Hello my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again, it is time for some classic cartoons.
Today's cartoon selection begins with a delightful Woody Woodpecker cartoon, Chew Chew Baby (1945). This movie was directed by Shamus Culhane, who had previously been an animator for Disney, the Fleischer Brothers and Warner Brothers. Culhane proved to be one of the finest directors to work at the Walter Lantz Studio (where the Woody Woodpecker cartoons were made). The cartoons he directed for this studio were some of the finest cartoons to come out of it, including one of the most praised Woody Woodpecker cartoons, The Barber of Seville (1944).
Next comes the first and (in my opinion) best of the Goofy Gophers cartoons simply titled, The Goofy Gophers (1947). These characters (like Tweety) can get written off simply as cute, but people who think of them simply as cute characters are missing the joke. What makes these characters so appealing is that their overly polite dialogue is followed by pure acts of slapstick violence against their enemies. It also is often claimed that these two characters were rip offs of Disney's Chip and Dale, however while I can see how their designs are similar, they are very different personality wise. This film was at first going to be directed by Bob Clampett, who began working on it. However, he left Warner Brothers before finishing, so Art Davis took over the direction. Both directors' personal styles can be felt here. This cartoon also marks the only time the gophers are colored grey instead of brown. A review in The Film Daily called this "A definite laugh getter with plenty of appeal." A review in Showman's Trade Review stated, "Two gophers with exaggerated mannerisms in politeness may become standard characters in future Warner Brothers cartoons, if the actions of the duo in this short may be taken as criterion."
Next comes Goofy in Father's Weekend (1953). This cartoon made its TV debut on an episode of Walt Disney Presents, entitled A Salute to Father (1961). In that episode in honor of Father's Day, Walt Disney lets Goofy take over hosting duties.
Now for a silent movie starring Goodrich Dirt, Goodrich Dirt, Cow Puncher (1918).
Moving Picture World, 1917
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Next comes The Pink Panther in Spark Plug Pink (1979).
Now for a truly classic Mickey Mouse cartoon, Traffic Troubles (1931). This movie is simply a wonderful little short. Much of this is due to the great cast of animators. Dave Hand, who would go on to be the supervising director for the Disney features Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942), animates the opening scenes of this film, the tire rolling away and Pete pouring the "medicine" down the car's radiator. Les Clark, one of Walt's Nine Old Men and often considered one of the finest Mickey Mouse animators, animates the pig getting into the car and Minnie playing the accordion. Tom Palmer, who would later direct a few short cartoons for Warner Brothers, animates the cop getting angry at Mickey, Minnie climbing into the taxi and some of Pete's dialogue. Ben Sharpensteen, who later was the supervising director for the Disney feature films, Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940) and Dumbo (1941), animates the cop in traffic, Mickey parking the car, Mickey chasing the taxi and the car hitting the rock. Dick Lundy, future Woody Woodpecker and Barney Bear director, animates Mickey trying to fix his tire (including replacing the pump with the pig) and the car landing on the cow. Jack King, who would become possibly the finest Donald Duck director, animates the taxi in traffic, a close up of Minnie playing the accordion and Mickey actually inflating the tire with the pig. Johnny Cannon, who spent the majority of his career working uncredited on Disney shorts, animates the taxi going through the mud and Pete on the bicycle. Norm Ferguson, an animator who would help define the character of Pluto, animates some scenes with the pig inside the taxi, the taxi trying to dodge the bumps and the film's ending gag. An interesting note about this movie is that it was made pretty much at the same time, Floyd Gottfredson was making an adaption of it for the Mickey Mouse newspaper comic strip. He had done this before when he made a comic strip version of the Mickey Mouse short, The Picnic (1930). That was a rather straightforward adaption of the cartoon, while this comic strip story took more liberties with the source material. The comic strip adaption included a gag that was animated (by Norm Ferguson) for the film but dropped from the short before release. This was a gag involving a fireplug. If you are interested in reading the comic strip version yourself, it is included in J.B. Kaufman's fantastic article on this movie. This cartoon was directed by Burt Gillett. Gillet was one of the studio's major directors of the early 1930's. His cartoons include such classics as The Chain Gang (1930), Mickey's Orphans (1931), Flowers and Trees (1932), Trader Mickey (1932), Mickey's Good Deed (1932), The Three Little Pigs (1933), Mickey's Gala Premiere (1933), Playful Pluto (1934) and many others. Animation for this film began on December 12, 1930 and was completed on January 1, 1931. It was released on March 7, 1931. A famous story about the making of this cartoon involved a scene David Hand was animating. Walt kept telling him, the scene needed to be more exaggerated. This made Hand so frustrated he decided to show Walt he would make it twice as exaggerated. Though Hand felt this might get him fired, this new animation was exactly what Walt wanted. This cartoon is one of the five viewable in the Main Street Cinema in Disneyland. In 1933, this cartoon was released on 16mm film, for home viewing. This 16mm film was silent and could rented for 75 cents.
Next comes the Looney Tunes, Webtoon, Dux's Tux's (2005).
Today's cartoon selection ends with the Terry Toons short, Busted Blossoms (1934). The title is a play on the D.W. Griffith feature film, Broken Blossoms (1919).
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another selection of animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies are merry.
Resources Used
Next comes Goofy in Father's Weekend (1953). This cartoon made its TV debut on an episode of Walt Disney Presents, entitled A Salute to Father (1961). In that episode in honor of Father's Day, Walt Disney lets Goofy take over hosting duties.
Now for a silent movie starring Goodrich Dirt, Goodrich Dirt, Cow Puncher (1918).
Moving Picture World, 1917
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Next comes The Pink Panther in Spark Plug Pink (1979).
Now for a truly classic Mickey Mouse cartoon, Traffic Troubles (1931). This movie is simply a wonderful little short. Much of this is due to the great cast of animators. Dave Hand, who would go on to be the supervising director for the Disney features Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942), animates the opening scenes of this film, the tire rolling away and Pete pouring the "medicine" down the car's radiator. Les Clark, one of Walt's Nine Old Men and often considered one of the finest Mickey Mouse animators, animates the pig getting into the car and Minnie playing the accordion. Tom Palmer, who would later direct a few short cartoons for Warner Brothers, animates the cop getting angry at Mickey, Minnie climbing into the taxi and some of Pete's dialogue. Ben Sharpensteen, who later was the supervising director for the Disney feature films, Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940) and Dumbo (1941), animates the cop in traffic, Mickey parking the car, Mickey chasing the taxi and the car hitting the rock. Dick Lundy, future Woody Woodpecker and Barney Bear director, animates Mickey trying to fix his tire (including replacing the pump with the pig) and the car landing on the cow. Jack King, who would become possibly the finest Donald Duck director, animates the taxi in traffic, a close up of Minnie playing the accordion and Mickey actually inflating the tire with the pig. Johnny Cannon, who spent the majority of his career working uncredited on Disney shorts, animates the taxi going through the mud and Pete on the bicycle. Norm Ferguson, an animator who would help define the character of Pluto, animates some scenes with the pig inside the taxi, the taxi trying to dodge the bumps and the film's ending gag. An interesting note about this movie is that it was made pretty much at the same time, Floyd Gottfredson was making an adaption of it for the Mickey Mouse newspaper comic strip. He had done this before when he made a comic strip version of the Mickey Mouse short, The Picnic (1930). That was a rather straightforward adaption of the cartoon, while this comic strip story took more liberties with the source material. The comic strip adaption included a gag that was animated (by Norm Ferguson) for the film but dropped from the short before release. This was a gag involving a fireplug. If you are interested in reading the comic strip version yourself, it is included in J.B. Kaufman's fantastic article on this movie. This cartoon was directed by Burt Gillett. Gillet was one of the studio's major directors of the early 1930's. His cartoons include such classics as The Chain Gang (1930), Mickey's Orphans (1931), Flowers and Trees (1932), Trader Mickey (1932), Mickey's Good Deed (1932), The Three Little Pigs (1933), Mickey's Gala Premiere (1933), Playful Pluto (1934) and many others. Animation for this film began on December 12, 1930 and was completed on January 1, 1931. It was released on March 7, 1931. A famous story about the making of this cartoon involved a scene David Hand was animating. Walt kept telling him, the scene needed to be more exaggerated. This made Hand so frustrated he decided to show Walt he would make it twice as exaggerated. Though Hand felt this might get him fired, this new animation was exactly what Walt wanted. This cartoon is one of the five viewable in the Main Street Cinema in Disneyland. In 1933, this cartoon was released on 16mm film, for home viewing. This 16mm film was silent and could rented for 75 cents.
Next comes the Looney Tunes, Webtoon, Dux's Tux's (2005).
Today's cartoon selection ends with the Terry Toons short, Busted Blossoms (1934). The title is a play on the D.W. Griffith feature film, Broken Blossoms (1919).
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another selection of animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies are merry.
Resources Used
Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History by David Gerstein and J.B. Kaufman
Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin
https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/mickey-mouse-movies-into-comics-2-traffic-troubles/
https://mediahistoryproject.org/
https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/mickey-mouse-movies-into-comics-2-traffic-troubles/
https://mediahistoryproject.org/
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