Disney's Fairy Tale Rings

The "Kirstie Kelly for Disney by Mouwad" collection of rings was just unveiled at Bridal Week in New York...

One of the biggest fairy tale related stories of the week is Disney's new foray into engagement rings named for the fairy tale princesses. So now you can own a ring officially named for a fairy tale princess if you like. I finally found images of all six rings instead of the random unnamed ones found in the countless articles from this week about this line. Didn't expect MTV to be one of the more helpful articles, but it was!

I admit I'm not seeing much of a correlation between design and princess, but the rings are attractive. A simple internet search will help you find retail locations but they won't be available until Spring 2010.

I like these three below better than the ones pictured above...I'm tied between Snow White and Sleeping Beauty for my favorites. You can also see images of the related gowns at this gallery.

Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love

So the first issue of the six part series, Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love, a Fables spin-off is due out on November 4. Here's more information below. I'm sure this will be collected into another collection issue (which is how I get my Fables and Jack of Fables, I admit) after all six issues have been released although I haven't seen an announcement yet.

And here's more to help you read all about it:

Written by Chris Roberson Art by Shawn McManus Cover by Chrissie Zullo When supernatural artifacts from the Homelands begin surfacing in the modern world, it falls to Cinderella, Fabletown's best kept (and best dressed) secret agent to stop the illegal trafficking. But can Cindy foil the dark plot before Fabletown and its hidden, exiled inhabitants are exposed once and for all? And how does her long lost Fairy Godmother factor into the equation? Whether she's soaring through clouds, deep-sea diving, or cracking jaws, Cindy travels from Manhattan to Dubai and hooks up with a handsome, familiar accomplice who may be harboring secret motives of his own. Meanwhile, trouble brews back home in Fabletown when Cindy's overworked, underappreciated assistant decides to seize control of The Glass Slipper, Cindy's exclusive shoe boutique. Writer Chris Roberson (occasional contributor to HOUSE OF MYSTERY and JACK OF FABLES), artist Shawn McManus (SANDMAN, THESSALY: WITCH FOR HIRE) and evocative new cover painter Chrissie Zullo deliver Cindy's first major solo adventure replete with sex, spies and magical shoes in the 6-issue CINDERELLA: FROM FABLETOWN WITH LOVE.

Cinderella: Superspy: Writer Talks 'Fables' Spin-off

Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love, next month's six-issue mini-series by writer Chris Roberson and artist Shawn McManus, will show the kick-ass side of Cindy as she faces a formidable foe from the Fable lands.

The mini-series is a spin-off from the ongoing Vertigo series Fables, the comic by Bill Willingham that follows the adventures of fairy tale characters who escaped from an invasion of their magical world to form a secret community in the heart of New York City. The almost-immortal "fables," as they're called, still hold somewhat true to their histories, but have evolved over the hundreds of years that they've been walking around our "mundane" world.

Fables has been one of the publisher's more successful titles, currently on issue #90 with a spin-off series, Jack of Fables already over 30 issues strong. Fables is also being translated for television as ABC has ordered a pilot for an hour-long drama series based on the series.

And another Newsarama article: Cinderella, Super-Spy: Roberson on the Fables Spin-Off

You can read Chris Roberson's announcement about the series on his site.


You can also read posts about the series on the Vertigo blog.

And another article: Willingham Expands the Fables Universe:Fables creator Bill Willingham discusses the state of Fables, his new novel, and the upcoming Cinderella mini-series

So either head to your favorite bookstore or order online or wait for the compilation issue sometime next year. The images are for the first three issues, due out in November, December and January, respectively.

Shrek Closing on Broadway

DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg Comments on SHREK Closing

SHREK THE MUSICAL®, the Tony Award®-winning production, will play its final performance on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre (1681 Broadway) on Sunday, January 3rd, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. following 441 performances and 37 previews. SHREK THE MUSICAL® will launch a national tour at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre for a limited engagement, July 13 - September 5, 2010.

The musical may end up somewhere near you with the tour around the U.S. so if you were interested in seeing it, you still might be able to do so.

You can read more about the production at Shrek the Musical.

Princess and the Frog Recent Articles

Here's some interesting articles about the making of the film as well as the music:Interview: Princess And The Frog Directors John Musker And Ron Clements. Plus 7 Brand New Images!

Can you talk about how you guys came onboard to this movie and the genesis of the project and why New Orleans versus other parts of the country?

Clements: Sure. The history of this project is a little more complicated than some movies, but obviously this is very loosely based on the Grimm fairy tale 'The Frog Prince' which is a very short little story. Disney actually has been trying to do something with that story for years and years, going all the way back to the time of 'Beauty and the Beast' that I remember. They had versions in the works. More recently, in I think 2003, Disney bought the rights to a children's book called 'The Frog Princess' by an author named E.D. Baker and in that story, it was basically a kind of fairy tale with a twist. In that story the princess kissed the frog and instead of him turning into a prince she turned into a frog and then the two sort of went on an adventure together. It doesn't really bear a lot of resemblance to our movie except for that basic thing within that. Then Disney explored in the earlier part of this decade, I think, versions of that with some writers and some treatments.

Musker: Parallel to that Pixar had been exploring 'The Frog Princess' as a possible CG film and at first it was set in Chicago in the 1930's and then I think John Lasseter suggested New Orleans to Pixar and their development because he loves New Orleans. It's his favorite city and I think being frogs and all of that which made him go, 'Why don't you set this in New Orleans. It's a great locale and a cool place.'

And here's the one about the music:

Oscar Contender: 'The Princess and the Frog' is a music frontrunner

"Friends On the Other Side"
This scene finds the human Naveen and his valet Lawrence seduced by the story's villain, Dr. Facilier in the fantastic song "Friends on the Other Side." A big musical number in the vein of "Under the Sea" and "Be Our Guest," it is one of the most artistically daring animated sequences shown so far. In fact, you wish the song would go on a bit longer.

"Kiss"
In this scene, Naveen, changed into a frog by Dr. Facilier, attempts to break his curse by kissing "Princess" Tiana. They both quickly learn what happens when you fool with magic. It's a little slapstick, but charmingly played out. Watch it embedded in this post or watch a larger version here.

"When We're Human"
This was probably the most disappointing scene we were shown. With Naveen and Tiana trapped both as frogs and in the Louisiana Bayou, they meet a jazz trumpet playing and friendly alligator named Louis (as in Louis Armstrong, get it?) who knows where the Voodoo priestess Mama Odie lives. It turns out Odie might be the key to transforming our hero and heroine back into human beings again. And for Louis, who just wants to play jazz with a real band, she might make him human too. The song is intriguing, but boy is it hard for the word "human" to flow lyrically.

"Dig A Little Deeper"
A great surprise, this rousing, gospel-inspired song is a solo for Jennifer Lewis' Mama Odie and the one completely new scene we were previewed. It’s a fun tune that will be one of the most memorable tracks after moviegoers leave the theater.

Statistically six out of seven Dwarfs are not Happy

From The Spoof, which of course means that this is a completely fabricated "news" story:

Statistically six out of seven Dwarfs are not Happy by Seb 'ODriscoll

Studies have shown that six out of seven dwarfs are not Happy. Literary experts announced their findings after three years of painstakingly analysis of children's classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Master Antonio Cherry, who led the research, said: "We assiduously studied every aspect of the fairy tale and have concluded that of the seven dwarfs, only one was Happy. Of course there was only one Sleepy, Sneezy, Grumpy, Bashful and Dopey too. We are still trying to penetrate the meaning of Doc though."

There's some more on the article page, but this was the funniest part. The rest gets political, too, if that matters to you.

But this made me smile so I thought I would share...

And here are more along the same lines--I didn't read all of these so I'm not vouching for good taste--read at your own risk...

Snow White says drink was spiked

Sneezy From Seven Dwarves Dies Of Swine Flu

Scientists Find Snow White's Dwarf Happy Had the Happiness Gene; So Did Dopey

Snow White charged in "Dumpty" murder

Snow White's Doc Discredited

Snow White Arrested in Texas

Changing Endings...

Found this article at the Telegraph about changing the endings of traditional children's stories: BBC gives nursery rhymes a fairytale ending by Paul Stokes

According to recent broadcasts, Humpty Dumpty was not irreparably damaged in his great fall and Little Miss Muffet has no particular fear of spiders.

The examples have been picked up in recent programmes on the network's CBeebies children's channel.

Last Friday's Something Special, aimed at children with special needs but popular with all under-fives, included a singalong feature in which the lyrics were changed.

Instead of all the King's horses and all the King's men being unable to put him together again, they "made Humpty happy again".

Tom Harris, Labour MP for Glasgow South, who watched the show with his sons aged five and three, described the re-worked version as "pathetic".

He was also critical of a previous episode of Big Cook Little Cook in which Little Miss Muffet welcomes a spider that sits down beside her.

And this is the BBC's response also from the article:

The BBC defended its decision to change the words which it says was for "creative" reasons and not to sanitise the rhymes.

A spokeswoman pointed out that the nursery rhymes in their original form were maintained in full on the CBeebies website.

The article also linked back to a January 2009 article: Traditional fairytales 'not PC enough': Parents have stopped reading traditional fairytales to their children because they are too scary and not politically correct, according to research.

Favourites such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella and Rapunzel are being dropped by some families who fear children are being emotionally damaged.

A third of parents refused to read Little Red Riding Hood because she walks through woods alone and finds her grandmother eaten by a wolf.

One in 10 said Snow White should be re-named because "the dwarf reference is not PC".

Rapunzel was considered "too dark" and Cinderella has been dumped amid fears she is treated like a slave and forced to do all the housework.

The poll of 3,000 British parents - by TheBabyWebsite.com - revealed a quarter of mothers now rejected some classic fairy tales.

And the article ends with:

Top 10 fairy tales we no longer read:

1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

2. Hansel and Gretel

3. Cinderella

4. Little Red Riding Hood

5. The Gingerbread Man

6. Jack and the Beanstalk

7. Sleeping Beauty

8. Beauty and the Beast

9. Goldilocks and the Three Bears

10. The Emperor's New Clothes

So where do you fall in the controversy? There is definitely no simple answer, to put it mildly. I'm not very upset with rewriting endings. It's been done for hundreds of years in oral tradition.

And don't we all adapt our stories to fit the needs or desires of our audience? I used to regularly drive a carpool of four girls ages 8-11 and they BEGGED me to share the "scary" versions of fairy tales each and every time they got in my car. I think one of the issues is that once children start reading on their own, they don't have family storytimes anymore. I don't read Hansel and Gretel to toddlers, but I think it's a story with a lot of discussion value for the five and older set.

And I see fairy tales as valuable in providing a common experience. With the internet and other medias, so many interests are getting split and splintered over and over again. Pop music isn't as widely spread with the increase of genres, for example, or the explosion of media outlets of all forms. We're losing other common experiences like tv show theme songs. We are inundated with book titles so that only the bestsellers have a chance of being known by a decent portion of the population. Fairy tales, however, can still be part of the common experience and thus common reference. Observe their constant usage in advertising and elsewhere to see their power. Of course I think children should learn about fairy tales, but at appropriate ages and times, not the scariest ones at a 2-year-old's bedtime.

A Lyndon Wicked Tale: Red Rage

Okay, I admit it. I'm ready for a new fairy tale based video game that DOESN'T feature Little Red Riding Hood. I don't even play them, but this girl has a monopoly that needs some competition.

But while we're waiting for that to happen, this one is available for iPhones for 99 cents.

A Lyndon Wicked Tale: Red Rage

Little Red Riding Hood is a familiar story told to children at an early age. While it may be a child's tale, nothing can mask the adult tones and the deep-seeded darkness it embodies. Little Red Riding Hood is about a girl in peril being stalked by a cunning and conniving wolf. Family members get eaten, the villain tricks the heroine, and the wolf is ultimately eviscerated.

A Lyndon Wicked Tale: Red Rage

As is the case with all fairy stories, there are various versions of Little Red Riding Hood.

Sometimes granny hides in the cupboard, sometimes the woodsman has to slice open the wolf pull out granny's corpse.

There's probably even some exotic versions in which the wolf and Red Riding Hood live happily ever after by continuing to claim granny's pension.

We've yet to hear to a version where Red tools up with axes and dynamite and takes on the wolves, before moving on to wipe out various forms of vampires though.

Tales from My Grandmother: Man is Priceless

Column: Tales from my grandmother [Part 1] by Brooke Nuwati has been a regular feature on My Joy Online the past several weeks. Nuwati explains the premise here:

Grandma encouraged me to be confident, resilient, assertive, tolerant, faithful, modest and patient. All these and many more virtues she imbibed in me in a most natural and unforced manner. I picked them (oh, I hope) without knowing that I was being groomed or tutored. I grew up thinking people grow naturally with these things. Maybe that explains why I’m often too sympathetic towards others, trusting them too much, thinking that they would equally see the beauty in others too while appreciating their differences. I always want to give people the benefit of the doubt. I have been so blessed. So blessed I didn’t even know!

These virtues continue to guide me, assuring me that hard work and patience are virtues worth pursuing and that there are so many more things to recover and discover in life – life is a lesson; keep learning as much as you can. Most importantly, do practice what you learn, for knowledge acquired and stored only without its application is as good as nothing.

Let’s take this journey happily together as I share with you in the coming weeks, some other interesting tales from my grandmother.

Why am I sharing this here? Because I found this tale from a few weeks ago: Tales from my grandmother: Man is priceless. Don't be fooled by the title. This is a straight forward Cinderella story with some modern trappings.

I'm *spoiling* this time, sharing most of the ending--I didn't include the very last paragraph so click through to read it all--but it is where the Cinderella qualities are the most modern. The fairy godmother becomes godparents who provide an education instead of a ball gown. The heroine becomes the first lady of the nation after much persecution from a stepmother endured with hardworking patience. The story is self-aware of it's fairy tale qualities, but never calls itself a Cinderella tale.

As in a fairytale, Emefa remained sober and polite and went about her duties while praying to God for a lot of patience. Unknown to her she had won the admiration and love of a childless couple who had seen the hardworking dirty-looking girl running in the neighbourhood on one errand or the other. The couple contacted Emefa’s father and requested that Emefa came to stay with them while they assume every responsibility of her including her education.

Mrs. Alele was all-joy as she couldn’t wait to get rid of the bug in her cloth, Emefa. She gladly threw her out the moment the couple expressed their interest, for it was overdue! She wished the couple a happy time with the pack of trouble they are rushing for. “If only they knew what they were in for?” she muttered to herself as the couple left happily with Emefa.

It so happened that Emefa was sent to school where she excelled and came out with a Masters degree in Business Administration. She later married a young man she graduated with who later became the President making Emefa the first lady … mother of a whole nation.