Bell Hoppy

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Bell Hoppy
Directed by Robert McKimson [1]
Story by Tedd Pierce
Produced by Edward Selzer
Starring Mel Blanc
Music by Carl W. Stalling
Animation by Charles McKimson
Herman Cohen
Rod Scribner
Phil DeLara
Layouts by Robert Givens
Backgrounds byRichard H. Thomas
Color processTechnicolor
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release date
  • April 17, 1954 (1954-04-17)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Bell Hoppy is a 1954 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon short directed by Robert McKimson. [2] The short was released on April 17, 1954, and stars Sylvester the Cat and Hippety Hopper. [3]

The story sees Sylvester in his "mouse chaser" persona, once again confusing baby kangaroo Hippety Hopper for a giant mouse. This plot is intertwined with a reversal of the "belling the cat" fable from the Middle Ages; instead of mice wanting to avoid becoming prey to a hungry cat, here, a pack of starving alley cats hope to place a bell around the neck of the largest mouse they can find, so that upon its approach, they can ambush it, kill it and feast on its carcass. Sylvester comes into the picture when – wanting to join a fraternal organization called "the Loyal Order of Alley Cats Mouse and Chowder Club" – he is offered the opportunity for membership by the leader of the club by successfully placing the bell around the mouse's neck.

Plot

Sylvester has once again been "blackballed" from membership to the Loyal Order of Alley Cats Mouse and Chowder Club, a fraternity of alley cats, that he so desperately wants to join. Meanwhile, Hippety Hopper escapes from a cage at the local city zoo office and hides in a trash can. The Grand High Exalted Poobah of the Order, digging through the trash to find food, expresses his frustration aloud at not being able to find anything good to eat and says he could eat the largest mouse possible...at which time he finds Hippety. Hippety proceeds to do to him what he usually does to Sylvester, prompting the Poobah to call a special meeting.

Meanwhile, Sylvester makes one last attempt to gain membership into the Brotherhood. The Poobah – seeing Sylvester as a sucker – offers to let Sylvester join if he can place the bell around the neck of the largest mouse he can find, so the cats can gang up on the mouse when they hear him coming. Soon Sylvester and Hippety quickly bump into each other and the following gags occur (all with Sylvester getting pummeled into submission):

In the end, Sylvester finally uses a mirror trick to get Hippety to place the bell around his neck. Sylvester is, naturally, excited about finally one-upping his long-time nemesis and calls the cats into position. But by the time the cats are ready to pounce on the baby kangaroo-mistaken-for-a-giant-mouse, Hippety is back in the city zoo truck and very happy with his new toy. The oblivious cats jump in the path of the truck, getting them all run over.

Taking the opportunity, Sylvester now gets to serve as the Brotherhood's Grand High Exalted Poobah (since he is now the only active member because the others are all bandaged up) only to be "blackballed" again...this time after declaring himself leader and pounding the gavel on the table too hard, causing the black 8 billiard ball on the table to bounce up and hit him on the top of his head.

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References

  1. Beck, Jerry (1991). I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety. New York: Henry Holt and Co. p. 120. ISBN   0-8050-1644-9.
  2. Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 260. ISBN   0-8050-0894-2.
  3. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 60–61. ISBN   0-8160-3831-7 . Retrieved 6 June 2020.