A Corny Concerto

Last updated
A Corny Concerto
A corny concerto title card.jpg
Directed by Robert Clampett
Story by Frank Tashlin
Produced by Leon Schlesinger [1]
Color process Technicolor
Production
company
Distributed by Warner Bros. [1] [2]
Release date
  • September 25, 1943 (1943-09-25) [3]
Running time
7:58
LanguageEnglish

A Corny Concerto is a 1943 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies directed by Bob Clampett. [4] The short was released on September 25, 1943, and stars Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck. [5]

Contents

They perform a parody of Walt Disney's Silly Symphony cartoon series and specifically his 1940 feature Fantasia . [6] The film uses two of Johann Strauss's best known waltzes, "Tales from the Vienna Woods" and "The Blue Danube".

Plot

Pyotr Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 is heard over the opening credits, featuring Carnegie Hall parody "Corny-gie Hall". Afterwards, a musicologist, played by Elmer Fudd appears in an ill-fitting tailcoat, unshaven and in glasses, parodying Deems Taylor in Fantasia.

The first of the two musical segments is set to Johann Strauss's waltz "Tales from the Vienna Woods". Porky Pig plays Elmer Fudd's usual role of hunter, accompanied by Laramore, his hunting dog. Porky explains what he is doing via a sign reading, "I'm hunting that @!!*@ rabbit!!", which turns out to be Bugs Bunny. A series of visual gags ensue, culminating with all three characters believing that they have been shot by an angry squirrel who manages to get a hold of Porky's hunting rifle. After Porky and the dog realize that they are unharmed, they attempt to give first aid to the apparently fatally wounded Bugs while the dog bawls in tune with the music. When Porky finally pries Bugs' clenched hands off the supposed gunshot wound in his chest, Bugs is revealed to have a baby blue colored bra underneath. Emitting a scream of modesty, Bugs covers the bra with his left hand and slaps Porky's face with his right hand three times and caps the bra cups over the bewildered hunters' heads and then, wearing a tutu and pointe shoes, gracefully dances off into the distance, falling over at the music's climax.

Fudd returns briefly to introduce the second segment, Strauss's "The Blue Danube" waltz. Young Daffy Duck attempts to join three cygnets (baby swans) who follow their mother swan, all gracefully paddling around in waltz time; the mother consistently violently rebuffs the "ugly duckling" because he looks and sounds so different from her own brood. Meanwhile, a large buzzard with a "hep cat" hairdo spots the troupe and goes "Out To Brunch" by swooping down and sprinkling salt and pepper on the cygnets. He plucks each out of the water (the last youngster is revealed to be fitted with a tiny outboard motor), then grabs Daffy, but immediately puts him back with a sign reading "Rejected 4F" (unfit for military service); much to the duck's annoyance. Upon realizing her children are gone, the mother swan faints and Daffy becomes shocked and tries to revive her. Upon seeing the Buzzard making off with the cygnets, Daffy gets angry and takes off to rescue them (on the aspect of a Curtiss P-40 fighter aircraft), and buzzes the Buzzard, who literally turns yellow, drops the cygnets (who parachute safely back to the water) and flees. Daffy stuns the Buzzard, then hands him a drum of TNT, which blows him sky high upon impact on the ground. The buzzard is last seen gliding towards heaven (via an attached balloon) in angel garb, strumming a harp. The cartoon ends with the grateful swan family and Daffy merrily quacking "The Blue Danube" as they glide across the water together. They wave goodbye to the audience as the cartoon ends.

Reception

In 1994, A Corny Concerto was voted No. 47 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. [7]

Home media

The short is available on disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2 DVD set and also appears in the documentary Bugs Bunny: Superstar . It can also be found on The Golden Age of Looney Tunes Vol. 1 laserdisc, the Looney Tunes Collectors Edition: Musical Masterpieces VHS, and Looney Tunes Spotlight Collection: Volume 2.

Since most of this cartoon has fallen into public domain [8] [9] [10] (with the exception of the brief quotation of "The Music Goes Round and Round"), it has made frequent appearances on many gray-market VHS and DVD cartoon releases.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Looney Tunes</i> Warner Bros. animated short film series and media franchise

Looney Tunes is an American media franchise produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The franchise began as a series of animated short films that originally ran from 1930 to 1969, alongside the related series Merrie Melodies, during the golden age of American animation. Following a revival in the late 1970s, new shorts were released as recently as 2014. The two series introduced a large cast of characters, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Porky Pig. The term Looney Tunes has since been expanded to also refer to the characters themselves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daffy Duck</span> Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon character

Daffy Duck is a cartoon character created by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett for Leon Schlesinger Productions. Styled as an anthropomorphic black duck, he has appeared in cartoon series such as Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, in which he is usually depicted as a foil for either Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig or Speedy Gonzales. He was one of the first of the new "screwball" characters that emerged in the late 1930s to replace traditional everyman characters who were more popular earlier in the decade, such as Mickey Mouse, Porky Pig, and Popeye.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Porky Pig</span> Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon character

Porky Pig is a cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many critically acclaimed shorts featuring the character. Even after he was supplanted by later characters, Porky continued to be popular with moviegoers and, more importantly, the Warners directors, who recast him in numerous everyman and sidekick roles.

<i>Merrie Melodies</i> Cartoon series owned by Warner Bros. (1931–1969 and 1988–1997)

Merrie Melodies is an American animated comedy short film series distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It was part of the Looney Tunes franchise and featured many of the same characters. It originally ran from August 2, 1931, to September 20, 1969, during the golden age of American animation, though it was revived in 1979, with new shorts sporadically released until June 13, 1997. Originally, Merrie Melodies placed emphasis on one-shot color films in comparison to the black-and-white Looney Tunes films. After Bugs Bunny became the breakout character of Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes transitioned to color production in the early 1940s, the two series gradually lost their distinctions and shorts were assigned to each series randomly.

<i>Rabbit Fire</i> 1951 American animated short film directed by Chuck Jones

Rabbit Fire is a 1951 Looney Tunes cartoon starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Elmer Fudd. Directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese, the cartoon is the first in Jones' "hunting trilogy"—the other two cartoons following it being Rabbit Seasoning and Duck! Rabbit, Duck! It is also the first cartoon to feature a feud between Bugs and Daffy. Produced by Edward Selzer for Warner Bros. Cartoons, the short was released to theaters on May 19, 1951 by Warner Bros. Pictures and is often considered among Jones' best and most important films.

<i>Rabbit Seasoning</i> 1952 American film by Chuck Jones

Rabbit Seasoning is a 1952 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. Released on September 20, 1952, the short stars Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.

<i>Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1</i> 2003 American DVD box set

Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 is a DVD box set that was released by Warner Home Video on October 28, 2003. The first release of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD series, it contains 56 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons and numerous supplements. The set won the Classic Award at the Parents' Choice Awards.

<i>Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 4</i> 2006 American film

Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 4 is a DVD box set that was released by Warner Home Video on November 14, 2006.

Beanstalk Bunny is a 1955 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on February 12, 1955, and stars Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd. The cartoon's story is derived from the fairy tale "Jack and the Beanstalk".

This is a list of all cartoons featuring Porky Pig. Directors are listed in parentheses.

<i>A Pest in the House</i> 1947 film by Chuck Jones

A Pest in the House is a Merrie Melodies animated short film released on August 2, 1947. It is directed by Chuck Jones and stars the characters of Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elmer Fudd</span> Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon character

Elmer J. Fudd is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies series and the archenemy of Bugs Bunny. His aim is to hunt Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring himself and other antagonizing characters. He lisps, replacing his Rs and Ls with Ws, so he often refers to Bugs Bunny as a "scwewy" (screwy) or "wascawwy (rascally) wabbit". Elmer's signature catchphrase is, "Shhh. Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting wabbits", as well as his trademark laughter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnyard Dawg</span> Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon character

Barnyard Dawg is a Looney Tunes character. A feisty anthropomorphic basset hound, he is a friend and the archenemy of Foghorn Leghorn. He was created by Robert McKimson, who also created Foghorn, and was voiced by Mel Blanc. Dawg also feuds with other notable Looney Tunes characters as well, such as Henery Hawk, Daffy Duck and Sylvester. He appeared in 23 Golden Age–era Warner Bros. shorts.

<i>The Looney Tunes Show</i> American animated sitcom (2011–2013)

The Looney Tunes Show is an American animated sitcom produced by Warner Bros. Animation, and aired on Cartoon Network for two seasons from May 3, 2011, to November 2, 2013. The series featured characters from the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon shorts in a sitcom format with Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, who live a suburban life together within a neighborhood of fellow cartoon neighbors, dealing with various issues in their own way. Many episodes also include a musical short under the Merrie Melodies name, and the first season also includes computer-animated shorts involving new antics between Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner.

<i>Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3</i> 2005 DVD compilation of Looney Tunes animated short films

Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3 is a DVD box set from Warner Home Video that was released on October 25, 2005. It contains 60 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical short subject cartoons, nine documentaries, 32 commentary tracks from animators and historians, 11 "vintage treasures from the vault", and 11 music-only or music-and-sound-effects audio tracks.

<i>Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2</i> 2012 American cartoon anthology

Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2 is a Blu-ray and DVD box set by Warner Home Video released on October 16, 2012. It contains 50 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons and numerous supplements. Disc 3 is exclusive to the Blu-ray version of the set. Unlike Volume 1, which was released in a digibook, Volume 2 was released in a standard 1 movie case. This release was followed by Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 3

References

  1. 1 2 3 "A Corny Concerto (1943): Cast". The Big Cartoon DataBase . Retrieved 27 August 2021.[ permanent dead link ]
  2. 1 2 Ohmart, Ben (2012). Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices. BearManor Media. ISBN   978-1-62933-029-7.
  3. ↑ "Motion Picture Herald". Quigley Publishing Co. September 1943. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
  4. ↑ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 144. ISBN   0-8050-0894-2.
  5. ↑ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 124–126. ISBN   0-8160-3831-7 . Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  6. ↑ "THE BOOTLEG FILES: A CORNY CONCERTO". Film Threat. 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2019-03-12.
  7. ↑ "The 50 Greatest Cartoons — As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals – Movie List". MUBI. Retrieved 2019-03-12.
  8. ↑ "Merrie Melodies - A Corny Concerto | Public Domain Movies". publicdomainmovie.net.
  9. ↑ "Merrie Melodies - A Corny Concerto (Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd)". September 25, 1943 – via Internet Archive.
  10. ↑ "Looney Tunes DVD and Video Guide: Looney Tunes in the Public Domain". October 11, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-11.
Preceded by Bugs Bunny Cartoons
1943		Succeeded by
Preceded by Daffy Duck Cartoons
1943		Succeeded by
Preceded by Elmer Fudd Cartoons
1943		Succeeded by
Preceded by Porky Pig Cartoons
1943		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.