Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #181

 Hello my friends and welcome back for another selection of classic cartoons. 

Today's cartoon selection begins with Sylvester in Peck Up Your Troubles (1945). This short film is certainly a forerunner to the later Tweety and Sylvester cartoons, the first of which would be released in 1947. However instead of Tweety there is a little woodpecker and dialogue is kept to a minimum. This movie was in fact only Sylvester's second cartoon, the first of which was Life With Feathers (1945). Peck Up Your Troubles was directed by Friz Freleng who would later direct nearly all of the Sylvester and Tweety shorts. Friz would later say about Sylvester, "I designed Sylvester to look subtly like a clown. I gave him a big red nose and a very low crotch which was supposed to look like he was wearing baggy pants. But gradually he changed because the construction restricted his animation."  

Up next comes Goofy in The Big Wash (1948). Rather than being directed by Jack Kinney, this short film was directed by Clyde Geronimi, who by this time was mostly working on Disney's feature films. This often causes his work as a director of shorts to get overlooked. Yet his work in shorts was often incredibly delightful and this movie is no exception. This may not be as wild as the Goofy cartoons, Jack Kinney directed, but in its own way it is just as fun. This movie relies heavily on character-based humor and it has really been done better. In this cartoon Goofy washes an elephant named Dolres. This elephant would later appear in the Donald Duck cartoon, Working for Peanuts (1953) and in that film Donald would sing the same song as Goofy does here. 

Next we join Mutt and Jeff in Westward Whoa (1926). This movie was directed by Charles Bowers who also had an unjustly forgotten career staring in live action silent comedy shorts. 

The Betty Boop cartoons from the early 1930's were some of the most risqué cartoons from the golden age of American animation. Anyone who thinks of old cartoons as sweet, innocent and squeaky clean may be surprised to see scenes in these cartoons. One of the most risqué images from one of these cartoons comes from Red Hot Mama (1934), where we are given a look through Betty's dress. Though admittedly the rest of this cartoon is not exactly innocent either. The setting for this film is Hell, where Betty's sexiness excites the various demons. Not everyone back then was fine with what happens in this film as the following exhibitor's review from Motion Picture Herald shows. "Red Hot Mama: Betty Boop - I can remember several years ago after sound had been established that a great cry arose within the industry that the youngsters of that day ( and the show patron of tomorrow) were unable to find any entertainment in the movie palaces because the biz had gone high hat and no entertainment for them. I screened 'Red Hot Mama,' a cartoon yesterday on my Sunday matinee hence this letter. I have always felt that in booking these cartoons the youngsters were getting a treat. I enjoy their hearty laughs and suppressed excitement when their favorite cartoon is on the screen. However 'Red Hot Mama' must have been drawn when the guy was drunk. Betty Boop starts out sweetly, is suddenly transported to Hell and pursued and tortured by all sorts of fire devils, imps and what have you. One variety, the ability to bound in the air and come down on a spear studded tail stabbed in the floor. A grand subject for your juvenile trade? Naturally my Sunday matinee was without a cartoon. The only recommendation I have for this is that the one responsible for it be compelled to sit through a screening every time he has a pink elephant fantasy. Some exhibitor's have said they hesitate to report on products through the Herald for fear of getting in bad with the local exchange. My opinion is that the people who are sincere in this business welcome constructive criticism. Report fairly on pictures with merit and likewise that class of product which is detrimental to our investments. I'm not a crank but it is cartoons such as the Symphonies and 'Jack and the Beanstalk' and 'Little Red Hen' that are in demand and not such a thing as 'Red Hot Mama'. -E.A. Reynolds, Strand Theatre, Princeton, Minn. Small Town and Country Patronage." With the praise of the Silly Symphonies, I am wondering what this exhibitor would have to say about the Silly Symphony, Hell's Bells (1929). The following is a much more positive exhibitor's review from the Motion Picture Herald, "Red Hot Mama: Betty Boop - This is a great cartoon comedy that will please everyone. It is full of good clean entertainment and much better than the average comedy. More time should be given to shorts in order to fill in a poor feature and everything would be better. Running Time eight minutes. -J.J. Medford, Orpheum Theatre, N.C. General patronage."

Now for a commercial break. 

Motion Picture News, 1913

Next we join Popeye in I Don't Scare (1956). This was towards the end of Popeye's career in theatrical cartoon shorts. The last of these shorts was released only a year later in 1957.

Now for Colonel Heeza Lair in Knighthood (1924). The Colonel's cartoon career began in 1913. After 1917 he briefly vanished from movie screens. Yet in 1922 the series returned. New cartoons with the character would be made through 1924. This cartoon coms from the later run of films. These later shorts would combine live action and animation (something the earlier shorts did not do) in way that resembled the Fleischer Brothers' Out of the Inkwell shorts. 

 
Film Daily, 1924

Up next is the Pixar short film, For the Birds (2000). This cartoon premiered at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in 2000, but most movie lovers first saw it play before the Pixar feature film, Monsters Inc. (2001).
 

Now to end with a song. 

Resources Used

I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety by Jerry Beck.

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

 

 

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #112

 Hello my friends and welcome back to another selection of classic cartoons. 

If you asked me to pick a cartoon that perfectly shows what the style of the Fleischer Studio was, I would pick, Bimbo's Initiation (1931). This cartoon has everything that makes the Fleischer Studio one of the most unique animation studios of all time. The film has a lot of surreal humor, a very detailed look, a dark and dangerous atmosphere, and was definitely intended more for adults than kids. One thing the Fleischers strived for was to put a gag in every moment of the film and this cartoon has that in abundance. Bimbo was a star character at this time, but his star was soon to be eclipsed by another character in this film, Betty Boop. Betty had made her debut a year earlier with Dizzy Dishes (1930). It wouldn't be long until Bimbo would be playing supporting roles in Betty Boop cartoons. Eventually Betty's films would drop Bimbo. Betty would also later own a dog making her one of the few cartoon characters to both own and date a dog (and even be a dog in her earliest appearances. This cartoon was placed at 37 in Jerry Beck's book, The 50 Greatest Cartoons.

Next we join Sylvester the cat in A Mouse Divided (1953). Though best known for his cartoons with Tweety and Speedy Gonzales, the cat has shown many times that he is more than capable of making a great cartoon without any famous co-stars. This is one of those. The story of Sylvester wanting to eat a small animal until it considers him its parent and then protecting it would be repeated much later in Father of the Bird (1997). A Mouse Divided was directed by Friz Freleng, who directed the Tweety and Sylvester cartoons. 

Next comes one of the most famous and important of Disney's Silly Symphonies cartoons, Flowers and Trees (1932). This film was the first Silly Symphony in color and it is obvious that even from this first attempt the Disney cartoons had a mastery of color in a way few film would ever reach. Walt knew that color was not just a novelty or a way to make films look pretty but could be a vital part of storytelling. The colors in these cartoons often added to mood of the scene in a way an audience can feel. Walt was alone in believing Technicolor  would help boost the quality of his cartoons and many tried to talk him out of it but as was always true of Walt, he stuck with his instinct and it paid off. The short received much praise (including an academy award) and it still remains a great cartoon to this day. Walt signed a contract with Technicolor for three years, giving them exclusive right to the process in the field of animation. This is why some of the other studios would soon use less famous and less effective color processes for their cartoons of this period. The cartoon itself was directed by Burt Gillett, who would soon direct the most famous Silly Symphony, The Three Little Pigs (1933). J.B. Kaufman and Russell Merritt's book, Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series states, "David Hand animated most of the film, partly by himself and partly with apprentices."  David Hand would later be supervising director on the Disney features, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942). The following is a short article from The Film Daily (dated Sept. 17, 1932), "As a result of the tremendous reception at the Grauman's Chinese in Los Angles and the Roxy in New York of the first Silly Symphony, in natural color, Walt Disney, its creator says all the Symphonies released this year  by United Artists will be done in Technicolor and that later the Mickey Mouse may also be photographed in natural color. The first Silly Symphony in Technicolor 'Flowers and Trees,' was in the nature of a feeler. It was made to touch [sic] out the public reaction to color in an animated short feature. After the first showing in Hollywood, in conjunction with MGM's 'Strange Interlude,' Disney had decided that he hit upon one of his most popular moves. Sid Grauman also was highly enthusiastic about 'Flowers and Trees.' The same thing happened at the Roxy. And now the second Silly, 'King Neptune' will have its premiere at the opening of 'Mr. Robinson Crusoe,' Douglas Fairbanks new feature, at the Rivoli next Wednesday." 

   

The Film Daily, 1937

Next we go way back and watch Colonel Heeza Lair On The Jump (1917). Though forgotten by many cartoon fans today the Colonel was quite popular during the silent era and was one of the earliest characters to have a whole series based around him. He made his film debut in 1913 but after 1917 he would retire from the screen only to be brought back in 1922. The character himself was created by J. R. Bray and is said to be based off former president Theodore Roosevelt. 

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 cartoon 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). 

Next we join Willie Whopper in Reducing Creme (1934). Willie Whopper was a little boy who often told exaggerated stories that come from his vast imagination. The character was created by Ub Iwerks (who co-created Mickey Mouse with Walt Disney) after his Flip the Frog cartoons never caught on the way he wanted.

Today's cartoon selection ends with Popeye in Ancient Fistory (1953).

Thanks for joining me come back next week for another round of animated classics. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry.

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #53 - Silent Edition

Hello my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again that means it is time for some classic cartoons. This week's selection is dedicated to cartoons from the silent era. 

To those unfamiliar with silent cartoons, it may come as a surprise how many of them combined animation and live action and how well this was done. In fact there were whole series completely built around this. The most famous examples being The Fleischer Brothers Out of the Inkwell films and Walt Disney's Alice comedies. However another one of these series was by Walter Lantz (later of Woody Woodpecker fame), these were the Dinky Doodles cartoons. In these films Walter Lantz played himself in live action. A live action Walter Lantz interacting with his cartoon characters looks forward to TV's The Woody Woodpecker Show. Here is a typically enjoy Dinky Doodles cartoon, Dinky Doodle's Bedtime Story (1926). Unfortunately this video is from a later TV showing with not very funny narration added, but I am grateful to see this film at all. 

In my mind one of the best cartoon series of the silent era was Earl Hurd's excellent Bobby Bumps cartoons. Here is an example of why. So enjoy Bobby and His Hypnotic Eye (1920).

Next up is an excellent cartoon starring Walt Disney's Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Oh, Teacher (1927). This cartoon is full of the very creative and funny gags that made this series so memorable. 

Many cartoons of the silent era centered around characters made famous in newspaper comics. Since I grew up reading newspaper comic strips that stopped existing well before I was born, I have a special fondness for these cartoons and the characters seen in them. One of the most famous and best cartoon series based on these strips were the Mutt and Jeff cartoons. So enjoy the always delightful Mutt and Jeff in Domestic Difficulties (1916). Notice how this film has fantastic looking art work and use of shading rare for animated cartoons of this era. Similarly notice the expert filmmaking in the scene after the two get drunk. There is no doubt the visual filmmaking there is miles ahead of some other cartoons made in the 1910's. Notice how the storytelling in this cartoon in many ways resembles a newspaper comic strip. With a clear set up leading to a simple but very funny punchline at the end. This was quite common for animated cartoons of this era and a style of storytelling I enjoy very much.

Ending today's selection of silent era cartoons is a Bray Studios film featuring the one and only Colonel Heeza Lair. The cartoon is the delightful Colonel Heeza Lair Foils the Enemy (1915).
























Thanks for joining me come back next week for more animated treasures.

-Michael J. Ruhland

How a Colonel Heeza Liar Cartoon is Made

John R. Bray's Colonel Heeza Liar cartoons are often considered to be the first cartoon series with reoccurring characters. The series began in 1913 and while one cannot say he enjoyed the same phenomenal success that Felix the Cat or Mickey Mouse would in the 1920's, the character and series certainly enjoyed quite a bit of popularity. In the 1910's, unlike today, audiences were amazed at the fact they could go to a movie theater and see drawings move. Many people wondered how this could be accomplished. The following 1916 article from Film Fun magazine attempts to explain how these films could come to be.



As a bonus here is one of the Colonel's best known cartoons, Colonel Heeza Liar At The Bat (1915).



-Michael J. Ruhland