Trivia / The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1979)

• Same Voice Their Entire Life: The Distant Finale initally appears to be an aversion strategically using Peter for all the spoken dialogue since he was a teenager with an adult voice from the earliest scenes. Then, bizarrely, the adult Edmund speaks twice in the same pre-pubescent voice he had all along. Averted in the American dub, where adult Edmund has an adult voice.
• Troubled Production: Steven Melendez, son of producer Bill Melendez, confirmed himself that there were many challenges in producing this adaptation. Notable problems included:
  • A tight timeframe; the film HAD to be finished within nine months as it was set to air on a specific airdate on CBS in 1979. This version of TLTWATW was part of a promotion sponsored by food conglomerate Kraft to get more children reading; their representatives made it clear that the film had to be ready to air on television.
  • The original animation studio set to do the animation backed out, leading Bill Melendez to step in. During the breakneck pace of production, the staff had to coordinate between their facilities in Los Angeles, London and Barcelona. This had to be done by flying there in person and phone calls; this was before email, fax machines and even overnight couriers!
  • Steven Melendez cited the last part of the film with the Hunting of the White Stag to be very difficult as it was hard for the animators to draw and animate four legged creatures. Rotoscoping had to be used to speed up the process.