August 28, 2014
50 Fabulous Years Of Fidelity Fiduciary Bank
By Justin J. Smith
Perhaps you've heard, perhaps not, that this week,
Walt Disney's Mary Poppins celebrated its 50th Anniversary (the
infamous premiere was held on August 26th, 1964). A lot about Mary
Poppins has already been said/discussed/celebrated: Mini-reunions of
the crew were held, Poppins has since been released in Blu-Ray in
stunning Hi-Def, even an entire historical drama on how the movie
got made was released in the form of Saving Mr. Banks. This week
though, the only thing Disney really did to acknowledge the
anniversary was have a D23 screening of the movie on the Studio Lot
where they gave out a complementary pin. So I thought in honor of
the movie, I would talk a little bit about easily the best part of
the movie.

It was 2005 when I rewatched Mary Poppins. In the
year prior, Disney released it with a big 40th anniversary DVD and a
big celebration around it. Still fresh on many people's minds, and
being in my rewatching Disney movies phase, I decided to give Mary
Poppins a rematch. My impression? It was pretty much exactly as I
remember it from my youth. "Spoonful of Sugar,"
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and "I Love To Laugh" were
exactly as I remembered them knowing the lyrics pretty well too
(Sherman Brothers songs never leave you), a lot of the moments,
shots and story were pretty much the same as well, but one scene
that out and out shocked me, because I had zero recollection of it
was the "Fidelity Fiduciary Bank" scene. The moment in the movie
where Mr. Banks takes his children, Jane and Michael, to his work,
the bank (appropriately enough) and plans to set them up with an
account. They meet Mr. Banks' boss and Mr. Dawes Jr. and his father,
Mr. Dawes Sr. as well as his fellow colleagues (Tomes, Mousely,
Grubb) where they sing to Jane and Michael the importance of
compound interest.
Watching that scene for the first time with a clear
memory and attention span was nothing short of extraordinary. At
first it was the ultimate case of "I can't believe what I'm watching
actually exists" a reaction usually reserved for watching a Salvador
Dal painting or a David Lynch film. But relistening to the song
again, and again, and again and again and again and again I truly
realized what a work of genius it was. The lyrics were mature and
educational (the most so of any Disney song), the instrumentations
were out of this world and the performances were nothing short of
hilarious and incredible (yes, like everybody else, it took the
credits and IMDB confirmation to truly confirm that Mr. Dawes Sr.
was played by none other than the film's co-star, Dick Van Dyke!)
and the moment where Mr. Dawes Sr. hits his cane on the ground and
the other bankers start "dancing" is nothing short of cinematic!
Fidelity Fiduciary Bank is easily the best part of
the movie to the point where when I think of "Mary Poppins" the
first thing that comes to mind isn't chalk-paint, tea-parties on the
ceiling or dancing chimney sweeps, but of dancing bankers urging
Jane and Michael to wisely invest their tuppence. If I had my way
I'd even put a Fidelity Fiduciary Bank attraction in Disneyland (why
not replace "It's A Small World" with "Fidelity Fiduciary Bank"
during tax season?).
Over the past couple years I got to have cool
experiences with those involved with Mary Poppins. In 2013 at the
D23 Expo I got to see Richard Sherman play in concert (a night I
considered a slight disappointment if just for the fact he didn't
play "Fidelity Fiduciary Bank") I also got to write a letter to Dick
Van Dyke explaining my love for this song to which he kindly
responded with an autograph. As great as those experiences were, I
wanted more. I wanted to actually have a face to face conversation
with someone involved from the movie about the song. Well�I'm happy
to tell you with enough patience and perseverance you can get
whatever you want! Earlier this month, I got to meet Disney Legend
Karen Dotrice, who played Jane in Mary Poppins.

Ok, she might not have written or sang the song, but
she was there live as an eyewitness witnessing that extraordinary
moment being filmed all around her! Perhaps the only person alive
today who can claim that, I jumped at the chance to ask her about
Fidelity Fiduciary Bank.
Sure enough, I got to meet her, ask for an autograph
and I told her my favorite song from Mary Poppins was "Fidelity
Fiduciary Bank", which she laughed and agreed it was hilarious, and
I asked her what was it like to actually film that scene to which
she responded, "Scary." It apparently was a traumatizing experience
for her, especially filming the scene after the bank in the
alleyways. She also pointed out how she had no idea beneath all of
that makeup, Mr. Dawes Sr. was really Dick Van Dyke. As we took this
photo she did thank me for "my originality. Apparently in all 50
years since the film was released, nobody ever asked her that
question before. Quite a humbling experience I'll remember forever.
