We live in a world of sequels, remakes and adaptations, a world where the only truly original films coming out seem to be from the animation studios. Films like Brave, Rio and Wreck-It Ralph are the last original films that studios feel comfortable enough about to invest in.
But does this tradition stretch all the way back to the very beginnings of animated features? We all recall the Disney back catalogue with reverence but are these films unique to the family-favorite animation studio? The answer is no. Here are the ten Disney animated films we were most surprised to discover were shameless rip-offs.
10. Dumbo
Synonymous with the family-friendly Disney marketing schemes as any viewer of the old Disney-VHS tapes will recall (Do you see how much the DVD image is improved as opposed to the VHS one?) Dumbo is surely a Disney-tale through and through. In fact the story of Dumbo is taken from an old panorama-like storybook about an elephant who, with his friend a red-robin learns to fly. The story was written by Helen Aberson and illustrated by Harold Pearl in the form of something called a roll-a-book a prototype for a new way of telling stories to children. Uncle Walt, in his exceptional wisdom instantly saw the opportunity A. for a heart-warming childrens tale and B. to make a lot of money and bought the rights to make a film about the young flying elephant. Originally envisioned as a short, Disney thought that the quality of the story warranted a feature-length flick and so we have the world-famous version of Dumbo that exists today.