Country Mouse and the Town Mouse, The

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The country mouse and the town mouse.

Field mouse lived in the country and house mouse lived in the town.

One day as field mouse finished his spring cleaning and looked about him, he decided he would like to invite a guest to his tidy tiny home.

It's such a shame I never met my cousin house mouse, he squeaked.

And so he sat down to write an invitation to house mouse who lived so far away.

Down the grass path, past the dirt road, at the end of the brick boulevard which wound through the town.

Now what shall I write with? You wondered.

Dear house mouse, it seems a shame we've never met.

That is to say we haven't yet.

Come to my nest, I will give you my best.

On that you can certainly bet.

Dear house mouse, your cousin who lives in the field invites you to share in a meal.

If you will say yes, I will make you my guest in the country where life is ideal.

Field mouse scurried outdoors where he found his friend hummingbird sipping a drink of nectar from the honeysuckle vine.

Hummingbird, please, he begged hummingbird, deliver my letter.

Late that night, hummingbird returned with a note of acceptance.

My dear little cousin unknown, whose note was so recently flown.

Tomorrow's the day I'll venture your way.

Our meeting we shouldn't postpone.

Field mouse was so excited he could hardly sleep.

At sunrise he set out to find two glistening buttercups filled with morning dew.

He hid the pretty cups from the cool shadows behind his nest so that he would have a refreshing drink to offer his guest.

That afternoon, field mouse set out a simple supper of the last of his winter stores.

Twenty -two barley corns, thirteen blades of grass, five dried peas, a dash of sassafras.

When he had finished, he strolled out to the grass path which led from the dirt road, which led from the brick boulevard which wound through the town.

Hidey -ho, hidey -ho.

Here came cousin house mouse strutting down the path.

And he was dressed up from his fancy shoes to the feather tip of his plumed hat.

Suddenly field mouse felt a little dull and dusty.

Doesn't he look fine? He ran back home to wash his face.

Welcome, said field mouse.

Give you a hand, cousin? The two sat down at field mouse's little bark table and ate from their acorn cap plates.

When they had finished, house mouse said, Now, my dear cousin field mouse, what's for dinner? Oh, said field mouse, that was dinner, but I could go outside and hunt for more.

More of the same? My dear cousin, how do you live like this? Come with me to the town and I will show you the feasting and frisking that city life is all about.

I don't live in a mere house, you know.

My home is a mansion.

Field mouse had no idea what a mansion was, though he didn't want to say so.

He decided to accompany his cousin to town so he could find out for himself.

The two cousins followed the grass path until it widened into the dirt road, until that widened into the brick boulevard which wound through the town.

Oh, gosh! Oh, so this is a mansion, gasped field mouse.

There were so many floors in it and so many doors in it.

And food galore in it.

Oh, boy! Never in all his little life had field mouse seen anything like the sumptuous feast that he and house mouse found spread upon the table.

Biscuits and gravy, cornbread and cheese, mustard and custard, as much as you please, ice cream and fudge sauce, grape jam and jelly, berries and cherries to stuff a plump belly, shortcake and strawberries, puddings and pie, frosting on layer cake high as the sky.

Oh! Oh, boy, oh boy, oh boy! This is the life for me! Huh? What was that? Oh, it's only the master's dogs.

Only? I do not like such music with my dinner.

Bam! The banquet room door burst open and in rushed five dogs chasing four cats, followed by the master and his three dinner guests laughing and shouting uproariously.

House mouse grabbed field mouse and skittered for the pantry with the cats' hot breath at their backs.

Oh, boy, oh my gosh! Oh, my gosh! That was a fine race.

Beamed house mouse.

And the excitement's only beginning.

Goodbye, cousin.

Panted field mouse.

What? Going so soon? asked his cousin.

I can do without that sort of excitement.

I would rather eat a simple dinner in peace than to feast in fear.

Then house mouse shook his cousin's trembling paw and said, Very well.

Go your way then, my good friend.

Hurry along the brick boulevard, past the dirt road and down the grass path which leads to your simple home in the field.

Perhaps some day we too shall meet again.

But I can see that we would not trade places.

No, they would not trade places for anything in the world.

Dear field mouse, this film was produced, directed and adapted for the screen for Coronet by J .P.

Somersalter and Lillian Somersalter -Moats.

Love, house mouse.

Dear house mouse, really? And did you know that the art and animation were done by Lillian Somersalter -Moats and J .P.

Somersalter, Susan Taylor, William Putz, Brandon Ward, Pam Miser and David Moats? Love, field mouse.

The camera work was by Susan Taylor.

Music by Doug Lofstrom.

Sound recording and mix by Michael Moats at Zenith DB Studio.

And editing by J .P.

Somersalter and Ginny Keller.

Love, house mouse.

And don't forget the people at Coronet Films whose creative consultants are Joel Marks, Ellen Bowen, Mel Woskin, Jay Robinson and Bob Grunowski.

Love, field mouse.

Dear pal, I'm so happy about the beginning of our friendship.

But alas, we've come to the end of our film.

Love, house mouse.

Identifier

F.2016-01-0058

Date Of Production

1991

Abstract

Country Mouse and Town Mouse are cousins who have never met. Over the course of the narrative, the cousins visit each other, and each sees how differently the other lives. In this adaptation of Aesop's fable, the adventures and travails of the mice are animated through classically beautiful storybook illustrations.

Run Time

0:08:54

Format

16mm

Extent

310 feet

Color

Color

Sound

Optical

Reel/Tape Number

1/1

Has Been Digitized?

Yes

Language Of Materials

English

Element

Print

Genre

Children's

Form

Animations

Subject

Fairy tales
Children's Films
Folk tales

Related Collections

Somersaulter-Moats and Somersaulter Collection

Distributor

Pajon Arts

Main Credits

Somersaulter Moats, Lillian (is producer)

Somersaulter, JP (is producer)

Somersaulter Moats, Lillian (is director)

Pajon Arts (is production company)

Somersaulter-Moats and Somersaulter (is production company)

Additional Credits

Somersaulter Moats, Lillian (is animator)

Somersaulter, JP (is animator)

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