Disney’s 101 Dalmatians: Diamond Edition comes out of the vault tomorrow and it is better than ever!

12 Fun Facts Behind Disney’s 101 Dalmatians-TM2S

In honor of that, I thought I’d share 12 fun facts about Disney’s 101 Dalmatians:

  • 101 Dalmatians is based on the popular 1956 children’s book by Dodie Smith.
  • This was the 17th animated feature film from the Walt Disney Studios.
  • 101 Dalmatians’ was the first of Disney’s animated features to be set in a contemporary context, told with a mixture of fantasy, comedy, sentiment, adventure, and suspense.
  • 101 Dalmatians utilized the talents of over 150 studio artists during the three years it was in production.
  • A lot of dogs were brought to the Studio and their every movement was filmed so that they could study them frame by frame to create sketches.
  • It is estimated that nearly 1, 218,750 pencils were used by artists during the course of production.
  • It is estimated 6,429,952 animated Dalmatian spots appear on screen during the course of this film. (Pongo has 72 spots, Perdita has 68 and each of the 99 puppies has 32).
  • To ease the daunting task of continuity for millions of spots throughout the film, Ub Iwerks adapted the Xerox process to create ‘Xerography’ which reduced the number of steps in transferring the animator’s drawings to the finished film.
  • The spots and all other color effects required 800 gallons of very special paint weighing nearly five tons.
  • The legendary Marc Davis was the master artist behind the lines of Cruella DeVil.
  • Madame DeVil was the only character in the history of Disney Animation to have been exclusively drawn by one artist throughout the entire production.
  • Betty Lou Gerson is the source of Cruella’s booming voice.

Don’t forget to get your copy of Disney’s 101 Dalmatians: Diamond Edition tomorrow or you can pre-order it on Amazon by clicking on this link. Not only is it produced with better quality, it also comes with the following bonus features:

  • NEW SHORT – THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THUNDERBOLT
  • LUCKY DOGS – Some of the lucky humans who got to work on 101 Dalmatians reflect on life at Disney in the late 50’s and early 60’s.
  • Walt Disney Presents “The Best Doggoned Dog in the World” – Take a look in the Disney Time Capsule as Walt Disney introduces 101 Dalmatians on his Disneyland Television show in 1961.
  • Redefining The Line: The Making Of One Hundred And One Dalmatians
  • “Sincerely Yours, Walt Disney”