Up goes another character in the Walt Disney Hall of Fame. Out comes another surprise from the Disney bag of tricks. To be specific, Panchito, a Mexican rooster with as much personality as Donald Duck or Joe Carioca, is making his first appearance; and on the screen with him will be live, three-dimensional actors.
The new film is "Three Caballeros." a full-length fantasy of Mexico and points to the south. No one will fail to recognize this as a goodmeighbor film, but, while Joe Carioca, the parrot of “Saludos Amigos." typified Brazil, or the Portugueseo-speaking part of South America, Panchito leans definitely toward the Spanish side.
Second only to the spell of Disney's propaganda fantasy will be the inevitable reaction of the thousands who will exclaim, “How on earth is it done ?" It isn’t too simple. The film involved the most careful planning all along the line, beginning with the conception of the character. Then came his visualization in the studio, checking up on his background, and - a most important consideration - his color scheme. Panchito must not clash with the blue, white, and yellow of Donald Duck, nor the green cream, yellow, and vermllion of Joe Carioca. He must be individual and also look well against the many backgrounds. The studio settled the matter by giving Panchito a yellow beak and feet, red comb, gray hat, and purple outfit. After this, it was a good deal of a chore to find a voice that would make Panchito suitably articulate on the screen. From more than 100 actors tested, they selected Joaquin Garey, an entertainer in San Francisco's Copacabana night club, to speak the master's lines. […]
