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Dr. Seuss on the Loose
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Wikipedia article
'Dr. Seuss on the Loose' is an American animated musical television special, first airing on CBS on October 15, 1973, and was sponsored by Nestl. The special is hosted by The Cat in the Hat, who introduces animated adaptations of the Dr. Seuss stories 'The Sneetches', 'The Zax' and 'Green Eggs and Ham'. Allan Sherman reprised his role as the voice of The Cat in the Hat from the 1971 television special. 'Dr. Seuss on the Loose' was Sherman's final project; his last film before his death. The special became a popular annual repeat for most of the decade until its last CBS showing on July 12, 1979.
The special aired in various countries, including ITV in England on January 1, 1975, and ABC-TV in Australia on September 21, 1975.
The anthology was released as 'Green Eggs and Ham and Other Stories' for a sing-a-long videocassette and 2012 Blu-ray deluxe edition release.
Plot
The Sneetches
The first (and longest) story in the collection tells of a group of yellow bird-like creatures called the Sneetches, some of whom have a green star on their bellies. At the beginning of the story, Sneetches with stars discriminate against and shun those without. An entrepreneur named Sylvester McMonkey McBean (calling himself the Fix-It-Up Chappie) appears and offers the Sneetches without stars the chance to get them with his Star-On machine, for three dollars. The treatment is instantly popular, but this upsets the original star-bellied Sneetches, as they are in danger of losing their special status. McBean then tells them about his Star-Off machine, costing ten dollars, and the Sneetches who originally had stars happily pay the money to have them removed in order to remain special. However, McBean does not share the prejudices of the Sneetches and allows the recently starred Sneetches through this machine as well. Ultimately this escalates, with the Sneetches running from one machine to the next...: "...until neither the Plain nor the Star-Bellies knew
: whether this one was that one... or that one was this one...
: or which one was what one... or what one was who."
This continues until the Sneetches are penniless and McBean departs as a rich man, amused by their folly. Despite his assertion that "you can't teach a Sneetch", the Sneetches learn from this experience that neither plain-belly nor star-belly Sneetches are superior, and they are able to get along and become friends.
The Zax
In The Zax, a North-going Zax and a South-going Zax bump face to face on the Prairie of Prax. Each one asks the other to make way, but neither budges, saying it is against their upbringing to move any other way. Because they stubbornly refuse to move (east, west, or any direction except their respective headings) to get past each other, the two Zax then face off against each other with their arms crossed, thinking if they stand still, the world will too. The Zax stand so long through nights, weather, and seasons, that eventually, they didn't realize that the world didn't stand still, the world grew, because after a couple years, a freeway is built around them with a highway overpass over them. The story ends with the Zax still standing there "unbudged" in their tracks.Green Eggs and Ham
In Green Eggs and Ham, Sam-I-Am pesters Guy-Am-I to eat a plate of green eggs and ham. However, Guy refuses multiple times by responding, "I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam-I-Am." Sam further asks Guy to eat them in various locations (House, box, car, tree, train, dark, rain, and boat) and with some animals (Mouse, fox, and goat), but is still rebuffed. Finally, Guy vainly accepts the offer, samples the green eggs and ham. When he declares he likes the food, he happily says, I do so like green eggs and ham. Thank you. Thank you, Sam-I-Am.Voice cast
* Allan Sherman The Cat in the Hat
* Hans Conried Narrator, North-going Zax, South-going Zax, Fox
* Paul Winchell Sam-I-Am, Guy-Am-I, Plain-Bellied Sneetches, Star-Bellied Sneetches
* Bob Holt Sylvester McMonkey McBean, Plain-Bellied Sneetches, Star-Bellied Sneetches
Trivia
*In the 'Green Eggs and Ham' segment, a running gag is that a fox-hunting party with a pack of hounds and two horseback riders chases The Fox every time the word "Fox" gets mentioned.
Subsequent releases
On October 7, 2003, it was released on DVD by Universal Studios Home Entertainment/Universal Studios Family Productions, paired with 'Halloween is Grinch Night'. On June 26, 2012, Warner Home Video remastered and re-released the special on a special deluxe edition Blu-ray and DVD.[https://archive.today/20130209171013/http://www.wbshop.com/Dr-Seuss-Green-Eggs-and-Ham-and-Other-Stories-Deluxe-Edition/1000237997,default,pd.html?cgid=PRE Dr. Seuss Green Eggs and Ham and Other Stories (Deluxe Edition) DVD Warner Bros.: WBshop.com The Official Online Store of Warner Bros. Studios] On March 30, 2021, the special was released on digital retailer sites under the title 'Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham and Other Treats', with 'Pontoffel Pock, Where Are You?' and 'The Butter Battle Book' also included as extras (which were remastered in high definition exclusively for this release).
See also
* 'Dr. Seuss's ABC'
* 'Hop on Pop'
* 'One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish'
* 'The Cat in the Hat Comes Back'
References
Buy Dr. Seuss on the Loose now from Amazon
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