“How did you get your face all bwue?”
Directed by I. Freleng; Story by Warren Foster; Animation by Arthur Davis, Gerry Chiniquy and Ted Bonnicksen; Layouts by Hawley Pratt; Backgrounds by Irv Wyner; Music by Milt Franklyn. A Merrie Melody released on August 20, 1955.
Do you like animal abuse? That’s great if you do, because I love animal abuser abuse. You’ll enjoy today’s picture, and I’ll enjoy cutting your toes off. One. By. One.
I’m joking. The cartoon doesn’t go too far in the bad taste department. I’m sure there are some overly sensitive types who won’t find anything here funny. I’m just here to supply a summary and a grade. With new visitors weekly, it’s always good of me review how things work around here.
Suzanne is a little girl who likes to have fun. Hard fun. The kind that makes you a villain in the “Toy Story” franchise. She requests an actual cat because, as she puts it, “Their heads down’t come off!” That means she once tried it. Her mom denies her. If the kid can’t take care of her toys, why should she be trusting with a living, breathing, capable of bleeding, animal? (That and her overalls change color.) Enter Sylvester. He’s on the run from a bulldog and has taken refuge in Suzanne’s yard. She declares him her new pet, and it’s either that or the dog. Sylvester opts for option A.
Now, a good rule of thumb for adopting any animal off the street is to start things off by bathing them. Young as she it, Suzanne doesn’t know that a washing machine is for clothes and clothes alone. Good thing this is a cartoon and therefore already devoid of oxygen. It’s rough, but Sylvester is clean now. Time for some food. The two creep to the kitchen, but Mrs. Suzannesmomerson is on the alert. And immediately guesses that her daughter brought a cat in the house. She really has no reason to suspect this. Unless Sylvester isn’t a first attempt…
Suzanne hides him in the fridge until the heat is off. Okay. That was a cheap shot. She tries to warm him up via electric blanket, but sets it too high. I’ve heard of hot dogs, but not cats. Okay. That was an awful shot. Kitchen is off limits, so Suzanne has got to improvise. Luckily she’s a kid! They have imagination that can make anything edible! What we call ‘mud’, she calls “liver and sardines”. And it’s like the old party question goes: would you rather eat mud or be eaten by a dog? The former isn’t too good on your teeth, or entire digestive tract really unless you’re an earthworm. Long term or short term; which is the right death for you?
Suzanne is fairly cute, but she does have a heavy lidded expression that suggests ample television viewing. But c’mon, it’s ‘Captain Electronic! in outer space’! All the kids are watching it, and it has generational appeal. It’s the 50’s “Bluey”! And it molds impressionable minds. Suzanne has an idea that loses audience sympathy. Before, her actions were adorably naive. Now she’s trying to launch a cat into space with an empty fishbowl on his head. At least she put the fish in a bucket. Hey wait! You have a pet already? What, a beautiful, elegant, charming goldfish isn’t good enough for you? Her firecracker doesn’t launch the cat, but it does end up in his “helmet”.
The badly battered putty is finally noticed by the Mrs. Despite what you’re thinking, she actually DOES concede to her daughter’s wishes. Maybe she just feels sorry for the cat? Seems like he’s been through a lot. He’ll need a bath to start things off. Maybe some food. Sylvester is through. Having had enough, he goes back to the dog. At least with him he has a fighting chance. As for Suzanne, this was her only film. But she did manage to appear in Looney Tunes Comics on the occasion. There, she looked even more like Dolly Keane, despite predating her. And her usual nemesis? Ralph Phillips!
Favorite Part: Suzanne lowers suspicion about the saucer of milk she’s poured by pretending to be a cat herself. It’s a believable thing for a child to do, and I figure most parents would think its rather cute. Her mom tells her to cut the crap. (Witch.)
Personal Rating: Depends on if you think Suzanne goes too far. 2 if yes, 5 if not.
Kidding. I just didn’t want you to correctly guess that it couldn’t do better than a 3.