The Point, an animated adaptation of the story, first aired February 2, 1971, and was the first animated special ever to air in prime time on US television; it appeared on the ABC television network as an ABC Movie of the Week. The film was directed by Fred Wolf and produced by Murakami-Wolf Films in association with Nilsson House Music. In this version, there is a framing device of a father telling his son the fable as a bedtime story. In its initial airing, the voice of the father was provided by a friend of Nilsson's, Dustin Hoffman, who agreed to take $20,000 for his narration to be used on one broadcast, so for later airings of the film, the narration had to be re-recorded. The initial re-recording was done by actor Alan Barzman. The VHS and DVD releases feature another of Nilsson's friends, Ringo Starr, as the father. Another version, seen on cable television in the '80s and '90s, featured narration by Alan Thicke. The voices of Oblio and the narrator's son were provided by Mike Lookinland, best known for playing Bobby Brady on the television series The Brady Bunch. A 50th anniversary Blu-ray edition of the animated version (with the Ringo Starr narration) was released in February 2020.
Voice cast:
Dustin Hoffman as Narrator/Father (first telecast)
Alan Barzman as Narrator/Father (second telecast)
Alan Thicke as Narrator/Father (third telecast)
Ringo Starr as Narrator/Father (home video releases)
Paul Frees as Oblio's Father/Pointed Man's Right Head/King/Leaf Man/Villagers
June Foray as Pointed Man's Middle Head
Unknown as Pointed Man's Left Head
Lennie Weinrib as Count
William E. Martin as Rock Man
Buddy Foster as Count's Son
Joan Gerber as Oblio's Mother
Mike Lookinland as Oblio
Written by Harry Nilsson (story)
Carole Beers (story)
Harry Nilsson (original fable)
Norm Lenzer (screenplay)
Fred Wolf (additional story development)
Directed by Fred Wolf
Starring: Paul Frees
Lennie Weinrib
William E. Martin
Buddy Foster
Joan Gerber
Mike Lookinland
Narrated by Dustin Hoffman (1st telecast)
Ringo Starr (home video release)
Alan Barzman (2nd telecast)
Alan Thicke (3rd telecast)
Theme music composer: Harry Nilsson
Country of origin: United States
Original language(s): English
Production:
Producer(s): Jerry D. Good
Larry Gordon
Harry Nilsson
Fred Wolf
Jimmy T. Murakami
Editor(s) Rich Harrison
Running time: 74 min.
Production company(s): Murakami-Wolf Productions
Release:
Original network: ABC
Original release: February 2, 1971
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