Oliver and Company

Oliver and Company is another one of Disney’s underrated or forgotten films. It might not be the best in terms of animation or storyline, but there are many elements that foreshadow greater things to come in Disney Animation (hint: the Disney Renaissance is coming up!). Oliver and Company was a box-office success and gave Disney animation the confidence they needed to commit to continue releasing films almost every year.

Premiered on: November 13, 1988 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City

Directed by: George Scribner

Produced by: Kathleen Gavin

Based on: Oliver Twist written by Charles Dickens

Sequels: none

Cast:

Joey Lawrence – Oliver
Billy Joel – Dodger
Cheech Marin – Tito
Richard Mulligan – Einstein
Roscoe Lee Browne – Francis
Sheryl Lee Ralph – Rita (speaking)
Ruth Pointer – Rita (singing)
Dom DeLuise – Fagin
Robert Loggia – Sykes
Taurean Blacque – Roscoe
Carl Weintraub – DeSoto
Natalie Gregory – Jenny Foxworth (speaking)
Myhanh Tran – Jenny Foxworth (singing)
William Glover – Winston the Butler
Bette Midler – Georgette
Frank Welker – Old Louie the Hot Dog Vendor

Supervising Animators:

Ruben A. Aquino
Mark Henn
Glen Keane
Doug Krohn
Mike Gabriel
Hendel Butoy

Music by:

J.A.C. Redford
Barry Mann
Howard Ashman
Dan Hartman
Charlie Midngiht
Tom Snow
Dean Pitchford
Jack Feldman
Bruce Sussman
Ron Rocha
Rob Minkoff

Songs:

“Once Upon a Time in New York City”
“Why Should I Worry?”
“Streets of Gold”
“Perfect isn’t Easy”
“Good Company”

Academy Awards: none

The Story:

Oliver and Company opens up on a scene of New York City. It zooms down onto the city and through the streets. Different areas of the city, such as Times Square are shown as the song “Once Upon a Time in New York City” is playing.

On a street is a cardboard box with a sign that reads “Kitties need home: $5.00.” The box is filled with adorable kittens. One by one, each kitten is adopted until there is only one orange kitten left. The sign on the box has changed from “$5.00” to “free” but he is still left alone. When night falls, it starts to rain and the box starts to flood. The box deteriorates from the rain and the kitten is swept away. He runs into an alley where he is chased by stray dogs but he is able to escape by climbing up and over a chain link fence. He then hides on top of a tire of a truck.

The next morning, the truck starts and Oliver the kitten wakes up and jumps off of the tire in time before the truck drives away. He starts to explore the city around him and he tries not to get stepped on by all of the busy feet around him. A hotdog vendor named Old Louie pushes his chart to a spot near Oliver and he starts to sell hotdogs. Oliver loves the smell and is very curious and hungry but the vendor shoos him away.

Across the street, a stray dog named Dodger is strutting around, making kissy faces at a female dog, who wants nothing to do with him. He then hears shouting and sees Old Louie trying to shake Oliver off of his leg. Old Louie throws Oliver into a nearby garbage can and a banana peel falls on the cat’s face. Dodger appears and tells Oliver that he picked the wrong guy to try and get a hotdog from. Oliver tells Dodger to go away but the dog says that he does not eat cats, too much fur! But he has been watching Oliver and he thinks that the kitten needs some guidance. Dodger suggests that they team up and change Old Louie’s mind. All Oliver needs to do is learn some moves. Dodger explains that the city has a beat and Oliver needs to learn the rhythm that goes with it. Suddenly Dodger starts chasing Oliver, who runs scared right into Old Louie! This distraction allows Dodger to grab a chain of hotdogs, which he ties around his neck like a scarf. Oliver manages to escape and he catches up to Dodger, He asks when are they go to eat, but Dodger tells the kitten that the dynamic duo is now a dynamic uno. Dodger takes off through a construction site and Oliver chases him. And he does very well at keeping up but he just can’t quite catch Dodger. Dodger starts to sing “Why Should I Worry” and dances across the tops of cars on a busy street. Dodger keeps dancing and singing and other dogs around him join in. He then starts to head into a dark alley, with Oliver close behind though the dog does not know it.

Down near the docks is a rundown boat that is home to many street dogs. They are all very sleepy, except for Tito who is dancing and Francis who is watching TV and acting along to the story. Tito points out that the show is boring and he wants to watch boxing. The other dogs wake up and they start showing off what they brought in that day. Einstein brought in a broken tennis racket and Francis points out that they need a court and a net for that. Tito brought in a shredded wallet and Francis makes fun of that as well. Rita tells the dogs to stop it and she asks Francis if he has brought in the food, but he hasn’t and everyone is annoyed with him. Dodger then appears in the boat with his chain of hotdogs. Oliver is outside on the deck and he overhears Dodger tell a much exaggerated story about how he got the hotdogs all by himself. He says that he had some fierce competition and then suddenly Oliver falls down through the roof of the boat. All of the dogs run and hide, but then they realize that it is only a kitten. Oliver says that he is just looking for some of the hotdogs he helped steal and everyone laughs at Dodger about his “fierce competition.” This results in playful fighting between the dogs but Oliver runs to hide from the fight.

Then Fagin walks in with a box of dog biscuits and the excited dogs tackle their beloved human. There is a car honk outside and Fagin very fearfully says that it is Mr. Sykes. Outside, two Dobermans head down to the boat. Fagin starts to whimper about how his dogs have let him down by not bringing in anything of value to pay back Sykes. He does find Oliver, but has no time to react to the kitten as the Dobermans burst through the door. They aggressively herd Fagin outside.

Fagin then timidly approaches Syke’s car. Sykes asks for the money that Fagin owes him, but Fagin instead gives him a chest filled with what he calls “luxury items.” It really is just filled with the junk that the dogs brought in. Fagin nervously rambles on and on about random stuff as Sykes looks through the chest. He is not impressed and throws everything down into the water. Sykes then threatens Fagin by rolling his neck up in the car window and he tells Fain that he will get hurt if he does not return the money.

Down in the boat, Roscoe, one of Sykes’ Dobermans, is trying to convince Rita to leave that dump and join them. He then gets into an argument with all of the dogs as DeSoto, the other Doberman, sniffs around the boat, catching the scent of Oliver.

Back on the dock, Fagin is begging Sykes not to hurt him and so Sykes gives him three more days to get the money. Sykes then honks the horn of his car very loudly and Fagin falls into the water.

In the boat, DeSoto finds Oliver but Roscoe tells him to forget about the kitten because they have to go. But then Oliver scratches DeSoto’s nose and both Dobermans snarl at him. Dodger jumps in to protect the kitten and the other dogs join him. Sykes keeps honking the horn and so the Dobermans leave, but they threaten the other dogs as they do. The Dobermans say that they are going to pay, starting with that cat!

Fagin comes back into the boat and is very upset about only having three days. His dogs try to comfort him and it works. Fagin cheers up and he says that he saw DeSoto’s scratch on his nose and asks who did that. Dodger presents Oliver to him and Fagin laughs and tells Oliver that it must have taken a lot of guts. He invites Oliver to be part of their gang. Fagin says that it is time for bed but Einstein whines and gives him a book because he wants a bedtime story first. So Fagin reads just one chapter, Chapter 7, about Sparky the dog and Bumper the Rabbit. They then all fall asleep gathered around Fagin, except for Dodger who goes to sleep on his own bed. But then Oliver goes to snuggle up with him.

The next morning, Fagin is driving around with all of the dogs in his half scooter-half shopping cart vehicle. He tells the dogs that a dead man does not buy dog food so that they must get out there and fetch! They give Oliver some on the job training as Rita leads the song “Streets of Gold.” Then they spot a limo and see their chance. Dodger assigns them all tasks. Tito and Oliver jump onto the back of the limo as everyone else gets into place.

Inside the limo, a little girl named Jenny is reading out loud a letter from her parents to Winston the butler. The letter is about how her parents are staying longer in Europe and she is very disappointed with this news. Winston tries to cheer her up by saying that he is sure they will be home for her birthday but Jenny does not believe so.

Outside, Einstein gets hit by the limo on purpose but then Francis takes his place as the injured dog to distract Winston. He is very dramatic about his supposed injury. Tito and Oliver jump inside the limo. Tito tells Oliver to be the lookout while he works. The Chihuahua starts to chew on the wires but then Oliver is distracted by movement in the back seat. He falls onto the keys in the ignition and turns on the car. This electrocutes Tito and the car goes bonkers as everything turns on! This is Francis’ cue and he takes off with all of the other dogs. Oliver is left behind because he got tangled up in the car wires. Jenny finds him and untangles him. When the dogs discover that he is missing, Dodger and Tito go after him while the others get back to Fagin.

At Jenny’s home, Winston is trying to convince the girl not to take in the stray cat but Jenny really wants to keep him. She does not think that her parents will mind. Winston says that Georgette is not going to like this! He goes to wake up Jenny’s poodle and he sarcastically tells the dog that her public awaits. He flips on a switch and leaves the room. Curtains rise over an elevated, rotating dog bed. Georgette walks to her vanity with curlers in her fur and she is wearing a fancy robe. She starts to sing “Perfect isn’t Easy” as she gets ready. All of the birds and squirrels start to chirp along with her, reminiscent of a Disney princess, and the neighbourhood dogs fall head over heels for her.

In the kitchen, Jenny is making a huge mess trying to fix up some dinner for Oliver. The phone rings and it is Jenny’s parents. She leaves Oliver alone in the kitchen and races to the phone. Georgette is heading to the kitchen when Winston warns her not to go in there. But she does and is shocked to see a kitten in there. Georgette is not impressed and she barks at Winston to come and do something about it, but he doesn’t come so Georgette thinks that she will have to do something herself. She pretends to be very nice as she greets Oliver. She asks Oliver if he knows whose bowl he is eating out of and he correctly guesses hers. Then she asks whose house he is in and he says that he thought it was Jenny’s. Georgette tells Oliver that everything from the doorknobs down is hers! Then Jenny comes back into the kitchen and says that her parents said that she could keep Oliver and that she is sure that Georgette and Oliver will be the best of friends!

At a pawn shop, Francis, Einstein, and Rita are waiting outside when Dodger and Tito arrive. The two dogs say that they found where Oliver went but that he is in a large house and they have no idea how to get him back. Fagin is inside the pawn shop trying to pawn a broken watch.

Back at Jenny’s house, she is practicing the piano but keeps getting distracted by a snuggly Oliver. She then sings and plays “Good Company” as Oliver flips the pages for her. Georgette walks by and is very jealous. The scene zooms out of the window and away from the house. Oliver and Jenny are then playing in Central Park. They go boating, run around, eat ice cream, and go for a carriage ride. Oliver then gets his very own engraved bowl and tag with a new collar. Back at Jenny’s home, she is getting ready for bed and Oliver is making himself comfy on her pillow.

The next day, Jenny is getting on the school bus when Dodger and his gang pop out of the bushes nearby. Winston is inside watching wrestling when Einstein rings the doorbell. He runs away and Francis lies on the doorstep and acts like he is injured. Winston comes out to check on him but then Francis starts licking Winston’s face. The butler is annoyed with being tricked again by the same dog. He starts to chase Francis but then the other dogs go inside the house behind his back and the door slams. Winston hears this and turns around so Francis then has a chance to also run inside and then the door slams again. A very confused Winston is now locked outside.

Inside, the dogs are tracking their dirty pawprints everywhere and they cannot get over how large the house is. Upstairs, Georgette is complaining to herself about Oliver when Dodger suddenly appears. She barks for Winston, who has just climbed in through a window in the kitchen, but he does not come upstairs yet. Dodger assures Georgette that he is not here for her and she is actually insulted at this. Georgette goes over all her trophies and accomplishments and Dodger sarcastically says how impressive that is. The other dogs then appear in Georgette’s room and Tito is instantly smitten with her. But Georgette wants nothing to do with him. They start to go through her stuff and Georgette keeps telling them to get out. Dodger says that they will leave as soon as they get their cat. Georgette is all for that and offers to help.

Winston comes upstairs to look for the stray dogs and he peeks into Georgette’s room. She has them all hidden under her blankets and she smiles sweetly and Winston. He falls for it and leaves. Georgette then brings the dogs to Oliver, who is sleeping on Jenny’s bed. Rita thinks that he look so happy and that maybe they should just leave him there but Georgette protests. They then hear Winston coming and so she throws Oliver into a pillow case that Einstein and Francis are holding and the street dogs all take off through a window and down the fire escape.

Back at the boat, Oliver is very confused at what is going on and everyone else is very impressed with themselves at their rescue. But Oliver is protesting because he was so happy there and he is now upset that he was taken away. Dodger is a little insulted because he thinks that Oliver thinks that their place is not good enough for him anymore. He tells Oliver to just leave. The kitten sadly starts to take off but Fagin comes home and picks him up and brings him to a chair to cuddle. But then Fagin sees Oliver’s new collar and thinks that the kitten’s new owner must be worried sick. That gives Fagin an idea to ransom Oliver for money. He starts to write a note to Mr. Very Rich Cat Owner Person.

Jenny gets home from school and is very worried when she cannot find Oliver. She tells Georgette to help look for him and the poodle does sarcastically, and throws Oliver’s bowl into the garbage along the way. Jenny finds Fagin’s note shoved in the mail slot. It says that she needs to bring money or she will never see the cat again. Jenny assures Georgette that they are going to get Oliver back, much to the poodle’s dismay.

Outside of Sykes’ shipping building, Fagin is practicing his speech about his plan to ransom the cat. He then rings the doorbell and starts to lose his nerve. But Fagin goes inside with Dodger and when he gets to Sykes’ office, the other man is on the phone talking to someone about forms of torture. Fagin then stumbles over his speech after Sykes hangs up and so Sykes snaps his fingers and his Dobermans attack Fagin. Dodger jumps in the way to protect his master. Fagin finally stumbles enough words out to convince Sykes of his plan and he shows Sykes Oliver. Sykes calls his dogs off and gives Fagin 12 more hours as his last chance.

Jenny and Georgette are walking around lost down near the docks, trying to follow the ridiculous map that Fagin drew. Fagin is nearby, waiting for the rich man to show up for his cat and he starts to freak out about someone actually coming or not or if the owner is big and mean. Jenny then appears and startles Fagin when she asks for help. Fagin tells her to go home because it is a tough neighbourhood but Jenny says that she can’t because she is lost. Oliver notices Jenny and tries to get out of Fagin’s pocket, but Fagin won’t let him. Fagin tells Jenny that he is too busy to help her and then asks what she is doing there. Jenny says that she is out looking for her kitty. Fagin then realizes what has happened and he makes sure that Jenny can’t see Oliver. He is not impressed that Jenny only has a piggy bank in exchange for her cat. Sykes is watching all of this from his car. Fagin starts to feel really guilty as Jenny cries over not being able to find Oliver so he pretends that he has just found the cat! And he gives Oliver back to Jenny. Sykes then drives over and kidnaps Jenny. Fagin tries to stop him but Sykes tells Fagin to keep his mouth shut and that their account is closed. He takes off and Dodger rallies the dogs and Oliver to get Jenny back.

At Sykes’ shipping yard, the dogs spy one open window as a way in. They stack up a bunch of crates and Francis climbs to the top. He jumps down onto a plank and it sends Oliver shooting through the air in a football helmet. He goes flying right through the window. Inside, Oliver unlocks a lower window and lets in the gang. Georgette accidently alerts Roscoe and DeSoto that they are there when she screams after breaking a nail. A security camera almost catches them but Tito chews ups the wires and turns it off.

In Sykes office, he has Jenny tied up and he is on the phone with Winston about the ransom. Jenny notices the dogs on other security footage and she knows that they are going to rescue her.

Einstein, Francis, and Tito are at the office door, dressed like a pizza delivery guy and this gets Sykes’ attention, before the dogs take off. Sykes leaves the office to try and find the pizza guy and his own dogs. Dodger, Rita, and Oliver sneak into the office. The other dogs run into the Dobermans, but Georgette saves them by dropping a tarp on Roscoe and DeSoto. Then all of the dogs run into the office. They try to untie Jenny from the chair but are unable to. So Tito, after some flirty encouragement from Georgette, hotwires a hook on a pulley rope and they all climb onto the chair with Jenny and go flying off. Sykes cuts the rope with an axe and they crash down to the floor. They almost get attacked by Roscoe and DeSoto but Fagin comes bursting through on his scooter/shopping cart vehicle just in time to save his gang. They go racing off through the city with Fagin. Sykes chases them down to the subway in his car. The chases continues thorugh the subway tunnels and Jenny flies out of the shopping cart and onto Sykes’ car. Oliver jumps to save her but gets stuck inside the car. Dodger then goes to save the kitten. He defeats Roscoe when the Doberman falls down onto the electric tracks, and then Oliver saves Dodger from DeSoto by jumping on the Doberman’s head. DeSoto falls down onto the tracks as well. Jenny is still on the hood on the car but is saved right in time as a subway train comes racing towards them when they reach a bridge. Sykes’ car gets smashed by the subway but Fagin’s vehicle drives onto the railing of the bridge. At first, they think the Oliver didn’t make it, but he turns out ok.

The next scene is of Jenny’s birthday. Fagin and his gang are there to celebrate and everyone is singing/howling “Happy Birthday.” Afterwards, Tito and Georgette are dancing together and Winston and Fagin are watching wrestling. The phone rings and it is Jenny’s father, who says that they will be home the next day. Fagin and his gang head off and Jenny thanks everyone for the gifts, which are all pieces of trash. But before Dodger leaves, he tells Oliver that there will always be a spot open in the gang for him. Then everyone leaves and sings a reprise of “Why Should I Worry.”

The end credits roll with different tracks from the film.

Trivia:

• This was the first Disney animated film to have a separate CGI department
• Pongo and Roger from One Hundred and One Dalmatians, and Jock from Lady and the Tramp make cameo appearances.
• “Once Upon a Time in New York City” was sung by famous musician Huey Lewis.
• Fagin has a Mickey Mouse watch.
• Tito’s full name is Ignacio Alonso Julio Federico de Tito.
• A crew was sent to New York City to film footage from a dog’s point of view, 18 inches off of the ground.
• Many of the inanimate objects were animated using CGI.
• Fagin’s chair is an old airplane seat; when he wants to sleep, it just tilts back.
• Each song was written by a separate team of composers, hence the very long list of musicians.
• The date when Oliver first joins Fagin’s gang is April 21, 1988. This can be seen on a calendar on the wall.
• Jenny’s home is 1125 5^th Avenue, New York City. The film shows this to be a corner home and in actuality, this address is on the corner of 5^th Avenue. But the real building is a multi-unit building instead of a single-unit row home.
• Dodger is a Jack Russell Terrier, Tito is a Chihuahua, Rita is an Afghan Hound, Einstein is a Great Dane, and Francis is a Bulldog.

Representation in the Disney Parks:

There is currently no representation of Oliver and Company in the Disney Parks. In 1988, there was a parade float that featured characters from the film in the Magic Kingdom.

Check out the other films of Disney’s Bronze Age:

The Aristocats (1970)
Robin Hood (1973)
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
The Rescuers (1977)
The Fox and the Hound (1981)
The Black Cauldron (1985)
The Great Mouse Detective (1986)