All Dogs Go to Heaven facts for kids

Quick facts for kids All Dogs Go to Heaven
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Don Bluth
Produced by	Don Bluth Gary Goldman John Pomeroy
Screenplay by	David N. Weiss
Story by	Don Bluth Ken Cromar Gary Goldman Larry Leker Linda Miller Monica Parker John Pomeroy Guy Schulman David J. Steinberg David N. Weiss
Starring	Loni Anderson Judith Barsi Dom DeLuise Melba Moore Charles Nelson Reilly Burt Reynolds Vic Tayback
Music by	Ralph Burns
Editing by	John K. Carr
Studio	Goldcrest Films Sullivan Bluth Studios Ireland Ltd.
Distributed by	MGM/UA Communications Co. (United States) The Rank Organisation (United Kingdom/Ireland)
Release date(s)	November 17, 1989 (1989-11-17) (United States) February 8, 1990 (1990-02-08) (United Kingdom) April 6, 1990 (1990-04-06) (Ireland)
Running time	85 minutes
Country	Ireland United Kingdom United States
Language	English
Budget	$13.8 million
Money made	US$27.1 million

All Dogs Go to Heaven is a 1989 animated musical fantasy adventure comedy-drama film directed by Don Bluth and co-directed by Gary Goldman (his directorial debut) and Dan Kuenster. It tells the story of Charlie B. Barkin (voiced by Burt Reynolds), a German Shepherd that is murdered by his former friend, Carface Carruthers (voiced by Vic Tayback, in his penultimate film role), but withdraws from his place in Heaven to return to Earth, where his best friend, Itchy Itchiford (voiced by Dom DeLuise), still lives, in order to take revenge on Carface, but ends up befriending a young orphan girl named Anne-Marie (voiced by Judith Barsi in her final film role; posthumously). In the process, Charlie learns an important lesson about kindness, friendship and love.

The film is an Irish, British and American venture, produced by Goldcrest Films and Sullivan Bluth Studios Ireland Ltd.. On its cinema release, it competed directly with Walt Disney Feature Animation's The Little Mermaid, released on the same day. While it did not repeat the box-office success of Sullivan Bluth's previous feature films, An American Tail and The Land Before Time, it was successful on home video, becoming one of the biggest-selling VHS releases ever. It inspired a theatrical sequel, a television series, and a holiday direct-to-video film.

All Dogs Go to Heaven was released on DVD on November 17, 1998, and as an MGM Kids edition on March 6, 2001. It had a DVD double-feature release with its sequel on March 14, 2006, and January 18, 2011. The film was released in high definition for the first time on Blu-ray on March 29, 2011, without special features except the original theatrical trailer.

Voice cast

• Burt Reynolds as Charlie B. Barkin, a brash German Shepherd and a former con artist. The character was designed specifically with Reynolds in mind for the role and the animators mimicked some of his mannerisms.
  • Reynolds is succeeded by Charlie Sheen for All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, and Steven Weber for All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series and An All Dogs Christmas Carol. The model for the character of Charlie was a German Shepherd, appropriately named Burt. Burt the dog often spent time with the animators at the studio, even going with them during the studio's move to Ireland.
• Dom DeLuise as Itchy Itchiford, a paranoid, anxious but loyal Dachshund.
  • DeLuise reprised his role in All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, the series and An All Dogs Christmas Carol.
• Judith Barsi as Anne-Marie, a 7-year-old orphan girl with the ability to talk to and understand animals. Her singing voice was performed by Lana Beeson. This was Barsi's final film role before her death in 1988. The ending credits song "Love Survives" was dedicated in her memory as her character became absent in the further franchise.
• Vic Tayback as Carface Caruthers, a violent mixed blue-nosed American Pit Bull Terrier/Bulldog gangster. This was Tayback's final film role before his death in 1990. For All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series and An All Dogs Christmas Carol, Ernest Borgnine took Tayback's role.
• Charles Nelson Reilly as Killer, a misnamed, fidgety, neurotic and spectacles-wearing Schnoodle who is Carface's comic relief sidekick. Reilly was the second original voice actor that reprised his role in the series and An All Dogs Christmas Carol except for the sequel.
• Loni Anderson as Flo, a female Rough Collie and Charlie's friend.
• Melba Moore as a Whippet angel who welcomes deceased dogs into Heaven. She was named "Annabelle" in the 1996 sequel and its subsequent syndicated television series. Bebe Neuwirth succeeded Melba in this role.
• Ken Page as King Gator, an American alligator and voodoo witch doctor living below the streets of New Orleans.
• Rob Fuller and Earleen Carey as Kate and Harold, a married couple who later become Anne-Marie's adoptive parents.
• Godfrey Quigley as Terrier, a dog that appears when Itchy tells everyone Anne-Marie is in danger.
• Anna Manahan as Stella Dallas, a horse that appears when Anne-Marie, Charlie, and Itchy are at the derby. She is against the Once Upon a Wintertime Team.
• Candy Devine as Vera, a female gambling dog.

Soundtrack

The music for All Dogs Go to Heaven was composed by Ralph Burns with lyrics by Charles Strouse, T.J. Kuenster, Joel Hirschhorn, and Al Kasha. An official soundtrack was released on July 1, 1989, by Curb Records on audio cassette and CD featuring 13 tracks, including seven vocal songs performed by various cast members. The ending credits theme and the theme song of the movie "Love Survives" was dedicated to Anne-Marie's voice actress Judith Barsi, who was shot by her father, József, along with her mother, Maria, before the film's release on July 25, 1988.

Awards and honors

All Dogs Go to Heaven received a nomination for "Best Family Motion Picture: Adventure or Cartoon" at the 11th annual Youth in Film Awards ceremony, being beaten by Disney's The Little Mermaid. The home video release received an Award of Excellence from the Film Advisory Board.

Sequel, TV series and Christmas special

The success of the film, particularly its performance on home video, prompted several follow-up productions. A theatrical sequel, All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, a television series, All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series and An All Dogs Christmas Carol, a Christmas television movie based on Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, were made. Don Bluth and his studio had no involvement with any of them, and Burt Reynolds did not reprise his role as Charlie after the first film; he was replaced in the sequel film and television series by Charlie Sheen and Steven Weber, respectively. Charles Nelson Reilly declined to return for the sequel film, but voiced Killer for the television productions. Dom DeLuise played Itchy through the entire franchise.

See also

In Spanish: Todos los perros van al cielo para niños