Donald Duck and the Gorilla | |
---|---|
Directed by | Jack King |
Story by | Carl Barks Bill Berg Nick George Jack Hannah Jesse Marsh Frank Tashlin Roy Williams Bill de la Torre |
Produced by | Walt Disney |
Starring | Clarence Nash James MacDonald |
Music by | Oliver Wallace |
Animation by | Paul Allen Jack King Joshua Meador George Nicholas Charles A. Nichols Judge Whitaker Marvin Woodward |
Layouts by | Bill Herwig |
Backgrounds by | Maurice Greenberg |
Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 7 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Donald Duck and the Gorilla is a Donald Duck short adventure horror monster film which was originally released in 1944. [1] It stars Donald Duck along with his three nephews; Huey, Dewey and Louie and Ajax, the killer gorilla. The 1930 Mickey Mouse cartoon The Gorilla Mystery has a similar plot involving a gorilla named Beppo who captures Minnie Mouse.
On a stormy night, Donald and his nephews overhear a radio announcer, Breckenridge, notify the listeners that a gorilla named Ajax has escaped from the city zoo. As a prank, Donald frightens his nephews with gorilla hands. Vowing revenge, the nephews dress up in a gorilla suit and sneak up behind Donald as he reads, taking a bite of Donald's lollipop. Donald, comparing the bite to the gorilla's fangs, runs away in fright.
At the same time, the real Ajax appears in front of the window and breaks into the house, causing the nephews to flee. Donald, now aware the nephews tricked him, chase the boys, running right into Ajax. Donald, assuming the gorilla is the nephews in disguise, discovers that this is the real gorilla. The radio announcer advises listeners to master wild animals by looking them straight in the eye. Taking the advice, Donald stares into the gorilla's eyes, seeing a tombstone destined for Donald, and flees.
Donald and his nephews sneak through the house, but the nephews first spill melted wax on Donald's tail before accidentally burning his rear. Donald, boiling with rage, sends the triplets away, but burns his hand on the now superheated doorknob.
Donald searches for Ajax, who is swinging from the rafters. After a stare-down, and at the urging of his tail, Donald runs away, beginning a chase. Donald briefly triumphs by tricking Ajax up a ladder, where he crashes through several floors of the house, ending in the attic. Ajax resumes the chase, with Donald using the ladder as stilts.
Donald is trapped in the dining room table, the leaves having flown into Ajax's hands. At the suggestion of the radio announcers, the nephews use tear gas in an attempt to stop Ajax, who begins to cry. However, Donald is also affected by the tear gas, and Ajax and Donald close the short by consoling each other.
The short was released on December 6, 2005 on Walt Disney Treasures: The Chronological Donald, Volume Two: 1942-1946 . [2]
Additional releases include:
VHS
Laserdisc
VCD
Television
The short is part of the stories that the characters see during the plot of the 2001 direct-to-video film Mickey's House of Villains .
Huey, Dewey, and Louie are triplet cartoon characters created by storyboard artist (screenwriter) Carl Barks for The Walt Disney Company from an idea proposed by cartoonist Al Taliaferro. They are the nephews of Donald Duck and the grand-nephews of Scrooge McDuck. Like their maternal uncles, the brothers are anthropomorphic white ducks with yellow-orange bills and feet. The boys are sometimes distinguished by the color of their shirts and baseball caps. They appeared in many Donald Duck animated shorts, as well as in the television show DuckTales and its reboot, but the comics remain their primary medium.
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Donald's Nephews is a 1938 Donald Duck animated cartoon which features Donald being visited by his three nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie. This cartoon is Huey, Dewey, and Louie's first appearance in animation. Al Taliaferro, the artist for the Silly Symphony comic strip, proposed the idea for the film, so that the studio would have duck counterparts to Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse, the nephews of Mickey Mouse. The Walt Disney Productions Story Dept. on February 5, 1937 sent Taliaferro a memo recognizing him as the source of the idea for the planned short.
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Mickey's House of Villains is a 2002 American direct-to-video animated comedy-horror film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. It is based on the animated television series House of Mouse, and serves as a stand-alone sequel to the direct-to-video animated film Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse, starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Daisy Duck, and Disney Villains that appeared in past Disney productions. It was released on both VHS and DVD by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on September 3, 2002.
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Good Scouts is a 1938 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon follows Donald Duck leading his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie on a scouting trip through the wilderness. It was directed by Jack King and features Clarence Nash as Donald and the three nephews.
Donald's Golf Game is a Donald Duck cartoon released by the Walt Disney Company in 1938. Donald falters on the fairway while his caddies Huey, Dewey, and Louie all try to "tee" him off, with a grasshopper and a bag of trick clubs.
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Home Defense is a 1943 animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. The film shows Donald Duck and his three nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie serving as civilian aircraft spotters during World War II. The film was directed by Jack King, Clarence Nash voices the characters.
Donald's Off Day is a 1944 Walt Disney animated short by Jack Hannah starring Donald Duck and Huey, Louie and Dewey. It stars the nephews tricking Donald into thinking that he is seriously ill.
Soup's On is a 1948 Donald Duck animated short film directed by Jack Hannah, produced in Technicolor by Walt Disney Productions and released to theaters by RKO Radio Pictures.
Donald's Happy Birthday is a 1949 Donald Duck cartoon featuring Donald Duck and his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie. In the short film, Huey, Dewey, and Louie would like to buy a box of cigars for Donald's birthday but Donald decides to keep the money.
Lucky Number is a 1951 Donald Duck cartoon featuring Donald Duck and his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie.
Straight Shooters is a 1947 American animated short film directed by Jack Hannah and produced by Walt Disney, featuring Donald Duck.
A Disney Halloween is a 90-minute Halloween-themed television special which originally aired as an exclusive on The Disney Channel on October 1, 1983. The special is hosted by an offscreen narrator and the Magic Mirror which incorporates segments from both "Disney's Halloween Treat" (1982) and "Disney's Greatest Villains" (1977) episodes featuring classic short cartoons and excerpts of various villains from Disney feature films. The opening and closing credits feature footage of the 1929 Silly Symphony short The Skeleton Dance, as did "Disney's Halloween Treat", but the coloring on the skeletons has been changed to green, orange, and dark green. The special was rebroadcast during October for the following years on The Disney Channel until the late 1990s.