Garfield's Halloween Adventure Information & Garfield's Halloween Adventure Links at HealthHaven.com

Title Card

Garfield's Halloween Adventure (also known as "Garfield in Disguise") is a Halloween animated television special, first broadcast on CBS on October 30, 1985, and was reran on the network annually until 2000. Garfield's Halloween Adventure is the fourth half-hour special based on the Garfield comic strip and the first Garfield holiday special. It features the voice and music talent common in Garfield animated specials including Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield and Lou Rawls as the singing voice of Garfield providing songs.

The special was released on VHS in 1992, and later on DVD in 2004 as part of the Garfield: Holiday Celebrations collection.

[edit] Storyline

Garfield is awakened by the Binky The Clown Show and learns that it is Halloween. Garfield enlists Odie's help in Trick-or-treating, hoping to get twice as much candy for himself. After trying on different costumes in the attic, Garfield and Odie settle on pirate costumes.

Soon they are out trick-or-treating amongst other children in the neighborhood. After several encounters with what appear to be real ghosts and goblins in costume, the pair find that they have visited every house in the neighborhood. Garfield notices more houses across the river, so he and Odie take a boat to get to the other side.

Odie misunderstands Garfield's command to "put out the oars" and throws the oars overboard, leaving the boat adrift down the river. Soon the boat arrives at an abandoned dock near a run-down mansion. Garfield and Odie venture inside the home to warm next to the fireplace and are startled to find an old man sitting in a nearby chair. The man tells the pair that they have chosen the wrong night to visit - 100 years ago that very night, pirates, pursued by government troops, buried their treasure in the floor of the mansion and signed a blood oath to return for the treasure at midnight 100 years later. The old man claimed to be the cabin boy, now 110 years old, from this very pirate ship. Before Garfield and Odie could decide on leaving, the old man steals their boat and leaves the two behind.

The clock chimes midnight and Garfield and Odie watch as a ghostly ship materializes on the river and pirate ghosts emerge. Garfield and Odie hide in an empty cupboard as the ghosts reclaim their buried treasure from the floorboards of the house. As the cat and dog stay where they are, one of the ghosts blow the dust off of the treasure chest and it goes into Odie's nose. When Odie sneezes, it alerts the ghosts to their whereabouts. Making a run for it, Garfield and Odie jump into the river to escape, where Odie has to save Garfield as he cannot swim.

The pair wash ashore and find their boat with the candy still inside and untouched. They go home happy and Garfield rewards Odie's rescue by giving him his share of the candy.

Garfield later turns on the television and sees the same old man, (this time in the pirate hat Garfield lost while in the river) hosting an all-night pirate movie festival. Garfield abruptly turns off the television and goes to bed.

[edit] Book adaptation

Cover from the 1992 VHS release

The book adaptation, which retains the original title "Garfield In Disguise," deviates in only a few ways. First, it adds a scene with Garfield telling Odie a little bit about Halloween's history, with its origins as a seventh-century Druid festival celebrating the day of Samhain, Lord of Death. Second, the book implies that the old man himself is a ghost, and their boat is merely pulled away by the current instead of stolen by the old man. And finally, an extra sequence is included in which Garfield takes a ring from the treasure and is followed home by the pirate ghosts until he returns the ring. 12

[edit] Songs in Garfield's Halloween Adventure

"This is the Night" performed by Lou Rawls
"What Should I Be?" performed by Lorenzo Music
"Over the Raging Sea We Go (pirate song)" performed by Lorenzo Music
"Scaredy Cat" performed by Lou Rawls and Desirée Goyette

[edit] Awards

1986 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program

[edit] Trivia

Garfield's Halloween Adventure marks the first appearance of Binky The Clown.
The boat that Garfield and Odie use to cross the river is named "Carolyn," Garfield creator Jim Davis's then-wife's name
The old man, or cabin boy, is 110 years old.
Garfield sings a variation of the sea shanty "Dead Man's Chest."
Garfield calling himself Orangebeard is a parody of Blackbeard.
Garfield's hat's skull changes expressions.
When Garfield and Odie first meet the old man, while panicking it sounds like Garfield says "Ah, run!" It is uncomfirmed if he is actually saying it, as the subtitles list the line as barking and screaming.
This is the actual first time Odie sneezes.

[edit] Production Credits

Written and Created by Jim Davis
Executive Producer Jay Poynor
Produced and Directed by Phil Roman
Music and Lyrics by Ed Bogas and Desirée Goyette
Vocals by: Lou Rawls and Lorenzo Music
With Lorenzo Music as the voice of Garfield
Voices: Thom Huge, Gregg Berger, Linsday Workman, Desiree Goyette
Sequence Director: Sam Nicholson
Layout/Design by Ed Ghertner
Color/Design by Ellie Bogardus
Key Animator David Burgess
Animation by Bill Littlejohn, Lloyd Vaughn, Robert Taylor, Bob Carlson
Effects Animation by Patty Peraza
Key Assistant Art Roman
Assisted by Lee Crowe, Dick Williams, John Boersema, Al Pabian
Ink and Paint by C&D Ink and Paint, Inc. Supervisors Al and Frances Kirsten, Shannon Meyer
Airbursh by David Kuhn
Graphics by Don Foster
Edited by Sam Horta, Mark R. Crookston
Production Manager Ted Bemiller
Production Coordinator Le Williams
Production Assistants Lori McLaughlin, Kim Kennedy
Camera: Ted Bemiller, Gene Orozco
Voice Recording: Hollywood Sound Recorders
Music Recording: Russian Hill Recording-S.F.
Dubbing: B&B Sound Studios
Color: Deluxe
A Film Roman Production In Assoication With United Media Productions

[edit] External links

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