Cartoon a Day: The Three Little Pups

The Three Little Pups
1953
Directed by Tex Avery
Available on: Tex Avery's Droopy - The Complete Theatrical Collection

It's about time we had some Droopy action on this blog. "The Three Little Pups" is Tex Avery's take on the the three little pigs. We have a house of straw, a house of sticks, and a house of bricks, only this time around they're dog houses. And, of course, there is a wolf who also happens to be the city dog catcher.

Droopy is often up against a wolf in his cartoons, but I think this is my favorite version. This is not the hormones raging wolf we see in other Avery shorts. This one is a laid back, slow moving, whistling Dixie fellow. A large part of what makes this wolf so funny is the brilliant voice work by Daws Butler. Butler was the voice of many classic characters, but this may be one of his finest moments. Perhaps why this wolf works so well is because it is the complete opposite of the wolf from earlier Tex Avery shorts.

Being that this is a Tex Avery film you can expect many crazy moments. Being a puppeteer, I am especially fond of the sequence in which a hand puppet cat drags the wolf around the yard. Another great moment is where the wolf accidentally swallows a TV set. When the set shows up in the next sequence, Droopy stares at the camera and says "Now don't ask us how we got the television set back."

And I can't neglect the sequence in which the wolf has to change his pants several times due to a dog attack and a guided missile. It's a great example of Avery being able to stretch a gag for a few extra laughs.

This cartoon was in the regular rotation on the Tom and Jerry TV program that played every afternoon on channel 32 in Chicago when I was a kid. Whenever this one came on, everyone rushed in to see it.

Classic Sesame Street Clips at Hulu

Hulu is a great site to spend time at, if you aren't familiar with it. You can watch all sorts of movies and TV shows for free online. And here's even more reason to visit them...they just added a bunch of classic "Sesame Street" clips. This opens up all sorts of new possibilities for the "What I've Learned from the Muppets" posts I do from time to time, since I can embed the video from Hulu. In the meantime, enjoy Herry Monster and John John counting to 20.

Star Wars ABC's

Over at Flickr, an artist going by the name of Tweetlebop has posted some great Star Wars related art. They are pages of a children's alphabet book using B & C level Star Wars characters to represent the different letters. It's a lot fun, check it out here.

Cartoon a Day: Orphan's Benefit

Orphan's Benefit
1935
Directed by Burt Gillette (uncredited)
Available on: Walt Disney Treasures - Mickey Mouse in Black and White

The Mickey Mouse cartoon so nice they made it twice. This is a look at the 1935 black and white original. Maybe tomorrow I should review the 1941 remake.

I remember my Grandma had a Mickey Mouse record album that had the entire audio track for this film on it. I listened to it over and over again. I can play the soundtrack back in my head if I try hard enough. This is a true classic.

"Orphan's Benefit" is a Mickey short, but the real stars are all his buddies. The gang is putting on a show for a bunch of rather nasty orphans, all of whom look like Mickey. The sequences where Donald Duck tries to read some nursery rhymes are well known for helping to establish some of his character traits. My favorite scene, however, is the performance by the "Barnyard Nightingale," Clara Cluck. It's funny, I'm mean let's face it, what's not to like about a chicken singing. It's also a great sequence from an animation standpoint. Both for Clara's dramatic stage presence and Mickey's skilled work on the piano.

I think "Orphan's Benefit" also serves as a great example of just how beautiful black and white animated films can be. The background shadows cast by the spotlight during the Clara Cluck sequence give the scene great depth. In black and white the contrast is striking.

Disney was always striving to push his films further. He truly worked to explore the art form. "Orphan's Benefit" was another giant step forward for the Disney Studio.

Cartoon a Day: The Mechanical Monsters

The Mechanical Monsters
1941
Directed by Dave Fleischer
Available on: The Complete Superman Cartoons

So far I've been focusing on animated comedies. The great majority of animated shorts are for laughs, but there are some other genres. Among those, the Fleischer Superman series is certainly worth a look. Many consider "The Mechanical Monsters" to be one of the best of this series. It was clearly a great influence on the makers of the live action film "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow."

This short features great achievements in character design, and amazing attention to detail in camera angles and lighting. These elements actually work to create a level of suspense that is pretty rare in animation. The action sequences are also quite complex and violent for their time. The special effects animation is also worth noting. This short alone features flame throwers, machine gun fire, electricity and molten lava all portrayed in beautiful animation that was ahead of it's time.

It's a shame that there weren't more Superman shorts made (only 17 total). For that matter, it's a shame more animated action shorts weren't made. I love the comedies, don't get me wrong, but everybody needs a little excitement in their lives.

The Simpsonzu

The Simpsonzu by ~spacecoyote on deviantART

I'm a big fan of "The Simpsons," so I really enjoyed this piece of art depicting many members of the show's cast in Manga style. It's been up on the web for almost two years, but I just ran across it...D'oh.

The Dangers of Erase Boards in Childen's Church

This was the sign that says what the snack will be outside of one of the pre-school rooms at church last night. When you think about it, the word "Goldfish" by itself would be pretty strange to someone not familiar with North American culture.

Kung-Fu Election

I was never very good at games like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, but there's now a chance for me to improve my video games skills and celebrate our electoral process all at once. Behold...Kung-Fu Election! This fighting game has you battling various candidates. You can play as John McCain, Cindy McCain or Sarah Palin on the right or Barack Obama, Michelle Obama or Joe Biden on the left. They all have certain weapons and special attacks, I especially like Biden's special attace which he blasts from his mouth in the form of feet (he has put his foot in his mouth many times). I actually did quite well as Palin, defeating Michelle, Biden and Hillary Clinton (who's special attack is to have Bill Clinton come and punch you a few times). But I was defeated by Barack.

It's fun to play, but I could do without the Mortal Kombat style arterial spurt. Check it out here:

Kung-Fu Election

Cartoon a Day: Ali Baba Bunny

Ali Baba Bunny
1957
Directed by Chuck Jones
Available on: Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 5

"Ali Baba Bunny" is another great cartoon in the series of Bugs Bunny / Daffy Duck pair-ups directed by Chuck Jones. In this one, Bugs and Daffy end up in an Arabian Nights style cave full of riches rather than Pismo Beach (should've made a left turn at Albuquerque). Daffy is immediately obsessed with the treasure while Bugs could care less. The two must also contend with the dim witted guard, Hassan. There are plenty of laughs, most of which are courtesy of Daffy. In a way, Bugs plays the straight man in this one.

Right off the bat, one of the stand out elements of "Ali Baba Bunny" are the incredible backgrounds by Maurice Noble. I mean, check out the palm trees shown above! The backgrounds are a thrill to look at, but they don't draw your attention away from the humor of the cartoon either.

Of course, some of the classic sort of character expressions you'd expect to see in a late 50's Chuck Jones film are on display here. Over the years Bugs Bunny has come across in many different ways, I think the style of Bugs presented in this film is my favorite. He appears somewhat suave in this and other Jones films. I love how his eyes never seem to open too widely. It's quite a contrast to the way Daffy is portrayed.

The character design of Hassam is also a lot of fun. He's a sort of gelatinous blob on two skinny legs. I also love how his body and his head are all one piece...there's absolutely no neck to speak of.

Even though I've seen this one many times, and know what gags are coming, it continues to make me laugh out loud...the mark of a great animated short.

Cartoon a Day: Bacall to Arms

Bacall to Arms
1946
Directed by Bob Campett (uncredited)
Available on: Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 5

This cartoon is a real treat! The premise is simple, a night out at the movies. Gags come from the newsreel, feature, and the antics of the audience. There are both black and white and color segments, and the character design and animation style varies throughout. It's interesting that the characters in the audience have the look of early generic Warner Brothers characters, but the characters in the movies, and the Avery-esque wolf have a different style altogether.

The newsreel segment features a story about the new technology of radar being used in the home. It ends up being used to detect an approaching mother-in-law, which brings to mind the mother-in-law jokes often used by Tex Avery in his shorts at MGM.

The feature film parodies "To Have and Have Not," so we are treated to some wonderful caricatures of Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart.

There just so happens to be a wolf in the audience who becomes quite...uh...enamored with the lovely Miss Bacall. The expression of his excitement, once again, draws to mind thoughts of Tex Avery. Avery had left Warner Brothers in 1941 and in 1943 brought "Red Hot Riding Hood" to the screen for MGM. It's hard to believe that Riding Hood didn't have an influence on this cartoon, but "Bacall to Arms" is still a fun short.

Cartoon a Day: The Beach Nut

The Beach Nut
1944
Directed by Shamus Culhane (as James Culhane)
Available on: Woody Woodpecker and Friends Classic Cartoon Collection

This Woody Woodpecker short is mildly amusing, but not as laugh out loud funny as a Looney Tunes short. There is some great animation here, but not necessarily the stand-out gags.

Woody is an unusual character. At times he seems to be a clever troublemaker like Bugs Bunny, yet at other times he seems to be completely oblivious to what he's doing. Both versions seem to be present in this cartoon.

Wally Walrus makes his debut in this cartoon and he does make a good nemesis for Woody. Though there's a lot of anger in the character, you actually feel a bit sorry for the guy.

Movie Commercials to be allowed during Oscar Broadcast

I'm not a football fan, I watch the Super Bowl for the commercials. Now, the Academy Awards, that I take a great deal of interest in. But here's the thing, for ages the academy has not allowed any commercials for movies to air during the Oscar telecast. A stupid move in my opinion. All these years where they've been complaining that movie ticket sales keep going down, and on the night where you have the biggest world-wide audience of movie fans all watching the same thing on TV you don't show any movie commercials!?! Well, finally the ban has been lifted, though with some restrictions...such as no ads for prequels or sequels of any movie up for an award. So don't expect to see an ad for "Harold and Kumar Save Christmas" during this year's show.

Check out more about how the academy suddenly grew a brain here.

Note: I made up that movie title but if some Hollywood genius pitches that to a studio, I do expect a check.