The Puppetoon Movie is a 1987 animated film written, produced, and directed by Arnold Leibovit. It is based on the Puppetoon characters created by George Pal in the 1930s and 1940s, and features Gumby, Pokey and Arnie the Dinosaur, who host the framing story. Its framing story stars the voices of Dick Beals, Art Clokey, Paul Frees and Dal McKennon as the main characters. The original 1987 release of The Puppetoon Movie contained 11 Puppetoons. The 2000 DVD release and 2013 Blu-ray release each include the same 12 additional Puppetoons.
Plot
The film opens on a film set, where Gumby and his friends are filming a dinosaur movie. A ferocious Tyrannosaurus rex named Arnie charges on set and is about to devour a young doe named Barbara when suddenly, he removes his false teeth and lets the doe go out of sympathy. Gumby as a director cuts the scene and questions Arnie on his hesitation to act ferocious. Although Arnie knows it is all just acting, he feels unfit for the part because it just isn't him. He explains that he once was ferocious, but thanks to the influence of George Pal, he has reformed and is now a vegetarian without a bad bone in his body. Gumby fails to understand the profound effect of George Pal on Arnie's persona, so Arnie and Pokey show Gumby a set of George Pal shorts to show him the significance of the artist, thus starting The Puppetoon Movie. A number of George Pal's short films are featured in the film:
°Oscar nominated film After all the shorts, Gumby and the others meet other characters who George Pal animated, such as the Pillsbury Doughboy and the Alka-Seltzer mascot Speedy. Gumby then thanks George Pal for making all this possible, and everybody cheers. The screen pans out and shows a gremlin, who looks at the audience, says "George Pal!" in a raspy voice, then climbs up a support beam while laughing hysterically.
Home Video
In addition to the film shorts listed above, the following Pal film shorts are also included in the 2000 DVD edition from Image Entertainment and the 2013 Blu-ray edition from B2MP: What Ho She Bumps, Mr. Strauss Takes a Walk, Olio for Jasper, Philips Cavalcade, Jasper's Derby, Hoola Boola, Ether Symphony, Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, The Magic Atlas, Jasper and the Haunted House, Philips Broadcast of 1938, and The Ship of the Ether. The 2013 Blu-ray also includes the following short films previously unavailable on home video : The Oscar-nominated And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, Sky Princess, Rhapsody in Wood, Date with Duke, Jasper and the Beanstalk, and Rhythm in the Ranks. In addition, the Blu-ray also includes The Great Rupert which was produced by George Pal and the documentary The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal. A DVD edition from B2MP was released in 2013.
Reception
The film received mixed to positive reviews.
Awards
George Pal's Puppetoon body of work was recognized by a Special Oscar at the 16th Academy Awards in 1944. Pal received the Special Oscar "for the development of novel methods and techniques in the production of short subjects known as Puppetoons."
