“Him’s now a real boy!” So exclaimed Madeline Joyce with wonder and excitement at the conclusion of Disney’s Pinocchio yesterday. The movie may have been made 70 years ago, but it still has the ability to capture the imagination of a 2-and-a-half-year-old girl. It’s nice to know the frenetic displays that pass for children’s programming have not dulled the power of classic films.
Pinocchio was released in 1940, and was its second full-length animated feature. (Disney released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937.) The film received the Academy Award for Best Original Song that year for “When You Wish Upon A Star,” written by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington, and sung by Cliff Edwards (playing Jiminy Cricket). Here’s how it begins:
When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
Will come to youIf your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do
Here are the full lyrics and a video.