12:45am – The Horse with the Flying Tail (1960)
This featurette from 1960 was originally released to theaters with Swiss Family Robinson and won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. At 47-minutes in length, it was initially conceived as an episode of Walt Disney Presents. It finally made its TV debut in 1963 as part of The Wonderful World of Color.
This documentary follows the true events of a champion jumping horse through his many owners. As a finalist in the Pan American Games, the horse was named Nautical, but before becoming a victor he went through a series of life obstacles, from herding cows to being mistreated by a cruel owner. Note that quite a bit of the action in the first half appears to be staged or recreated. In true Disney fashion, elements of the story have also been embellished to sound more exciting than they really were. The sepia toned segments appear to be from the live televised sporting event with a cameo by a young(er) Queen Elizabeth II.
Recommendation: If you’re an Oscar aficionado or a fan of narrated vintage documentaries, then stick around for ‘The Horse with the Flying Tail.’ But at almost 1:00 am, it’s sure to be a tough one to stay awake through, even with a short 47-minute runtime.
1:45 am – The Tattooed Police Horse (1964)
If you’re feeling dejavu, it’s because The Tattooed Police Horse has a lot in common with The Horse with the Flying Tail. Both were directed by Larry Lansburgh as episodes of Disney’s weekly anthology series and both were deemed worthy of theatrical release, this one with 1964’s Emil and the Detectives, which has yet to debut on TCM’s Treasures from the Disney Vault. However, unlike the previous flick, this one is pure fiction.
Jolly Roger is a trotting horse who can’t control his own speed, often getting in trouble. Out of money and luck, his owner sells the horse to a Boston police officer where he serves his new community, but soon finds himself a winner again on the racetrack.
Recommendation: If you had to choose between ‘The Horse with the Flying Tail’ or ‘The Tattooed Police Horse,’ this is the more exciting of the two. However, with similar pacing and the late airtime, it will be tough to stay awake through unless you have severe insomnia.
2:45 am – Hacksaw (1971)
A fun fact about Hacksaw is that it was originally a two-part episode of The Wonderful World of Disney. Part 1 aired on September 26th, 1971, while part two premiered on October 3rd, bookending the opening of the Walt Disney World Resort on October 1st. So as you watch this combined version, be sure to think about all of those weird and creepy pre-opening TV ads for Disney’s newest kingdom. For example, this nightmare-inducing preview that surely resulted in a decrease in attendance and was possible the reason Eastern Airlines went under:
Director Larry Lansburgh is at it again with a feature-length horse film that is quite different from the previous featurettes. 1950’s teen heartthrob Tab Hunter is all grown up here, playing a Rocky Mountain cowboy who helps a girl on vacation capture a different kind of stud, a wild horse named Hacksaw. The horse eventually goes on to be a competitor in barrel race. With original folk songs and a mix of scripted action and narrated exposition, it’s a hybrid between the previous horse fare and what’s next to come.
Recommendation: ‘Hacksaw’ continues the horse lineup with some beautiful imagery and a better story than the previous featurettes. However, it has some major pacing issues and is by no means a classic.
4:30 am – The Horse Without a Head (1963)
A departure from the previous three films, The Horse Without a Head doesn’t star a real horse. Instead, the mare in this title is a ride-on toy that a group of street kids play with. Set in France, a train robbery goes awry when the robbers quickly hide a key inside the head of their broken toy riding horse. Now the thieves will stop at nothing to get it back.
The Horse Without a Head was filmed in England and released theatrically in Europe in 1961. For whatever reason, Disney chose not to distribute it domestically until 1963, when it was split into two parts for The Wonderful World of Color. It’s likely that it was originally filmed with TV in mind, but its distribution was certainly atypical. But since Disney’s anthology series was not broadcast in Europe, it was not uncommon for many of these TV movies to be distributed theatrically abroad after making their US debut.
Recommendation: ‘The Horse Without a Head’ is more reminiscent of the family films Disney was famous for in the 1960’s, but has too many dull moments to make it memorable.
Holy Cabooses! I hope you enjoyed this joyride with Haylie Mills through the turn of the century, as well as the later hours of horse fare. I was thrilled to see two of my favorite Haylie Mills films get the most prime time slots of the evening and Mickey’s Polo Team is always a joy with its weird, wacky take on 1930’s Hollywood. The four horse films were certainly obscure and there’s better content in this category. I would love to see Treasure’s from the Disney Vault repeat the theme, but include Tonka and The Horse in the Grey Flannel Suit in the lineup. In addition, there’s a TV movie called The Horsemasters that is hard to come by and I’ve always wanted to see it solely for its Disney star power. It paired Annette Funicello, Tommy Kirk and Janet Munro! Make it happen, Leonard!