Run, Run, Sweet Road Runner
Encyclopedia
Run, Run Sweet Roadrunner is an animated cartoon
in the Merrie Melodies
series released by Warner Bros.
. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner
and was directed and written by Rudy Larriva
for release in 1965
.
It was the first of the Road Runner Cartoons subcontracted to Format Films
, and the only one which composer William Lava
was able to properly score. (The others had to use a set of stock musical cues, due to extremely low budgets).
1. We then see a shot of Coyote sharpening the spikes on a metal grate. He covers it up with a sheet and raises it up using a pulley. He then climbs down from the top of a rock, and it cuts to Coyote hammering signs into the ground. One says FREE BIRD SEED—200 YARDS, another says BIRD SEED LIKE MOTHER USED TO SERVE—100 YARDS and a third says EAT IN THE SHADE, 20 DEGREES COOLER--followed by Coyote pouring bird-seed into a little bowl with a sign that says FREE BIRD SEED that is under the large sharp spiked grate and disguises it as a shade canopy. He watches from the top of his rock with a pair of binoculars as Roadrunner runs to the bowl of bird seed, gobbles it up in two seconds, and runs off. Coyote gets a stunned look on his face and climbs down to fill the bowl with more bird seed. Unfortunately, the hot sun creates a glare on the lenses of the binoculars he left on top of the rock and it burns the rope holding up the shade canopy. As the Coyote pours more seed into the bowl, he hears creaking, stands up to listen, and slowly looks up in distress just as the canopy falls right on top of him. The sheet from the spiked metal grate makes him look like a banana, in which he starts to "peel." He then gets an idea to create a female road runner.
2. The next scene, we see an ACME LIGHTNING ROD box. Coyote sticks the rod in the ground and puts the female road runner's "body" on the middle of the stick. He then sticks on blue hair and a beak and paints eyes on it. Coyote sticks the female "road runner" on the road and uses a Roadrunner "call," hides behind a rock and holds an axe while he waits for Roadrunner to run by to chop him with the axe. He hears the call and runs right by the female "Roadrunner" as he plants a kiss on it. Coyote misses and chops the ground, and this results in the head from the female roadrunner flying off and hitting Coyote on the head.
3. Coyote later walks behind a cliff and emerges wearing Indian tribal clothes. He looks up at the sky and starts doing a rain dance. It soon starts to rain and Coyote looks up with delight. He does another dance and this time, a bolt of lightning zaps the female road runner, just as Coyote runs out of the way. He then uses the Roadrunner call and the real Roadrunner is seen running towards Coyote's spot. Wile E. hides behind the cliff and then the Roadrunner stops when he sees the female Roadrunner. He tiptoes towards her and leans in close to her. Wile E. then frenetically beats his drum, then unfurls an umbrella, and there's another lightning bolt, but unfortunately it misses the Road runner and his "girlfriend" and hits Coyote's umbrella. Burnt to a crisp, he stands there, still holding his (burnt out) umbrella.
Animated cartoon
An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot...
in the Merrie Melodies
Merrie Melodies
Merrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures between 1931 and 1969.Originally produced by Harman-Ising Pictures, Merrie Melodies were produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1933 to 1944. Schlesinger sold his studio to Warner Bros. in 1944,...
series released by Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
. It features Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner
Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner
Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner are a duo of cartoon characters from a series of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons. The characters were created by animation director Chuck Jones in 1948 for Warner Bros., while the template for their adventures was the work of writer Michael Maltese...
and was directed and written by Rudy Larriva
Rudy Larriva
Rudolph "Rudy" Larriva was an American animator and director from the 1940s to the 1980s.Born in El Paso, Texas, Larriva worked at a number of animation studios, including Format Films, Filmation, Walt Disney Productions, but is best known for his work at Warner Bros...
for release in 1965
1965 in film
The year 1965 in film involved some significant events, with The Sound of Music topping the U.S. box office.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:...
.
It was the first of the Road Runner Cartoons subcontracted to Format Films
Format Films
Format Films was a television animation studio which was founded by Herbert Klynn in 1959 with Jules Engel as vice president, Herb McIntosh and Joseph Mugnaini. It was most active during the 1960s, producing episodes of The Alvin Show, Popeye, and The Lone Ranger...
, and the only one which composer William Lava
William Lava
William "Bill" B. Lava was a musical composer and arranger who worked on the Warner Bros.' Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies animated cartoons from 1962 onwards, replacing the deceased Milt Franklyn. Lava's music was very different from that of Franklyn and previous composer Carl Stalling...
was able to properly score. (The others had to use a set of stock musical cues, due to extremely low budgets).
Plot
Introduction: The short starts off with the Coyote waiting behind a rock for the Road Runner to zoom by. Coyote looks at the camera and flutters his eyebrows as Road Runner races by. Coyote starts to chase him to the edge of a cliff. Road Runner produces a sign that says HOLD IT. There are hopscotch marks right at the end of the cliff, which is covered by a cloud. After Roadrunner hopscotches, Coyote takes his turn. But the cloud drifts away and the edge of the cliff breaks. Coyote plummets to the canyon bottom. The battered Coyote looks up at the rim, which is seen from his point of view. Roadrunner is heard going "beep beep" and then zooming off.1. We then see a shot of Coyote sharpening the spikes on a metal grate. He covers it up with a sheet and raises it up using a pulley. He then climbs down from the top of a rock, and it cuts to Coyote hammering signs into the ground. One says FREE BIRD SEED—200 YARDS, another says BIRD SEED LIKE MOTHER USED TO SERVE—100 YARDS and a third says EAT IN THE SHADE, 20 DEGREES COOLER--followed by Coyote pouring bird-seed into a little bowl with a sign that says FREE BIRD SEED that is under the large sharp spiked grate and disguises it as a shade canopy. He watches from the top of his rock with a pair of binoculars as Roadrunner runs to the bowl of bird seed, gobbles it up in two seconds, and runs off. Coyote gets a stunned look on his face and climbs down to fill the bowl with more bird seed. Unfortunately, the hot sun creates a glare on the lenses of the binoculars he left on top of the rock and it burns the rope holding up the shade canopy. As the Coyote pours more seed into the bowl, he hears creaking, stands up to listen, and slowly looks up in distress just as the canopy falls right on top of him. The sheet from the spiked metal grate makes him look like a banana, in which he starts to "peel." He then gets an idea to create a female road runner.
2. The next scene, we see an ACME LIGHTNING ROD box. Coyote sticks the rod in the ground and puts the female road runner's "body" on the middle of the stick. He then sticks on blue hair and a beak and paints eyes on it. Coyote sticks the female "road runner" on the road and uses a Roadrunner "call," hides behind a rock and holds an axe while he waits for Roadrunner to run by to chop him with the axe. He hears the call and runs right by the female "Roadrunner" as he plants a kiss on it. Coyote misses and chops the ground, and this results in the head from the female roadrunner flying off and hitting Coyote on the head.
3. Coyote later walks behind a cliff and emerges wearing Indian tribal clothes. He looks up at the sky and starts doing a rain dance. It soon starts to rain and Coyote looks up with delight. He does another dance and this time, a bolt of lightning zaps the female road runner, just as Coyote runs out of the way. He then uses the Roadrunner call and the real Roadrunner is seen running towards Coyote's spot. Wile E. hides behind the cliff and then the Roadrunner stops when he sees the female Roadrunner. He tiptoes towards her and leans in close to her. Wile E. then frenetically beats his drum, then unfurls an umbrella, and there's another lightning bolt, but unfortunately it misses the Road runner and his "girlfriend" and hits Coyote's umbrella. Burnt to a crisp, he stands there, still holding his (burnt out) umbrella.