It’s easy to love Halloween, especially as a kid, but there are only so many times anyone can sit through It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown to get into the mood. There are a lot of other options out there, and recent years have treated fans of pseudo-spooky clever cartoons to some great stories. There is one I remember fondly as a kid though, a piece of animation that always sent a chill down my spine and put a smile on my face when I watched it. The themes and imagery held my attention while feeling like an important adventure of epic proportions, but no one seems to remember it. I myself had even forgotten the name for quite some time, almost making me wonder if I had imagined it all. Working in a bookstore has its advantages though, as I stumbled across a small novel from one of the masters, Ray Bradbury, his tribute to the history and spirit of Samhain—The Halloween Tree.
It may only run sixty-nine minutes, but that’s over an hour of gloriousness. Produced in 1993 by Hanna-Barbera, The Halloween Tree began life as a film script, but when things fell through Bradbury published it as a short novel in 1972, which he later converted into an Emmy award-winning screenplay, simplifying the original story and bringing the cast of eight boys down to three and one girl. The idea came after Bradbury painted a picture of the titular tree with his daughters, and – having been disappointed by the aforementioned Charlie Brown special – gave it a go himself.
Bradbury also took a greater role in this new attempt at a classic, as he loaned his voice to do narration over several of the scenes. There are some other decent voices for the kids, but the most memorable one comes from the late great Leonard Nimoy, who plays Mr. Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, which may be the Halloweeniest name ever. He is the mysterious figure who plays the not-so-subtle antagonist, but also takes the kids back in time through ancient Egypt and Mexico as well as to Stonehenge and Notre Dame while the children chase down their friend.
The important thing here is Pip! He’s the friend in question, whom they are chasing through time and space, because everyone loves Pip for some reason or seem to owe him in some way. Not sure why, he can’t be that great, since he’s dying and all. But he does love Halloween, and is fighting to survive. It is actually due to appendicitis, but it is heavily implied that Pip would not have made it through the procedure, dying on the holiday he loved so much.
“Ah yes, Joe Pipkin. Some say that on the day he was born, all the soda pop bottles in the world fizzed over. Pipkin, who could yell louder, sing better, and eat more popcorn. Pip, the greatest boy who ever lived.”
Joe Pipkin has absconded with his pumpkin, which narrative-wise seems to be a part of his soul, as he tries to escape with what little bit of life he has left. His friends want to help, but Mr. Moundshroud is their only lead. He might be the devil, death, or simply a vampire, and there’s evidence for all those options, but they’ll need his assistance to follow Pip. Whether the kids realize they are helping the bad guy catch him or not, they just want to find their dead friend, and that idea does wonders for the story.
My favorite part is at the end though, where each of the four kids bargains to save Pip’s life, offering up a year off the ends of their lives in exchange for giving their cornerstone, their leader, another chance to live, and the deal is sealed with them each eating a piece of a candy skull with Pip’s name on it. That part stuck with me and shows many of the deeper darker themes that allow The Halloween Tree to feel more important and a little bit creepier.
“Sweet skulls, sweet skulls, crystal sugar candy skulls. Sweet skulls, sweet skulls. Tell me your name, I’ll give you a skull.”
It isn’t just a story though. Bradbury wanted to teach kids about the holiday. The four kids learn lessons in each of the locations they visit. Though there are four kids, yet Moundshroud keeps talking about three lessons? Each child has a different costume though, skeleton, mummy, witch, and monster, with Pip playing the part of the ghost (and Moundshroud possibly being the vampire), and tying many of these lessons to why we wear those outfits on Halloween. The educational aspect isn’t as annoying as I thought it’d be at an older age.
The animation is solid, a bit dated perhaps, but it feels familiar, like old Scooby-Doo, endearing and whimsically spooky in places, while being simply dark and foreboding in others. The music works well here and voice acting is fine, but there is little else that really stands out like the story does. This was done by Director Mario Piluso, whom I only know from Stripperella, but Bradbury worked closely with everyone to make sure this passion project turned out the way he envisioned it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APN4O83qCUg
It’s an entertaining short movie that manages to be cool and somewhat scary for kids, adding some excitement for the Halloween season that no one I asked about it seemed to remember much of. I want to change that, as it isn’t completely obscure, but certainly underrated. The movie must have left a little bit of a mark though, because Disneyland has incorporated elements from the movie into its annual holiday decorations on and off since 2007, particularly the titular tree and several versions of the hanging pumpkins – which look great against the buildings.
The Halloween Tree first aired on TBS and later became a seasonal feature for Cartoon Network. They still show it from time to time, but this is one I’d be okay with seeing an updated version of, an HD release if possible, or at least a little more attention on something that improved my childhood so much.
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