Quincy's Quest

Last updated

Quincy's Quest is a 1979 British family film directed by Robert Reed, and starring Tommy Steele, Mel Martin and Charles Morgan. [1] A version was first shown on television on 23 December 1962 as The Tommy Steele Show: Quincy's Quest. [2]

Contents

Plot

In a department store, unwanted toys are set to be destroyed. One of the rejects, a doll named Quincy (Tommy Steele), embarks on a quest to find Santa Claus, the only person who can save them. The first room Quincy enters is for costume dolls, where he meets Mr. Perfect, who is disgusted by the fact Quincy is a reject. Quincy then explains (through song) why he is happy being such.

Conn is informed via telephone that Quincy is a reject and lures him into his ventriloquist dummy show. This allows Quincy the chance to sing, but then Conn convinces him to board a train, claiming it will lead him straight to Santa’s grotto. While driving it, Quincy runs headfirst into a black train, causing both to explode. He is found by a doll named Rebecca, who takes him to her disappearing village made of building blocks. After Rebecca says that the man of her dreams would wear a uniform, Quincy buys a soldier costume and is mistaken as a real red toy soldier. He is sent to battle blue soldiers, but manages to escape.

The Witch blocks the way upstairs with boxes. Quincy considers giving up before voices in his head encourage him to continue, so he throws a rope up to the next storey. After a short rest, he meets a group of animals: Gerry the Giraffe, Larry the Leopard, Lionel the Lion and Ellie the Elephant, who live in a land of stuffed animals. Quincy convinces them to join him on his quest to save his friends and ends up reuniting with Rebecca. She, however, is revealed to be in contact with the Witch, who kidnaps Quincy and ties him up to be attacked by robots. He is able to use various tanks and missiles to defend himself, which causes the Witch to activate the giant robot Archimedes. Top reprograms it to turn on the Witch and crush her.

Quincy carries Rebecca out into Santa’s grotto, and both turn back into regular dolls in time for a group of children led by Santa to find them. Smithy claims that they are rejects and attempts to destroy them. The children attack Smithy, who all grab toys for themselves, except for Quincy and Rebecca, who are picked up by Santa and kept as reminders of love and compassion being gifts to all. Their friends are saved too.

Production

The film was shot at Shepperton Design Studios. The studio built Archimedes, a ten-foot suit with an unidentified actor inside.

Although it was without fault, the block bridge proved controversial. Designer and Shepperton founder Andrew Ainsworth wanted the bridge to connect like real blocks, using reaction injection molding. However, due to the fact that the cast would dance on top of it, he reinforced it with a welded steel structure, which caused a fire due to the fuel energy contained within the bricks. It was quickly extinguished. Ainsworth then painted the bridge's surface with resin, which caused the cast’s shoes to come off their feet and stick to the ground. [3]

Cast

Book adaptation

In 1981, the same year Quincy’s Quest was repeated on ITV, Tommy Steele published a children’s book simply titled Quincy, based on the film.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Steele</span> British entertainer (born 1936)

Sir Thomas Hicks, known professionally as Tommy Steele, is an English entertainer, regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Claus parade</span> Christmas and holiday season parade

Santa Claus parades, also called Christmas parades, are parades held in some countries to celebrate the official opening of the Christmas season with the arrival of Santa Claus who always appears in the last float. The parades usually include themed floats, dancing or marching groups and bands playing Christmas songs. They are moving pageants that typically end near the centre of a city. Often sponsored by department stores, they may reinforce the store's brand recognition during the important Christmas shopping season.

<i>Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer</i> (TV special) 1964 Christmas TV special

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a 1964 stop motion Christmas animated television special produced by Videocraft International, Ltd. It first aired December 6, 1964, on the NBC television network in the United States and was sponsored by General Electric under the umbrella title of The General Electric Fantasy Hour. The special was based on the 1949 Johnny Marks song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" which was itself based on the poem of the same name written in 1939 by Marks's brother-in-law, Robert L. May. NBC will air the special annually starting in 2024, having previously done so until 1971. From 1972 to 2023, the special aired on CBS, which unveiled a high-definition, digitally remastered version of the program in 2005, re-scanned frame-by-frame from the original 35 mm film elements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mrs. Claus</span> Wife of Santa Claus

Mrs. Claus is the mythical wife of Santa Claus, the Christmas gift-bringer in Western Christmas tradition.

A Chipmunk Christmas is a 1981 animated Christmas television special based on characters from Alvin and the Chipmunks. Produced by Bagdasarian Productions in association with Chuck Jones Enterprises, it first aired on NBC December 14, 1981, nine years after the death of Alvin and the Chipmunks creator Ross Bagdasarian Sr.. This was the first time that Alvin, Simon and David Seville were voiced by Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and the first time that Theodore was voiced by Janice Karman.

<i>The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus</i> 1902 childrens book by L. Frank Baum

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus is a 1902 children's book, written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by Mary Cowles Clark.

<i>The Glo Friends</i> American television series

The Glo Friends is an American animated television series that originally aired in 1986 as a segment of My Little Pony 'n Friends. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions in collaboration with Toei Animation, the 26 segments of Glo Friends played in rotation as a secondary series, alternating with MoonDreamers and Potato Head Kids. Glow Friends was later broadcast on the (CBN) Family Channel from 1989 to 1995 as part of the My Little Pony rebroadcast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Claus in film</span>

Motion pictures featuring Santa Claus constitute their own subgenre of the Christmas film genre. Early films of Santa revolve around similar simple plots of Santa's Christmas Eve visit to children. In 1897, in a short film called Santa Claus Filling Stockings, Santa Claus is simply filling stockings from his pack of toys. Another film called Santa Claus and the Children was made in 1898. A year later, a film directed by George Albert Smith titled Santa Claus was created. In this picture, Santa Claus enters the room from the fireplace and proceeds to trim the tree. He then fills the stockings that were previously hung on the mantle by the children. After walking backward and surveying his work, he suddenly darts at the fireplace and disappears up the chimney.

<i>Lion of Oz</i> 2000 Canadian film

Lion of Oz is a 2000 animated film set before the 1900 children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. It tells the story of how the Cowardly Lion, formerly part of the Omaha Circus, came to be in Oz and how he stopped the Wicked Witch of the East from getting the Flower of Oz. It is based upon the 1995 book Lion of Oz and the Badge of Courage by Roger S. Baum. It was announced by CinéGroupe and Sony Wonder and was released in 2000.

<i>Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys</i> 2001 animated film

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys is a 2001 direct-to-video animated Christmas adventure musical film directed by Bill Kowalchuk for GoodTimes Entertainment. It was released on VHS and DVD on October 30, 2001. The film takes place after the events of the original special, and revisits characters such as Yukon Cornelius, Hermey the elf, Abominable Snow Monster (Bumble) and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, who is now famous in the North Pole.

The Secret World of Santa Claus is a Canadian French children's animated television show. It is syndicated to several countries worldwide, including Teletoon in Canada, and Super RTL in Germany, and is generally seen every December during the holiday season. On December 25, 1999, Christmas Day, The Secret World of Santa Claus marathon took place from 6:00am to 7:00pm. As of 2013, it has been released on 2 DVDs from Cinedigm in the US.

<i>Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer</i> (film) 2000 film by Phil Roman

Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer is a 2000 animated Christmas television special directed by Phil Roman. The special was first released on home video in October, and then aired on The WB network on December 21, 2001. The title and story are based on the 1979 novelty song of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Claus</span> Legendary Christmas figure

Santa Claus is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Christmas Eve. He is said to accomplish this with the aid of Christmas elves, who make the toys in his workshop, and with the aid of flying reindeer who pull his sleigh through the air.

<i>Flahooley</i> Musical

Flahooley is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Sammy Fain.

<i>Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Great Santa Claus Caper</i> 1978 American TV series or program

Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Great Santa Claus Caper, a.k.a. simply The Great Santa Claus Caper, is an animated American television special featuring Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy. Produced by Chuck Jones Enterprises, the special was first broadcast November 30, 1978 on CBS. The special was followed in 1979 by Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile. This is the first special to feature Jones' original character, a dog named Raggedy Arthur, who would go on to become a staple of Raggedy Ann merchandise.

The Sing-a-ma-jigs are an American line of electronic, singing stuffed toys released by Mattel in 2010.

<i>How the Toys Saved Christmas</i> 1996 Italian film

How the Toys Saved Christmas is a 1996 Italian animated film directed by Enzo D'Alò, based on a tale by Gianni Rodari.

<i>The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus</i> (2000 film) 2000 film

The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus is a 2000 American direct-to-video animated fantasy film created by Mike Young Productions and released by Universal Studios Home Entertainment. It is based on the 1902 L. Frank Baum novel of the same name.

<i>Jingle All the Way 2</i> 2014 American film

Jingle All the Way 2 is a 2014 American direct-to-video Christmas comedy film, and a sequel in name only to the 1996 film Jingle All the Way starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Directed by Alex Zamm, Jingle All the Way 2 stars Larry the Cable Guy and Santino Marella. The film is produced by 20th Century Fox and WWE Studios, the motion picture division of WWE, and was released straight-to-video by Fox on December 2, 2014. On-air promotion from WWE occurred on its weekly episode events. When the film was released on video, it was panned by critics.

References

  1. ↑ BFI.org
  2. ↑ "The Tommy Steele Show: Quincy's Quest". IMDb . 23 December 1962.
  3. ↑ "Shepperton Design Studios - Quincy's Quest". Archived from the original on 18 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.