The Aristocats (1970)
- Many of the practical effects used in the climax were achieved without any CGI.
- The original script for The Aristocats was written over a decade before production finally began in 1970.
- Wolfgang Reitherman originally wanted a completely different ending for the film, but test audiences preferred the one we see today.
The Aristocats is a 1970 American animated musical comedy produced by Walt Disney Productions. Set in 1910 Paris, the film follows Duchess, a refined white cat voiced by Eva Gabor, and her three kittens — Berlioz, Toulouse, and Marie — who are kidnapped by their elderly owner's butler Edgar after he learns the cats will inherit the family fortune. Stranded in the French countryside, Duchess meets Thomas O'Malley, a streetwise alley cat voiced by Phil Harris, who helps the family navigate their way back to Paris.
The Aristocats was the first Disney animated film produced entirely after Walt Disney's death, and while it lacked the ambition of the studio's best work, its Parisian charm, jazzy music, and lovable characters made it a commercial success and an enduring favorite. Phil Harris essentially reprised the laid-back persona he had created for Baloo in The Jungle Book, and the jazz cats' performance of "Everybody Wants to Be a Cat" became one of Disney's most beloved musical numbers. The Aristocats earned substantial cumulative revenue across multiple theatrical releases.
