Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #199

 Hello my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again it is time for some classic cartoons. 

With it being October, today's cartoon selection begins with a spooky classic, Hyde and Hare (1955). This short film does a wonderful job of putting Bugs Bunny into the classic spooky story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The cartoon was directed by Friz Freleng who also directed other Warner Brothers cartoons based off this story such as Dr. Jerkyl's Hide (1954) and Hyde and Go Tweet (1960). 

Now we join our old friend Gandy Goose in Songs of Erin (1951). 

Next comes a delightful early Mickey Mouse movie, The Gorilla Mystery (1930). This short film was somewhat spoofing the 1925 play The Gorilla which also involved a dark house and a sinister gorilla. This play had been made into a silent feature film, The Gorilla (1927). The same year as this cartoon was released a talkie remake, The Gorilla (1930). A more comedic approach to this story was the later Ritz Brothers feature, The Gorilla (1939). The gorilla used in this Mickey cartoon (according to studio documentation) is the same one who would appear in the future Mickey Mouse shorts, Mickey's Mechanical Man (1933) and The Pet Store (1933). This movie benefits from some great atmospheric touches that show just how advanced the Disney studio was even at this point. Those of you who have seen the Mickey Mouse short film, Get a Horse (2013), should note that that Mickey's shout of "Minnie" in this cartoon was reused in that film. Mickey's cry of "Bring her back Mr. Ingagi" is a reference to the movie, Ingagi (1930), which also featured an evil gorilla.

Now for the Columbia Krazy Kat cartoon, Swiss Movement (1931). Though the Krazy Kat featured in these cartoons was originally based off George Herriman comic strip character, the character would soon morph into a Mickey Mouse clone. Here the character is hardly even recognizable as the same character from the comic strip. One of the main differences is that in the strip the character's gender was supposed to be a mystery, while here the character is obviously male. 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Next comes the silent Aesop's Film Fables short, Do Women Pay (1923). 

Now for Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in Annie Moved Away (1934). Cartoon fans will notice that one of the credited animators is Fred Avery. This is the same Fred Avery who would later become a legendary animation director under the name Tex Avery. 

Next comes one of Hanna-Barbera and Larry Harmon's Laurel and Hardy TV cartoons, Love Me Love My Puppy (1966). While most of these cartoons feature the boys in storylines that more reflect Hanna-Barbera than Laurel and Hardy. This episode is an exception as it is a remake of the classic Laurel and Hardy film, Laughing Gravy (1930). The idea for this show did not originate with the Hanna-Barbera studio, but rather with Larry Harmon. He had this idea set in motion years before the show actually aired as evidenced by the following article from Box Office (dated May 29, 1961).

“New York- Although Oliver Hardy is dead, the team of Laurel and Hardy will be revived in the form of animated cartoon characters to be produced by Larry Harmon, who created the character of Bozo the Clown. Harmon, who owns more than half of the California studios in Hollywood, acquired the rights to produce the Laurel and Hardy cartoons from the Hardy estate and from Stan Laurel. Harmon said in New York last week that he planned a series of two-reelers and then would switch to full length features. Initially, however, he will make a series of half-hour Laurel and Hardy programs for television starting in the fall. 'The team of Laurel and Hardy is famous throughout the world’, Harmon said, citing statistics to prove that the pair has played to more people than any other motion picture characters on Earth. When the news first came out that he had acquired the rights to the team for animated cartoons, he received phone calls from every country, asking for distribution and exhibition rights. As an example of their popularity, he said, ‘a maharaja in India has figures of famous persons carved in stone. Laurel and Hardy are among them.’ Harmon said he had no set distribution deal for the theatrical release of the pictures, but that Jayark Films Corp. would handle the television sales. The theatrical stories will be new and written especially for the medium. They will not be remakes of their past successes. All of them will be in Eastman color.” The theatrical animated shorts and features never happened. However much later Harmon would co-direct and co-producer on the live action feature, The All New Adventures of Laurel & Hardy in For Love or Mummy (1999).

Now to end by singing a song we all know. 

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for more animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry. 

Resources Used

Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History by J.B. Kaufman and David Gerstein. 

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

Scooby-Doo Where Are You!: Nowhere to Hyde (1970)

 

The first episode of the second season of Scooby-Doo Where Are You is a pure delight. 

In this episode Dr. Jekyll asks the gang to help him, when he believes that he may be turning into the ghost of the jewel thief Mr. Hyde. 

This is one of the first Scooby mysteries that tries to mislead the audience into thinking someone else is the ghost. As such it can be viewed as almost a turning point in the franchise. While it may not be as complex as later such mysteries it is very effective. There are enough twists here to make you feel proud when you figure out who done it. 

These twists are not the only reason this episode works so well. This is a very atmospheric mystery. Dr. Jekyll's mansion is a perfect setting for a Scooby mystery and there is a lot of great artwork and uses of lighting. The other settings such as the swamp and the malt shop are just as effective. The humor is delightful as well. There are plenty of great comedic moments here including the TV scene, the big chase and the disappearing ice cream trick. These moments all made me smile and sometimes even laugh out loud. This episode also provides us with the first chase song for the series and it is a delightfully fun song with a great and funny chase scene to compliment it. 

The ghost of Mr. Hyde is not one of the most memorable Scooby villains, but he has a great design and a lot of fun. 

This is a delightful episode. 

Movie Review: Saturday Night

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A delightful film about the making of the first episode of Saturday Night Live. 

In some ways this film can be a chaotic mess, but that is often the point. This movie is about the chaos of having a live show about to go on air in an hour and a half and not even being close to ready. The sheer number of characters and subplots make this chaos feel all the more real to us. While this would hurt the average film, it in fact makes this movie work so well. At first this can seem almost off-putting but once you get the idea of what it is doing, it instead comes off as one of the film's greatest charms. Even with all the characters and stories, this film's main goal is to put you in the shoes of producer and creator Lorne Michaels as he is trying to put this show together. Underneath all the comedy and subplots, we truly feel his anxiety and panic as he is trying to manage the seemingly impossible. 

Comedy-wise this movie is a lot like an episode of Saturday Night Live. A lot of the humor falls flat, but when it is funny it is absolutely hilarious. Also like an episode of the beloved TV show, it is easy to forgive the humor that misses because of how funny that parts that work are. There were quite a few moments here that made the whole theater audience laugh out loud. 

As for the cast most of them are wonderful. Gabriel LaBelle is wonderful as Lorne Michaels and helps drive this whole film. Corey Michael Smith is especially great as Chevy Chase. Seeing him, it is easy to forget that you are not really watching a young Chevy Chase. Nicholas Braun is underutilized as Andy Kaufman, but he really shines in the little screen time he gets. The Mighty Mouse bit with him is one of the film's comedic highlights. The performances by Rachell Sennott, J.K. Simmons, Dylan O'Brien and Lamorne Morris also help make this movie a delight. However, I feel that Matt Wood does not fully capture the wild comic energy of John Belushi (not that anyone really can). 

This movie is a delight. It may not be perfect, but it is not supposed to be either.     

Scooby-Doo Where Are You!: Backstage Rage (1969)

 

A delightfully spooky episode. 

In this episode the gang investigates an abandoned puppet theater after finding a violin case full of money. 

This may be one of the creepiest episodes of the original series. However, it is creepy in a very fun way. This episode has one of the creepiest Scooby-Doo villains. This is because much of his face is very hidden through much of the episode, giving him a mysterious feel that makes him seem otherworldly. His yellow glowing eyes also help make him very creepy. He definitely makes this a very memorable episode. The abandoned puppet theater also makes for a perfect setting Scooby-Doo setting. There is something inherently creepy about an abandoned theatre and something also inherently creepy about puppets. This and the wonderful use of lighting and incredible background art make this a very atmospheric episode. The scene where it appears that the doorman has been turned into a puppet is wonderfully creepy. All this helps give this episode a great sense of suspense that makes it very funny to watch. While I would not rank this as one of the funniest Scooby episodes there are some fun comedy moments here. Scooby really shines here in this department. This is especially true of his scenes with the girl dog puppet and him reenacting everything that happened at the start of the episode. Scooby also gets to be unusually brave here, which is a lot of fun. 

The very next year, a comic book adaption of this story would be released. The adaption was titled One Spook Too Many and appeared in Gold Key Comics' Scooby Doo... Where Are You! #3 released in September 1970. 

This is a delight for all Scooby fans.  

Movie Review: Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A

A beautifully touching documentary on the great actor and person Cristopher Reeve. 

To me Chistopher Reeve will always be Superman and Superman: The Movie (1978) will always be the greatest superhero movie ever made. However, there is much more to Cristopher Reeve than having played the most iconic superhero in four movies. That is what this documentary explores. It especially looks at his life after his horseback riding accident that left him paralyzed. How at first this almost broke him and how it would eventually lead him to become a major activist for people with disabilities. While many documentaries would end with this ruining a promising career, Reeve was too strong of a man to even let this keep him down. The movie goes into depth about he remained a present force in the world, whether through his appearances at the Oscars and commercials, films made behind the camera (and even one in front), his drive to speak to political figures (of any party) about taking care of our disabled or The Christopher Reeve foundation which continues to help countless people with disabilities to this day. Yet this film does not come off as simply a fluff piece. It also takes a real human look at who Christopher Reeve was. It does not completely overlook his flaws, while still showing a highly sympathetic look at the man. In fact, with the flaws, we can see how after the accident he even matured quite a bit as a husband and a father. The most touching scenes in the movie are when his sons and daughter talk about him. During these scenes not only can we see how much they truly loved him (and still do), but we begin to feel a bit of that love for him ourselves. Also, incredibly touching are the scenes where the focus turns to his friendship with Robin Williams. This is truly a beautiful friendship that goes much deeper than two guys who simply liked to spend time with each other.

 The focus may not be on his acting career, but the moments dedicated to this (including of course about his role as Superman) are quite insightful and fun to listen to.     

This is a beautiful portrait of a great man.  

Scooby-Doo! Where Are You: A Night of Fright is No Delight (1970)

 

The first Scooby mystery of the 1970's is a top-notch episode in every way. 

In this episode, the gang heads to a creepy mansion when Scooby is in the will of a rich southern gentleman after saving his life. The will states that there is an inheritance waiting for any one of those listed in the will who are able to spend a night in this haunted mansion. The gang spends the night there, but it becomes dangerous when two green ghosts appear. 

This is a fan favorite episode, and it is easy to see why. The premise of a cartoon character having to spend a night in a haunted house to receive an inheritance is a cartoon cliché, but it has possibly never been done better than it has here. The ghosts are some of the best Scooby villains. Much of this is heavily due to their very memorable design. This design is both creepy and a lot of fun. It is also incredibly memorable. These ghosts are probably the first image that comes to my mind when I think about Scooby villains. The moaning is also wonderful and the use of their shadows when they are off screen only adds to the creepy fun. The mansion is also a perfect setting for a Scooby mystery. This whole episode is filled with a great sense of Halloween-y atmosphere thanks to the incredible background art and use of lighting. This episode also benefits from a wonderful sense of humor. Every slapstick gags lands perfectly here.   

In 1971 this episode would receive a comic book adaption entitled Night for a Fright. This story would appear in Gold Key Comics' Scooby-Doo Where Are You! #8. Clips from this episode would later be used in the direct to video movie, Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy (2014). An episode of the TV series Supernatural would be a crossover with Scooby-Doo. That episode, entitled Scoobynatural (2018), features characters from Supernatural being transported into an episode of Scooby-Doo by a haunted TV set. The episode they are transported into is A Night of Fright is No Delight. 

This is a true classic. 

Movie Review: My Old Ass

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A sweet and good natured if very familiar coming of age of dramedy. 

From a movie called My Old Ass, you might expect something irreverent and very vulgar. Instead, this is a surprisingly charming and conventional film. The title refers to how 18-year-old Elliott meets her 39-year-old self while tripping on mushrooms (the sex-obsessed teenager asks herself, "can I touch my old ass"). Though much of the advertising revolves around Aubery Plaza as the 39-year-old Elliott, she receives very little screen time though. Most of the film revolves around the 18-year-old Elliott trying to navigate her way around a tricky part of her life, while heeding the advice she got from her old ass. Luckily Maisy Stella is truly wonderful as the 18-year-old Elliott, capturing a charm and youthful energy that makes it hard not to like her. There are times she can be a little selfish, but we instantly forgive her because in these moments we see our 18-year-old selves more than we might like to admit. These moments also make her feel more real and human to us. This makes the emotional moments hit very hard at times. This movie has a familiar but very well told message about cherishing the things we have in the moment and not taking them for granted. We all have parts about our lives that we would like back (for me that is the summers I spent with my grandparents) and because of this we can all deeply appreciate the heart behind this film. As well as an emotionally resonant film, this movie breezes by at only an hour and a half.

The humor in this film made me smile and giggle at times. However, despite this I never once laughed out loud. 

The storyline does feel too familiar at times and despite its clever premise, it has a hard time standing out from other coming-of-age films. Also, most of the supporting characters are not as interesting or fun as Elliott herself.  

Despite its familiarity, this movie is a real charmer.