Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom is an educational Adventures in Music animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions, and originally released to theaters by Buena Vista Film Distribution on November 10, 1953. This marks the very first animated short produced in CinemaScope; showcasing many of its features very commonly (including stereophonic sound).
It features Mr. Owl discussing the study of musical instruments - the subject of the day. Mr. Owl tells the class (and the viewer), in rhyme, about all music that originates from four core sounds: toot (brass), whistle (woodwind), plunk (strings), and boom (percussion).
Summary
A History of music through the ages, from prehistoric man to the modern symphony orchestra.
Characters
- Bertie Birdbrain (voiced by Bill Thompson)
- Canary Sisters
- Penelope Pinfeather (voiced by Loulie Jean Norman)
- Professor Owl (voiced by Bill Thompson)
- Suzy Sparrow (voiced by Gloria Wood)
- Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom (voiced by Jimmy MacDonald)
Legacy
Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom has been listed on Jerry Beck's 50 Greatest Cartoons list, where, in a survey of numerous animation historians and people in the field, the short was voted the 29th best animated short.
Both of the Adventures in Music shorts found a long lasting legacy when footage was re-used for the interstitials of the Disney's Sing-Along Songs video series.
Releases
Television
- Walt Disney Presents, #5.24: "Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom"
- The New Mickey Mouse Club, March 10, 1977
- Ludwig's Think Tank
- The Ink and Paint Club, episode #1.36: "Award Winners II"
Home video
VHS
- Walt Disney Cartoon Classics: Limited Gold Editions - Disney's Best: The Fabulous '50s
DVD
- Walt Disney Treasures: Disney Rarities
- Fantasia 2000 (2000 DVD release): Used as a bonus feature
Notes
- In some television airings, negative Black stereotypes were removed.
- One of the students is seen reading a Donald Duck comic book.
- An Academy ratio version of the short was also produced, with some slight differences, specifically removing some of the shots that took advantage of the wider screen.
