Throwback Machine: Country Bear Jamboree

This one is interesting to tackle because it has recently became popular on social media again, so i figured "Why not talk about it?"

Personally I have not experienced Country Bear Jamboree since i watched the movie based on it but i plan on giving it a chance next month again. But i not a big fan of country music so we will see!

Country Bear Jamboree was an opening day attraction at Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World so it will be a part of the "45th Anniversary Club" for Magic Kingdom attractions later this year. Versions of this attraction was duplicated at Disneyland resort and Tokyo Disney Resort due to popularity.

In short, this is a stage show featuring audio animatronic bears singing country music. And you will be surrounded by bears. They rise from the stage on a platform, come down from the ceiling, and reveal themselves from behind curtains. Similar to Muppetvision 3D, the audience includes audio animatronic animal heads mounted on the wall that interact with the animatronics on stage.

The history behind this attraction is pretty deep as this was an attraction Walt had a hand in before passing. In the 1960's , Walt was attempting to build a Mineral King Ski Resort and Country Bear Jamboree was supposed to actually be here. Below is concept art for the "Alpine Village" that was to be part of Mineral King Ski Resort from Yesterland.com

Walt wanted some sort of entertainment for the guests visiting and he knew he wanted it to be a bear band. And with that, Disney Legend and Imagineer, Marc Davis, was assigned for the project.

Many bear groups were conceptualized from bear mariachi bands to dixieland bears. The story goes that Walt walked in and laughed because he loved the characters. On his way out he said goodbye to Davis, which he was known never to say. This would unknowingly be the last time Davis would see Walt as he died several days later. Davis said he was honored to have given walt his last laugh.

The plans progressed after his death and it was decided that the attraction would be in the resort's bear band restaurant show and would be country themed. As we know, the resort never came to be but the country bear jamboree plans lived on. It was decided that the attraction would be put in Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in time for opening day in 1971. Imagineers X Atencio  and Musical Director George Bruns came up with the songs for the bears to sing. Below is concept art for the bears featured in the show.

Here is a full list of the bears, animal mounted heads and their descriptions from Wikipedia:

Henry- The Master of Ceremonies of the show, Henry is a welcoming and friendly brown bear. He wears a grey top hat, starched shirt front, and a string tie. In some parts of the show, he plays a yellow guitar. It is implied that he and Teddi have some sort of backstage romance. Voiced by Peter Renaday.

Liver Lips McGrowl- Liver Lips is perhaps the funniest-looking bear. He gets his name from his very large lips. He is a brown bear and plays the guitar. Since Florida's 2012 refurb, he has a messy, unkempt head of long hair in the Florida version of the show. He is voiced by Jimmy Stoneman.

Wendell- Wendell is a hyperactive golden brown bear who plays the mandolin. He wears a blue bandanna around his neck and a light brown hat. He also has a massive overbite and buck teeth. He is voiced by Bill Cole. Wendell's role in the Florida version of the show was severely reduced during the October 2012 refurb when "Fractured Folk Song" was removed, and is no longer mentioned by name.

Teddi Berra- Teddi Berra is a unique bear because she never appears on stage. Instead she descends from a hole in the ceiling on her swing, which is decorated with pink roses. She is a brown bear and wears a blue hat with a pink feather (In 2012 of the Florida version of the show, she received a new violet sequined hat) as well as a long pink boa around her neck. She is voiced by Patsy Stoneman.

Ernest- Ernest is a brown bear who plays the fiddle. He wears a derby and a red polka-dot bowtie around his neck. He was voiced by Van Stoneman from October 1971 until July 1975, when his vocals were rerecorded by Randy Sparks. Stoneman's recording can still be heard on the 1971 record and 2003 CD.

Terrence (aka Shaker)- A tall bear with tan fur, Terrence wears a hat, a yellow vest (Since Florida's 2012 refurb), and plays the guitar. He is voiced by Van Stoneman.

Trixie- Trixie is a very large brown bear who wears a blue bow on her head, a blue tutu around her waist, and holds a blue handkerchief in her left hand. She also has a slight crush on Henry. She is voiced by Cheryl Poole.

Big Al- Big Al is the fattest bear. He is grey with a light grey belly (Though his fur was changed to brown in 2012 in the Florida version of the show) and wears a tan hat and a red vest. He plays an always out-of-tune guitar and is voiced by Tex Ritter from his hit album, Blood on the Saddle (1960).

The Sun Bonnet Trio

• Bunny- Bunny stands in the center of the stage. She is voiced by Jackie Ward. Because she and her sisters are triplets, they all have brown fur and wear matching blue bonnets and dresses.
• Bubbles- Bubbles stands to the audience's left between Gomer and Bunny, and is voiced by Loulie Jean Norman.
• Beulah- Beulah stands to the audience's right and is voiced by Peggy Clark.

Gomer- Gomer Is A bear never sings but instead plays his piano, which has a honeycomb on top of it. He is considered Henry's right-hand bear. He was originally brown, but during the Florida 2012 refurbishment his appearance changed and he is now a deep burgundy red with a blonde goatee and a new hat.

The Five Bear Rugs

• Zeke- Considered the leader of The Five Bear Rugs, Zeke plays a banjo and taps on the dishpan with "a real ol' country beat". He is a grey bear with glasses who wears a tan top hat. He was voiced by Dallas McKennon from October 1971 until July 1975, when Randy Sparks rerecorded his vocals. McKennon's recording as Zeke can still be heard on the 1971 record and the 2003 CD. Zeke's solo song "Pretty Little Devilish Mary" was removed from the Florida version of the show in October 2012.
• Zeb- Zeb is brown bear with a light brown stomach. He plays the fiddle as well as wears a bandanna around his neck and a derby hat. He is voiced by a member of the Stoneman family.
• Ted- Ted is a tall, skinny bear who blows on the cornjug and plays the washboard. His fur is brown, and he wears a vest with a brown hat.
• Fred- The biggest of the five bears, Fred ironically plays the smallest instrument: the mouthharp. He is a brown bear and wears blue jeans held up with suspenders as well as a striped red and white tie.
• Tennessee- Tennessee Bear plays the thang, which has only one string. He is blonde bear (brown in Tokyo Disneyland) and wears a bandanna around his neck. He is voiced by a member of the Stoneman family.

Baby Oscar- Oscar appears with The Five Bear Rugs, but plays no instrument. In fact, he never says a word. He is a brown bear and always has his teddy bear to keep him company. In the 1971 album, it is mentioned that Zeb is his father.

Other Animals[edit]

Buff- Buff is considered the leader of the mounted animal heads and is also the largest. He is the head portion of an American bison. He is voiced by Disney legend Thurl Ravenscroft.

Max- Max is the head portion of a whitetail buck and is voiced by Peter Renaday.

Melvin- Melvin, a bull moose head, is of the animal head trio. He often makes good-natured jokes and is voiced by Bill Lee.

At Disneyland, Max, Buff, and Melvin currently reside in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, which replaced the Country Bear Playhouse in 2003 (Which had closed two years prior). They hang above the entrance to the "Hunny Heaven" room, but riders must turn around in order to see them. The set of Max, Buff & Melvin featured there were not the Audio-Animatronic figures found in either of the Playhouse's two theaters, but rather the static, non-anmatronic ones that were found next door in the Mile Long Bar.

Sammy- Sammy is Henry's raccoon pal who cuddles around Henry's top hat. He acts like a coonskin cap for Henry. He is voiced by Bill Cole. In the Country Bear Vacation Hoedown, Sammy gets replaced by a skunk named Randy.

Here is the list of songs sang by the bears:

• "Pianjo" (Don Robertson) - Gomer and Henry
• "Bear Band Serenade" (Lyrics: Xavier Atencio, Music: George Bruns) - The Five Bear Rugs, Gomer, and Henry
• "If Ya Can't Bite, Don't Growl" (Tommy Collins) - Ernest and the Five Bear Rugs
• "My Woman Ain't Pretty (But She Don't Swear None)" (Frankie Starr & Paul E. Miller) - Liver Lips McGrowl
• "Mama, Don't Whip Little Buford" (Burns & Haynes) - Henry and Wendell
• "Tears Will Be the Chaser For Your Wine" (Dale Davis & Leroy Goates) - Trixie
• "How Long Will My Baby Be Gone" (Buck Owens) - Terrence
• "All the Guys That Turn Me On Turn Me Down" (Plot & Powell) - The Sun Bonnet Trio
• "Heart, We Did All We Could" (Ned Miller) - Teddi Barra
• "Blood on the Saddle" (Everett Cheetham) - Big Al
• "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (Tom Blackburn and George Bruns) - Henry and Sammy
• "Ole Slew Foot" (Howard Hausey) - Cast (minus Ernest and Trixie, who do not appear onstage, and Big Al, who reprises "Blood on the Saddle")
• "Come Again" (Tom Adair & George Bruns) - Henry, Sammy, Max, Buff, and Melvin

It opened with Magic Kingdom on opening day October 1,1971 and it was so liked by guests that imagineers worked immediately to replicate it at Disneyland Resort. The Disneyland Version was called "Bear Country" and due to capacity, at Disneyland it was built with two theaters, each housing an identical copy of the show. The Disneyland version opened March 24, 1972.

Bear Country Artwork
PC:Yesterland.com

Bear Country Guidebook Page
PC: Yesterland.com

In 1984, the Country Bear Christmas Special was born at Disney World and Disneyland Resorts.




In 1986, the Vacation Hoedown debuted at the parks. It debuted at  Disneyland in February and at Disney World in May. Until 2005 the Christmas Special showed at the Country Bear Jamboree at Disney World.

 

The Disneyland version closed it doors on September 9, 2001 to make room for "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh."

On August 21, 2012, the Disney World version went down for an almost 2 month refurb. All the characters in the show received new skin, fur, and costumes. The songs "Pretty Little Devilish Mary" and "Fractured Folk Song" and some of the dialogue were removed, while other songs were shortened. The show is now 4 to 5 minutes shorter than it was before. The shorter version of the show opened on October 17, 2012.







To this day, The Country Bear Jamboree still thrives as one of the popular opening day attractions still in operation.

As a special treat, take this quiz! Find out which Country Bear you are most like!

WHICH COUNTRY BEAR ARE YOU MOST LIKE?