Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #261

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

For the most part characters that originally appeared in Disney's animated feature films did not appear in the studio's short films. There were however exceptions to this. One of the most interesting of these exceptions was The Winged Scrouge (1943), which features the Seven Dwarfs. This is not your typical Disney short. During the time when the studio was making a series of South American films (some of them celebrating South American culture and some made for South American audiences) as part of the US's Good Neighbor Policy, The Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs (or the CIAA) commissioned the studio to make a series of films about health and safety. This is the marked the first of these films and the only one to use already established characters. Originally going to be titled The Mosquito and Malaria. Because of the nature of this film, it was made with the CIAA working closely with the Disney story team. The CIAA in fact sent specialists to work with the Disney story crew. Working with them on this film were Dr. Edward C. Ernest, acting director of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau and Assistant U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. E.R. Coffey. The studio came up with a format of the first part of the film being played completely seriously and essentially a lecture. The second part would introduce the dwarfs and bring some slapstick comedy into the film. However with this second part Walt warned, "The only reason to bring in the dwarfs is to add a little interest; when you get into gags and impossible things, you're not accomplishing the job you are supposed to do - show in a simple way how to get rid of the mosquitoes. If you make it look like a tremendous job, they'll say, hell, I'll take the mosquitoes." Even with this not being your typical Disney short, it had a great cast of animators, which even included two of Walt's future Nine Old Men, Milt Kahl and Frank Thomas. John McManus animates much of the first more serious part of the film. Milt Kahl animates the introduction of the dwarfs, Doc and Sneezy in a boat, Happy spraying oil, Dopey with a dipper and an oil can, Bashful and the birds applying the green color, Sleepy digging the ditches, Grumpy chopping the stump, dwarfs with the deer and the cart, Doc with the wheelbarrow and Grumpy with the Woodpecker. Frank Thomas animates the sequence with Dopey and the mosquitos. Harvey Tombs animates Happy with the rain barrel, the dwarfs hanging the screens, Sleepy with the birds and the dwarfs snoring. 

Next comes one of the Fleischer Studio's stone age cartoons, Wedding Belts (1940). 

Now for perhaps my favorite of the classic Betty Boop cartoons, Snow White (1933). This cartoon is chock full of imagination and there is never one moment that isn't a lot of fun. There is a pure energy in this film that simply never lets up. This cartoon is simply everything I love about the cartoons from the Fleischer Studio at this time and is perhaps the best example of why the early 1930's Betty Boop cartoons are held in such high regard by animation fans. What makes this cartoon all the more impressive is that it has often been said that it was animated almost entirely by Doc Crandall. The main song number is performed by jazz legend Cab Calloway, who also provided vocals for the Betty Boop cartoons, Minnie the Moocher (1932) and The Old Man of the Mountain (1933). This film arrived at the number 19 spot in Jerry Beck's book, The 50 Greatest Cartoons. 

Next up is Heckle and Jeckle in Hair Cut Ups (1952). Paul Terry has said that the Heckle and Jeckle films were the best cartoons he produced, and I personally agree with him. 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Now for a silent Aesop's Film Fables cartoon, The Traveling Salesman (1923). This short includes our good friend Farmer Alfalfa. 

Moving Picture World, 1925

Next up is Tex Avery's next to last black and white cartoon, The Haunted Mouse (1941). By this time Tex had moved from working on the black and white Looney Tunes to the color Merrie Melodies. He had not made a black and white cartoon since Porky's Garden (1937). After this film, he would make one more black and white short, Porky's Preview (1941). This movie was the first Looney Tune to not feature any reoccurring characters. Before this Looney Tunes always featured a star character, at first Bosko, then Buddy, then Beans and then Porky. This star character would appear in every cartoon for the series, while the Merrie Melodies would include cartoons without any of the main characters. This movie also features the first writing credit for Michael Maltese who would go on to write Chuck Jones' best cartoons. 
 

Now to close with a song. 

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

South of the Border with Disney by J.B. Kaufman.

The 50 Greatest Cartoons edited by Jerry Beck

https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/disneys-the-winged-scourge-1943/

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #217

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

Today's cartoon selection starts with a real classic Mickey Mouse cartoon, On Ice (1935). This cartoon stars not only Mickey but also Minnie, Donald, Pluto and Goofy. Despite being a short film, this movie gives ample time to each of the main characters and gives them all their own little story (though Mickey and Minnie share their story). Some of the characters' little stories even intertwine at the end. Even in this silly slapstick cartoon, the Disney studio's great storytelling ability at this time period is shown perfectly through this and it is easy to understand, why for so many the Disney cartoons stood out during this time period. Goofy especially gets time to shine here and gets some of the best gags. He is heavily animated by Art Babbit here, who was one of the finest animators for this character at this time. Despite his little screentime Art Babbit's animation makes Goofy feel like a fully formed character. Here Goofy sings the song, The World Owes Me a Living. That song was introduced in the Disney short, The Grasshopper and the Ants (1934). There the song was sung by a grasshopper. That grasshopper was also voiced by Pinto Colvig, who used pretty much the same voice he used for Goofy. This song would go on to become Goofy's unofficial theme song. 

Now for an early black and white Terry Toons cartoon, Irish Sweepstakes (1934).

Next is Barney Bear in The Impossible Possum (1954). This film was directed by Dick Lundy, who was directing most of the Barney Bear cartoons at this time. Dick Lundy had previously been a Disney animator, who worked on many of the studios great cartoon shorts as well as the feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), and directed some wonderful Woody Woodpecker cartoons for the Walter Lantz studio. Like many of his Barney Bear films, this movie is a very fast moving short with a great sense of comedic energy. Compare this to the earlier Barney Bear cartoons that were directed by Rudolf Ising, which moved at a much slower pace and were often more charming than funny. The Dick Lundy shorts certainly are closer to the types of cartoons Tex Avery and William Hanna and Joseph Barbera were also making for MGM. 

Now for perhaps my favorite of the classic Betty Boop cartoons, Snow White (1933). This movie is chock full of imagination and there is never one moment that isn't a lot of fun. There is a pure energy in this film that simply never lets up. This cartoon is simply everything I love about the cartoons from the Fleischer Studio at this time and is perhaps the best example of why the early 1930's Betty Boop cartoons are held in such high regard by animation fans. What makes this cartoon all the more impressive is that it has often been said that it was animated almost entirely by Doc Crandall. The main song number is perfromed by jazz legend Cab Calloway, who also provided vocals for the Betty Boop cartoons, Minnie the Moocher (1932) and The Old Man of the Mountain (1933). This film arrived at the number 19 spot in Jerry Beck's book, The 50 Greatest Cartoons. 

Motion Picture Herald, 1931

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Now for Donald Duck in How to Have an Accident at Home (1956). This was the first of four planned safety films by the Disney studio. These films would teach about how to prevent accidents in various environments by showing you the wrong way to do things. Donald Duck himself was given the "privilege" of showing us the wrong way in these films. Each cartoon would feature Donald going through various slapstick mishaps and the audience would learn from his mistakes. Story man Roy Williams (who old TV fans might know for being the Big Mouseketeer on The Mickey Mouse Club) began working on ideas for these films in 1953. This cartoon would begin production in 1954 but wouldn't see movie screens until 1956. Much of the animation in this movie was done by former effects artist Jerry Hathcock. He animated the opening scene, Donald in traffic (with Earl Combs), Donald reading, Donald trying to nail the picture to the wall, Donald lighting his pipe, Donald falling with the fishbowl, Donald in the bathroom, Donald's accident with cleaning fluid and the closing scene. Earl Combs animates Donald in traffic (with Jerry Hathcock), Donald's landing after falling with the fishbowl and Donald having trouble with the chair's springs. George Nicholas animates Donald avoiding the piano and the kid on the bike, Donald falling down the stairs in slow motion and Donald with the TV set. Volus Jones animates fate lecturing while Donald has trouble with the toaster. Bob Bemiller and Ed Solomon animate Donald fixing the stairs, plugs, and throw rug. Ed Solomon also animates Donald entering the dynamite plant. There would only be one more of these safety films to follow, How to Have an Accident at Work (1959), the other two would never be completed. 

Next is Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales in The Spy Swatter (1967). 

Now for a silent movie, The Hicks in Nightmareland (1915). 

Today's cartoon selection ends with our Looney Tunes pals in the first part of Toon Monored, a 2001 miniseries of webtoons. 

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

The 50 Greatest Cartoons Edited by Jerry Beck

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

https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/donald-the-educator/

https://lantern.mediahist.org/

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #207

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with the first of Merrie Melodies cartoons, Lady Play Your Madolin (1931). While in later years, Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies were practically the same, at this time there was a distant difference in them, reflecting the differences between the Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphony shorts at Disney. The Looney Tunes shorts did not have to center around a song and all of them would star the character, Bosko, while the Merrie Melodies would have different characters and always center around a song. Despite the Merrie Melodies series soon staring miscellaneous characters, there were some early attempts to create a starring character for the series. This cartoon features the first of these attempts, Foxy. Many cartoon studios at this time made characters that were simply imitations of Disney's Mickey Mouse and Foxy is about as obvious of an imitation as you can get. Foxy would never truly catch on, as he would only two more theatrical cartoon shorts, Smile, Darn Ya, Smile! (1931) and One More Time (1931). Much later he would appear in an episode of the TV series, Tiny Toons Adventures entitled, Two-Tone Town (1992).

Now we join The Pink Panther in Super Pink (1966).

 Now for one of the rare instances of very dark satire in one of Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies, Who Killed Cock Robbin? (1935). This film shows cartoon birds at the mercy of an unjust legal system. Satire, dark humor, celebrity caricatures and slapstick abound. The most significant of the celebrity caricatures is Jenny Wren, a caricature of Mae West. Most of her animation here is handled fantastically by Ham Luske and her voice comes from Martha Wentworth who does a really good impression. This character would later appear in the Silly Symphony Toby Tortoise Returns (1936). Two of Walt's future Nine Old Men animate on this film, Eric Larson and Clyde Geronimi. Eric animates the scene where Cock Robbin falls and the cops rushing in. Clyde animates the scenes involving the blackbirds and the cops, Legs Sparrow with the cops and then going into the witness box, and the cops' raiding the area. For the year of 1935 the National Board of Review named this as one of the Ten Best American Films (not just cartoons but films as a whole). According to JB Kaufman and Russell Merrit's excellent book, Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series, the idea for making this film had been around the Disney studio as early as October 1933, but work truly began in March, 1934. Wilfred Jackson was originally going to be the cartoon's director, but he was replaced with Ben Sharpsteen, who was replaced with Dave Hand, who actually directed the cartoon. Dave Hand would later be the supervising director for the Disney feature films, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942). My fellow Alfred Hitchcock fans will recognize that a clip from this cartoon was later used in Hitch's classic movie, Sabotage (1936). The following is a review from The Film Daily, "Ye olde master, Walt Disney, has produced another cartoon which makes a swell approach to the entertainment values he provided in 'Three Little Pigs.' It's class A stuff, effectively done in color. A mysterious shadowy figure 'kills' the fabled Cock Robbin, who, by the by, is the sweetie of a May Western type of bird. Then come the Keystonian cops, also birds, and later the trial. Finally a birdy version of Dan Cupid admits to having shot Robin but May brings him to with a Big Kiss. Catchy music helps enliven the proceedings." The following is from a 1935 issue of Modern Screen Magazine and was a letter sent in by a reader. "A short time ago I took my five-year-old son with me to a local theatre. When a colored cartoon was shown, he was immensely pleased, as were several other children near us. The cartoon was 'Who Killed Cock Robin?' I may be wrong but I'm under the impression that those pictures are primarily to amuse children. If that is true than it failed. I heard several half-grown boys snickering as 'Jenny Wren' a parody of Mae West, with a high bust, wiggling hips and a sexy voice, flirted with the judge and later indulged in a kiss with Cock Robin. The smaller children merely looked puzzled and disappointed with the whole thing. Please have more cartoons like 'The Three Little Pigs,' 'Water Babies,' etc., unless of course, I'm wrong and those comedies are for grown-ups and not for little children. - Mrs. E. DeLamater, Charleston, S.C."   

Now for a fun little Terry Toons short, The Brave Little Brave (1956).

Motion Picture Herald, 1935

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Now for one of the best of the Max Fleischer Color Classics, Somewhere in Dreamland (1936). This charming little film is probably the Fleischer Studios best foray into sentimentality. This movie can hold its own against any of the best sentimental cartoons from Disney, something that can rarely be said about any sentimental cartoon from this era not from Disney. This is also a wonderful visual treat that shows the beautiful artwork (including the great 3D backgrounds) that populated Fleischer cartoons of this era and helped make them stand out as something special. This is seen to an even greater advantage due to this wonderful restoration by Fabulous Fleischer Cartoons Restored! The following is an exhibitor's review from Motion Picture Herald, "Somewhere in Dreamland: Color Classics - Color cartoon of the very best. It was perfect and this little reel drew about as many comments as most good features. - R. J. Schimdt, Star Theatre, Geneva, Ind. General Patronage."

Now for a silent movie starring Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, The Mechanical Cow (1927). 

Up next is Tweety's first appearance in a cartoon, A Tale of Two Kitties (1942). Sharp eyed viewers may notice that Tweety is not yellow in this film, but pink. Since he was a newborn baby bird, it made sense for him not to have feathers. According to director Bob Clampett, he based the character off of a nude baby photo of himself. Tweety already has his famous line, "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat." According to animation historian Jerry Beck's book, I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety, This line also originated with Bob Clampett when in the mid-1930's he wrote a letter to a friend on MGM stationary. Next to Leo the MGM lion, Clampett drew a small bird with a word balloon with "I think I taw a titty-tat." Instead of Sylvester Tweety is here pitted against two cats named Babbit and Catstello. As should be obvious by the names, these cats were a take-off on the infamous comedy team Abbott and Costello, who had just made their movie debut just a couple years earlier in One Night in the Tropics (1940). The voice of Catstello was provided by the man of a thousand voices, Mel Blanc (who also voiced Tweety) and Babbitt was voiced by writer Tedd Pierce. A reviewer in Showman's Trade Review was very impressed with these voices stating, "Either the famous comedy pair furnished the accompanying dialogue themselves or the impersonators are the last word in perfection." Though they would not catch on the way Tweety did, these characters would reappear in other cartoons. Some of these cartoons would even feature the duo as mice instead of cats. They would appear with Tweety much later in a 1998 episode of the TV show, Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries. This cartoon was reissued to theaters in 1948, the year Abbott and Costello made their most popular movie, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948).  

Now to close with a song.

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. 

 

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #205

 Happy Saturday morning my friends and merry Christmas Eve. I hope you are ready for some classic Christmas cartoons. 

Today's cartoon collection starts with a film that is familiar to pretty much anyone who ever watched DVDs of public domain cartoons, as it has appeared on nearly every set even slightly Christmas related. The cartoon is Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (1948). Despite being made for the often-forgotten Jam Handy Studio, the name of the director will immediately be familiar to cartoon fans as it is the one and only Max Fleischer (of Popeye and Betty Boop fame). However, the version you are going to see below is not the low-quality version of the movie, you are used to seeing. This is a new restoration from Fabulous Fleischer Cartoons Restored!

Up next comes one of my favorite Happy Harmonies cartoons, Alias St. Nick (1935). The Happy Harmonies series was one of many cartoon series of the 1930's trying to copy the success of Disney's Silly Symphonies. Like the Disney cartoons, this series for the most part featured one off characters. There were a few exceptions where there would be characters who would appear in multiple Happy Harmonies films. This movie introduces one of those characters, Little Cheeser. This is one of those cartoons that I for a long time had a distinct memory of it being on TV in the background one Christmas Eve, when I was small. The first time I saw this movie as an adult, it was a joy to find out just what the name of the cartoon was and what studio it came from. I was also happy to find out that the cartoon was a pure delight. This film looks wonderful as did most of the cartoons Hugh Harman and Rudolph Ising looks wonderful and this gives it a delightful Christmas-y feel that I simply love. I watch this every Christmas time and I hope you enjoy it and maybe it will become a Christmas tradition for you too. 

After this we celebrate Christmas with Pooch the Pup in Merry Dog (1933). This short has everything I love about Walter Lantz cartoons of this era. The jokes are incredibly silly and more often than not just plain strange. In fact, this film is pretty much one bizarre joke after another, and I simply love it. The following is an exhibitors review from the Motion Picture Herald, "MERRY DOG, THE: Pooch the "Pup—Excellent cartoon for anybody's program. "Night Before Christmas" theme with snowstorm and blizzard effects which almost made us forget that it was the hottest day of the summer. (106 and no shade.) Running time. 8 minutes. —Wm. Sayre, Delmar Theatre, Morrill, Neb., Rural and small town patronage."

Up next comes a classic Silly Symphony, The Night Before Christmas (1933). Though the Silly Symphonies were mostly one-off shorts, the occasional sequel could happen (with the Three Little Pigs sequels being the most well-known). The Night Before Christmas is a follow up to the often better remembered Santa's Workshop (1932). Yet as much as I love Santa's Workshop, I love this sequel even more. It could be argued that this film picks up where the previous one left off, as the last one ends with Santa leaving the North Pole for his trip and this cartoon has him visiting houses. Like the last film this is a reissue and there is a bit of a difference towards the end. In the original 1933 version, Little Junior is disappointed to get a chamber pot for Christmas. Here he is happy to get a puppy. In this version we do get a bit of Junior getting a blackface appearance from the chimney soot that would be cut out when the film was shown a Disney TV Christmas special in 1983. For all four years of the original Mickey Mouse Club, this would be the Mousekartoon on the last new episode to be aired before Christmas. The following is a brief article from The Film Daily (dated December 28, 1933), "In conjunction with the showing of Walt Disney's Silly Symphony, 'The Night Before Christmas,' The Radio City Music Hall is exhibiting six original Walt Disney drawings used in the production of this picture. The short, a united Artists release, will be held over a second week." A review of the cartoon in The Film Daily called The Night Before Christmas "... one of Walt Disney's best cartoons." Not everyone was so impressed as evidenced by the following exhibitor's review from The Motion Picture Herald, "NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, THE: Silly Symphony—These Silly Symphonies arc okay, but not worth difference in rental United Artists asks for them.-P. G. Held, New Strand Theatre, Griswold, Iowa. General patronage." 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

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. 

Now comes another Happy Harmony Christmas cartoon, The Pup's Christmas (1936). The following is a review from the Motion Picture Herald, "particularly appropriate for the current Yuletide season is this excellent little subject in color. When the two puppies grow inquisitive as to what Satna might have brought them, things begin to pop in more ways than one. There is much noise as well as fun when the pups become involved with runaway trains, speeding autos and exploding toy tanks. The sequence in which the tiny canines encounter the big calico hound is especially hilarious." The following are a couple of exhibitor's reviews from The Motion Picture Herald, "Pup's Christmas: Harman-Ising - just about perfect. Excellent animated fun. L.A. Irwin, Palace Theatre, Penacook, N.H. General Patronage." "Pup's Christmas, The: Real good very clever. You'll be pleased to show this to your patrons. - Harland Rankin, Plaza Theatre, Tilbury, Ontario, Can. General Patronage." 

Motion Picture Herald, 1936

Now to end by singing one we all know. 

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

Resources Used

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merrit and J.B. Kaufman. 

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

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

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

Some Cartoons for Saturday Morning #193

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

Today’s cartoon selection begins with a true classic, Woody Woodpecker in Barber of Seville (1944). Though Walter Lantz’s cartoon studio is not as highly regarded by many classic cartoon fans as Disney or Warner Brothers, when the studio was at its best it showed that it could truly hold its own. The best Lantz cartoons are true classics and this is one of the best. This cartoon is directed by the wonderful Shamus Culhane, who delivers a masterpiece of comedic timing here. This movie appears as #43 in Jerry Beck’s book, The 50 Greatest Cartoons and is the only Walter Lantz film in that book. 

The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976) is one of the wild and craziest feature films of the Pink Panther franchise. To suddenly go this over the top would be a jumping the shark moment for most franchises but this movie is too darn funny to be anything but wonderful. The animated opening credits sequence is also wonderful. It is especially a delight to movie buffs parodying many classic films that movie fans will instantly recognize. This sequence (like in the previous feature film) was made by Richard Williams studio (instead of DePatie-Freleng) and follows the format set by the last feature where an animated Inspector Cl chases the Pink Panther.

Moby Duck (1965) is one of the many cartoons pairing Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales in the 1960’s. The idea of a mouse tormenting a major character by having a can opener while that character only has food in cans was done before in Canned Feud (1951) with Sylvester and ab unnamed mouse. The idea of Daffy and Speedy being stranded on a deserted island together would later be done in the feature length, Daffy Duck’s Movie: Fantastic Island (1983). 

Now it is time for a silent movie with The Artist’s Dream (1913). This short film was the first cartoon John Randolph Bray (who would soon head one of the biggest animation studios of the silent era (it would be named after him)) made. In an interview with Harvey Deneroff, Bray talked about his first thoughts after being introduced to animation stating, "I thought there was something new and original that would go over big." Though he would also say, "I thought there was good money in it." When Bray showed this showed this movie to distributor Charles Pathe, Pathe was quite impressed and asked Bray to make more cartoons. 

Time for a commercial break. 

Now we take a trip to Mexico with our good friend Popeye the Sailor in Blow Me Down (1933). 

Now for the delightful Silly Symphonies cartoon, The Cat’s Nightmare (1931). You may notice the video below titles the cartoon, The Cat's Out. J.B. Kaufman and Russell Merritt's excellent book on the Silly Symphonies explains this, "Modern sources have sometimes identified this film as The Cat's Out. This was the working title and survives today in an original vault print. However the finished film was copyrighted and released as The Cat's Nightmare." Interestingly this movie played on The Mickey Mouse Club under both names (The Cat's Out on January 23, 1956 and The Cat's Nightmare on February 27, 1956). Whatever the name this is a darn good cartoon. It contains all of the atmosphere that enhances so many of the early Symphonies (especially the ones with a spooky theme). It may not quite be The Skelton Dance (1929), but it is a good film in its own right. Speaking of The Skelton Dance the animation of a rooster crowing (by Wilfred Jackson) is reused from that more famous Symphony. A review in The Film Daily states, "Right up to the high standard of this popular animated cartoon series." The following is a review from the Motion Picture Herald, "A clever piece of cartoon work, typical Silly Symphony number. The theme is as the titles suggests, and the animators have taken full advantage of its laugh making possibilities." However a review in Motion Picture Reviews warns us, "A Halloween spooky atmosphere is so well done that it might frighten a sensitive child."

Up next comes a really fun Aesop's Sound Fables cartoon, Fairyland Follies (1931). This movie gives a wonderful example of what cartoon studios that weren’t Disney or the Fleischer Brothers were doing in the early 1930’s. 

Today’s cartoon selection ends with Misterjaw in The CodFather (1976). Created for TV's The Pink Panther's Laugh and a Half Hour and a Half Show (isn't that a mouthful to say) in 1976, Misterjaw was an affectionate parody of much more deadly shark in Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975). For this series he appeared in 34 made for TV cartoons, all made in 1976. His voice was provided by comedian Arte Johnson, best known to TV fans for his work on Laugh-In. His sidekick, Catfish is voiced by Arnold Stang, best remembered by cartoon fans as the voice of Hanna-Barbera's Top Cat. 

Resources Used

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

Pink Panther: The Ultimate Guide to the Coolest Cat in Town by Jerry Beck

The 50 Greatest Cartoons edited by Jerry Beck

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman 

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #178

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with Sylvester and Speedy Gonzales in The Road to Andalay (1964). This movie marks the second Warner Brothers cartoon short produced by the DePatie-Freleng studio after the old Warner Brothers cartoon studio shut down. The first of these films, Pancho's Hideaway (1964) had also starred Speedy Gonzales, who would become one of the most prolific Looney Tunes characters of this era. Here he faces against his old adversary Sylvester, but with his very next cartoon he would meet a new antagonist, Daffy Duck. After this movie Speedy and Sylvester would not work together in many more theatrical cartoons. The next year's The Wild Chase (1965) would be the last theatrical short film in which these two would work against each other. After that Speedy would spend the rest of his time in short films working against Daffy. 

Now to turn to a much earlier Warner Brothers cartoon, Bosko's Fox Hunt (1931). Before Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck or even Porky Pig, Bosko had been the first major star of the Looney Tunes. The director of this movie was Hugh Harman, who had earlier been an animator on Walt Disney's Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoons. One of these Oswald cartoons was The Fox Chase (1928) and this film reuses a few gags from that movie. Both cartoons also have Rollin "Ham" Hamilton as one of the animators. This movie features a storyline that would become a staple of Looney Tunes and that is a hunter being outwitted by his prey. 

Up next is Dudley Do Right in Snidely's Vic Whiplash Gym.

Next comes a very early Silly Symphony. El Terrible Toreador (1929). In fact it is the second one. Unlike the first Symphony which was almost entirely animated by Ub Iwerks, this film has a bigger variety of animators. Ub did still animate on this film and not shockingly his portion (the bullfight) of the cartoon is a highlight. The other animators on this film would go on to become very important to Disney history. Burt Gillett (Don Jose and Carmen meeting) would later direct the most popular Silly Symphony, The Three Little Pigs (1933). Wilfred Jackson (Carmen dancing) would later direct some of the best Silly Symphonies and would be a co-director on such Disney features as Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953) and Lady and the Tramp (1955). Les Clark (close-ups of Don Jose) would become one of Walt's Nine Old Men as well as one of the most important Mickey Mouse animators. Jack King (Escamillo challenges Don Jose) would become one of the best Donald Duck directors. Ben Sharpsteen (introduction to the bullfight) would later be the supervising director for such Disney features as Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940) and Dumbo (1941). Though Walt Disney directed this film himself, Ub did supervise much of the animation. This cartoon is an early example of human characters in Disney animation. As such the human animation looks crude compared to later examples. On the other hand the animation of the funny animal bull (something that greater resembled what Walt and his animators had done in the earlier Mickey Mouse and Oswald cartoons) is much more sophisticated. At this point in Disney history very gruesome gross out gags were still part of the cartoons, and this cartoon ends with a very gruesome gag.

Now for a commercial break. 

Though many people associate Popeye cartoons with simply following the same formula again and again, there are quite a good number of these shorts that don't follow the formula in the slightest. A good example is Shuteye Popeye (1952).

Now we join our good friend Scrappy in Scrappy's Art Gallery (1933). The following is an exhibitors review from The Motion Picture Herald, "SCRAPPY'S ART GALLERY: Scrappy Cartoons— Don't miss playing this Scrappy. - Harland Rankin, Plaza Theatre, Tilbury, Ontario, Canada. General patronage." Despite being forgotten by many today, Scrappy was a heavy merchandised character back in the 1930's. The following is from a 1936 issue of The Film Daily, "Zell Products Corp., New York, has launched a 'thrift plan' drive to promote the sales of its Scrappy Banks, which are decorated with the likeness of Scrappy, the popular animated cartoon character. Every purchaser of this fast-selling savings toy becomes entitled to a membership in the new 'Scrappy Thrift Club' upon signing a pledge to save regularly. All purchasers receive this card in addition a four-color identification number. The thrift plan is finding favor by its appeal to parents, with its saving incentive, and its corresponding reaction on children. This promotion has already shown strong effects on the toy banks' sales. Scrappy banks are manufactured under a license granted by Columbia Pictures Corp., producers of Scrappy animated cartoon films. An extensive advertising campaign, including window and counter displays, will back the 'Scrappy Thrift Club' plan."     

We close with with a true Mickey Mouse classic, Thru the Mirror (1936). Well before the Disney Studios feature length adaption of Alice in Wonderland (1951), this short film adapts Lewis Carrol's  Alice Through the Looking Glass. It is a very loose adaption, but it captures the spirit better than most feature length versions of Carrol's Alice books do. I have always loved Disney cartoons that or not afraid to be silly. This is one of the perfect examples of that. One of the highlights is a sequence with Mickey do a Fred Astaire type dance which was animated by Dick Lundy, who specialized in dancing animation. Dick Lundy would later direct some great cartoons for Walter Lantz and MGM. Elements of this movie would play a major role in the video game Epic Mickey.

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

Resources Used

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman 

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

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

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

 

  

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #174

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with a classic Donald Duck film, Donald's Crime (1945). This cartoon marks a milestone in an important Disney character. In previous shorts Daisy Duck had been voiced by Clarence Nash (also the voice of Donald) and had a very similar voice to that of the ill-tempered but lovable duck. Here for the first time though, she has a more normal sounding voice that stands in contrast to Donald's. In this film that voice is provided by Gloria Blondell, who was the younger sister of actress Joan Blondell. The following is an exhibitor's review from the Motion Picture Herald, "Donald's Crime: Walt Disney Cartoons - One of Disney's best. Our house was in an uproar of laughter from start to finish. By all means play it. - A.R. Dakin, Rice Lake Theatre, Bissett, Manitoba, Can."

Screenland, 1945

Now to go from one famous cartoon Duck to another, up next Daffy Duck is pit against Speedy Gonzales in Quacker Tracker (1967). Though Daffy and Speedy may seem like an odd combination but in the mid to late 1960's the two were teamed up against each other in 26 short films. 

Up next is our good friend Farmer Al Falfa in The 19th Hole Club (1936). The following is a review from The Philadelphia Exhibitor, "The 19th Hole Club - 20th Century-Fox - Educational - Terry Toon. 6min. Typical Terrytoon with the farmer playing golf; general result filler. If more attention were paid to quality than quantity in this series the results would probably be better. So-So." 

Motion Picture Daily, 1936

Next comes a delightful Little Lulu cartoon, Chick and Double Chick (1946). 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Now for an early Disney Silly Symphony, The China Plate (1931). This short film was directed by Wilfred Jackson, who would later co-direct such Disney features as Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953) and Lady and the Tramp (1955). Even at this stage, Disney cartoons had all star casts of animators and this short is no exception. Joe D'Igalo, who would work not only for Disney but also for Warner Brothers, MGM and Fleischer Studios (where he would work on both of their feature films (Gulliver's Travels (1939), Mr. Bug Goes to Town (1941)), animates the teacup and teapot as well as the cherries being delivered to the mandarin. Johnny Cannon animated the mandarin eating and sleeping, the geishas dancing, the boy fishing and dragon swallowing the rock. Jack Cutting does much less here only animating the orchestra. Frenchy de Tremaudan (who animated on many of the best Disney shorts of the 1930's animates the first scene with the girl, the dragon eating the mandarin, capturing the girl and fighting with the boy. Rudy Zamora, who would have a long career in animation and would direct episodes of the Hanna-Barbera TV cartoons of the 1980's, animates the scene with the boy and the girl with the butterfly. Future Woody Woodpecker and Barney Bear director Dick Lundy would animate the fight between the mandarin and the boy. Ben Sharpsteen, who would later be the supervising director for such Disney features as Pinocchio (1940), Fantasia (1940) and Dumbo (1941), animates the couple being chased by both the mandarin and the dragon. David Hand, who would later be the supervising director for such Disney features as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Bambi (1942), animates the scene involving the couple and the mandarin at the bridge. Future Donald Duck director (who directed the Donald cartoon earlier in this post) animates the couple dislodging the rock and in the boat. Walt Disney himself provides the laugh for the boy. Six years after this picture the Disney story department proposed a Japanese themed Silly Symphony that would be similar to this short, but that film was never made. 

Next we join Dudley Do-Right in the hilarious Railroad Tracks. This cartoon features the villainous Sidney Whiplash who was voiced by Hans Conried (my fellow Disney fans will know him as the voice of Captain Hook in Peter Pan (1953)). Conried loved the role once stating, "I never thought of Snidely as a characterization - I thought the role was designed for me." Chris Hayward (who co-wrote these cartoons with Lloyd Turner) later remembered when he and Turner were assigned the cartoons. Jay Ward (head of the studio) told them "'It's about a stupid Mountie.' So we said, 'Anything else we need to know?' and Jay said, 'No ... Just have fun!'" If these cartoons are any indication they had a lot of fun. 

Today's cartoon selection ends with a silent Felix the Cat classic, Felix Dines and Pines (1927). 

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

https://www.imdb.com/

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

https://factsandfigment.com/2020/02/07/donalds-crime-1945/?msclkid=d126407ccdca11ec8e154b37acf23826

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman 

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

  

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #165

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with a later Speedy Gonzales film, Cats and Bruises (1965). During the mid to late 1960's there were many Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies being made that pitted Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales against each other in fact at this time they hardly made a cartoon apart from each other. This movie is an exception to that rule as it pits Speedy Gonzales against his old foe, Sylvester the Cat. 

Up next is an early Terrytoons cartoon, Hungarian Goulash (1930). This short film follows the pattern of most other Terrytoons at this time by having its name be a type of food. While this movie may seem primitive compared to what Disney, Fleischer or Warner Brothers were doing at this time, it is quite entertaining in its own weird way. Two of the artists who worked on this film though would later do great work for the Disney studio. These were effects artist Cy Young and animator Art Babbitt. The following is a quote from an issues of The Film Daily (dated June 11, 1930), "'Swiss Cheese,' 'Codfish Balls,' 'Hungarian Goulash.' Just the titles of three of the Terrytoons to be released by Educational this month. Evidently they are running out of sexy titles." 

Up next is a classic Mickey Mouse short film, The Steeple Chase (1933). This movie was originally planned as a musical, but there are no songs in the finished film. The horse Thunderbolt would inspire the Mickey Mouse comic strip character Tanglefoot. The following are a couple of exhibitor's reviews from The Motion Picture Herald. "STEEPLE CHASE: Mickey Mouse— Another good cartoon from Mickey. You'll like it. - J.A. Verchot, Opera House, Abbeville, S.C. Small Town Patronage." "STEEPLE CHASE: Mickey Mouse— Let me repeat, the biggest thing in this cartoon is the rental. Running time, 10 minutes.  - A.H. Edwards, Orpheum Theatre, Orwinsburg, Pa. Small Town and Rural Patronage." 

Up next we join The Pink Panther in Keep Our Forests Pink (1975).

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Next up is the first appearance of Betty Boop's dog, Pudgy, Betty Boop's Little Pal (1934). Though Dave Fleischer is credited as the director of this cartoon, it is widely accepted in animation circles that the first credited animator of the Fleischer cartoons did much of the directing. Not surprisingly the first credited animator here is Myron Waldman. Myron Waldman excelled at cute cartoons and this is about as cute as a Betty cartoon can get. The following are some exhibitor reviews from The Motion Picture Herald. "BETTY BOOP'S LITTLE PAL: Betty Boop Cartoons — This is another good cartoon from Betty. We liked it here. Running time, one reel—J. A. Verchot, Opera House, Abbeville, S. C. Small town patronage." "BETTY BOOP'S LITTLE PAL: Betty Boop Cartoon—Fair cartoon. Betty has made much better ones. —John H. Forrester, The Fines Theatre, Waldron, Ark." 

The Old Mill (1937) is far from your typical Silly Symphony cartoon. This short film has no storyline to speak of nor has it any gags. This is instead a mood film, that is much more concerned with creating a sense of atmosphere than telling a story. As such it stands as one of the most powerful and unique short films Disney ever made. The basic idea for this movie had been on the minds of the Disney filmmakers for quite a while. In 1931 an idea for a film called The Old Mill Stream had been proposed. This story was elaborated further in 1934, though at that time the story was planned to be more comedic. This film introduced Disney's famed multiplane camera. This camera would create a three-dimensional effect by moving various pieces of artwork past each other at varying speeds. This would of course play a major role in Disney's later feature length animated films. To help the animators and layout artists Ferdinand Horvath would create a large model of the mill. This cartoon won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film and the studio received a special Oscar for the multiplane camera. More recently it received the 14th spot in Jerry Beck's book, The 50 Greatest Cartoons. It is interesting to note that such an unusual movie was the first Disney film that was distributed by RKO. 

The Film Daily, 1937

Now to end with a song. 

Resources Used

The 50 Greatest Cartoons edited by Jerry Beck

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merritt and J.B. Kaufman 

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

https://mediahistoryproject.org/

  

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #155

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with Sylvester the cat in Hippety Hopper (1949). This is the second cartoon to feature Hippety Hopper (the kangaroo) and the first one to give him a name. Sylvester and Hippety worked together in a total of 13 classic short films and all of them would follow the same premise of Sylvester mistaking Hippety for a giant mouse. 

 Now let's join Cubby Bear and take a World Flight (1933). If this film feels more like one of the early Looney Tunes with Bosko than most Cubby Bear cartoons that is due to the fact that the film is directed by Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising who made those cartoons. It must be remembered that this movie was made in 1933 well before the horrors that Adolf Hitler would inflict on this world would be fully known to the filmmakers. Seeing Hitler cheer on Cubby is still more than a little uncomfortable today. A review in The Film Daily stated, "Nothing new or particularly clever about this one." The following is a review from The Motion Picture Herald, "When Cubby Bear, the Aesop's Fables animated hero, attempts his world flight, and the plane indulges in those antics that only an animated cartoon artist can conduct, the result is a lightly amusing cartoon, especially enjoyable for the youngsters. Incorporated are caricatures of the Four Marx Brothers, Chevalier and others, cleverly done but no longer new." Notice how the newsboy at the beginning looks more than a little like Bosko. Phileas Fogg would be amazed at just how quickly Cubby can make it around the world.

Next comes a Columbia Color Rhapsody cartoon directed by Howard Swift, Pickled Puss (1948). The basic premise of this cartoon is very similar to that of the Tom and Jerry short, Part Time Pal (1947). This movie is one of the last cartoons from this studio as the studio close in 1949 and Columbia would begin instead distributing UPA's cartoons. 

Next comes The Pink Panther in Pink Tuba-Dore (1971). 

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

The Skelton Dance (1929) was the first of Disney's Silly Symphonies and one of the best. The idea for the series came from musical director Carl Stalling (who would later work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies). The Silly Symphonies were designed to revolve around music. Walt Disney loved the idea and felt that a second series would allow him to experiment more and not be tied down by the formula of a Mickey Mouse cartoon. The idea for the first film also is believed to have come from Stalling. Stalling would tell historian Michael Barrier about the genesis of the movie stating, "He thought I meant illustrated songs, but I didn’t have that in mind at all. The Skeleton Dance goes way back to my kid days. When I was eight or ten years old, I saw an ad in The American Boy magazine of a dancing skeleton, and I got my dad to give me a quarter so I could send for it. It turned out to be a pasteboard cut-out of a loose-jointed skeleton, slung over a six-foot cord under the arm pits. It would ‘dance’ when kids pulled and jerked at each end of the string. Ever since I was a kid, I had wanted to see real skeletons dancing and had always enjoyed seeing skeleton dancing acts in vaudeville.” Though Carl Stalling would use an excerpt from Edvard Grieg’s March of the Dwarfs, most of the music was an original by Stalling. The animation for the movie was completed in six weeks. The majority of the animation was done by Ub Iwerks, the Disney studio's main animator at the time. He animated some of the earliest Mickey films entirety by himself. On this film he was assisted by Wilfred Jackson and Les Clark. It is not known for sure what Les Clark animated as some sources state he animated the opening scene and others (including his own) state he animated one skeleton playing another's ribs as a xylophone. Wilfred Jackson most likely animated the scene where the rooster crowing (which was reused in The Cat's Nightmare (1931)). When Walt tried to sell this film, it did not go as smoothly as he excepted. Walt's daughter, Diane Disney Miller, would later speak about this, “Father wasn’t easily discouraged. He took The Skeleton Dance to a friend who ran the United Artists Theater in Los Angeles and asked him to look at it. ‘We’re looking at some other things this morning,’ the man said, ‘and I’ll have my assistant look at it. You go with him’. Father sat beside the assistant while the film was run. It was just before the first morning show; a few customers had drifted in and it was obvious they liked The Skeleton Dance but the assistant didn’t listen to them. ‘Can’t recommend it,’ he said. ‘Too gruesome’. Father got a hold of another friend and asked him if he could put him in touch with Fred Miller who managed the Carthay Circle, one of the biggest and most important theaters in town. Father’s friend sent him to a salesman on Film Row. ‘Maybe he can get him to look at your skeleton film’. Father found the salesman in a pool hall shooting a little Kelly (a game played on a standard pool table with sixteen pool balls where each player draws one of fifteen numbered markers called peas or pills at random from a shake bottle which assigns to them the correspondingly numbered pool ball, kept secret from their opponents, but which they must pocket in order to win the game). ‘Leave your picture here, Disney,’ the Kelly player said. ‘I’ll look at it. If I like it, I’ll get in touch with you’. It sounded like a stall but he actually did look at the film. When he looked he said, ‘I think Fred will like this. I’ll take it over to him myself’. As a result, Miller showed The Skeleton Dance with a feature picture he was running. It went over big. Father clipped the local press notices and mailed them to Powers with a note: ‘If you can get this to Roxy (the nickname of Broadway showman Samuel L. Rothafel who ran New York’s prestigious Roxy Theater), he’ll go for it the way Miller did. Powers got a print to Roxy and Roxy liked it. He ran it in his huge New York theater.” This movie premiered at the Carthay Circle on June 10, 1929 alongside F.W. Murnau's feature film, 4 Devils (1929). The Carthay Circle is where later Disney features like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and Fantasia (1940) would make their Hollywood premiers. 

 

Next comes Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales in Mexican Mousepiece (1966). At this time Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales were being pitted against in each other in quite a few short films. Unlike say Speedy and Sylvester this was not a natural combination and often times the beginning of these cartoons would spend time explaining why Daffy was chasing Speedy instead of cutting right to the chase. Though these films are not always the most popular among cartoon fans, I have always found a soft spot for them. The backgrounds and some of the gags in this movie remind me of a Coyote and Roadrunner cartoon. This cartoon was directed by Robert McKimson, who directed Speedy's film debut, Cat Tails For Two (1953). 

Let us close by singing one we all know. 

Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another selection of classic cartoons. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry. 

Resources Used

https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/the-spooky-story-of-the-skeleton-dance/

The Animated Man: A Life of Walt Disney by Michael Barrier

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

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion Guide to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merritt and J. B. Kaufman. 

Some Cartoons For Saturday Morning #150

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

Today's cartoon selection begins with The Pink Panther in The Pink Quarterback (1968). Like many of the best Pink Panther cartoons, this film is based around an extremely simple storyline that the filmmakers get as many slapstick gags as they can from. The highlight of this movie is the ending, which is just a perfect gag. 

With Thanksgiving over, for many people, myself included, that means it is officially Christmas season. Because of this these posts will start to include Christmas cartoons. There will be a few Christmas cartoons in each Saturday Morning Cartoons post until Christmas day, which will be nothing but Christmas cartoons. First up is one of my favorite Christmas cartoons, The Little King in Christmas Night (1933). 

Home Movies, 1943


Next comes the last cartoon featuring our old friend Scrappy, The Little Theater (1941). 

Next comes one of the greatest Christmas cartoons of all time, Santa's Workshop (1932). This movie marks the fourth Silly Symphony in color and as is true of many of Disney's early color films, the filmmakers never took color for granted. I would dare to say that few filmmakers have ever used color as effectively as the Disney studio did at this time. All these decades later and this cartoon still looks incredible. Many of you may know that Walt Disney himself voiced Mickey in many cartoons. In this movie we get to hear him voice another character in a similar falsetto voice, this is one of Santa's elves and I am sure many of you will quickly recognize the voice. The other elves were voiced by J. Delos Jewkes and Pinto Colvig (the voice of Goofy). Walter Geiger voiced Santa. A working title for this film was Santa's Toy Shop. It premiered at the Roxy in New York on December 16, 1932 playing alongside the feature film, Man Against Woman. It played with this movie from the 16th to the 23rd. It would continue to play at the theatre from the 24th to January 1st, 1933 this time playing alongside the feature. Rare for a short cartoon at this time, Santa's Workshop was revived in big name movie theatres in 1933. This film went through production relatively fast beginning in September 1932 and hitting movie theatres by December of the same year. This cartoon would later receive a sequel, The Night Before Christmas (1933). In 1936 an idea for another Silly Symphony cartoon centering around Santa and his helpers at the north pole was proposed. In this cartoon a little boy would have been shrunk to the size of a toy and given a chance to see Santa's workshop. One title for this would have been The North Pole. This idea never came to be. The following is an Exhibitors Review from the Motion Picture Herald. "Santa's Workshop: This is the greatest one-reeler we have ever had the pleasure of screening in our theatre and did the kids flock in! It is filmed in glorious color and there is only one word that can describe it - beautiful. Just as the name suggests, it shows Santa's workshop where all of the toys are made and just the type of short for this season. We played this three days and many patrons young and old, saw it two or three times. Many thanks to Walt Disney and United Artists for this great short. Running time, eight minutes - J.J. Medford, Orpheum Theatre, Oxford, N.C. General Patronage." The following are some Exhibitors Reviews from the Motion Picture Herald. "Santa's Workshop: Silly Symphony - An excellent all color short you will do well to book. They just rave over it. Running time, seven minutes - Wm. A. Crute, Victoria Theatre, Vancouver, B.C. Neighborhood Patronage." "Santa's Workshop: Silly Symphony - Excellent and drew considerable business. - B.R. Johnson, Orpheum Theatre, Kerrobert, Canada, Rural Patronage." "Santa's Workshop: Silly Symphonies - These cartoons are good but an exhibitor can feed his public up on them by booking too many. Once a week is plenty. Running time, eight minutes. - Edmund M. Burke, Fort Plain Theatre, Fort Plain, N.Y. General Patronage."

Now it is time for a commercial break. 

Next comes Betty Boop in Judge for a Day (1935). This movie has everything I love about Betty Boop cartoons from the 1930's as it is equal parts cute and sadistic. The following is an exhibitor's review from The Motion Picture Herald, "Judge For A Day: Betty Boop Cartoons - Just a fair one reeler, not much to laugh at. Running time one reel. -Rudolf Duba, Royal Theatre, Kimball, S.D. Small Town Patronage." 

Variety, 1958

Next comes Speedy Gonzales and Daffy Duck in Well Worn Daffy (1965). Around the mid to late 1960's, many Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies were being made that pitted Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales against each other (two characters who had not worked together previously). This not being a natural teaming (like say a cat and a mouse), each film had to find a different reason to pit them against each other. To do this Daffy Duck often had to take a new role. While he had already changed from the wild and crazy duck of his earliest cartoons to a greedier self-centered duck, these films often made him an all-out villain. In this movie, Daffy is especially villainous even denying the little mice a drop of water. 

Let us wrap up by singing one we all know. 

Resources Used

Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies: A Companion to the Classic Cartoon Series by Russell Merrit and J.B. Kaufman