''So Dear to My Heart'' is a 1948 American live-action/animated film produced by

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

and released by

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...

. Its world premiere was in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, on November 29, 1948. Like 1946's ''

Song of the South ''Song of the South'' is a 1946 American Live-action animated film, live-action/animated musical film, musical drama film directed by Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson; produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures. ...

'', the film combines animation and live action. It is based on the 1943

Sterling North Thomas Sterling North (November 4, 1906 – December 21, 1974) was an American writer. He is best known for the children's novel '' Rascal'', a bestseller in 1963. Biography Early life and family North's maternal grandparents, James Herve ...

book ''

Midnight and Jeremiah ''Midnight and Jeremiah'' () is a 1943 children's book written by Sterling North and illustrated by Kurt Wiese. It concerns a boy named Jeremiah who adopts a black baby lamb and as the story progresses they share a strong bond. ''Midnight and Je ...

''. The book was revised by North to parallel the film's storyline amendments and then re-issued under the same title as the film. The film was a personal favorite of Walt Disney, since it re-created on film one of the most memorable times of his life, growing up on a small farm in the

American Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

at the turn of the twentieth century. Walt said: "''So Dear'' was especially close to me. Why, that's the life my brother and I grew up with as kids out in

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

." Walt had intended that this would be the first all live-action Disney feature film, but his distributor, RKO, convinced him that when audiences saw the word "Disney," they expected animation. Thus they split the difference. ''So Dear to My Heart'' was the final film appearance of

Harry Carey Harry Carey may refer to: *Harry Carey (actor) (1878–1947), American actor * Harry Carey Jr. (1921–2012), American actor * Harry Carey (footballer) (1916–1991), Australian rules footballer See also * Henry Carey (disambiguation) * Harry Car ...

Plot

Set in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

in 1903, the film tells the tale of Jeremiah Kincaid (

Bobby Driscoll Robert Cletus Driscoll (March 3, 1937 – March 30, 1968) was an American actor known for his film and television performances from 1943 to 1960. He starred in some of the Walt Disney Studios' best-known live-action pictures of that period ...

) and his determination to raise a black-wool lamb that was once rejected by its mother. Jeremiah names the lamb Danny for the famed race horse

Dan Patch Dan Patch (April 29, 1896 – July 11, 1916) was a noted American Standardbred pacer. At a time when harness racing was one of the largest sports in the nation, Dan Patch was a major celebrity. He was undefeated in open competition, and was so ...

(who is also portrayed in the film). Jeremiah's dream of showing Danny at the Pike County Fair must overcome the obstinate objections of his loving yet tough grandmother Granny (

Beulah Bondi Beulah Bondi (born Beulah Bondy; May 3, 1889 – January 11, 1981)According to the State of California. ''California Death Index, 1940–1997''. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At ...

). Jeremiah's confidant Uncle Hiram (

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...

) is the boy's steady ally. Inspired by the animated figures and stories, the boy perseveres.

Cast

as Jeremiah "Jerry" Kincaid *

Luana Patten Luana Patten (July 6, 1938 – May 1, 1996) was an American actress who appeared in films produced by Walt Disney Pictures, such as ''Song of the South'' (1946), ''Fun and Fancy Free'' (1947), and ''Melody Time'' (1948). Later in life, she pla ...

as Tildy *

as Uncle Hiram Douglas *

as Granny Kincaid *

as Head Judge at County Fair * Raymond Bond as Pete Grundy, Storekeeper * Walter Soderling as Grampa Meeker * Matt Willis as Mr. Burns, Horse Trainer * Spelman B. Collins as Judge *

Bob Haymes Robert William Haymes (March 29, 1923 – January 27, 1989), also known by the stage names Robert Stanton and Bob Stanton, was an American singer, songwriter, actor and radio and television host. He is best remembered for co-writing the song " Th ...

as Singer Bob Haymes

Voices

* John Beal as Adult Jeremiah/Narrator *

Ken Carson Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr. (born April 11, 2000), known professionally as Ken Carson, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He rose to prominence following the release of his second studio album '' X'' (2022), which be ...

as The Owl * Bob Stanton as Danny * Marion Darlington as Whistling Sound Effects *

Clarence Nash Clarence Charles "Ducky" Nash (December 7, 1904 – February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor. He was best known as the original voice of the Disney cartoon character Donald Duck. He was born in the rural community of Watonga, Oklahoma, and ...

as Vocal Sound Effects * The Rhythmaires as Vocal Ensemble/Bluebirds

Awards and honors

The film was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed th ...

for

's version of the 17th-century English folk song "

Lavender Blue "Lavender's Blue" (also called "Lavender Blue") is an English folk song and nursery rhyme from the 17th century. Its Roud Folk Song Index number is 3483. It has been recorded in various forms and some pop versions have been hits in the U.S. a ...

," but lost to "

Baby, It's Cold Outside "Baby, It's Cold Outside" is a popular song written by Frank Loesser in 1944 and popularized in the 1949 film '' Neptune's Daughter''. While the lyrics make no mention of a holiday, it is commonly regarded as a Christmas song owing to its winter ...

" from '' Neptune's Daughter''.

received a special Juvenile Award from the Academy, honoring him as "the outstanding juvenile actor of 1949". (In addition to ''So Dear to My Heart'', he had garnered critical acclaim for his dramatic performance in the

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...

melodrama '' The Window''.) The film is recognized by

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

in this list: * 2004: AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs: ** "

" – Nominated

Production

The train depot in the film was later relocated to Ward Kimball's

Grizzly Flats Railroad The Grizzly Flats Railroad (GFRR) was a 3-foot () narrow-gauge railway, narrow-gauge heritage railway, heritage railroad owned by Disney animator Ward Kimball at his home in San Gabriel, California. The railroad had of track, and was operated ...

in his backyard. After the railroad closed,

John Lasseter John Alan Lasseter (; born January 12, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, animator, voice actor, and the head of animation at Skydance Animation. He was previously the chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios, ...

relocated it to the Justi Creek Railway.

Release

The film returned rentals to RKO by 1951 of $2,775,000 with $2,200,000 being generated in the U.S. and Canada. The film was re-released in 1964 and earned an estimated $1.5 million in rentals in the U.S. and Canada. ''So Dear to My Heart'' was released on home video in 1986. It was then re-released in 1992 and released on video in 1994 as part of the Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection. The film was originally planned for a US DVD release as part of the Walt Disney Gold Classic Collection, but was cancelled, with no particular reason given. Six years after seeing a region 2 DVD release, it was released in the US on DVD in July 2008 as a Disney Movie Club Exclusive.

References

External links

* * *
''So Dear to My Heart'': The Secrets Behind the Film
{{DEFAULTSORT:So Dear To My Heart Walt Disney Pictures films 1948 films 1940s English-language films American comedy-drama films 1948 comedy-drama films 1948 musical films Films based on children's books Films set in 1903 Films set in Indiana Films based on American novels Films directed by Hamilton Luske Films directed by Harold D. Schuster 1940s American animated films Films produced by Walt Disney Films produced by Perce Pearce Films scored by Paul Smith (film and television composer) American films with live action and animation 1940s children's animated films Walt Disney Pictures animated films