The Reluctant Dragon & Mr. Toad Show is a 1970 American animated television series that aired on ABC's Saturday morning schedule. The show features two characters created by British children's writer Kenneth Grahame: the Reluctant Dragon from the 1898 short story of the same name, and Mr. Toad from the 1908 novel The Wind in the Willows. The show was created by Rankin/Bass Productions in New York City, who produced 17 episodes.[1] The show was a flop and canceled midway through its first season, airing from September 12 until December 26, 1970. ABC aired reruns of the show on Sunday mornings during the 1971–72 season.[2] Copies of all 17 episodes were deposited at the Library of Congress,[3] but only 10 episodes from other sources have been made publicly available as of 2024.
| The Reluctant Dragon & Mr. Toad Show | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Based on | Characters by Kenneth Grahame |
| Written by | Romeo Muller William J. Keenan |
| Directed by | Arthur Rankin Jr. Jules Bass |
| Voices of | Paul Soles Donna Miller Claude Rae Carl Banas |
| Composers | Maury Laws Jules Bass |
| Country of origin | United States (Production) Canada (voice actors) Japan (animation) |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 17 |
| Production | |
| Producers | Arthur Rankin Jr. Jules Bass |
| Cinematography | Steve Nakagawa |
| Editor | Irwin Goldress |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies | Rankin/Bass Productions Animation: Mushi Production |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 12 – December 26, 1970 |
The half-hour comedy program included three shorts on each episode: the Reluctant Dragon took the first and third slots, with a Mr. Toad cartoon in the middle.[4] Written by Romeo Muller and William J. Keenan, the series uses a team of Canadian voice actors with Bernard Cowan as the recording supervisor. Tobias, the Reluctant Dragon, was voiced by Paul Soles, Mr. Toad was voiced by Claude Rae; other voices were done by Carl Banas and Donna Miller.[5] The series' character designs were done by Paul Coker, Jr., and the animation supervision by Steve Nakagawa at Mushi Production in Tokyo.
The Reluctant Dragon
editTobias is a gentle, dreamy dragon and Merlin the wizard placed a curse on him so that whenever he sees a daisy, he breathes fire. [6] He is a kind-hearted soul who doesn't want to hurt the populace of Willowmarch Village, and is ashamed whenever he erupts in flame. He's regularly troubled by Daisy, a little blonde girl who wants to give him a bouquet of daisies, which make him breathe fire. Tobias is aided by a knight, Sir Malcolm St. George, who tries to protect both the village and the dragon.[4] Willowmarch is ruled by King Herman, who hosts a variety show.[7]
Mr. Toad
editMr. Toad is a carefree gadabout playboy who likes driving fast cars and wearing expensive clothes. He's the wealthy owner of Toad Hall, and an object of ridicule among his friends — the timid Mole, intellectual Badger and outgoing Water Rat. Unlike Tobias, who lives in medieval Willowmarch, Mr. Toad lives in 19th century Scotland, but in the episode "Toad's Time Machine", Mr. Toad and friends travel back in time to medieval Willowmarch, and end up meeting Tobias, Daisy, and King Herman.[4]
In 1986, Rankin/Bass produced a more faithful TV-movie adaptation of The Wind in the Willows.[5]
Episode list
edit- A Cold Day in Willowmarch / Build a Better Bungalow / A Day at the Fair
- Cowardly Herman / Casey Toad / Daisies Away
- Dippy / Gentlemen's Gentleman / Dragon Under Glass
- Free a Cold, Starve a Viking / Ghost of Toad Hall / Happy Birthday, Dear Tobias
- How to Be a Wizard / Jack of All Trades / How to Vex a Viking
- If It's Wednesday It Must Be Vikingland / Jove! What a Day / Lights, Camera, Action
- Merlin the Magician, Jr. / Micemaster Road / National Daisy Week
- Never Count on a Cornflower / Movie Maker Toad / No Bix Like Show Bix
- Saving the Crown / Polo Panic / Sir Tobias
- Subway Sabotage / Sail Ho-Ho / Taxes Are a Drag on Dragons
- The Big Break / Sandhogs / The Campscout Girls
- The Flying Flagon / The Amphibious Mr. Toad / The Haunted Castle
- The Kid's Last Fight / The Demolition Derby / The Purple Viking
- The Robot Dragon / The Great Bonfire Contest / The Starve Versus Herman, the Attrocious
- The Tobias Touch / The Great Motorcycle Race / Tobias the Terror of the Tournament
- Tobias, the Reluctant Viking / Toad's Time Machine / Wretched Robin Hood
- The Toughest Daisy in Willowmarch / Twenty Thousand Inches Under the Sea / The Great Zoo Bustout
Voices
edit- Paul Soles: Tobias, Irving The Bold, Merlin The Magician Jr., Inkley, Mole, Badger, Chief Weasel, King the Lion, Robin Hood, Sir Lancelot, Additional voices
- Carl Banas: King Herman The Atrocious, Ugly Olaf, Sheriff of Nottingham, Sir Gallahad, Uncle Charles, Monk the Gorilla, Sir Andrew Agincourt, Additional voices
- Donna Miller: Daisy, Water Rat, Queen of England, Field Mice, Additional voices
- Claude Rae: Mr. Toad, Sir Malcolm St. George, Bunkley, King Arthur, Sir Mack, Additional voices
References
edit- ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 659. ISBN 978-1476665993.
- ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 358. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
- ^ "Registration No. PA0000383162 / 1988-09-26". US Copyright Office.
- ^ a b c Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part I: Animated Cartoon Series. Scarecrow Press. pp. 234–235. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ a b Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 497–498. ISBN 978-1538103739.
- ^ Salda, Michael N. (2013). Arthurian Animation: A Study of Cartoon Camelots on Film and Television. McFarland & Co. p. 65. ISBN 9780786474684. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
- ^ "The Reluctant Dragon and Mr. Toad". Skooldays. Retrieved 9 May 2020.