Color Rhapsody

Last updated

Color Rhapsody
Production
company
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
November 11, 1934 – June 30, 1949
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Color Rhapsody is a series of usually one-shot animated cartoon shorts produced by Charles Mintz's studio Screen Gems for Columbia Pictures. [1] They were launched in 1934, following the phenomenal success of Walt Disney's Technicolor Silly Symphonies and Warner Bros.' Merrie Melodies . Because of Disney's exclusive rights to the full three strip Technicolor process, Color Rhapsody films were produced in the older two-tone Technicolor process until 1935, when Disney's exclusive contract expired.

Contents

The Color Rhapsody series is most notable for introducing the characters of The Fox and the Crow in the 1941 short The Fox and the Grapes. Two Color Rhapsody shorts, Holiday Land (1934) and The Little Match Girl (1937), were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Short Subject (Cartoons). [2]

Filmography

1930s

No.TitleRelease dateDirectorCharacter(s)Notes
1 Holiday Land November 11, 1934Sid Marcus Scrappy
2 Babes at Sea December 12, 1934 Arthur Davis
3 The Shoemaker and the Elves January 19, 1935
4 Make Believe Revue March 25, 1935Ben Harrison
5A Cat, a Mouse and a BellMay 14, 1935Arthur Davis
6Little RoverJune 26, 1935Sid Marcus
7NeighborsAugust 17, 1935Lost cartoon
8Monkey LoveSeptember 14, 1935Arthur DavisSoundtrack exists
9The Bon Bon ParadeOctober 13, 1935Ben Harrison
10Doctor BluebirdJanuary 18, 1936Scrappy
11Football BugsFebruary 17, 1936Arthur Davis
12Glee WormsApril 5, 1936Ben Harrison
13The Untrained SealMay 28, 1936Arthur Davis
14Two Lazy CrowsJune 14, 1936 Ub Iwerks
15In My GondolaJuly 13, 1936Sid MarcusScrappy
16Merry MutineersAugust 13, 1936Ben Harrison
17Birds in LoveSeptember 12, 1936
18A Boy and His DogOctober 11, 1936Sid MarcusJohnny
19The Novelty ShopNovember 15, 1936
20Gifts from the AirDecember 12, 1936Ben Harrison
21Skeleton FrolicsJanuary 23, 1937Ub Iwerks
22Merry MannequinsMarch 16, 1937
23Let's GoApril 17, 1937Ben Harrison
24Mother Hen's HolidayMay 7, 1937Sid Marcus
25The Foxy PupMay 21, 1937Ub Iwerks
26The Stork Takes a HolidayJune 11, 1937Ben HarrisonLost cartoon
27Indian SerenadeJuly 16, 1937Sid Marcus
28Spring FestivalAugust 6, 1937Ben Harrison
29Scary CrowsAugust 20, 1937Sid MarcusJohnny
30Hollywood PicnicOctober 17, 1937
31 The Little Match Girl November 6, 1937
32The Air HostessNovember 22, 1937
33Swing, Monkey, SwingDecember 12, 1937Ben Harrison
34The Horse on the Merry-Go-RoundJanuary 16, 1938Ub Iwerks
35Bluebird's BabyFebruary 14, 1938Ben HarrisonJohnny
36Snow TimeMarch 13, 1938Ub Iwerks
37The Foolish BunnyApril 16, 1938Sid Marcus
38The Big BirdcastMay 15, 1938Ben Harrison
39Window ShoppingJune 8, 1938Sid Marcus
40Poor Little ButterflyJuly 4, 1938Ben Harrison
41Poor ElmerJuly 23, 1938Sid Marcus
42The Frog PondAugust 10, 1938Ub Iwerks
43Hollywood GraduationAugust 27, 1938Arthur DavisLost cartoon
44Animal Cracker CircusSeptember 26, 1938Ben HarrisonJohnny
45Midnight FrolicsOctober 12, 1938Ub Iwerks
46Little Moth's Big FlameNovember 12, 1938Sid Marcus
47The Kangaroo KidDecember 25, 1938Ben Harrison
48Peaceful NeighborsJanuary 29, 1939Sid Marcus
49The Gorilla HuntFebruary 21, 1939Ub Iwerks
50The Happy TotsMarch 25, 1939Ben Harrison
51The House That Jack BuiltApril 16, 1939Sid Marcus
52Lucky PigsMay 16, 1939Ben Harrison
53Nell's YellsJune 21, 1939Ub Iwerks
54Hollywood SweepstakesJuly 22, 1939Ben Harrison
55Jitterbug KnightsAugust 12, 1939Sid Marcus
56Crop ChasersSeptember 22, 1939Ub Iwerks
57Dreams on IceOctober 20, 1939Sid Marcus
58Mountain EarsNovember 12, 1939 Manny Gould
59Mother Goose in SwingtimeDecember 18, 1939Manny Gould

1940s

No.TitleRelease dateDirectorCharacter(s)Notes
60A Boy, a Gun, and BirdsJanuary 13, 1940Ben Harrison
61The Happy Tots' ExpeditionFebruary 6, 1940
62Blackboard RevueMarch 13, 1940Ub Iwerks
63The Greyhound and the RabbitApril 13, 1940Sid Marcus
64The Egg HuntMay 21, 1940Ub Iwerks
65Ye Olde Swap ShoppeJune 22, 1940
66The Timid PupJuly 16, 1940Ben Harrison
67Tangled TelevisionAugust 14, 1940Sid Marcus
68Mr. Elephant Goes to TownOctober 14, 1940Arthur Davis
69The Mad HatterNovember 3, 1940Sid Marcus
70Wise OwlDecember 8, 1940Ub Iwerks
71A Helping PawJanuary 14, 1941Sid Marcus
72The Way of All PestsFebruary 22, 1941Arthur Davis
73The CarpentersMarch 14, 1941Paul FennellProduced by Cartoon Films Ltd. and later reissued as a Columbia Favorite. [3]
74The Land of FunApril 19, 1941Sid Marcus
75Tom Thumb's BrotherJune 16, 1941 Tom Thumb
76The Cuckoo I.Q.July 23, 1941
77Who's Zoo in HollywoodNovember 17, 1941Lost cartoon
78The Fox and the GrapesDecember 6, 1941 Frank Tashlin The Fox and the Crow
79Red Riding Hood Rides AgainDecember 21, 1941Sid Marcus
80A Hollywood DetourJanuary 24, 1942Frank Tashlin
81Wacky WigwamsFebruary 22, 1942Alec Geiss
82Concerto in B Flat MinorMarch 24, 1942Bob Wickersham
83Cinderella Goes to a PartyMay 17, 1942Alec Geiss
84Woodman, Spare That TreeJuly 6, 1942Bob WickershamThe Fox and the Crow
85Song of VictorySeptember 8, 1942
86Toll Bridge TroublesOctober 20, 1942The Fox and the Crow
87Tito's GuitarNovember 23, 1942Tito, Burrito and Rosita
88King Midas JuniorDecember 22, 1942 John Hubley

Paul Sommer

89Slay it with FlowersJanuary 16, 1943Bob WickershamThe Fox and the Crow
90There's Something About a SoldierFebruary 26, 1943Alec GeissLost cartoon
91Professor Small and Mr. TallMarch 28, 1943John Hubley

Paul Sommer

Professor Small and Mr. Tall
92Plenty Below ZeroApril 19, 1943Bob WickershamThe Fox and the Crow
93Tree for TwoJune 21, 1943
94He Can't Make It StickJuly 25, 1943John Hubley

Paul Sommer

Partially lost
95A-Hunting We Won't GoAugust 23, 1943Bob WickershamThe Fox and the Crow
96The Rocky Road to RuinOctober 20, 1943John Hubley [4]

Paul Sommer

97ImaginationNovember 16, 1943Bob Wickersham
98The Herring Murder MysteryJanuary 23, 1944Dun Roman
99The Disillusioned BluebirdJune 13, 1944Howard Swift
100Dog, Cat and CanaryJanuary 5, 1945Flippy
101Fiesta TimeApril 4, 1945Bob WickershamTito, Burrito and Rosita
102Rippling RomanceJune 20, 1945Soundtrack exists
103Hot Foot LightsAugust 6, 1945Howard Swift
104Carnival CourageSeptember 8, 1945 Willoughby Wren
105River RibberOctober 4, 1945Paul SommerProfessor Small and Mr. Tall
106Polar PlaymatesApril 25, 1946Howard Swift
107Picnic PanicJune 20, 1946Bob WickershamTito, Burrito and Rosita
108Loco LoboJanuary 9, 1947Howard Swift
109Cockatoos for TwoFebruary 13, 1947Bob Wickersham
110Mother Hubba-Hubba-HubbardMarch 29, 1947
111Up N' AtomJuly 10, 1947Sid Marcus
112Swiss TeaseSeptember 11, 1947
113Boston Beanie[1]December 4, 1947
114FloraMarch 18, 1948 Alex Lovy
115Pickled PussSeptember 2, 1948Howard Swift
116Lo, the Poor BuffalNovember 14, 1948Alex Lovy
117The Coo-Coo Bird DogFebruary 2, 1949Sid Marcus
118Grape NuttyApril 14, 1949Alex LovyThe Fox and the Crow
119Cat-TastrophyJune 30, 1949Sid Marcus

Accolades

FilmAwardCategoryResultRef.
Holiday Land 7th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Short Subject, Cartoons Nominated [5]
The Little Match Girl 10th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Short Subject, CartoonsNominated [6]
Imagination 16th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Short Subject, CartoonsNominated [7]
Dog, Cat and Canary 17th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Short Subject, CartoonsNominated [8]
Rippling Romance 18th Academy Awards Academy Award for Best Short Subject, CartoonsNominated [9]

Notes

    References

    1. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 66–67. ISBN   0-8160-3831-7 . Retrieved 6 June 2020.
    2. Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. pp. 170–171. ISBN   9781476672939.
    3. "The Five Best Columbia/Screen Gems Cartoons of the 1940s |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved 2025-08-08.
    4. "MichaelBarrier.com -- Interviews: John Hubley". www.michaelbarrier.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-03. Retrieved 2025-08-08.
    5. "THE 7TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1935". Oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
    6. "THE 10TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1938". Oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
    7. "THE 16TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1944". Oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
    8. "THE 17TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1945". Oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
    9. "THE 18TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1946". Oscars.org. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. Retrieved March 7, 2023.