Toon Talk Special: Go the Distance: Disney's 50 Greatest Heroes (Part 1 of 2) - May 1, 2007

Toon Talk Special: Go the Distance: Disney's 50 Greatest Heroes (Part 1 of 2)
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WITH A LITTLE BIT OF MAGIC

Called forth with a wave of their hand and a little “hocus pocus�? (or not), these four use magic to achieve their noble tasks (take that, Harry Potter).

MARY POPPINS

Film: Mary Poppins (1964)
Actor: Julie Andrews
Sidekick: Bert the chimney sweep
Heroic Anthem: “Every task you undertake becomes a piece of cake …�?
Quote: “Practically perfect in every way.�?
DVD: Available

The nanny with something extra, our Miss Poppins is not the flashy sort, choosing to dole out her special brand of magic like, well, a spoonful of sugar. And while her responsibilities are not wide in scope, her heroism is displayed in subtler ways - she is bettering the world, one child at a time.

EGLANTINE PRICE

Film: Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
Actor: Angela Lansbury
Sidekicks: Professor Emelius Browne, the Rawlins children
Heroic Anthem: “When you set aside your childhood heroes and your dreams are lost upon a shelf …�?
Quote: “Treguna, Makoidees, Trecorum, Sadis Dee!�?
DVD: Available

An apprentice witch with a worthy cause - thwarting the Nazi encroachment on British shores during the throes of World War II. And not even a trio of unexpected orphans or a side trip to the Island of Naboomboo will slow her from using the mystical power of substitutiary locomotion to achieve victory.

ELLIOTT

Film: Pete’s Dragon (1977)
Voice Actor: Charlie Callas
Directing Animator: Don Bluth
Heroic Anthem: “He has the head of a camel, the neck of a crocodile … he’s both a fish and a mammal, and I hope he’ll never change …�?
DVD: Available

A big green dragon with a shock of purple hair, our hero is out to protect orphan Pete from abusive hillbillies and stern schoolmarms. However, he had better watch his own (rather large) tail when a greedy charlatan blows into town - good thing this particular dragon is of the fire-breathing sort.

ASLAN

Film: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
Voice Actor: Liam Neeson
Quote: “When a willing victim who has committed no wrong offers himself in a traitor’s stead, the stone table will crack and death itself will go backwards.�?
DVD: Available

Is there nothing more heroic then making the ultimate sacrifice? This grand lion, with his flowing mane and mighty roar, does just that. His Christ-like resurrection occurs just in time for him to rescue the fantasy land of Narnia from the clutches of a wicked witch.