I’m Moomin – Fly Me!
Years before the likes of Led Zeppelin were jetting all over the world to perform for their public, Moomin was already quite au fait with the jet-set lifestyle.The SAS flight attendants seem to be trying to reassure a nervous-looking Moomin whilst reminding him of the importance of securing his seatbelt – although with that belly, it may have been something of a challenge.
This shot’s from 1957, as Moomin Fever was hitting its peak in the UK. The comic strip had been running for three years in the Evening News and of course it was only inevitable that a hit single was the next step.
The song in question was called Balen i Mumindalen and was shown on the BBC in that same year. The melody was adapted from a Scottish tune by Robert Farnon, a seasoned Canadian composer who not only composed film scores for Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. and Gentlemen Marry Brunettes, but he also conducted and arranged the only Frank Sinatra album recorded outside of the United States. He also won four Ivor Novello awards and composed three full-length symphonies.
Tove Jansson wrote the lyrics for this song, but recordings of the actual song itself are very scarce indeed. However, here’s an instrumental version of it – certainly, it captures the mood.