title: Kid Rock

text: In 2000, "Rolling Stone" reported that Ritchie was dating model Jaime King. He began dating actress Pamela Anderson in 2001 and they became engaged in April 2002, but ended their relationship in 2003. They later reconciled and were married in July 2006. Three months later, on November 10, it was announced that Anderson, who had been pregnant with Ritchie's child, had miscarried. On November 27, she filed for divorce from Ritchie in Los Angeles County Superior Court, citing irreconcilable differences. Ritchie later claimed that the divorce was due to Anderson openly criticizing his mother and sister in front of his son.


title: Kid Rock

text: In 2014, Ritchie became a grandfather when his son's girlfriend gave birth to a daughter. In November 2017, he became engaged to longtime girlfriend Audrey Berry.


title: Kid Rock

text: In 1989, Ritchie became a shareholder of the independent record label Top Dog Records, formed by Alvin Williams and Earl Blunt of EB-Bran Productions, in 1988; Ritchie's investment in the company gave him 25% ownership. In 2001, he filed a lawsuit to gain full control over the Top Dog record label, resulting in his receiving full ownership of the label in 2003. Ritchie also founded Kid Rock's Made in Detroit restaurant and bar, which specializes in Southern-style cuisine.


title: Kid Rock

text: In 2002, Ritchie performed alongside Chuck D and Grandmaster Flash in tribute to slain DJ Jam Master Jay. His performance at the Super Bowl XXXVIII, in 2004, drew criticism from Veterans of Foreign Wars and Senator Zell Miller for wearing the American flag with one slit in the middle, as a poncho; Ritchie was accused of "desecrating" the flag.


title: Kid Rock

text: In January 2005, Ritchie performed at the inaugural address of reelected president George W. Bush, sparking criticism from conservative groups, due to Ritchie's lyrics. In September, Kid Rock filled in for Johnny Van Zant, the lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, on the band's hit "Sweet Home Alabama" at the Hurricane Katrina benefit concert. In 2007 and 2008, Ritchie toured for the United Service Organizations. Also in 2008, Ritchie recorded and made a music video for the song "Warrior" for a National Guard advertising campaign.


title: Kid Rock

text: A philanthropist, Ritchie oversees The Kid Rock Foundation, a charity which raises funds for multiple causes, including campaigns which sent "Kid Rock care packages" to U.S. military personnel stationed overseas. Ritchie is an advocate for affordable concert tickets, and makes an effort to try and sell tickets to his performances for as low as possible to encourage increased concert attendance for lower income consumers and discourage scalping. Instead of getting paid for the show, he gets a percentage of concession and ticket sales.


title: Kid Rock

text: In 2011, Ritchie was honored by the NAACP, which sparked protests stemming from his past display of the Confederate flag in his concerts. During the ceremony, Kid Rock elaborated on his display of the flag, stating, "[I] never flew the flag with hate in my heart [...] I love America, I love Detroit, and I love black people." Ritchie's publicist announced that 2011 was the year he officially distanced himself from the flag. In 2012, Kid Rock performed alongside Travie McCoy and The Roots in honor of the Beastie Boys, during the band's induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In 2013, Ritchie criticized Republican lawmakers in New York for passing laws which made it difficult for him to keep concert ticket prices low.


title: Kid Rock

text: In January 2015, Ritchie was criticized by fans for appearing in a photograph holding up a dead cougar that was killed on a hunting trip with Ted Nugent. In 2015, following the Charleston church shooting, the Michigan chapter of the National Action Network protested outside of the Detroit Historical Museum which honored Ritchie; activists urged Ritchie to renounce the Confederate flag, which he had displayed in concerts from 2001 to 2006. Ritchie wrote an email to Fox News Channel host Megyn Kelly, stating, "Please tell the people who are protesting to kiss my ass". The same day, the National Action Network protested Chevrolet for sponsoring Ritchie's tour. In September 2016, Ritchie was criticized for allegedly saying "man, fuck Colin Kaepernick" during a live performance of his song "Born Free".


title: Kid Rock

text: In November 2017, Ritchie fired his publicist, Kirt Webster, after Webster was accused of sexual misconduct. On April 6, 2018, Ritchie was inducted into the Celebrity Wing of the WWE Hall of Fame during the weekend of Wrestlemania 34.


title: Kid Rock

text: On November 30, 2019, Ritchie drew controversy after he was recorded making a series of inappropriate statements while intoxicated at his restaurant in Nashville, including rude comments about Oprah Winfrey and Joy Behar. After receiving major pushback for his comments, Ritchie decided to close the Detroit branch of his restaurant in December 2019, located at the Little Caesar's Arena. When asked for comment about the closure, he stated that "it's wise to go where you're celebrated, not tolerated". In a June 2022 interview with Tucker Carlson on "Tucker Carlson Originals: Life of a Rockstar", Richie refused to apologize for the incident.


title: Kid Rock

text: In June 2021, Kid Rock attracted further controversy for using the word "faggot" onstage during a tirade against fans who were filming his performance. He later defended his remarks while reaffirming his love for his homosexual friends. In July 2022 he faced additional accusations of homophobia after, on June 30, 2022, he posted a meme on Truth Social and on Twitter stating, "If you're anti-gun, you don't get to celebrate the 4th of July, You would have never fought back. Enjoy your pride month. Pussy."


title: Kid Rock

text: Ritchie is a supporter of the Republican Party, although he has routinely proclaimed himself as libertarian philosophically, stating he has socially liberal views on topics like abortion and gay marriage but conservative views on economics. Ritchie has advocated legalizing and taxing marijuana, cocaine, and heroin. He has also stated, "I don't think crazy people should have guns." He was a vocal supporter of American military involvement in the Iraq War. Ritchie has met with presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump while they were in office. Regarding his political views, Ritchie said, "I have friends everywhere. Democrat, Republican, this that and the other. ... We're all human beings first, Americans second. Let's find some common ground and get along." However, during his speech at the 2018 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, he stated that he wanted to "body slam some Democrats".


title: Kid Rock

text: Ritchie supported Bill Clinton and George W. Bush during their presidencies. In 2008, Ritchie supported newly elected President Barack Obama, saying that the president's election was "a great thing for black people." In 2012, Ritchie campaigned for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney; the candidate used Ritchie's song "Born Free" as his campaign theme. In 2015, Ritchie publicly endorsed Ben Carson for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election. In February 2016, he voiced approval for Donald Trump's campaign for the same office. In December, Kid Rock sparked controversy for selling vulgar T-shirts supporting Trump at concerts, including one showing a map of the United States which labelled the states which had voted against Trump as "Dumbfuckistan".


title: Kid Rock

text: On July 12, 2017, Ritchie shared a photo of a "Kid Rock for US Senate" yard sign on Twitter. He also launched a website at kidrockforsenate.com, which sold merchandise bearing that inscription. Several weeks later, he wrote a post on his blog stating that he was still "exploring my candidacy", and that, whether or not he ran, he wanted to register people to vote, because "although people are unhappy with the government, too few are even registered to vote or do anything about it." He added that he wanted "to help working class people in Michigan and America all while still calling out these jackass lawyers who call themselves politicians." His statements sparked media speculation that he would try to run on the Republican ticket against sitting Michigan senator Debbie Stabenow, as well as enthusiasm from some prominent Republicans, including former New York Governor George Pataki, who wrote on Twitter, "Kid Rock is exactly the kind of candidate the GOP needs right now." In an October 2017 interview with Howard Stern, Ritchie put an end to the speculation, saying that he had never intended to run for Senate, adding rhetorically, "Who couldn't figure that out?". He later clarified that the campaign was a joke that he had started after a Michigan state legislator encouraged him to run for Senate. He expressed surprise at the interest his potential candidacy had received, but also disappointment that some opposed to his candidacy had brought up his previous use of the Confederate flag to label him a racist. He donated the $122,000 he had raised by selling "Kid Rock for U.S. Senate" merchandise to CRNC Action, a College Republican group.


title: Kid Rock

text: In both March 1991 and September 1997, Ritchie faced misdemeanor charges stemming from alcohol-related arrests in Michigan.


title: Kid Rock

text: In 2006, California pornographic film company Red Light District attempted to distribute a 1999 sex tape in which Kid Rock and Scott Stapp, lead singer of the band Creed, are seen partying and receiving oral sex from groupies; both Rock and Stapp filed with the California courts to sue the pornographers to stop the tape's distribution.


title: Kid Rock

text: At the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, Ritchie got into a fistfight with Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee, another ex of Anderson's, and was charged with assault. A month later, he was arrested and charged with battery after fighting with a Waffle House customer. He pleaded no contest to one count and was fined $1,000, as well as being required to perform 80 hours of community service and complete a six-hour anger management course.


title: Kid Rock

text: On December 22, 2017, Kid Rock was sued by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (which closed seven months earlier) for using their slogan "Greatest Show on Earth" as the name of his 2018 tour. In January 2018, Kid Rock changed the tour's name to "American Rock N' Roll Tour" as a result of the lawsuit.


title: David Carradine

text: David Carradine ( ; born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor best known for playing martial arts roles. He is perhaps best known as the star of the 1970s television series "Kung Fu", playing Kwai Chang Caine, a peace-loving Shaolin monk travelling through the American Old West. He also portrayed the title character in both of the . He appeared in two Martin Scorsese films: "Boxcar Bertha" and "Mean Streets".


title: David Carradine

text: David Carradine was a member of the Carradine family of actors that began with his father, John Carradine. The elder Carradine's acting career, which included major and minor roles on stage, television, and in cinema, spanned more than four decades. A prolific "B" movie actor, David Carradine appeared in more than 100 feature films in a career spanning more than six decades. He received nominations for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award for his work on "Kung Fu", and received three additional Golden Globe nominations for his performances in the Woody Guthrie biopic "Bound for Glory" (1976), the television miniseries "North and South" (1985), and Quentin Tarantino's "", for which he won the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor.


title: David Carradine

text: Throughout his life, Carradine was arrested and prosecuted for a variety of offenses, which often involved substance abuse. Films that featured Carradine continued to be released after his death. These posthumous credits were from a variety of genres including action, documentaries, drama, horror, martial arts, science fiction, and westerns. In addition to his acting career, Carradine was a director and musician. Moreover, influenced by his "Kung Fu" role, he studied martial arts. On April 1, 1997, Carradine received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine was born John Arthur Carradine Jr. on December 8, 1936, in Hollywood, California, the eldest child of actor John Carradine (1906–1988) and his wife Ardanelle Abigail ("née" McCool) Carradine (1911–1989). He was a half-brother of Bruce, Keith, Christopher, and Robert Carradine, and an uncle of Ever Carradine and Martha Plimpton, most of whom are also actors. Primarily of Irish descent, he was a great-grandson of Methodist evangelical author Beverly Carradine and a grandnephew of artist Will Foster. Called "Jack" by his family, Carradine had a turbulent childhood. His parents divorced and repeatedly remarried; he was born to his mother's second marriage of three, and his father's first of four. At the time of Carradine's parents' marriage, his mother already had a son by her first husband, whom John adopted. John Carradine planned to have a large family, but after his wife had a series of miscarriages, he discovered she had gotten numerous abortions without his knowledge which had rendered her unable to carry a baby to term.


title: David Carradine

text: Against this backdrop of marital discord, David almost succeeded in committing suicide by hanging at the age of five. He said the incident followed his discovery that he and his elder half-brother, Bruce, who had been adopted by John, had different biological fathers. Carradine added, "My father saved me, and then confiscated my comic book collection and burned it—which was scarcely the point." After three years of marriage, Ardenelle filed for divorce from John, but they remained married for five more years. Divorce finally came in 1944, when Carradine was seven. His father left California to avoid court action in the alimony settlement. After the couple had a series of court battles over child custody and alimony, which at one point landed John in jail, David joined his father in New York City; by this time, his father had remarried. On December 25, 1947, David appeared in a live telecast adaptation of A Christmas Carol, with his father in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge. For the next few years, David spent time in boarding schools, foster homes, and reform school. He also often accompanied his father to summer theater throughout the Northeast. Carradine spent time in Massachusetts, and a winter milking cows on a farm in Vermont.


title: David Carradine

text: Eventually, David Carradine returned to California, where he graduated from Oakland High School. He attended Oakland Junior College (now Laney College) for a year before transferring to San Francisco State College, where he studied drama and music theory, and wrote music for the drama department's annual revues while juggling menial jobs, a fledgling stage acting career, and his studies. After he dropped out of college, Carradine spent some time with the "beatniks" of San Francisco's North Beach and southern California's Venice. During this time he collected unemployment insurance and sold baby pictures. He was also prosecuted for disturbing the peace.


title: David Carradine

text: Despite an attempt to dodge the draft, in 1960 Carradine was inducted into the United States Army, where he drew pictures for training aids. That Christmas he married his high school sweetheart, Donna Lee Becht. While stationed at Fort Eustis, Virginia, he helped establish a theater company that became known as the "entertainment unit". He met fellow inductee Larry Cohen, who later cast him in "Q, The Winged Serpent". He also faced court-martial for shoplifting. In 1962, Donna gave birth to their daughter, Calista. Carradine was honorably discharged after two years of active duty.


title: David Carradine

text: Upon leaving the Army, Carradine became serious about acting. He was advised to change his name to avoid confusion with his famous father. In an interview from 2005 Carradine says his father encouraged him going into acting: "The first thing I ever did outside of school, which was a production of Romeo & Juliet, he came up from Hollywood to San Francisco to see it. And right after he just sort of opened up to me with all this advice. He became very proud of me."


title: David Carradine

text: In 1963, he made his television debut on an episode of "Armstrong Circle Theatre", "Secret Document X256". Several other television roles followed, including appearances on "Wagon Train", "East Side/West Side", "Arrest and Trial", "The Virginian", "Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre" and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour." In 1964 Carradine appeared as "The Utah Kid" on "The Virginian" in the episode "The Intruders." Carradine got a contract with Universal. The studio gave him his feature film debut in "Taggart" (1964), a western based on a Louis L'Amour novel. It also cast him in "Bus Riley's Back in Town" (1965).


title: David Carradine

text: In May 1964, Carradine joined the cast of the Broadway play "The Deputy" by Rolf Hochhuth, replacing Jeremy Brett. When the play ended he was still under contract to Universal, and resumed TV work. He spent a lot of time playing, in his words, "greenhorns in Westerns and villains in thrillers". Carradine guest-starred in "The Trials of O'Brien" in episodes that were cut together and released theatrically as "Too Many Thieves" (1967), and "Coronet Blue".


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine's first big break came with his second Broadway part in "The Royal Hunt of the Sun", a play by Peter Shaffer about the destruction of the Inca civilization by conquistador Francisco Pizarro. Carradine played Atahuallpa opposite Christopher Plummer as Pizarro. The play premiered in October 1965 and was a solid hit, running for 261 performances. Carradine said of this performance, "Many of the important roles that I got later on were because the guy who was going to hire me was in that audience and had his mind blown." For that part, Carradine won a Theatre World Award for Best Debut Performance in 1965. He was also named as one of Theatre World's Promising Personalities from Broadway and Off Broadway. (The play was filmed in 1968 with Plummer taking Carradine's part.)


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine left the production of "Royal Hunt of the Sun" in May 1966 to take up an offer to star in the TV series "Shane", a 1966 western based upon a 1949 novel of the same name, previously filmed in 1953. Carradine played the title role opposite Jill Ireland. "I know I have some kind of vision that most actors and directors don't have", he said, "so it becomes a duty to exercise that vision. It's a responsibility, a mission." The show only lasted 17 episodes, despite good reviews. Carradine said his career was "rescued" when he was cast in "Johnny Belinda" (1967). He was in demand as a supporting actor, mostly in Westerns: "The Violent Ones" (1967), "Heaven with a Gun" (1969), "Young Billy Young" (1969) for Burt Kennedy, "The Good Guys and the Bad Guys" (1969) with Kennedy, "The McMasters" (1970), and "Macho Callahan" (1970).


title: David Carradine

text: In 1969, he performed off-Broadway in "The Transgressor Rides Again", and the next year guest-starred in "The Name of the Game". Carradine guest-starred opposite David McCallum in a 1971 episode of "Night Gallery", "The Phantom Farmhouse". Also that year, Carradine played a hippie reprobate opposite Sally Field in the well-received television movie "Maybe I'll Come Home in the Spring". He also guest-starred in episodes of "Gunsmoke" and "Ironside". He was unhappy playing villains, and told his agent he wanted to stop, which led to his not working in Hollywood for a year. He was cast in a musical, "The Ballad of Johnny Pot", but fired two days before opening night on Broadway.


title: David Carradine

text: In 1972, he co-starred as "Big" Bill Shelly in one of Martin Scorsese's earliest films, "Boxcar Bertha", which starred Barbara Hershey, his partner at the time. This was one of several Roger Corman productions in which he appeared. It was also one of a handful of acting collaborations he did with his father. He made his feature directorial debut with the film "You and Me", starring alongside Hershey and his brothers Keith and Robert. It was shot in 1972, between making the "Kung Fu" pilot and the series, but released in 1975.


title: David Carradine

text: For three seasons, Carradine starred as the half-Chinese/half-White-American Shaolin monk Kwai Chang Caine in the ABC hit TV series "Kung Fu" (1972–1975). The role was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award. Along with Bruce Lee movies, "Kung Fu" helped to popularize the martial arts and Eastern philosophy in the west. Carradine's character also brought the term "grasshopper" (referring to an apprentice) into popular culture.


title: David Carradine

text: Although the choice of a non-Asian to play the role of Kwai Chang Caine stirred controversy, the show provided steady employment for a number of Asian-American actors. In addition to Keye Luke and Philip Ahn, who held leading roles in the cast as Caine's Shaolin masters, Robert Ito, James Hong, Benson Fong, Richard Loo, and Victor Sen Yung frequently appeared in the series. "Kung Fu" ended when Carradine quit to pursue a movie career. A second controversy was over whose idea the series had been. Bruce Lee's widow claimed he had come up with the idea of a wandering monk in the Old West, but Ed Spielman, the series' creator, insisted that the concept was his own idea from years before Lee became a star. In an interview from 2005 Carradine disputed Bruce Lee's claim: "That's mythology. I think the way that story started was that they got it mixed up with "The Silent Flute". Not sure how that happened." In his authoritative biography "Bruce Lee: A Life", Matthew Polly clarifies the issue of Bruce Lee's involvement, concluding that the claim was the result of his not being cast for the leading role, and that he had no participation in the creation of the series.


title: David Carradine

text: During "Kung Fu"'s original run, Carradine made cameo appearances in Scorsese's "Mean Streets" (1973) (alongside his brother Robert Carradine) and Robert Altman's "The Long Goodbye". He also directed several episodes of "Kung Fu", a short musical called "A Country Mile" (1973), and a film, "Around". Carradine's annual salary on the show was reportedly $100,000.


title: David Carradine

text: Immediately after "Kung Fu", Carradine accepted the role of the racecar driver Frankenstein in "Death Race 2000" (1975), he said, to "kill the image of Caine and launch a movie career." The role had originally been offered to Peter Fonda, who was not available. The film, directed by Paul Bartel and produced by Roger Corman, became a cult classic for New World Pictures. Carradine got 10% of the profits and made significant money from it. Carradine was tapped to play Duke Leto Atreides in Alejandro Jodorowsky's aborted "Dune" adaptation in the late 1970s. Carradine starred in the 1975 TV movie "Long Way Home" and another car chase film for Bartel and New World, "Cannonball!" (1976). Also in 1976, he earned critical praise for his portrayal of folksinger Woody Guthrie in Hal Ashby's "Bound for Glory", for which he won a National Board of Review Award for Best Actor and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and New York Film Critics Circle Award. Carradine worked very closely with his friend, singer-songwriter-guitarist Guthrie Thomas, on the film. Thomas assisted Carradine in the guitar style of the period and the songs that had been chosen to be in the film.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine made a third car chase film for Corman, "Thunder and Lightning", in 1977. Next came the role of the alcoholic, unemployed trapeze artist Abel Rosenberg in "The Serpent's Egg" (1977). Set in post-World War I Berlin, "The Serpent's Egg", which also starred Liv Ullmann, is together with "The Touch" one of the two only English-language films by Swedish director Ingmar Bergman. Carradine replaced Richard Harris, who was too ill to do it. Bergman said of his leading man, "I don't believe in God, but Heaven must have sent him." Carradine said that he and Bergman had plans to collaborate further, but Bergman's affection for him waned when he passionately protested a scene that included the butchering of a horse. The altercation caused Carradine to question the fate of Bergman's soul while the director declared, "Little Brother, I am an old whore. I have shot two other horses, burned one and strangled a dog."


title: David Carradine

text: Back in Hollywood, Carradine co-starred with Charlton Heston in "Gray Lady Down" (1978) and did another film for Corman, "Deathsport" (1978), an unofficial sequel to "Death Race 2000". When Bruce Lee died in 1973, he left an unreleased movie script he had developed with James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant, "The Silent Flute". The script became "Circle of Iron" (1978), and in the film, Carradine played the four roles originally intended for Lee. Carradine considered this among his best work. Carradine made "Mr. Horn" (1979) for TV, playing Tom Horn based on a script by William Goldman. After doing a fifth Corman action film, "Fast Charlie... the Moonbeam Rider" (1979), directed by Steve Carver, Carradine played Paul Gauguin for TV in "Gauguin the Savage" (1980).


title: David Carradine

text: In "The Long Riders" (1980), Carradine starred with his half-brothers Keith and Robert Carradine as the Younger Brothers. The ensemble cast included three other brother/actor groupings: Stacy and James Keach; Dennis and Randy Quaid, and Christopher and Nicholas Guest. The movie, which was about the Jesse James gang, gave Carradine, who played Cole Younger, one of his most memorable roles. Walter Hill directed. Carradine played a pilot in "Cloud Dancer" (1980) and was the villain in "" (1980). He did a car chase film in Africa, "Safari 3000" (1980).


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine returned to the director's chair with "Americana" (1981) (which was actually the completion of the earlier movie Around), which he also starred in, produced and edited. The film took ten years to complete due to difficulty in financing. It featured several of his friends and family members in supporting roles. It won the People's Choice Award at the Director's Fortnight at Cannes, but failed to achieve critical support or adequate distribution. He also directed the unreleased "Mata Hari", an epic that starred his daughter, Calista.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine guest-starred on an episode of "Darkroom" and starred in Larry Cohen's "Q" (1982). He made a cameo in "Trick or Treats" (1982) and was the villain in "Lone Wolf McQuade" (1983) with Chuck Norris. Carradine returned to guest-starring on regular TV series like "The Fall Guy", "Airwolf", "Fox Mystery Theater" and "Partners in Crime". He starred in TV movies like "Jealousy" (1984) and "The Bad Seed" (1985), and was still in demand as the star of cheaper action films such as "The Warrior and the Sorceress" (1984) and "On the Line" (1984).


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine attracted notice in 1985 when he appeared in a major supporting role in "North and South", a miniseries about the American Civil War, as the evil and abusive Justin LaMotte. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine reprised his role as Caine in "" (1986) for TV, which he also produced. It was the acting debut of Bruce Lee's son, Brandon Lee. He starred in the low-budget action film "Behind Enemy Lines" (1986) and reprised his role as LaMotte in "North and South, Book II", telecast in May 1986.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine continued to be in demand for action films, either aimed at the video market or for TV: "Oceans of Fire" (1986), "Armed Response" (1986) for Fred Olen Ray, "The Misfit Brigade" (1987), and "Six Against the Rock" (1987) as Bernie Coy. Carradine also guest starred on "Amazing Stories" and "Night Heat" and he was in "I Saw What You Did" (1988), "Run for Your Life" (1988), "Warlords" (1988) (again for Ray), "Tropical Snow" (1989), and "The Cover Girl and the Cop" (1989). He received some good reviews for "Sonny Boy" (1989), on which he sang on the soundtrack. He starred in three films for Corman: "Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II" (1989), directed by Charles B. Griffith; "Nowhere to Run" (1989), directed by Carl Franklin; and "Crime Zone" (1990) directed by Luis Llosa; Carradine co produced the latter. He was also in "" (1989), directed by Anthony Hickox; "Try This One for Size" (1989), "Open Fire" (1989), and "Future Force" (1989), which he helped produce.


title: David Carradine

text: In 1989 he starred in the low-budget direct-to-video Swedish action movie "The Mad Bunch" directed by Mats Helge Olsson, making him one of three actors (including Heinz Hopf and Tor Isedal) who have starred in both an Ingmar Bergman movie and an Olsson movie. He followed it with "Night Children" (1989), "Crime of Crimes" (1989) (which he produced), "Animal Protector" (1989), "Dune Warriors" (1990), "Martial Law" (1990) and "The Trace of Lynx" (1990). Carradine made his first studio film in a long time with "Bird on a Wire" (1990) and he guest starred on shows like "Matlock", "The Young Riders", and "The Ray Bradbury Theatre". However he predominantly worked as the star of straight to video action films: "Future Zone" (1990), a sequel to "Future Force", "Fatal Secret" (1990), "Midnight Fear" (1991), "Project Eliminator" (1991) (which he helped produce), "Deadly Surveillance" (1991), and "Brotherhood of the Gun" (1991).


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine had support roles in "" (1991) and could be seen in "Capital Punishment" (1991) and "Karate Cop" (1991). Carradine was in "Battle Gear" (1991) and "Evil Toons" (1992) for Ray, and had support parts in "Double Trouble" (1992), "Roadside Prophets" (1992), "Night Rhythms" (1992), "" (1992), and "Distant Justice" (1992). In a 2005 interview, Carradine talks about how there was a period where he was working as much as he could. "Psychotronic Magazine" gave him an award for the "Most Working Actor in the Universe". "Because I did nineteen movies in eighteen months. And they actually missed a couple!" Carradine thought it could not last. "That whole era of independent movies died. They clotted the market. I didn't know how to get out of that, so I did [the second series of Kung Fu]".


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine returned to the part of Caine in "" (1992), which led to a new TV series that ran from 1993 to 1997, and consisted of 88 episodes. Carradine also worked as a producer and directed an episode. He starred in "Kill Zone" (1993), "Dead Center" (1993) for Steve Carver, "" (1993), and "Bitter End" (1993). He was featured in a Lipton Tea commercial, which first aired during the broadcast of Super Bowl XXVIII. The advertisement paid tribute to The Three Stooges while satirizing his role in "Kung Fu". In 1997, Carradine was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The presenters played an April Fool's Day prank on him by first unveiling a star bearing the name of his brother, Robert.


title: David Carradine

text: When "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues" ended, Carradine went into "Last Stand at Saber River" (1997), an episode of "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman", "Lost Treasure of Dos Santos" (1997), "The Rage" (1997), "The Good Life" (1997), "Macon County Jail" (1997), "" (1997), "" (1998), "The New Swiss Family Robinson" (1998), "Shepherd" (1998), "The Effects of Magic" (1998), "Kiss of a Stranger" (1998), "Sublet" (1998), "Martian Law" (1998) for Hickox, "Lovers and Liars" (1998), "Light Speed" (1998), and "Knocking on Death's Door" (1999). In 1999, he made an appearance as the demon Tempus in the Season 1 finale episode of "Charmed". He guest starred on shows such as "Acapulco H.E.A.T.", "Just Shoot Me!", and "Family Law". Carradine starred in "Natural Selection" (1999), "Full Blast" (1999), "Zoo" (1999), "The Puzzle in the Air" (1999), "Dangerous Curves" (2000) (starring Robert), "Down 'n Dirty", "Nightfall" (2000), and "By Dawn's Early Light" (2000).


title: David Carradine

text: In 2001, he appeared in the episode "The Serpent" of the syndicated TV series "Queen of Swords" as the sword-wielding bandit "El Serpiente" filmed at Texas Hollywood studios in Almeria, Spain, home of many Spaghetti Westerns. Carradine was increasingly becoming a support actor in films: "" (2001), "G.O.D." (2001), "Warden of Red Rock" (2001), "The Donor" (2001), "Out of the Wilderness" (2001), "The Defectors" (2001), "Wheatfield with Crows" (2002) and "The Outsider" (2002). He guest-starred in "The Nightmare Room", "Jackie Chan Adventures", "Titus", and "King of the Hill". David also made a guest appearance in episode 11 of "Lizzie McGuire" as himself, which gave him an opportunity to work with his brother Robert, who played Lizzie's father in the series.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine enjoyed a revival of his fame when he was cast in Quentin Tarantino's sequential "Kill Bill" movies, "" (2003) and "" (2004). Among those who thought his portrayal of Bill, the assassin extraordinaire, would earn him an Academy Award nomination was Scott Mantz of "The Mediadrome", who said, "Carradine practically steals every scene he's in with confident gusto, and he gives a soulful performance that should all but ensure a spot on next year's Oscar ballot." Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper each had "Kill Bill Vol. 2" on their top ten list for of Academy Awards predictions. Although the films received no notice from the Academy, Carradine did receive a Golden Globe nomination and a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Bill. Carradine had a good part in "American Reel" (2003) but the overall quality of his roles did not improve: "Dead & Breakfast" (2004),


title: David Carradine

text: "Last Goodbye" (2004), "" (2004), "Brothers in Arms" (2005), "Miracle at Sage Creek" (2005), "Final Move" (2006), "Saints Row" (2006) and "The Last Sect" (2006). David Carradine took over hosting duties from his brother Keith on "Wild West Tech" on the History Channel, in 2005. The same year, he also played both himself and the ghost of a dead man for an episode of the NBC TV show "Medium".


title: David Carradine

text: By 2006, he had become the spokesperson for Yellowbook, a publisher of independent telephone directories in the United States. He also appeared as Clockwork, the ghost of time, in two episodes of the animated series, "Danny Phantom". He had a cameo in "Epic Movie" (2007) and was in "Treasure Raiders" (2007), "How to Rob a Bank (and 10 Tips to Actually Get Away with It)" (2007), "Fall Down Dead" (2007) (which he helped produce), "Permanent Vacation" (2007), and "Fuego" (2007). Carradine played Buckingham in a version of "Richard III" (2007) which he helped produce, and was in a studio film when he supported Rob Schneider in "Big Stan" (2007). He did another comedy "Homo Erectus" (2007) and was in "" (2007) and "Hell Ride" (2008), He starred in the 2008 TV movie, "Kung Fu Killer", in which he played a Chinese martial arts master very similar to his "Kung Fu" series "Caine" persona—his character in this movie named "White Crane", and mostly referred to or addressed as "Crane", frequently pronounced in a manner that minimized the R sound.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine's last performances included a role in the music video of the Jonas Brothers' song "Burnin' Up" (2008), "Camille" (2008), "Last Hour" (2008), "Break" (2008), "The Golden Boys" (2008), "Kandisha" (2008), "Archie's Final Project" (2009), "Absolute Evil - Final Exit" (2009), "Road of No Return" (2009) with Michael Madsen, "" (2009), and "Autumn" (2009).


title: David Carradine

text: The actor, who once received an award for being the hardest-working actor in Hollywood, still had approximately a dozen films in post-production at the time of his death in 2009. Most of these roles were cameos or small parts in independent, direct-to-DVD productions. Among them are a horror film, "Dark Fields" (2009); an action film, "Bad Cop" (2009); and a western, "All Hell Broke Loose" (2009); and "Detention" (2010), a thriller. He made one last film for Corman, "Dinocroc vs. Supergator" (2010) directed by Jim Wynorski. Ken Tucker, writing for Entertainment Weekly, said the film was "impeccable" and "goofy fun all the way". He was also in "Six Days in Paradise" (2010) with Madsen; "Money to Burn" (2010); "Stretch" (2011); "Highway to Hell" (2012); and "The Banksters, Madoff with America" (2013).


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine also appeared in a minor role in Yuen Woo-ping's Chinese kung fu epic "True Legend"; they had first met while filming "Kill Bill". Yuen eulogized Carradine on the "True Legend" website, describing him as a "good friend". Yuen said of Carradine:


title: David Carradine

text: He appeared in the music video of the song "Devil" by Ours (2013), with images originally shot four years before for the unreleased short film "8 For Infinity", directed by Michael Maxxis. His final released movie was the cult independent film, "Night of the Templar" (2013), directed by his friend Paul Sampson, in which Carradine wielded a sword (katana) for the final time on screen. Almost like a foreshadowing, there are several peculiar and eerie references in the film that coincidentally relate to the circumstances of Carradine's untimely passing, which include auto-erotic asphyxiation. His last scene on screen ended in the following dialog: "Well, old friend, see you in the next lifetime." / "Yeah, old friends, old soul mates." / "Yes, we are."


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine co-produced a full-length documentary about luthier Stuart Mossman, which has been identified as the actor's last film appearance. "The Legend of Stuart Mossman: A Modern Stradivari", directed by Barry Brown, premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, in February 2010. It featured David, Keith, and Robert Carradine performing their music on Mossman guitars. Mossman had appeared with Carradine in "Cloud Dancer" (1980), which Brown also directed, and in "The Long Riders". On the small screen, Carradine appeared in a guest spot on the television series "Mental" that was broadcast just days after his death. On October 3, 2009, "Celebrity Ghost Stories" premiered on the Biography Channel with an interview of Carradine discussing his belief that his closet was haunted by his wife's deceased previous husband. The segment, which was described as "eerie," was filmed four months before his own death.


title: David Carradine

text: Carradine knew nothing of the practice of kung fu at the time he was cast in the role of Kwai Chang Caine; instead, he relied on his experience as a dancer for the part. He also had experience in sword fighting, boxing, and street fighting on which to draw. For the first half of the original series, David Chow provided technical assistance with kung fu, followed by Kam Yuen, who became Carradine's martial arts instructor. He never considered himself a master of the art, but rather an "evangelist" of kung fu. By 2003, he had acquired enough expertise in martial arts to produce and star in several instructional videos on T'ai chi and Qigong. In 2005, Carradine visited the Shaolin Monastery in Henan, China, as part of the extra features for the third season of the "Kung Fu" DVDs. During his visit, the abbot, Shi Yǒngxìn, said that he recognized Carradine's important contribution to the promotion of the Shaolin Monastery and kung fu culture, to which Carradine replied, "I am happy to serve."


title: David Carradine

text: In addition to his acting career, Carradine was a musician. He sang and played the piano, the guitar, and the flute, among other instruments. In 1970, Carradine played one half of a flower-power beatnik duo in the season 4 "Ironside" episode, "The Quincunx", performing the songs "I Stepped on a Flower", "Lonesome Stranger", and "Sorrow of the Singing Tree". He recorded an album titled "Grasshopper", which was released in 1975. His musical talents were often integrated into his screen performances. He performed several of Woody Guthrie's songs for the movie, "Bound for Glory". For the "Kung Fu" series, he made flutes out of bamboo that he had planted on the Warner Brothers lot. He later made several flutes for the movie "Circle of Iron", one of which he later played in "Kill Bill". Carradine wrote and performed the theme songs for at least two movies that he starred in, "Americana" and "Sonny Boy". The first line from the "Sonny Boy" theme, "Paint", which he wrote while filming "Americana" in 1973, is engraved on his headstone. He wrote and performed several songs for "American Reel" (2003) and wrote the score for "You and Me". He and his brother, Robert, also performed with a band, the "Cosmic Rescue Team" (also known as "Soul Dogs"). The band performed primarily in small venues and at charity benefits.


title: David Carradine

text: Shortly after being drafted into the U.S. Army in 1960, Carradine proposed to Donna Lee Becht (born September 26, 1937), whom he had met when they were students at Oakland High School; they married on Christmas Day that year. She lived with him off-base when he was stationed at Fort Eustis in Virginia. In April 1962, she gave birth to their daughter Calista. After Carradine's discharge, the family lived in New York while Carradine established his acting career, appearing on Broadway in "The Deputy" and "Royal Hunt of the Sun". The marriage dissolved in 1968, whereupon Carradine left New York and headed back to California to continue his television and film careers.


title: David Carradine

text: In 1968, Carradine met actress Barbara Hershey while the two of them were working on "Heaven with a Gun". The pair lived together until 1975. They appeared in other films together, including Martin Scorsese's "Boxcar Bertha". In 1972, they appeared together in a nude "Playboy" spread, recreating some sex scenes from "Boxcar Bertha". That year, Hershey gave birth to their son, Free (who, when aged nine, changed his name to Tom, much to his father's chagrin). The couple's relationship fell apart around the time of Carradine's 1974 burglary arrest, when Carradine began an affair with Season Hubley, who had guest-starred on "Kung Fu". Carradine was engaged to Hubley for a time, but they never married.


title: David Carradine

text: In February 1977, Carradine married his second wife Linda ("née" Linda Anne Gilbert) in a civil ceremony in Munich, Germany, after filming "The Serpent's Egg". Gilbert was previously married to Roger McGuinn of The Byrds. Their daughter, Kansas, was born in 1978. Carradine's second marriage ended in divorce, as did the two that followed. He was married to Gail Jensen from 1986 to 1997 and to Marina Anderson from 1998 to 2001.


title: David Carradine

text: On December 26, 2004, Carradine married the widowed Annie Bierman ("née" Anne Kirstie Fraser, December 21, 1960) at the seaside Malibu home of his friend Michael Madsen. Vicki Roberts, his attorney and a longtime friend of his wife's, performed the ceremony. With this marriage he acquired three stepdaughters, Amanda Eckelberry (born 1989), Madeleine Rose (born 1995), and Olivia Juliette (born 1998) as well as a stepson, actor Max Richard Carradine (born 1998). In one of his final interviews, Carradine stated that at 71, he was still "in excellent shape", attributing it to a good diet and having a youthful circle of friends. "Everybody that I know is at least 10 or 20 years younger than I am. My wife Annie is 24 years younger than I am. My daughter asks why I don't hang with women my age and I say, 'Most of the women my age are a lot older than me!


title: David Carradine

text: In the late 1950s, while living in San Francisco, Carradine was arrested for assaulting a police officer. He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of disturbing the peace. While in the Army, he faced court-martial on more than one occasion for shoplifting. After he became an established actor and had changed his name to David, he was arrested in 1967 for possession of marijuana.


title: David Carradine

text: In 1974, at the height of his popularity in "Kung Fu", Carradine was arrested again, this time for attempted burglary and malicious mischief. While under the influence of peyote, Carradine began wandering nude around his Laurel Canyon neighborhood. He broke into a neighbor's home, smashing a window and cutting his arm, and accosted two young women, allegedly assaulting one while asking her if she was a witch. Carradine pleaded no contest to the mischief charge and was given probation. He was never charged with assault, but the young woman sued him for $1.1 million and was awarded $20,000.


title: David Carradine

text: In 1980, while in South Africa filming "Safari 3000" (also known as "Rally"), which co-starred Stockard Channing, Carradine was arrested for possession of marijuana. He was convicted and given a suspended sentence. He claimed that he had been framed by the apartheid government, as he had been seen dancing with Tina Turner.


title: David Carradine

text: During the 1980s, Carradine was arrested at least twice for driving under the influence of alcohol, once in 1984 and again in 1989. In the second case, Carradine pleaded no contest. Of this incident, the "Los Angeles Times" reported: "Legal experts say Carradine was handed a harsher-than-average sentence, even for a second-time offender: three years' summary probation, 48 hours in jail, 100 hours of community service, 30 days' work picking up trash for the California Department of Transportation, attendance at a drunk driving awareness meeting and completion of an alcohol rehabilitation program."


title: David Carradine

text: In 1994, in Toronto, filming "", Carradine was arrested for kicking in a door at the SkyDome while attending a Rolling Stones concert. He later claimed that he was trying to avoid being swarmed by fans.


title: David Carradine

text: David Carradine arrived in Bangkok, Thailand on May 31, 2009, to shoot his latest film, titled "Stretch". He was last seen alive on June 3, but his assistant and other film staffers could not reach Carradine when they were going to have dinner and decided to leave without him. Carradine called the assistant an hour later but was told the group was across town and he would have to make his own arrangements that evening.


title: David Carradine

text: On June 4 (Thursday), at the age of 72, Carradine was found dead in his room at the Swissôtel Nai Lert Park Hotel, located on 2 Witthayu Road, in central Bangkok.


title: David Carradine

text: Lt. Teerapop Luanseng, Lt. Col. Pirom Jantrapirom, and Col. Somprasong Yenthuam, Superintendent of the nearby Lumphini Police Station (139 Witthayu Road), said that Carradine was found naked and had hanged himself in the room's closet with a curtain cord. Police said he had been dead for at least 12 hours and found no sign of struggle. Thai police suggested the death might have been from accidental suffocation due to auto-erotic asphyxiation, since there was no suicide note and he was found with a rope tied to both his neck and his genitals.


title: David Carradine

text: David Carradine was neither nominated nor won a Tony Award for "The Royal Hunt of the Sun". However, he was a participating artist at the 28th Annual Tony Awards, 1974.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Frozen is a 2013 American computer-animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 53rd Disney animated feature film, it is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's 1844 fairy tale "The Snow Queen". The film was directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee and produced by Peter Del Vecho, from a screenplay written by Lee, and a story by Buck, Lee, and Shane Morris. It stars the voices of Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff and Santino Fontana.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: "Frozen" tells the story of Princess Anna as she teams up with an iceman, his reindeer, and a snowman to find her estranged sister Elsa, whose icy powers have inadvertently trapped their kingdom in eternal winter.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: "Frozen" underwent several story treatments before being commissioned in 2011 as a screenplay by Lee. "Frozen" had its general theatrical release on November 27, 2013. It was praised for its visuals, screenplay, themes, music, and voice acting; some film critics consider "Frozen" to be Disney's best animated film since the studio's renaissance era. "Frozen" received two awards at the 86th Academy Awards, and numerous other accolades.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: During its theatrical run, the film was a significant commercial success, earning $1.280 billion in worldwide box office revenue, overtaking "Toy Story 3" to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time, and carried its position until it was overtaken by the remake of "The Lion King" in 2019. It also became the fifth highest-grossing film of all time and the highest-grossing film of 2013. By January 2015, the film became the best-selling Blu-ray Disc in the United States, which resulted in the film launching a franchise, including an animated short in 2015, an animated featurette in 2017, and a feature-length sequel, "Frozen II", in November 2019.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Princess Elsa of Arendelle possesses magical powers allowing her to control ice and snow, often using them to play with her younger sister Anna. After Elsa accidentally injures Anna with her magic, their parents—the King and Queen—take them to a colony of stone trolls led by Grand Pabbie, who heals Anna but erases her memories of Elsa's magic. Grand Pabbie warns Elsa that she must learn to control her powers, and that fear will be her greatest enemy. The sisters are isolated within the castle, whose gates are closed off to the public. Out of fear of her increasingly unpredictable powers, Elsa ceases all contact with Anna, causing them to become emotionally distant. The King and Queen are lost at sea while the sisters are teenagers and presumed dead.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: At the age of 21, Elsa is due to be crowned queen, but fears that her subjects will discover her magic. The castle gates are opened for the first time in years to the public and visiting dignitaries, including the Duke of Weselton and the handsome Prince Hans of the Southern Isles. Elsa's coronation proceeds without incident, but she remains distant from Anna. Anna and Hans develop a romantic connection during the festivities, and he impulsively proposes to her, but Elsa objects when they seek her blessing. Hurt and confused, Anna protests, begging Elsa to explain her fear and isolation. The emotional strain causes Elsa to accidentally unleash her powers before the court. Branded a monster by the Duke, Elsa flees to the North Mountain, where she finally acknowledges her powers, building an ice palace to live a hermit life. Unbeknownst to Elsa, her magic has caused Arendelle to fall under an eternal winter.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Anna ventures to find Elsa and end the winter, leaving Hans in command. After getting lost, she meets an iceman named Kristoff and his reindeer Sven, recruiting them to take her to the mountains. An attack by wolves damages Kristoff's sleigh beyond repair. Forced to continuing the journey on foot, Anna and Kristoff meet Olaf, a talking snowman unknowingly created by Elsa, who offers to guide them to her. When Anna's horse reports back to Arendelle without her, Hans sets out to find her along with the Duke's minions, whom the Duke secretly gives orders to kill Elsa.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: When Anna reaches the ice palace and reveals to Elsa what has become of Arendelle, a horrified Elsa confesses she does not know how to undo her magic. Her fear causes her powers to manifest themselves once more, and she accidentally freezes Anna's heart, mortally injuring her. In desperation to keep Anna safe, Elsa creates a giant snow monster named Marshmallow, who chases Anna, Kristoff and Olaf away. Realizing the effects of Elsa's spell on Anna, Kristoff takes her to the trolls, his adoptive family. Grand Pabbie reveals that Anna will freeze solid unless "an act of true love" reverses the spell. Kristoff and Olaf race Anna back home so Hans can give her true love's kiss. Hans and his men reach Elsa's palace, defeating Marshmallow, who falls into a chasm, and capturing Elsa.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Anna is delivered to Hans, but rather than kissing her, Hans reveals he was actually planning to seize the throne of Arendelle by eliminating both sisters. Hans locks a heartbroken Anna in a room to die and then manipulates the dignitaries and the Duke into believing that she died from Elsa's spell. He orders the queen's execution, only to discover she has escaped her detention cell. Anna is freed by Olaf, and they venture into the blizzard outside to meet Kristoff, whom Olaf has revealed is in love with her. Hans confronts Elsa outside, claiming that she killed Anna, causing Elsa to break down and abruptly stop the storm. Moments before Hans can kill Elsa, Anna leaps in the way and freezes solid, stopping Hans. Devastated, Elsa hugs and mourns over her sister, who thaws out, her heroism constituting "an act of true love".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Realizing that love is the key to controlling her magic, Elsa dispels the eternal winter, and gives Olaf a furry small cloud to experience warmth. Hans is arrested and banished from Arendelle for his treason while Elsa cancels the trade agreement with Weselton as punishment against the Duke and his thugs for trying to murder her. Anna gives Kristoff a new sleigh and the two kiss. The sisters are reunited, and Elsa promises never to lock the castle gates again.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: In a post-credits scene, Marshmallow, having survived the fall, finds Elsa's discarded crown and places it on top of its head.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Non-speaking characters include Kristoff's reindeer companion Sven, horses, and wolves. The grunts and snorts for Sven were provided by Frank Welker who was not credited in the film.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The development of "Frozen" began in March 1940, when Walt Disney suggested a co-production to film producer Samuel Goldwyn, where his studio would shoot the live-action sequences of Hans Christian Andersen's life and Disney's studio would animate Andersen's fairy tales. The animated sequences would be based on some of Andersen's best-known works, such as "The Little Mermaid", "The Little Match Girl", "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", "The Snow Queen", "Thumbelina", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Red Shoes", and "The Emperor's New Clothes". However, the studio encountered difficulty with "The Snow Queen", as it could not find a way to adapt and relate the Snow Queen character to modern audiences.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: After the United States entered World War II, Disney focused on making wartime propaganda, which caused development on the Disney–Goldwyn project to grind to a halt in 1942. Goldwyn went on to produce his own live-action film version in 1952, entitled "Hans Christian Andersen", with Danny Kaye as Andersen, Charles Vidor directing, Moss Hart writing, and Frank Loesser penning the songs. All of Andersen's fairy tales were, instead, told in song and ballet in live-action, like the rest of the film. It went on to receive six Academy Award nominations the following year. Back at Disney, "The Snow Queen", along with other Andersen fairy tales (including "The Little Mermaid"), were shelved.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: In the late 1990s, Walt Disney Feature Animation started developing a new adaptation of "The Snow Queen" after the tremendous success of their recent films during the Disney Renaissance era (1989–1999), but the project was scrapped completely in late 2002, when Glen Keane reportedly quit the project and went on to work on another project which became "Tangled" (2010). Even before then, Harvey Fierstein pitched his version of the story to Disney's executives, but was turned down. Paul and Gaëtan Brizzi, Dick Zondag and Dave Goetz reportedly all tried their hand at it, but failed. After a number of unsuccessful attempts from 2000 to 2002, Disney shelved the project again. During one of those attempts, Michael Eisner, then-chairman and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company, offered his support to the project and suggested doing it with Oscar-winning director John Lasseter at Pixar after the then-expected renewal of Pixar's contract with Disney. But negotiations between Pixar and Disney collapsed in January 2004 and that contract was never renewed. Instead, Eisner's successor Bob Iger negotiated Disney's purchase of Pixar in January 2006 for $7.4 billion, and Lasseter was promoted to chief creative officer of both Pixar and Disney Animation.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The next attempt started in 2008, when Lasseter was able to convince Chris Buck (who co-directed the 1999 film "Tarzan" for the studio) to return to Walt Disney Animation Studios from Sony Pictures Animation (where he had recently co-directed the Oscar-nominated 2007 film "Surf's Up"); that September, Buck pitched several ideas to Lasseter, one of which was "The Snow Queen". Buck later revealed that his initial inspiration for "The Snow Queen" was not the Andersen fairy tale itself, but that he wanted "to do something different on the definition of true love." "Disney had already done the 'kissed by a prince' thing, so [I] thought it was time for something new," he recalled. It turned out Lasseter had been interested in "The Snow Queen" for a long time; back when Pixar was working with Disney on "Toy Story" in the 1990s, he saw and was "blown away" by some of the pre-production art from Disney's prior attempts. Development began under the title "Anna and the Snow Queen", which was planned to be traditionally animated. According to Josh Gad, he first became involved with the film at that early stage, when the plot was still relatively close to the original Andersen fairy tale and Megan Mullally was going to play Elsa. By early 2010, the project entered development hell once again, when the studio again failed to find a way to make the story and the Snow Queen character work.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: On December 22, 2011, following the success of "Tangled", Disney announced a new title for the film, "Frozen", and a release date of November 27, 2013. A month later, it was confirmed that the film would be a computer-animated feature in stereoscopic 3D, instead of the originally intended hand-drawn animation due to complex elements in the script regarding strong visuals. Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez joined the project and started writing songs for "Frozen" in January 2012. On March 5, 2012, it was announced that Buck would be directing, with Lasseter and Peter Del Vecho producing.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: After Disney decided to advance "The Snow Queen" into development again, one of the main challenges Buck and Del Vecho faced was the character of the Snow Queen, who was then a villain in their drafts. The studio has a tradition of screening animated films in development every twelve weeks, then holding lengthy "notes sessions" in which its directors and screenwriters from different projects provide extensive "notes" on each other's work.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Buck and Del Vecho presented their storyboards to Lasseter, and the entire production team adjourned to a conference to hear his thoughts on the project. Art director Michael Giaimo later acknowledged Lasseter as the "game changer" of the film: "I remember John saying that the latest version of "The Snow Queen" story that Chris Buck and his team had come up with was fun, very light-hearted. But the characters didn't resonate. They aren't multi-faceted. Which is why John felt that audiences wouldn't really be able to connect with them."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The production team then addressed the film's problems, drafting several variations on "The Snow Queen" story until the characters and story felt relevant. At that stage, the first major breakthrough was the decision to rewrite the film's protagonist, Anna (who was based on the Gerda character from "The Snow Queen"), as the younger sibling of Elsa, thereby effectively establishing a family dynamic between the characters. This was unusual in that relationships between sisters are rarely used as a major plot element in American animated films, with the notable exception of Disney's "Lilo & Stitch" (2002). To fully explore the unique dynamics of such relationships, Disney Animation convened a "Sister Summit," at which women from all over the studio who grew up with sisters were asked to discuss their relationships with their sisters.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: In March 2012, Jennifer Lee, one of the writers of "Wreck-It Ralph", was brought in as screenwriter. Before Lee was brought on board, the efforts of the previous screen and songwriters had "imploded", which allowed the songwriters "to put a lot of [their] DNA" into the new script. The production team "essentially started over and ... had 17 months," which resulted in a very "intense schedule" and implied "a lot of choices had to be made fast".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: While developing the story, Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck drew influence from several sources. They said the biggest influence on the film was the country of Norway, when the art department visited the country, drawing inspiration from the country's culture and environment. They also cited the influence of several films, including Hayao Miyazaki's anime productions along with the David Lean productions "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) and "Doctor Zhivago" (1965), stating that they were inspired by their sense of "epic adventure and that big scope and scale and then the intimacy of funny quirky characters."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: According to Lee, several core concepts were already in place, such as the film's "frozen heart" hook: "That was a concept and the phrase ... an act of true love will thaw a frozen heart." They already knew the ending involved true love in the sense of the emotional bond between siblings, not romance, in that "Anna was going to save Elsa. We didn’t know how or why." Lee said Edwin Catmull, president of Disney Animation, told her early on about the film's ending: ".. you have to earn that ending. If you do[,] it will be great. If you don't, it will suck". However, the final version differed sharply from the earlier ones. In the original, Elsa had been evil from the start, kidnapping Anna from her own wedding to intentionally freeze her heart and later descending upon the town with an army of snowmen. "The whole second act was about Anna trying to get to Hans and to kiss him and then Elsa trying to stop her". Buck revealed that the original plot attempted to make Anna sympathetic by focusing on her frustration as the "spare" in relation to the "heir". The pacing of the revised plot focused on musical comedy with less action and adventure.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: A breakthrough was the composition of the song "Let It Go" by Lopez and Anderson-Lopez, which forced a reimagining of Elsa as a more complex, vulnerable, and sympathetic character. In "The Daily Telegraph"s words, the songwriters saw Elsa not as a villain but as "a scared girl struggling to control and come to terms with her gift". "Bobby and Kristen...started talking about what would it feel like [to be Elsa]", Lee said. "And this concept of letting out who she is[,] that she's kept to herself for so long[,] and she's alone and free, but then the sadness of the fact that the last moment is she's alone". Del Vecho explained that "Let It Go" changed Elsa into a person "ruled by fear and Anna was ruled by her own love of other people and her own drive", which caused Lee to "rewrite the first act and then that rippled through the entire movie. So that was when we really found the movie and who these characters were".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Another breakthrough was developing the plot twist that Prince Hans, having not even been in the first drafts, would be revealed as the true villain only near the end. Del Vecho said, "if we were going to make the ending so surprising[,] you had to believe at one point that Hans was the answer ... [when] he's not the answer, it's Kristoff ... [I]f you can get the audience to leap ahead and think they have figured it out[,] you can surprise them by turning it the other way". Lee acknowledged that Hans was written as "sociopathic" and "twisted". "It was difficult to lay the foundation for Anna's belated turn to Kristoff without also making Hans' betrayal of Anna too predictable, in that the audience had to "feel ... her feeling something but not quite understanding it ... Because the minute it is [understood,] it deflated." In earlier drafts, Anna openly flirted with Kristoff at their first meeting, but that was changed after Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn pointed out that it would confuse and annoy viewers, since Anna was already engaged to Hans.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Lee had to work through how to write Anna's personality; some of her colleagues felt Anna should be more dysfunctional and co-dependent. Lee disagreed, but it took her almost a year to convincingly articulate "this is what Anna's journey is. No more than that. No less than that." In the end, Lee successfully argued for a simple coming-of-age story, "where she goes from having a naive view of life and love – because she's lonely – to the most sophisticated and mature view of love, where she's capable of the ultimate love, which is sacrifice". Lee also had to let go of ideas that she liked, such as a scene portraying Anna and Elsa's relationship as teenagers, because they needed to maintain the separation between Anna and Elsa. To construct Anna and Elsa's relationship, Lee found inspiration from her own relationship with her older sister. Lee called her older sister "my Elsa" in an op-ed in the "Los Angeles Times", and walked the red carpet with her at the 86th Academy Awards. Lee explained, "[h]aving to ... lose each other and then rediscover each other as adults, that was a big part of my life".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The team also turned Olaf from Elsa's obnoxious sidekick into Anna's comically innocent one. Lee's initial response to the original "mean" version of Olaf had been, "Kill the f-ing snowman", and she found Olaf by far "the hardest character to deal with". The problem of "how" Anna would save Elsa at the climax was solved by story artist John Ripa. At the story meeting where Ripa pitched his take on the story, Lasseter said, "I've never seen anything like that before", followed by a standing ovation. Along the way, the team abandoned a lot of the detail of earlier drafts, such as a troll with a Brooklyn accent to explain the backstory behind Elsa's magical powers, and a regent for whom Lee was hoping to cast comedian Louis C.K. These were excised because they amounted to a "much more complex story than really we felt like we could fit in this 90-minute film". As Del Vecho put it, "the more we tried to explain things at the beginning, the more complicated it got".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Given Lee's extensive involvement in the development process, she was promoted to co-director by studio heads Lasseter and Catmull in August 2012, which was announced that November, making Lee the first woman to direct a full-length animated film from Walt Disney Animation Studios. Lee later said that she was "really moved by a lot of what Chris had done" and that they "shared a vision" of the story, having "very similar sensibilities".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: By November 2012, the team thought they had finally "cracked" the film's story, but according to Del Vecho, in late February 2013 it was realized that it still "wasn't working", which necessitated more rewriting from February through June 2013. He explained, "we rewrote songs, we took out characters and changed everything, and suddenly the movie gelled. But that was close. In hindsight, piece of cake, but during, it was a big struggle." Looking back, Anderson-Lopez joked she and Lopez thought they could have ended up working as "birthday party clown[s]" if the final product "pull[ed] ... down" their careers and recalled that "we were really writing up until the last minute". In June (five months before the announced release date), the songwriters finally got the film working when they composed the song "For the First Time in Forever", which, in Lopez's words, "became the linchpin of the whole movie". That month, Disney conducted test screenings of the part-completed film with two audiences (one of families and the other of adults) in Phoenix, Arizona, at which Lasseter and Catmull were present. Lee recalled that it was the moment when they realized they "had something, because the reaction was huge". Catmull told her afterwards, "you did it".


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Actress Kristen Bell was cast as the voice of Anna on March 5, 2012. The filmmakers listened to a series of vocal tracks Bell had recorded when she was young, in which she performed several songs from "The Little Mermaid", including "Part of Your World". Bell completed her "Frozen" recording sessions while she was pregnant, and rerecorded some lines after her pregnancy, as her voice had deepened. Bell was called in to re-record dialogue for the film "probably 20 times," which is normal for lead roles in Disney animated films whose scripts are still evolving. As for her approach to the role of Anna, Bell enthused that she had "dreamed of being in a Disney animated film" since she was four years old, saying, "I always loved Disney animation, but there was something about the females that was unattainable to me. Their posture was too good and they were too well-spoken, and I feel like I really made this girl much more relatable and weirder and scrappier and more excitable and awkward. I'm really proud of that."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Idina Menzel, a Broadway veteran, was cast as Elsa. Menzel had formerly auditioned for "Tangled", but did not get the part. However, "Tangled"s casting director, Jamie Sparer Roberts, preserved a recording of Menzel's performance on her iPhone, and on the basis of that, asked her to audition along with Bell for "Frozen". Before they were officially cast, Menzel and Bell deeply impressed the directors and producers at an early table read; after reading the entire script out loud, they sang "Wind Beneath My Wings" together as a duet, since no music had been composed yet. Bell had suggested that idea when she visited Menzel at her California home to prepare together for the table read. The songwriters were also present for the table read; Anderson-Lopez said "Lasseter was in heaven" upon hearing Menzel and Bell sing in harmony, and from that moment forward, he insisted, "Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel have to be in the movie!" Lee said, "They sung it like sisters and what you mean to me[,] [a]nd there wasn't a dry eye in the house after they sang." Between December 2012 and June 2013, the casting of additional roles was announced, including Jonathan Groff as Kristoff, Alan Tudyk as the Duke of Weselton, Santino Fontana as Prince Hans, and Josh Gad as Olaf.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Similar to "Tangled", "Frozen" employed a unique artistic style by blending together features of both computer-generated imagery (CGI) and traditional hand-drawn animation. From the beginning, Buck knew Giaimo was the best candidate to develop the style he had in mind – which would draw from the best Disney hand-drawn films of the 1950s, the Disney Little Golden Books, and mid-century modern design – and persuaded him to come back to Disney to serve as the art director for "Frozen". Buck, Lasseter, and Giaimo were all old friends who had first met at the California Institute of the Arts, and Giaimo had previously served as the art director for Disney's "Pocahontas" (1995), which Buck had worked on as a supervising animator.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: To create the look of "Frozen", Giaimo began pre-production research by reading extensively about the entire region of Scandinavia and visiting the Danish-themed city of Solvang near Los Angeles, but eventually zeroed in on Norway in particular because "80 percent" of the visuals that appealed to him were from Norway. Disney eventually sponsored three research field trips. Animators and special effects specialists were dispatched to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to experience walking, running, and falling in deep snow in a variety of types of attire, including long skirts (which both female and male personnel tried on); while lighting and arts teams visited an Ice Hotel in Quebec City, Quebec to study how light reflects and refracts on snow and ice. Finally, Giaimo and several artists traveled to Norway to draw inspiration from its mountains, fjords, architecture, and culture. "We had a very short time schedule for this film, so our main focus was really to get the story right but we knew that John Lasseter is keen on truth in the material and creating a believable world, and again that doesn't mean it's a realistic world – but a believable one. It was important to see the scope and scale of Norway, and important for our animators to know what it's like," Del Vecho said. "There is a real feeling of "Lawrence of Arabia" scope and scale to this," he finished.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: During 2012, while Giaimo and the animators and artists conducted preparatory research and developed the film's overall look, the production team was still struggling to develop a compelling script, as explained above. That problem was not adequately solved until November 2012, and the script would later require even more significant revisions after that point. As a result, the single "most daunting" challenge facing the animation team was a short schedule of less than 12 months to turn Lee's still-evolving shooting script into an actual film. Other films like Pixar's "Toy Story 2" had been successfully completed on even shorter schedules, but a short schedule necessarily meant "late nights, overtime, and stress." Lee estimated the total size of the entire team on "Frozen" to be around 600 to 650 people, "including around 70 lighting people[,] 70-plus animators," and 15 to 20 storyboard artists.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Del Vecho explained how the film's animation team was organized: "On this movie we do have character leads, supervising animators on specific characters. The animators themselves may work on multiple characters but it's always under one lead. I think it was different on "Tangled", for example, but we chose to do it this way as we wanted one person to fully understand and develop their own character and then be able to impart that to the crew. Hyrum Osmond, the supervising animator on Olaf, is quiet but he has a funny, wacky personality so we knew he'd bring a lot of comedy to it; Anna's animator, Becky Bresee, it's her first time leading a character and we wanted her to lead Anna." Acting coach Warner Loughlin was brought in to help the film's animators understand the characters they were creating. In order to get the general feeling of each scene, some animators did their own acting. "I actually film myself acting the scene out, which I find very helpful," said animation supervisor Rebecca Wilson Bresee. This helped her discover elements that made the scene feel real and believable. Elsa's supervising animator was Wayne Unten, who asked for that role because he was fascinated by the complexity of the character. Unten carefully developed Elsa's facial expressions in order to bring out her fear as contrasted against Anna's fearlessness. He also studied videos from Menzel's recording sessions and animated Elsa's breathing to match Menzel's breathing. Head of Animation, Lino DiSalvo, said, "The goal for the film was to animate the most believable CG characters you've ever seen."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Regarding the look and nature of the film's cinematography, Giaimo was greatly influenced by Jack Cardiff's work in "Black Narcissus" (1947). According to him, it lent a hyper-reality to the film: "Because this is a movie with such scale and we have the Norwegian fjords to draw from, I really wanted to explore the depth. From a design perspective, since I was stressing the horizontal and vertical aspects, and what the fjords provide, it was perfect. We encased the sibling story in scale." Ted D. McCord's work in "The Sound of Music" was another major influence for Giaimo. It was also Giaimo's idea that "Frozen" should be produced in the CinemaScope widescreen process, which was approved by Lasseter. This made "Frozen" the first animated film to be completely produced in CinemaScope since 2000's "Titan A.E.". Giaimo also wanted to ensure that Norway's fjords, architecture and rosemaling folk art, were critical factors in designing the environment of Arendelle. Giaimo, whose background is in traditional animation, said that the art design environment represents a unity of character and environment and that he originally wanted to incorporate saturated colors, which is typically ill-advised in computer animation. For further authenticity, a live reindeer named Sage was brought into the studio for animators to study its movements and mannerisms for the character Sven.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Another important issue Giaimo insisted on addressing was costumes, in that he "knew from the start" it would be a "costume film." To realize that vision, he brought in character designer Jean Gillmore to act as a dedicated "costume designer". While traditional animation simply integrates costume design with character design and treats clothing as merely part of the characters, computer-generated animation regards costume as almost a separate entity with its own properties and behaviors – and "Frozen" required a level of as-yet untried detail, down to minutiae like fabrics, buttons, trim, and stitching. Gillmore explained that her "general approach was to meld the historic silhouettes of 1840 Western Europe (give or take), with the shapes and garment relationships and details of folk costume in early Norway, circa 19th century." This meant using primarily wool fabric with accents of velvet, linen, and silk. During production, Giaimo and Gillmore "ran around" supplying various departments with real-world samples to use as references; they were able to draw upon both the studio's own in-house library of fabric samples and the resources of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts' costume division in Fullerton, California. The film's "look development artists" (the Disney job title for texture artists) created the digitally painted simulation of the appearance of surfaces, while other departments dealt with movement, rigging and weight, thickness and lighting of textile animation.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: During production, the film's English title was changed from "The Snow Queen" to "Frozen", a decision that drew comparisons to another Disney film, "Tangled". Peter Del Vecho explained that "the title "Frozen" came up independently of the title "Tangled". It's because, to us, it represents the movie. "Frozen" plays on the level of ice and snow but also the frozen relationship, the frozen heart that has to be thawed. We don't think of comparisons between "Tangled" and "Frozen", though." He also mentioned that the film will still retain its original title, "The Snow Queen", in some countries: "because that just resonated stronger in some countries than "Frozen". Maybe there's a richness to "The Snow Queen" in the country's heritage and they just wanted to emphasize that."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The studio also developed several new tools to generate realistic and believable shots, particularly the heavy and deep snow and its interactions with the characters. Disney wanted an "all-encompassing" and organic tool to provide snow effects but not require switching between different methods. As noted above, several Disney artists and special effects personnel traveled to Wyoming to experience walking through deep snow. Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, a professor from the California Institute of Technology, was invited to give lectures to the effects group on how snow and ice form, and why snowflakes are unique. Using this knowledge, the effects group created a snowflake generator that allowed them to randomly create 2,000 unique snowflake shapes for the film.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Another challenge that the studio had to face was to deliver shots of heavy and deep snow that both interacted believably with characters and had a realistic sticky quality. According to principal software engineer Andrew Selle, "[Snow]'s not really a fluid. It’s not really a solid. It breaks apart. It can be compressed into snowballs. All of these different effects are very difficult to capture simultaneously." In order to achieve this, software engineers used advanced mathematics (the material point method) and physics, with assistance from mathematics researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles to create a snow simulator software application called "Matterhorn". The tool was capable of depicting realistic snow in a virtual environment and was used in at least 43 scenes in the film, including several key sequences. Software engineer Alexey Stomakhin referred to snow as "an important character in the film," therefore it attracted special attention from the filmmakers. "When you stretch it, snow will break into chunks. Since snow doesn't have any connections, it doesn't have a mesh, it can break very easily. So that was an important property we took advantage of," explained Selle. "There you see [Kristoff] walking through and see his footprints breaking the snow into little pieces and chunk up and you see [Anna] being pulled out and the snow having packed together and broken into pieces. It's very organic how that happens. You don't see that they're pieces already – you see the snow as one thing and then breaking up." The tool also proved to be particularly useful in scenes involving characters walking through deep snow, as it ensured that the snow reacted naturally to each step.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Other tools designed to help artists complete complicated effects included "Spaces", which allowed Olaf's deconstructible parts to be moved around and rebuilt, "Flourish", which allowed extra movement such as leaves and twigs to be art-directed; "Snow Batcher", which helped preview the final look of the snow, especially when characters were interacting with an area of snow by walking through a volume, and "Tonic", which enabled artists to sculpt their characters' hair as procedural volumes. "Tonic" also aided in animating fur and hair elements such as Elsa's hair, which contains 420,000 computer-generated strands, while the average number for a real human being is only 100,000. The number of character rigs in "Frozen" is 312 and the number of simulated costumes also reached 245 cloth rigs, which were far beyond all other Disney films to date. Fifty effects artists and lighting artists worked together on the technology to create "one single shot" in which Elsa builds her ice palace. Its complexity required 30 hours to render each frame, with 4,000 computers rendering one frame at a time.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Besides 3D effects, the filmmakers also used 2D artwork and drawings for specific elements and sequences in the film, including Elsa's magic and snow sculptures, as well as freezing fountains and floors. The effects group created a "capture stage" where the entire world of "Frozen" gets displayed on monitors, which can be "filmed" on special cameras to operate a three-dimensional scene. "We can take this virtual set that's mimicking all of my actions and put it into any one of our scenes in the film," said technology manager Evan Goldberg.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The setting is the fictional kingdom of Arendelle which was principally based on Norway, and the cultural influences in the film come from Scandinavian culture. Several landmarks in Norway appear in the film, including the Akershus Fortress in Oslo, the Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, and Bryggen in Bergen. Numerous other typical cultural Scandinavian elements are also included in the film, such as stave churches, trolls, Viking ships, a hot spring, Fjord horses, clothes, and food such as lutefisk. A maypole is also present in the film, as well as the brief appearance of runes in a book that Anna and Elsa's father opens to figure out where the trolls live. A scene where two men argue over whether to stack firewood bark up or bark down is a reference to the perennial Norwegian debate over how to stack firewood properly. The film also contains several elements specifically drawn from Sámi culture, such as the usage of reindeer for transportation and the equipment used to control these, clothing styles (the outfits of the ice cutters), and parts of the musical score. Decorations, such as those on the castle pillars and Kristoff's sled, are also in styles inspired by Sámi duodji decorations. During their field work in Norway, Disney's team, for inspiration, visited Rørosrein, a Sámi family-owned company in the village Plassje that produces reindeer meat and arranges tourist events. Arendelle was inspired by Nærøyfjord, a branch of Norway's longest fjord Sognefjorden, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site; while a castle in Oslo with beautiful hand-painted patterns on all four walls served as the inspiration for the kingdom's royal castle interior.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The filmmakers' trip to Norway provided essential knowledge for the animators to come up with the design aesthetic for the film in terms of color, light, and atmosphere. According to Giaimo, there were three important factors that they had acquired from the Norway research trip: the fjords and the massive vertical rock formations characteristic of fjords, which serve as the setting for the secluded kingdom of Arendelle; the medieval stave churches, whose rustic triangular rooflines and shingles inspired the castle compound; and the rosemaling folk art, whose distinctive paneling and grid patterns informed the architecture, decor, and costumes.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: The songs for "Frozen" were written and composed by the husband-and-wife songwriting team of Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, both of whom had previously worked with Disney Animation on "Winnie the Pooh" (2011) (also produced by Del Vecho, who then hired them for "Frozen") and before that, with Disney Parks on "Finding Nemo – The Musical" (2007). Lopez first heard Disney Animation's pitch while in Los Angeles working on "The Book of Mormon", but Disney was so eager to get both of them on board that the production team traveled to New York City to also pitch the film in person to Anderson-Lopez (who was busy raising the couple's two young daughters). Lopez believes Disney was particularly interested in his wife's strong story talent. The decision, of course, was easy: "Whenever Disney asks if you want to do a fairy tale musical, you say yes."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: About 23 minutes of the film are dedicated to their musical numbers. Because they live in New York City, collaborating closely with the production team in Burbank required two-hour-long transcontinental videoconferences nearly every weekday for about 14 months. For each song they composed, they recorded a demo in their home studio (with both of them singing the lyrics and Lopez accompanying on piano), then emailed it to Burbank for discussion at the next videoconference. Lopez and Anderson-Lopez were aware of the fact that their work would be compared to that of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman from the Disney Renaissance era, and whenever they felt lost, they asked "What would Ashman do?" In the end, they wrote 25 songs for the film, of which eight made it into the final version. One song ("For the First Time in Forever") had a reprise and the other ("Let It Go") was covered by Demi Lovato over the final credits, for a total of ten songs. Seven of the 17 that did not make it were later released on the deluxe edition soundtrack.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: In February 2013, Christophe Beck was hired to score the film, following his work on "Paperman", a Disney animated short film released the year prior to "Frozen". It was revealed on September 14, 2013, that Sámi musician Frode Fjellheim's "Eatnemen Vuelie" would be the film's opening song, as it contains elements of the traditional Sámi singing style joik. The music producers recruited Norwegian linguist and composer Christine Hals to assist with the lyrics for an Old Norse song written for Elsa's coronation and traveled to Trondheim, Norway, to record the all-female choir Cantus, for a piece inspired by traditional Sámi music.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Under the supervision of sound engineer David Boucher, the lead cast members began recording the film's vocal tracks in October 2012 at the Sunset Sound recording studio in Hollywood "before" the songs had been orchestrated, meaning they heard only Lopez's demo piano track in their headphones as they sang. Most of the dialogue was recorded at the Roy E. Disney Animation Building in Burbank under the supervision of original dialogue mixer Gabriel Guy, who also mixed the film's sound effects. Some dialogue was recorded after recording songs at both Sunset Sound and Capitol Studios; for scenes involving Anna and Elsa, both studios offered vocal isolation booths where Menzel and Bell could read dialogue with line-of-sight with one another, while avoiding "bleedthrough" between their respective tracks. Additional dialogue was recorded at an ADR facility on the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank (across the street from the Disney Animation building) and at the Soundtrack Group's New York studio, since the production team had to work around the busy schedules of the film's New York-based cast members like Fontana.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Lopez and Anderson-Lopez's piano-vocal scores for the songs along with the vocal tracks were sent to Salem, Oregon-based Dave Metzger for arrangement and orchestration; Metzger also orchestrated a significant portion of Beck's score.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: For the orchestral film score, Beck paid homage to the Norway- and Sápmi-inspired setting by employing regional instruments, such as the bukkehorn, and traditional vocal techniques, such as kulning. Beck worked with Lopez and Anderson-Lopez on incorporating their songs into arrangements in the score. The trio's goal "was to create a cohesive musical journey from beginning to end." Similarly, Beck's scoring mixer, Casey Stone (who also supervised the recording of the score), worked with Boucher to align their microphone setups to ensure the transitions between the songs and score were seamless, even though they were separately recorded on different dates. The final orchestrations of both the songs and score were all recorded at the Eastwood Scoring Stage on the Warner Bros. Pictures studio lot in Burbank by an 80-piece orchestra, featuring 32 vocalists, including native Norwegian Christine Hals. Hals performed kulning for Beck to use it in the score whenever Elsa misuses her magical powers. Boucher supervised the recording of Anderson-Lopez and Lopez's songs from July 22 to 24, 2013, then Stone supervised the recording of Beck's score from September 3 to 6 and 9 to 10. Boucher mixed the songs at the Eastwood stage, while Stone mixed the score at Beck's personal studio in Santa Monica, California.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Regarding the sound of "Frozen", director Jennifer Lee stated that sound played a huge part in making the film "visceral" and "transported"; she explained, "[i]n letting it tell the story emotionally, the sound of the ice when it's at its most dangerous just makes you shudder." The complete silence at the climax of the film right after Anna freezes was Lasseter's idea, one he "really wanted". In that scene, even the ambient sound that would normally be there was taken out in order to make it feel unusual. Lee explained "that was a moment where we wanted everything to feel suspended."


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: To obtain certain snow and ice sound effects, sound designer Odin Benitez traveled to Mammoth Mountain, California, to record them at a frozen lake. However, the foley work for the film was recorded on the foley stage on the Warner Bros. Pictures lot by a Warner Bros. crew. The foley artists received daily deliveries of of snow ice while working, to help them record all the necessary snow and ice sounds for the film. Because the film's visuals were finalized so late, five separate versions of nearly every footstep on snow were recorded (corresponding to five different types of snow), then one was later selected during mixing to match the snow as rendered in the final version of each scene. One issue that the production team was "particular" about was the sound of Elsa's footsteps in the ice palace, which required eight attempts, including wine glasses on ice and metal knives on ice; they ended up using a mix of three sounds.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Although the vocals, music, sound effects, and almost all the dialogue were all recorded elsewhere, the final re-recording mix to Dolby Atmos format was performed at the Disney lot by David E. Fluhr of Disney Digital Studio Services.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Like other Disney media products which are often localized through Disney Character Voices International, "Frozen" was translated and dubbed into 41 languages (compared with only 15 for "The Lion King"). A major challenge was to find sopranos capable of matching Menzel's warm vocal tone and three-octave vocal range in their native languages. Rick Dempsey, the unit's senior executive, regarded the process of translating the film as "exceptionally challenging"; he explained, "It's a difficult juggling act to get the right intent of the lyrics and also have it match rhythmically to the music. And then you have to go back and adjust for lip sync! [It]...requires a lot of patience and precision." Lopez explained that they were told by Disney to remove complex wordplay and puns from their songs, to ensure the film was easily translatable and had globally appealing lyrics. For the casting of dubbed versions, Disney required native speakers in order to "ensure that the film feels 'local'." They used Bell and Menzel's voices as their "blueprint" in casting, and tried to match the voices "as much as possible," meaning that they auditioned approximately 200 singers to fill the 41 slots for Elsa alone. For nearly 15 dubbed versions, they cast Elsa's singing and speaking parts separately, since not all vocalists could act the part they were singing. After casting all the other roles for all 41 languages, the international cast ended up including more than 900 people, who voiced their roles through approximately 1,300 recording sessions. The Italian version of the movie was awarded best foreign dubbing worldwide.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Since 2013, some local TV stations and independent studios have been dubbing the movie in their local languages, creating some unofficial dubs. Namely: Albanian, Arabic (TV dub), Karachay-Balkar, Persian and Tagalog.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: In September 2022, to coincide with Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week), a Māori language version of the film produced by Matewa Media was released theatrically in Australia and New Zealand. The film is the third Māori language adaptation after "Moana" in 2017, and "The Lion King Reo Māori" in June 2022. Much of the dialogue of the film is recorded in South Island Māori dialects spoken by Kāi Tahu iwi, to reflect the cold setting of the film.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: "Frozen" was released theatrically in the United States on November 27, 2013, and it was accompanied by the new Mickey Mouse animated short film, "Get a Horse!" The film's premiere was at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California, on November 19, 2013, and had a five-day limited release there, starting from November 22, before going into wide release.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: Prior to the film's release, Lopez and Anderson-Lopez's "Let It Go" and "In Summer" were previewed at the 2013 D23 Expo; Idina Menzel performed the former live on stage. A teaser trailer was released on June 18, 2013, followed by the release of the official trailer on September 26, 2013. "Frozen" was also promoted heavily at several Disney theme parks including Disneyland's Fantasyland, Disney California Adventure's "World of Color", Epcot's Norway pavilion, and Disneyland Paris' "Disney Dreams!" show; Disneyland and Epcot both offered meet-and-greet sessions involving the film's two main characters, Anna and Elsa. On November 6, 2013, Disney Consumer Products began releasing a line of toys and other merchandise relating to the film in Disney Store and other retailers.


title: Frozen (2013 film)

text: On January 31, 2014, a sing-along version of "Frozen" was released in 2,057 theaters in the United States. It featured on-screen lyrics, and viewers were invited to follow the bouncing snowflake and sing along with the songs from the film. After its wide release in Japan on March 14, 2014, a similar sing-along version of "Frozen" was released in the country in select theaters on April 26. In Japanese-dubbed versions, Japanese lyrics of the songs appeared on screen for audiences to sing along with the characters. A sing-along version of the film was released in United Kingdom on November 28, 2014.