Big Wave of Children’s Summer Video

Hi-Tops Video and Walt Disney Home Video have come up with jumbo packages of releases for the little folks to view during upcoming vacations and the summer break.

Hi-Tops has a total of 28 offerings being released from April to August. Disney has 25 in its bundle, each priced at $14.95, with Tuesday as the official store date.

Hi-Tops may have the top bargain of the season with its new Private Stock collection, six full-length features ranging from 60 to 90 minutes for $9.95 each.

This month, “Swan Lake” and Max and Dave Fleicher’s 1939 classic, “Gulliver’s Travels,” led off this series. In June two more Fleicher works, “Popeye and Friends in Outer Space” and “Puss ‘n Boots,” will move into the marketplace, followed by “Aladdin and His Lamp” and “The Adventures of Felix the Cat” in August.

Another goodie in the Hi-Tops package is its version of Hans Christian Andersen’s “Nightingale” (30 minutes, $14.95), animated by Crawley’s of Canada and the Shanghai Animation and Film Studio. The first co-production between the People’s Republic of China and Canada, it lends a delightful Oriental flavor to Christopher Plummer’s narration.

Also included are six “Charlie Brown” classics, each 30 minutes and $14.95; five volumes of “Pee-wee’s Playhouse”; four new “Visionaries” releases; three “Captain Power and the Soldiers of Fortune”; two “Commander Crumbcakes,” and a new “My Pet Monster.”

Best-selling original productions “Babysongs” and “More Babysongs” (more than 60,000 sold) also came out this month in a 60-minute two-pack for $29.90. Meant for parents to enjoy with their toddlers ages 1 to 4, this video recently won a Parent’s Choice award.

Walt Disney Home Video has some interesting offerings in its summer package, following the socko Christmas-holiday effort that produced sales of 7.5 million videos. “Lady and the Tramp,” the best-selling videocassette in history, sold more than 3 million alone.

The big Disney seller this summer is expected to be the new Mini-Classics Series, a four-part offering topped off by “Mickey’s Magical World,” celebrating Mickey Mouse’s 60th birthday. The other three are “Mickey and the Beanstalk,” “Donald in Mathmagic Land” and “The Reluctant Dragon.”

At one point this past year, Disney had 11 of the top 20 in weekly video sales, according to Billboard. Look for these new releases to pop up on the best-seller lists along with the new three-part “Disney Ducktales: Fearless Fortune Hunter, Daredevil Ducks and High-Flying Hero.”

The “Ducktales” are 44 minutes each; all others on the summer fare are just shy of half an hour.

The eighth new summer release is a sing-along, “You Can Fly,” with songs from “Lady and the Tramp,” “Peter Pan,” “The Jungle Book,” “Pinocchio” and others. Disney’s three previous sing-along videos have all been big sellers.

Also in the summer package are the 10 volumes of “Walt Disney Cartoon Classics” and the four-part “Winnie The Pooh” series. Most of these are available in sets that include bonus gift cases.

With the Disney label, it’s more than price or wrapping--it’s the distinctive and inimitable animation. Children love them. So do the parents and grandparents who have been Mickey Mouse and Disney fans for decades.

If your nearby video store doesn’t have your choices, try a toy store--many carry rather extensive selections of children’s videos, some at cut-rate prices. Or order Hi-Tops videos by calling (800) 421-4509 and Disney videos at (800) 255-5550.