| Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Richard Williams |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Based on | Characters byJohnny Gruelle |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography |
|
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Joe Raposo |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox[2] ITT Inc.[2] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Countries |
|
| Language | English |
| Budget | $4 million[3] |
| Box office | $1.35 million (Rentals)[4] |
Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure is a 1977live-action/animatedmusicalfantasy film loosely adapted from the 1924 novelRaggedy Ann and Andy and the Camel with the Wrinkled Knees. It was directed byRichard Williams, produced by theBobbs-Merrill Company, and released theatrically by20th Century Fox.[1] A1941 short film had previously featured theRaggedy Ann and Andy characters created byJohnny Gruelle. The firstfeature-length animated musical comedy produced in theUnited States,[5] the plot follows Raggedy Ann and Andy, who, along with other toys, live in the nursery of a little girl named Marcella. During Marcella's seventh birthday, Babette, fromFrance, is introduced as the new doll from a large package. Meanwhile, the lecherous Captain Contagious kidnaps Babette in his pirate ship and escapes from the nursery. Ann and Andy must explore and find Babette in the Deep Deep Woods to save her.
The film began development when producer Richard Horner chose the characters from a conversation surrounding promotions of children's products. The Bobbs-Merrill Company became its financer, and the film was astage musical and a live-actiontelevision special before it was decided to become ananimated film. Director Williams controlled most of production, which lasted for more than two years, budgeting to the cost of $4 million.[6][3] As a result, the release date was pushed back for an extra three months of work.Joe Raposo contributed all of the music and songs for the film. The film's promotional campaign cost $2 million.
Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure premiered on March 20, 1977, in nine major cities before it was generally released on April 1, 1977, in the United States. It received mixed reviews, with much of the praise going to the animation. Ever since its release, the film only gained a few home video releases and some television broadcasts. The film was adapted by the 1981 drama adaptation and the 1986Broadway musical,Raggedy Ann. In recent years, it has developed acult following for its songs and characters.
Marcella returns home and goes to her nursery playroom to put away her favorite doll,Raggedy Ann. When Marcella leaves, the toys come to life, and Ann tells them of the wonders of the outside world. She then shares that it is Marcella's seventh birthday, and the toys notice a large package in the corner. Marcella opens the present to reveal a beautifulbisque doll fromParis,France, named Babette. Ann and the other toys welcome Babette, but she is too homesick. Meanwhile, Captain Contagious notices Babette and he becomes immediately smitten. After tricking Ann into freeing him, he kidnaps Babette with his band of pirates and leaps out of the nursery window. Ann and Andy decide to rescue Babette.
Ann and Andy enter the Deep Deep Woods. As the dolls travel, they meet the Camel with the Wrinkled Knees, a bluestuffed animal who has been abandoned and hallucinates ghostly camels beckoning him to a home. Ann promises that once they find Babette, he may return with them. With Ann and Andy in tow, the Camel chases down the caravan and mindlessly rushes off a cliff. They find themselves in the Taffy Pit, where the Greedy lives. The Greedy explains that he feels unsatisfied despite endlessly eating. He thus attempts to take the candy heart inside Ann, but the toys successfully escape.
The toys then encounter the looniest knight Sir Leonard Looney, who welcomes them to Looney Land. Looney pursues the toys into the court of its monarch, King Koo Koo. Koo Koo laments his tiny stature and explains that he can only grow by laughing at other people. He intends to keep the toys as his prisoners, but they are able to distract him and escape on a boat. The furious king follows them with an enormoussea monster, Gazooks; as he finds hilarity in seeing heroes in trouble, Koo Koo intends to get the "last laugh" by having Gazooks tickle all the heroes with his many arms.
While sailing, Ann, Andy, and the Camel notice Contagious' ship, only to discover that Babette had become the new captain while imprisoning Contagious. When Ann tries to tell Babette to return, Babette is enraged and has the trio tied to the mast. Meanwhile, Queasy successfully unlocks Contagious' shackles, allowing him to return above deck, free the others, and pledge his love for Babette. King Koo Koo and Gazooks then attack the ship and capture all but Ann and Babette. He subjects them to tickling, making the monarch swell to mammoth proportions by laughing. Babette begs for forgiveness, only for her and Ann to be captured and tickled. The dolls realize that King Koo Koo's inflated ego is "full of hot air," and Andy tells Queasy to pop him, which creates a massive explosion that sends them spiraling.
The following day, Marcella discovers the toys lying in her backyard. She returns all but the Camel to the playroom, where Babette apologizes for her actions and accepts Ann's offer of friendship and Contagious' affection. While in harmony, Ann notices the Camel through the window. The dolls welcome him to their family. The next day, Marcella finds the Camel among the dolls and hugs him tightly, accepting him.
In addition, all the cast provided the voices of the Loonies.[14] Their animator isGrim Natwick.[22]
After the success of the live-action television adaptation ofThe Littlest Angel, producer Richard Horner was looking for a similar project.[30] One day, Horner was in a conversation surrounding the promotions of an independent merchandiser of children's products during lunch.[30][9]Raggedy Ann & Andy was chosen, and after it got popularity from a Friars Club roast forJohnny Carson, he acquired permission toThe Bobbs-Merrill Company to begin the project.[30] When the project was greenlit, it started out as a stage musical before it was transformed into a live-action television special forHallmark Hall of Fame namedRag Dolly: The Raggedy Ann Musical.[1][30][9][31][32] Horner brought in writer Pat Thackray for permission to researchJohnny Gruelle's material and write a live-action script as a treatment.[33] Afterwards, Pat Thackray andMax Wilk wrote the script for the special.[33][9] They included new characters in the screenplay, including Captain Contagious and the Greedy.[34] Considerations for Raggedy Ann includeLiza Minnelli andGoldie Hawn, while a consideration star for Raggedy Andy wasDick Van Dyke.[1][32] Over time, composerJoe Raposo decided that a live-action television special involving Raggedy Ann and Andy would be too unbelievable.[33][9] The project was then transformed into an animated project, leading to Hallmark being dropped from the project.[33][32] The team were amused about the idea, as they were convinced that the technique was the correct path to follow.[35] As a result, the team decided to make a film based on the characters instead of a television special.[35] Shortly, the company accepted the agreement to finance the film.[35]
In late 1973, Lester Osterman askedRichard Williams to produce an animated film based on the characters.[36] He initially declined and recommendedJohn Hubley instead, although Osterman sent the script and a tape of music with Williams overnight.[36] Williams called his fellow friendTony Walton about Osterman while preparing for the script.[36] As he read the script, Williams was surprisingly amazed, and he left it loose to allow for visual development.[36] Williams brought the script to Walton and prepared for himself to listen to the score at 2:00 pm in the morning.[37] He immediately became amused about the score, calling that this could be "extremely good".[38] Negotiations soon began between Richard Williams Productions and the Lester Osterman studio, but the former was rejected.[38] In 1974, Osterman called and asked Williams to reconsider supervising the full-time production of the film, but Williams once again declined.[38] Raposo then called and told him to travel toNew York City and socialize with the team.[39] The team traveled, and Williams hiredAbe Levitow to direct the film, which amazed him more.[39][40] Raposo and Williams traveled back to New York City afterwards.[39] Shortly after Levitow's death, Williams was pressured to replace him as the director of the film.[40] Williams pitched the idea toUniversal Pictures andWarner Bros., but they declined. Williams pursued20th Century-Fox presidentAlan Ladd Jr. to finance the film.[citation needed] During March and April 1975, Williams and Raposo worked together inLondon and New York City to polish the final version of the screenplay for recording sessions.[41]
The designs were based on the drawings from the first four of Gruelle's books.[42] In January 1975, Williams called animator Corny Cole with an offer to design the characters, layouts, storyboards, and color-keying.[42] Cole worked closely with Pat Thackray, sketching the dolls in the toy section of theMuseum of the City of New York, while Williams cut out the illustrations by Gruelle as "reference sheets".[42] Cole later returned toLos Angeles and worked for three weeks on a color presentation that would be shown to the company at the end of February.[42] The meeting would serve to introduce Richard Williams as the director of the final film.[42] Despite his job, Cole only laid out a half of the film; the rest of the film was laid out and storyboarded byGerald Potterton.[43] Cole worked on its plans and storyboards for three months.[41] He left when his contract expired in the summer of 1976.[43]
The Greedy was the first character to be designed for the film.[42] Corny Cole originally envisioned the character as a Giant Spider-like creature with various types of hands.[42] After its pencil-test byEmery Hawkins in the fall of that year, Cole was unsatisfied with the results.[42] In June 1976, the animation crew started testing out the designs by setting up the characterizations of the main characters. Their work would be served as character models of the film.[41]
For the live-action sequences, the dolls were built by four designers. The Camel, the Twin Pennies, and Captain Contagious and the ship in the globe were built by Frederick Nidah, with the Grandpa doll being rebuilt.[11] Raggedy Ann and Andy, Topsy Turvy, and the Sockworm were built by Richard Williams' mother.[11]Bill Davis built Barney Beanbag and Suzy Pincushion, and Judy Sutcliff fashioned the Babette doll.[11]
Raposo and Williams chose the opposite tradition of voice acting backed by Horner.[9]Howard Feuer suggested celebrities to voice the characters, such asTammy Grimes as Raggedy Ann andJack Gilford as the Camel, but Horner decided that the characters would be voiced by not-widely known actors instead.[44] The film had five auditions from Raposo for the voice cast.[45] The first audition was held on May 1, 1975, inMediasound Studios.[45] During the day, Williams rushed to the studio, worrying about the voices of the characters at the time.[45] For several characters such as Captain Contagious and Suzy Pincushion, choosing the voices for them was a "crucial problem".[9] Over a hundred actors auditioned for sixteen parts.[44] For the live-action sequences, Williams thought that casting Marcella was a "thorny problem", as he needed a girl who could impose a 12-hour schedule. He selected his daughter, Claire Williams, for the role of Marcella.[9] Williams' account dated on January 2, 1976, implied the pressure for Marcella's voice to be dubbed. Claire Williams' original voice was later dubbed for the film.[7]
The voices for the cast were recorded on May 29 and 30, 1975, with four additional days in July at Mediasound, Inc.[14] According to Didi Conn, all of the cast were in the recording studio on the first day of recording, with the exception of Joe Silver, who was working on the television seriesFay at the time.[14] Joe Raposo was a temporary substitute until it was replaced by Silver's recording sessions when he voiced him for a day.[14] Some lines took over 24 takes for a line of dialogue, though the sessions were relaxed.[14] The script would be revised when a voice cast does not feel comfortable on the lines.[14] The final recording session involved Didi Conn and Mark Baker singing "Candy Hearts" together. The session only took a single take for the song to be finished.[14]
The live action sequences were filmed inBoonton, New Jersey, with the house at 224 Cornelia Street serving as Marcella's home.[10][8] The location was found by set and costume designer William Mickley.[10] On October 14, 1975, the location was repaired. Mickley and a pair of scenic artists tore rooms apart, painted and wallpapered Marcella's bedroom, built a ceiling grid for the lights, dug a backyard pool, and enhanced the autumnal foliage by spraying the leaves red and gold and brought more leaves from nearby neighborhoods.[11]
Principal photography was held on the week of October 20, 1975.[10] Filming involved a crew of 35 people and took four days from early in the morning to midnight for the scenes to be finished.[11] Williams shot the film quickly, with no more than five or six takes for each scene of the film.[11] Williams' love interest at the time, Margaret French, and his wife at the time, Lois Catherine Steuart, watched Claire Williams to keep her well-supplied with her favorite orange sherbet without being exhausted.[11] After shooting was finished, the house was restored to its original condition for two weeks.[11]
Williams' idea was to employ a full range of animation without looking like it was animated byDisney.[46] He spent a week researching the original illustrations by Gruelle.[39] He eventually decided to base the animation on his work.[46] As a result, the animation was challenged to compete with Disney films at the time.[46][20] Eventually, his goal for the animation is to have a character who can change his personality.[20] European .004celluloids were considered to be used by Williams, but they would cause issues if weather changes or too much paint was applied.[47] The animation was later decided to compromise withMylar-based cels from theMidwest.[47]
Full animation started in February 1976.[41] Most of the animators left by May 1976.[41] Approximately half of a million ideas and story sketches were drawn,[48] another half of a million finished drawings were included in the finalized film,[48] and approximately 1,000 backgrounds were drawn and used for the film.[49] Some sequences were drawn by one frame instead of the usual two frames.[50] Over time, cameraman Al Rezek designed and built theXerox processor and camera that outlined the original paper drawings directly onto cels.[47] Animation drawings were inspected by Xerox planners before they are Xeroxed to figure out whether the mechanics used were correct.[51] The approved animation would then be shipped from two independent companies inHollywood to an art department in New York City.[17] The animation was painted by more than 45 individuals that included men and women in the art department managed by Ida Greenberg.[51] Some characters had a lot of color keys, including Suzy Pincushion and Topsy-Turvy.[52] The Greedy faced a problem with painting, as Greenberg stated that the "big masses of taffy took an awful long time to paint, and it was a 'wall-to-wall' painting."[52] Approximately 85,000 cels were painted to complete the film.[50] The animation cels used for the film were larger than most animated films due to the cel measurements for thePanavision camera.[50]
The film was shot in35 mm Panavision film for "greater impact and design quality".[49][47] This was one of the technical problems that needed attention for the film, as it received lots of complaints from the crew who has not worked on it prior to the film.[47] At the time, the Panavision lens were not acquired until September 1975.[47] Williams would insistPolaroid filters to be placed over the camera lens to refrain dirt and scratches from the animated cels.[47] Two sequences had to be rendered with black backgrounds, which cause celabrasion problems.[47] The animation was taken with two cameras for two shifts in day and night by Rezek and his small crew.[53] Some shots were shot inmultiplane, including the "Candy Hearts" sequence.[53] For the special star effect in the "Blue" sequence, a black card with stars with two sets of lines underneath and its "strobe" effect were used to flicker the star.[53] Its process for the effect was time-consuming, as it required four separate camera runs of the same footage.[53] By the final week of December 1976, most of the animators and assistant animators were finished with their tasks.[17]
Williams challenged for the film to be true to the expectations of the audience.[46] As the film production continued, story sketches and art work were arriving slowly for use in theLeica reel.[47] Williams flew toCanada for a screening held in mid-December 1975 with his fellow friend, Gerry Potterton.[54] Reactions and consensus were generally positive on the screening.[55] Williams then traveled to London and spent his brief break there.[55] On January 2, 1976, Williams wrote an account of his mind, demanding that 23–28 minutes of the Leica reel should be cut from the original duration of 108 minutes of the film.[55] The scenes included the scene involving the Greedy,[d] the Loony Land scene, and the scene involving Gazooks tickling the dolls.[55]
Eventually, like many of his other projects, the film went over time and budget,[40] including the art department in New York City, which was the biggest threat to the deadline due to its "slow, careful natured process".[17] He would spend two weeks in Los Angeles, two weeks in New York City, and approximately ten days in London to attend his own studio.[6][41] The film was finished by December 31, 1976.[56] The overall production originally cost $1.750 million before it was raised to $4 million.[31]
| Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by various artists | |
| Released | 1977 |
| Recorded | May & July 1975 |
| Studio | Mediasound (New York City) |
| Genre | Soundtrack |
| Length | 44:52 |
| Label | Columbia Records |
| Producer | Joe Raposo |
Joe Raposo composed the score and wrote songs for the film. During the early stage of development, he studied Gruelle's material before he processed on the songs, music, and lyrics.[57] The first song written for the film was "I Look and What Do I See", a song about Raggedy Ann's innocence on the "good and pretty things in life".[57] Out of the 24 songs written for the film, only 14 were included in the final cut.[33] The deleted songs included Raggedy Andy's solo "I Like Rasslin",[28] a song for Raggedy Ann and Marcella,[33] a dance number "The Raggedy Rag",[33] "Fifi",[e][33] and the anthem for the Loonies of Loonyland.[33] They were all rejected before they were recorded.[33] "Blue" was originally going to be deleted twice to be substituted by a song about a Cookie Grant[38] and from Williams' artistic direction,[43] but it was later kept in the final film. The score involved a sixty-piece orchestra and was prerecorded before its recording sessions were recorded.[14]
An official soundtrack was released onvinyl,cassette tape and8-track tape byColumbia Records in 1977.[58] The soundtrack was instereo compared to the film, which was inmono.[59] The soundtrack received generally positive reviews.Billboard chose the track "Rag Dolly" as the album's highlight, reviewing the album as an "attractive disk" led by the team.[60] A.H. Weiler ofThe New York Times commented that "Candy Hearts" is "pleasantly tuneful."[61] R.C. Staab criticized the singing performances of the characters, but recalled that "Rag Dolly" is a "catchy number in the style ofScott Joplin."[62] Jay Alan Quintril stated that the songs are of the "Tin Pan Alley school of composition" and fit the "charm and warmth and sheer joy of the entire project."[63] Barbara Corrado Pope commented that "["I'm No Girl's Toy"] seems ill-placed in a movie that [would] probably have wide appeal for little girls."[64]
All tracks are written byJoe Raposo.
| No. | Title | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Main Title — Rag Dolly" | 1:37 | |
| 2. | "Where'd You Go?" | Margery Gray & Lynne Stuart | 1:18 |
| 3. | "I Look and What Do I See" | Didi Conn & Cast | 2:55 |
| 4. | "I'm No Girl's Toy" | Mark Baker & Cast | 2:46 |
| 5. | "Rag Dolly" | Didi Conn, Mark Baker, & Cast | 3:50 |
| 6. | "Poor Babette" | Niki Flacks | 1:36 |
| 7. | "A Miracle" | George S. Irving &Arnold Stang | 1:15 |
| 8. | "The Abduction & Ho-Yo" | George S. Irving & Cast | 2:38 |
| 9. | "Candy Hearts" | Didi Conn & Mark Baker | 5:26 |
| 10. | "Blue" | Fred Stuthman | 4:43 |
| 11. | "Camel's Mirage" | Cast | 0:56 |
| 12. | "I Never Get Enough" | Joe Silver | 3:17 |
| 13. | "I Love You" | Alan Sues | 1:41 |
| 14. | "Hail To Our Glorious King" | Cast[f] | 1:04 |
| 15. | "It's Not Easy Being King" | Marty Brill | 2:18 |
| 16. | "Hooray For Me" | Niki Flacks & Cast | 0:45 |
| 17. | "You're My Friend" | George S. Irving & Arnold Stang | 2:09 |
| 18. | "The Plot Thickens" | 3:08 | |
| 19. | "The Tickling and The Last Laugh" | 1:30 | |
| 20. | "Home" | Didi Conn, Mark Baker, & Cast | 5:46 |
The film was originally planned for a release on March 1, 1975,[41] but was later scheduled for December 1976.[41] By April 1976, the film was moved to early 1977 for extra three months of work.[7] According to a two-page advertisement forVariety from December 8, 1976, it was estimated that over 70 million viewers watched Didi Conn and Mark Baker as Raggedy Ann and Andy dancing to "Rag Dolly" for two minutes in theMacy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.[65] The promotional campaign for the film reportedly costed $2 million, with a hundred of manufacturers licensed to make more than 500 products.[66][20] The film premiered on March 20, 1977, in nine major cities.[20] It was later released on April 1, 1977, in 400 theaters in the United States, with approximately 40 theaters opened in New York City.[66][58] The film was abox-office failure.[67]
The film was first released onRCACED Videodisc,VHS, andBetamax byMGM/CBS Home Video in 1982.[68][69][unreliable source?] It was followed by a VHS release in 1985 by Playhouse Video (in association ofCBS/Fox Video)[70] and 1992 byFox Video.[71][unreliable source?] The film never received an official DVD release nor aBlu-ray release.
The film aired onDisney Channel for six days in June and July 1988.[72]
"If you're amusical fan, you'll loveRaggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure."
"Raggedy Ann & Andy is a natural for kids from 3 to 12 and their parents won't be bored, eitherJohn Gruelle's winsome pair come to life with accomplished animation supervised byRichard Williams. The songs byJoe Raposo are run of theBroadway mill and humor is sparse, but the characters brilliantly realized. Especially Greedy, a self-consuming lava pit of chocolate and other sweets."
Upon its initial release,Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure received mixed reviews from critics.[75] The film was praised for its animation, voice cast, and songs. Film criticRoger Ebert stated that he "enjoyed [the film] fully, without the slightest need to revert to my childhood." He praised the animation and concluded that "[children will] enjoyRaggedy Ann anytime."[76] Jay Alan Quantril called it the "most delightful film to be released in many a year." He praised the animation as "all done with such artistry and integrity" and the songs as "memorable if a little less than inspired."[63] Rob Edelman commented that it is a "captivating film for children", comparing the film to the "best ofDisney" and praising the "imaginative" animation, direction, screenplay, and "pleasant if memorable" songs.[77] Candice Russell ofKnight-Ridder Newspapers was favorable about the film, stating that the film has a "psychedelic array of colors, delightfully goofy characters, an ingenious story filled with danger and escape, a score by Joe Raposo, and humor sure to please mom and dad as well as the kids."[78]
Suzanne Bowers ofFilm Information called the film's animation "excellent", the songs "easy for all ages to take", the music "catchy", and the film's mood "buoyant".[79] Film Feedback from the Communication Commission, National Council of Churches stated that "children and adults who are young at heart will find much to enjoy and think about in [the film]."[80] Peter Schillaci ofMass Media Newsletter stated that "creative style, gorgeous color, clear action, and some fine voices make this one children's film which won't put adults to sleep."[81]A.H. Weiler ofThe New York Times commented that the film is "both a rare and welcome addition to the entertainment offeredpre-teens these days."[61] Gay Zieger praised the animation and music score of the film.[82] The Marin Motion Picture and TV Council reviewed that the characters made this film a "rare treat".[83]Bob Thomas ofAssociated Press praised the animation and characters in his "At the Movies" review.[74] R.C. Staab praised the "good" animation and "pleasant" songs in his review.[62] Keith Jones ofRegister Staff called the music "bright and catchy" and the animation "superb".[73]
Other aspects were criticized, including some of the characters and its screenplay. Lou Gaul ofCourier Times Entertainment was mostly favorable about the film, describing the production as "full of marvelous sights, pleasant sounds, and sparkling color." Although he criticized the film's ending for "fraying slightly", he praised the film's balance, music score, and production.[84] David Sterritt ofChristian Science Monitor called the film "the most unusual family-fun find of the season." He criticized the film's pace, but recalled that "once the plot is underway, it contains some cleverly conceived and brightly drawn situations."[85] Judith Martin ofLos Angeles Times andThe Washington Post called the film "pretty" and "tuneful", but criticized the plot as a "vague chase, peopled by formless villains."[86] Barbara Corrado Pope was mixed about the characters in the film, praising the Greedy, Sir Looney Knight, and King Koo Koo as "characters guaranteed to delight children", but criticized Raggedy Ann and Andy as "obnoxious" and a "sexist updating of the story".[64] Howard Beckerman gave the film a mixed review, praising the "ambitious" animation, but criticized the story and the "overabundance" songs of the film, calling the latter that only of a few songs were "memorable". He also criticized its characters Marcella and Babette, stating that the former "don't present any conflict or suspense for the audience to be concerned about" while he called the latter "uninteresting".[31]
Retrospectively, the film continued to receive mixed reviews. Tim Brayton ofAntagony & Ecstasy gave the film a score of 7 out of 10, calling the film "rare" and "totally essential and beautiful".[87] Greg Ehrbar ofAnimation Research called the film a "bold, spectacular enterprise", praising the "mammoth talents" and its animation, particularly the Greedy sequence.[59] Another reviewer fromAnimation Research, Michael Lyons, praised the film's animation as "full, kinetic, mesmerizing".[88] According toHalliwell's Film Guide: "[In this] attractive fully animated cartoon feature [...] only the central story is lacking in pace and humor".[89] In the bookMasters of Animation, authorJohn Grant stated that the film was "filed to the brim with all kinds of excellences." Grant praised the animation, but criticized the overabundance of "largely mediocre songs".[40] Ray Kosarin ofAsifa East stated that the film is "important and interesting", criticizing the story as "sleepy, sugary" and "fundamentally weak", the plot as "underbaked", and characters as "unmotivating", but praised the animation and its production as "colorful, often-exquisite".[90] In the bookThe Scarecrow Video Movie Guide, reviewer Bryan Theiss stated that the film's animation was "fun to stare at the details of the drawings." He described the story as "unabashedly juvenile" and the songs as "saccharine". He also criticized the Twin Pennies as "creepy" and the Greedy as "disgusting".[91] Sandra Brennan ofAllMovie gave the film two out of five stars.[92] Tom Hutchinson ofRadio Times also gave the film two out of five stars, criticizing the characters for having "appeal but no story to tell that will interest children above the age of five."[93]
In 1981, Thackray reworked the story forRaggedy Ann & Andy, a play which is available to license for performances at schools and community theatres in the United States and Canada.[94]
In 1984, Raposo and playwrightWilliam Gibson crafted a much darker variation of the story, first calledRaggedy Ann and then briefly retitledRag Dolly. Raposo retained two songs ("Rag Dolly" and "Blue") and reworked the opening title theme into a song called "Gingham and Yarn". The plot was completely different and follows the dying young Marcella, who goes on a journey with Raggedy Ann and her friends to meet the Doll Doctor, who can mend her broken heart. This version ran in three theatres (including one inMoscow[95]) before landing with a thud onBroadway on October 16, 1986, at theNederlander Theatre.[96][97] After five performances and 15 previews, it was closed on October 19.[98][99] The Broadway show received negative reviews, and it was considered a failure.[100] It developed a cult following frombootleg recordings.[100]
Opened 16th October, 1986; closed 19th October 1986 (15 previews; 5 performances)
