BACKGROUND
The Fox and the Hound was the first Disney animated feature of the 1980s, and is the official moment that the “Nine Old Men”, Walt Disney’s original team of animators, retired from the Disney Studios, thus leaving the Studios’ legacy to a new crop of animators.
The 1980s in general were a transitional period for everyone involved, because after the new animators began to go it alone on new animated feature films, a major change to management would cause upheaval and tensions between the artists and the executives. But that wasn’t a problem during The Fox and the Hound, and yet it isn’t considered one of Disney’s best movies, with many stating that it was missing some of that charm and magic of their earlier films. It was a safe film to make, especially with this “changing of the guard”, but followed a similar pattern to those Disney films of the 1970s; they were nice enough, and entertaining for children, but they just weren’t exciting or anything new.
To be honest, I wasn’t looking forward to watching The Fox and the Hound. I hadn’t seen it in at least ten years, probably more than that. I don’t like nature particularly, and, like Bambi (1942), The Fox and the Hound was always a film I tended to avoid for that reason. I didn’t think I liked it; I thought I’d find it very boring, but in actual fact, it wasn’t so bad.
I agree that The Fox and the Hound is not ground-breaking, and some of the movie is quite dark. I hadn’t watched it in quite a few years, so I thought the bit where Chief fell off the train tracks was the ending, and I didn’t remember the bear fight scene at all. Whether I used to walk out of the room at that point when I was younger and hadn’t seen it before, I don’t know. But as someone who struggles to watch nature documentaries because nature is just horrible sometimes, this will never be one of my favourites. But I didn’t mind it as much as I thought I would, and the animation was more realistic and much less cartoony than some of the features that would follow in the 1980s.
Some parts of it were not particularly exciting for me though. I like the beginning, when Tod and Copper are young because they’re so cute, but I found the parts of them growing up to be a bit slow. The ending was good, in that it was dramatic, although it was perhaps too realistic to nature for me, but I think I am in the minority here as The Fox and the Hound seems to have a large number of loyal fans. I’m not as interested in other Disney films about animals like The Lion King (1994), and that’s because I connect more to stories about people than the animal kingdom, but, like I said, I didn’t really mind watching The Fox and the Hound; it was alright.
PLOT
As is clear from the title, this film is about a fox and a hound. The opening scene shows a fox carrying her young cub as she is being pursued by hunters and their hound dogs. The fox leaves her cub in some tall grass, near a fence by a farmhouse, before running away, only to be, presumably, shot dead. The fox cub is left alone. Luckily, a nearby owl, Big Mama, a woodpecker, Boomer, and a finch called Dinky, make sure that the farmer widow, Widow Tweed, takes the cub home to raise. At the same time, the farm next door, owned by hunter Amos Slade, brings home a hound puppy, telling his current dog, Chief, to train him to become a hunting dog. We find the fox has been named Tod, and the dog, Copper. After Tod becomes bored one day, looking for someone to play with, he comes across Copper, and the two become unlikely friends, playing hide and seek together, and swimming in the nearby lake, neither aware of their natural rivalry to each other. However, Slade, annoyed at Copper constantly running off, places him on a leash, so when Tod comes over to play, he is unable to. Instead, Tod wakes up Chief accidentally and a chase ensues.
Slade, annoyed at this fox, tries to shoot him dead, however, Widow Tweed intervenes, with Slade warning her that if the fox comes on to his property again, he’ll kill it. Soon, Slade takes Copper and Chief away on a months-long hunt, while Tod waits patiently for his friend to return. Big Mama, Boomer, and Dinky try to tell Tod that when Copper returns, he’ll be a fully trained hunting dog and that they won’t be able to be friends anymore, but Tod doesn’t believe them. Sure enough, when Copper returns the next spring, both of them now adults, he warns Tod away from him, saying they can’t be friends now. During this conversation, Chief and Slade awaken and the two, plus Copper, chase after Tod, finally ending up near a railway track. Copper initially lets Tod escape, however, Chief does not, with both Tod and Chief getting on to the tracks, only for Chief to be hit by an incoming train, falling to the stream below, but, fortunately, only suffering a broken leg. But this is enough for Slade and Copper to decide to dedicate their time to solely hunting Tod.
Widow Tweed, realising she can no longer keep Tod safe, regretfully leaves him at a game reserve to live out the rest of his life. Tod has no idea how to look after himself and has a terrible first day there in the pouring rain, upsetting numerous other animals, including a very grouchy badger. The next morning, Tod is introduced to a young female fox, Vixey, by Big Mama. Vixey helps Tod learn how to live in the forest. However, soon the peace is ruined, as Slade and Copper trespass onto the reserve to hunt for Tod. Tod and Vixey somehow escape Slade’s numerous traps and tricks, and get away. Slade and Copper encounter a bear, who attacks Slade, with him falling down the cliff, getting his foot caught in one of his own traps. Copper starts to attack the bear, but is quickly overpowered. Tod goes back to help him by attacking the bear himself. Tod and the bear continue their fight near to a waterfall, and both fall to the ground below. Tod is injured but alive – I presume the bear is killed; it’s not clear. As Slade comes up to Tod to finally shoot him dead, Copper stands in his way, wanting to protect Tod for saving them both. Slade accepts this and returns home with Copper, with Copper and Tod reconciling, at least briefly. The final scene shows Slade having to be nursed by Widow Tweed for his injured foot; Copper and Chief carrying on as normal with Chief having recovered; and Tod and Vixey are happy in the wild together, overlooking the farmhouses from the top of a nearby hill.
CHARACTERS & CAST
In the movie, Tod is quite a mischievous fox. He doesn’t initially warm to Widow Tweed but as soon as he gets inside the house and she starts doting on him, he becomes a bit spoilt. She can’t bear to stay angry at him, even after he upsets her cow by playing around in the barn because he’s bored. When he gets older, Tod still doesn’t seem to have learnt from his mistakes, continuing to push his luck with Slade and Chief, ultimately causing him to be given up by Widow Tweed and left at the reserve to fend for himself. If it weren’t for Vixey and Big Mama, I don’t know how long he would’ve survived because he’s never had to do anything for himself up until that point; it’s all just been having fun and playing around. We do see, though, that Tod is a very loyal friend. He’s not the one to turn his back on the friendship with Copper. Even when he’s being chased down and it’s quite clear Copper does not see them as friends anymore, Tod still risks his life to save Copper by going after the bear that’s attacking them, even though he’s unlikely to win that fight. References to Robin Hood and Maid Marian from Disney’s Robin Hood (1973) were made for the overall designs of Tod and Vixey. With both couples being foxes it made sense to do this, with Tod and Vixey obviously being made to look like real foxes that walk on four legs, instead of two.
Keith Coogan, credited here as Keith Mitchell, voices Young Tod, this being his first acting job. Coogan is the grandson of actor Jackie Coogan, who portrayed Uncle Fester in The Addams Family television series (1964-66), amongst other things. Adult Tod was voiced by acting legend Mickey Rooney, who appeared on stage and screen from the 1920s, as a child actor, into the 2010s. For Disney, he appeared in Pete’s Dragon in 1977 as the character Lampie, before voicing Tod here. He also made a brief cameo appearance in The Muppets (2011), during the song “Life’s a Happy Song”. Rooney was nominated for two Academy Awards during his career: in 1939 for his role in Babes in Arms (1939) with Judy Garland, and in 1980 for his part in The Black Stallion (1979). He won an Emmy and a Golden Globe in 1981 as the lead actor in the made-for-television film Bill (1981), alongside Dennis Quaid. In the 2000s and 2010s, Rooney reached a new audience playing the part of Gus, a retiring security guard, alongside Dick Van Dyke and Ben Stiller in the Night at the Museum trilogy of films (2006-14). Rooney passed away in April 2014 at the age of 93.
Tod’s love interest, Vixey was voiced by Sandy Duncan. She had appeared in Disney-produced comedy films, like The Million Dollar Duck (1971) and The Cat from Outer Space (1978), and later voiced the character of Queen Uberta in The Swan Princess (1994); that series of films was created by Richard Rich, co-director of The Fox and the Hound.
Copper, on the other hand, is torn as a puppy between being loyal to his Master, Amos Slade, and Chief, as well as wanting to be friends with Tod, his natural enemy. He has a relatively good balance between the two sides, I think, though he is forced to be more loyal to Slade and Chief when he gets put on a leash to stop him wandering off all the time. When Copper is grown, he realises that he can no longer be friends with Tod as his aim is to hunt now. He tries to let Tod down gently, but Tod won’t listen to him. Even when Copper lets Tod escape that night on the railway line, Tod’s stubbornness is basically what leads to Chief’s injury and Copper’s hatred towards him for injuring his mentor. Copper has to follow Slade’s orders as his Number 1 hunting dog, and a dog is always loyal to its human. Copper does value Tod’s friendship in the end, and is thankful to Tod for saving his life. They reconcile, but by this point, both of them know that things can’t go back to the way they were. Copper has fond memories of their childhood friendship, but knows it won’t happen again. I think both Copper and Tod are incredibly cute when they’re puppies, especially Copper when he’s trying to bark and howl! But I prefer Copper to Tod as adults, because he’s well aware of how the world is. Even though it’s not fair, he accepts it.
Kurt Russell provides the voice for Adult Copper. Russell has a long history with the Walt Disney Company, having first been cast by Walt Disney himself for a role in the film Follow Me, Boys! (1966) at the age of 14. He continued to appear in other Disney movies throughout the 1960s and 1970s, including in the Dexter Riley trilogy of movies. Russell would return to the Disney studios again in the 2000s to star in Miracle (2004) and Sky High (2005), and as Ego in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the 2010s. Outside of Disney, Kurt Russell is known for many movie roles, such as appearing alongside his wife Goldie Hawn in the comedy Overboard (1987), Mr. Nobody in some of the Fast and Furious films, and as Santa Claus in the Netflix film The Christmas Chronicles (2018) and its 2020 sequel. Young Copper also has a famous voice actor, this being Corey Feldman. As a child actor, he would appear in the likes of Gremlins (1984), The Goonies (1985), and Stand by Me (1986).
Chief is Copper’s mentor, essentially. He is Slade’s aging hunting dog, and knowing that he won’t be around for ever, Slade gets Copper as a puppy to take his place eventually. Chief is told to look after Copper and teach him how to act. At first, Chief is annoyed by this puppy, taking over his space, getting in the way, but soon enough, Chief grows to like Copper. I think the relationship between the two is quite sweet, and it’s clear that both of them are protective of each other – Chief, by telling Copper not to run off and to stay focused on what Slade’s orders and rules are, and Copper, by vowing to not let Tod get away with injuring Chief. Which is a bit dark, but still, it’s a nice sentiment! Pat Buttram voices Chief. Buttram was cast in Disney animated films through the 1970s, as the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood (1973), Luke in The Rescuers (1977), and Napoleon in The Aristocats (1970).
Then, there is Big Mama the owl, Boomer the woodpecker, and Dinky the finch. Big Mama is kind of like the conscience of the film, like Jiminy Cricket in a way. She finds someone to adopt Tod, when he’s left alone in the thick grass, telling him everything is going to be fine when he must be quite scared to be separated from his mother. She also encourages the friendship with Copper, at least initially when they are small, thinking it’s extraordinary that two natural enemies could ever be friends at any point in their lives. But then Big Mama is also the one who tries to tell Tod that when Copper returns from the hunting trip in the spring that he will be a different dog, and won’t be able to be friends with Tod anymore; that they are both rivals in nature and nothing can change that – not that Tod listens, of course! Big Mama also introduces Tod to Vixey, knowing that he needs someone to help him figure out how to live in the natural world. She’s a very important character in the film, helping to lead Tod to a good life, with or without the safety of Widow Tweed. Pearl Bailey voices Big Mama, as well as sings three of the movie’s five songs. Bailey was an American actress and singer, having appeared on stage in productions such as Hello, Dolly! in 1975 as the titular role, and on screen in films such as the musical Porgy and Bess (1959) and her own variety show, The Pearl Bailey Show, in 1971. The Disney animators liked how expressive Bailey was when performing her role as Big Mama and made sure to incorporate her movements into the character[1].
Boomer and Dinky aren’t overly relevant to the main storyline. They have their own sub-plot where they are constantly trying to catch a very sneaky and lucky caterpillar, Squeaks, by tricking it, coercing it, harassing it. Poor thing. The two birds are the comic relief in the movie, and I remember their scenes more vividly from childhood than the scenes of Adult Tod and Copper, so I must’ve wanted to focus on them and their silly antics more than the hunting storyline, unsurprisingly. In the end, though, Boomer and Dinky find that the caterpillar has become a brightly coloured butterfly, and they are entranced by it. The butterfly flies off, free from them at last. It’s a bit of a random subplot but I think it’s necessary for small children watching, to distract them from the horrors of nature. The voice of Dinky, Dick Bakalyan was Russell’s co-star in the Dexter Riley films, playing Cookie to Russell’s Dexter Riley. Boomer is voiced by Paul Winchell, perhaps most remembered for being the original voice of Tigger in the Winnie the Pooh shorts.
Amos Slade and Widow Tweed are the only two human characters in the film. They both have quite a lot in common. They are both older, single people; they are next door neighbours, both living on farmland – though Widow Tweed actually farms, and Slade uses his land for hunting purposes. They are both raising animals, though in different ways, with Slade being quite clear that Copper is going to become a hunting dog, and not a pet, and Widow Tweed almost using Tod as a substitute child. I’m reluctant to call Slade a villain. He’s a hunter and I don’t agree with hunting, but he’s not really the villain of the piece. He doesn’t shoot Tod at the end, when he could do; although Copper doesn’t want him to, that isn’t going to affect Slade’s decision making, so he must have accepted at that point that Tod did save his life and he should be spared. He’s also caring towards his dogs, so he’s not a bad guy, really. Widow Tweed is much more caring towards everyone though, even Slade. The relationship between the pair is quite tense at times, with Widow Tweed having to come to Tod’s defence often and protecting him against Slade. Slade is almost a bit fearful of Tweed, I think, as she can give it back as good as she gets it! I like them both as characters and the best part is at the end of the movie, when Tweed is bandaging Slade’s foot, being his nurse, even though he clearly wants to be left alone! They have a funny relationship. I wonder if they secretly like each other…
Amos Slade’s voice is Jack Albertson, Grandpa Joe in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971). Not that that’s all his known for, of course, but it’s what I know the voice from. Before this, he had won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in the drama The Subject Was Roses (1968), having already won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in the stage version in 1965. Albertson was also known for his role in the sitcom Chico and the Man (1974-78), for which he won a Primetime Emmy in 1976. The Fox and the Hound was Albertson’s final theatrical film role before his death in November 1981. Jeanette Nolan voices Widow Tweed. She is the voice of the character Ellie Mae in The Rescuers (1977). Her husband, John McIntire, also voiced a character in both The Fox and the Hound and The Rescuers. In The Fox and the Hound, he is the voice of the badger, and in The Rescuers he is Rufus, the orphanage cat. Another small voice appearance here is John Fielder as the voice of Porcupine. Fiedler is best known for being the original voice of Piglet in the Winnie the Pooh franchise.
PRODUCTION
There are a few intense scenes in The Fox and the Hound, with all that hunting, but the book is much worse. The book of the same name, written by Daniel P. Mannix, and published in 1967, is much more realistic to real-life, with more gruesome events. The book starts off with Copper and Chief fighting for rank in Master’s pack, with Copper not being a new addition to the hunting pack but being the favourite dog, until Master is attacked by a bear on a hunt and Chief fights back to save his life, thus becoming the new favourite. Tod has actually been spared by a different hunter who killed all of Tod’s family. The hunter, for some reason, decides to raise Tod for a few months. Unlike the movie, Tod returns to the wild, not for a safety reason, but purely because he’s older now and should live in the forest. Tod then starts to taunt Master’s hunting dogs, and the chase with Chief ensues, where he is actually killed by the train, and doesn’t just break his leg. Copper and Master decide to make it their mission to hunt the fox that killed Chief.
Tod’s life in the woods is explored in more detail in the book, with him having two litters of pups, both being killed by Master: one set are gassed to death, and the other are shot. The book then follows the change from rural to more urbanised settings, explaining that hunting is more difficult now, and that many foxes have become scavengers, with rabies rife among them. Every winter, Master and Copper continue to hunt Tod, but to no avail. After a rabies-ridden fox attacks a group of children, Master organises a hunt. This time, they do get Tod, with Copper relentlessly pursing him until he dies of exhaustion. Copper is close to death but is nursed back to health by Master. Eventually, Master gives in to his family and decides to go to a nursing home. The end of the book alludes to the fact that Copper is shot dead by Master as he wouldn’t be allowed to go with him to the home[2]…So, although the majority of the story was kept into Disney’s movie, at least in some form with some plot points being modified, it was toned down to be less dark and horrifying! I feel like the book was written to state the dangers of hunting, and the problems of destroying natural animal habitats, whereas the Disney movie’s message is about not conforming to stereotypes and tells us that friendships have no boundaries; they don’t need to be hindered by society.
The Fox and the Hound was the last film to be released during the time of the old management, when Ron Miller, son-in-law to Walt Disney, was the President of the Studios. It missed out on the cultural shift and clashes that would come from this change, especially when “outsiders” from other studios, became the ones in top management positions, however, The Fox and the Hound did not avoid all company politics.
The Fox and the Hound was always going to be a learning opportunity for the new crop of animators that were coming through, as the “Nine Old Men”, Walt Disney’s original team of animators and story men, would be retiring partway through production so the newer animators would have to finish it on their own. The likes of Woolie Reitherman, Eric Larson, Frank Thomas, and Ollie Johnston began the film by setting some of the characters and completing some animation before passing it over to the new animators, who had only been at the Disney Studios for a few years at this point and were eager to get started. It was also being used as a teaching opportunity before Ron Miller would let these animators loose on the production of The Black Cauldron (1985), which was being continuously delayed until Miller felt these new, young animators were ready to do the story justice[3].
This was a problem for some animators, who had already been working at the Disney Studios for a number of years, but were now not even the newest crop of animators nor were they the oldest – they were somewhere in the middle. Don Bluth, who had worked for Disney Animation in the 1950s for a few years, and then returned in 1971, had many creative differences with the team during production on The Fox and the Hound, and resigned from the Disney company in 1979 to set up his own company, taking fifteen other animators with him; this was around 17% of the total animation workforce. Naturally, this caused the release date of The Fox and the Hound to be pushed back by six months from Christmas 1980 to Summer 1981. Some of Don Bluth’s work, and that of the other departing animators, was used in the final film, such as Bluth’s animation of Widow Tweed and her cow, Abigail[4].
Wolfgang Reitherman, one of the “Nine Old Men”, was the person who advocated for the making of the film, after reading the original story by Daniel P. Mannix. He’d connected to the story as it made him think about the friendship his son had with the fox he was raising[5]. Reitherman would be the only one of the “Nine Old Men” to stay for the full production of the film. This may’ve been considered a good thing, however, Reitherman and Art Stevens, one of the co-directors, clashed numerous times on story issues, including over whether Chief would die or not. Stevens was against killing off Chief, going against Mannix’s original story, and upper management agreed, so he only suffered a broken leg. Woolie Reitherman felt that although the young animators made a good start with the animation for The Fox and the Hound, proving they were capable of replicating the “Disney style”, the approach to the film wasn’t unique or fantastical enough[6].
But this was a turning point in the history of Disney animation where “the baton was passed” to the younger animators, who would later be known for their involvement in the huge successes of Disney’s Renaissance Era, including names like Ron Clements, John Musker, and Glen Keane, with Keane animating the final bear fight. His staging of the scene was apparently inspired by Tramp battling the dogs in Lady and the Tramp (1955), that scene having been animated by Woolie Reitherman. Tim Burton even did some uncredited inbetweening animation on the character of Vixey, having been teamed up with Glen Keane to try and conform to the Disney style of animation. John Lasseter was also involved in his first animation for a Disney film on The Fox and the Hound, doing inbetweening work on the introduction of Copper and doing some work on Keane’s bear sequence[7].
Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, two of the “Nine Old Men” worked on many scenes of Copper and Tod, wanting to get across their own lifelong friendship into these characters and their relationship. They were both confident in leaving the legacy of the animation department to the younger animators, having taught them, many one-to-one, on the mechanics of animating, and the importance of developing strong personalities for characters. The older animators knew they would be retiring before the film was finished, and they felt it was almost reminiscent of the story between Copper and Chief in the movie, of the young pup effectively being trained to take over from the veteran hunting dog. The younger animators took every last opportunity they could to learn from these artists and story men, with them applying lessons like the importance of character to later films[8].
MUSIC
The Fox and the Hound does not benefit from an amazing soundtrack. There are five songs in the movie, but for me, these are not particularly exciting or memorable, and nothing compared to the music of later Disney films in the 1980s, going into the 1990s and beyond. Three of the soundtrack’s songs are sung by Pearl Bailey as Big Mama. The two least memorable are “Lack of Education” and “Appreciate the Lady”, both written by singer-songwriter Jim Stafford. I didn’t particularly enjoy either song. “Appreciate the Lady” was a bit too flirty for a Disney film, with Big Mama encouraging Vixey and Tod to become an item as she watches over them, singing from above. It is a bit of a weird scene, I think! But I don’t mind “Best of Friends”, the other song Big Mama sings. The song plays over scenes of Tod and Copper playing when they are young. It’s a sweet song, and is the most remembered song in the film. “Best of Friends” was written by Stan Fidel and Richard O. Johnston, son of the legendary Disney animator Ollie Johnston.
There is also the song “Goodbye May Seem Forever”, performed by Jeanette Nolan, mostly dialogue with a chorus coming in at the end. It’s a sad song for an equally sad scene, of Widow Tweed dropping Tod off at the reserve. It was written by Richard Rich, co-director of the film, and Jeffrey Patch. It shows how emotional both characters are by this ending to their relationship. This song wasn’t too bad either. The other “song” is “A Huntin’ Man”, written by Jim Stafford and performed by Jack Albertson as Slade. It’s just a short tune that Slade sings on his way back from hunts, and isn’t much of a song. I guess it’s more for atmosphere than anything else!
Buddy Baker composed the score for The Fox and the Hound. Baker was hugely involved in many of the musical compositions for Walt Disney Productions, having joined the studio in 1954 to work on some new TV productions that Walt Disney was planning. Baker arranged much of the music for the Winnie the Pooh shorts, and multiple live-action films by Disney. Baker was also involved in composing the scores for Disney theme park attractions such as The Haunted Mansion and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.
RECEPTION
The Fox and the Hound grossed more than $60 million worldwide against a $12 million budget on its release in July 1981, however, it divided critics. Some criticised the movie for its darker plot elements, feeling it was unsuitable for young children, but there were also those who felt the story was shielding the audience from the reality of the natural world, and that they could’ve gone further. Others said the movie was not ground-breaking, and was another cartoony feature from Disney, after a string of mostly disappointing animated films in the 1970s. The characters and the music felt familiar, and the message of the movie around how society determines our behaviour was satisfactory, but it was only deemed “good enough”. The only real accolade The Fox and the Hound received was to be nominated at the 9th Saturn Awards in 1982 for Best Fantasy Film. It did not win, losing to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), however, this was before animated features received their own categories at awards ceremonies. Later reviews would be more favourable towards the Disney movie. It has since been re-released in theatres, and on VHS, DVD, and Blu-Ray over the years, usually for milestone anniversaries.
LEGACY
Although The Fox and the Hound is not a popular Disney animated movie, it did receive a direct-to-video sequel: The Fox and the Hound 2. This sequel was released in 2006, and is set during the childhood of Tod and Copper, so around the first half of the original film. It follows Copper as he longs to join a band of singing stray dogs, called “The Singin’ Strays”, who he sees at the County Fair with Tod. Meanwhile, Tod struggles to accept that his friend might want to join a travelling band instead of play with him. Since The Fox and the Hound 2 came out 25 years after the original film, the voice cast is different. Young Tod and Young Copper were obviously not going to have the same voice actors, so this time they are voiced by Jonah Bobo, who appeared as Steve Carell’s son, Robbie, in Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), and Harrison Fahn respectively. Interestingly, Patrick Swayze voices Cash, one of the strays in the band, in what is apparently his only voice role. Country music singer and actress Reba McEntire voices another dog, Dixie. Unsurprisingly, this sequel received mostly negative reviews, as many others have.
Not letting the initial reaction to the original film or the sequel put Disney off the franchise, in 2019, a live-action remake of The Fox and the Hound was announced, however, there has been no further news on this since then, so it looks uncertain whether this will be going ahead. Around this time, Disney announced that they would be remaking practically every Disney animated movie that had ever been made, so I think this is just one of many that will end up on the shelf, but who knows.
At the Disney theme parks, there is very little recognition for The Fox and the Hound, however, thanks to the 40th anniversary of the film in 2021, and the Disney100 celebrations that went on in 2023, there has been more merchandising available in recent years. For example, two plush toys, one of Young Tod and another of Young Copper, have been available to purchase recently, along with a Loungefly backpack, mugs, and various Christmas ornaments. A Disney Traditions figurine of Tod and Copper playing on a log also exists, though new ones don’t seem to be currently being made.
A very small reference to The Fox and the Hound has been spotted at the Disney theme parks, this time at Walt Disney World Resort, but seemingly only comes out during the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. Starting in 2022, Squeaks the Caterpillar was first seen on Sneezy’s nose, as part of the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs topiary display. It was confirmed Squeaks returned in 2023.
There may have been an opportunity to stay in a The Fox and the Hound-themed hotel room at one point, however, sadly this project was cancelled. The resort, named Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge was to be a new Disney Vacation Club resort at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and would have been constructed on the former site of the River Country waterpark. The hotel planned to use characters from nature-themed animated movies, such as Bambi (1942), Pocahontas (1995), Brother Bear (2003), and The Fox and the Hound, with a restaurant themed to The Princess and the Frog (2009) as well. However, after speculation that the COVID-19 pandemic had simply delayed construction, it was confirmed by Walt Disney World in March 2022 that the project had been completely cancelled.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Though The Fox and the Hound may not be Disney’s most well-known story, it came with an important message: that strong friendships do not have to be separated by circumstances or societal norms. Tod and Copper overcome prejudice and stereotyping over the years to reassert their friendship, with Tod, a fox, risking his life against a huge bear, with the odds not being in his favour, to save his friend, Copper, a hound dog. This lesson is still relevant and will remain relevant forever, so it is a shame that more people don’t look at The Fox and the Hound as a “worthy” Disney film.
The Fox and the Hound, after the surprise success of The Rescuers (1977), unfortunately did not kick-off a new era of brilliant Disney movies. In fact, the 1980s would become one of the most troubling times for Disney animation and the Walt Disney Company as a whole, but it was still important for other reasons, signifying some endings, as well as some new beginnings.
It signalled a new era at the Disney Studios, allowing the newer, young animators their chance to break free from the constraints of Walt Disney’s era, and be able to go forward with their own ideas, eventually giving the world the brilliant movies of the Disney Renaissance Era.
REFERENCES
[1] Credit: Disney, Passing the Baton: The Making of The Fox and the Hound (2003).
[2] Credit: Mari Ness, ‘Well, I’m Traumatized: The Fox and the Hound’, Tor.com (online), 24th September 2015.
[3] Credit: Don Hahn, Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009).
[4] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Fox and the Hound (1981)’, pp. 70-72.
[5] Credit: Brittany DiCologero, ‘Today in Disney History, 1981: The Fox and the Hound Theatrical Debut’, WDW Magazine (online), 10th July 2021.
[6] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘Animation Anecdotes #147’, CartoonResearch.com, 31st January 2014.
[7] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Fox and the Hound (1981)’, pp. 70-72.
[8] Credit: Disney, Passing the Baton: The Making of The Fox and the Hound (2003).
The Disney Purist 