A Gander at Mother Goose is a 1940 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Tex Avery and written by Dave Monahan.[2] The short was released on May 25, 1940.[3]
| A Gander at Mother Goose | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Fred Avery |
| Story by | Dave Monahan |
| Produced by | Leon Schlesinger |
| Starring | Mel Blanc Sara Berner Margaret Hill-Talbot[1] |
| Narrated by | Robert C. Bruce |
| Music by | Carl W. Stalling |
| Animation by | Charles McKimson |
| Backgrounds by | John Didrik Johnsen |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 6:20 |
| Language | English |
Plot
editThe short film is a series of visual gag cartoons intertwined with classic nursery rhymes, narrated by Robert C. Bruce.
- Mary, Mary Quite Contrary (portrayed by Katharine Hepburn) complains about her polluted garden.
- Humpty Dumpty falls off the wall, revealing his exposed buttocks when he stands up.
- Jack and Jill, portrayed as teen sweethearts, ditch fetching water for romantic escapades.
- Little Miss Muffet scares off the spider with her unattractive appearance.
- The Three Little Pigs thwart the Big Bad Wolf with a bottle of "Histerine."
- The Parade of Wooden Soldiers turns out to be sloppy and wobbly marchers.
- A dog in Star Light, Star Bright wishes for a tree.
- Jack Be Nimble boasts about jumping over a candlestick, only to reveal his burned butt.
- The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe struggles while her husband relaxes.
- Little Hiawatha shoots an arrow, which is returned by an eagle stuck in its tail feather.
- The Night Before Christmas depicts two mice stirring, with one whispering "Merry Christmas" and the other angrily shushing.
Home Media
edit- Laserdisc - The Golden Age of Looney Tunes: Volume 2, Side 7
- DVD - Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 5, Disc 2 (with original titles)
- Streaming - HBO Max (with original tiles)
References
edit- ^ Scott, Keith (3 October 2022). Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, Vol. 2. BearManor Media. p. 82.
- ^ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 103. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
- ^ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 104–106. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.