Toothless (TV)
Encyclopedia
Toothless is a 1997 children's fantasy
television movie
that first aired as part of The Wonderful World of Disney on ABC
.
as was her grandfather and great-grandfather, who performed dental work on Abraham Lincoln
and she aspired to become one too. She would always have perfect teeth.
Years later, Katherine grows up to be a dentist herself and runs the office that her dad and Dr. Green used to be in charge of. She is very happy with her career, but equally unhappy with her social life. She is afraid of loving anyone in case she loses them as she lost her father. Dr. Green is dead and her best friend, Mindy, is married and happy. She stays a bachelorette
, and has turned down every man who pursued her.
One day, Katherine is walking to the bank to deposit a few checks during a rift in her schedule and she sees Mindy across the street. She is accidentally knocked onto the road by a bike messenger. She is unable to move out of the way in time and dies instantly from her injuries after getting hit by an oncoming car. She awakens and finds herself in an area called Limbo
, a place referred to being between Heaven
and Hell
. The receptionist reveals to her that she has died and that she must find her case worker for further instruction. A strict supervisor named Rogers comes along and reveals that when someone dies, if he or she had not performed good deeds on Earth, then they must perform community service as a mythological being in order to go to Heaven by heading up the Stairway to Heaven. If they fail, they go to Hell through the Hellevator. After looking through the book of former dentists' choices of community service options, she decides on "Bicuspid retrieval," which she does not realize is the Tooth Fairy
until she signs her contract. She is then trained by a worker named Raul on how to perform her service. When asked about the previous one, Rogers stated that she was "fired."
Rogers shows Katherine to her office, which contains a non-working telephone
, a television
that shows her children who lose their teeth, and a vintage typewriter
that automatically dictates the names and locations of said children.
On her first night on the job, Katherine visits a boy named Bobby Jameson. As it turns out, children who have at least one baby tooth can see her, while those who have lost all of theirs can't, as the loss of baby teeth represents the loss of innocence required to see paranormal beings. He seems to be very angry and is rude to her; she changes his tooth into a silver coin with her wand and leaves, while he is somewhat convinced that he is dreaming. The next day when he is at school, a bully named Jeff punches him and knocks another one of his teeth out. Katherine comes to visit him again that night and discovers that his mother has died of cancer
and his father is always busy at work. She decides to help him and the other children at his school with their problems, which lands her in trouble with the higher-ups in Limbo, as revealing herself to living humans is a grievous infraction; when she is found out, she stands before the Council of Judges (all of whom are named Joe) who tell her that her access to Heaven has been denied due to an overflowing tooth bank, 47% retrieval and an all time high approval rating, but she is let off with a warning. She feels that the children's needs are greater than hers and asks for Raul's help in making her visible to the parents and the school principal so that she can prove that she is real and that Bobby is not insane.
Katherine succeeds in becoming visible to the adults and is found out yet again by Rogers, who comes with Raul to drag her back to Limbo. Once there, Rogers has her sent to the Hellavator. She begins her descent down it in a boiling rain, but suddenly finds herself back on Earth. She learns from Raul that not only was she dreaming, but has been given a second chance at life too. She figures that her father used his connections in Limbo to get her a second chance as she learned her lesson. She then notices Rogers as a traffic cop who mouths to her that she will be watching her.
Katherine returns to her job with a newfound love of life. She finds Bobby, a new patient, waiting for his appointment with her; she explains what happened and goes on to live her life fully. After she removes his last baby tooth, though, all of his memories of her as the Tooth Fairy are lost, and she's saddened that he no longer knows her. His father recognizes her from when she turned visible, and she asks them to go to a baseball game with her and they accept, implying a future relationship with Mr. Jameson.
, Easter Bunny
, Cupid
, Cinderella
, Boogeyman
, and Sleeping Beauty
.
Fantasy film
Fantasy films are films with fantastic themes, usually involving magic, supernatural events, make-believe creatures, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered to be distinct from science fiction film and horror film, although the genres do overlap...
television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
that first aired as part of The Wonderful World of Disney on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
.
Plot
The movie opens with Katherine Lewis, sharing her memories of going to see her dentist, Dr. Green, who took over Dr. Lewis's office after he died. Her father was a dentistDentist
A dentist, also known as a 'dental surgeon', is a doctor that specializes in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity. The dentist's supporting team aides in providing oral health services...
as was her grandfather and great-grandfather, who performed dental work on Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
and she aspired to become one too. She would always have perfect teeth.
Years later, Katherine grows up to be a dentist herself and runs the office that her dad and Dr. Green used to be in charge of. She is very happy with her career, but equally unhappy with her social life. She is afraid of loving anyone in case she loses them as she lost her father. Dr. Green is dead and her best friend, Mindy, is married and happy. She stays a bachelorette
Bachelorette
Bachelorette is an American English term for an unmarried woman. The term is derived from the word bachelor, and is often used by journalists, editors of popular magazines, and some individuals. "Bachelorette" was famously the term used to refer to female contestants on the old Dating Game TV...
, and has turned down every man who pursued her.
One day, Katherine is walking to the bank to deposit a few checks during a rift in her schedule and she sees Mindy across the street. She is accidentally knocked onto the road by a bike messenger. She is unable to move out of the way in time and dies instantly from her injuries after getting hit by an oncoming car. She awakens and finds herself in an area called Limbo
Limbo
In the theology of the Catholic Church, Limbo is a speculative idea about the afterlife condition of those who die in original sin without being assigned to the Hell of the damned. Limbo is not an official doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church or any other...
, a place referred to being between Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
and Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. The receptionist reveals to her that she has died and that she must find her case worker for further instruction. A strict supervisor named Rogers comes along and reveals that when someone dies, if he or she had not performed good deeds on Earth, then they must perform community service as a mythological being in order to go to Heaven by heading up the Stairway to Heaven. If they fail, they go to Hell through the Hellevator. After looking through the book of former dentists' choices of community service options, she decides on "Bicuspid retrieval," which she does not realize is the Tooth Fairy
Tooth fairy
The tooth fairy is a fantasy figure of early childhood. The folklore states that when a child loses a baby tooth, if he or she places it beneath the bed pillow, the tooth fairy will visit while the child sleeps, replacing the lost tooth with a small payment....
until she signs her contract. She is then trained by a worker named Raul on how to perform her service. When asked about the previous one, Rogers stated that she was "fired."
Rogers shows Katherine to her office, which contains a non-working telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
, a television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
that shows her children who lose their teeth, and a vintage typewriter
Typewriter
A typewriter is a mechanical or electromechanical device with keys that, when pressed, cause characters to be printed on a medium, usually paper. Typically one character is printed per keypress, and the machine prints the characters by making ink impressions of type elements similar to the pieces...
that automatically dictates the names and locations of said children.
On her first night on the job, Katherine visits a boy named Bobby Jameson. As it turns out, children who have at least one baby tooth can see her, while those who have lost all of theirs can't, as the loss of baby teeth represents the loss of innocence required to see paranormal beings. He seems to be very angry and is rude to her; she changes his tooth into a silver coin with her wand and leaves, while he is somewhat convinced that he is dreaming. The next day when he is at school, a bully named Jeff punches him and knocks another one of his teeth out. Katherine comes to visit him again that night and discovers that his mother has died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
and his father is always busy at work. She decides to help him and the other children at his school with their problems, which lands her in trouble with the higher-ups in Limbo, as revealing herself to living humans is a grievous infraction; when she is found out, she stands before the Council of Judges (all of whom are named Joe) who tell her that her access to Heaven has been denied due to an overflowing tooth bank, 47% retrieval and an all time high approval rating, but she is let off with a warning. She feels that the children's needs are greater than hers and asks for Raul's help in making her visible to the parents and the school principal so that she can prove that she is real and that Bobby is not insane.
Katherine succeeds in becoming visible to the adults and is found out yet again by Rogers, who comes with Raul to drag her back to Limbo. Once there, Rogers has her sent to the Hellavator. She begins her descent down it in a boiling rain, but suddenly finds herself back on Earth. She learns from Raul that not only was she dreaming, but has been given a second chance at life too. She figures that her father used his connections in Limbo to get her a second chance as she learned her lesson. She then notices Rogers as a traffic cop who mouths to her that she will be watching her.
Katherine returns to her job with a newfound love of life. She finds Bobby, a new patient, waiting for his appointment with her; she explains what happened and goes on to live her life fully. After she removes his last baby tooth, though, all of his memories of her as the Tooth Fairy are lost, and she's saddened that he no longer knows her. His father recognizes her from when she turned visible, and she asks them to go to a baseball game with her and they accept, implying a future relationship with Mr. Jameson.
Community service
In Limbo, people who did not use their time on Earth wisely perform community service in order to gain access into Heaven when their judgement day comes. Besides the Tooth Fairy, other community service roles include Santa ClausSanta Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
, Easter Bunny
Easter Bunny
The Easter Bunny or Easter Rabbit is a character depicted as a rabbit bringing Easter eggs, who sometimes is depicted with clothes...
, Cupid
Cupid
In Roman mythology, Cupid is the god of desire, affection and erotic love. He is the son of the goddess Venus and the god Mars. His Greek counterpart is Eros...
, Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
, Boogeyman
Bogeyman
A bogeyman is an amorphous imaginary being used by adults to frighten children into compliant behaviour...
, and Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault or Little Briar Rose by the Brothers Grimm is a classic fairytale involving a beautiful princess, enchantment, and a handsome prince...
.
Cast
- Kirstie AlleyKirstie AlleyKirstie Louise Alley is an American actress known for her role in the TV show Cheers, in which she played Rebecca Howe from 1987–1993, winning an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award as the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1991...
– Dr. Katherine Lewis - Dale MidkiffDale MidkiffDale Alan Midkiff is an American actor.-Early life:Midkiff was born in Chance, Maryland, the son of Joyce and Thomas Midkiff. He attended Edgewood High School near Baltimore. His first acting experience came playing Jack in a production of Jack and the Beanstalk for a local children's theater. His...
– Thomas Jameson - Ross MalingerRoss MalingerRoss Aaron Malinger is an American actor who co-starred as Jonah Baldwin in the 1993 romantic film Sleepless In Seattle. He starred in the 1997 comedy Toothless, along with Kirstie Alley, portraying the second main character of the film...
– Bobby Jameson - Daryl MitchellDaryl MitchellDaryl "Chill" Mitchell is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Dexter Walker on The John Larroquette Show, Leo Michaels on Veronica's Closet, and Eli Goggins on Ed....
– Raul - Kathryn Zaremba – Carrie
- Marcus Toji – Trevor
- Melanie MayronMelanie MayronMelanie Joy Mayron is an American actress and director of film and television. Mayron is best known for portraying the role of photographer Melissa Steadman on the ABC drama Thirtysomething.-Biography:...
– Mindy - Lynn RedgraveLynn RedgraveLynn Rachel Redgrave, OBE was an English actress.A member of the well-known British family of actors, Redgrave trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962...
– Rogers - Eileen BrennanEileen BrennanEileen Brennan is an American actress of film, television, and theater. Brennan is best known for her role as Doreen Lewis in Private Benjamin for which she received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She reprised the role in the TV adaption and won a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy...
– Joe #1 - Kimberly ScottKimberly ScottKimberly Aileen Scott is an American actress.-Life and career:Scott was born in Texas. She attended school at Texas A&M University-Kingsville and the University of Texas before earning a post-graduate degree from the Yale School of Drama.She has appeared in films such as The Abyss, Gross Anatomy,...
– Gwen - John P. ConnollyJohn P. ConnollyJohn P. Connolly is an American actor and the former Executive Director of Actors' Equity Association. Connolly served in this position from February 2007 until November 2009, after serving six years as the President of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists .As a Union leader and...
– Dr. Green - Catlin AdamsCatlin AdamsCatlin Adams is an American actress and director. Her main roles include The Jazz Singer and Toothless. She had a more minor role in The Jerk. As a director she shared a Directors Guild of America Award for an afterschool special.-External links:...
– Carrie's Mom - Patrick KerrPatrick KerrPatrick Kerr is an American television actor. He is probably best known for his recurring role as Noel Shempsky on Frasier...
– Mr. Wood - Jake RichardsonJake RichardsonJacob Matthew Richardson is an American actor, currently acting mostly in TV series. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the film Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves and the TV series Fudge.-Career:...
– Jeff - Zack Duhame – Kent
- Arjay SmithArjay SmithArjay L. Smith is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his teenage role portraying the titular character of the Nickelodeon children's television series, The Journey of Allen Strange. Most recently, he portrayed terrorist Laurent Dubaku during Season 7 of the Fox thriller/drama 24...
– Phil - Joel SwetowJoel Swetow- Select filmography :* Rent ... as Mr. Cohen* Star Trek: Enterprise** episode Terra Prime ... as Andorian Ambassador Thoris* Charmed... As the Avatar named Alpha* Alias** episode Second Double ... as Jens...
– Joe #2 - Kaley CuocoKaley CuocoKaley Christine Cuoco is an American film and television actress. She first came to attention for her role as Bridget Hennessy on the Emmy Award-winning sitcom 8 Simple Rules. She later starred as Billie Jenkins on the final season of the supernatural drama series Charmed...
– Lori - Augie Amarino – Man in Hellavator
- Stephen Spacek – Bike Messenger
- Thomas Crawford – Cupid
- Candy Trabuco – Photographer
- Gregory Hinton – Tiny
- Lindze LethermanLindze LethermanLindze Lanae Letherman is an American actress. She is known for her role as Georgie Jones Quartermaine on General Hospital.-Career:...
– Molly - Helen SlaterHelen SlaterHelen Rachel Slater is an American actress and singer-songwriter.She appeared in the title role in the 1984 film Supergirl. In the following years she starred in several very successful comedy-drama films such as Ruthless People, The Secret of My Success, and City Slickers...
– Katherine's Mom - Lewis SmithLewis Smith-Early life:Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He graduated from Lookout Valley High School in 1974.-Career:Smith is best known for the role of Charles Main on the first and second part of North and South miniseries, He also played "Curly Bill" Brocious in the Kevin Costner film Wyatt Earp...
– Young Hot Guy - Yeardley SmithYeardley SmithYeardley Smith is a French-born American actress, voice actress, writer and painter. She is best known for her long-running role as Lisa Simpson on the animated television series The Simpsons....
– Gatekeeper - Joel BrooksJoel BrooksJoel Brooks is an American actor, known for his roles in My Sister Sam, Six Feet Under, The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green and Phil of the Future...
– Principal Norris - Keaton Savage – Little Boy (uncredited)