Time For A Speedy Gonzales Cartoon, Amigos!

From 1964, we present Speedy Gonzales starring in "Pancho's Hideaway," part of Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes series.  This was the first of the 37 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies  cartoons produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises.  In this one, Speedy seeks to outfox the Mexican bank robber Pancho Vanilla, who looks and sounds like a Mexicanized version of Yosemite Sam.

With co-direction by layout man Hawley Pratt, story by John Dunn, animation by Bob Matz, Norman McCabe and Don Williams, backgrounds by Tom O'Loughlin, film editing by Lee Gunther, voice characterizations by Mel Blanc and Ralph James, and music by Bill Lava, this cartoon was produced by David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng.

Friz directed this cartoon, too.

Technicolor.

Let's Head To The Outback With Bugs, Mate!

From 1949, as part of Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes series, we present Bugs Bunny starring in "Bushy Hare."  In this one, that wascally wabbit matches wits in the Australian Outback with an Australian Aborigine who looks like Chuck Barris with a beard. 

Story:  Warren Foster

Animation:  Phil De Lara
                         J. C. (Bill) Melendez
                         Charles McKimson
                         Rod Scribner
                         John Carey

Layouts:       Cornett Wood

Backgrounds: Richard H. Thomas

Voice Characterizations: Mel Blanc

Music Direction:  Carl Stalling

This cartoon was directed by Robert McKimson

Enjoy!

Time For A Cartoon!

From Warner Brothers in 1941, we present, as part of WB's Looney Tunes series, "The Haunted Mouse."  With story by Michael Maltese, animation by Sid Sutherland, and music by Carl Stalling, this cartoon was produced by Leon Schlesinger and supervised (directed) by Tex Avery.

Time For A Vitaphone Short

From 1931, here's Hal Le Roy starring in "The High School Hoofer," with Eleanor King.  This Vitaphone short, released by Warner Brothers, was written by Stanley Rauh, photographed by E.B. DuPar, and directed by Roy Mack.


Enjoy!

Mmmmm, Mouseburgers!

Here are Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales starring in the 1966 Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies cartoon, "Daffy's Diner."  In this one, diner-owner Daffy tries to sell a mouseburger to one notoriously hungry hombre of a gato, with disastrous results.  With story by Michael O'Connor, music score by Walter Greene, animation by Manny Perez, Warren Batchelder, Ted Bonnicksen, Art Leonardi, Don Williams, Bob Mats, and Norm McCabe, layouts by Dick Ung, backgrounds by Tom O'Loughlin, editing by Lee Gunther, and voice characterizations by the legendary Mel Blanc, this cartoon was produced by David H. Depatie and Friz Freleng and directed by Robert McKimson.



The last DePate-Freleng Enterprises-produced Warner Brothers theatrical cartoon release. 

Maybe You Should Cancel Your Vacation, Daffy

From 1967, here are Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales starring in "The Music Mice-Tro."  In this one, Daffy goes on vacation, only to see it turned into hell on earth, thanks to Speedy and his band. This cartoon, part of Warner Brothers' Merrie Melodies series, was actually farmed out to Herb Klein's Format Films, with story by Don Sheppard and Cal Howard, animation by Bob Bransford, Ed Friedman, and Virgil Ross, music by William Lava, and voice characterizations by the legendary Mel Blanc, was directed by Rudy Larriva.  This cartoon was made as Warner Brothers were getting set to revive their in-house cartoon studio.

Time Now, Boys and Girls, For A Cartoon

Here is a cartoon take on fairy tales with "Foney Fables," from 1942, as part of Warner Brothers' Merrie Melodies series, produced by Leon Schlesinger.  This cartoon with story by Michael Maltese, animation by Richard Bickenbach, and music by Carl W. Stalling, was directed by Friz Freleng.

It's Really Foggy's Cartoon

Although Henery Hawk was listed as the star of this 1946 entry in Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes series, Foghorn Leghorn steals the show in "Crowing Pains."  In this one, Henery continues his search for a chicken, but ol' Foggy tries to outsmart and outwit him.  With Sylvester the Cat and the Barnyard Dog, this cartoon, with story by Warren Foster, animation by Manny Gould, Charles McKimson, John Carey, and I. Ellis, layouts by Cornett Wood, backgrounds by Richard H. Thomas, Voice characterizations by Mel Blanc, and music by Carl Stalling, was directed by Robert McKimson.

Time For Porky

From 1937, here's Porky Pig starring in the Looney Tunes cartoon, "Porky's Road Race."  Produced by Leon Schlesinger and released by Warner Brothers, this cartoon, with animation by Robert Bentley and Joe D'Igalo and music by Carl W. Stalling, was supervised (directed) by Frank Tashlin under the nom de plume Frank Tash.  In this one, Porky competes in an automobile race against various Hollywood celebrities.  Characteratures of Charles Chaplin, W.C. Fields, Charles Laughton, and Boris Karloff (as the Frankenstein monster) are among those featured.

It's All In The Wrist, Doc

From 1960-61, here's a commercial for Post Toasties Cereal, starring Warner Brothers cartoon legends Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck (both voice, or course, by the incomperable Mel Blanc).  This probably aired during an ABC Network prime-time telecast of The Bugs Bunny Show.

Memo To Porky: Beware Of The Leprechauns!

From 1950 (actually released originally on July 28, 1951), here's a classic Porky Pig cartoon from Warner Brothers as part of the studio's Looney Tunes series (this one is a Merrie Melodies Blue Ribbon re-release) entitled "The Wearing of the Grin." In this one, while vacationing in Ireland, Porky falls victim to a series of pranks from a pair of---------------leprechauns.  




This cartoon was directed by the legendary Chuck Jones, with story by Michael Maltese,  animation by Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Ken Harris, and Phil Monroe, layouts by Robert Gribbroek, background by Philip de Guard, voice characterizations by Mel Blance, musical score by Eugene Poddany, and orchestrations by Milt Franklyn.

It's Time For Daffy and Speedy

From 1965, here are Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales in "Go Go Amigo," a Merrie Melodies cartoon produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises for release by Warner Brothers. From 1964 through 1966, DePatie Freleng produced Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes for Warner Brothers release.



This cartoon was produced by David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng, and directed by Robert McKimson, with story by David DeTiege, animation by Warren Batchelder, Bob Matz, and Manny Perez, layouts by Dick Ung, backgrounds by George De Lado, editing by Lee Gunther, voice characterizations by Mel Blanc and Pedro Gonzelez-Gonzalez, and music by Bill Lava.

From The WTF File

Here, from 1969, is the last cartoon from Warner Brothers' reactivated cartoon studio, with Cool Cat starring in the Merrie Melodies cartoon "Injun Trouble," a cartoon filled with bad jokes and silly puns. This cartoon, with story by Cal Howard, animation by Ted Bonnicksen, La Verne Harding, Jim Davis (NOT the creator of Garfield), and Ed Solomon, layouts by Bob Givens and Jaime Diaz, backgrounds by Bob McIntosh, editing by Hal Geer and Don Douglas, music by William Lava, and voice characterizations by Larry Storch (F Troop), was produced by Bill Hendricks and directed by longtime studio veteran Robert McKimson.



Warner Brothers, which had closed its' original cartoon studio in 1963, had released Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons from 1964 through 1966 produced by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises. Those cartoons starred the Road Runner (with Wile E. Coyote) and Daffy Duck, who in his case, was teamed up with Speedy Gonzales. By 1967, Warner Brothers reactivated its' cartoon studio. That same year, the movie studio merged with the Seven Arts conglomerate. During this two-year period, new Daffy-Speedy cartoons were produced, but new characters such as Merlin the Magic Mouse and Cool Cat were also introduced. Longtime animation veteran Alex Lovy was called upon to direct these cartoons, but he was replaced in 1968 by studio veteran McKimson. On Bob's watch, Daffy and Speedy were finally retired, and still more, but short-lived, new characters, such as Bunny and Claude and Rapid Rabbit and Quick Brown Fox were added, but they appeared in only one or two shorts before WB-7A ceased production of short subjects, including cartoons.

"Pie, Pie, Blackbird"

Here's a 1932 Vitaphone short starring Nina Mae McKinney, the very young Nicholas Brothers, and Eubie Blake and his orchestra.

Photographed by E. B. DuPar

Directed by Roy Mack

Produced in Brooklyn, New York

Roy Smeck In Action

Here is legendary string instrumentalist Roy Smeck, performing in a very early Vitaphone short from 1926.