Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #208

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with a classic Sylvester and Tweety Christmas cartoon, Gift Wrapped (1952). This short film features the cat and bird duo at their absolute best. This short offers one great gag after another and director Friz Freleng's comedic timing is perfect. This cartoon was submitted for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film but was not nominated. 

Today marks the first day of winter and so here is an appropriate cartoon, Snow Foolin' (1949). This short film also fits the Christmas season very well as it features the classic Christmas carol, Jingle Bells. James Lord Pierpont wrote Jingle Bells in 1857. Despite being known as a Christmas song today, it was originally written with a different holiday in mind. Under its original title, One Horse Open Sleigh this song was written to be used in a Thanksgiving service at a Church where Pierpont was the organist. The song was so well received that it played again at the Church on Christmas day. For a song written to be performed at a Church, the original lyrics were racier than one would think and would be changed so that children's church choirs can perform the song.

Next comes a delightful short film starring Pooch the Pup, Merry Dog (1933). Though largely forgotten today, Pooch as one of the first starring characters in the cartoons of producer Walter Lantz. He would never reach the fame of Woody Woodpecker, Chilly Willy or even Andy Panda but his cartoons are still fun to watch today.

Next is a classic Donald Duck film, Toy Tinkers (1949). This cartoon features Donald once again going up against Chip and Dale. This film is directed by Jack Hannah, who at this time was directing the majority of the Donald Duck cartoons. When Chip and Dale had their very short-lived series of shorts, Jack Hannah directed all three cartoons in that series. This cartoon is laugh out loud funny. The slapstick is spot on and timed perfectly. Every joke works and they are all very funny. The humor is also displayed perfectly through the great character animation one should expect form a Disney cartoon. While Disney cartoons are often called sweet and cute in contrast to the hilarious antics at studios like Warner Brothers and MGM, the Disney studio could make slapstick cartoons as great as the rest of them (this is not an insult to Warner Brothers and MGM as I love there cartoons a lot as well). This stands as one of Disney's funniest shorts (a joke involving a telephone never fails to make me laugh out loud).  This cartoon would make its TV debut on a 1958 Christmas episode of Walt Disney Presents. That version starts with some new animation featuring Chip and Dale telling Jiminy Cricket how they celebrate Christmas. 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Now for a visit to Christmas past and future. 

Up next is one of my favorites of the early Merrie Melodies cartoons, The Shanty Where Santy Claus Lives (1933). I love the atmospheric feel to the early scenes in this cartoon. There is a delightful amount of detail in these opening moments. I also simply love the title song. Despite being a Christmas cartoon, this film was released to theaters on January 7, 1933, just barely missing Christmas. The animation of the dolls singing, and dancing was reused from an earlier Merrie Melody, Red Headed Baby (1931).

Now for a classic Columbia Christmas cartoon, Gifts from the Air (1937). 

Today's cartoon post closes with The Simpsons short, Simpsons Christmas (1988), This is one of the shorts made for The Tracey Ullman Show before the Simpsons got their own TV series. 

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

Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to Warner Brothers Cartoons by Jerry Beck and Will Friedwald

https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/cartoons-considered-for-an-academy-award-1951/

https://www.thisisdig.com/feature/jingle-bells-christmas-song-story/

 

  

Movie Review: Sonic the Hedgehog 3

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

A wonderful movie adaptation of the beloved video game franchise. 

The third movie in this series does exactly what a sequel should do. It ups the stakes without taking away the charm of the previous films. In fact, it even adds to the charm of the previous films. The action scenes are more exciting and fun to watch here, and the humor is often funnier. However, what makes the movie the best of this series so far is that underneath all the silliness there is a surprisingly emotional story. The storyline borrows much from the 2001 video game, Sonic Adventure 2. That includes Shadow's tragic and heartbreaking backstory. It remains just as effective here. Through a series of flashbacks, we grow to care about this brooding black hedgehog, just as much as we do about our blue hero. To a lesser extent there are some emotional stakes with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles learning to work together as a team. These scenes may not have the emotional urgency as the ones with Shadow, but they do their part to keep us emotionally attached to our heroes. Yet despite any emotional stakes, the filmmakers never forget that this is a movie about a blue hedgehog who can run really fast. Because of this they never forget this is supposed to be fun first and foremost and it is exactly that.

Jim Carey can be quite funny in his dual roles here. However, the filmmakers do seem to be too in love with his over-the-top comedy style. There are comedic bits with him that go on far too long and when the story simply seems to come to an unwanted halt for him to do his comedy. 

This film will be a sheer delight for Sonic fans but will entertain those who have never played a video game just as well. 





     

Video Link: Jingle Bell Rock (From A Muppet Family Christmas (1987))

Classic Short Film: There Ain't No Santa Claus (1926)

Video Link: It Feels Like Christmas (From The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992))

Classic Short Film: The Adventure of the Wrong Santa Claus (1914)

Video Link: The Three Stooges-I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas

Movie Review: Kraven the Hunter

 

Michael's Movie Grade: D

More than outright terrible, this Marvel film is instantly forgettable. 

Sadly, the live action Sony Marvel films have come off as okay at best and near unwatchable at worst. This may not be the worst of these movies but there is not much about it to recommend either. The main problem here is that everything about this movie is extremely familiar. Everything that happens is something we have seen before and often times done much better. Because of it is very likely that a few days after you watch it, it will be hard to remember much of anything that happened. This is not helped by very bland main characters. These characters have so little to their personalities that it is hard to ever connect with them and really care about what happens to them. Though this movie does slow down at times and is not just constant action, all of those slower scenes are simply boring because they never really help establish the characters. Kraven is simply your typical action movie anti-hero with nothing to help him stand out. Rhino (who bares incredibly little resemblance to his comic book counterpart) is simply a boring typical action movie villain. Every other character is also extremely underdeveloped. There is a twist involving one of these characters towards the end that seems to come out of nowhere because there was no lead up to the sudden change in the character's actions. Outside of some truly horrible CGI (which is so bad that it makes the worst CGI in the MCU or DC movies look fantastic in comparison), there is little about this movie that is outright bad. Because of this unlike some of the truly awful superhero movies out there, superhero fans can't even get mad at how bad it is. This can make for a rather bland and emotionless experience. 

The one thing about this movie that is actually quite good is the action scenes. These are quite well done and fun to watch (again with the exception of the bad CGI (I cannot overstate how bad it is)). The action scenes also make good use of the R rating. 

Another lackluster Sony Marvel movie.    

Video Link: Judy Garland & Mel Tormé - The Christmas Song

Cowboy Church #198

 Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church.

Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with their 1949 recording of Wonderful Christmas Night. On this recording they are accompanied by Foy Willing and his Riders of the Purple Sage.

This is followed by Emmylou Harris singing Light of the Stable. Emmylou recorded this song in 1975. She would later state "Light of the Stable is one of my favorite tracks we ever cut. It was the jelling of the original recording group, the combination of Brain's [Brain Ahern] production and how incredibly creative those guys were was perfect. There is almost more space on the track then there are notes and I always loved that." The song would become the title track of her 1979 Christmas album, which I personally consider one of my favorite Christmas albums.

Afterwards is Gene Autry with his 1950 recording of When Santa Claus Gets Your Letter. This song is written by Johnny Marks. Marks is well known for writing Christmas songs. Some of the classic Christmas songs he wrote include Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and A Holly Jolly Christmas. 

Then comes Cowboy Copas with his 1954 recording of He Stands by His Window.

Next comes The Sons of the Pioneers with their 1937 recording of Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. This hymn began with a man named Anthony Showalter. As a fan of gospel music and an elder in a Presbyterian church, he held many "singing schools" at various churches in the south. One day he received two letters from former students who were struggling after their wives had passed. To respond to these letters, Showalter consulted scripture. He came across Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." After reading this verse lyrics for a song chorus went through his head and he wrote down, "“Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.” After using this in the letters to his former students he sent this chorus to his friend hymnist, Elisha Hoffman. In the letter he also wrote, “Here is the chorus for a good hymn from Deuteronomy 33:27, but I can’t come up with the verses.” Hoffman then wrote the rest of the lyrics to which Showalter put to music. The hymn was published in 1887.

Afterwards is Johnny Cash with Hark the Herald Angels Sing. This hymn was written by Charles Wesley. Wesley stated that what he hoped to achieve through his hymns was to teach sound doctrine to the poor an illiterate, who may not be able to read the Bible for themselves. His brother John Wesley, who was a famous theologian and one of the founders of Methodism, stated that Charles' hymnal was the best book on Theology there was out there. Charles wrote the words to this hymn as he heard the church bells ringing on his way to church on Christmas Day. He intended this to be a poem that would be read in Church on Christmas Day. This poem first appeared in print in 1739 in Hymns and Sacred Poems. In 1753 George Whitefield, put these words to the music we know today. Whitefield also added the term “newborn king.” 

Following is Eddy Arnold with Will Santy Come to Shanty Town.

Today's musical selection ends with Anne Wilson's 2021 recording of her self-penned, I Still Believe in Christmas. 

Next is Johnny Cash's 1970 Christmas TV special. 

Now for Gene Autry telling us the nativity story.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8

The Lord bless you and keep you. the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9

Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13

Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11

Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Matthew 10:34

But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Luke 6:27-28

Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again. 

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #207

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

Today's musical selection begins with one of director Art Davis's best cartoons, Riff Raffy Daffy (1948). Art Davis may have only directed Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons for a short while, but the offbeat and often hilarious sense of humor has made him a favorite of many classic cartoon fans. I am especially a fan of his take on Daffy Duck. Though more energetic and wilder than Bugs Bunny, this version had some Bugs Bunny qualities to him as well. Like Bugs he was always at least one step ahead of his foes. The meshing of a newfound cleverness and remorsefulness with the wacky and energetic qualities that help define Daffy, creates a truly wonderful take on this character. 

Next is one of my favorite Christmas cartoons of all time, Mickey's Good Deed (1932).  This film was from 1932, at this time, Mickey was at the absolute height of his popularity. He was famous in a way that no cartoon character before had ever been. Critics often compared his popularity to that of Charlie Chaplin's little tramp, and like that character Mickey had fans of all types. He was equally popular with intellectuals and small children. In fact, this same year Walt Disney would receive a special Academy Award for creating Mickey. Renowned Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein (best known for his silent film The Battleship Potemkin (1925)) was a huge fan and even wrote essays on Walt Disney, that discussed the brilliance of Mickey Mouse cartoons (He would remain a huge Disney fan and even later call Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) the single greatest film ever made). Almost every other American cartoon studio was copying what Disney had done with Mickey Mouse. Characters like Foxy (at Warner Brothers) and Cubby Bear (at Van Beuren) were extremely thinly disguised copies of Mickey himself. In fact, in 1931, the Van Beuren studio was sued by Walt for using two mice characters that looked exactly like Mickey and Minnie. There was no doubt, Mickey was movie royalty. Mickey did for animated comedies, exactly what Charlie Chaplin's little tramp had done for live action comedies. Like the comedy films made before Chaplin, the animated comedies before Mickey were often very funny, but you very rarely felt any other emotional response to what was happening on screen. Mickey changed all that and nowhere was it clearer than in Mickey's Good Deed. You may notice that this doesn't sound like your typical cartoon short of the era, and my point is it isn't. This film while not sacrificing the slapstick comedy, also adds a lot of drama to the story itself. However, the Disney studio understood exactly what Chaplin had found out earlier. If the comedy and the drama are both driven by the story and characters, they can both easily co-exist. This idea is done to absolute perfection in this cartoon. This is a beautiful and moving film, while it never forsakes the comedy. The following is a review from The Film Daily, "Right up there with the best of these animated cartoons. Subject has a special holiday flavor in that it shows how Mickey and his dog manage to bring cheer into a big family of needy animal folks. Clever and lively as usual." The following is an exhibitor's review from The Motion Picture Herald, "Mickey's Good Deed: Mickey Mouse - Christmas cartoon. Kids like Mickey. That's why they come. One Mickey Mouse cartoon on your Saturday's program brings the kiddies out to the matinee. Running time, eight minutes. - Edmund M. Burke. Fort Plain Theatre, Fort Plain, N.Y. General Patronage."  

Now for a delightful Terry Toons short, Sparky the Firefly (1953). 

Now for a silent Aesop's Film Fables cartoon, The Pace That Kills (1923).



 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Mouse Trouble (1944) was the second Tom and Jerry short to win for best animated short film at the Oscars. The first of these shorts was the previous year's Yankee Doodle Mouse. The next year a Tom and Jerry cartoon would again win the Oscar for Quiet Please making three years in a row where Tom and Jerry won an Oscar. Unlike a Disney cartoon where the animators would often times be assigned different characters to work with, in this film (and many other Tom and Jerry cartoons) the animators would be assigned lengthy segments (for a 7-minute cartoon that is) of the picture to handle themselves. Pete Burness animated the begging of the cartoon with Tom receiving the book in the mail and animates until Jerry runs in the hole and Tom turns to his book for advice. Ray Patterson animates Tom's failed attempts at using a mouse trap and a snare trap. Kenneth Muse animates Tom trying to use Jerry's sense of generosity against the mouse only to have Jerry end up tricking tom by engaging Tom's curiosity. Pete Burness animates Tom finding out a cornered mouse does sometimes fight back. Kenneth Muse animates Tom using a stethoscope to find Jerry. Irven Spence animates Tom's use of a gun, a tiger trap and a mallet to catch Jerry as well as him disguising himself a surprise package. Tom's use of a wind-up toy girl mouse to catch Jerry is animated by Kenneth Muse. Tom tearing up the book is animated by Pete Burness. Tom using explosives by Kenneth Muse. The end of the film with Tom ascending to heaven was animated by Pete Burness.

Next comes the Captain and the Kids cartoon, The Captain's Christmas (1938). This short film was directed by Friz Freleng, during the brief time he left Warner Brothers to work at MGM. He was not happy working with the characters in these Captain and the Kids cartoons and would soon go back to Warner Brothers. 

Next is the Van Beuren cartoon, Opening Night (1932).  This cartoon introduced a new character, Cubby Bear. This is one of the many Mickey Mouse lookalikes that populated American cartoons of the 1930's. Almost every studio was guilty of having Mickey Mouse clones at this time, since Mickey had become such a sensation. In fact, the Van Beuren Studio once took this too far, when they made some cartoons featuring Mice that looked just like Mickey and Minnie in 1931. Walt would sue the studio over those cartoons. This cartoon is also a rather historically interesting film for another reason. It was made for the opening of the RKO Roxy Theatre. It is not subtle about this either. Since the theatre opened in late December, the film begins with Santa Claus riding his sleigh and takes out of his bag various stars which form the words "RKO ROXY." The meaning is simple to decipher, the theatre was a Christmas gift to movie fans.

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For anyone wondering why Christmas is so awesome, let us close with this song.

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

Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin

Disney by Sergei Eisenstein  

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

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

http://www.jbkaufman.com/movie-of-the-month/opening-night-1932

  

Classic Short Film: Good Cheer (1926)

Movie Review: The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A very entertaining anime prequel to Lord of the Rings. 

With this movie, popular anime director Kenji Kamiyama (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Eden of the East, Napping Princess (2017), Eien no 831 (2022), Blade Runner: Black Lotus) directs an animated prequel to Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films (Jackson serves as an executive producer). The film is a delightful mix of an anime fantasy, and the world J.R.R. Tolkien created in his classic books. In many ways this may come off more as a typical anime fantasy film than a Lord of the Rings movie, but it is a quite good one. The main character, while not exactly complex is very likable and easy to care about. We get invested in her character arc and enjoy seeing her grow into the ruler we know she is capable of being. The villain is also quite wonderful. He feels like an incredible threat to our heroes and is a great example of how vengeance can completely consume a person. The fantasy and world building are fantastic. Like in Tolkien's books or Jackson's films, the world here feels completely real to us. 

The artwork here is simply beautiful to look at. It is full of great detail and helps make this fantasy world feel all the more real to us. However, the actual animation (that is to say the movement of the characters) is quite limited and stiff. The characters often stand there with nothing but their mouth's moving, which makes this look more like a TV cartoon than a theatrical film. This is especially true in any dialogue heavy scenes. However, many of the action scenes handle this limited animation better, having more of a cinematic quality than the more dialogue heavy scenes. 

This movie does suffer from too many characters and too long of a runtime. The film does tend to drag at times, especially in the first act. The sheer number of characters also makes it so that some of them are not allowed to be properly fleshed out. Worse is that sometimes, you will forget that certain characters exist until they reappear for an important plot point. 

While not without flaws this is good time at the movies for anime fans. 

Michael's Christmas Movie Guide: Love Actually (2003)

 

One of the taglines for Love Actually was "the ultimate romantic comedy." In many ways this is an apt description. Rather than simply following one romance, this movie features a large cast of characters from all over the U.K. finding love around Christmas time. Some of these stories are more comedic, while others are more romantic, while others are a mixture of both. The result is a surprising delight even for those that don't normal like romantic comedies. 

One of the main problems I have with many romantic comedies is that I often find the comedy lacking. The comedy in many of these movies is more cute or charming than actually funny. Love Actually is a delightful exception to this. I was honestly surprised at just how funny this film can be. Pretty much anything involving the lonely aging rockstar (Bill Nighy) as well as the two stand-ins for sex scenes in a movie ((Martin Freeman, Joanna Page) is hilarious. Rowan Atkinson's brief scene in the jewelry store and the prime minister (Hugh Grant) performing a Christmas carol are also comedic highlights. As should be true in more romantic comedies, the romance and comedy never get in the way of each other and the film can be funny at times and sweet and charming at others. The two characters who fall in love despite not speaking the same language (Colin Firth, Lúcia Moniz) is an incredible sweet and charming romance that is a pure delight. This movie also functions as almost a 21st century version of all-star films of the 1930's like Grand Hotel (1932). This is not only true because of the all-star cast (Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson and many more) but because of the concept of weaving together various stories based on the same theme. This helps give the movie a certain old-fashioned charm, while clearly remaining a product of the 21st century (the humor here is definitely much more risqué than what you could even get away with in a pre-code film). It is the blending of old-fashioned story telling with modern sensibilities that helps make this movie stand out.

This is not to say Love Actually is a perfect film though. The sheer number of stories as well as a run time of 135 minutes can make this film uneven at time. The truth is some of the stories are better than others. There are some characters and stories that simply get lost in the mix and are too overshadowed by others. 

This film opened on the exact same date (November 7, 2003) as another beloved Christmas movie, Elf (2003). Both of course were quite different takes on a Christmas movie. Elf was a fantasy-based story for the whole family, while Love Actually was a holiday romance aimed squarely at adults. Elf was a major hit in the U.S. but underperformed outside of the country. However, Love Actually performed better outside the US. 

This film was written and directed by Richard Curtis. It marked his directorial debut. However, he had already made a name for himself in romantic comedies for having written such movies as Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Notting Hill (1999) and Bridget Jones's Diary (2001). He originally planned this film as two movies. One that would center around the prime minster character and another that would center around the couple with the langue barrier. However, he felt that this was too similar to other romantic comedies including ones he wrote himself. He felt he would have a better movie if he combined the two stories and threw in others. He had about 30 pages of his script written before he decided to set the film around Christmas time. 

This film has become a Christmas tradition for many, and it is easy to see why. It is simply very charming and very funny. 

Resources Used

Christmas in the Movies by Jeremy Arnold 

 

Movie Review: Werewolves

 

Michael's Movie Grade: F

This horror-action film is very entertaining in just how bad it is. 

This movie has a very clever premise about a werewolf epidemic breaking out and the designs of the werewolves (including the use of practical effects) are great. Unfortunately (or fortunately) this is where the good things about this film end. There is no doubt that this is a bad movie, however it is bad in a way that makes it very entertaining to watch. Many of the action scenes look like they came out of a slapstick comedy rather than an actual horror movie. They are so over the top and unintentionally silly that even the goriest moments (and they can get really bloody) come off as funny rather than scary or exciting. The filmmakers even try to incorporate some family drama along with the action and horror. This works just as well as the action and horror, which is to say it doesn't work at all. The characters are incredibly poorly defined with barely anything that resembles a personality. This makes it hard to care about any of them. The dialogue during these family drama scenes is hilariously bad. It is incredibly corny, and each line feels incredibly forced. Once again, the result is laughter at these scenes that are supposed to be taken seriously. These lines are made even funnier by terrible delivery from the actors. The plot uses every cliché in the book to the point where this becomes almost an unintentional parody of horror movies.  

I honestly feel that in the future this film may gain a following among those who like to watch bad movies. It is truly horrible but in the most entertaining way possible. 

Video Link: Gene Autry - Here Comes Santa Claus (from The Cowboy and the Indians 1949)

All-New Super Friends Hour: The Collector (1977)

 This is the first segment of the tenth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.

In this short Superman and Wonder Woman team up to stop The Collector from stealing priceless monuments, when he invents a camera that can capture transfer any object into a picture. 

This is a wonderful cartoon. I always love when these shorts can make a non-powered villain feel like a real threat to our favorite superheroes. This cartoon does a wonderful job at just this. There is a real sense of suspense in this segment that works perfectly. That the possibly the most powerful superhero of all (Superman) is captured early on is what gives this cartoon its greatest sense of suspense. Wonder Woman must save Superman but due to the bad guy having captured Superman, we know he is capable of doing the same thing to Wonder Woman. This leads to some pretty exciting action scenes. The use of various priceless monuments from across the globe allows for some of the great artwork that typifies Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this period. This short does have a message of that important monuments should be treasured, taken care of and not taken for granted. However, this message never feels forced or didactic but rather completely natural. 

This is a wonderful cartoon. 

All-New Super Friends Hour: Volcano (1977)

 

This is the final segment of the ninth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.

In this segment Superman teams up with Samurai (a character created specifically for this show making his first appearance) to investigate when a UFO crashes into a volcano in Hawaii. 

This is a fun cartoon. There is a real sense of suspense here as the aliens are in huge danger and refuse help from the super friends. This is a short with a message, but the message is handled very well here. It looks into prejudice as the aliens doubt that the earth men (yes, I know Superman is from Krypton) actually have their best interest at heart. Since this is tied into the suspense of the story, it feels less didactic than some of the other message themed shorts. The superhero action in this short is also a lot of fun and Samurai's powers are used very well in his first appearance. The cartoon also benefits from a lot of the great background art that populates Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this time period. 

This is a delightful cartoon. 

  

Movie Review: Y2K

Michael's Movie Grade: D-

A horror-comedy that is neither funny nor scary. 

The clever idea of a horror-comedy based on the Y2K computer scare is wasted here as it is the only somewhat original idea. Everything else in this movie is something we have all seen many times and often in much better films. The characters are pure teen movie stereotypes that have nothing interesting about them at all. There are little attempts at times to try and defy these characters' stereotypes, but these add no depth to these characters. That is because these attempts are more interested in the act of defy these stereotypes and not in making them feel like real people. In here lies the film's biggest flaw, the characters never feel like real people. We never believe or care about any of them. On top of this they often come off as obnoxious. It is true that teenagers can be obnoxious but characters in a movie should never be so obnoxious that they annoy the audience. It doesn't help that this obnoxiousness makes up for a lot of the film's humor. Because of this I not only didn't laugh at the jokes but found myself annoyed by the comedic moments as well. Comedy that is foulmouthed or noisy can be hilarious, but it is not automatically funny. And when this type of humor falls flat, it can be painful. The other source of humor is 90's references. Again, the filmmakers seem to think simply making a reference to something is funny in and of itself. These moments may give people in their 30's and 40's a sense of nostalgia but that is the only appeal they have. 

The horror-inspired scenes are probably the part of the film that works the best. However, even those parts could be much better. The violence is often gratuitous and at odds with silly tone of most of the movie. The filmmakers also seem more interested in these violent scenes than in actually creating anything memorable or scary. What does kind of work about these scenes though is that they create a real sense of danger. This danger comes from that the movie sets up that any character can die at any time making no one safe. However, even this would have worked better if we actually cared about the characters. 

This is a real waste of a clever premise.      

Video Link: Judy Garland - Merry Christmas (from In the Good Old Summertime (1949))

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #206

 Happy Saturday morning my friends. Once again, it is time for some classic cartoons. 

The Night Before Christmas (1941) was the third Tom and Jerry cartoon and one of the best. It is clear that Bill, Joe and the rest of the team were now fully understanding how to use these characters just right. The opening scenes with Jerry playing around the tree, the mistletoe scene and the ending were all animated by Jack Zander. George Gordon animated the scene of Jerry bouncing on Tom, and a very funny sequence involving boxing gloves. Cecil Surry animates Jerry freezing outside. Bill Littlejohn animates the scene of Jerry pretending to be a toy solider. Irven Spence who would later become one of the most prominent Tom and Jerry animators (known for animating over the top reactions) has a very limited role here. He animates Tom feeling guilty about Jerry freezing outside, while he is trying to sleep and a very brief scene of Tom shaking snow off of Jerry. This film was nominated for an Oscar. Its competition this year was Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B (1941, Walter Lantz), Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt (1941, Warner Brothers, starring Bugs Bunny), How War Came (1941, Columbia), Lend a Paw (1941, Disney, starring Mickey Mouse and Pluto), Rhapsody in Rivets (1941, Warner Brothers), The Rookie Bear (1941, MGM, starring Barney Bear), Rhythm in the Ranks (1941, George Pal Puppetoon), Superman (1941, Fleischer Studios) and Truant Officer Donald (1941, Disney). Lend a Paw won the Oscar this year. 

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Next is the Terry Toons cartoon, Spanish Onions (1930). Most of the early Terry Toons shorts (including this one) had food related titles. 

Disney cartoons have long been associated with sentimentality and cuteness. Yet this wasn't always the case. The early black and white Mickey Mouse films were mostly pretty much the opposite. They focused purely on the gags and jokes and with keeping the comic momentum going. A perfect example of this is Mickey's Orphans (1931). This short has all the makings for a sentimental cartoon. It takes place at Christmas time and the involves Mickey adopting a bunch of orphans. Yet all of this is play strictly for laughs and some of the kids can be a little sadistic. A review in the Motion Picture Herald stated, "The youngsters will get a real kick out of this short, and the oldsters will extract a bit of enjoyment." A review in The Film Daily gave the same sentiment stating, "It will delight all children and get many a laugh from their elders." An issue of The Film Daily (Dated February 7, 1932) stated "In addition to El Brendel in person this week's show at the Roxy is a special treat for the kids. The presentation includes four scenes based on 'Mickey's Orphans,' the Mickey Mouse cartoon that was held over for three weeks at this house. The characters of Mickey and Minnie are portrayed by the Arnaut Brothers, popular pantomimists. Patricia Bowman, Fred Waring's orchestra in a novelty entitled 'Dancing Melodies,' and the Roxyettes also are part of the proceedings. In the Mickey scenes, the Roxyettes and ballet group are made up to represent kittens, musical notes and animated furnishings in Minnie's boudoir." This cartoon was reissued to theatres in 1934. 

Now for a winter themed Foghorn Leghorn short, Weasel While You Work (1958). This is the third and last appearance of the weasel character in a theatrical short. His other two appearances were in Plop Goes the Weasel! (1953) and Weasel Stop (1956), both of which were Foghorn Leghorn cartoons. This film is also one of six shorts to use stock music from John Seely, rather than the usual Carl Stalling or Milt Franklin orchestral scores. This was due to a musician's strike at the time. The cartoon also marks one of the few times director Robert McKimson worked with writer Michael Maltese, who is most associated for his work with Chuck Jones. Weasel While You Work is one of only two Foghorn Leghorn cartoons written by Michael Maltese, with the other being Fox Terror (1957). 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Next comes a silent era cartoon starring Krazy Kat, Scents and Nonsense (1926).

Many of the later Betty Boop cartoons would turn the focus from Betty to her supporting cast. Quite a few shorts would focus on her dog Pudgy. One of these is Pudgy Picks a Fight (1937). 

Next comes Bugs Bunny and the Tasmanian Devil in The Fright Before Christmas (1979). This short was originally created for the TV special Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979). This was the final of three segments in that special and was directed Friz Freleng. This makes this the first time Taz was directed by someone other than Robert McKimson. The result like the whole special is a delightful Christmas treat and one of the best uses of Taz after the golden age of Looney Tunes. Also appearing here is Bugs' nephew Clyde. Clyde had only appeared in two theatrical shorts, His Hare Raising Tale (1951) and Yankee Doodle Bugs (1954). Both of those were directed by Friz Freleng. 

Today's cartoon selection ends with A Garfield Christmas Special (1987). 

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 merry. 

Resources Used

Tom and Jerry: The Definitive Guide to Their Animated Adventures by Patrick Brion
Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin
http://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/mgms-the-night-before-christmas-1941-with-tom-jerry/ 
Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History by David Gerstein and J.B. Kaufman
https://mediahistoryproject.org/

  

Movie Review: Flow

Michael's Movie Grade: A+

An absolutely wonderful animated movie from Latvia. 

This film takes place in post-apocalyptic world where humans don't exist anymore. However, this is never focused on because it simply is not the point of this movie. Instead, this is a film about this group of animals banding together in a giant flood and forming an unlikely friendship. This is all told without a single word of dialogue. Yet dialogue is never missed once here. That is because the film is a tour de force for character animation. Every second, you can tell exactly what these characters are thinking. We relate and care about these characters completely, especially the main character, an adorable black cat. At the same time these characters feel completely animal. These are not human-like cartoon animals in the vein of Looney Tunes or Disney, but they feel like real animals. It is obvious that the filmmakers studied real animals for this movie, because they move just like and act just like them. Yet the characters have their own personalities outside of simply being the types of animals they are. Because of this when they form their unlikely friendships it is actually quite touching, just as watching unlikely friendships form between real animals is a lovely thing to witness. The fact that these friendships don't form right away but come about overtime makes the film even more beautiful and touching. Despite the realistic depictions of these animals' personalities, this movie gives its characters a stylized look that works beautifully and is definitely more appealing than the hyper-realistic animation seen in some of Disney's "live action" remakes (even as a huge Disney fan, I can't stand those films). As well as character moments like these, the film stays exciting and entertaining throughout due to some very well-crafted suspense scenes and some good comedic moments. 

The director of this movie is Gints Zilbalodis. This is only his second feature film (though he has directed short films as well). His first feature was Away (2019), which also was an animated movie that was essentially a silent film. 

This is simply an animated masterpiece.  

Video Link: From All of Us to All of You

Happy birthday Walt Disney and merry Christmas to all of you. 

Movie Review: Solo Leveling: Reawakening

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A very engaging and fun animated action fantasy from Japan. 

This movie is composed of the last few episodes of season one and the first few of season two of the popular anime TV series. With this in mind this works better as a standalone movie than one might think. It may not be perfect in this regard, but it can be watched as a single film surprisingly well. It is perfectly accessible to newcomers. I have not seen a single episode of the show before watching this film and I was able to follow the story perfectly. There was not even a single moment when I felt like I was lost or missing something. It doesn't hurt that the story and action are very engaging as well. The main character is incredibly easy to relate to and root for. He is a complete underdog, who is underestimated by everyone. Because of this we take a certain joy in seeing him show people what he is made of. Yet he is also a complex character with a bit of dark side. This however just makes him may engaging to watch. The action scenes here are perfect. They feel larger than life and very exciting. Under all the blood and gore is a real sense of suspense that makes many of these action scenes keep us on the edge of our seats. The visuals here are also amazing and go far beyond their TV origins. These visuals simply look fantastic on a big screen. 

This film does have its flaws though. The whole movie is filled with constant dialogue that narrates every single thing that is happening. This honestly can become a little much and a bit annoying at times. It can also feel un-cinematic. Though this works surprisingly well as movie despite its TV origins, the fact that it is comprised of various TV episodes makes it so that it has multiple points that feel like an ending. This can get distracting as when you think the movie is over, it continues. The start of the film can also be a bit rushed, but it is still easy to follow despite this. 

A movie that works surprisingly well despite its TV origins. 

All-New Super Friends Hour: The Water Beast (1977)

 

This is the third segment of the ninth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.

In this episode, the Super Friends must stop Aquaman's archenemy Manta (a version of the comics' Aquaman villain Blank Manta, with his suit painted gold instead of black), when he creates a powerful sea monster. 

This is a very fun cartoon. I always love when these cartoons use villains from the comics, and this is a delightful example. Even if the color of his suit and his name was changed, Manta is a still a great villain. He feels like a real threat to our heroes and his vendetta with Aquaman helps make him especially memorable. His voice also helps him stand out. That he successfully captures Aquaman also helps add to the suspense. The design of the sea monster is wonderful and the way it can use Aquaman's powers is very clever and adds to the suspense. The action scenes are quite well done here. There is something that is simply a lot of corny fun about watching superheroes fight a giant monster and that fun is fully felt here.

This is superhero fun at its best.  

All-New Super Friends Hour: Game of Chicken (1977)

 

This is the second segment of the ninth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.

In this cartoon some teenagers are playing a game of chicken in their speedboats. When they get in danger, the Wonder Twins save them. 

This is another lame Wonder Twins cartoon. There is little to recommend about this short. This is little superhero fun here, instead the short simply focuses on its didactic message and the boring non-superhero characters. There is a little attempt at humor with Gleek the monkey but it not really funny and doesn't add any entertainment value to this short. 

Cowboy Church #197

 Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church. 

Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers' 1940 recording of Silent Night.  This song was written in 1818 by Josef Mohr and Franz Xaver Gruber. Raised in Salzburg, Mohr became an ordained priest on August 21, 1815. He was then sent to a town just north of Salzburg called Obendorf. That is where he met a schoolteacher named Franz Xaver Gruber, who would later become the organist at Old Saint Nicholas Church in 1816. They were in a need for a song on Christmas Eve, 1818. Mohr presented Gruber with a poem he had written a few years before and Gruber quickly put it to music on his guitar (the organ was broken) and that Christmas Eve the first ever audience heard Silent Night. The tempo of that earlier version was faster paced than the one we know today but it was still very popular with the audience and would soon become a song synonymous with Christmas. 

This is followed by Carrie Underwood's version of Do You Hear What I Hear. Noël Regney and Gloria Shayne Baker wrote this song in 1962 as a response to dread they were feeling due to the Cold War. 

Afterwards is The Carter Family with a 1941 recording of Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. This hymn began with a man named Anthony Showalter. As a fan of gospel music and an elder in a Presbyterian church, he held many "singing schools" at various churches in the south. One day he received two letters from former students who were struggling after their wives had passed. To respond to these letters, Showalter consulted scripture. He came across Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." After reading this verse lyrics for a song chorus went through his head and he wrote down, "“Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.” After using this in the letters to his former students he sent this chorus to his friend hymnist, Elisha Hoffman. In the letter he also wrote, “Here is the chorus for a good hymn from Deuteronomy 33:27, but I can’t come up with the verses.” Hoffman then wrote the rest of the lyrics to which Showalter put to music. The hymn was published in 1887.

Then comes Ray Price's recording of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. This comes from the 1969 album, The Ray Price Christmas Album. 

Next is Tex Ritter with his 1954 recording of Old Text Kringle. 

Then comes Gene Autry's 1947 recording of Here Comes Santa Claus. Gene wrote this song's lyrics (the music was written by Oakley Haldeman). He was inspired by a time when he rode, Champion Jr. in Hollywood's Santa Claus Lane Parade. He rode in front of Santa Claus and heard a small boy shout, "Here comes Satna Claus." He knew that this would make a perfect Christmas song. This song became such a hit that many Christmas recordings followed as well as songs for other holidays like Easter and Thanksgiving. 

Now for The Sons of the Pioneers with their 1948 recording of The Old Rugged Cross. The song itself dates back to 1913 and was written by evangelist, George Bennard. Actually the first verse was written in 1912. It was written while Bennard was a part of a series of revival meetings in Albion, Michigan. He was worried about the complete disregard for the gospel around him and wrote this verse as a repose. Of writing it Bennard said, "I seemed to have a vision ... I saw the Christ and the cross inseparable." The song wouldn't be completed for several months, when he was leading meetings at a local church in Pokagan, Michigan. He played it for Rev. Leroy (the sponsoring pastor) and his wife, Ruby Bostwick, both of whom found themselves moved to tears. It was then incorporated into a service at that church on June 7, 1913. The song has the same effect today as it must have back then.

Today's musical selection closes with Dale Evans with I'd Rather Have Jesus. This version of this song comes from her and her husband's (Roy Rogers) 1962 gospel album, The Bible Tells Me So. 

Now for Johnny Cash's 1977 Christmas TV special. 

Now for a message from S.M. Lockridge. 

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4 

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Luke 6:35 

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4:21

 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Romans 12:18

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. 1 Thessalonians 5:15

Thanks for joining me. Come back ibn a couple weeks for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again. 

Silent Film of the Month: A Trap for Santa Claus (1909)

 

Run Time: 16 minutes. Studio: American Biograph. Director: D.W. Griffith. Main Cast: Henry B. Walthall, Marion Leonard, Gladys Egan, John Tansey, Kate Bruce, William J. Butler. Cinematographer: G.W. Bitzer.

It may seem like the concept of a Christmas film with a cynical edge would be a relatively recent one. The thought that such a concept dates back to the days of D.W. Griffith may seem absurd. However, Griffith's early Christmas film, A Trap for Santa explores some dark and heavy themes alongside its yuletide setting. While this film is not without its Christmas charm, it does not sugarcoat the darker themes of its story. 

At the start of this short film, an unemployed father (Henry B. Walthall) with no money for Christmas presents is seen getting drunk in a bar. He comes home completely intoxicated and scares his wife and daughter. He then decides to leave feeling that he can offer nothing but pain for his wife and children. Eventually things get so desperate for him that he decides to rob his own wife and children's house. At the same time the children decide to set a trap to see if they can capture Santa Claus. 

While this lacks the ahead of their time filmmaking techniques that Griffith's later films are known for, this short makes up for this with strong storytelling. One of Griffith's most overlooked talents was to tell a surpassingly complex story in a short amount of time. This is overlooked because Griffith's is best known for his longer length epics such as Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916). Yet the short films he made for American Biograph earlier in his career, show that he is perfectly able to tell a complex story in a compact amount of time. This is especially evident here. Despite the short runtime the story never feels rushed but seems to play out naturally. The filmmaking also makes the storyline easy to follow without the plethora of intertitles that would populate Griffith's later work. The story itself is very intelligent mixing the dark subject matter with a sense of Christmas sentimentality. Like Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life (1947), this short has its heartwarming and sentimental moments but we have to make it through some pretty dark and grim moments to get there. This however makes the heartwarming moments feel all the more rewarding. All of this makes this a real Christmas classic and one of Griffith's more underrated efforts.      

For anyone interested in watching this wonderful film, it can be seen on YouTube below. 

Michael's Christmas Movie Guide: Gremlins (1984)

 

This classic horror-comedy is perfect watching for those who prefer a bit more offbeat Christmas movies. 

In this film a father (Hoyt Axton) buys a cute little creature as a Christmas gift for his son Billy (Zach Galligan). However, he is given three rules, keep him out of the light, keep him away from water and never feed him after midnight. Naturally it isn't long until these rules are broken, and a swarm of monsters are unleashed upon the city of Kingston Falls (which bares more than a little resemblance to the town of Bedford Falls from It's a Wonderful Life (1947)). 

This is everything one could want from a horror comedy. There are some scenes here that are legitimately creepy. However even these scenes are balanced with a sense of dark humor. Some of this humor almost resembles a Looney Tunes short in its level of cartoon-y absurdity. The gremlins singing Christmas carols, enjoying watching Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) in a movie theater, acting like rowdy bar patrons and breaking into a candy store simply makes these characters a lot of fun to watch despite their violence and scary appearance. It is this mixture of frights and laughs that make this film so much fun. However, this is not the only joy of this movie. Gizmo (the original gremlin) is incredibly adorable in a way that helps bring a certain charm and likability to a film that could have otherwise been too dark and mean spirited. The same can be said for the young romance between Zach Galligan and Phoebe Cates. Zach Galligan was given the role because he showed great chemistry with Phoebe Cates during the auditions. That great chemistry can be felt here. Though this is not really a romantic film, there is a sweetness to the young romance here that feels completely natural. This helps make us like these characters almost instantly, which again helps this movie from becoming too mean spirited. The movie also makes great use of its Christmas time setting. The juxtaposition of the violence and the Christmas imagery adds a lot to this movie's dark humor. As does the various sendups of Christmas movies throughout. The Christmas setting also gives a somewhat warm and charming feeling to the early scenes, which makes the later release of the Gremlins upon the city both funnier and more frightening. 

Despite the mixture of horror and comedy being one of this film's main features, the movie wasn't originally conceived this way. Hearing the scampering of mice as he was trying to sleep, gave screenwriter Chris Columbus the idea for this film. He wrote a script that was straight horror. In this script the gremlins were not humorous or fun in any way and their violence was even more intense. This script found its way to Steven Spielberg, who thought the idea was very original. He bought the script to produce it at his new production company, Amblin Entertainment (this was the first movie to carry the now famous Amblin logo). However, Spielberg also knew that much had to be done before this script was ready to become a movie. He suggested that the horror and violence be toned down a bit and that Gizmo would stay a cute and lovable creature instead of being transformed into a monster like the rest of gremlins. Tim Burton was briefly thought of to direct this movie. Burton at this time had not directed a single feature length movie but a short film he directed called Frankenweenie (1984) would bring him to be considered. However the directing job instead went to Joe Dante who at this time had directed such horror movies as Piranha (1978) and The Howling (1981). Dante would bring in much of the film's sense of humor. Dante also came up with the idea to make the early scenes much warmer, like a traditional Christmas movie. He felt that with this, "even the smallest amount of violence became more intense." 

This movie along with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) (which was released only two weeks earlier), would help lead to the PG-13 rating. Both of these films angered parents who thought they were bringing their kids to something more age appropriate. Later that same year Red Dawn (1984) would become the first movie to receive a PG-13 rating.

With its Christmas time setting it may seem strange that this movie was released during the summer. This came because Warner Brothers (who was distributing the film) realized that they did not have a big summer movie to release opposite of the likes of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Ghostbusters (1984). Because of this the movie's release was moved up from its original Christmas time release to a summer release. This however did not hurt the film's success at the box-office as this would become the 4th highest grossing film of 1984. 

Resources Used

Christmas in the Movies by Jeremy Arnold

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/57137/21-things-you-might-not-know-about-gremlins
   

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #205

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with the first cartoon featuring the Tasmanian Devil, Devil May Hare (1954). About Taz director Robert McKimson recalled, "I devolped him because we were looking for a new character. I made two of them, I think, and my boss [Eddie Selzer] told me not to make them anymore because he was too obnoxious. Actually he was just a stupid foil. He could tear things apart but a guy like Bugs Bunny could frustrate him. Shortly after that, Jack Warner asked Eddie Selzer, 'what happened to the Tasmanian Devil?' And Eddie said he'd stopped making them, 'get back and make more of them' [Jack Warner replied] 'He's a funny character.'" 

Santa's Surprise (1947) is an especially delightful Christmas cartoon from Famous Studios. This cartoon is best remembered as the first cartoon to feature the character of Little Audrey. Little Audrey was an original character for the studio and also a replacement for Little Lulu, who the studio had made a series of cartoons with, in the past. Little Lulu was not created by the studio but was the star of a comic strip by Marjorie Henderson Buell. When Paramount decided not to renew the license for Famous Studios to use that character, Little Audrey was created. The character was designed by veteran Disney animator Bill Tytla (possibly my favorite Disney animator), who was now a director at Famous. This short's lead animator was Myron Waldman, who specialized in cute animation (often shining his best in the studio's Casper series). Myron would later remember this cartoon as one he was especially happy with.

Next comes the Tom and Jerry cartoon, Cue Ball Cat (1950). This was the last Tom and Jerry film of 1950. The first year of the 1950's showed Tom and Jerry films still at the consistent high quality that they had maintained in the 1940's. The cartoon was reissued to movie theaters in 1956. 

Now for a classic black and white Walter Lantz cartoon, Queen's Kittens (1938). 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Let's continue with a Christmas classic, Pluto's Christmas Tree (1952). Like many of the post-1930's Mickey Mouse short films, Mickey is not really the star of this cartoon. Instead, the short centers around Pluto and Chip and Dale. Though Chip and Dale are mostly recognized for fighting with Donald Duck, they did make their film debut as antagonists for Pluto in Private Pluto (1943). This cartoon features a great cast of animators including, George Kreisl, Fred Moore, Bill Justice, Volus Jones, Blaine Gibson and Dan MacManus. Dan MacManus animates the opening scene of the cartoon. Fred Moore is recognized as one of the greatest Mickey animators of all time and he gets to show that off here as he animates Mickey chopping down the tree, Mickey decorating the tree, Mickey with the Christmas gifts, Mickey's reactions to Pluto's antics, Mickey holding the chipmunks and him and Pluto looking out the window. Bill Justice and Volus Jones animate much of the Chipmunks. Justice also animates the cameo of Minnie, Donald and Goofy at the end. George Kreisl animates much of Pluto's antics. Blaine Gibson animates very little in this short with the tree lights going off and on. This cartoon was directed by Jack Hannah, who directed the majority of the Chip and Dale shorts. 

Now for a silent Krazy Kat cartoon, The Best Mouse Loses (1920). 

Now for the Terry Toons cartoon, Codfish Balls (1930). At this time nearly every Terry Toon short had a title that was a type of food. 

Today's cartoon selection closes with a half hour TV special, I wish would play on TV. This is A Pink Christmas (1978) starring the coolest cat in all filmdom. The Pink Panther. While The Pink Panther has often been compared to Charlie Chaplin's Little Tramp, this is probably the clearest example. Like Charlie Chaplin's best films, this special effortlessly combines sentimentality and slapstick humor. The character is at his most likable and charming here creating what is to me a Christmas must watch. 

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

Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin

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

http://afilmla.blogspot.com/search/label/Shorts_RKO?updated-max=2006-08-26T01:00:00-07:00&max-results=20&start=25&by-date=false