Almost 40 years ago, Richard and Karen Carpenter performed at Disneyland during a special event for, I believe, USC (University of Southern California).
It was not the only time the duo would be associated with Disney. A few years later, they were filmed for a television segment related to Walt Disney World. If my memory serves me well, Richard was also strongly considering scoring the soundtrack for Disney's film The Rescuers.
Famously, there's that video for their smash hit Please Mr. Postman. A worldwide favorite song and the videos shows a buoyant Karen riding Dumbo, walking down Main Street U.S.A. with Mickey Mouse, and taking a ride on the now defunct Mine Train Thru Nature's Wonderland.
If you're familiar with the history of Karen and Richard, you might know that he and songwriting partner John Bettis once worked at Disneyland. The shot below was taken in 1967.
A few years later, the duo would write Mr. Guder, a popular album track on their breakthrough album Close to You. The name refers to their manager whom they were not fond of at the time. The lyrics were not complimentary. Much like Bette Midler's reassessment of the duo, time mellowed Richard's view of the man. Time does have a way of making us reflect with more clarity.
To close out this post, here's the video for Postman:
1 comment:
Mark, please contact me at JoeltheWriter@comcast.net. It's about a book I am contracted to write about Karen Carpenter. This is extremely time-sensitive, so if you could drop me a note a.s.p., I'd appreciate it enormously. Then I'll forward you my questions and requests. Thanks!
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