About a year ago, Sarah wrote about Disney's plan to introduce its first black princess in the animated fairy tale The Princess and the Frog.

The story has literally been back to the drawing board several times since its conception, due to allegations of racism.

Disney executives are right to heed the outcries: Their overtly animated racism dates back to the 1940s. The lead bird in 1941's Dumbo was named Jim Crow, and sang: "I'd be done see'n about everything/when I see an elephant fly!" The Siamese Twin cats from Lady and the Tramp were only a slight step above the portrayal of the Japanese in American propaganda during World War II. The Merchant from Aladdin called his Middle Eastern homeland a place "where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face." And I don't even want to talk about King Louie, the African-American voiced monkey from The Jungle Book.

In the original storyboard for The Princess and the Frog, the princess was to be called Maddy, and her character was subservient to a spoiled, white Southern debutante. Critics said the echoes of slavery were too close to home, and that Maddy sounded way too much like "Mammy." … continue reading

As if Facebook didn’t already offer enough tempting ways to waste time, apparently they’ve now developed their very own line of quizzes, too. Recently I got a message in my news feed telling me that one of my cousins had taken this quiz, and discovered that if she was a Disney princess, she would be Pocahontas:

Since my cousin is an environmentally aware outdoor adventurer who works for a company that cleans up oil spills, this sounds plausible enough to me. Looking at the quiz, I also thought it was completely cool that it was gay-friendly (asking “What kind of guy/girl do you like?”).

Personally, though, I didn’t feel I needed to take a test to work out which one of the Disney princesses I was. Ever since the brunette Belle wandered into the early scenes of Beauty and the Beast, her head buried so deep in a book that she barely noticed what was going on around her, I knew I had found a Disney heroine I could identify with:

I’m still convinced that the main reason she married the Beast was because she’d seen his library.

According to this interview from last summer, Harry Potter star Emma Watson always saw herself as Ariel from The Little Mermaid: … continue reading

OK, I'm not the sharpest pencil in the backpack, so maybe that's why I don't get what the fuss is over this news of deception perpetrated by Miley Cyrus, the 15-year-old star of Disney Channel's Hannah Montana. I mean, I wanted to be outraged and self-righteous when I heard and read the media buzz about another entitled child star doing something unsavory. But after learning what the crime was, I couldn't even muster a disapproving frown or a finger-wagging!

If you haven't heard by now, Cyrus, while performing on stage as her alter ego Hannah Montana, was captured on video by a fan. The video shows Cyrus being whisked offstage while a stand-in skips and dances and prances around onstage to give Cyrus additional time to change from the character into her real self. Of course, my first thought was, "Hold up! Isn't it illegal to videotape a concert? Arrest that fan!" Anyway, Cyrus' representatives quickly confirmed that yes, a "production element" is incorporated into the show to facilitate a quicker costume change. Here's the apparent offense: … continue reading

When you wish upon a star, if you ask nicely, they’ll dress up like Disney characters and pose for you. The second round of images from famed celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz’s Disney ad campaign came out this week. While they're not nearly as trippy as the Beyoncé, Lyle Lovett and Oliver Platt teacup of insanity from last time, they’re even more dreamy. Like Rachel Weisz as Snow White dreamy.

I’ve got to give it to Annie: Rachel was an inspired bit of casting. In fact, seeing her commune with nature with her raven hair and milky skin, I can’t think of a single other actress that would be better for the part. Look, even Bambi agrees. … continue reading

Ah, classic Disney. A princess, a prince, an evil queen and ... a divorce lawyer? In Disney's new movie, Enchanted, the answer is yes.

Enchanted, due to be released Thanksgiving Day after a long production journey, combines animation and live action to tell a fairy tale that Patrick Dempsey, who plays Robert the lawyer, calls "a love letter to Disney." The story begins in Andalasia, an animated world reminiscent of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. Handsome Prince Edward (James Marsden) falls in love with the lovely Princess Giselle (Amy Adams). … continue reading