In 1934, when Walt Disney called for a meeting among his artists, a rumor had spread that he was going to shut the studio down and they would all be left unemployed during the great depression. Instead he personally told them in his own spellbinding way the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which he intended to make into his first feature length film. It was a risk unlike any other he had taken before. The film would cost a million and a half dollars at a time Disney was spending anywhere from ten to thirty thousand on his short cartoons. Doubts came from his wife Lillian and his brother and business partner Roy, who were sure they would be in debt for most of the rest of the lives. Also nervous was Walt’s backer Bank of America, who at one point interrupted the production by cutting off his credit. Then there were the heads of the other studios like MGM, Universal and Warner Brothers. They would gather for their weekly poker games at the Hillcrest Country Club and speculate that Walt, who they called “the Mickey Mouse Man”, would never succeed, no one would sit still for an hour and a half to watch a cartoon. And the press referred to Snow White as “Disney’s Folly”.

Despite the doubters and his own health problems (he suffered from a thyroid condition), Walt pressed forward relentlessly for three years. The key to the film, as far as Disney was concerned was the evil queen/peddler woman. Snow White was sympathetic, the dwarfs were humorous, but the villain had to be horrifying to keep the audience interested. The vocals were performed by a renowned stage actress named Lucille Laverne. Her haughty voice was a great fit as the queen, but her playing of the character after she transformed into the old crone had some at the studio worried. “Wait, I have an idea”, she said. She left the recording room for a few minutes then returned. “I’m ready”. She delivered her lines in a way that chilled and thrilled the Disney staff. After she finished there was applause and she was asked what she did when she left. She smiled and said,” I took my teeth out!”

Walt’s calculations were correct, Snow White and Seven Dwarfs was a hit throughout the entire world in 1938 and for many years beyond, keeping audiences riveted. The only down side for Walt was that maybe the peddler woman was a little too horrifying, he was disturbed by reports from Radio City Music Hall in New York where the film was setting box office records. It turned out that every few days the theater management had to replace seats. . . due to excessive wetness.

About The Author

Stephen Schochet is the author and narrator of the audiobooks “Fascinating Walt Disney” and “Tales Of Hollywood”. The Saint Louis Post Dispatch says,” these two elaborate productions are exceptionally entertaining.” Hear realaudio samples of these great, unique gifts at www.hollywoodstories.com. orgofhlly@aol.com

Tags: arts, big screen, entertainment, hollywood, movies, producers, walt disneyarts, big screen, entertainment, hollywood, movies, producers, walt disney

When I started teaching English at Northwestern Military and Naval Academy near Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, nobody warned me about the ghosts.

Northwestern a beautiful, old granite building was a boarding school. A hundred boys lived there, ranging in age from seventh grade through twelfth, although the building could have accommodated maybe twice as many. The school had been in existence for about a century. The hallway leading to the gymnasium was lined with photographs of all the graduating classes

The entrance to the school featured two wrought iron gates and a long driveway that wound through the extensive grounds. Trees, flowers and shrubs added to the park-like atmosphere.

Northwestern was both a military and a naval academy, and some of its graduates had served in World War I and World War II. A couple of those who had been killed in action were buried on the grounds. Considering the age of the building and its history, I suppose I should have expected ghosts or rather, I should have expected ghost stories.

But I didn’t.

Not until one fall morning when my students came to class so upset that they couldn’t concentrate on their school work.

“Do you believe in ghosts?” one of them asked finally.

“Yeah, Ms. Ralph. Do you believe in ghosts?” several others chimed in.

While I was attending the university to earn my teacher certification, none of the professors had mentioned how you were supposed to handle a question like this.

“Well,” I said, “I think there are probably many things in this world that we don’t understand.”

By now, all of my students were giving me their utmost attention. If only they were this interested in English.

“Have you ever seen a ghost?” one of them asked.

I shook my head. “No. I’ve never seen a ghost.”

“We have,” said one young man.

“Really?” I said. “And when was this?”

“Last night.”

“In our room.”

“We did, too,” said a couple of others.

“What happened?” I asked.

“It was just after lights out. Our curtain started moving.”

Instead of doors, each of the dorm rooms had curtains covering the doorway.

“At first I thought it was the sergeant coming to check on us,” my student said.

Military personnel were on duty around the clock to supervise the boys.

“Then what happened?” I asked.

“S-sss-some,” he stammered.

“Something pulled the blanket off his bed,” his roommate finished.

By now, all of the boys looked frightened.

“I don’t want to stay here anymore,” said one young man.

“Me, either.”

“I’m calling my mom to tell her to come and get me.”

“Me, too.”

“All right everybody,” I said. “Take a deep breath.”

I waited for them to take a deep breath.

“Now let it out slowly.”

They all did.

“What else happened?”

Other boys described pranks of a similar nature waking up in the middle of the night freezing cold, only to discover that their window was wide open when it had been shut and locked hours earlier; math books that had been sitting on their desks when they went to sleep were in the bottom of the garbage can when they woke up; uniforms were switched so that when they started to get dressed in the morning, they discovered they didn’t have their own clothes.

“Hmmm,” I said. “Who do you think would play tricks like that?”

My students considered the question for a few moments.

“Well, it kind of sounds like something we would do,” said one young man.

“Heyit DOES sound like something we would do!”

“You mean you think it’s a real person?”

“Or is it a ghost, one of those guys that’s buried here?”

“I think it’s one of us.”

“But even if it’s a ghost, it’s still one of us a cadet.”

“Yeah, it WOULD be a cadet, wouldn’t it”

I smiled to myself as they continued their discussion. At least they didn’t seem so frightened anymore.

For the rest of the fall the incidents continued. Then they stopped as abruptly as they had started. Either the culprit was afraid he was going to get caught, or else. . .

Wait a minute. You don’t suppose there really WAS a ghost?

Naaa. . .couldn’t be.

About The Author

LeAnn R. Ralph is the editor of the Wisconsin Regional Writer (the quarterly publication of the Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Assoc.) and is the author of the book: Christmas In Dairyland (True Stories From a Wisconsin Farm) (trade paperback; August 2003). Share the view from Rural Route 2 and celebrate Christmas during a simpler time. Click here to read sample chapters and other Rural Route 2 stories http://ruralroute2.com; bigpines@ruralroute2.com

Tags: books, entertainment, family, ghost stories, ghosts, novels, short stories, storiesbooks, entertainment, family, ghost stories, ghosts, novels, short stories, stories

The TV show MASH ran for 11 years taking nearly every opportunity to bash the US involvement with the Korean War, which was actually an allegory for Vietnam. Many episodes showed a moral relativism between the US side and the communists, the doctors(with the exception of Frank Burns) made no distinction between the wounded and often talked about declaring the war a tie so they could go home.

The MASH set sometimes was a tense place to work, especially in the early years. One episode featured a sniper who was eventually shot by an army helicopter. Alan Alda objected to the use of gunfire to settle the issue, some on the writing staff pointed out that he had recently played an armed sheriff who had drawn his gun in a TV movie which angered the star who retreated to his dressing room.

Some who worked on the show speculated that the pro-feminist Alda had problems reconciling playing the skirt chasing Hawkeye. Although, he was always professional he stayed aloof in the early years of the show, going to his dressing room whenever there was tension on the set. Part of the job of being the star is setting standards of behavior for the cast, but Alda just wanted to deliver his lines, contribute his creative ideas, and fly home to New Jersey on Friday. One time he was asked to record a video greeting to Navy stations, he refused claiming it would encourage the troops to prolong the Vietnam war. Even at Christmas he remained withdrawn refusing to buy any presents for the cast and crew, going against traditional television star rituals.

With Alda being aloof, some of the rest of the cast became difficult. McLean Stevenson began to demand he only do one take. Why? Because Sinatra only did one take. He wanted to sit down in his scenes? Because Sinatra always sat down. Gary Burghoff, who future co-star Mike Farrell would later call the greatest actor on the show, drove directors crazy by causing delays, asking what Radar’s motivation was for every scene. Loretta Swit became argumentative and difficult. Only Wayne Rogers and Larry Linville caused no problems. Yet the ratings continued to rise.

The ultimate irony came from the source material. MASH continued to blast the army, often making Generals look like buffoons, and making several communist characters noble. Alda seemed to lighten up as the show got new cast members and became even more successful. But one person who found it difficult to watch was the man who wrote the book from which both the movie and television show were inspired by, Dr. Richard Hornberger. He was especially bothered by Alda’s portrayal of Hawkeye, the character he patterned after himself, because Hornberger was a Conservative, flag waving, pro-military hawk.

About The Author

Stephen Schochet is the author and narrator of the audiobooks Fascinating Walt Disney and Tales Of Hollywood. The Saint Louis Post Dispatch says,” these two elaborate productions are exceptionally entertaining.” Hear realaudio samples of these great, unique gifts at www.hollywoodstories.com.

orgofhlly@aol.com

Tags: actor, actress, arts, entertainment, fame, hollywood, mash, moives, movie producers, stage, stories, tv seriesactor, actress, arts, entertainment, fame, hollywood, mash, moives, movie producers, stage, stories, tv series