Leadbottom is a character in the 2013 Disneytoon Studios animated feature film, Planes and its 2014 sequel. He used to be Dusty's mentor in crop-dusting, and forces him to keep his old career.
Background[]
Official Description[]
- Leadbottom is a puttering old biplane and a grumbling taskmaster, a real “tank-half-empty” kind of guy. As the proprietor of Vitaminamulch, a special—albeit putrid—blend of vitamins, minerals, and mulch that works miracles when sprayed on crops, Leadbottom has no time for Dusty’s far-fetched flights of fancy. There are too many crops to spray and not enough hours in the day to spray them. For Leadbottom, it’s work first, then … well, more work.[1]
Personality[]
Leadbottom is a grumpy old biplane who spends his life working rather than racing. Leadbottom is the founder of Vitaminamulch, a special blend of vitamins, minerals, and mulch that works wonders when sprayed on crops.
He holds the unshakeable belief that crop spraying is the best job in the world, considering all other professions to be inferior. Others think he's crazy.
Appearances[]
Planes[]
Leadbottom is a crop duster who uses a spray called Vitaminamulch to dust crops around Propwash Junction. He has Dusty Crophopper working with him, but Dusty is more interested in racing, to which Leadbottom urges him to give his dream up. After their working time is up, Leadbottom notes that with a crop duster wanting to race, more racers should do crop-dusting.
Later, he comes across Dusty, Chug and Roper, after Roper arrives in Propwash Junction to inform Dusty that he is in the Wings Around the Globe Rally. Roper is disgusted by the smell of Vitaminamulch, which Leadbottom explains about it before driving away singing to himself. Roper commented to Dusty and Chug he needed help.
Planes: Fire & Rescue[]
Leadbottom returns in Planes: Fire & Rescue, offering Dusty to come back to his job when he hears that Dusty's racing career may be over due to his damaged gearbox. Skipper tries to politely turn down Leadbottom's offer, insisting that it is too early to pitch it, but Leadbottom ignores him, even when Skipper offers to buy him a can of oil. Chug and Sparky then stand up to Leadbottom, insisting that Dusty would not return to crop-dusting, but everyone notices that he's gone.
The next day, after putting out a fire Dusty accidentally caused, Ryker shuts down Propwash Junction for inadequate firefighting personnel, threatening to ruin the airport's annual Corn Festival if no plane can land. Dottie and Sparky propose refurbishing Mayday to meet Ryker's standards, but they would need to hire a second firefighter. Leadbottom states that the timing couldn't be worse, as it's fire season. Thankfully, Dusty decides to get certified as a firefighter, allowing Propwash to be reopened. Leadbottom then attends a show that has Dusty and the crew from Piston Peak taking part.
Vitaminamulch: Air Spectacular[]
In the short film, Leadbottom advertises Vitaminamulch to spectators watching Dusty in action. However, the two stunt vehicles, Air Devil Jones and Vandemonium, are not coming to the event, and Leadbottom fears that their lack of presence would turn away the fertilizer distributor VIPs in attendance. Therefore, he tries to pass off Dusty and Chug as Air Devil Jones and Vandemonium respectively, albeit unconvincingly. As the crowd starts to disperse, in desperation, Leadbottom urges the duo to perform their running landing stunt. Unfortunately, Dusty panics when Chug mentions that he's filled with 700 gallons of highly flammable avgas. Chug then backs into Sparky, who accidentally punches a hole in Chug's tank, and a spark ignites the gasoline, starting a flame that chases the fuel trail left by Chug, and igniting fireworks along its path, prompting the audience to stay. Eventually, one chaotic event after another, the trio crash into Vitamina-Me, the airplane sculpture composed of Vitaminamulch, launching the sculpture into the sky, raining fertilizer on the entire audience, prompting them to cheer. Pleased, Leadbottom thanks the trio and says they have a 3 o'clock show to do, much to their dismay.
Video games[]
Planes: The Video Game[]
Although he does not appear in Planes: The Video Game, he is mentioned by Dusty Crophopper when he has to spray Vitaminamulch onto the crops, as he says to get low to the ground, fly directly over the field, and release the Vitaminamulch.
Trivia[]
- Leadbottom's design is based on a PT-17 Sterman Biplane.
- Unlike Dusty, Leadbottom's sprayer is built into his lower wings.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Stitch Kingdom (March 27, 2013). ‘Planes’ Official Character Descriptions, Casting and Character Poses (Hi-Res). Stitch Kingdom. Archived from the original on April 2, 2013.