Balloon Land
Balloon Land, also known as The Pincushion Man, is a 1935 animated short film produced by Ub Iwerks as part of the ComiColor Cartoons series. The cartoon is about a place called Balloon Land, whose residents (including caricatures of popular entertainment figures such as Laurel and Hardy and Charlie Chaplin) are made entirely out of balloons. The villain in the cartoon is the Pincushion Man, a character who walks around Balloon Land popping the inhabitants with pins.
| Balloon Land | |
|---|---|
 Balloon Land lobby card. | |
| Directed by | Ub Iwerks |
| Produced by | Ub Iwerks |
| Starring | Billy Bletcher as the Pincushion Man (uncredited) |
| Music by | Carl Stalling |
| Color process | Cinecolor |
| Distributed by | Celebrity Productions |
Release date | September 30, 1935 |
Running time | 7 minutes |
| Language | English |
Plot
The cartoon starts with balloon people who make two balloon kids, a boy and a girl. The kids walk into a balloon forest. A tree scares them. We then see the Pincushion Man popping balloon rocks and trees. The two kids see the Pincushion Man and escape to sound the alarm. Balloon people run around and the kids run to the mayor's office, who says "HOLY SMOKES!". Balloon soldiers are made and try their best, but the villain pops some of them. He then pops a balloon caterpillar before the soldiers defeat him with balls of gum, rolling him off a precipice and sending him falling to his death. With the Pincushion Man gone, the two celebrate.
Notable appearances
- Several scenes from "Balloon Land" are shown during the film The Devil’s Gift which was later reedited into another film Merlin's Shop of Mystical Wonders.
- A portion of it was shown on an episode of Pee-Wee's Playhouse, and it was featured in the 1981 HBO special The Pee-Wee Herman Show.
- The cartoon is also featured in the live revival of Pee-Wee's 2010 stage show at Los Angeles' Club Nokia theater. It is introduced during the first act break by the King of Cartoons.
- Parts of "Balloon Land" are shown in the Shining Time Station music videos: "What Am I Afraid Of?" from the episode: "Scare Dares", and "Bad Guy" from the episode: "Bully for Mr. Conductor".
- In honor to celebrate the 50 greatest shorts of all time, this short was nominated for The 50 Greatest Cartoons.