When did Jiminy Cricket fall out of favor?

I'm in that age bracket too. I remember Jiminy Cricket being around a lot more in the 80s. Of course, back then Disney wasn't cranking out animated movies as quickly as they are now.

I do remember plushies of Jiminy Cricket being fairly common in the 80s. I also remember watching those educational filmstrips Disney made in school. Many of those included Jiminy Cricket.
 
He used to be the face of the "environmentality" campaign at WDW - if I'm remembering correctly, he encouraged recycling and re-using towels in your resort room. It's been a while since I stayed in a WDW resort, I'm assuming this is no longer a thing?
 


When did Jiminy Cricket fall out of favor? Say it ain't so, I love him and have a mini figure alongside my Pinocchio cookie jar because it's one of my favorite stories. The idea that wanting a child so much could spring a son (or daughter) to life is lovely and Jimny is a big part of the story :)
 
Back in the day when Walt's creativity started getting the studio to branch out into other entertainment areas, his brother Roy did not want their "star" characters like Mickey and Minnie associated with those projects in case they failed. Roy did not want their top tier characters risk being associated with failures. So, the "second tier" characters, like Jiminy Cricket, Tinker Bell, Dopey, were used to promote things like Disneyland and to star in educational films. This practice continued for decades with newer characters stepping into these types of roles that were previously filled by Jiminy and Tinker Bell.
 


Gen X'er too, yes he is not as prominent as he was when I was a kid. Princesses rule the roost, imho. (which is kind of a bummer but obviously they bring in the $$ so I get it.)

He is still around. I have some pics with him when we were in AK at the Conservation Station (pre-covid).IMG_2114.jpg

And to those that don't like Tinkerbell, I get it. But after I watched the newer Tinkerbell movie series (dd used to love them) she grew on me. But she is definitely a hot head.
 
My two cents, he ain't in vogue anymore because he talks about having a conscience and doing the right thing. Making goods choices and living right. In the world we live in today no one wants to hear that. They are going to do what they feel like and do not want anyone judging them for it. More of a sign of the times than anything else.
 
I love Jiminy Cricket ... but again, nostalgia. I grew up with him being the MC for most
Gen X'er too, yes he is not as prominent as he was when I was a kid. Princesses rule the roost, imho. (which is kind of a bummer but obviously they bring in the $$ so I get it.)

He is still around. I have some pics with him when we were in AK at the Conservation Station (pre-covid).View attachment 549612

And to those that don't like Tinkerbell, I get it. But after I watched the newer Tinkerbell movie series (dd used to love them) she grew on me. But she is definitely a hot head.
 
Unfortunately it's not Jiminy Cricket, it's the association with the movie Pinocchio due to it's outdated cultural depictions, stereotypes, & child trafficking theme. Just doesn't mesh well with what's been happening in society the past several years.
 
Unfortunately it's not Jiminy Cricket, it's the association with the movie Pinocchio due to it's outdated cultural depictions, stereotypes, & child trafficking theme. Just doesn't mesh well with what's been happening in society the past several years.

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And to those that don't like Tinkerbell, I get it. But after I watched the newer Tinkerbell movie series (dd used to love them) she grew on me. But she is definitely a hot head.
Tink is my daughter, Natalie's, very favorite.

Tinker Bell and Natalie This is from 2004, dad/daughter trip on her 24th birthday. Peggy (@Feralpeg here) made that great looking gift basket for her.
 
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I don't think i have been to Disneyland or Disneyworld where every day there I didn't here Jimniy singing "When You Wish Upon a Star".
 
When was he in favor? I went to WDW in the 80s and 90s as a kid. And I don't remember him being any more front and center than the Lion King.
 
Jiminy Cricket used to have a teaching moment on the Mickey Mouse Club in the 1950's which he introduced by singing about the e-n-c-y-c-l-o-p-e-d-i-a. If it were today, he'd just talk about a blurb he found on Google. Anyway the song taught kids how to spell encyclopedia. DH used to joke that "you can't spell encyclopedia without the cricket." BTW, I thought the segments were boring.
 
Back in the day when Walt's creativity started getting the studio to branch out into other entertainment areas, his brother Roy did not want their "star" characters like Mickey and Minnie associated with those projects in case they failed. Roy did not want their top tier characters risk being associated with failures. So, the "second tier" characters, like Jiminy Cricket, Tinker Bell, Dopey, were used to promote things like Disneyland and to star in educational films. This practice continued for decades with newer characters stepping into these types of roles that were previously filled by Jiminy and Tinker Bell.
thank you for the background

I was feeling old that there was no mention of all those Jiminy films that made it to 1960s elementary schools cafeterias or gyms or auditoriums and Jiminy telling us " Don't be a fool!!" which is how I see him at the Disneyland attraction, guding us with advice. ....and that explains why Donald Duck was in Mathematics Land.
 

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