Symphony in Slang
Encyclopedia
"Symphony in Slang" is a 1951 cartoon short directed by Tex Avery
, written by Rich Hogan and released by MGM. Minimalist and abstract in style (many of the "gags" are created either with single, still frames or limited animation
), it tells the story of a man John Brown, who finds himself at the Pearly Gates
explaining the story of his life to a bewildered Saint Peter
and Noah Webster
using slang of that era. The majority of the short is made up of sight gags based on Peter and Webster's imagined, literal understandings of such phrases as "I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth" and "Outside it was raining cats and dogs."
Tex Avery
Frederick Bean "Fred/Tex" Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, voice actor and director, famous for producing animated cartoons during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He did his most significant work for the Warner Bros...
, written by Rich Hogan and released by MGM. Minimalist and abstract in style (many of the "gags" are created either with single, still frames or limited animation
Limited animation
Limited animation is a process of making animated cartoons that does not redraw entire frames but variably reuses common parts between frames. One of its major trademarks is the stylized design in all forms and shapes, which in the early days was referred to as modern design...
), it tells the story of a man John Brown, who finds himself at the Pearly Gates
Pearly gates
The pearly gates is an informal name for the gateway to Heaven according to some Christian denominations. It is inspired by the description of the New Jerusalem in Book of...
explaining the story of his life to a bewildered Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
and Noah Webster
Noah Webster
Noah Webster was an American educator, lexicographer, textbook pioneer, English spelling reformer, political writer, editor, and prolific author...
using slang of that era. The majority of the short is made up of sight gags based on Peter and Webster's imagined, literal understandings of such phrases as "I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth" and "Outside it was raining cats and dogs."