Hemo the Magnificent
Hemo the Magnificent | |
---|---|
Genre | Educational |
Written by | Frank Capra |
Directed by | Frank Capra William T. Hurtz (animation director) |
Starring | Richard Carlson Dr. Frank C. Baxter |
Country of origin | USA |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Producer | Frank Capra |
Cinematography | Harold E. Wellman |
Editor | Frank P. Keller |
Running time | 55 minutes |
Distributor | N. W. Ayer & Son |
Release | |
Original network | CBS |
Original release |
|
Chronology | |
Preceded by | Our Mr. Sun |
Followed by |
Hemo the Magnificent is a one-hour Technicolor made-for-television educational film, released in 1957 by Bell Laboratories and directed by Frank Capra, and first telecast by CBS.[1] It details the workings of the circulatory system.
Background[]
Baxter played his usual role as "Dr. Research", the resident scientist in the film series. Richard Carlson played the other recurring character in The Bell Laboratory Science Series, a writer for television. Several well-known voice artists were employed for the animated sequences, including Marvin Miller as the title character, Hemo. Also appearing were Mel Blanc and June Foray, as a squirrel and a deer respectively. Sterling Holloway appeared in an uncredited role as a lab assistant.
Reception[]
Although Time magazine gave it an extremely negative review,[2] calling it "condescending" and citing it as an example of how the scientific information was presumably "dumbed down" by including cute cartoon animals, it quickly became a classic of the genre, featuring incredibly detailed television animations for its time. It is one in a series of nine Bell Telephone science specials telecast in prime time on commercial network television, from the late 1950s to the mid-1960s. All but one of these specials starred Frank C. Baxter; the last of them starred Walt Disney.
Hemo the Magnificent and another Bell Laboratories film, Our Mr. Sun, were favorites for showing in school science classrooms.[citation needed]
Home media[]
The film was released on DVD with another film featuring Dr. Baxter, The Unchained Goddess (1958).
In popular culture[]
A brief sequence from Hemo the Magnificent is seen in the film Gremlins and also in Disney's Bill Nye the Science Guy. One of the evil gremlins sneaks into a classroom while the science teacher (Glynn Turman) is showing Hemo to the class.
The film is mentioned in the Freaks and Geeks episode "Discos and Dragons" by the A/V supervisor.
References[]
- ^ Lenburg, Jeff (2009). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons (3rd ed.). New York: Checkmark Books. p. 317. ISBN 978-0-8160-6600-1.
- ^ "Television: Review". TIME.com. 1 April 1957. Archived from the original on October 19, 2011.
External links[]
- 1957 television films
- American films
- 1957 animated films
- 1957 films
- Sponsored films
- American television films
- Bell Labs
- 1950s educational films
- Films directed by Frank Capra
- 1950s American animated films