Disney’s much-anticipated and much-delayed  “The Princess and the Frog” just added Oprah Winfrey to its vocal cast, starring as Princess Tiana’s mother.  This is exciting news for many reasons, but I am most excited about the fact that this is the first time (at least to my knowledge) that the mother of a Disney Princess will actually appear on the big screen.  The Princess and the Frog is set to hit theaters on Christmas Day 2009, but it’s already stirring up controversy online.  Here are some more reactions:

• Stereohyped: Disney’s Princess Tiana: A Gift or A Curse?
• The Independent: Disney’s ’subservient’ black princess animates film critics
• Film School Rejects: The Princess and the Frog: Controversy or Innocence?

Fans of the Disney Princesses can rejoice: each Disney Princess now has her own signature perfume, which comes in a collectible bottle. I don’t fully understand the perfumerie terms “exit”, “body” and “background”, but Disney Princess Ariel scent is supposed to have an exit of rose and iris, a body of white wood and grape, and a background of musk.  Sounds pretty nice at least.  My only concern is that enthusiastic little girls will end up spraying everthing within reach with Disney Princess perfume.  That might cause Princess overload.

Just a quick reminder: The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning will be available for a limited time starting August 26th!

I watched the sneak peak, and it looks pretty good…not to give too much of the plot away, but apparently there is a ban on all music in the kingdom of Triton and Ariel is once again breaking rules by sneaking away to underground(water?) octopus calypso club. There was also a slight hint that perhaps Ariel’s mom died in a music-related tragedy, and I appreciate the attempt to explain her absence. Additionally, the animation is really great, so adults will find that The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning is both tolerable and enjoyable.

Like I mentioned earlier, this Little Mermaid DVD won’t be around forever, so pre-order it soon and score big at holiday gift giving time!

Pocahontas is a relatively new appointee to the Disney Princess pantheon, but she is one of my all-time favorites. And not just because I “am” Pocahontas, according to the “Which Disney Princess are You?” quiz. Pocahontas is also a favorite because she’s cool, smart, independent and conscientious, yet has some attitude and ingenuity. I am a little disappointed, though, that she doesn’t get as much attention or merchandising as other Disney Princesses. You’ll find Pocahontas on items that feature multiple Disney Princesses, but there aren’t very many exclusively Pocahontas items. I think it would be really cool if there was a Pocahontas backpack and tent set or a Pocahontas fishing pole or snowshoes or something like that, because Pocahontas is very outdoorsy, and it would be great if there were more outdoor toys that appeal to girls.

Here are some more links about Pocahontas the Disney Princess and Pocahontas the historical figure:

• Disney Archives: Pocahontas
• APVA: Pocahontas
• The Pocahontas Myth
• John Smith’s Letter to Queen Anne Regarding Pocahontas
• Virtual Jamestown: Pocahontas

Snow White, like Cinderella, had a long and illustrious Disney career before becoming one of the 6 original Disney Princesses in 2000. I was never really into her because I have always had a weird issue with her dress (I think it’s that crazy collar), but millions of current and former little girls disagree with me on this point, so she remains a favorite Disney Princess. She so popular, in fact, that even Rachel Weisz wanted to be Snow White:

Disney Bridal also has a line of Snow White gowns for women who just can’t get enough Disney Princess action in their lives. None of these gowns suggest Snow White to me at all (or Disney for that matter), but if it works for some people, great. The girls’ dresses are super cute, but most little girls I know will call you on it if you try to tell them it’s a “Snow White” dress, so I’d recommend not even mentioning it to avoid tantrums.

The coolest thing about Snow White is that she (like Cinderella) was an environmentalist and animal rights supporter long before it was the trendy thing to do. Right on!

My apologies that it’s been so long since my last Disney Princess post. With all the news about recalls, BPA and The Baby Borrowers, I guess I got distracted. So anyway, let me resume the Disney Princess discussion with one of my all-time personal favorites, Cinderella. The movie Cinderella is a classic rags-to-riches tale, in which the long-suffering but hardworking and never-complaining girl is finally rewarded by marrying a prince and escaping her awful life. It’s also chock-full of catchy songs like Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, so it remains a perennial favorite that will undoubtedly be requested at some point by the little girls in your life. Cinderella is also a key part of most Disney Princess-branded merchandise like Disney Princess bedding, so you will most likely become very familiar with her face.

Like the other Disney Princesses, she has parental issues. Her mom died early on and her dad remarried a woman with two daughters from a previous marriage, which was fine and dandy until her dad died and her step-mother revealed her truly evil nature. Cinderella becomes a slave to the step-mother and step-sisters, basically confined to the house by the endless list of chores they set for her. Luckily, Cinderella doesn’t seem to be too effective of a housekeeper, or otherwise she may have exterminated the mice that later go on to help her land the prince. Instead, she talks to the mice and birds and other animals, which are pretty much her only friends.

At some point, the King announces he wants to find a bride for his son the Prince, and so there is going to be a big ball at which all the eligible young bachelorettes in the kingdom can meet said prince. Cinderella of course wants to go but her stepmother wants one of her biological daughters to marry the prince, so they sabotage Cinderella’s dress before heading to the ball. But Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother appears, and with the help of the animals, essentially offsets any of the sabotage, ensuring that Cinderella finally connects with Prince Charming and eventually lives “happily ever after”.

I like Cinderella because I like the underlying message that hard work eventually gets recognized and rewarded, but I am not sure that marrying out of the situation is really a reward. It seems in some ways like a lateral move to me, simply because in either case, there are probably many restrictions about what she can do with her life. But as a metaphoric reward, I guess it will do.

Anyway, the next Disney Princess up for discussion is Snow White, so stay tuned!

Princess Jasmine first debuted in Disney’s Aladdin, but she since has become a key member of the Disney Princess crew. According to Wikipedia, “Jasmine holds the record for appearing in more media than any of the other Disney princesses, as well as being the first Disney princess not of European descent, plus not to marry a prince (suggesting that’s she is a liittle (sic) less materialistic than the first five).” Talk about raising the bar! Jasmine is a triple threat! Even Jennifer Lopez wants to be Jasmine!

Much like other Disney Princesses, Jasmine’s mother is absent and her father is a dominant, controlling figure in her life. Jasmine is like Ariel in that she chooses to rebel from her father’s attempt to choose her husband. ( Hmmm, another flash of insight…I wonder if there is a link between the headstrong temper tantrums of some little princesses and the headstrong nature of the Disney Princesses…something to ponder…because my nieces can throw some crazy tantrums…) But, at least Jasmine’s demonstrating independent thinking.

Like all Disney Princess toys and accessories, anything emblazoned with Jasmine’s image is bound to be a big success with little girls.

Aurora is better known by the title of her film, Sleeping Beauty. People who remember Aurora from Sleeping Beauty will remember that she mainly wears a blue dress in the film, but for some reason, upon her incorporation into the Disney Princess team, her primary clothing color changed to pink. Not just any pink. Pepto Bismol pink. And that same vile shade of pink is used not only on Aurora’s clothes, but also on most Princess-related merchandise. This particular shade of pink is my main problem with Princess Aurora. This shade of pink is also a big reason little girls LOVE the Disney Princesses. I am not sure if Aurora is as popular as Belle and Ariel, but I have a feeling girls’ dresses in that shade of pink are really, really popular.

Ok, I am a bit cranky today and don’t feel like turning this post into a rant about awful shades of pink, so I will leave a few links for your enjoyment and post more on Aurora later.

• Princess Aurora stationary and games for Princess Parties
• Sleeping Beauty Castle paper model
• Grown-up girls may like Royal Doulton’s Sleeping Beauty Figurines
• Sleeping Beauty postage stamps from Grenada
• Sleeping Beauty Platinum Edition Blu-ray disc will be released in Fall 2008, just in time for Christmas!

2. Princess Belle: My niece’s Disney Princess obsession quickly grew to include Belle from Beauty & the Beast, so she’s the next Disney Princess up for discussion. Like Ariel, Belle is smart and independent, has a very complicated relationship with her father and an absent mother. (Whoa, it didn’t occur to me until I typed that just how Freudian Disney heroines can be. Anyway…) Unlike Ariel, who needs to rebel against her domineering, larger-than-life father, Belle has the responsibility of basically managing her sweet but eccentric and relatively clueless father’s life. He goes missing one day, she takes off to find him, which leads her into meeting the beast, etc. The best part about the entire film is the underlying message that one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, even though that message is somewhat dampened by the fact that the beast eventually turns back into a pretty hot cartoon guy. Regardless, Princess Belle toys tend to be a big hit with little girls.

Here are some great Disney Belle gift ideas:

• Disney Princess Tea Time With Me Little Belle
• Disney Princess Belle Deluxe Red Velvet dress
• Disney Princess Belle Snowglobe
• Disney Princess Glowing Beauty girls pajamas

In honor of my oldest niece’s 6th birthday, I have decided to chronicle the history of her obsession with the Disney Princesses, one Disney Princess at a time.

1. Princess Ariel: I believe the obsession with Princess Ariel began in the womb, since Ariel is also my sister’s favorite Disney heroine. Ariel is a cool independent thinker so I encouraged my niece’s interest in Ariel. I also like the catchy songs and Sebastian the Crab in The Little Mermaid. Seriously, who can’t appreciate the calypso rhythms of Under the Sea?

A quick guide to Disney Princess Ariel-related gifts:

• The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning limited release DVD will be released on August 26, 2008. Great for fall birthdays and Christmas stocking stuffers!
• Ariel’s Undersea Adventure for Nintendo DS
• The Little Mermaid pajamas
• Beware of Shimmering Lights Ariel!

This isn’t totally Princess Ariel-related, but if you want to really impress the little girl in your life, sign up for the inaugural Disney Princess Half Marathon weekend, March 6-8, 2009. Registration just opened on Monday, May 5th, but I have a feeling it will fill up quickly. I am sure many of the Disney Princesses will be there in person to cheer the racers, especially the kids races on Saturday, March 7.