A Corny Concerto
Directed byRobert Clampett
Story byFrank Tashlin
Produced byLeon Schlesinger[1]
Color processTechnicolor
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.[1][2]
Release date
  • September 25, 1943 (1943-09-25)[3]
Running time
7:58
LanguageEnglish

A Corny Concerto is a 1943 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies directed by Bob Clampett.[4] The short was released on September 25, 1943, and stars Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck.[5]

They perform a parody of Walt Disney's Silly Symphony cartoon series and specifically his 1940 feature Fantasia.[6] The film uses two of Johann Strauss' best known waltzes, "Tales from the Vienna Woods" and "The Blue Danube".

Plot

Pyotr Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 is heard over the opening credits, featuring Carnegie Hall parody "Corny-gie Hall". Afterwards, a musicologist, played by Elmer Fudd appears in an ill-fitting tailcoat, unshaven and in glasses, parodying Deems Taylor in Fantasia.

The first of the two musical segments is set to Strauss' waltz Tales from the Vienna Woods. Porky Pig plays Elmer Fudd's usual role of hunter, accompanied by his unnamed hunting dog. Porky explains what he is doing via a sign reading, "I'm hunting that @!!*@ rabbit!!", which turns out to be Bugs Bunny. A series of visual gags ensue, culminating with all three characters believing that they have been shot by an angry squirrel who manages to get a hold of Porky's hunting rifle. After Porky and the dog realize that they are unharmed, they attempt to give first aid to the apparently fatally wounded Bugs while the dog bawls in tune with the music. When Porky finally pries Bugs' clenched hands off the supposed gunshot wound in his chest, Bugs is revealed to have a baby blue bra underneath. Emitting a scream of modesty, Bugs covers the bra with his left hand and slaps Porky’s face with his right hand three times and caps the bra cups over the bewildered hunters' heads and then, wearing a tutu and pointe shoes, gracefully dances off into the distance, falling over at the music's climax.

Fudd returns briefly to introduce the second segment, Strauss' The Blue Danube waltz. Young Daffy Duck attempts to join the three cygnets (baby swans) who follow their mother swan, all gracefully paddling around in waltz time; the mother consistently violently rebuffs the "ugly duckling" because he looks and sounds so different from her own brood. Meanwhile, a large buzzard with a "hep cat" hairdo spots the troupe and goes "Out To Brunch" by swooping down and sprinkling salt and pepper on the cygnets. He plucks each out of the water (the last youngster is revealed to be fitted with a tiny outboard motor), then grabs Daffy, but immediately puts him back with a sign reading "Rejected 4F" (unfit for military service); much to the duck's annoyance. Upon realizing her children are gone, the mother swan faints and Daffy becomes shocked and tries to revive her. Upon seeing the Buzzard making off with the cygnets, Daffy gets angry and takes off to rescue them, on the aspect of a Curtiss P-40 fighter aircraft; and buzzes the Buzzard, who literally turns yellow, drops the cygnets (who parachute safely back to the water) and flees. Daffy stuns the Buzzard then hands him a drum of TNT which blows him sky high upon impact on the ground. The buzzard is last seen gliding towards heaven (via an attached balloon) in angel garb, strumming a harp. The cartoon ends with the grateful swan family and Daffy merrily quacking the Blue Danube as they glide across the water together. They wave goodbye to the audience as the cartoon ends.

Reception

Fantasia was marketed to highbrow music fans; the Looney Tunes staff responded by violating the ivory tower of classical music and concert hall culture. A Corny Concerto parodies Fantasia's Silly Symphonies-derived balletic approach to storytelling. Elmer Fudd stands in for Deems Taylor and in an anti-highbrow gag, his starched shirtfront keeps erupting from his shirt to hit him on the face.[7]

In 1994, A Corny Concerto was voted No. 47 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.[8]

Home media

The short is available on disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2 DVD set and also appears in the documentary Bugs Bunny: Superstar. It can also be found on The Golden Age of Looney Tunes Vol. 1 laserdisc, the Looney Tunes Collectors Edition: Musical Masterpieces VHS, and Looney Tunes Spotlight Collection: Volume 2.

Since most of this cartoon has fallen into public domain (with the exception of the brief quotation of “The Music Goes Round and Round”), it has made frequent appearances on many gray-market VHS and DVD cartoon releases.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "A Corny Concerto (1943): Cast". The Big Cartoon DataBase. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 Ohmart, Ben (2012). "Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices". BearManor Media.
  3. ↑ "Motion Picture Herald". Quigley Publishing Co. September 1943. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
  4. ↑ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 144. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
  5. ↑ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 124–126. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  6. ↑ "THE BOOTLEG FILES: A CORNY CONCERTO". Film Threat. 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2019-03-12.
  7. ↑ Goldmark (2002), p. 107-108
  8. ↑ "The 50 Greatest Cartoons — As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals – Movie List". MUBI. Retrieved 2019-03-12.
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