Tweety and the Beanstalk
Tweety and the Beanstalk is a 1957 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies directed by Friz Freleng. The voices were performed by Mel Blanc and June Foray (uncredited).[2] The short was released on May 16, 1957, and stars Tweety and Sylvester the Cat.[3]
| Tweety and the Beanstalk | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Friz Freleng |
| Produced by | Edward Selzer |
| Starring | Mel Blanc June Foray |
| Music by | Milt Franklyn |
| Animation by | Gerry Chiniquy Virgil Ross Arthur Davis Hawley Pratt (Layout Artist) Irv Wyner (Background Artist) (uncredited)[1] |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release date | May 16, 1957 |
Running time | 6 mins |
| Language | English |
The short is the third Warner Bros. cartoon based on the fairy tale "Jack and the Beanstalk".
Plot
The story begins with a farm mother scolding Jack for trading his cow for five seemingly worthless beans. The beans are thrown out a window and land under Sylvester's cat bed while the lazy cat is taking a "catnap". Instantly, the beans sprout into a giant beanstalk that reaches into the heavens, taking the still-sleeping Sylvester with it. The puddy tat awakens and is startled at how everything seemingly grew overnight. Eventually, he walks inside a castle and instantly spots a giant birdcage (with a giant Tweety singing inside). Sylvester opens the cage and chases what he says are "acres and acres of Tweety Bird", and Tweety responds, "I tawt I taw an itty bitty puddy tat.". However, Tweety's owner comes into the room; after Sylvester hides, the giant puts Tweety back in his cage and hangs it on a high ceiling; that way, he will not get into any mischief while he is gone.
Sylvester makes several attempts to get at Tweety, having to overcome both the cage being on the ceiling and dodging a giant bulldog who is trying to chase the cat away. Each of Sylvester's attempts to get the bird ends unsuccessfully; several times, he is barely able to get away from the bulldog. At one point, he encounters a real giant mouse, only to have both of them get scared of each other and run away in opposite directions.
Eventually, Sylvester's last attempt proves to be successful, but before he can make a clean getaway with Tweety, the giant returns and, sensing an intruder in his home, remarks (with a combination of his line and Tweety's) "Fee, fi, fo, fat! I tawt I taw a puddy tat!" Sylvester flees the castle without Tweety and scurries down the beanstalk with the giant in chase. Sylvester manages to reach the ground and chops down the beanstalk with an axe. The giant falls to the ground very noisily, the impact crushing Sylvester and everything in sight being wrecked. This causes him to be hurled through the Earth to China, where he meets with a stereotypical Chinese Tweety, who remarks (in a Chinese accent) his English counterpart's signature lines ("Oh, I tawt I taw dishonorable puddy tat.") in addition to speaking mock Chinese.
Music
- Like the Merrie Melodies Blue Ribbon reissue, this cartoon is a Merrie Melodies short, but it uses the Looney Tunes opening and closing theme "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down".
References
- Beck, Jerry (1991). I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: Fifty Years of Sylvester and Tweety. New York: Henry Holt and Co. p. 137. ISBN 0-8050-1644-9.
- Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 297. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
- Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 151–152. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
