Revisiting Walt Disney's Davy Crockett: Part 4 (Western Wednesdays)

     The first episode of Walt Disney's Davy Crockett, Davy Crockett Indian Fighter, aired on Disneyland on December 15, 1954. Walt had started Disneyland earlier in 1954 in order to finance his dream amusement park. He wanted the episodes of the series to represent the park's four main sections: Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, and Frontierland. Davy Crockett would represent Frontierland. The show would be an unprecedented success, setting off a national craze that would generate 300 million dollars in profit, almost 3 billion dollars in today's money when adjusted for inflation.

     Watching the show today, after having grownup with the movie versions, is a somewhat strange experience. Exchanges of dialogue are extended, the musical score and sound-mixing are different and there are quite a few scenes that were cut from the films entirely. These scenes help to further flesh out Crockett and also contain additional bits of action.

     The show, immediately, has a more folksy, down-to-earth feel then the movies. The very first scene is one which was deleted from the theatrical release. In it Crockett is seen leaving his homestead to go off to fight the Creek War. Polly tells Georgie Russell, "If you don't stop makin' up those outlandish songs about Davy, there's no telling what will happen to the Crockett name." The first time we meet Davy in the movie, he's trying to grin down a bear, but here he is seen saying goodbye to his wife and children. This sets a general precedent for much of the deleted material: Crockett feels more flawed and human.

     Interestingly, River Pirates actually includes a scene that was cut from the first episode of the second series, "Davy Crockett's Keelboat Race". In it Crockett and Russell, pulling into a port after their ship is sabotaged by Fink, discuss sabotaging the Gullywhumper in retaliation but Crockett refuses, "No", he says, "we gotta win this race fair and square." The show, on the other hand shows Crockett tying a rope to the Gullywhumper so his own boat can be towed by it (until, of course, Fink discovers this).

     I have yet to really talk about Fess Parker's performance. Both the larger-then-life movie Davy and the more relatable TV Davy are perfectly embodied by Parker. He is the reason the show was such a success. He captured Crockett's easy going manner, his stalwart, righteous heroism, and his matter-of-fact country wisdom that came to embody the American Frontier spirit. Parker's easy, slow southern drawl, his formidable physical presence, his easygoing cheerful manner, and the subtle hints of sadness and melancholy he brings to the role made a huge impression on me as a youngster (along with millions of other kids from an earlier generation).

     As a result of this I have never been able to accept anyone else in the role. From John Wayne to Billy Bob Thornton (who actually bears pretty decent physical resemblance to the historical Crockett) all ring false to me. Fess Parker IS Davy Crockett. On the other hand, Buddy Esben, who was considered for the role of Crockett before Parker was chosen, is in a way, a composite of Crockett as George Russell (who, I'm surprised to learn was actually one of Crockett's comrades during the Creek war).While Parker is every inch the chivalrous paragon of virtue, Ebsen is fun loving, mischievous, and is portrayed as the one mainly responsible for perpetuating the Crockett myth.

     It's really fascinating how writer Tom Blackburn was able to integrate so many disparate sources of Crockett lore into the series. The almanacs, written to capitalize on Crockett's popularity, are seen here written by Russell. "I put up with your singin' them lies about me, but printin' 'em is goin' too far," Davy tells his friend. The description of Crockett as "half horse, half alligator and a little attached to a snappin' turtle" is also from the almanacs, and was further popularized in James Hackett's satirical play The Lion of the West. Crockett's autobiography, written during his last term in congress, is used to frame the narrative, with each episode opening and closing with an image of a book entitled "Davy Crockett's Journal." Crockett's traveling to the Alamo with a riverboat gambler and a Comanche Indian is taken from the spurious Col. Crockett's Exploits and Adventures in Texas, allegedly written by Crockett a few days before his death.

     And, of course, much actual history is referenced. Crockett did fight in the Creek Indian War though he didn't defeat a Creek chief hand-to-hand and singlehandedly end the conflict. His wife, Polly, passed away before he entered politics, though the show makes no mention of his second wife Elizabeth Patton. He did oppose Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal bill and make an impassioned speech against it on the House Floor. He did go on a tour of the eastern cities during his final term, recorded in the book: An Account of Col. Crockett's Tour to the North and Down East. He also received a rifle he named "Old Betsy" but while the episode shows him receiving it from the citizens of Philadelphia on his tour of the eastern cities, it was actually given to him by his constituents in Lawrence County during his tenure in the state legislature. Of course he did go to Texas where he died at the Alamo, although the manner of his death remains a subject of heated dispute.

In the end, I would say that the shows are, in some respects, better then the movies. This is not surprising, considering the fact that it was conceived with episodic television in mind. Nevertheless, the films do an admirable job of tightening the pace while leaving the narrative largely intact. Going back to the show all these years later was a fascinating experience. I was able to see this story I knew and loved in a new light. There are no "missing episodes" of Disney's Davy Crockett, but this restored material allowed me, in a small way, to relive the experience of watching the movies for the first time all over again.