Category: Cartoons from the 50’s

The 1950’s contain some of the most revered shorts Warner Bros. ever produced! Many of which now are considered some of animation’s greatest triumphs.

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Roman Legion-Hare

“I gotta find a victim to feed to the lions.”

Directed by Friz Freleng

In ancient Rome, (54 A.D. to be exact,) everyone is eagerly headed to the coliseum to watch people be devoured by lions. (Aren’t humans just wonderful?) Emperor Nero is angry to discover there are no more victims. He tells his captain of the guard (Sam) to get one or be one. Same calls his troops and they go hunting. Enter Bugs, who thinks their march is a parade. When he tells Sam that he’s the only one around, Sam orders his men to catch him.

Bugs easily trips the troops and they are never seen again. Sam chases Bugs in a chariot and passes him. (And flies out when the horse stops.) Grabbing a club, he chases Bugs into the lion holding area, luckily on the opposite of the bars. Sam is annoyed by a roaring lion, and clubs him to shut up. Bugs opens the gate between the two and Sam is pummeled. Chasing Bugs into another room, they find it’s the lions den. (So, why was that other one all alone?) They tiptoe through, but Bugs lowers an alarm clock while Sam is still down there. He’s mauled.

Sam finds Bugs on the other side of a lion pit and goes after him with stilts to be safe. Bugs hands the lions tools to dismantle the stilts. Sam is beaten and we actually see him lose his mask. Bugs tries to escape, but leaves through the door to the arena. Sam gleefully shows the victim and the lions are released. Bugs is terrified, but he shouldn’t be. The lions go straight for the people who forced them to live in tiny, unsanitary, cages. Sam and Nero climb atop a pillar, but the lions chop it down piece by piece. As they lower towards their doom, Nero plays taps on a violin. Desperately hoping that music can soothe several savage beasts.

Personal Rating: 3

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Gonzales’ Tamales

“All the pretty girls in love with Speedy Gonzales. What’s left are chihuahuas.”

Directed by Friz Freleng

In Mexico, two mice named Pedro and Manuel are chatting. They’d like to go out and have fun with the ladies but they only have eyes for Speedy. Even the few who are willing to give the men a chance are seduced by Speedy. (Which I have to say is a dick move. Can’t he let the others have some fun? Some of us can’t afford to lose anymore self esteem.) So yeah, Speedy’s the villain in this short.

They hold a meeting to discuss what to do, and eventually decide that they will get the “greengo poosycat” to chase Speedy out of town. (Or just keep him busy.) They send a phony threat to Sylvester that proclaims Speedy will tear his tail out. Livid, Sylvester goes and dares him to do it. Speedy easily accomplishes the task, and Sylvester declares war. He ties to lure him with cheese. (Speedy is well aware of the lure.) Using his speed, Speedy easily gets the (surprisingly shrunk) cheese. Sylvester tries a gun, and Speedy dismantles it piece by piece, leaving a bullet in midair. Shocked, Sylvester pulls the “trigger” and it blows up in his face.

After losing a game of “Hot Potato: Grenade Edition!”, he sends in a wind-up female mouse. Speedy apparently buys it, as when Sylvester comes out chasing, Speedy takes “her” with him. He hides behind a box of chili peppers and tells Sylvester he’s hiding in one of them. Sylvester (rather moronically) buys this story and begins to eat. They are extremely spicy but he’s able to chug some water to keep cool. (Hey, in 1957, they probably didn’t know water does nothing to help.) The second time he tries it, he finds that Speedy switched the water with tobacco sauce. Sylvester launches into the air and we see P. and M. again. (I guess they’re done with the girls. Or they never tried. Maybe they never went to the meeting?) They don’t seem too surprised to see the “gringo poosycat” flying by.

Personal Rating: 3

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No Barking

“Rr-Ar-ar-arar-ar-ar-ar!”

Directed by Charles M. Jones

It’s sunrise at a beautiful landscape. (Or it’s a dump. Good trickery.) Claude Cat wakes up and whistles with a bluebird. Then he eats it. (If that’s too dark for you, two more birds drop a brick on him and eject their friend.) With that breakfast ruined, Claude sets his sights on a bone that a puppy has just buried. This is Frisky. I’m not giving him his own post, because he doesn’t fit my five appearance rule. Basically he’s a puppy, he’s frisky, and he sorta looks like Charlie, just with a shorter more dog like body, and longer ears.

As soon as Claude goes for the goods Frisky barks and sends the cat jumping out of fright. He gets tortured like this all through the picture. (At one point he does the run leaving things floating in midair gag. Just like Jones had done with Witch Hazel and the bull. Theirs being bobby pins and hooves,m Claude’s is paw prints.) Claude chases Frisky into a pipe but the dog’s bark has him jump and land out of the sewer. (The manhole lands on him.) After some typical puppy activities, (barking at a mirror, scratching, tugging on a rope) Frisky barks again and scares Claude into jumping in some lumber. Claude gives up trying to get even, and goes back to his hunting.

He hunts a bird which turns out to be Tweety. (A Freleng character in a Jones short? Freleng did something similar with a Jones character in “Dog Pounded”.) Frisky barks again and now Claude’s had enough. He stuffs a sock to make a decoy tail and Frisky goes for the bait. Claude grabs him, ties him up and gags him. Walking off he gets barked at by a bulldog, (I’ll just assume it’s Marc Antony) and jumps up onto a plane. Tweety watches as it flies off into the sunset.

Personal Rating: 3

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Birds Anonymous

“If you really want to beat this, look us up. We can help you.”

Directed by Friz Freleng

It’s another Oscar Winner! It’s the third time Sylvester’s been in one of those! This was Blanc’s favorite short he did voices for! (And if my research is correct, it was originally supposed to be called “Tweety-Totaler”. A more clever title, but a bit harder to take seriously.)

Inside a house, Sylvester carefully closes all the window blinds so there are no witnesses for what’s about to happen. He grabs Tweety quite easily. (Granny’s not in this short. Neither are any guard dogs.) He doesn’t eat him, as another cat (who would later be named Clarence) warns of the perils. Apparently, Birds are a cats alcohol and they have a group that can help break the habit. Sylvester attends a meeting and vows to do the same.

He returns home and cheerfully greets Tweety with a friendly pat on the head. (“Deaw Diawy, I know you won’t bewieve this but…”) Sylvester turns on the television. Surprise! It’s a cooking show describing how to make delicious poultry. (It never specifies WHAT bird it is. It could be a hoatzin.) Sylvester fights his urges and tries the radio. Of course, it’s only playing alliterative avian albums. (“Bye Bye Blackbird”, “Red Red Robin”, No, Hungry Hungry Heorn, unfortunately.)

He handcuffs himself to a radiator, (why were those cuffs in the kitchen?) but manages to break free after Tweety asks if he likes him anymore. Clarence arrives to shoot a plunger in his face. (“I was afraid you might be weakening.”) At night, Sylvester can’t sleep and runs to Tweety, planning to quit after just one more. Clarence pours alum into his mouth, thus making it impossible for him to shove Tweety in.. He breaks down, and Clarence tells him that it’s really easy to get along with your prey. He kisses Tweety and manages to get a taste of him as well. Clarence is now trying to eat the canary while Sylvester tries to stop him.

Personal Rating: 5 (For Mel’s godly voice acting.)

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Steal Wool

“Mornin’ Ralph.”

Directed by Chuck Jones

Good morning! Sam Sheepdog has just woken up and is on his way to work. On the way, he greets his good pal, Ralph Wolf. (Named after one of the story boarders at the time.) They walk together and wish each other luck and take up their positions. Sam begins to guard, Ralph prepares to steal (wool). He crawls under a sheep and carries it away, only to run into Sam, who pounds him. Digging underground, Ralph tries a lasso and unknowingly catches Sam.

He builds a TNT bridge and taunts Sam. Sam crosses and Ralph goes back the other way, lighting the fuse. Sam is already at the other end and demands the sheep Ralph has. Ralph gives and goes back to put out the fuse, unaware that Sam lit his end too. Ralph tries a seesaw to fling Sam away, but the dog is too heavy and Ralph flies into his arms. Sam flings Ralph.

Finally, Ralph gets a giant rubber band, attaches it to two boulders, and pulls back, aiming at Sam. Instead, the boulders come loose and fly after Ralph, who runs between a narrow cliff. The rocks catch on the sides and the band threatens to launch Ralph away. Ralph grabs onto a tree and the rocks finally squeeze through the opening, and Ralph ends up against another cliff, with all the debris smashing into him. Later, as the two pals walk home, (Ralph with a sling and black eye) Sam tells him to take the next day off. He’s been working too hard and Sam can handle both jobs. Ralph thanks his friend and stumbles home.

Personal Rating: 4

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Rocket Squad

“A cop’s life isn’t all b-beer and skittles, you know.”

Directed by Chuck Jones

Our hero’s of this picture are two cops. Joe Monday (Daffy) and Schmoe Tuesday (Porky). Yes, they are smoking cigarettes. It’s stupid how everyone is so scared that they can’t ever show a cigarette in a cartoon. I think non-smokers will know better than to take it up, and kids are smarter than we give them credit for. (Knowledge wise, when it comes to entertainment kids are morons.)

Back on topic. The two are called by their chief to solve a case. They arrive at a building (heavily influenced by “Duck Dodgers in the Twenty fourth and a half Century“) and learn that the Flying Saucer Bandit is on the loose. They take a convenient evaporator that takes them directly to the scene of the crime. The acme clue collector is there, and gives them all the clues it’s gathered. They feed it to a machine which gives them some sheet music. They play it and this leads them to figure out it was George Machree. (the song playing was “Mother Machree”)

They go to the file of known criminals, (among which is Tedd Pierce, Chuck Jones, Eddie Selzer, and my idol: Mel Blanc) This tells them that their suspect is ordering from a sandwich machine. (I want one) You choose a filling, bread, and condiment. (Why is butter an option? Does it go with any of those fillings?) They arrive one minute too late and begin chasing. They find him using some smog as camouflage, and arrest him. Despite the fact he says he’s innocent. They take him to court and wouldn’t you know it? He WAS innocent. Because of the false arrest, the pair are sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Personal Rating: 3

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Claws for Alarm

“Tell me Sylvester; I-is there in-insanity in your family?”

Directed by Chuck Jones

Porky and pet, (Sylvester) come to a run down ghost town. Most people would call the place “creepy” or “unsettling” but not Porky. He calls it “Peaceful.” He decides they’ll spend the night at an inn. Whilst entering, there are evil eyes watching them. Sylvester is spooked by these and the shadow of a spider. (Porky doesn’t notice the eyes, but he makes me love him even more for saying arachnophobia is silly. I LIKE spiders!) Inside, there appears to be no one awake. Porky just decides to sign in himself. He fails to notice the moose with the noose above him. Sylvester shoves him out of harm’s way. Porky, not having noticed the danger, scolds him.

He leaves to go upstairs unaware that the noose moose has upgraded to a gun moose and takes aim. Sylvester saves him yet again by stealing the gun that fired. Porky assumes Sylvester is still to blame. While trying to sleep Porky doesn’t notice the Wile E. Coyote-esque mouse who tries to kill him. Sylvester does, and keeps saving his owner’s hide, despite the anger the oblivious Porky shoots at him. Sylvester eventually gets ahold of a gun the mice were using and guards Porky all night. Come morning, Porky declares that he feels so rested, they’ll stay at least a week more. Sylvester knocks him out, carries him to the car, and drives off. Not noticing the killer eyes behind the dashboard. (What is those mice’s problem?)

Personal Rating: 3

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Robin Hood Daffy

“Ho! Ha Ha! Guard! Turn! Parry! Dodge! Spin! Ha! Thrust!”

Before we begin, I’m reminding you of the fact that this site’s birthday is this Saturday and it will be 3 years old. Every year I try to make an improvement to my posts. (Such as adding pics. and videos) This time I’ll also start to note who directed the short. Now then…

The credits are attached to arrows that hit their targets with impeccable grace. No wonder. The archer (Daffy) was firing from 2 ft. away. He sings about being Robin Hood before tripping into a pond. A friar (played by Porky) laughs at his misfortune. Daffy aims to silence him with his quarter staff. (Actually, its a buck and a quarter-quarter staff, but he’s not telling him that.) The first time he smacks himself in the bill and the second time, he is bested by Porky who sends him into the drink.

Porky finally gets a grip on himself and asks the “clown” he just met if he knows Robin Hood’s whereabouts. He wishes to join him. Daffy happily tells him his quest is over, but Porky refuses to believe someone this hilarious could be the legend of Sherwood Forest. Daffy claims he will prove his story by robbing a good candidate for the ugliest cartoon character ever, and giving it to some poor undeserving slob. (I love his standards.)

He aims an arrow but only fires himself. In a bit of a legendary gag, he swings from a tree to hit many more trees. Angered he chops them down, and smacks into a boulder. Eventually he launches a huge arrow at the rich pers-… thing, but it sails under him and makes a path to the castle he was headed to. Porky is still not convinced but that’s okay. Daffy has given up trying to prove anything and becomes a friar himself. (I hope Porky isn’t too sad, when he never finds Robin Hood.)

Personal Rating: 4

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An egg Scramble

“Th-Th-There’s nothing embarrassing about a hen laying an egg!”

This short takes place on the same farm Porky had in “Swooner Crooner.” He goes to his hens to gather eggs. (He abandoned the conveyor belts for more natural means) One hen named Prissy, (making her debut here) doesn’t lay eggs out of embarrassment. (If people laid eggs, would that be considered private? And what’s wrong with me asking that?) Porky tells her that it’s an egg, or her head. The other hens laugh as they believe she is too old to accomplish such a feat. This makes Prissy determined and she gets to work.

The others decide to play a trick and put one of their eggs in her nest. Prissy falls for it and happily hands out cigars and shows Porky the fruits of her labor. When Porky asks for the egg, she refuses. Porky takes it anyway and give it to a truck bound for the grocery store. Prissy follows. In the store, she is thrown out for throwing the eggs out of the… bins? That’s not American.  Refrigeration was around!

Anyways, Prissy does find it in the home of a relatively hot blonde. Despite clearly seeing the name on the egg, she attempts to boil it. Prissy keeps turning the stove off until the woman catches her, forcing the hen to flee. Meanwhile, Porky goes to the police to see if they can help find his bird. They’re too busy for that though. They are extremely close to catching this short’s criminal, Pretty Boy Bagel. Prissy find herself in his hideout and alerts him to the cops. He hurls bricks at them. (Prissy believes he’s defending her.)

The cops finally get both of them out with a tear gas bomb. Porky has Prissy back and at home, threatens her for the egg once more. Prissy refuses until the other hens reveal that she never laid the egg. Depressed, Prissy drops the egg and turns around just in time to miss it hatch. Into a mini-her. Awwwwww

Personal Rating: 3

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The Mouse that Jack Built

“I always feel better if I count my cheese before I go out for the evening.”

Our short begins with Jack Benny-mouse practicing his violin. He must be pretty bad as the cat waiting outside his mouse hole is wearing earmuffs. He decides to quit for the time being as he is taking Mary Livingston-mouse out for her birthday. After getting his suit back from Rochester-mouse, he has a bit of time on his paws to go count his cheese. Mary arrives soon afterwards. When asked where she wants to go, she suggests the “mousecumbo”. (Laugh. It’s a pun.) That’s too expensive for our “cheese-p-stake” Benny. (Don’t laugh. That was lower than a pun.)

The cat gets an idea and sends them a flyer advertising “The Kit-Kat Club.” It claims that entertainers are admitted free. That’s enough for Benny so he gets in his Mel Blanc car with Mary, and has Rochester follow the arrows that lead to their destination. Upon arrival, Jack is impressed that it looks just like a cat. It even rolls out the red carpet for them. Somehow the cat even got miniature tables, chairs, and exit signs in its mouth. Mary is disturbed but Benny only “cat-ches” on when the mouth closes. Cut to live action Jack Benny waking up. It was all a dream. He then sees two very familiar mice climbing out of the mouth of his sleeping cat…

Personal Rating: 3. It’s pretty cool that the actual cast of “The Jack Benny” show played their fursonas. (Err, poor choice of words.) However, if you don’t know anything about Mr. Benny (shaaaame) you’ll be confused.