Donald in Mathmagic Land
Donald jams with the Pythagoreans.
Produced by	Walt Disney
Written by	Milt Banta Bill Berg Heinz Haber
Narrated by	Paul Frees
Starring	Clarence Nash Paul Frees
Music by	Buddy Baker
Cinematography	Edward Colman
Editing by	Lloyd L. Richardson
Distributed by	Buena Vista Film Distribution Company
Release date(s)	June 26, 1959 November 15, 1960
Running time	27 min.
Country	U.S.A.
Language	English
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Donald in Mathmagic Land is a Donald Duck featurette which was released on June 26, 1959. It was directed by Hamilton Luske and is 27 minutes in length. Many people collaborated on this project, including Disney artists John Hench and Art Riley, voice talent Paul Frees, and scientific expert Heinz Haber, who had worked on the Disney space shows. This featurette was originally released on a bill with Darby O'Gill and the Little People. In 1960, it was nominated for an Academy Award (Best Documentary - Short Subjects). In 1961, two years after its release, it had the honor of being introduced by Ludvig Von Drake and shown on the first program of Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. The film was made available to schools and became one of the most popular educational films ever made by Disney. As Walt Disney explained, "The cartoon is a good medium to stimulate interest. We have recently explained mathematics in a film and in that way excited public interest in this very important subject."^[1] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Bust of Pythagoras Pythagoreanism is a term used for the esoteric and metaphysical beliefs held by Pythagoras and his followers, the Pythagoreans, who were much influenced by mathematics and probably a main inspirational source for Plato and platonism. ... For the company founded by Disney, see The Walt Disney Company. ... Bill Berg (born October 21, 1967 in St. ... Heinz Haber (May 15, 1913–February 13, 1990) was a German astrophysicist who primarily became famous for his TV programs and books about physics and environmental subjects. ... Paul Frees (June 22, 1920 - November 2, 1986) was a voice actor born in Chicago. ... Clarence Ducky Nash (December 7, 1904–February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor, best known for providing the voice of Donald Duck for Walt Disney Studios. ... Norman Buddy Baker was a film composer who composed many of Walt Disneys Classic Films, like The Apple Dumpling Gang (film), The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, The Shaggy D.A., and The Million Dollar Duck. ... Buena Vista production logo, 1950s. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Donald Duck is an animated cartoon and comic-book character from Walt Disney Productions. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The first incarnation of the Disney anthology television series, commonly called The Wonderful World of Disney, premiered on ABC on October 27, 1954 under the name Disneyland. ...

Story

Entrance

Donald Duck, holding a hunting rifle, passes through a doorway to find that he has entered Mathmagic Land. This fantasy land contains trees with square roots, a stream flowing with numbers, and a walking pencil that plays Tic Tac Toe. Interestingly, a geometric bird recites (incorrectly) the first few digits of pi. Donald soon hears the voice of the "True Spirit of Adventure" who will guide Donald on his journey through Mathmagic Land. Donald Duck is an animated cartoon and comic-book character from Walt Disney Productions. ... In mathematics, a square root of a number x is a number r such that , or in words, a number r whose square (the result of multiplying the number by itself) is x. ... “Tic tac toe” redirects here. ... When a circles diameter is 1, its circumference is π. The mathematical constant π is an irrational real number, approximately equal to 3. ...

Pythagoras and music

Donald is initially not interested in Mathmagic Land. When "Mr. Spirit" suggests a connection between math and music, though, Donald is intrigued. First, Donald discovers the relationships between octaves and string length. Next, Donald finds himself in ancient Greece, where Pythagoras and his contemporaries are discovering these same relationships. Pythagoras (on the harp), a flute player, and a double bass player hold a "jam session" which Donald joins after a few moments. Pythagoras' music is, as the Spirit explains, the basis of today's music. Pythagoras of Samos (Greek: ; between 580 and 572 BC–between 500 BC and 490 BC) was an Ionian (Greek) philosopher[1] and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. ... // Music is an art form consisting of sound and silence expressed through time. ... In music, an octave (sometimes abbreviated 8ve) is the interval between one musical note and another with half or double its frequency. ... The harp is a stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicular to the soundboard. ... The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ...

The pentagram, the golden section, and the golden rectangle

After shaking hands with Pythagoras, Donald finds on his hand a pentagram, the symbol of the secret Pythagorean society. The Spirit then shows Donald how the mysterious golden section appears in the pentagram. Next, the pentagram is shown to contain the pattern for constructing golden rectangles many times over. According to the Spirit, the golden rectangle has influenced both ancient and modern cultures in many ways. A pentagram A pentagram (sometimes known as pentalpha or pentangle) is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes. ... The golden ratio is a number, approximately 1. ... The large rectangle BA is a golden rectangle; that is, the proportion b:a is 1:. If we remove square B, what is left, A, is another golden rectangle. ...

Architecture and art

Donald learns how the golden rectangle appears in many ancient buildings, such as the Parthenon and the Notre Dame cathedral. Paintings such as the Mona Lisa and various sculptures contain several golden rectangles. The use of the golden rectangle is found even in modern architecture and art, as well, such as the United Nations building in New York City. Section of the dome of Florence Cathedral. ... The Bath, a painting by Mary Cassatt (1844–1926). ... The Parthenon seen from the hill of the Pnyx to the west. ... This article is about the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris. ... Mona Lisa, or La Gioconda. ... Sculptor redirects here. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ...

The human body and nature

The Spirit shows Donald how the golden rectangle and pentagram are related to the human body and nature, respectively. The human body contains the "ideal proportions" of the golden section; Donald tries to make his own body fit such a proportion, but his efforts are to no avail. The pentagram (more accurately, the pentagon) is then shown to be found in many flowers and animals, such as the petunia, the star jasmine, the starfish, the wax flower, various sea shells, and so forth. Galunggung in 1982, showing a combination of natural events. ... Look up pentagon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Petunia is a widely-cultivated genus of flowering plants of South American origin, in the family Solanaceae. ... Binomial name Trachelospermum jasminoides Lem. ... Orders Brisingida (100 species[1]) Forcipulatida (300 species[2]) Paxillosida (255 species[3]) Notomyotida (75 species[4]) Spinulosida (120 species[5]) Valvatida (695 species[6]) Velatida (200 species[7]) For other uses, see Starfish (disambiguation). ... Species About 30. ... Various seashells A shell is the hard, rigid outer covering, or integument, of certain animals. ...

Games

Donald learns that mathematics applies not only to nature, architecure, and music, but also to games, including chess, baseball, football, basketball, hopscotch, and three-cushion billiards. Donald even volunteers the game Tiddlywinks, but the Spirit does not pursue this option. Themes of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass are scattered throughout the chess scene; Carroll was both an author and a mathematician. The extended billiards scene describes the calculations involved in the game's "diamond system," but Donald never fully grasps how to do the calculations himself. Chess is a recreational and competitive game for two players. ... A view of the playing field at Busch Memorial Stadium, St. ... Look up Football in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five active players each try to score points against one another by throwing a ball through a 10-foot high hoop (the basket) under organized rules. ... For other uses, see Hopscotch (disambiguation). ... This article is about the various cue sports. ... // Tiddlywinks is a game played with sets of small, thin discs (called winks) lying on a surface, usually a felt mat. ... Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) – believed to be a self-portrait Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (January 27, 1832 – January 14, 1898), better known by the pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican clergyman and photographer. ... Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871) is a work of childrens literature by Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson), and is the sequel to Alices Adventures in Wonderland. ...

Mental exercises

The Spirit then asks Donald to play a mental game, but he finds Donald's mind to be too cluttered. After some mental house-cleaning, Donald plays with a circle and a triangle in his mind, and he discovers useful inventions such as the wheel, train, magnifying glass, drill, airplane propeller, and telescope. The force bearing on the axle has an eccentricity e with the point of contact to the rolling surface and exerts a moment about the contact point. ... It has been suggested that Local trains be merged into this article or section. ... A magnifying glass is a single convex lens which is used to see girls better it is wonderful i love eating it is so tasty a mg is used also toproduce a magnified image of an object. ... A child using an electric drill with a screwdriver bit mounted in the chuck. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Infinity and the future

Donald discovers that pentagrams can be drawn inside each other indefinitely. Therefore, mathematics provides an avenue to consider the infinite. The Spirit states that scientific knowledge and technological advances are unlimited, and the key to unlocking the doors of the future is mathematics. By the end of the film, Donald understands and appreciates the value of mathematics.

Memorable quotes

• "Gee Mr Spirit! There's a lot more to mathematics than two times two." - Donald Duck
• "You sure find mathematics in the darndest places!" - Donald Duck
• "And without mathematics we couldn't even keep score." - Mr Spirit (describing the presence of mathematics in baseball)
• "Well we can't all be mathematically perfect." - Mr Spirit (when Donald is unable to fit his body in a Golden Rectangle)
• "Everything is arranged according to mathematical number and shape." - Pythagoras, as quoted by the Spirit
• "Mathematics is the alphabet with which God wrote the universe." - Galileo, quoted at the end of the film

Galileo can refer to: Galileo Galilei, astronomer, philosopher, and physicist (1564 - 1642) the Galileo spacecraft, a NASA space probe that visited Jupiter and its moons the Galileo positioning system Life of Galileo, a play by Bertolt Brecht Galileo (1975) - screen adaptation of the play Life of Galileo by Bertolt Brecht...

References

1. ^ "Disney A to Z". The Official Encyclopedia (3). Disney Editions. 198. 0786849193. 

External links

• Donald in Mathmagic Land at the Internet Movie Database
• Watch Part 1 of it on YouTube
• Watch Part 2 of it on YouTube