The Devil and Daniel Mouse

Plot

The story is about two struggling mouse musicians, Daniel and Jan. When they are fired from their latest gig (their music is deemed too old-fashioned and not with the times), Daniel goes to pawn his guitar in order to buy groceries. Jan wanders off on her own and encounters a shifty reptilian character in a white suit who introduces himself as "B.L. Zebubb", a record producer.

He and his weasel assistant, Weez Weezel, offer her fame and fortune in exchange for signing a contract in blood. Jan does not read the fine print and trusts B.L., signing herself over to his record production company. Little does she suspect that B.L. is none other than the Devil himself, and at the height of her fame he will return to collect her soul. To assist her, Weez conjures three band members from thin air, a rabbit (Rabbit Delight), a beaver (Boom Boom Beaver), and a praying mantis (Pray Mantis).

As "Funky Jan", Jan is soon the most popular rock star on the planet while the oblivious Daniel is left out in the cold. But when B.L. comes for her soul and she realizes what she has done, a distraught Jan goes to Daniel for help. A trial is held in the woods that night over Jan's soul, with Weez as the judge and Daniel acting as Jan's attorney. As an additional stipend, the Devil states that should Daniel lose the trial, his soul as well as Jan's will be taken as payment. At first, the trial seems hopeless, considering Daniel has no education as a lawyer and cannot present even the beginnings of a reasonable argument to release Jan.

Having nothing else to offer, Daniel begins to sing a heartfelt song. Jan joins in, as do her three heretofore unhelpful band members. The other animals watching the trial begin to sing and clap along to the tune and so do the jury of lost souls. An enraged Devil attempts to summon forth demons to stop the heroes, but the spirits he conjures also fall prey to the sway of Daniel's music.

A frustrated Devil finally leaves, returning to Hell and taking Weez and all his other minions with him. The two mice embrace one another as the film ends.

Songs

Nelvana story album

A tie-in story LP record was released by Nelvana Records in 1978.' Narrated by John Sebastian, the album features dialog lifted straight from the film's soundtrack as well as songs performed by Sebastian, Valerie Carter (credited as Laurel Runn) and the Reggie Knighton Band. As in the film, the dialog is interspersed with several of the songs.

Full-color storybook

First published by Avon/Camelot in 1979, the storybook was written by screenwriter Ken Sobol and features music and lyrics for three John Sebastian penned songs (I've Got a Song, Can You Help Me Find My Song? and Look Where the Music Can Take You). Simplified for younger readers, many of the visual gags and a few scenes were omitted from the book.

Home video

The Devil and Daniel Mouse was simultaneously issued as a stand-alone title on Betamax and VHS as well as featured on several compilations of Nelvana's TV specials.' The stand-alone version can be cheaply obtained on eBay and amazon.com from time to time; the compilations generally sell for a heftier price tag.

Nelvanamation

The first and more widely available compilation to feature the film was Nelvanamation. Also featured on this video are Romie-0 and Julie-8, Intergalactic Thanksgiving and A Cosmic Christmas.

The Devil and Daniel Mouse and Tales of Fantasy and Science Fiction

Headlining a collection similar to Nelvanamation, this CED Videodisc also includes Romie-0 and Julie-8, Easter Fever, Intergalactic Thanksgiving and A Cosmic Christmas.

Rock & Rule

Daniel Mouse became the inspiration for Nelvana's first feature film, Rock & Rule. The film and How We Made the Devil and Daniel Mouse, a vintage "making of" documentary, were both included on the two-DVD and Blu-Ray versions of that film in a slightly edited form of 22 minutes from its original 25 minute running time.

Bauhaus song

Dialogue from this cartoon was used by the rock band Bauhaus in the song "Party of the First Part", found on some versions of The Sky's Gone Out and 1989's Swing the Heartache: The BBC Sessions.