertainment any trace OF
a message TO the human race.
1t is pure Disney, which
means that il combines beauty
with gentle entertainment, but
as the story unfolds on the
screen there may occur in the
joyous emotions Of the beholder
a half-felt twinge of pride that
this man is an American who
has achieved such soothing love-
Illness out of countless individual
drawings strung together and
that no other nation on earth,
whatever It's military power or
its artistic heritage, has pro-
duced his like or even an
imtator.
IN A world wallowing in the
gore of millions of rascais,-
dupes and victims, this Ameri.
can artist who himself probably
could not draw an acceptable
comic-strip today has impaired
his strange. kind genius TO an
other great work which man.
ages TO ignore evil all about
and lift his fellow men for an
hour or more into that happy
realm which he personally
created and which the counter
fe1ters who try TO copy Disney
can never find.
/ was disturbed when Disney
released Fantasia" not only
because the Posturing Doors ~
the opening disturbed the night
with their self-ifnportance- and
Cin-mill etiquet. hut also be-
cause he seemed 10 have fallen
into the hands Of those whom
Red Mike Hvlan used 10 call the
art artists and had become. like
Chaplin and some Of The other
hurloSque clowns and gag writ
ers Of Hollywood, a man with
mission
1t was good enough Disney 10
the eye in spots. but the music
was pompous. and il seemed
that Walt himself didn't know
what he was driving az hut had
been sold a bill Of very inferior
goods by The IonG-word intel
lectualS Of Goofeyhurst, Cal.
IT STARTED nowhere and had
L trouble. reaching even that
goal, and the noisy. incoherent
clamor and the dark writings
OF the monsters on the screen
so unneTved one emotional
coSmic commentator that she
thought she detected fascism
lurking in the shadows and
screaming along the sound
track.
The lady could have been
right. for the sound and shape
Of faSciSm are 10 each in
dividual his own idea. as we
observe when a dietatorial boss
with a storm Of goons under his
command denounceS rs a Fascist
every one who stands out for
individual freedom and respect
for the laws against assault
with intent TO do great bodily
harm.
But If there was fascism In
II, that was uninteniional be-
cause neither Disney himself
nor any of the reviewers who
iScussed Fantasia" could
analyze II.
1t was as much. vegetarian ~
anything else. and any critic
would have been justified in
lifting for his piece that night
the old dispatch of the country
correspondent at the train
wreck:
"AIl Is confusion; can send
nothing"
/ FIND m yself wondering
L whether this "Dumbo" pic
ture Of a baby elephant which
learns to fy with his OUTSIDE
ears and does his unhappy
mother proud in a great triumph
was turned out during that time
OF bitter meanneSs when the
unions closed in on the happy
shop in Hollywood and old
friends became enemies through
the needing of the unioneers.
If so, the marvel is that the
picture came through without a
trace Of the hatred that ran
along the picket line and pene-
trated the studio, and this would
he 10 DiSneys credit. too, for
the merest note OF anger would
have spoiled it and man in a
fight has hard time keeping his
rage out of his work.
Americans in foreign lands
have always felt a strange pride
in their American passports. and
| think that IL | were az a show