The Typography of Disney’s “Dumbo”
As any parent can commiserate, when you have young children, you end up watching films that you haven’t seen since you were a kid. Most of the time, they are painful to watch but sometimes, you are pleasantly surprised by what you see.
Last night, I watched Walt Disney’s 1941 classic animated film “Dumbo” and realized it has been over 30 years since I last watched it. I remembered literally nothing beyond the fact that the movie was about an elephant with big ears.
Although my three-year-old son probably didn’t notice, I was immediately drawn to the opening title cards which displays an explosion of circus-style Tuscan typefaces with colorful Egyptians, scripts, and san serifs sprinkled throughout. Check them out below, I think they’re pretty great and my son likes the elephants; so everyone wins.
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