1980 Italian Magazine "Sorrisi e Canzoni TV"

On December 19, 1980, Snow White returned to cinemas in Italy. To commemorate the occasion, issue no. 52 of the Italian magazine, Sorrisi e Canzoni TV (Smiles and Songs TV), included an 8-page spread with photos and info on the film. The characters were also pictured on the cover with the text, Buone Feste Con Biancaneve (Happy Holidays with Snow White).

Special thanks to Nunziante Valoroso for sharing these images from his collection.

1960s Seven Dwarfs Italian Xmas Comic

I Sette Nani e l'incantesimo di Natale (The Seven Dwarfs and the Christmas Spell) was a holiday-themed comic book issued in Italy on December 20, 1964. Published by Mondadori in the Albi della Rosa series, no. 528. Written by Gian Giacomo Dalmasso. Art by Giuseppe Perego. Total pages 52 (story 37). Price ₤50.

Synopsis: The Queen employs the help of the Seven Evil Dwarfs (yes, there are evil dwarfs in Italian comics). They go after Snow White's son (yes, she has a son; his name is Glauco and he first appeared in a 1939 comic, Biancaneve e il mago basilisco by Nino Pagot). They lure Glauco out of the castle where they transform him into a Christmas tree. The good Seven Dwarfs arrive on the scene. The evil ones try to do them in, along with Snow White, by causing an avalanche. The princess uses her body to protect the little Christmas tree. With this act of motherly love, her son's life is miraculously restored. The story ends when the Queen turns the Evil Dwarfs into crows. They then attack her.

The scene where Glauco is turned into a tree.

Special thanks to Nunziante Valoroso for the scans and his generous assistance with this post.

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This story was actually a reprint of a comic that was published four years earlier in the December 1, 1960 issue of Walt Disney Almanacco Topolino (Mickey Mouse Almanac). Albi D'oro no. 48. Total pages 68 (story 28). Price ₤100.

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The Seven Dwarfs (along with Thumper) appeared on another cover of Walt Disney Almanacco Topolino. January 1960, no. 37. They were not, however, included in the comic stories inside.

The cover artwork of the Seven Dwarfs with Thumper was traced from the original, which was first published in the US in the February 1958 issue of Silly Symphonies, Dell no. 8 (see earlier post).

1938 Italian Dub of Snow White

Italian is one of the twelve original languages that Snow White was first recorded in for its 1938 international premiere run. Biancaneve ei Sette Nani was distributed by Generalcine (the Italian agent of RKO) with a general release date of December 23rd. Earlier that year, the audio tracks were recorded at Cinecittà Studios in Rome.

Writers & Directors:

The dialog was freely adapted and written in a courtly style by film writer Vittorio Malpassuti and Simeoni. The song lyrics were reworked by two composer/lyricists Mario Panzeri and Umberto Bertini, along with singer Nino Rastelli. Edition coordinator was Cesare Cavagna. The dubbing sessions were directed by Alberto Carlo Lolli and Luigi Savini, with supervision from Roy Disney and Stuart Buchanan (see previous post).


Voice Actors: (Ages are listed at the time of the 1938 release.)

• Snow White (speaking) - Rosetta Calavetta (1918-1993). She enjoyed a rich and prolific career as a voice actor, vocalizing the Italian tracks for some of Hollywood's biggest leading ladies. One of her earliest gigs was for Disney's Biancaneve. She was age 20.
• Snow White (singing) - Lina Pagliughi (1907-1980). An Italian-American opera singer born in Brooklyn, NY but who moved as a teenager with her parents back to Italy. Age 31.

Left: Rosetta Calavetta cover of Oggi magazine (1952); Right: Lina Pagliughi (circa 1940s)

• The Queen - Tina Lattanzi (1897-1997). Another respected voice artist and actor. Age 40.
• The Witch - Dina Romano (1888-1957). Italian stage and movie actor. Age 48.

Left: Tina Lattanzi in Torment (1950); Right: Dina Romano in Giacomo l'idealista (1943)

• The Prince (speaking) - Giulio Panicali (1899-1987). Film actor and also voice artist for numerous male A-list Hollywood leads. He also directed dubbing sessions later in his career. Age 39.
• The Prince (singing) - Giovanni Manurita (1895-1984). Italian tenor who also acted in several films. Age 43.

• Doc/Dotto - Olinto Cristina (1888-1962). Actor and voice artist. Age 50.
• Grumpy/Brontolo - Amilcare Pettinelli (1886-1963). Actor and songwriter. Age 52.
• Happy/Gongolo - Cesare Polacco (1900-1986). Actor and voice artist. Age 38.

• Sleepy/Pisolo - Gianni Mazzanti (1910-2000). Few acting roles (photo not found). Age 28.
• Sneezy/Eolo - Gero Zambuto (1887–1944). Director and actor. He also wrote several screenplays. Age 51.
• Bashful/Mammolo - Lauro Gazzolo (1900-1970). Prolific Italian film actor. Age 37.

• Magic Mirror - Aldo Silvani (1891-1964). Italian film actor. Age 47.
• Huntsman - Mario Besesti (1900-1975). Actor and songwriter. Age 38.

Biancaneve was reissued by RKO to post-war theatres in Italy on January 1, 1950. Then again in a 16mm format on April 16, 1953. The final re-release of this 1938 Italian dub was distributed by Rank Films on December 13, 1962. Ten years later in 1972, Disney felt it was time to update the script and voice talents for a new generation (see list below). The original dub would never again be available to the general public--although you can find clips from it on youtube.

1938 voice cast:

• Snow White - ROSETTA CALAVETTA (speaking); LINA PAGLIUGHI (singing)
• Prince - GIULIO PANICALI (speaking); GIOVANNI MANURITA (singing)
• Queen - TINA LATTANZI
• Witch - DINA ROMANO
• Doc - OLINTO CRISTINA
• Grumpy - AMILCARE PETTINELLI
• Sneezy - GERO ZAMBUTO
• Bashful - LAURO GAZZOLO
• Happy - CESARE POLACCO
• Sleepy - GIUSEPPE MAZZANTI
• Magic Mirror - ALDO SILVANI
• Huntsman - MARIO BESESTI

1972 voice cast:

• Snow White - MELINA MARTELLO (speaking); GIANNA SPAGNULO (singing)
• Prince - ROMANO MALASPINA (speaking); BRUNO FILIPPINI (singing)
• Queen - BENITA MARTINI
• Witch - WANDA TETTONI
• Doc - ROBERTO BERTEA
• Grumpy - MANLIO BUSONI
• Sneezy - VITTORIO DI PRIMA
• Bashful - SILVIO SPACCESI
• Happy - CARLO BACCARINI
• Sleepy - GIANCARLO MAESTRI
• Magic Mirror - MARIO FELICIANI
• Huntsman - VITTORIO DI PRIMA
• Narrator - LUCIANO MELANI

Special thanks to Nunziante Valoroso for sharing invaluable information on this post. Cast credits list courtesy of  Antonio Genna.

1938 Cinema Magazine - Italian Interview w/ Stuart Buchanan

In preparation for the 1938 release of Snow White to international markets, the Disney Studio created 12 different versions of the film. Scenes which contained English text, such as the storybook opening, were redrawn in the appropriate language. The dubbing of the additional 11 soundtracks was overseen by Roy Disney and Stuart Buchanan.

It's not that either of these men were fluent in foreign languages. They were not. Rather, they simply knew what Walt Disney was looking for in regards to the sound of the voice talent. The actual directing of the actors was left up to native speakers. Some of the dubbing sessions took place in southern California, but most were overseas.

While in Rome for the Italian recording, Buchanan was interviewed by a magazine reporter. The piece appeared in the April 10, 1938 issue of Cinema, no. 43. Pictured on the cover is Eleanor Powell. Accompanying the article are a couple of rare photos from this period of both Roy Disney and Stuart Buchanan.

The article was recently translated for us by Snow White expert, Nunziante Valoroso:

Roy Disney and Stuart Buchanan are in a hotel in Rome. Roy isn’t very cordial, speaks only English and smokes a cigar. It seems strange that a man speaking only English has come to Europe to supervise the foreign dubbings of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Really the supervisor is Stuart Buchanan, the Disney Studio Casting Director. The fact is that even Buchanan speaks only English.

REPORTER: How it’s possible that you could approve a good dubbing without knowing the languages?

BUCHANAN: It’s easy. Walt Disney wants Snow White to be seen as if the movie was made directly in the languages of the dubbings. So we must find, in every country, the right voices that sound identical to the original ones of Snow White, the dwarfs, the prince the Queen, and all the characters. Should the voices be very different, the movie would suffer and then it would be better just to show it in the original language. This is my job, to make sure the voices fit perfectly with the images. So that Sneezy has his typical voice, that Sleepy would show, even in his speaking, his tenancy to sleep and so on. What is important to me is the sound, not the words. That’s why, even if I speak only English, I’m able to supervise different dubbings. We tested this way of working in Hollywood, where we recorded the French and Spanish versions.

REPORTER: With good results?

BUCHANAN: Excellent.

We objected, then, that he could never know the exact sound of words in Italian, the exact meaning of the script phrases. Buchanan answered : “It’s not my business. It’s the responsibility of the effective dubbing directors.”And he showed us a first Italian translation of the script, made by an Italian professor living in California.

The interviewer's name is unknown. The issue is simply signed, "THE REPORTER". Special thanks to Nunziante Valoroso for sharing these images from his collection and for taking the time to translate the article.

Snow White on Italian Disneyland Record Label

The first Snow White album to be released on the Disneyland Record label in America was the movie soundtrack in 1956. Catalog no. WDL-4005. In Italy, the first Disneyland Record was issued in November of 1962, no. DLP-52. This Italian Disneyland series was distributed by the Curci label--Carosello Records. (Before this time, Curci reprinted the American versions, both 45s and 33¹⁄₃. Also see the 1961 Curci songbook in an earlier post.)

This Biancaneve record release was timed to coincide with the 1962 theatrical return of the motion picture in Italy. The album artwork pictures the characters surrounded by yellow concentric circles. This design was borrowed from the 1957 Storyteller record, American catalog no. ST-3906. However, no fold-out storybook was included.

The recording was not the full Italian soundtrack, but it did feature songs, musical dialogue, and sound effects taken directly from the original 1938 film with Lina Pagliughi as the Italian singing voice. No storyteller narration was added. Total run time is 45 minutes. This same record would be reissued several times and was available in shops until 1978.

Red disc label with white lettering.

There were three different versions of the back cover for this album. The first one from 1962 included the story in text and the name printed in violet. The second also had the story but the name was in black. The third dates from 1972 and only featured the title along with photos of the other records in the series.

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In 1967, this same recording was also packaged in the red Magic Mirror series album cover, including an attached 11-page storybook. Italian catalog no. STP 3906. Note that there is no text in the framed plate directly below the image of Snow White. In the US version, no. ST 3906, the text reads, "Magic Mirror".

Red disc label with white lettering.

The storybook is identical to the American version except for the Italian text, of course.

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In 1970, the recording was again repackaged with different album cover artwork. However, the attached storybook was identical to the one above. It was sold as part of an 8-piece boxed LP set, Cantastorie di Walt Disney. The collection was issued exclusively by Italian publisher Arnoldo Mondadori Editore.

Blue disc labels with white lettering.

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In 1971, Disney changed the album cover to the artwork used in the 1969 US Storyteller album. Snow White is pictured sweeping the cottage with a purple background. The attached storybook was also updated to include full-color images.

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In December 1972, the original 1962 recording was replaced with the updated dialogues and songs from the brand new Italian soundtrack dub (which screened in cinemas that year). The well-known voice actor, Giuseppe Rinaldi, was also added to the record as the narrator. See two magazine advertisements for this new version in the previous post.

The album cover art, however, did not change. This new recording was packaged in the same 'Snow White sweeping" slipcase. The disc labels remained blue until 1975 when they were changed to a red-orange label with black writing. Beginning around 1977,  they switched to the yellow rainbow labels.

The rainbow disc label from late 1970s with the 1972 recording. Includes Giuseppe Rinaldi credit.

This detailed record information was generously provided by Snow White collector and historian, Nunziante Valoroso. The majority of image scans are courtesy of Nunziante's personal collection as well as Lino Cappellini's collection.