Daffy Duck in Hollywood

Last updated
Daffy Duck in Hollywood
Daffy Duck in Hollywood.PNG
Title card
Directed by Fred Avery
Story byDave Monahan
Produced by Leon Schlesinger
Starring Mel Blanc (uncredited)
Rolfe Sedan (uncredited)
Sara Berner (uncredited)
Jim Bannon (uncredited) [1]
Music by Carl W. Stalling
Animation by Virgil Ross
Irven Spence (uncredited)
Sid Sutherland (uncredited)
Cecil Surry (uncredited)
Color process Technicolor
Production
company
Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
The Vitaphone Corporation
Release date
  • December 12, 1938 (1938-12-12) [2]
Running time
8:07
LanguageEnglish

Daffy Duck in Hollywood is a 1938 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies animated short directed by Tex Avery. [3] The cartoon was released on December 12, 1938, and stars Daffy Duck. The short is Avery's last Daffy Duck cartoon. [4]

Contents

Plot

At Wonder Studios ("If it's a good picture, it's a Wonder"), producer I.M. Stupendous is interrupted in his office by Daffy, who asks for an acting position. The producer quickly responds "No!" and breaks the fourth wall by stating, "Y'know, that duck's screwy!" The phone rings and Daffy pops out of it, saying "You're correct, absolutely correct!", pinching Stupendous's nose. Stupendous then phones Director von Hamburger (a parody of Josef von Sternberg) and orders him to finish the picture he's working on that day.

On the set, all the crew rushes to follow Hamburger's order for a close-up while he starts smoking a cigarette. Daffy then swipes and starts smoking the cigarette, spelling out Warner Bros. with the smoke ("Just givin' my bosses a plug", he tells the audience. "I've got an option coming up!"). Hamburger asks how the sound is, and Daffy whistles into the microphone, getting a bad reaction from the crew member checking it. The director orders the lights turned on, but Daffy has connected the emergency fire hose to them, so water gushes out of the lights and down on the set where the actors are. Hamburger quotes "It's ruined, cut!" Daffy then plants bullets in the camera. When the camera rolls on Hamburger's orders, it starts shooting bullets. Hamburger begins crying while stating "This isn't a gangster picture!" Daffy sympathetically gives him a gift, promises to stop being screwy, and walks away. However, Daffy then pops up out of the gift box, bites Hamburger's nose and starts jumping around.

As filming begins, a typical romantic scene between a rooster and hen plays out. When the inevitable kiss comes up, Daffy jumps in and kisses the hen; he is so excited that he does it again. Hamburger declares "It's ruined, cut!" The time being noon, Hamburger asks for lunch: turkey with all the trimmings. However, Daffy is under the platter and bites Hamburger's nose again before jumping away. Then, in the film room, Daffy begins clipping and pasting together random film clips.

Hamburger tells Stupendous that his film is finished, Stupendous quotes "Well it better be good" as Daffy swaps out the films. Hamburger shows the "film". At first the title card reads "Gold Is Where You Find It" (a movie produced by Warner Bros. the same year), showing film clips of gold mining, but then it suddenly plays humorous live action clips of random scenes with appropriate mismatched audio (a lion roaring in Central Park Zoo, a US military parade, square dancing, the World Championship Fight in "Madison Round Garden", and a beauty contest). Despite Hamburger's obvious (and justified) fear, Stupendous approves highly of the film as he finds that Hamburger has fainted.

As a result, Daffy is now the director, uttering the same line asking for turkey at lunchtime as Hamburger complete with Hamburger's accent and clothing. Hamburger is now the screwball, hiding under the platter, biting Daffy's nose, then jumping away as Daffy did earlier.

Home media

Notes

Related Research Articles

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

Looney Tunes or 'Warner Bros. Cartoons' 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 1936 to 1967, 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">Tex Avery</span> American animator and director (1908–1980)

Frederick Bean "Tex" Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, director, and voice actor. He was known for directing and producing animated cartoons during the golden age of American animation. His most significant work was for the Warner Bros. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios, where he was crucial in the creation and evolution of famous animated characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Droopy, Screwy Squirrel, The Wolf, Red Hot Riding Hood, and George and Junior.

<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>Golden Yeggs</i> 1950 film by Friz Freleng

Golden Yeggs is a 1950 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies short directed by Friz Freleng. The cartoon was released on August 5, 1950, and stars Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. A forerunner of the Rocky and Mugsy characters appear, with Rocky already in his present-day form.

<i>I Love to Singa</i> 1936 film

I Love to Singa is a 1936 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Tex Avery. The short was released on July 18, 1936.

<i>You Ought to Be in Pictures</i> 1940 Warner Bros. animated short starring Porky Pig and Daffy Duck

You Ought to Be in Pictures is a 1940 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes short film directed by Friz Freleng. The cartoon was released on May 18, 1940, and stars Porky Pig and Daffy Duck.

<i>Duck! Rabbit, Duck!</i> 1953 film by Chuck Jones

Duck! Rabbit, Duck! is a 1953 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Charles M. Jones. The cartoon was released on October 3, 1953 and stars Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.

<i>Duck Soup to Nuts</i> 1944 film

Duck Soup to Nuts is a 1944 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. The cartoon was released on May 27, 1944, and stars Daffy Duck and Porky Pig.

<i>Draftee Daffy</i> 1945 animated short film directed by Bob Clampett

Draftee Daffy is a 1945 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Bob Clampett. The cartoon was released on January 27, 1945, and stars Daffy Duck.

<i>The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie</i> 1981 animated feature film directed by Friz Freleng

The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie is a 1981 American animated comedy package film with a compilation of classic Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies Warner Bros. cartoon shorts and animated bridging sequences produced and directed by Friz Freleng, hosted by Bugs Bunny. The new footage was produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It was the first Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies film with a compilation of classic cartoon comedy shorts produced by Warner Bros. Animation.

<i>Daffy Duck & Egghead</i> 1938 film

Daffy Duck & Egghead is a 1938 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon produced in 1937 and directed by Tex Avery. The cartoon was released on January 1, 1938, and stars Daffy Duck and Egghead.

<i>My Favorite Duck</i> 1942 film by Chuck Jones

My Favorite Duck is a 1942 color Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Chuck Jones, in his second collaboration with writer Michael Maltese. The cartoon was released on December 5, 1942, and stars Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. It was the second color entry in the Looney Tunes series, and the first pairing of Porky and Daffy produced in Technicolor.

<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.

<i>Daffy Duck Hunt</i> 1949 film

Daffy Duck Hunt is a 1949 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon, directed by Robert McKimson. The cartoon was released on March 26, 1949, and stars Daffy Duck, Porky Pig and Barnyard Dawg.

<i>Plane Daffy</i> 1944 film

Plane Daffy is a 1944 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Frank Tashlin. The cartoon was released on September 16, 1944, and stars Daffy Duck.

Hollywood Daffy is a 1946 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon, starring Daffy Duck. The cartoon was written by Michael Maltese and was released on June 22, 1946.

<i>Stupor Duck</i> 1956 short film by Robert McKimson

Stupor Duck is a 1956 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes animated short directed by Robert McKimson. It was released on July 7, 1956, and stars Daffy Duck in a Superman spoof.

<i>To Duck or Not to Duck</i> 1943 film by Chuck Jones

To Duck or Not to Duck is a 1943 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The cartoon was released on March 6, 1943, and stars Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.

References

  1. Scott, Keith (2022). Cartoon Voices from the Golden Age, 1930-70. BearManor Media. p. 32. ISBN   979-8-88771-010-5.
  2. Maltin, Leonard (1987). Of Mice And Magic: A History Of American Animated Cartoons (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Plume. p. 423. ISBN   0-452-25993-2.
  3. Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 81. ISBN   0-8050-0894-2.
  4. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 70–72. ISBN   0-8160-3831-7 . Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  5. Release and content information: "The Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes comedy Hour - The Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 3". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
  6. Warner Archive Announces September Releases , retrieved 2023-08-16
Preceded by Daffy Duck Cartoons
1938
Succeeded by