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The Tell-Tale Heart (1953 American film)
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{{Short description|1953 American horror animated short film}} {{distinguish|The Tell-Tale Heart (British 1953 film)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox film | name = The Tell-Tale Heart | image = TellTaleHeartPoster.jpg | alt = | caption = Promotional poster | director = Ted Parmelee | producer = [[Stephen Bosustow]] | screenplay = [[Bill Scott (voice actor)|Bill Scott]]<br />Fred Grable | based_on = {{Based on|''[[The Tell-Tale Heart]]''|[[Edgar Allan Poe]]}} | narrator = [[James Mason]] | music = [[Boris Kremenliev]] | cinematography = | editing = | studio = [[UPA (animation studio)|United Productions of America]] | distributor = [[Columbia Pictures]] | released = {{Film date|1953|12|17}} | runtime = 7:24 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = | gross = }} '''''The Tell-Tale Heart''''' is a 1953 American [[Animated film|animated]] [[psychological horror]] [[short film]] produced by [[United Productions of America|UPA]], directed by Ted Parmelee, and narrated by [[James Mason]]. The screenplay by [[Bill Scott (voice actor)|Bill Scott]] and Fred Grable is based on the 1843 [[The Tell-Tale Heart|short story of the same name]] by [[Edgar Allan Poe]]. The [[British Board of Film Censors]] made this the first cartoon to receive an adults-only [[X certificate]] in the [[United Kingdom]]. == Plot == A murderer's increasing guilt leads him to believe he can hear his victim's heart still beating beneath the floorboards where he buried him. Seen through the eyes of the nameless narrator, the [[Surrealism|surrealistic]] images help convey his descent into madness. == Production == [[Paul Julian (artist)|Paul Julian]] served as both designer and color artist for film, and Pat Matthews was the principal animator. In May 1953, pre-production started on ''The Tell-Tale Heart'', which originally was intended to be a [[3-D film]].<ref>Advertisement for Columbia Pictures, ''BoxOffice Magazine'', June 6, 1953</ref> It is not known if the film was animated in this fashion, but it was not released in 3D. There is no reference to 3D in a technical trade review.<ref>''BoxOffice Magazine'', October 24, 1953, p. 10</ref> Furthermore, the leaders on original prints of the film do not indicate it ever was part of a pair of 3D prints.<ref>Original release print of ''The Tell-Tale Heart'', Columbia Pictures, Copyright 1953</ref> == Reception == The film was the first cartoon to be rated X, indicating it was suitable only for adult audiences, by the [[British Board of Film Classification|British Board of Film Censors]].<ref>[https://archive.today/20120728120911/http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon_information/4756-Tell-Tale_Heart.html ''The Tell-Tale Heart'' at the Big Cartoon Database]</ref> It was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film]] but lost to ''[[Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom]]'' from [[The Walt Disney Company|Walt Disney Productions]].<ref>[http://theoscarsite.com/1953.htm 1953 at The Oscar Site]</ref> In 1994, animation historian [[Jerry Beck]] surveyed 1000 people working in the animation industry and published the results in ''[[The 50 Greatest Cartoons]]: As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals'', in which ''The Tell-Tale Heart'' ranked #24.<ref>Beck, Jerry, ''The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals''. Atlanta: Turner Publishing 1994. {{ISBN|1-878685-49-X}}</ref> In 2001, the United States [[Library of Congress]] deemed the film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the [[National Film Registry]].<ref>[https://www.loc.gov/film/titles.html National Film Preservation Board website]</ref> == Availability == The short is included as a bonus feature on the first DVD release of ''[[Hellboy (2004 film)|Hellboy]]''. It is also included, with commentary by Leonard Maltin and Jerry Beck, on disc 2 of ''[[Jolly Frolics|The Jolly Frolics Collection]]''. == References == {{reflist}} == External links == * {{IMDb title|id=0046408}} * [http://www.openculture.com/2010/10/edgar_allan_poe_the_animated_tell-tale_heart.html Edgar Allan Poe & The Animated Tell-Tale Heart] {{United Productions of America}} {{The Tell-Tale Heart}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Tell Tale Heart (1953 American film), The}} [[Category:1953 animated short films]] [[Category:Films based on The Tell-Tale Heart]] [[Category:United States National Film Registry films]] [[Category:Columbia Pictures short films]] [[Category:1950s American animated films]] [[Category:1953 horror films]] [[Category:UPA films]] [[Category:1953 films]] [[Category:Columbia Pictures animated short films]] [[Category:American psychological horror films]] [[Category:American horror short films]] [[Category:American animated horror films]] [[Category:1950s psychological horror films]] [[Category:1950s English-language films]] [[Category:American adult animated films]] [[Category:English-language horror short films]] [[Category:Animated films based on works by Edgar Allan Poe]]
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