Posted in: Heritage Sponsored, Movies | Tagged: Don Bluth, heritage, heritage auctions, Rock-A-Doodle, sponsored

Rock-a-Doodle Villain Grand Duke Appears on Color Model Cel

Published Wed, 22 Dec 2021 12:18:11 -0600

Don Bluth has been responsible for many animated films now considered cult classics. Those include The Secret of NIMH, An Americal Tail, All Dogs Go to Heaven, The Land Before Time, and, of course, Rock-A-Doodle. While it may not be as ubiquitous as Disney films that came out in the same era, 1991's Rock-A-Doodle is stamped on the memories of many fans who will never forget this intense animated musical starring Chanticleer, the rooster. The villain of the film is the Grand Duke, a sunlight-hating owl who gets into an adversarial relationship with the Chanticleer (who, just as a sidebar, later becomes an Elvis impersonator) for reasons that you can pretty much figure out. Grand Duke, the villainous owl who possesses magical, transformative powers, features on a color model from Rock-A-Doodle that hits auction today. Let's take a look.

Rock-a-Doodle Villain Grand Duke color model cel. Credit: Heritage Auctions

Rock-a-Doodle Grand Duke Color Model Cel (Don Bluth, 1991).

In this animated fantasy, a boy in "the real world" is read the story of Chanticleer, the rooster whose crow makes the sun rise each morning. When Chanticleer leaves the farm to become an Elvis-like singer, the boy named Edmond calls for him to return, which is overheard by the evil Grand Duke, a magical owl. The Grand Duke transforms Edmond into a kitten, and constant rain keeps everything dark, the way all owls prefer; the last thing the Duke wants is to have the rooster return. Here's an amazing and quite rare original hand-painted 12 field model cel with three full-painted images of the Grand Duke. The large images fill the cel, which is matted with an opening of 11.25" x 9", and an overall mat size of 18" x 14". Cel condition is Very Good with minor handling wear.

Fans of this Don Bluth cult classic cartoon feature can head over to Heritage Auctions to stake their claim for this awesome color model cel. Best of luck out there, Rock-a-Doodle fanatics!