''Rose Petal Place'' was an American-produced

animated film Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...

from 1984 made by

Ruby-Spears Ruby-Spears Productions (also known as Ruby-Spears Enterprises) was a Burbank, California–based American entertainment production company that specialized in animation with another branch in Rome, Italy. This company was founded in 1977 by vete ...

, with a corresponding line of flower-themed dolls made by

Kenner Products Kenner Products, known simply as Kenner, was an American toy company founded in 1946. Throughout its history, the Kenner brand produced several highly recognizable toys and merchandise lines including action figures like the original series of ' ...

. The concept for ''Rose Petal Place'' was created by

David Kirschner David Maxwell Kirschner (born May 29, 1955) is an American film & television producer and screenwriter. His producing credits include the animated feature ''An American Tail'' (also wrote) and ''Child's Play (franchise), Child's Play'' horror fi ...

and the film was written by Mal Marmorstein. The film was directed by

Charles August Nichols Charles August "Nick" Nichols (September 15, 1910 – August 23, 1992) was an American animator and film director, who worked in animation for over 50 years at Walt Disney Animation Studios and Hanna-Barbera. At Disney, he worked on various shor ...

, and was released in syndication in May 1984.

History

''Rose Petal Place'' was first introduced in the 1980s as an animated film which also included a corresponding toy line and playsets. Rose Petal dolls were markedly similar to the fruit and dessert-themed

Strawberry Shortcake Strawberry shortcake may refer to: * Strawberry shortcake (dessert), a shortcake served with strawberries * "Strawberry Shortcake, Huckleberry Pie," a song published in 1956; a version by The Brother Sisters was released by Mercury Records in 196 ...

dolls, also made by Kenner. The Rose Petal dolls themselves were flower-themed and based on different types of flowers. According to the toys' boxes and the movie, ''Rose Petal Place'' began a long time ago when a young girl (played by

Nicole Eggert Nicole Elizabeth Eggert (born January 13, 1972) is an American actress. Her notable roles include Jamie Powell on the situation comedy ''Charles in Charge'' and Summer Quinn on the television series ''Baywatch''. She guest-starred in ''The Super ...

) was moving away from her lovely home and garden. She cried for her beloved garden because no one would be there to take care of her flowers. She didn't want them to perish, so she made a secret wish that the flowers would live forever. Out of this magical wish, combined with her tears of love, brought Rose Petal and all of her friends (Lily Fair, Daffodil, Orchid, Sunny Sunflower, and Iris) to life. Now living forever, Rose Petal and her friends reside in the garden and tend the little girl's flowers, but face trouble from the nefarious plots of Nastina the spider and her assistant Horace Fly. Other accessories which were produced included lunchboxes, books, games, stickers, and various fashions for the dolls.

Characters

The primary characters of ''Rose Petal Place'' were: * Rose Petal, a pink-haired, pink-clad doll whose singing keeps the other flowers alive. In the cartoon, Rose Petal was voiced by

Marie Osmond Olive Marie Osmond (born October 13, 1959) is an American singer, actress, television host, and a member of the show business family the Osmonds. Although she was never part of her family's singing group, she gained success as a country and pop ...

. * Sunny Sunflower, a yellow haired and clad tomboy who tells jokes to make the other flowers laugh. She is Rose Petal's closest companion. Voiced by

Susan Blu Susan Maria Blue, better known as Sue Blu, is an American voice-actress, voice-director, and casting-director in American and Canadian cinema and television. She most notably voiced Arcee in '' The Transformers: The Movie'' and Seasons 3 and 4 of ...

. * Lily Fair, a blue haired and clad

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

dancer. Voiced by

Renae Jacobs Renae Jacobs (born February 1, 1957) is an American voice actress, who is perhaps best known for voicing journalist and reporter April O'Neil in the original ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' animated series. Early life Renae Jacobs was born Febr ...

. * Daffodil, another yellow haired and clad doll, this one obsessed with finance. Voiced by

. * Orchid, a purple clad

shopaholic A shopaholic is someone with a shopping addiction. Shopaholic can also refer to: *An informal term for someone with a compulsive buying disorder * ''Shopaholic'' (novels), a series of books written by Sophie Kinsella ** ''Confessions of a Shopaho ...

with pale lavender hair. Voiced by

. * Iris, a purple and white clad painter of African ethnicity. Voiced by Candy Ann Brown. * Nastina, a widow

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

who attempts to thwart the flowers' happiness, and even to kill Rose Petal on one occasion. Nastina is assisted by a

horse-fly Horse-flies or horseflies are true Fly, flies in the family Tabanidae in the insect Order (biology), order Diptera. They are often large and agile in flight, and only the female horseflies bite animals, including humans, to hematophagy, obtai ...

, Horace, (voiced by

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 ...

) who didn't get a toy. Voiced by

Marilyn Schreffler Marilyn Sue Schreffler (June 14, 1945 – January 7, 1988) was an American voice actress who provided voice-overs for several animated television series, mostly for Hanna-Barbera Productions. Biography Marilyn Schreffler was born in Wichita, Ka ...

. The animated special also featured five other characters, Elmer, an

Elm tree Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of Nor ...

who watches over the garden, Seymour J. Snailsworth, a wise and helpful snail, P.D. Centipede, a sports-oriented centipede (all voiced by

), Tumbles, a friendly hedgehog and a lavender-colored kitten named Pitterpat.

''Rose Petal Place: Real Friends'' (1985)

David Kirschner Productions and Ruby-Spears Enterprises created a second movie in 1985 called ''Rose Petal Place: Real Friends''. The film was directed by

. This second movie introduced six new characters, which Kenner scheduled to be released as dolls shortly after. Although prototypes and marketing samples were made, the entire line was discontinued before the dolls could hit the shelves.

The second series of unproduced dolls

* Cherry Blossom, an Asian character wearing a cherry pink

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

. She enjoys interior decorating. * Sweet Violet, a light blue haired and clad actress. * Fuchsia, a dark purple haired doll with fuchsia clothing and a taste for clothing design. * Gladiola, a blonde doll with light pink clothes and a taste for tap dancing. * Marigold, an orange haired and clad organizer of events. * Canterbury Belle, a pink haired and clad baker.

Book and cassette episode list

In 1984,

Parker Brothers Parker Brothers (known by Parker outside of North America) was an American toy and game manufacturer which in 1991 became a brand of Hasbro. More than 1,800 games were published under the Parker Brothers name since 1883. Among its products wer ...

put out a series of three books with accompanying cassette tapes, six books without cassettes, one Panorama book, and four coloring books, as well as the record.

A Concert at Carnation Hall

Also in 1984,

released an album with

reprising her role.

Track Listing

Side 1 # "Elmer's Song" ( Tom and

Stephen Chapin Stephen Chapin (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter. He is best known as the youngest of the four Chapin brothers, which include Harry Chapin and Tom Chapin and is son of drummer Jim Chapin and Elspeth Burke Chapin Hart, edit ...

) # "A Special Place" ( Tom and

) # "Carnation Hall" (John Forster) # "Nastina, The Beauty Queen (John Forster) # "Little Bit Of Love (John Carney and

Tom Chapin Tom Chapin (born March 13, 1945) is an American musician, entertainer, singer-songwriter, and storyteller. Chapin is known for the song " Happy Birthday", released in 1989 in his ''Moonboat'' album. It takes its melody from "Love Unspoken", a so ...

) Side 2 # "Rehearsal Song" (

and John Carney) # "Coral Bells" (John Forster) # "Amazing" (John Carney, John Forster,

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

and

) # "Look Inside" (John Forster) # "If You Have Love In Your Heart" (John Carney)

Vocals

* Nastina - Evalyn Baron * Male Character Voices - Russell Horton * The Flowers - Marina Belica, Victoria Blumenthal,

Jessica Craven The Chapin Sisters are an American folk rock and harmony duo from Brooklyn, New York. The band consists of sisters Abigail and Lily Chapin, and formerly their half-sister Jessica Craven. Their sound blurs the lines between old-time Appalachian mus ...

, Katie Irving,

Merle Miller Merle Dale Miller (May 17, 1919 – June 10, 1986) was an American writer, novelist, and author who is perhaps best remembered for his best-selling biography of Harry S. Truman, and as a pioneer in the gay rights movement. Miller came out ...

* Background -

, The Suits

Personnel

- producer *

- producer * Fannie H. Cromwell - executive producer * William C. Coleburn - executive producer * Jaime Chapin - production coordinator *

Gary Chester Gary Chester (born Cesario Gurciullo; October 27, 1924 – August 17, 1987) was an American studio drummer, author, and teacher. Beginning in the 1960s, he played on hundreds of records for bands such as The Coasters, The Monkees, and The Lovin ...

- engineer * Tommy "Monst" Civello - assistant engineer

Musicians

* Piano -

Warren Bernhardt Warren Bernhardt (November 13, 1938 – August 19, 2022)''WBGO'', (Newark, NJ)"Warren Bernhardt, pianist with Steps Ahead, Steely Dan and other bands, dies at 83" August 24, 2022. Retrieved on August 24, 2022. was an American pianist in jazz, pop ...

Robbie Kondor Robbie Kondor is an American composer, session musician, and arranger. He has worked as a composer on '' The Significant Other'', ''Ball In The House'', ''Sally Jessy Raphael'', ''Happiness'' (1998), ''The Suburbans'' (1999), '' Forever Fabulous ...

* Guitar -

Georg Wadenius Georg "Jojje" Wadenius (born 4 May 1945) is a Swedish multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer who was particularly active during the 1970s and 1980s as a studio and session guitarist and bassist, as well as for a series of albums of childr ...

* Banjo -

* Bass -

Wayne Pedzwater Wayne Pedzwater (September 2, 1956 – March 17, 2005), born Wayne Pedziwiatr, was an American bassist. Pedzwater collaborated with many notable artists, such as Buddy Rich, John Lennon, Michael Jackson, Jewel (singer), Jewel, The Honeydrippers, ...

* Drums - Richard Crooks, Barry Lazarowitz * Synthesizer -

* Percussion -

Brian Slawson Brian Slawson (born 1956) is an American percussionist, arranger and composer. He is best known for his Grammy-nominated recording, Bach On Woo ...

* Violins - Harry Cykman (concertmaster), Ann Barak,

Glenn Dicterow Glenn Dicterow (born December 23, 1948), is an American violinist and former concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He is on the faculty of the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music where he holds the Jascha ...

, Harry Glickman, Raymond Gniewek, Regis Iandiorio, Gemma Sroczyńska * Violas -

Emanuel Vardi Emanuel Vardi (21 April 1915 – 29 January 2011), an American violist, was considered to have been one of the great viola players of the 20th century. Early life Emanuel Vardi was born April 21, 1915 in Jerusalem. His mother, Anna Joffa Vardi, ...

, Leonore Weinstock * Celli - Jesse Levy, George Kim Scholes, Mark Shuman * Flute/Piccolo - Barbara Hart, George Marge * Oboe - Dennis Anderson, David Diggs, Alva Hunt * English Horn - George Marge * Clarinet - Al Regni,

Dave Tofani Dave Tofani is an American saxophonist and woodwind player, and composer. As a session musician he has performed on over 500 jazz, pop, and rock recordings such as the clarinet solo on " Say Hello, Wave Goodbye" by Soft Cell.AllMusic Dave Tofani ...

* Bass Clarinet - Albert Regni * Bassoons - John Campo, Wally Kane * French Horn - Mark Sonder, Brooks Tillotson, Lawrence Wechsler * Trumpet - Danny Cahn, Robert Millikan * Trombone -

Dave Bargeron David W. Bargeron (born September 6, 1942) is an American trombonist and tuba player who was a member of the jazz-rock group Blood, Sweat & Tears. Career Bargeron was lead trombonist with Clark Terry's Big Band and played bass trombone and tub ...

, Arthur Baron * Tuba - David Braynard * Harp - Margaret Ross

References

External links

Guide for the Dolls Released

''Rose Petal Place'' at IMDB

''Rose Petal Place: Real Friends'' at IMDB

Entry at Ghost of the Doll
{{David Kirschner 1984 films 1984 animated films American children's films Films based on toys Doll brands 1980s toys 1980s American animated films Films directed by Charles August Nichols Films scored by Dean Elliott Ruby-Spears 1980s English-language films