Japan Victor Company Storyteller Album

Previously I have posted about a JVC record that featured Alice songs on one side and Cinderella songs on the other (see Japanese Victor Record - Title Song).  But, did you know there was an entire storyteller album as well?  Well, neither did I until a couple of years ago.  Let's take a look!

This (along with all other "original release" items) was produced in 1953, which was the year Alice came out in Japan.  As with the previously posted record, this is sung and told by Izumi Yukimura, who was a very popular singer in Japan.  Issued as a two-record set in 78 rpm in an illustrated sleeve, 

each disc has illustrated labels, just like on the previous record. I particularly love the labels on these, with art of Alice and the pansies from the garden of live flowers.

The set also comes with a 16-page booklet filled with text, lyrics and black & white illustrations, which I imagine is pretty rare to find intact with the set.  

  

RKO Program from Japan 1953

Japan is one of the few countries to release Alice several years after its premiere, 1953 to be exact.  But that doesn't mean they did not have RKO promotional material.  This is one such item, an eight-page program - and one that I had never seen before until recently.

Original release items from Japan are quite difficult to come by, so I was thrilled to acquire this piece.  And I was surprised at how large it is, fully 8 1/2" x 12", which corresponds (most closely) with the standard size kiku 4.

The cover features some art we've seen before, that of the "Up to the Minute News" sheet of legal-sized paper I wrote about here, with an inset of Alice and the Broom Dog from the Tulgey Wood.  Even in 1953 the Japanese were ahead of their time highlighting unusual characters.

The remainder of the program (90% in Japanese) features character blurbs with photos of the actors, and a synopsis of the story with song lyrics to boot.  All in all a fabulous piece.

Ringing in the New Year!

 It's a new year and changes are a happenin' here in the Tulgey Wood.  We are finally getting back to flood recovery, and have now successfully made our first pass at the contents of all the storage bins.  Next phase is to rebuild all the displays - no mean feat, especially with a nationwide lumber shortage!  But fear not, I will continue to post things as I find time, and give updates on the progress with the book.  Which I'm happy to say is continuing.  I'm well into the second chapter "Toys, Games, & Puzzles" and have uncovered a few interesting bits related to them.

So let's start off with something newly acquired this year:  This super cool set of kokeshi dolls from Japan, probably 1960s or early 1970s.  Not quite within my usual time period, but I have a very soft spot for kokeshi dolls.

Alice and the White Rabbit have the traditional wobbly heads, but the cards are static.  According to the person I got them from, they are by a company called Senshukai, which is still in business today!  Their first kokeshi dolls were made in 1954, but I'm not sure when they acquired a Disney license.

1953 Japanese Theater Program - Four Color 331 Cover

Second movie theater program from Japan features a cover based on Four Color 331 - but bright red!  The art has been redrawn completely, who can say why.

Take a look at the FC cover and you'll see what I mean.  The Dormouse looks more like a guinea pig now and the White Rabbit has quite the suntan...

Inside is typical program fare, lots of stills from the film, some advertisements for the theaters.

and even some live action reference shots!

Coolest is this very nice Al Dempster art double page spread.

1953 Japanese Theater Program - Nipper Cover

From a friend in Japan comes this very cool program from the Tokyo Gekijo theater.  We've seen this cover before on a Japanese item, the LGB-sized book posted here.  This art was originally used on the RCA Victor Little Nipper record book, something I've not gotten around to posting about as of yet, but it's coming, I promise

Inside is typical program fare, including some b/w art taken from the FC331 comic book, and used on another Japanese program, which I'll post shortly.

The Tokyo Gekijo theater was original a kabuki theater, having been converted to a movie theater in 1952, one year before Alice was released in 1953 in Japan.

Tokyo Gekijo theater ca. 1947

Big Golden Book - Japan

Fresh back from Bonnie Scotland, and ready to resume semi-regular posting.  First up is something new - well, new to me, it is still old - a Japanese edition of the Big Golden Book.

I did not know there were Japanese editions of the BGB, so this was a very pleasant surprise when it was brought to my attention while researching Disney Alice editions for an article I'm writing for the Lewis Carroll Society.  Thanks to Yoshi in Japan for all his generous assistance on the Japanese editions, and for providing me with this copy!  Now on to the book itself.

This particular edition is from 1957, which is the second edition published in Japan (the first being from 1953).  Covers and interiors are the same as the American edition with two exceptions.

The inside front has different end papers and the first page has the same art as the previously posted Japanese book here, which is also the same as the cover on the Little Nipper Giant Storybook record that I have not yet posted.

The inside back also sports art from the LNGS, this time from its back cover.  The final page is the same as the end papers on the American edition.  Price of this book was originally 120 yen, which translates to about 35 cents back in 1957.

Little Golden Book from Japan 1958

Third new discovery of the new year, and second new Little Golden Book, this time from Japan.  Ok, I guess I can't really call this a Little Golden Book, although it is the same size as a LGB.  It is pretty much its own creature.

The cover is taken from the same art as the Japanese herald I posted about here, which in turn was taken from the Little Nipper book cover that I have not blogged about yet (stay tuned!).

The back cover tells us the year, and that this was apparently #7 in a series of books.  I'm hoping one of my readers can translate the other six titles for me.  Pretty weird art for Dinah on the back cover...

The first 4 pages of art are indeed taken from Al Dempster art, although in the case of the title page it has been cut and pasted from a variety of sources.

After that, it is all new art, with a limited color palette of blue and orange.  Until page 21, when it switches to monochromatic blue (did they run out of money?  Or just orange ink?

I'm totally digging Anime Alice in this art, and the best is the last interior page, page 36, looks like Alice in Wonderland meets Speed Racer.  "Go Arice Go!"

 

UPDATE:  A reader did provide not only a translation of the back cover, but of EVERY page pictured!  As follows:

Exclusive Disney printing rights reserved

Shogakukan's (publisher's name) First-grader, Learning
Library

---

Volume 1 (April) Picture book and fairy tales
Volume 2 (May)     Word book
Volume 3 (June)    Disney Picture Book, Cinderella
Volume 4 (July)     Ako-chan and picture book
Volume 5 (August) Kuri-chan's summer vacation
Volume 6 (September) Group of Little Detectives
1958, Volume 7
Name, Published by Shogakukan, Tokyo

---

Alice in Wonderland
(This book is due to our publishing company's exclusive
contract with Disney Productions)
A Disney Picture Book

---

Alice went to the land of playing cards.
What will happen?
See page 28.

---

(Right page)
The Wondrous rabbit-hole
(Left page)
As Alice was playing, a white rabbit went into a
rabbit-hole.
"I'll go into it, too."
"It's a little room".

---

(Right page)
The Magic Cat
"Mr Caterpillar, I want to become large."
(Left page)
"Oh, he's gone."
"Here I am".
"If you eat the mushroom, you'll become large."

---

Color the picture
Color with your favorite colors.

---

Izumi Yukimura Autograph

A while back I posted a Japanese version of the Alice in Wonderland title song. A kind reader recently identified the singer for me as Izumi Yukimura. And even more recently, I acquired this autograph! Izumi Yukimura is alive and well and still performing.

Love the little sketch.

Japanese RKO Movie Herald

Very nice original RKO herald from Japan. Interesting that this features art similar to the Little Nipper record set rather than movie poster art.


Of course, all the text is in Japanese, so I have absolutely no idea what it says. I assume the single row of text beneath the picture on the front is the name of a theater, but there is a ton of text on the back. Anyone out there read kanji, hiragana and katakana (come on, you have to be impressed that I at least know the names of the 3 alphabets)?


UPDATE: A kind (and bilingual) reader translated this for me - thanks Wayne!

Front says:

Alice in Wonderland, a Walt Disney Production
Beautiful and enjoyable
Color Feature Musical Fantasy
Distributed by RKO
The Odeon Theater (hah! I knew it was a theater name)

Back says:

Color feature musical fantasy
A Walt Disney Production
About "Alice in Wonderland"
"Alice in Wonderland", like "Snow White" and "Cinderella", is a Disney film version of a fairy tale. But unlike the other two films, here Disney spreads his wings of fancy all the way, and soars with music and color. In this film where several fun episodes merge, it's a great fantasy where color and music are wonderfully blended. Lewis Caroll's work "Alice in Wonderland" is from about 100 years ago: during a pleasant English summer as he was taking a walk in the garden with the sweet little girl Alice Pleasance Liddell, at her urging he told this story. Later, it was suggested to him by a friend to write the story down, and 3 years later in 1865 it was published.
Ever since, it has become one of the world's most loved stories. Not only is this merely due to its being loaded with humor, but it also contains sharp satire and morals. There's plenty in it for an adult to ponder. The film proudly boasts this story, the musical fun and the gorgeous colors, and it's a work that children will love as much as adults.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from 1987 in this postcard from Tokyo Disneyland.

Japanese Victor Record - Title Song

What a great label. This 78 from Japan Victor Company is the title song Alice in Wonderland. The custom label is really cool, and not very common from what I've seen in general for vintage Disney records; most record companies just used generic labels. Flip side of this is from Cinderella.


Interesting to note that the Japanese entity of RCA Victor later left records entirely and moved solely into electronics (JVC is Japan Victor Company), although in Japan they still use the Nipper logo.

UPDATE: Take a listen!