Disney's TaleSpin is a half-hour Disney animated series that first aired as part of The Disney Afternoon. After a preview of The Disney Afternoon that aired on the Disney Channel in May 1990, the series began its run in September of the same year. The original concept was embodied in the introductory television movie "Plunder and Lightning", which was re-edited into four half-hour episodes for reruns. The show was often seen either on its own as a half-hour show, or as part of the two-hour syndicated series The Disney Afternoon. There were 65 episodes total, although one episode is now banned for its terrorist theme.

An interesting aspect of the series is that several of the characters are loosely based on characters from Disney's animated film version of The Jungle Book: in particular Baloo, the hot-shot pilot hero of the series; Louie, the owner of Baloo's favourite bar; and Shere Khan, a business tycoon who appears in many episodes.

TaleSpin is set in the fictional city of Cape Suzette, a harbor town protected by giant cliffs (through which only a small opening exists). The opening in the cliffs is guarded by artillery, preventing flying rabblerousers or air pirates from entering the city. Characters in the world of TaleSpin are as a rule anthropomorphic animals. The timeframe of the series is never specifically addressed, but appears to be in the mid to late 1930s; the helicopter and jet engine are experimental devices, and most architecture is reminiscent of the avant-garde of that period. Radio is the primary mass medium.

The series centered on the adventures of airplane pilot Baloo the bear, whose air cargo freight business is bought out by Rebecca Cunningham, and renamed 'Higher for Hire'. An orphan boy and former air pirate, Kit Cloudkicker, attaches to Baloo and becomes his co-pilot. (Most of the description in this paragraph actually happens in "Plunder and Lightning".) From there, the series follows the ups and downs of 'Higher for Hire' and its staff. Their adventures often involve encounters with a gang of air pirates led by the histrionic Don Karnage, or with representatives of Thembria, a parody of the Stalinist Soviet Union inhabited by anthropomorphic warthogs.

The relationship between Baloo and Rebecca owes something to the screwball comedy films of the 1930s.

Characters (Actors)

• at Higher for Hire
  • Baloo (Ed Gilbert ), drawn largely as the bear from Disney's The Jungle Book, but with a flight cap and a yellow vest.
  • Kit Cloudkicker (R.J. Williams , Alan Roberts ), an orphan brown bear and former member of the air pirates, who stands roughly half Baloo's size. He typically wears a blue baseball cap with red rim and a green sweater. He is skilled at cloud surfing. Kit looks to Baloo as a father figure, and usually flies as the co-pilot of the 'Sea Duck'. In the Hindi version, Kit is called Kit Cloudwalla.
  • Rebecca Cunningham (Sally Struthers), a tall thin brown bear with long brown hair, who usually wears slacks, a white shirt, and a pink-red jacket. A shrewd businesswoman, she buys 'Baloo's Air Service' and his plane, creating the air cargo company 'Higher For Hire'. In the Hindi version, Rebecca is called Ritika Mahalingam.
  • Molly Cunningham (Janna Michaels ), Rebecca's daughter. In Hindi version, she is called Dolly.
  • Louie (Jim Cummings), also a character from the "The Jungle Book", Louie is an ape who wears a hawaiian shirt and owns the island restaurant 'Louie's', located near but outside the protection of Cape Suzette.
  • Wildcat (Pat Fraley ), a clueless and gangly lion who typically wears a mechanic's outfit. Officially the 'Higher for Hire' mechanic, pure intelligence is not his forte, but he's extremely adept at fixing devices. In Hindi version, he is called Punter.
• air pirates
  • Don Karnage (Jim Cummings), the leader of the air pirates, and the master of the massive pirate airship 'Iron Vulture'. In Hindi, he is called Don Karnaash, (which literally means Don Do-Destruction).
  • Maddog (Charlie Adler)
  • Dumptruck (Chuck McCann )
• Thembrians
  • Colonel Spigot (Michael Gough)
  • Sergeant Dunder (Lorenzo Music)
• others
  • Shere Khan (Tony Jay), a tiger who also appeared in The Jungle Book, but here stands upright and wears a business suit. Khan is a ruthless and extremely wealthy businessman who owns the tallest building in Cape Suzette.

External links

Websites

• Talespin http://www.talespin.co.uk/
• Talespin Sourcepage http://www.talespinsourcepage.i8.com/mainpage.htm