Skyscraper Caper
Encyclopedia
Skyscraper Caper is a 1968
animated cartoon short, starring Daffy Duck
and Speedy Gonzales
. It was the penultimate cartoon in the Daffy/Speedy series, and the only one where the two are never adversaries at any point in the cartoon.
and leaves his house, strolls past Speedy's lakeside house, then falls into the lake itself, which wakes him up. Speedy informs him that he has been sleepwalking, which worries Daffy since "a guy could get hurt that way." Speedy offers to stay up for the night in exchange for five pesos
, and promises that he will wake Daffy up if he starts sleepwalking again.
Back at Daffy's house, Speedy tells him that if he notices Daffy sleepwalking, he'll ring a bell in order to wake him up. Daffy goes to sleep, but Speedy has no intention of staying up for the whole night and ties a tripwire to the bedpost, also connecting it to the bell, so that if Daffy starts sleepwalking again the bell will wake up both Daffy and Speedy. Sure enough, Daffy begins sleepwalking and trips the bell, which wakes Speedy who then starts frantically ringing it himself to make it look like he was on guard. Afterwards, Daffy goes to sleep again, though not before Speedy makes him pay another five pesos for his continued services.
As dawn breaks, Daffy starts sleepwalking again, but this time he gets out of bed on the other side and leaves the house the other side of the bed, which fails to make the bell ring. He sleepwalks into a construction site, and ends up at the top of an under-construction skyscraper. In the meantime, Speedy finally wakes up and realizes that Daffy isn't there. Speedy then frantically leaves the house in pursuit. Using his super-speed, Speedy gets to the construction site, and gets to the top of the skyscraper just in time to prevent Daffy from falling down a hole in the girders. Daffy then nearly walks off the edge of the structure, but is woken up by the bell of an ice cream
salesman at street level. He still loses his balance though, and falls partway down the structure, getting left hanging on for life. Speedy lowers a noose
down to Daffy and threads it over his neck, then drops the other end down to Daffy and tells him to pull himself up with it. Daffy does so, nearly choking himself in the process, but manages to set off a jackhammer
when he gets back to the top of the structure and is thrown off it again. On his way down, Daffy manages to grab onto the minute hand of a clock built into the side of another building, but then the hour hand starts traveling around extremely fast, whacking Daffy on the head, then the clock explodes and throws him into another building, where he bounces off the canopies above its windows. He grabs onto one of the canopies, but it quickly breaks off and drops him onto some telegraph lines, which he in turn bounces off of.
Speedy manages to grab a wheelbarrow
, and catches Daffy before he hits the ground. Daffy passes out during his final fall, and Speedy quickly wheels him back home and drops him back into his bed, which results in Daffy being convinced that the whole thing was just a nightmare when he wakes up.
1968 in film
The year 1968 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 30 - The film The Lion in Winter, starring Katharine Hepburn, debuts.* November 1 - The MPAA's film rating system is introduced.-Top grossing films :- Awards :...
animated cartoon short, starring Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, often running the gamut between being the best friend and sometimes arch-rival of Bugs Bunny...
and Speedy Gonzales
Speedy Gonzales
Speedy Gonzales is an animated caricature of a mouse in the Warner Brothers Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He is portrayed as "The Fastest Mouse in all Mexico" with his major traits being the ability to run extremely fast and speaking with an exaggerated Mexican accent...
. It was the penultimate cartoon in the Daffy/Speedy series, and the only one where the two are never adversaries at any point in the cartoon.
Synopsis
One night, Daffy begins sleepwalkingSleepwalking
Sleepwalking, also known as somnambulism, is a sleep disorder belonging to the parasomnia family. Sleepwalkers arise from the slow wave sleep stage in a state of low consciousness and perform activities that are usually performed during a state of full consciousness...
and leaves his house, strolls past Speedy's lakeside house, then falls into the lake itself, which wakes him up. Speedy informs him that he has been sleepwalking, which worries Daffy since "a guy could get hurt that way." Speedy offers to stay up for the night in exchange for five pesos
Mexican peso
The peso is the currency of Mexico. Modern peso and dollar currencies have a common origin in the 15th–19th century Spanish dollar, most continuing to use its sign, "$". The Mexican peso is the 12th most traded currency in the world, the third most traded in the Americas, and by far the most...
, and promises that he will wake Daffy up if he starts sleepwalking again.
Back at Daffy's house, Speedy tells him that if he notices Daffy sleepwalking, he'll ring a bell in order to wake him up. Daffy goes to sleep, but Speedy has no intention of staying up for the whole night and ties a tripwire to the bedpost, also connecting it to the bell, so that if Daffy starts sleepwalking again the bell will wake up both Daffy and Speedy. Sure enough, Daffy begins sleepwalking and trips the bell, which wakes Speedy who then starts frantically ringing it himself to make it look like he was on guard. Afterwards, Daffy goes to sleep again, though not before Speedy makes him pay another five pesos for his continued services.
As dawn breaks, Daffy starts sleepwalking again, but this time he gets out of bed on the other side and leaves the house the other side of the bed, which fails to make the bell ring. He sleepwalks into a construction site, and ends up at the top of an under-construction skyscraper. In the meantime, Speedy finally wakes up and realizes that Daffy isn't there. Speedy then frantically leaves the house in pursuit. Using his super-speed, Speedy gets to the construction site, and gets to the top of the skyscraper just in time to prevent Daffy from falling down a hole in the girders. Daffy then nearly walks off the edge of the structure, but is woken up by the bell of an ice cream
Ice cream
Ice cream is a frozen dessert usually made from dairy products, such as milk and cream, and often combined with fruits or other ingredients and flavours. Most varieties contain sugar, although some are made with other sweeteners...
salesman at street level. He still loses his balance though, and falls partway down the structure, getting left hanging on for life. Speedy lowers a noose
Noose
A noose is a loop at the end of a rope in which the knot slides to make the loop collapsible. Knots used for making nooses include the running bowline, the tarbuck knot, and the slip knot.-Use in hanging:...
down to Daffy and threads it over his neck, then drops the other end down to Daffy and tells him to pull himself up with it. Daffy does so, nearly choking himself in the process, but manages to set off a jackhammer
Jackhammer
A jackhammer is a pneumatic tool that combines a hammer directly with a chisel that was invented by Charles Brady King. Hand-held jackhammers are typically powered by compressed air, but some use electric motors. Larger jackhammers, such as rig mounted hammers used on construction machinery, are...
when he gets back to the top of the structure and is thrown off it again. On his way down, Daffy manages to grab onto the minute hand of a clock built into the side of another building, but then the hour hand starts traveling around extremely fast, whacking Daffy on the head, then the clock explodes and throws him into another building, where he bounces off the canopies above its windows. He grabs onto one of the canopies, but it quickly breaks off and drops him onto some telegraph lines, which he in turn bounces off of.
Speedy manages to grab a wheelbarrow
Wheelbarrow
A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles to the rear, or by a sail to push the ancient wheelbarrow by wind. The term "wheelbarrow" is made of two words: "wheel" and "barrow." "Barrow" is a...
, and catches Daffy before he hits the ground. Daffy passes out during his final fall, and Speedy quickly wheels him back home and drops him back into his bed, which results in Daffy being convinced that the whole thing was just a nightmare when he wakes up.
Censorship
- On NBC's Daffy and Speedy Show and on Nickelodeon's Looney Tunes on Nickelodeon, the part where Speedy Gonzales uses a noose to rescue a sleepwalking Daffy after he's fallen off a girder (which catches around Daffy's neck) at a construction site is cut.