By now, most kids know that Disney’s blockbuster hit “Aladdin” has taken the same plunge as “The Little Mermaid,” moving from big movie screen to cartoon spinoff and will be a part of the Disney Afternoon block of shows weekdays on WPWR-Ch. 50 as well as a Saturday morning staple on CBS-Ch. 2 (8 a.m.) this fall.
But don’t look for duplication. Disney has produced 13 episodes of the animated show exclusively for CBS and 65 episodes exclusively for syndication.
Robin Williams will not play the Genie in the new series as he did in the movie. Instead, Dan Castellaneta will reprise the role he inherited from Williams in “The Return of Jafar,” the best-selling video sequel to “Aladdin.”
Talking to Castellaneta on the phone from Burbank, Calif., I asked how it feels to try to fill Robin Williams’ shoes.
“I guess it’s the same way Dustin Hoffman felt when he was trying to do Willy Loman and he was trying to fill Lee J. Cobb’s shoes. It’s sort of like when someone plays a role for the first time, you draw from what they did and try to make it your own. I am not Robin Williams, so whatever I bring to the character, I guess that’s what it becomes.”
But Castellaneta is no novice to the voice-over industry. During his stint with Second City in the mid-’80s, he was a comedian by night; by day he was doing voice-overs for Chicago radio and TV. When he moved to Los Angeles, Castellaneta got a big break. He was asked to do “The Tracey Ullman Show” and do a voice-over character named Homer for a one-minute bumper cartoon called “The Simpsons.”
“Originally the cartoon was supposed to be based on the comic strip in the Chicago Reader called `Life in Hell’ about a family of little rabbits,” says Castellaneta. “But Matt Groening, the creator, decided he didn’t want to do that, so he invented `The Simpsons.’ “
It was pure serendipity that Castellaneta was cast on a show where another of his mentors, Jim Brooks, was involved.
“When I was a kid, there were some TV shows I watched-like `Taxi’-where I would think if I were an actor on that show it would be the greatest thing that ever happened,” Castellaneta says. “Oddly enough, I end up on a show (`The Simpsons’) that Jim Brooks, who was the writer/producer on `Taxi,’ is producing. It really has been a dream come true.”
Sure, Castellaneta is no Robin Williams, and he admits he doesn’t morph into all of Williams’ ingenious impressions, but he does have a decent resume for voice-overs in such cartoons as “Darkwing Duck,” “Eek! The Cat,” “Taz-Mania” and “Pink Panther.”
After not too much persuading, my kids and I all sat down to see if the Genie’s newfound identity would pass the kid test. And he did-with flying carpets.
– Discarding the traditional trappings of beauty and pageantry is “America’s Junior Miss” competition (7 p.m. Saturday, WMAQ-Ch. 5). Perhaps with this broadcast, the trend may change for all pageants-this year’s Junior Miss could be the girl next door, if she’s the scholarly type.
NBC publicist Kathy Kelly Brown says the contestants are not judged on the basis of beauty; they are girls who are high achievers in academics. The categories do not include swimsuits but do have a new twist-a fitness routine. The other categories are scholastic achievement, a judge’s interview, creative and performing arts and presence and composure.
– A prime-time “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” original mini-series is set for three consecutive weeks, pre-empting two Fox shows. The action-packed program begins on Fox at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, pre-empting “The Sinbad Show.” The mini-series will replace “Encounters: The Hidden Truth,” at 7 p.m. July 29 and at 7 p.m. Aug. 5.
Titled “The Mutiny,” the mini-series will dump villain Rita Repulsa into outer space in favor of a new bad guy-Pirhantishead. But the teenage superheroes will also be armed with Thunder Zords, new weapons (and presumably new Power Ranger toys) for vanquishing their foes.
