129. Plane Dippy (1936)

Release date: April 30th, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Tex Avery

Starring: Joe Dougherty (Porky), Billy Bletcher (Sergeant), Berneice Hansell (Kitty), Jack King (Professor Blotz, Kid)

The first cartoon to proudly display “Featuring Porky”—a trend that would continue on for years and years. Beans makes his last ever appearance, reduced to cameo, while Kitty also bids goodbye by clinging to a small role. Porky’s time has finally arrived! Our hero wishes to enlist in the air force, but quickly discovers he isn’t much good at it. Instead, he’s sent to clean a voice operated airplane, and things quickly turn sour—and destructive.

We begin with our hero strolling down the street. He comes across a poster: JOIN THE ARMY — INFANTRY DIVISION. Porky thinks it over with careful decision, yet decides it’s not for him. Another: SEE THE WORLD — JOIN THE NAVY. The same thoughtful mulling, the same rejection. And finally: LEARN TO FLY — JOIN THE AIR CORPS. The perfect job. Porky gives his affirmation with a dutiful salute, and marches inside to speak about the job.

Right away, he approaches a burly (and surly) general, who is scribbling away at his desk. Porky wordlessly salutes at attention, and is blown back from the impact as the sergeant growls “WELL?” Porky says “I wanna learn to f-fl—I wanna learn to f-f-f—“ He can’t quite get it out, and instead resorts to making airplane noises while imitating a plane with his arms.

The sergeant grunts “What’s your name, bud?” and once more Porky gets tripped up in his words. The sergeant instead hands him a slate and some chalk and instructs him to write his name. A gag too good for words as Porky physically writes out “P-P-P-P-P-“ as he continues to stutter his name. To get him to spit it out, the sarge whistles—a common Dougherty era gag as I mentioned previously—and Porky gives us his easy to remember, alliterative name that rolls so easily off the tongue: “Porky Cornelius Washington Otis Lincoln Abner Aloysius Casper Jefferson Filbert Horatius Narcissus Pig.” A fantastic joke that hits really well with the timing. I wonder how many takes that took Dougherty—he only stutters a few times.

Instead, the sarge drags Porky by the arm and throws a uniform in his arms. He tosses Porky into the changing room and waits patiently for a few seconds. Out comes a giant lump of clothes, much to the sarge’s surprise. To assert he’s dealing with the same stuttering pig from before, the sergeant pokes his head inside the oversized collar, and a “hello!” responds from the abyss of fabric. Porky’s “hello!” is hysterically out of place and sounds nothing like him, and was likely used for that reason. It’s incoherent, and slightly confusing at first, but it also enhances the gag. To remedy the situation, the sergeant picks up the mass of clothes and dunks it in a nearby barrel of water. The clothes gradually shrink, and we’re reunited with Porky as he now dons a suitable uniform.

Tex’s love of typography gags is prominently displayed as we get white text on a black background: DIZZINESS TEST. The words whirl around in a circle as we transition to the next scene, the sergeant winding Porky up like a top with some duct tape. With a whip of the tape (or ribbon, up to interpretation), Porky whirls around the room Tasmanian Devil style. The sarge stops him and picks him up, just in time for Beans to make a cameo by drawing a straight line on the floor. The sarge places Porky back down on the line, and he zips uncontrollably around the room.

Bullets spell out our next test: TARGET PRACTICE. Porky and the sarge are in a different room, both positioned behind a gun on a tripod. The sarge provides a demo by propelling a toy plane into the air and shooting the gun at the plane, hitting it in one go. He grins at his handiwork and offers Porky the gun to do the same. The sarge tosses another toy plane in the air, and Porky attempts to shoot it. Instead, he has great difficulty controlling the gun, shooting everywhere BUT the plane and nearly taking out the sergeant himself. A cloud of smoke fills the scene. Once the smoke clears, Porky’s left standing on a wooden floor, now finding him outside as the entire building is reduced to debris and bricks around him. The gun and the plane survive the wreckage, and Porky gives the gun a frustrated kick. To his befuddlement, the kick prompts the gun to shoot, and it hits the plane perfectly.

READY FOR DUTY. Now, the sergeant tosses rifles into the hands of aspiring soldiers, the force of the throw so strong that they each stumble backwards (fittingly accompanied by a gunshot sound effect.) dutiful Porky prepares to receive his honor... and a duster is thrust into his possession (still hilariously accompanied by the gunshot sound.) as Porky ogles at the duster, the sarge thrusts a paper that merely reads “ORDERS” into his grip and points to a nearby shed. Outside of the shed reads a sign: “ROBOT PLANE — KEEP OUT!” Perfect for Porky to wander into.

Porky obeys captain’s orders, and meanders into the shed. He gives a few whistles to alert his presence, and he’s met with nothing. Suddenly, a monkey whips a cloth off of a covered object, spinning Porky around like a top from the impact. Thusly uncovers said robotic plane as the monkey inquires “Well?” Porky hands him the orders with a loyal solute. “To Professor Blotz — this helper O.K. for your robot plane tests.” 

Professor Blotz doesn't interrogate Porky, instead showing him his new invention. He drags over a radio and microphone, ordering “Get ready!” into the microphone. A signal is sent directly to the robot plane, the propeller whirring to life. “Take off!” Porky runs out of the way as the plane zooms into the air. Professor Blotz shows off his fancy voice activated plane, much to the fascination of Porky. Loops, nosedives, ascensions... there’s nothing the plane can’t do.

Now the professor offers the microphone to porky, coercing him with “Try it!” Porky struggles to get his command out, and the plane comically shudders and jitters in conjunction with Porky’s stuttering. The plane does an uncertain l-l-lo-loop d-de l-lo-loo-lo-loop and hastily g-go-goes u-u-up. The plane inches closer and closer to a nearby hot air balloon, and Porky manages to order it down just in time. Professor Blotz yanks the microphone out of Porky’s grip as the plane parks itself outside, growling “Ooooh, get to work!” and thrusting the feather duster in Porky’s hands.

While Porky starts his cleaning duties, the professor haughtily places his radio in the window of the shed. Out come Little Kitty, a puppy, and the unnamed dog with an overbite from I Haven’t Got a Hat. Kitty giggles as the puppy licks her and asks the dog “Does he do tricks?” 

Of course! The dog orders his pup to sit up. Of course, the microphone picks up on his voice, and porky, who’s dutifully dusting the plane, now finds himself clinging onto the plane which is now sitting on its hind legs.

“Wag your tail!” The plane shakes its rear wings to the befuddlement of porky. Now kitty tries, armed with a balloon. “Get the balloon!” She tosses her balloon and giggles as the puppy chases it. And, of course, Porky is thrown into the seat of the plane as it takes off at frightening speeds and immediately pops the hot air balloon, the gag made even more amusing with the detail of two figures floating with parachutes after the accident.

Porky is now stuck in a shanghaied plane. Kitty orders the pup to chase his tail, and the plane spirals towards the ground in an attempt to chase its own tail. In the midst of the game gone horrible wrong, Porky reduces a clock tower to debris as he rams into each “level”. He finds himself flying through a nearby circus. He pops out of the other side of the tent, acrobats performing their routine as they hang from the bottom of the plane.

Now led towards the ocean, Porky’s plane serves as a speedboat as the acrobats transition into water skiers. The timing of all of these scenes is very well done. Just the right sense of urgency conveyed, yet executed so the gags have time to settle in as well. A swordfish leaps out of the waters and cuts the line connecting the acrobats to the plane, and they’re left behind as Porky is sent underwater, desperately trying not to cut the fish into sushi. Some nice camera angles as porky chases a fish in and out of the foreground.

The plane leaps in and out of the waves like a dolphin, chasing the hapless victim fish. Eventually, Porky resurfaces with an intimidatingly huge whale hot on his tail. Elsewhere, the dog overbite orders his pup to chase a cat (“Sic ‘im!”), and Porky is sent hurtling straight towards an innocent victim flying in his own plane. The two planes tussle, the poor pilot clinging onto a lone propeller as he sinks towards the sea below. Porky tears into a blimp. Once advertising “SMOKE ROPO CIGARS”, the blimp is cleverly reduced to “SOS” thanks to Porky cutting up half of said blimp.

Even the clouds fear Porky, taking form of an anthropomorphic human running away from the destructive blades of the plane’s propeller. The cloud man seeks refuge in his cloud house, slamming the door on Porky. Porky is then launched into a nosedive, shredding a farmer’s stack of hay into a shower of already made straw hats. A group of planes zip out of frame so as to avoid porky and zip right back up into their leisurely positions, the timing spot on and making a seemingly pointless gag much funnier.

A whole crowd of children have congregated around the pup causing so much trouble. All of the kids shout various conflicting commands, all picked up by the receiver. Porky’s plane is all but in control, at one point doing back hand springs and zigzagging all throughout the screen. The little puppy has tired itself out, and his owner coos “You’ve had enough”, summoning him home.

Good news for Porky as the microphone picks up the “come on home” command. The plane skids to an uneasy halt, animation light, delicate, and floaty as the wings scrape the grass. The plane skids right through the shed, and Porky is launched out as it crashes into the window. And, with amazing speeds, Porky propels himself to the registration office. A sign on the outside advertises the army as Porky declares “I wanna learn to march!” 

Finally, our happy little soldier gets the ending he’s always wanted. An eager Porky marches in the infantry, intermittently flashing hilariously ecstatic grins at the audience. Perhaps even funnier is that he isn’t even in time with everyone else’s march, doing a much more hurried speed walk (speed waddle?) slightly out of time. A happy end as we iris out.

While this isn’t my favorite Tex Porky short, it’s undoubtedly entertaining. Speed is a big factor to Tex’s cartoons, and it certainly plays a big role in this one, conveying the urgency and out of control nature of Porky’s shanghaied plane. The opening almost feels a little TOO fast, with Porky getting registered right away and doing all his tests one after the other. It’s a minor complaint, and it isn’t even that noticeable. Also amazing how, for lack of a better word, relevant this cartoon is today, where voice control becomes more and more popular. A highly amusing short that’s worth a watch, just because.

Link!

128. Westward Whoa (1936)

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, this is one of those cartoons that requires a disclaimer. This review you’re about to see entails racist stereotypes, concepts, and imagery. I do not at all support or condone these ideas in any way, shape, or form—they’re gross and wrong. It would, however, be just as gross of me to skip over them. This review is for the intent of educating and informing, and I don’t at all intend to harm or offend anyone. I ask and thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

Release date: April 25th, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Jack King

Starring: Berneice Hansell (Kitty), Tommy Bond (Beans, Ham), Joe Dougherty (Porky)

Hard to believe it’s time already, but this is the last major appearance of Beans and Kitty. Both make cameo appearances in Plane Dippy, Ham or Ex pop in for Porky's Pet, and the bespectacled unnamed dog with an overbite who occasionally makes appearances reappears in Shanghaied Shipmates, but now the cartoons begin to shift focus towards Porky. Beans' last hurray isn’t the most savory of cartoons—out west, Ham and Ex cry wolf, pretending to be Native Americans and crying for help, but, of course, actual Natives show up and no one believes their pleas for help.

Open to a wagon train traversing the old west. Beans and kitty are included in the band of pioneers, singing “Covered Wagon Days”, vocals contributed by their cattle, some other pioneers, etc. Even Porky’s shown playing a flute solo. Another gag includes a man riding his mule, essentially walking on top of it—he walks on ahead with his beer bottle, leaving the donkey behind. 

I’ve said it before, but I find it so interesting that jack king included songs in his cartoons. Freleng and Avery have mentioned how the Merrie Melodies format was nothing but a burden to their cartoons, having to work around the story to arbitrarily include a song in, yet King seemed to make it a point to include a song when he didn’t have to.

The gang settle in (Kitty excitedly babbles on about how nice the spot they chose would be, with a lovely lake, big rock, trees, etc., etc.) quite comfortably. Fade out back in to some pioneers square dancing to “Oh, Susanna!”, a crowd clapping and cheering them on.

Beans is enjoying himself, dancing along to the music. Ham and Ex run up to him and excitedly declare in unison “We’re gonna play Indians!”, to which Beans playfully warns “Be careful the Indians don’t getcha!” Yes, it's one of those shorts, which would unfortunately persist for decades to come. 

Ham and Ex giggle and hobble away, but almost immediately halt in their tracks. Behind a rock appears to be a Native headdress that’s moving. Ham and Ex exchange worried glances and eventually creep up to the source... only to find that it’s just a turkey pecking at the ground. This, of course, gives (who I presume to be) Ham an idea as he whispers into Ex’s ear.

Their idea? Running around yelling “Indians! Help!” Beans drops his stack of wood he’s carrying and reaches for his rifle, echoing their warning. All of the pioneers are alerted and resort to gunfire. A dog in a pond shoots his rifle, skipping around like a rock in water. Another dog hops into a wood stove and fires from there.

Beans darts over to the rock where the turkey (unbeknownst to him) is pecking at the ground. Beans fires, and does a Jack King hat take when he realizes he shot the fan off of a turkey instead. Ham and Ex find it just absolutely hilarious, doubling over in a fit of laughter. Beans is pissed and approaches them, warning Ex that a Native will someday get them and (he pretends to cut his neck) “Krrrrrrk! Off goes your head!” He retreats, done with his lecture, when he suddenly whips around and snaps “and you too!” at Ham. Finally some nice comedic timing and a clever joke, but a shame it has to be wasted on something so racist and tiresome.

If Ham and Ex were rattled by Beans’ lecture, they do little to express it. In fact, Ex whispers in Ham’s ear, both smiling with mischievous pride. Ex thusly launches into a war call, followed by Ham, and predictably Beans is fooled again. He grabs his gun and starts running around in a flurry once more, his pioneer buddies also shooting aimlessly. Ham and Ex are now, for some reason, in the same spot where Beans was prior (it never showed them running around). Suddenly, Ham taps Ex on the back, who’s in a fit of hysterics. They both dart off screen as a frustrated and befuddled beans approaches, scratching his head.

As if things couldn't get more reprehensible, we get a double whammy by having the Natives caricatured in blackface.

Now, Ham and Ex seek refuge behind a log, laughing and continuing their war cry. But get this—an actual grotesquely caricatured Native pops out from behind a tree! Who would’ve thunk it? Ham and Ex run away, and once more does their routine of crying for help ensue, yet this time they actually mean it. The two pups hide inside the log, the Native diving in after them. The twins make it out of the other end as the Native gets stuck, and they both beat his head and butt with clubs respectively.

The twins cry once more, and, just as the classic story goes, no one believes them. Beans runs his laundry through a wringer while Kitty proposes he go check on the kids—“Never can tell what they’re up to!”. Elsewhere, Porky peels potatoes and shrugs off the cries for helps. He talks to the audience and stutters “It’s just those kids trying to fool you again.” 

Back to Ham and Ex. Ham beats the Native on the butt, and he’s propelled out of his log and hurdles straight towards a tree. As the twins attempt to escape, they encounter more Natives, who attempt to dog pile on them. They narrowly escape, and this time run around in helpless circles near Porky, who’s still (captivating as ever) peeling potatoes, merely smiling and shrugging. They both dive into a trunk at the base for safety. Porky comments “Those kids must think we’re pretty dumb.” He laughs, but his laughter is quickly cut short once an arrow flies right through his beloved potato and splits it in two.

Now Porky attempts to make a break for it, running around aimlessly and tripping over a spare rifle in the foreground (I will admit that the shot is rather nicely staged.) Suddenly, a ton of Natives pour into their base, all doing a war cry. Porky struggles to get his warning out, but he has no trouble shouting “INDIANS!” after an arrow zings him right in the butt.

Directors had lamented about working with Joe Dougherty’s natural stutter, because they couldn’t play around with his dialogue as much. Mel Blanc’s Porky, as you know, would typically change his sentence structure in the midst of a stutter. (For example, in Porky and Egypt, Porky laments “It’s awful war-wa-w-h-ho-h—gosh, I’m roasting!”) That sentence structure was made famous by vaudevillian Roscoe Ates, who overcame a natural childhood stutter. Part of his shtick would be to substitute his own words to make them come out easier. They wanted to take that direction with Porky since the Dougherty days, but couldn’t because of his natural stutter. Tex Avery has lamented about how much film was wasted during recording sessions with Dougherty. So, to substitute, they’d play around with gags like these to get him to hurry up, whether it be whistling at him or, in this case, shooting him with an arrow. It's interesting to see them play around with his stutter as much as they could, despite their limitations.

There’s a really strange cut that contributes to the cartoon’s incoherency—Beans is chased by a Native brandishing a tomahawk while Kitty cowers. Beans is pinned beneath the crank of the wringer, and Kitty tugs at the clothes in the wringer, which causes the handle to repeatedly smack the Native in the chin. It’s very subtle, but you see Beans leap off of the wringer. A jump cut and Beans is perfectly in position near a wood stove, shooting his pistols. The transition is nonexistent, almost no indication to show that he was in peril 4 seconds earlier. 

An arrow pierces beans’ coonskin hat, a Native firing a number of arrows at him. Beans hatches an idea and opens the door to the wood stove. The arrows fly into the stove and shoot right out of the pipe back at the perpetrator like a boomerang, pinning him against a tree. Elsewhere, a Native attempts to slice a dog with his tomahawk. The dog takes off a toupee and hands it to the Native (a reference to the practice of scalping). 

Gags ensue as the fight rages on. A Native curves an arrow to shoot like a curveball, but it hits him in the but as the pioneer ducks. Beans prepares to hit a Native over the head with a club, but instead hits another BEHIND him as he anticipates to go into the swing, eventually hitting them both. Porky’s shooting his rifles, when an arrow pierced his suspenders. Porky struggles to get his pants to stay up, occasionally flashing the audience as he continually hikes them up. Another arrow shoots by and lodges in both his pants and shirt, effectively pinning the pants securely. I will give credit where credit is due, that’s a gag that actually feels somewhat funny.

Meanwhile, Ham and Ex dive into some dresser drawers, popping out at the top of the dresser and hitting a Native over the head with hair brushes. They continue to hit and mock him, like a makeshift game of whack a mole. The Native cuts the dresser in half with his tomahawk, reaching into both halves and grabbing the kids, who cry for help. Beans discovers a bear trap, and circles it like a lasso, throwing it right at the Native . It hits—where else?—right in the butt, and he retreats, the kids watching him go. Unbeknownst to them, Beans is creeping up slowly from behind. He does a war chant to give them a taste of their own medicine, and, of course, the pups are scared out of their wits. We iris out on their little eyes peering out of the trunk they used as a hideout.

To say the least, I hate this cartoon. This is my least favorite Jack King cartoon to date, and least favorite Beans cartoon. It’s a shame, I actually liked Beans and I wish he had a more ceremonious goodbye. As you can obviously see for yourself, the cartoon is downright racist, mean spirited, and ugly. Of course, practically all of the Native cartoons are racist, but this one in particular feels exceptionally mean spirited and grotesque. And aside from all that, it’s an obnoxious, repetitive cartoon. Porky peels potatoes! Beans gets mad! People shoot guns! Ham and Ex yell! As high energy as it is, there’s nothing very exciting about it. 

As for Beans, it’s been... something! I feel he has flavor than Buddy, but still fell victim to the bland, smiley protagonist. Out of all 3 beginner stars, Bosko, Buddy, and Beans, Bosko was the most fleshed out and fun to watch. I certainly took him for granted when watching his cartoons (because I couldn’t shake the notion that “This is a blackface caricature”)—he was very bouncy and a musical character, and he was almost captivating to watch. Buddy and Beans you don’t get that musicality. So, better than Buddy, not as good as Bosko. I’ll still miss him, but Porky’s time to shine is finally here, and things are going to get rolling! 

I don’t at all recommend this cartoon, but if you’re that curious I’ll put a link. Obviously view at your own discretion.

125. The Fire Alarm (1936)

Release date: March 9th, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Jack King

Starring:Berneice Hansell (Ham), Shirley Reed (Ex)

Something you don’t see everyday—“featuring Ham and Ex” in big bold letters! As the title card suggests, Beans  has to take care of his nephews Ham and Ex at the fire station. To two curious, havoc wreaking puppies, it’s the perfect place to stir up trouble, much to beans’ chagrin.

Beans assumes the role of a fireman, eagerly shining his fire engine. Elsewhere, Ham and Ex foreshadow trouble as they ride through the streets on a scooter, nearly taking out pedestrians. They arrive at the fire station and poke their heads in the window, yelling “Uncle Beans! Uncle Beans!” hapless victim Beans strolls over and scratches his head, when one of the twins hands him a note: “Uncle Beans, please take care of Ham and Ex. Have gone shopping. Lizzie.” Beans just shrugs and scoops them inside. Best not to question it too much.

Once inside, Ham and Ex take off almost immediately, running around with giddy excitement while Beans just stares, nonplussed and scratching his head. Kids will be kids. A lone firefighter’s hat sits perched on a stool, and the twins fight over it, a makeshift tug of war. One of the twins is sent rocketing into the wall, a boot covering his head. For simplicity’s sake, since there is literally NO way to tell them apart, this will be Ham. The other will be Ex. Ham struggles to get the boot off his head, and Ex, donning the top part of the firefighter’s hat, laughs and snaps a shoelace right in Ham’s face.

Nevertheless, Ex helps tear the hat off Ham, toppling backwards and the hat lodging itself on EX instead. Ex, too, struggles to throw it off, but eventually succeeds. He places the top half of the firefighter’s hat back on his head and dances, and Ham, the brim hilariously situated around his face, joins in. Finally a solution.

Big excitement as the pups spot a big, shiny, fire truck. Ham attempts to dislodge an axe from the side of the engine, Ex pulling from behind. Instead, Ham is sent flying backwards, the axe wedging into a support beam while he hangs from the handle.

Meanwhile, Ex entertains himself with the fire hose. He crawls underneath the fire truck and over it and everywhere you can imagine, tying the hose into a huge, complicated knot. Ham joins in on the festivities... by cranking the hose rewind button. Ex embarks on the ride of a lifetime as he’s sent whizzing backwards and flung through the air. He lands in a boiler that’s hunt dutifully polished by beans, exploding out the hatch and knocking right into beans.

Ham thinks it’s great. He slides on a puddle, slipping on a sponge. The sponge sprays a shower of water into both Beans and Ex. Beans is obviously enthused, angrily grabbing Ham and Ex by the ears and dragging them to a bench. Beans, who has been relatively optimistic up until this point, showcases his mean side as he paces frustrated, snapping “QUIET!” when they haven’t even said anything. Ham and Ex retaliate by blowing raspberries (trombone gobble sound effect, we love ya!).

Nevertheless, their disdain is quickly deserted once they spot the titular fire alarm. They scramble over who gets to press it, Ex eventually slamming on it with two hands. At once, firefighters asleep in their beds rise to the call. They dive into their pants and slide down the fire pole, scrambling onto the fire truck. The truck sputters to a start, eventually taking off, much to the unadulterated joy of Ham and Ex.

To celebrate their feat, the twins hold hands and dance around in a circle, cheerfully singing a Berneice Hansell original—“How We Like to Fool the Firemen”. The scene is delightfully sadistic, and conveys a wonderful sense of annoyance. However, their celebration is quickly put to an end once the truck comes roaring back into the station. Like the angels they are, Ham and Ex dutifully return to their bench. Of course, Beans finds out regardless, angrily pacing around in frustration.

Animation is comically snappy and conveys Beans’ obvious contempt as he drags the pups into bed and orders them to go to sleep. So, what do you do when you’re a hyperactive child? Do the complete opposite and jump on the beds. Ex leaps from bed to bed, jumping so high he gets himself stuck in a chandelier. Ham follows, bumping into him and dislodging him from the lamp. Ex slides down the fire pole, Ham following.

Unbeknownst to Beans, the two find themselves right in the fire truck . The cut is a little discombobulating, not showing them sliding down. Ex takes the steering wheel, Ham in the back. Beans rummages around in the tool box, and does a trademark Jack King hat take as his wits are scared out of him. Ex steers the truck right through the wall, the pups headed right into the streets.

Beans attempts to stop them, but instead runs right out in front of the truck and is nearly flattened. The animation of the back half of the truck swinging around the streets aimlessly adds to the comedic effect. A manhole saves his hide as he falls in, the truck whirling overhead. Ex’s blank gleeful state is HILARIOUS as he barrels through the streets, the truck crashing into every electrical pole possible. It’s a simple scene but one that’s hard not to laugh at.

The back of the fire truck stays horizontal as they pass through a line of bushes, literally mowing the bushes and chopping them up. Destruction galore as the two barrel into a statue, a house (a man on the phone desperately attempting to reconnect with the operator), even a trolley. They smack right into the trolley, which spins around in a whirlwind of motion. The speed is very nice and urgent—not as exhilarating as Tex’s speed but certainly nice and fast. The trolley is now riding upside down, the cable connector trailing on the railroad and the wheels on the cable.

Nevertheless, the truck ends up back into the fire station (a slightly incoherent transition, but enough to put two and two together. Just a small gripe) and Ham and Ex gleefully hobble up the staircase, back into their beds like nothing happened. Beans comes storming after them, donning a belt and ready to use it. Ham and Ex pretend to sleep in their beds, and somehow it convinces Beans (who just saw them leave and reenter). He tiptoes away so as not to disturb them, when Ex rises up and literally throws beans the boot.

Ham and Ex once more join in a chorus of “How We Like to Fool the Firemen”, dancing around on the bed. Beans creeps up behind them and lays them down on the bed, spanking them and pulling up their tails for good measure. Iris out.

Certainly an amusing cartoon. Ham and Ex are your archetypal troublemaking nephews, but they certainly fit the role well. Hansell’s vocal characterizations are the cherry on top. Ham and Ex are fun and full of personality, and above all, relatable. Exploring a fire station is exciting stuff! Being a little kid and seeing a big shiny fire truck? All these bells and whistles? It’s paradise to a hyperactive, inquisitive kid. Beans had some more personality than usual (albeit a more abrasive one), and his nonplussed stares at the beginning were highly entertaining. Some transitions were a little wonky and not the most coherent, but it didn’t detract from the plot. Ultimately, a Beans cartoon that’s more entertaining than usual and worth a watch! 

Link!

124. Alpine Antics (1936)

Release date: March 9th, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Jack King

Starring: Billy Bletcher (Bully), Jack Carr (Race Starter)

Another Beans cartoon by king, featuring his girlfriend Kitty and a Peg Leg Pete facsimile. Beans plans to enter a skiing contest, and his motives for winning are pushed further when a bully brews up trouble.

Open to a winter landscape, everyone skiing and skating. Three snowmen sing “She Was an Acrobat’s Daughter” as “She Was an Ice Skater’s Daughter” while a Clarabelle Cow facsimile skates right up against the screen, animation smooth and crisp. The singing snowmen have their own 15 seconds of fame, melting in front of a roaring fire to end the song.

More ice centered gags ensue—a dog boils some water over a fire and pours it into a hole in the ice, hoping for a quick dip. Predictably, the genius pops up frozen in an ice cube. Elsewhere, three horses wearing sweaters that spell out “SOS” skate in a line, a tiny dog skating beneath their legs. The entire scene is reminiscent of the opening scene in Bosko in Dutch. A turtle dances on the ice, when he and his reflection get separated. The gags aren’t laugh out loud hilarious, but the visuals are appealing.

Enter Beans and Kitty. Beans pushes kitty in a sled, occasionally hopping on the back for the ride. He brakes in front of a cabin (the break being a boot attached to a lever) to read a flyer posted on the wall. The flyer boasts a ski race, promoting $100,000,000 in prizes “or a cool $2.00 cash to the winner!” a classic that will appear in many a cartoon.

Beans is ecstatic. He snags a pair of spare skis and declares “Big race today, Kitty! Oh boy, watch me win that race!” a Peg Leg Pete facsimile (more so than usual—this time he’s an actual cat, of course voiced by Billy Bletcher. I don’t know if I explicitly mentioned it but I’ve always implied it—Bletcher also voiced Pete in the original Disney cartoons) hides behind a tree, menacingly chuffing on a cigar so you know he’s hot shit. He approaches Beans and picks him up by the skis. He asserts his kindness by sliding Beans off of the skis and flicking him off his own pair before breaking beans’ skis over his knees. A reasonable fella.

Rightfully so, Beans is pissed, shaking his fist, sticking out his tongue, shadow boxing, tapping his foot, promising he’ll show him. He rips the seat portion of the sled off, and thus has his own makeshift pair of skis. Hope Kitty didn’t want to do any more sledding. Two conveniently placed straps are under the skis, which he ties around his feet and shuffles off towards the big race.

Porky makes a cameo at the starting line, riding a rocking horse into battle. The bully is confidently waiting for the start, yet his pride deflates as soon as he notices Beans adorning new skis. He grimaces at Beans, who innocently laughs in return. A turtle referee checks his clock—time is ticking. The bully also recognizes this, and thusly pulls out a rocket from his pocket. He swipes Beans’ hat over his head so he can’t see, creating the perfect distraction as he ties the rocket to one of Beans’ skis and lights it. And, of course, Beans  is sent rocketing backwards, flying right into a cabin and shooting out of the roof. He lands in the snow in a daze as the bully gives a trademark belly laugh.

The bully’s timing was just right. A fire of the pistol and the race is off. The bully speeds ahead on his skis, Porky rides his horse into battle, a dog takes off with a makeshift sailboat, and another struggles to get his exercise bike through the snow. Though Beans  is already at a disadvantage, his optimism is seldom flattened. He skis right where he is, the bully already in a steady lead.

Visuals galore as we spot the racers. The biker sends snow flying right into Porky’s face, a dog pumps a bellows into a sail, a duck rides a wiener dog donning skis, the essentials. Beans is finally on the course, spreading his legs to avoid a tree trunk and conversely compacting his body as he passes between two trunks. The bully takes time to admire his lead, once more laughing. He shreds down a slope and jumps off, pulling a string to summon a parachute and ensure safely. As he floats lazily in the sky, he makes attempts to ski in the air.

Cue the dirty tricks. The bully spins around a tree to stop himself, tying a rope to one of his ski poles. He jabs the pole into a neighboring tree and effectively creates a tripwire. One by one, his victims fall into place (literally): the cycling dog falls headfirst into the snow, spinning his bike upside down. Porky’s next, he and his rocking horse both shaking their tails in the snow. Next the sail boat dog, and even the three little pigs(?), also shaking their tails like Porky. Next is Beans’ turn, who barrels into the pole with enough force that the pole is loosened and the bully’s contraption ties around him instead.

Beans has now secured the lead... for now. The bully is fueled with extra motivation and vitriol to beat beans, puffing out his chest and breaking his bonds. Beans slides over a hill, his skis getting lodged in the side of a mountain. And, of course, the bully flies right over his head, once more in the winning seat. To make matters worse, the duck and wiener dog duo are fast approaching. They slide UNDER the mountain, and barrel into Beans from under, propelling him into the air. The duck briefly rides the dog like a tire, until a jump cut has them back in regular formation, the cut a bit discombobulated and incoherent.

The duck honks at the bully to get out of the way, who, of course, does everything but that. Therefore, the duck turns the wiener dog sideways and knocks straight into the bully. Their glory is hardly reveled in: they crash into a tree, the dog wrapping around the tree and pinning the duck. Next comes Beans, who uses the bully’s skis lodged into the snow as a ramp.

The chase is now exclusively focused on Beans and the bully. Beans hits a slope that flings him into the air, and once more he lands behind the bully. Nevertheless, they weave in and out of trees, Beans managing to pass the bully. Another slope sends the bully flying forward, landing straight on beans’ shoulders. They pass a cabin, the bully riding on the roof and landing back on beans’ shoulders. They’re broken up once the bully runs into a tree branch, spiraling up the tree and back down. He’s flung forward, about to hit the finish line...

...until he crashes into an ice patch, the ice propelling him underwater. Beans rides over the reversible ice, skidding across the finish line. Finally, a winner! Yet, another ice patch (or perhaps the same one?) bucks Beans forward as the bully pops his head out, clearly upset at his loss. Iris out as Beans pokes his head out from his own ice hole, staring incredulously at the audience.

Not the most coherent Beans cartoon. This is one of the rare Beans cartoons I had seen before, and overall remembered nothing about it. I can see why. There aren’t many gags but more so visuals that are all tired out and lose their punch. Many times the story lapsed in coherence—at the end, the bully is clearly thrown into an ice patch that lies BEFORE the finish line, since Beans skids past it and slides over the line afterwards. Yet, the patch is shown to be inside the line at the end. Of course, with many of these cartoons, suspension of disbelief plays an important role, but here it’s just not believable. Believability can make or break a cartoon (believable does not equal realistic! Stick to what you’re specializing in, no matter how absurd the plot is. A plot can be absurd but still believable). Probably best to skip, but it isn’t a cartoon that’s terrible. The animation is certainly nice in some spots. Just a relatively mediocre cartoon that I probably won’t be watching again anytime soon.

Link!

122. Boom Boom (1936)

Release date: February 29th, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Jack King

Starring: Tommy Bond (Beans), Joe Dougherty (Porky), Billy Bletcher (Soldiers, Enemy, General Hardtack)

Something you don’t see everyday—a cartoon released on February 29th. Jack King’s first official cartoon prominently featuring Porky (he made a very small cameo in Hollywood Capers). Jack King would only direct a handful of Porky cartoons, and they’re effectively disconcerting, strange, and downright off-putting. At the same time, they’re fascinating because of that. We don’t really get any of that offbeat mood here. Instead, Beans and Porky are soldiers in the midst of the Great War. They’re sent to rescue their hostage general, but the obviously unsafe environment makes that task quite a challenge.

If the title isn’t an obvious indication as to what the cartoon entails, the opening shot of bombs exploding amuck solidifies our understanding immediately. I already love the lighting of the explosions reflecting off the fence, very moody. While King isn’t as cinematographic as, say, Frank Tashlin, he certainly is more ambitious with his camera angles and staging than Friz Freleng or even Tex Avery. A closeup of a bomb exploding in the dirt transitions to a shot of silhouettes charging forward. Elsewhere, a dog blows his bugle, interrupted by a bomb. The bomb explodes and he now lies on the ground, injured, weakly blaring out “Taps”. Great, snappy timing.

Some more explosions and violence just for the hell of it. A cannon is extended, targeting a dog perched inside a chimney and shooting below. The perspective on the cannon is great, a lovely curved shot as a dog pops out and conks the other dog on the head with a mallet, who slumps over. Fatal cartoon violence! 

Elsewhere, a horse is desperately attempting to weave in and out of a barrage of bullets. A particularly threatening bullet follows him closely, tearing his backpack and clothes to shreds and attempting to do the same ritual to his metal helmet. The bullet weasels its way under and propels the helmet upwards, shredding a hole right in the middle of it. Animation is quick, fast, and exhilarating. The hat snaps back down to its rightful owner with such force that the horse gets himself stuck inside the helmet, the helmet acting like body-fitting handcuffs.

Nevertheless, the horse manages to seek refuge in a crumbling building, shutting the door with his foot. No matter-the bullet shoots right through the door and explodes almost everything in sight. Lovely, rubbery, smooth animation as the bullet thins out and turns into a snake-like saw, tearing the helmet restraint off of the horse, who’s ducking. The bullet zips away, and buys the horse enough time to gallop over to a shelf full of bullets. Now, the horse drags over part of a broken piano (not unlike the Harman-Ising days), the mallets hitting the bullets and firing them off. Unfortunately for the horse, a spare bullet crashes right behind him and explodes. A Looney Tunes staple as we see the angel of the horse floating carelessly in heaven, strumming Yankee Doodle Dandy on a lyre. Death, always a good punchline!

Another collection of gags as the soldiers engage in the fight. A particularly dopey dog with a prominent overbite fires a pop gun, the cork flying back and smacking him right between the eyes. Meanwhile, a dog shooting a machine gun trembles from the impact as he slowly walks away. Back to the overbite dog, shooting again and this time pulling his helmet over his face for protection. Just as he believes he’s outsmarted himself, he pulls the helmet back up, just in time to be pinged once more (a gag parallel to Porky’s trouble with a rubber horseshoe in The Village Smithy).

The stuttering dog from Into Your Dance and Hollywood Capers pulls the pin out of a hand grenade and mistakenly tosses the pin instead. The impact of the explosion sends the dog flying into the air. Conveniently, a first aid truck happens to be trucking on by. The driver scoops up the dog in a net and dumps him carelessly into the back of the truck.

Porky’s turn for the spotlight. He whistles as a signal to his soldier buddies, and they all dive into the war zone. Smart of his buddies to jump back into the trench, leaving Porky alone to his oblivious self. He crawls forward on his hands and knees, visibly wary. A famous JackKing hat take as his helmet flies into the air in surprise at the sound of a distant explosion. He tugs at his collar, sweat beading his face. He tiptoes forward...

And immediately flies back into the trench, right inside of their base (a great transition between the scenes as his body hurtling forward wipes the screen). He attempts to dive under a bunk bed for shelter (occupied by Beans), but instead breaks the bed thanks to his weight.

Beans wakes up and scratches his head in befuddlement. He shrugs it off, jumping out of bed and dragging the cowardly porcine by the feet. Porky rises to his feet as Beanspats him on the shoulder reassuringly—“Take it easy, Porky ol’ boy! Take it easy!” Porky’s not one for the war life as he stutters “Phooey! I wish I’d-a stayed on the farm!” A fellow soldier, a snarky hippo, pops his head up from his bunk and chides “Is mama’s little man afraid?” 

Just as Porky’s about to assert that no, mama’s little man is NOT afraid, the sound of a nearby explosion interrupts his confident façade. He cowers under a table while the surrounding soldiers mock him, all singing “You’re in the Army Now” (including vocals provided by a random duck). Porky shudders audibly at the thought. Beans orders Porky to snap out of it, and helps himself to spoonfuls of Beans, Porky cautiously peering out from beneath the table.

Elsewhere, a bird flies amongst the fire, inevitably getting shot and spiraling towards the ground, right into the trench. It drags itself inside, where Porky and Beans are having a hearty meal of baked beans. Exhausted, the bird collapses right in front of the duo. Beans notices a scroll lodged in the bird’s helmet and pulls it out. It reads: AM BEING HELD PRISONER BY ENEMY IN OLD FARMHOUSE. SEND HELP — GEN. HARDTACK”.

Right away, Beans drags Porky along as they race out of the trench. Beans wastes no time boarding a motorcycle, leaving Porky in the dust. Speedy, quick animation as Beans practically runs Porky over, tossing him into the sidecar. The speed is to be commended—it actually conveys a sense of urgency and exhilaration. It seems Tex’s knack for speed as demonstrated in Gold Diggers of ‘49 is finally rubbing off. Porky struggles to keep his hat from flying away in the wind.

An anthropomorphized bullet has its sights set on Beans and Porky. A lovely overhead shot as it watches them speed by, hurtling straight after. The sense of speed is heightened even more, a tame parallel to Tex’s speed in Gold Diggers. Lovely, dynamic shots as they fly past curves and weave through trees, even running right into a tree that separates the motorcycle and the sidecar.

Regardless, Beans and Porky reunite as they fly over the battlefield, their transportation falling beneath them. The bullet still whizzes after them, and the two dive into a hole for cover. The bullet explodes, yet Porky and Beans pop out unscathed like whack-a-moles in the distance. A lovely visual and great use of cartoon physics as the two physically lift up their hole and carry it a few feet, transplanting it back into the ground and ducking once more as another explosion endangers them.

Seemingly alone, bullet nowhere in sight, Beans and Porky dash to a crumbling building, both peering inside. General hardtack is being tortured by his captors, bound up by ropes. One of the captors lights a candle under his feet and gives him the hot foot, forcing him to talk. Beans comments “That’s General Hardtack!”, and with some quick thinking he ties a spool of barbed wire to a nearby rocket.

With the strike of a match, the rockets are ignited and propel straight inside. The rocket wraps up one of the enemies with barbed wire, and then the other. Beans and Porky save the day as they push both captors over, Beans cutting the rope off of the general, much to his gratitude.

Now free, all three of them rush outside and spot a parked plane. They board and prepare to fly home. Of course, no one is safe in war, not even the heroes of the cartoon. The plane is almost immediately shot to pieces, nosediving straight to the ground. Fade transition as our heroes are now all in a hospital bed, bandaged up tight. The general awards Beans a ribbon, who rips it in half and pins the other shred to Porky. Iris out as they all have a good laugh about it. Such is war! 

Certainly one of King’s best entries by far. This is one of the rare cartoons I have actually seen before, but seldom remembered. While I’ve repeatedly mentioned how off-putting his Porky cartoons are (this is more of a Beans cartoon honestly), it is interesting to see how he characterizes Porky for the first time—as a bumbling coward. The energy was very high and upbeat in this one, and it actually conveyed a sense of urgency and exhilaration, which I welcome with open arms. The gags weren’t too side-splittingly funny, but they aren’t exactly dull either. The horse dying and going to heaven is always a plus. Beans and porky had a nice dynamic going, and this cartoon does have a lot of personality. The animation was stellar, very fluid, smooth, rubbery, malleable, and fun. While this isn’t the most fantastic cartoon out there, it’s certainly one of the better ones we’ve seen thus far, and potentially worth a watch just for the hell of it.

Link!

120. The Phantom Ship (1936)

Release date: February 1st, 1936

Series: Looney Tunes

Director: Jack King

Starring: Berneice Hansell, Shirley Reed (Ham and Ex)

The first cartoon to include the trademark zooming WB shield! Ham and Ex make their first appearance since I Haven’t Got a Hat. They’d accompany Beans in a few cartoons, usually as trouble making nuisances to the chagrin of Beans. Beans travels to Iceland to investigate a haunted ship, but stowaways Ham and Ex cause trouble for all.

Open to Ham and Ex, crouched over a newspaper that’s sprawled out on the floor. They exchange awed looks, the headline reading “BEANS TO HUNT FOR HAUNTED TREASURE SHIP IN NORTH”, complete with a photo of a smiling Beans in pilot’s garb. Ham and Ex leap to their feet, giggling excitedly and dashing out the door.

They stumble across Beans, who’s oiling up his anthropomorphic plane (a scene parallel to Bosko lubing up HIS plane in Dumb Patrol (1931)). Beans runs into the shed to fetch something, leaving the perfect opportunity for ham and ex to jump into the smiling plane as stowaways. The Disneyesque plane lets them in, lowering itself and opening the hatch. Beans returns just in time, unaware that he has two guests going along in his journey. He squirts more oil into the plane’s mouth, gives the propeller a good spin, and hops right in to take off.

On the plane’s dashboard is a ticker that marks Beans’ various destinations. Amusingly out of place animation was beans does the Hopak while flying over Russia, icicles forming on his nose and thermometer bursting after flying over Iceland… he whips out a pair of binoculars and spots a broken, worn down ship in the frosty climate. Beans gives an excited “Hooray!” and spirals safety into a landing, icicles substituting the role of smoke. 

He skids to a stop right in front of the ship. A bat is perched on the wall of the ship, its wings labelled “THE PHANTOM”. Beans observes in excitement as the bat flies away. Suddenly, Ham and Ex burst out of the hatch, exclaiming “Surprise! Surprise!” surely enough, Beans is startled after his wits, the famous Jack King “hat take” as his hat flies up in shock. He scratches his head and merely shrugs it off.

Ham and Ex eagerly take Beans by the hands, pulling him along. Conveniently, a staircase plops down right where the trio was standing. Beans cautiously approaches the staircase and motions for the eager pups to follow. Just as they begin to ascend, the stairs slide down beneath them, like going up the down escalator. A spare board attached to the ship takes a life of its own as a giant hand and smacks them all to the top of the ship.

The sails on the ship are worn and ragged. One of the torn sails morphs into (another) giant hand, this time tugging at Beans’ tail and attempting to snatch him up. It succeeds, and it carelessly tosses beans to another anthropomorphic sail, who then slams him to the ground. The world’s cruelest game of monkey in the middle. Beans bounces off a pile of rope, prompting an anthropomorphic anchor to deck him good. Beans flies into the belly of the ship, landing on the ground and shadow boxing in self defense, muttering “I’ll get that so and so, he can’t do that to me!” In the midst of his groveling, a lantern swings and knocks beans over once more.

Elsewhere, Ham and Ex are calling “Uncle Beans! Uncle Beans!” at the top of the ship with no luck. A pirate skeleton pops out of a hanging safety boat and grunts “Pipe down!” Ham and Ex, terrified, take cover under a tarp, trembling (complete with an out of place, frankly annoying ringing bell sound effect). A life preserver falls on top of them. Lovely, stretchy animation as Ham and Ex attempt to run away from each other, yet inevitably bouncing back and collapsing.

Instead, they opt to commute by one carrying the other on his shoulders. Predictably, they form the appearance of a ghost. They bump into an open door occupied by a skeleton. The skeleton freaks out, clinging to a flagpole for safety. The flagpole breaks, and, with no other option for escape, the skeleton jumps overboard. More animation strikingly parallel to a gruesome twosome as ham and ex topple off each other, running into a pole. Both “sides” of their tarp covered lump stretch out on opposite ends, and they’re propelled backwards, conveniently tying around the pirate skeleton from before and unwinding. They’re tossed against the door of the anthropomorphic ship (King’s Disney influence strong as ever), the door used as a tongue as the ship swallows the pup into its cavernous belly.

Like an out of control snowball, the twins barrel down the stairs… and right into Beans. The tarp unfolds with Ham and Ex on the outside and beans beneath the tarp. Unaware that their precious uncle beans is smothered beneath the tarp, Ham and Ex grab two pieces of wood and bash the moving lump’s head in. Finally Beans yells “OUCH!” and Ham and Ex spot an injured Beans beneath the tarp.

They both scoop him up, holding him by the hands. Beans registers the pain (figurative and literal) and weasels his way out of their grip, exclaiming “Bah!” in frustration. He opens a door, hoping for an exit, and finds something much more desirable: a treasure chest overflowing with gold. He creeps over cautiously, then rifling through the goods like he can’t believe it. Ham and Ex also imitate his cautious saunter, playing with their own coins. A nice little segment of brief personality as they bet each other on flipping coins. 

Suddenly, Beans spots two people sitting in front of a woodstove, frozen. Not creepy at all. Beans pulls out a chair beneath one of the frozen victims, and then the other, and feeds both into the stove. He strikes a match to get a roaring fire going, and returns to his treasure while they thaw. Beans loads sacks of gold into his plane, tossing them right out the window. 

Finally, both of the frozen wonders thaw out and regain consciousness. A particularly burly pirate (that you know is voiced by Billy Bletcher, even without hearing him) discovers Beans tossing heaps of gold into his plane and threatens him. Beans, Ham, and Ex are all terrified, Ham and Ex seeking refuge in a barrel while Beans  runs away from the pissed off pirate.

Eventually, the pirate’s peg leg gets caught in an exposed hole in the board. Ham and Ex observe the stuck pirate, but quickly duck as the pirate’s assistant spots the curious pups. Jack King uses a lot of closeups in his work, and they’re particularly rife in this cartoon. I applaud him for doing something different and slightly ambitious, but they break up the flow of the cartoon rather than enhance it. Now, the assistant chases after Ham and Ex, running straight into a pole and becoming disoriented.

Back to the pirate, who’s exerting all of his effort to loosen his peg from the board. He tears the board out from the floor, still stuck. He pulls so hard that he’s propelled into the air, thrown to the deck of the ship where Beans is pacing around. Bans hides in a cannon, but the pirate pulls him out regardless. He punches Beans  into a tube… and Beans pops out from a parallel tube, ramming right into the pirate. 

Ham and Ex are shimmying along on a rope close to the crow’s nest, the pirate’s assistant preparing cutting the rope. Ham and Ex swing right into the parked plane below, starting the engine. Meanwhile, Beans  is still engaged in his own fight, narrowly dodging an exploding barrel of TNT. He’s rocketed into the air, and Ham and Ex swoop into the rescue, catching Beans in the back seat. Beans snaps out of his fugue, coming to terms with Ham and Ex’s bravery. He gives them kisses of gratitude before saluting the ground before him, and iris out as the plane flies away into the horizon.

Not my favorite Jack King entry, but not the worst. It was relatively gagless and didn’t feel as exhilarating as it should have with all the action unfolding. It WAS nice to see Ham and Ex make their first (of a handful) appearance since I Haven’t Got a Hat, though. It just came off as relatively incoherent. It’s basically what you’d imagine it to be as. Anthropomorphic objects everywhere. Hijinks ensue. It just didn’t have anything to write home about, beans felt drier than usual and ham and ex, a slight improvement, still felt pretty bare, too. I’d say skip it, nothing great but nothing terrible either. But, of course, link!