Who's Afraid of the Song of the South? And Other Forbidden Disney Stories

There are plenty of stories never known in public. However, Song of the South, was hugely misunderstood one supposed. The black character was not portrayed as “happy” slave. He’s happy NOT being a slave. Who would be a happy slave? That movie took place during restoration period after the Civil War. Doubt very seriously the author of Remus stories would be happy seeing segregation come into full play.Other stories were interesting, like the stint on UFOs. Kimball was hugely interested in it but he’s yet to see a hundred yard footage of UFOs the Air Force officer claimed to possess. This reader is inclined seriously to believe that guy’s a liar that wasted Kimball’s time. Even Disney would think so too.Anyway, good stories all except for John Carter of Mars. This was given a short shrift. A bit disappointing. Still, recommended.

Although I have never met Jim Korkis, I have known him for many years as members of an amateur writing group. We have shared our thoughts, opinions, and knowledge about Disney and other interests we share with weekly e-mails. I have read and collected books by Disney and about Disney most of my life. This book is one of the best books on Disney I've ever read. I thought I was very knowledgeable about the film "Song Of The South" but Jim, once again, shared numerous important and fun facts about the film that I had not read before. I never understood (and still don't understand) the furor over this film. Although I've always found the live-action portion of the film to be boring for me personally, I still consider the animation and the scenes with mixed live-action and animation to be among Disney's best. I still own a copy from when the film was released in England years ago. As much as I enjoyed Jim's info on "Song Of The South", it is all the other "forbidden" stories he tells about other Disney films that puts this book among the best of all Disney books ever written. As with "Song Of The South", I knew much about the various Disney films and Disney history that Jim shares but - every time - he has included some important and fun facts that I didn't know. Some of the subjects that I most enjoyed were the scenes of black "maid" centaurettes edited out of Fantasia, the Disney educational animated short "The Story Of Menstruation", the Disney educational animated short "VD Attack Plan", and the X-rated parody done of Disney characters showing them in various sexual acts known as the "Disneyland Orgy Poster". There are numerous other subjects that Jim includes. Whether you are a die-hard Disney fan or just interested in how a huge corporation white-washes their own history, most people I know would enjoy this book. Jim is very careful with his research and does everything possible to ensure that the contents of his books and articles are accurate. I especially enjoy that Jim will make it clear when facts cannot verify or refute a Disney rumor. Jim writes his books with truth and humor - a rare combination in any book, especially books about Disney. I hope you buy this book and read it for yourself. If you do, you are in for quite a treat.

The book was informative.

This is an excellent author who has researched the material all the way down to bed-rock. His writing is excellent and holds the reader's attention (but for those who want to know, ONLY. Those who just want to gloss-over will, probably, find the text rather boring but this is a statement of ALL truths about the topic at hand.)

This is a book that cracks open the vaults and reveals the truth - or the truth as far as the author could uncover - regarding not only the history behind the mixed animation and live-action film based on the Uncle Remus stories: The Song of the South. Along with an in-depth look at the reasons behind its future in the Disney crypts. A movie - as far as children were concerned - was about a gentle man telling tales about bears, and rabbits and foxes while teaching them even as Aesop's fables teach.Besides the noted Song of the South, Korkis makes other revelations regarding the Disney studio that they would like to forget. Fantasia and Sunflower, the small centaurette (yes, they all had names so the animators could keep them straight). The various shorts that Disney made not only for the military but for early education. Ads for various businesses. The only political ad Disney authorized - Disney was quite non-political except for a few circumstances. The rumor that Mickey Rooney provided the name for Mortimer Mouse - uh, no. Rooney was connected with a different studio and was still known as Joe until several years after Mickey Mouse's debut. Walt Disney's purchase of the rights on numerous Oz books with the intention of making more films even as The Wizard of Oz burst onto movie screens. The chaos that revolved around the film The Emperor's New Groove and it's numerous revisions.The only negative I could find is some of the tales are more transcript from interviews than the author's own words. Or so it seems.For all those interested in seeing a copy of the film, executives are still determined that the film will never be removed from the vault in order to be shown in public. Why? Because it is considered racist. If you want a copy for yourself, you'll need to find a bootleg copy that are available for those dedicated to having a complete collection.**Note that this review is identical to that posted on GoodReads.com

This book offers incredible insight into the true story of Disney's Song of the South! For about the first third of the book, the author's tireless research argues in favor of the film while also addressing the grave misunderstandings surrounding its existence. The rest of the book talks about other stories that Disney itself doesn't want anybody to know about, some of which reveal quite surprising details and secrets of Walt Disney himself! If you love Disney, and you've had the pleasure of actually seeing Song of the South, this book is a must have for your collection of anything Disney related!

This book explores both sides of the coin of Songs of the South and other controversial films. I found the style engaging and fascinating. The author argues the case just brilliantly and I hope this great book makes a difference and one day we will see Song of the South in its full Blu Ray glory.Just fantastic!!!

Very interesting and well-written. Details from the horses' mouths rather than the rumour sites all over the internet.

Item was as described.

A good read