''Faeries'' is a 1981 animated television special that appeared on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is based on the 1978 book ''

Faeries A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, o ...

'', described and illustrated by

Brian Froud Brian Froud (born 1947) is an English fantasy illustrator and conceptual designer. He is most widely known for his 1978 book ''Faeries (book), Faeries'' with Alan Lee (illustrator), Alan Lee, and as the conceptual designer of the Jim Henson fil ...

and Alan Lee. The special was directed by Lee Mishkin with animation direction by Fred Hellmich, executive produced by Thomas W. Moore, Anne Upson and Jean Moore Edwards, and was designed by

Alan Aldridge Alan Aldridge (8 July 1938 – 17 February 2017) was a British artist, graphic designer and illustrator. He is best known for his psychedelic artwork made for books and record covers by The Beatles and The Who. Personal life Aldridge was born ...

. The special first aired on CBS on February 25, 1981.

Plot

A young man, Oisin "(pronounced O-sheen)" returns home with a group of huntsmen from an unsuccessful hunt when a deer, revealing herself to be Niamh (pronounced Nee-am and Nee’uv) a faerie princess, appears to him. She takes him to her father, the Faerie King, whose Shadow has come to life and now threatens Faerie Land. The King begs Oisin to travel to Squalor Web Castle and defeat the evil Shadow. Oisin and his faerie helper Puck travel to the castle, encountering

hag HAG is a Swiss maker of model trains. The company was founded by Hugo and Alwin Gahler on 1 April 1944 in St. Gallen, Switzerland. The Gahler brothers originally manufactured model trains in O scale but due to competition, particularly by Märk ...

goblin A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on t ...

merrow Merrow (from Irish ', Middle Irish ' or ') is a mermaid or merman in Irish folklore. The term is of Hiberno-English origin. The merrows supposedly require a magical cap ( ga, cochaillín draíochta; Hiberno-English: cohuleen druith) in order t ...

s and other faerie creatures. They also save a

kobold A kobold (occasionally cobold) is a mythical sprite. Having spread into Europe with various spellings including "goblin" and "hobgoblin", and later taking root and stemming from Germanic mythology, the concept survived into modern times in Ger ...

from evil trows. Eventually the three arrive at the lake, beyond which sits the castle. After meeting an Irish faerie who attempts to dissuade them from their mission, they arrive at the castle. Avoiding

redcap The redcap (or powrie) is a type of malevolent, murderous goblin found in Border folklore. He is said to inhabit ruined castles along the Anglo-Scottish border, especially those that were the scenes of tyranny or wicked deeds and is known for soa ...

s, the Shadow's evil soldiers, Oisin makes his way to the tallest tower, defeats the Shadow, and joins a celebration in Faerie Land before returning to his human companions.

Cast

Hans Conried Hans Georg Conried Jr. (April 15, 1917 – January 5, 1982) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for providing the voices of George Darling and Captain Hook in Walt Disney's ''Peter Pan'' (1953), Snidely Whiplash in Jay Ward's ''Dudle ...

as Faerie King / Shadow *Craig Schaefer as

Oisin Oisín (, approximately ) is an Irish male given name; meaning "fawn" or "little deer", derived from the Old Irish word ("deer") + ''-ín'' (diminutive suffix). It is sometimes anglicized as Osheen ( ) or spelt without the diacritic (''fada'') ...

Morgan Brittany Morgan Brittany (née Suzanne Cupito) is an American actress born in Los Angeles. She is known for her role as Katherine Wentworth, the scheming younger half-sister of Pamela Ewing and Cliff Barnes, on the prime-time soap opera ''Dallas''. Care ...

as Princess

Niamh Niamh (; from Old Irish ) is an Irish feminine given name (meaning "bright" or "radiant"), anglicised as Neve, Nieve, Neave, Neavh or Neeve. In Irish mythology, Niamh is the daughter of the god of the sea, Manannán mac Lir and one of the que ...

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...

as Puck / Fir Darrig /

Trow A trow was a type of cargo boat found in the past on the rivers Severn and Wye in Great Britain and used to transport goods. Features The mast could be taken down so that the trow could go under bridges, such as the bridge at Worcester and ...

#1 / Hunter #1 *

Bob Arbogast Robert "Bob" Arbogast (April 1, 1927 – March 21, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster, voice actor, and television host. Early life and education Bob was born in Bellingham, Washington, the only child of Lewis, a champion tennis player, st ...

Kobold A kobold (occasionally cobold) is a mythical sprite. Having spread into Europe with various spellings including "goblin" and "hobgoblin", and later taking root and stemming from Germanic mythology, the concept survived into modern times in Ger ...

/ Trow #2 / Hunter #2 *

June Foray June Foray (born June Lucille Forer; September 18, 1917 – July 26, 2017) was an American voice actress. She was best known as the voice of such animated characters as Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha Fatale, Nell Fenwick, Lucifer from Disney' ...

Hag HAG is a Swiss maker of model trains. The company was founded by Hugo and Alwin Gahler on 1 April 1944 in St. Gallen, Switzerland. The Gahler brothers originally manufactured model trains in O scale but due to competition, particularly by Märk ...

#1 *

Linda Gary Linda Gary (born Linda Gary Dewoskin, November 4, 1944 – October 5, 1995) was an American actress. Career Live-action appearances Gary worked as a voice-over artist in animation and also appeared in two live-action films, 1977's ''Joyride T ...

as Hag #2 *

Mel Welles Mel Welles (February 17, 1924 – August 19, 2005) was an American film actor and director. His best-remembered role may be that of hapless flower shop owner Gravis Mushnick in the 1960 low-budget Roger Corman dark comedy, ''The Little Shop of ...

as Trow #3 / Hunter #3

Home media and merchandising

Family Home Entertainment Family Home Entertainment (FHE) was an American home video company founded in 1980 by Noel C. Bloom. It was a division of International Video Entertainment, which had its headquarters in Newbury Park, California. History The company was founde ...

released the special on VHS and Betamax in the 1980s.

Henson Associates The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...

were the merchandising agents for ''Faeries''.

Award nominations

''Faeries'' was nominated for four

Primetime Emmy Awards The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

in 1981: * Outstanding Animated Program — Jean Moore Edwards, Fred Hellmich, Lee Mishkin, Thomas W. Moore, Anne E. Upson, Norton Virgien (executive producers) *Outstanding Individual Achievement - Animated Programming — Alan Aldridge (teleplay), Lee Mishkin (teleplay), Christopher Gore (story) *Outstanding Individual Achievement - Animated Programming — Peter Aries (film editor) *Outstanding Individual Achievement - Animated Programming — Peter Aries (film sound editor)

Notes

External links

* * 1980s American animated films 1981 animated films 1981 films 1980s animated short films 1981 fantasy films 1981 television specials American animated fantasy films American children's animated films American children's fantasy films 1980s American television specials 1980s animated television specials Films based on books High fantasy films 1980s children's animated films Animated films based on Celtic mythology Television about fairies and sprites Animated films based on children's books 1980s English-language films {{1980s-short-animation-film-stub