A Lecture on Camouflage

A Lecture on Camouflage is a 1944 American animated film directed by Chuck Jones. A Private Snafu cartoon short made for the troops during World War II.

A Lecture on Camouflage
Directed byChuck Jones
Produced byLeon Schlesinger (producer)
Dr. Seuss (supervising producer)
Written byDr. Seuss
StarringMel Blanc (as the voices of Private Snafu & Technical Fairy, First Class)
Narrated byMel Blanc (as the voice of Technical Fairy, First Class)
Music byCarl W. Stalling
Edited byTreg Brown
Release date
April 24, 1944
Running time
3 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot summary

Technical Fairy, First Class gives the troops "A Lecture On Camouflage" with the aid of Private Snafu. He points that modern camouflage, if used intelligently, is both an art and a science.[1]

The camera shifts from the Fairy to what seems to be a small boat on wheels, traveling down a road. A gunsight shaped like a swastika targets the boat. A direct hit reveals the boat to be actually a jeep, driven by Snafu. The soldier takes cover in the nearby woods, but the Fairy reminds him to cover his tracks. After doing so, it is time for Snafu to relax. He smokes under the shade of a tree. He is not alarmed when the tree asks for a light, speaking in a German accent. The Fairy has to remind him that the enemy can use camouflage too.[1]

Snafu sneaks away, but he is being followed by enemy soldiers posing as a tree, a tree stump, and a boulder. He runs to escape and ends up at the top of an enemy cannon. He is sent flying and then seeks shelter in the shade of another tree. The effect of the shifting sun tricks him into chasing the shadow around the tree. Next, a confused Snafu seeks shelter under another shadow. It turns out to be the shadow of a German observation balloon which drops a bomb on Snafu. This concludes his story.[1]

The camera shifts back to the Fairy, who points that to fool the enemy, one must blend in with the natural surroundings. He demonstrates by joining two topless mermaids.[1]

Cast
  • Mel Blanc as Technical Fairy - First Class / German Soldier / German General

Soundtrack

Analysis

The gag with the enemy soldier disguised as a tree can be traced back to Shoulder Arms (1918). It was also used in Commando Duck (1944).[1]

Sources
  • Shull, Michael S.; Wilt, David E. (2004), "Private Snafu Cartoons", Doing Their Bit: Wartime American Animated Short Films, 1939-1945, McFarland & Company, ISBN 978-0786481699

See also

References
  1. Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 193-194


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