Every decent-hearted American is familiar with the work of Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, better known as…
If you’re above a certain age, do not feel shame for playing this over and over a few times. It’s right up there with the legendary “A CBS Special Presentation” animation in that regard. It would be cruel of me not to toss that in, wouldn’t it?
Okay, back on topic (although, just saying– “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer”, “Frosty The Snowman”, and “Twas The Night Before Christmas” all aired on CBS with that very piece of film beforehand well into the 1990s.
But we’re not focusing on Christmas today! I get enough of that at work.
Rankin-Bass produced exactly one Thanksgiving special, and I never get through November without it. Originally airing in 1968 on NBC, “The Mouse On The Mayflower” depicts the pilgrims’ epic journey to a new world of freedom. Much of the actual story is relayed; the religious persecution in their home land, the dangerous journey including the treacherous storm season; the use of the printing press to repair a dangerous crack in the ship; the realization that they have not arrived at their planned destination, and the harrowing winter that resulted in illness and death.
Also dramatized is the awkward relationship between Captain Miles Standish, John Alden and Priscilla Mullens. Standish insists on Alden checking in on Mullens’ comfort, which makes Mullens believe Alden himself has no interest in her.
Now, all of this historical accuracy aside, the special is told through the perspective of WIllum Mouse, who ends up having a pivtol role in all these historical moments. There’s also a Native American mouse who becomes friends with Willum. Their friendship teaches the humans to be friendly with one another.
Oh, and there are bad guys–two humans, one native American, Smiling Buzzard (“the one bad apple in the bunch”) and a rotten old bear named Big Wheeze. They are chased out of Plymouth, thank goodness.
“Mouse On The Mayflower” has all of the classic properties of a great Rankin-Bass special.
The Music.
Music By Maury Laws, Lyrics By Jules Bass. A combination that producred great results over and over and over again. All the brilliantly funny songs in Mad Monster Party, for example. The classic “Heat Miser” and “Snow Miser” songs. “There’ll Be No More Toymaker To The King”, “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other” from Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. And many, many more. For “Mouse On The Mayflower” they wrote the bombastic “Mayflower”, the twin romantic numbers (“When [She/He] Looks At Me”), the elegant “November”, the humorous “Elbow Room”, the melancholy “Bring The Good Times Back” and “This Land Was Meant To Be Free.”
Before we move on: My DVD of “The Mouse On The Mayflower” is a Thanksgiving Day NBC broadcast that comes with original McDonald’s commercials. So, a word from our sponsor:
The Cast
And now, let’s meet the voice actors who made this classic special come to life!
Playing the main human role as Captain Miles Standish is Eddie Albert of “Green Acres” fame! Albert actually does a very effective voice characterization, quite different from his own voice. I’d show you a clip from the show with Albert doing his role but…well, we’ll get to that. Anyway, here’s Eddie Albert shooting a scene from “Green Acres”.
Playing the beleagered John Alden is singer John Gary. Gary’s peak years were the 60s and he was a frequent on Danny Kaye’s marvelous variety show:
https://youtu.be/uK3QylsdXAA?si=DfrW2-I7EIf4c5p4
Mmmmmmm….that’s some quality crooning right there!
Playing the role of Mistress Mullins is 60’s pop singer Joanie Sommers, once billed as “the voice of the sixties” but know by those old enough to remember her as “the voice of Pepsi-Cola.”
And pitching in all over the place in “Mouse On The Mayflower” are voiceover legends June Foray (Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Witch Hazel, Tweety’s beloved Granny, billions more) and Paul Frees (Ghost Host at Disney theme parks’ Haunted Mansions), Boris Badenov, the Pillsbury doughboy, Burgermeister Meisterburger, and billions more. June Foray portrays a pilgrim lady whose chicken dies in the bitter winter cold. Paul Frees does Big Wheeze the bear, several native American voices (it was, *sigh*, a different time) and two villians planning to steal the pilgrims gold and bail out on a lifeboat.
And last, but not least:
Told And Sung. This is the secret weapon, I think, that makes Rankin-Bass specials so memorable and rewatchable. Classic entertainers with iconic voices bring the viewer into the story, and in most cases lend their voice to the songs written for the program.
Can you imagine “Rudolph” without Burl Ives? “I love this Christmassy time of yeaaaaar…”
“Frosty” without Jimmy Durante? “Those beautifurl pernsettia plants!”
“Santa Claus Is Coming To Coming To Town” without Fred Astaire?
Girl: He’s very good, isn’t he?
Astaire: Uh-huh. You bet.
Girl: Is that why he’s called “Santa Claus”?
Astaire: That’s why, honey. That’s why.
And on and on. In “The Mouse On The Mayflower”, Tennessee Ernie Ford is the storyteller, in the role of Willum Mouse. His booming voice aligns well with the story and characters.
It’s at this point (and many other points throughout this article) that I’d love to share specific scenes and musical numbers from this special. Unfortunately, “Mouse On The Mayflower” is nowhere to be found. It is not on any streaming service. It is not on commercially-released home video. There’s a marvelous gentleman named Rick Goldschmidt who, after working many years with messrs. Rankin and Bass, releases collector-to-collector DVDs and CDS of Rankin-Bass productions that have slipped through the cracks. I thought briefly of doing that janky thing of shooting video off my TV set with my cellphone, but a cooler head prevailed. If you want to see this show, there’s one way. Here’s the website:
https://enchantedworldofrankinbass.blogspot.com/
I will leave you with a promo that dates back to at least the early 1990s, quite possibly the 80’s. The special was, at one point, offered in local syndication. That’s where I saw it the very first time in 1991 on a Saturday afternoon.