The Scarlet Pumpernickel

The Scarlet Pumpernickel
Title card
Directed byCharles M. Jones
Story byMichael Maltese[1]
Starring
Music byCarl Stalling
Animation by
Layouts byRobert Gribbroek
Backgrounds byPeter Alvarado
Color processTechnicolor
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • March 4, 1950 (1950-03-04)
Running time
7:02
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Scarlet Pumpernickel is a 1950 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese.[3] The cartoon was released on March 4, 1950, and stars Daffy Duck along with a number of other prominent Looney Tunes characters.[4] The title is a play on the 1905 novel The Scarlet Pimpernel.

In 1994 it was voted No. 31 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.[5]

Plot

Daffy Duck, tired of comedic roles, pitches a dramatic script called The Scarlet Pumpernickel to studio head J.L. In the story, the daring Scarlet Pumpernickel (played by Daffy) outsmarts the Lord High Chamberlain (Porky Pig) to rescue Lady Melissa (Melissa Duck) from having to marry the villainous Grand Duke (Sylvester the Cat).

When Daffy realizes that he has neglected to write an ending, he ad-libs a chaotic climax involving various natural disasters. J.L., still unimpressed, asks, "Is that all?"; Daffy, exhausted, declares that the story ends with the Scarlet Pumpernickel's comedic "suicide", as he produces a revolver and fires a shot through his director's cap before dropping to the floor. Still lying down, Daffy looks up at the audience and comments to them, "It's getting so you have to kill yourself to sell a story around here!" before the cartoon irises out.

Production notes

The Scarlet Pumpernickel is notable for boasting a large cast of Looney Tunes star characters, including Daffy, Porky, Sylvester, Melissa (who is named for the first time) and Elmer Fudd who all have starring roles, and Henery Hawk, and Mama Bear from Jones' Three Bears series who make non-speaking cameo appearances.

Mel Blanc voices Elmer Fudd, who serves as an innkeeper. While Elmer was originally voiced by Arthur Q. Bryan, Blanc imitated Bryan's voice for the character despite his reservations about impersonating another actor.[6]

Reception

Animation historian Greg Ford writes, "It's the 'real-life' Daffy, as seen in the cartoon's wraparound plot of the studio script meeting, that best clues us in to what separates this film from the spate of animated genre parodies currently being churned out. Most modern-day satires trade on anachronism, and the hero and the audience end up complicit in their smug superiority to the antiquated vehicle. But what's funny about The Scarlet Pumpernickel is the tremendous investment its hero puts into his costumed character, and the vast chasm that yawns between Daffy's inflated perception of himself and the highly flawed little black duck that he really is."[7]

Cast

Home media

VHS:

Laserdisc:

  • Looney Tunes: Curtain Calls

DVD:

  • Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1
  • The Essential Daffy Duck

DVD/Blu-Ray:

References

  1. ^ Beck, Jerry (1991). I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety. New York: Henry Holt and Co. p. 101. ISBN 0-8050-1644-9.
  2. ^ Ohmart, Ben (November 15, 2012). "Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices".
  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. 208. 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 June 6, 2020.
  5. ^ Beck, Jerry (ed.) (1994). The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals. Atlanta: Turner Publishing.
  6. ^ Barrier, Michael. Audio commentary for The Scarlet Pumpernickel on disc two of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1.
  7. ^ Beck, Jerry, ed. (2020). The 100 Greatest Looney Tunes Cartoons. Insight Editions. p. 167. ISBN 978-1-64722-137-9.
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