The Soviet cartoon “Winnie the Pooh” is one of the most beloved paintings of not only children, but also adults. Since childhood, we all remember a kind, a little eccentric, funny chubby bear. The USSR first learned about this character in 1969, it was then that the first cartoon was released. Winnie the Pooh is a true friend of all children, the guys travel with him, get into different adventures, meet with his friends. How did the idea of creating a cartoon come about, who invented a funny bear, what facts are connected with it?
The story of the emergence of Winnie the Pooh
No matter how near and dear the chubby little bear is, it was not created by Russians at all. This is a real Englishman, the brainchild of the famous writer Alan Milne. The author never wrote for children, but, watching his son Christopher Robin, playing with his favorite toys, he could not resist. The writer admitted that he did not even have to invent anything, he simply wrote down everything that he saw. Vinnie is Christopher’s favorite toy donated by her father, Piglet was given to the baby by neighbors, Baby Ru, Eeyore, Tiger and Kengu were bought by parents.
The first voice acting of Winnie the Pooh occurred in the United States, when American animators created on the basis of their favorite children's book a cartoon about the adventures of a bear and his friends. This significant event happened in 1961.
The idea of Soyuzmultfilm
In the USSR, they are not used to falling behind America, therefore, without thinking twice, the creative team began to create a magnificent cartoon based on the favorite children's fairy tale. By the way, for the first time Soviet readers met Winnie the Pooh in 1960 thanks to translator and writer Boris Zakhoder. He was so carried away by the work of Milne that he did not translate, but retell, that is, he removed some points from the original, and supplemented some. The illustrations for his book were a little different than we used to see the teddy bear and his friends.
The animators of Soyuzmultfilm several times created images of heroes before they were satisfied with the result. They in no case did not equal the American cartoon, but painted their characters, more similar in appearance and character to the Russian person. Vinnie turned out to be a good, charming bumpkin, Piglet - a small but very brave, Eeyore - a depressing pessimist, Owl - wise, but too boring, Rabbit - economic and smart.
Creation of the main characters
Many people at one time worked on the creation of the cartoon "Winnie the Pooh." Who voiced, who drew, who filmed - absolutely all of them had a hand in the birth of new characters beloved to this day. The artist Vladimir Zuykov painted the bear, at first he turned out to be too shaggy, with protruding ears, a wrinkled nose. The animators even nicknamed the resulting hero a "furious dandelion."
In the end, the whole team worked on the image of the teddy bear, after which Winnie the Pooh changed dramatically. Actors also took an active part in creating the characters, for example, Evgeny Leonov proposed to save Pooh from shaggy hair and to fix his nose and ears. Piglet initially resembled a sausage, but when Zuykov drew a thin neck for him, he took a completely different look.
Who voiced the Soviet Winnie the Pooh?
Funny, chubby with hooligan manners, the teddy bear is one of the most beloved characters of children of all time. The voices of the cartoon characters seemed familiar and family, while the kids did not even know who voiced Winnie the Pooh. The USSR was famous for its thorough approach to any business, so even the voice acting of the animated film was not trusted to anyone. In the process there were many difficulties.
For a very long time they picked up the voice of Winnie the Pooh (those who voiced the bear on the samples didn’t fit). At first, the director even rejected Yevgeny Leonov, but then the sound engineer found a way out. Using rewind, he speeded up speech by 30%, and the character instantly spoke in the right voice. Almost all the cartoon characters used such a tricky trick. The exception is Piglet, it was voiced by Iya Savvina, parodying the voice of Bella Akhmadulina.
Actors voiced by the heroes of the cartoon
In the animated film about a funny teddy bear and his friends, the creators invited only the most experienced and popular actors:
- Evgeny Pavlovich Leonov - Winnie the Pooh. Who voiced the bear is not so difficult to guess, because this actor in Soviet times was a popular favorite, and his voice was well known. Leonov’s creative piggy bank has more than a dozen films, he also played in the theater. He was awarded the title People's Artist of the USSR and a number of state prizes.
- Iya Sergeevna Savvina - the brave Piglet. Russian and Soviet theater and film actress, in 1983 became a laureate of the USSR State Prize, and in 1990 - People's Artist of the USSR.
- Erast Pavlovich Garin - depressed donkey Eeyore. Soviet film and theater director, actor, screenwriter. In 1941, he was awarded the Stalin Prize of the second degree, and in 1977 became the People's Artist of the USSR.
- Zinaida Mikhailovna Naryshkina is a wise, slightly boring Owl. Soviet and Russian theater and cinema actress, representative of an old noble family, related to the Romanovs.
- Vladimir Ivanovich Osenev - the storyteller of the cartoon "Winnie the Pooh." Who would voice more professionally, calmly and with arrangement, than this artist? The creators of the cartoon were very lucky with Ozenev, an experienced Soviet actor, Honored and People's Artist of the RSFSR.
- Anatoly Mikhailovich Schukin is an intelligent Rabbit. Honored Artist of the RSFSR.
Cartoon makers
- Director - Fedor Khitruk.
- Screenwriters - Fedor Khitruk and Boris Zakhoder.
- Composer - Moses Weinberg.
- Artists - Vladimir Zuykov and Eduard Nazarov.
- Editor - Nina Mayorova.
Comparison of foreign and Soviet Vinnie
The characters of the characters of the foreign and Soviet cartoons are completely different. A foreign teddy bear is a real glutton, forgetting everything when a barrel of honey appears in front of him. Food is served to him in the morning, at lunch and in the evening almost on a silver platter. Russian Winnie is a poet who knows for sure that he must first work hard to get something. He independently seeks food for himself.
Piglet is characterized by courage and heroism, he accompanies his friend, does not leave him in trouble, extends a helping hand. A foreign pig is too cowardly, at the slightest danger he immediately hides behind his back, leaving friends alone with problems. The Soviet Rabbit is economical and economical, but it can not be suspected of greed, in America this character is represented by the evil grandfather gardener. Our donkey Eeyore is a pessimistic philosopher, they have a misanthrope tired of life. The Soviet Owl is a clever cunning, the foreign Eagle Owl is a stupid person who wants to sound like a scientist.
The American cartoon is more aimed at preschool kids, because everything is simple, easy and carefree in it. In addition, attention is attracted by colorful characters resembling plush toys. The Soviet cartoon will be interesting to children of primary school age. In it, the characters look alive and funny. To do good, do not forget about friends, help the weak, work and do not be lazy, our Winnie the Pooh teaches. Who voiced, drew, wrote the script - all these people worked hard on creating a good, instructive fairy tale.
Do you know that…
The reaction of the West to Soviet creation was mixed. Foreign writers and cultural figures were seriously alarmed when the Russians took up the translation, and afterwards switched to the film adaptation of Milne's tale. Foreigners believed that in the Soviet Union the meaning of the work would be distorted, and some commissioner would be made of the main character. But we know that in fact, Winnie the Pooh has remained a good, smart bear.