Elephant Boy (TV series)
| Television series | |
|---|---|
| German title | Elefanten-Boy ( ARD ); Elephant boy ( cable one , ARTE ) |
| Original title | Elephant boy |
| Country of production | Sri Lanka |
| original language | English |
| Year (s) | -1973 |
| Production company |
Portman Productions (Global Television), Bayerischer Rundfunk |
| length | 25 minutes |
| Episodes | 26 in 2 seasons |
| genre | Children / youth series |
| production | James Gatward |
| music | Charles Marawood |
| First broadcast | 1973 on ITV (GB) / Seven (AUS) |
| German-language first broadcast |
1974 (?) On ARD |
| occupation | |
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Main actor:
Supporting cast:
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| synchronization | |
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Elefantenjunge (also: Elefanten-Boy ; original title: Elephant Boy ) is a 26-part British-Australian-German children's / youth television series based on the story Toomai about the elephants from the jungle book by Rudyard Kipling . The action was moved locally from northeast India to Ceylon ( Sri Lanka ) and from the 19th century to the present. A series of radio plays and books were also created in the context of the television series.
content
The orphan boy Toomai lives with his little brother Ranjit in the Namanpur Game Reserve ( sin. නාමන්පුර් , as can be read on the vehicles). He is the keeper ( mahout ) of the elephant Kala Nag (dt. Black snake ), like his father (see episode 18) and his grandfather before him. At the beginning of the series, the reserve is given a new manager, Karl Bergen . He is supported by the veterinarian Sue Fraser (from episode 4). The “opponent” is Padam , the former maharaja of the region (especially episodes 1, 2, 8, 11, 15, 20, 25), who - at least initially - wants to drive Bergen away.
Against this background, animal and species protection as well as poaching (especially episodes 2, 5, 10, 17, 20, 22) form a thematic focus. Other topics include the clash between Orient and Occident or the old and new order (episodes 4, 8, 14, 19, 25, 26), saying goodbye to humans and animals (episodes 4, 6, 16) or intrigues among the mahouts (Episodes 3, 7, 12). Toomai grows from child to adolescent in the course of the series (if only due to the growth in size of the actor Esrom between the first and second season; see also episode 23).
One of the main concerns of the series, in addition to entertainment, is the representation of the ethically correct treatment of animals and humans, even if Toomai has to admit: "As you get older, Ranjit, you will learn that justice is not for everyone" (episode 5).
Episode overview
| No. | Original title | German title |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Tyrant | Who's afraid of the new man? |
| 2 | Fishing Cat | The wild cat |
| 3 | The great mahout | The stolen camera |
| 4th | Child of Ganesa | The elephant god |
| 5 | Leopard skin coat | The leopard trap |
| 6th | Elephant Dance | The dancing elephant |
| 7th | Place of Honor | Place of Honor ( Desara Festival ) |
| 8th | Year of the Birds | The lucky birds |
| 9 | Surani | Surani |
| 10 | Rogue bull | The last big game hunter |
| 11 | Horn of Plenty | The elephant in the corn field |
| 12 | Key witness | Elephant in court |
| 13 | Big Fish | The flying whale |
| No. | Original title | German title |
| 14th | Chance in life | A chance for Ranjit |
| 15th | The Gamblers | The elephant race |
| 16 | Small One | The little deer |
| 17th | Double dealer | Double game |
| 18th | Elephants Never Forget | Jungle fire |
| 19th | Return journey | trip to the past |
| 20th | Tiger Hunt | The last tiger hunt |
| 21st | River crossing | River crossing |
| 22nd | The Stringer | The bird catcher |
| 23 | Pygamy Pic | The lady from Oxford |
| 24 | Conservation Man | The brave liar |
| 25th | Dogs Of Death | The dogs of death |
| 26th | Grave Robbers | The archaeologists |
More facts
- The Sigiriya rock can be seen in the opening credits, the Buddha statue of Aukana in the credits .
- Only female elephants were used during the shooting (exception: episode 10).
- Toomai's most common commands when dealing with Kala Nag are “Bila” (raising the leg) and “Daha” (walking forward).
- The foreign script in the series is partly Sinhala , partly Tamil (e.g. episode 15, ஆரம்பம் = start).
- Unlike Sabu Dastagir ( The Elephant Boy , 1937), Esram Jayasinghe only had one other role (in Chandar, the Black Leopard of Ceylon , 1972).
TV broadcasts
The series was originally broadcast in 1973 in Great Britain on ITV and in Australia on The Seven Network , in 1974 (?) In Germany in the regional evening program of ARD .
There were repetitions for Germany on ARD, 2003/2004 on Kabel eins , 2010 on ARTE .
DVD
A German DVD version was released by UIG Entertainment in 2009, supplemented u. a. about an interview with Uwe Friedrichsen and some episodes of the radio play and book series.
Web links
- Heiner's film pages
- Elefantenboy in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Critical J. Becker , Communication and conflict (2005), p. 37 in the Google book search
- ↑ a b in the ARD version probably based more closely on the English original title
- ↑ actually "cave", cf. B. Clough , Sinhala-English dictionary in Google Book Search
- ↑ cf. ND Wijesekera , The people of Ceylon (1965), p. 145 f. in google book search; GAJAH: Journal of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group, 21 (January 2002) (PDF; 7.5 MB), p. 49
- ↑ cf. http://www.tvprogramme.net/70/1974/19740420.htm
- ↑ http://www.kabeleins.de/serien_shows/serienlexikon/verbindungen/index.php/serial/details/825 ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
