The 100 Greatest Cartoons of All Times : Post 1

Starting from today , I'm going to open a new kind of posts . There will be the usual posts about rare , virtually unfindable cartoons as well as my " eye on modern cartoons and TV animated series " ( such as Spumco cartoons ). There will also be reviews on cartoons and on dvds .
BUT , starting from today , there will also be a series of posts devoted to them classic theatrical cartoons which I presume being the greates ones ever made . I compiled a list of 100 titles , which is obviously subject to changes . Anyway , when a cartoon will be posted here under the category " The 100 Greatest Cartoons of All Time " , it will mean that it have found his definitive place in my list .

The cartoons will be posted with no particular order ( this means that " Kitty Kornered " is neither the first or the last of my list , it is only one of the animated shorts that I consider among the 100 greatest cartoons ).

I will also appreciate all your opinion and thoughts about these cartoons : if you do not consider them some of the best cartoons ever made or if you agree with my choices , your comments , opinion , questions . Any post will be appreciated .

Now , let's talk about " Kitty Kornered " .

As a director , Clampett reached his highest point in 1946 , a year in which he directed some all-time classics like " Book Revue " , " The Great Piggy Bank Robbery " and " Kitty Kornered " .

Try to imagine what would have been a Tweety-Sylvster cartoon directed by Clampett ! As pointed before , Tweety , in Clampett 's hands , was a wild and energetic character , same thing for Sylvester . However , while Tweety was a Clampett's creation , Sylvester was created the year before by Freleng ( in the AAN " Life with Feathers " ) . Clampett made some little changes to the character ' s visual aspect ( Sylvester's clownesque red nose turned black ) and some great changes to the character 's personality , developing the feline into another of the incredibly wild Clampettian characters .

But " Kitty Kornered " , dominated by the presence of Sylvester and his feline friends , is essentially a Porky Pig cartoon . The porcine actor losed a considerable part of popularity among both audience and WB staff due to the explosion of Daffy Duck and , expecially , of Bugs Bunny . Anyway , both Clampett and Tashlin continued to direct many cartoons in the Forties starring Porky , which remained a friendly figure around whom a great cartoon can easily be built ( the same thing was valid for other stars like Mickey Mouse and Andy Panda that , like Porky , losed in the 40s much of their appeal with audiences in favor of more popular characters , namely Donald Duck and Woody Woodpecker ) .

In this cartoon , Porky is the unlucky owner of a bunch of wacky cats that refuse to spend the night outside the house . In a marvellous sequence Porky tries to put the cats out and they run wildly trought the house , hiding in every place , including the mousehole and even the fish bowl ( " Henry , there's somebody in the house " ) . This great sequence is also highlighted by great takes and phisical distortions , trademarks of Clampett's unit .

After trying to not be kicked out of the house , the cats try everything in their power to go out , when Porky asks the help of his dog Lassie ( actually is just a shadow trick made possible by Porky's ability ) . Out in the cold , Sylvester plans a way to conquer the house again . To the tune of " Angel in Disguise " the cats disguise themselves as aliens ( looking not unlike the gremlin in another Clampett short , "Falling Hare ") and induce Porky to believe that Martians are landing on Earth . This charming moment is actually a spoof of Orson Welles' famous radio trick that terrorized the nation not much time before this cartoon was made .

Then , dressed a là Teddy Roosevelt ( " Chaaargee ! " ) , they finally have the house all for themselves . In fact , at the end of the cartoon , is Porky to be out in the cold !

Why I consider this cartoon one of the greatest ever made ? The answer is a multiple one . First of all , it stars one of my favorite ham actor , the stuttering pig of our hearts . Also , as in the majority of the best cartoons , the plot is to a minimum , but the gags are in an incredible number and are also brilliantly executed . This animated short features also animation at his best ( Clampett's unit was the best one working at WB troughout the 40s . ) , work of talented guys like Rod Scribner , and marvellous great voice characterizations by the inimitable Mel Blanc .

This cartoon is available , fully restored , on the " Looney Tunes Golden Collection " volume two . If you still have not bought that set , do yourself a favor and buy it . You'll not only find this masterpiece but a considerable number of other classic , which in the future will be objects of posts under " The 100 Greatest Cartoons of All Times " category in this blog .