25. Battling Bosko (1932)

Release date: February 6th, 1932

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Hugh Harman

Starring: Johnny Murray (Bosko), Rudy Ising (Gas House Harry)

Next on our list: Battling Bosko! Bosko takes on the menacing boxing champ, Gas House Harry, with unsavory results.

I love this shot! The cartoon opens with the silhouette of a big, beefy, mysterious boxer. The camera pans to reveal tiny little Bosko, merrily punching away at his punching bag. This gag is a Looney Tunes staple—setting the audience up, only to let them down by providing the opposite of what’s expected. I love it! 

Honey reads that her sweetheart is going to fight the champion, and she’s absolutely ecstatic. She croons “What a man!”. I’m sure there are a few cartoons that parallel this one (it’s only likely out of a library of 1000+ shorts), but this setup really reminds me of Porky & Daffy. Porky gets the news that a champion is willing to take on any challengers, and eagerly he signs Daffy up. Obviously there are differences—the newspaper doesn’t say that Daffy is in the fight, and Daffy is sleeping in a bathtub instead of training away like Bosko, but you get the idea. Just a neat little connection. It also reminds me of Porky the Wrestler.

Sounds of the radio interrupt honey’s reading. She beams and claps when the announcer declares “Bosko’s in great shape, folks!” Her celebration is cut short, however, when the announcer continues “...but what a shape that champ’s got!” Honey ogles dubiously at the radio as the announcer drags Bosko to shreds, predicting a bad night for him. Honey turns the dial and sticks her tongue out. Finally, some personality! She’s come a long way from her 1930 days of dialogue limited to obnoxious giggling.

Finally, we get a glimpse at the competition. Again, how very Looney Tunes! Juxtaposition and contrast go hand in hand with humor. This device would be used often, a big brute versus a tiny cute character.

Back to Bosko’s house, who’s training as hard as ever. The phone rings and he answers it. It’s Honey, expressing her excitement at the fight and hoping he wins. Bosko assures her he’ll do just fine.

Launch the dance sequence! Bosko begins to sing and does that great dance above, while Honey plays piano on the other end. It’s very corny and comes out of nowhere, but I love it. It almost feels like a parody in itself.

Elsewhere, everyone else shares Honey and Bosko’s excitement. Newspapers are being distributed, bets are made, and trolleys of animals deflate as the passengers deflate (in the same manner as the movie theater deflating in The Film Fan).

Back to Honey who’s tinkering away at her piano. The announcer, who introduces himself as Graham Cracker (god, I love that), indicates the start of the fight. Honey listens eagerly as we get a shot of our fighters swaggering down the aisle amongst a sea of cheers.

Our fighters are introduced as Gas House Harry (who receives a boo from Honey listening to the radio) and Battling Bosko, who is received by cheers and applause. The desire for the underdog to win is strong as always! 

The fight begins with the ring of a bell (pulled with a cat’s tail). Predictably, one swing from Gas House Harry sends Bosko ricocheting around all sides of the boxing ring, conveniently landing in a corner.

An assistant approaches him and sprays him with water, and, in crude Looney Tunes style, sprays beneath his pants, prompting Bosko to slap him and giggle “Stop it!” FINALLY putting the looniness in Looney Tunes! Maybe that’s saying something about my maturity (or lack thereof), guffawing at a crotch joke, but I love it! The delivery of Bosko’s squeaky voice is the icing on the cake. The crudeness of this gag leads me to suspect that it was the work of Bob Clampett somehow.

The bell sounds and Bosko’s up and running again, putting up his dukes. We get a neat shot of Gas House Harry throwing some punches towards the camera, when BANG! 

Bosko decks him in the face. In all of its corny goodness, the tattoo of the sailboat on Gas House Harry’s chest sinks as he’s momentarily down for the count. Clichéd? Maybe so, but I certainly wasn’t expecting that! So comes the joy with watching all of these cartoons for the first time, you don’t know what to expect.

The hippo from Ups ‘n Downs yells “C’MON BOSKO!” (with better voice acting, thank god). The referee momentarily attempts to step in to break up the fight, but they’re still going at it.

Intervening once more, the fight ceases immediately as they stop to dance. Again, I wasn’t expecting that at all! This is hilarious! VERY similar to Porky, the referee, and Porky’s opponent in Porky the Wrestler where they “play train” around the ring. This humor is very Tex Avery-esque, which I adore. Tex will come into play in 1935’s Gold Diggers of ‘49... 3 more years! 

Immediately, the fight resumes like nothing happened. What a good transition! We get a glimpse at honey who’s anxiously listening to the radio, cringing as the announcer narrates the blows Bosko is receiving.

In parallel fashion to Porky & Daffy, Bosko is down for the count. Honey and Bosko’s dog, Bruno, run to the ring as the camera occasionally pans to the unconscious Bosko, referee counting the seconds. Honey arrives and begs “Bosko, speak to me!” 

Bleary eyed, Bosko rises and says to the audience “Aw, hot dang!” Iris out as he pulls the boxing ring over him like a blanket and goes back to sleep.

Wow! Easily the funniest cartoon thus far! It actually felt like Looney Tunes, not a stale imitation of Disney. The gags were spot on and unpredictable, the music was lush and beautiful, the animation and visuals were imaginative. I think there was only one bit of recycled animation, using the hippo from Ups ‘n Downs, but that’s it! Bosko’s unbridled optimism and honey’s support make them very likable. Personality at last! 

Overall, definitely worth a watch! It’s my new favorite cartoon out of all the ones I’ve reviewed. Certain to put you in a good mood!