The Booze Hangs High
Encyclopedia
The Booze Hangs High released in 1930, is the fourth title in the Looney Tunes
series and features Bosko
, Warner Bros.
' first cartoon
character.
shot of a cow's rear end. She moos as she walks away, tail and udders swaying in tune to Turkey in the Straw
. Bosko
appears and does a Mexican
style dance with the cow. At one point, the cow's "pants" drop, revealing polka-dotted underwear. Bosko points and laughs, at which the cow pulls her pants back on and walks off in a huff—with her nose up and tail held erect.
Next, Bosko laughs heartily at a horse
and the horse laughs back. He then climbs onto the horse carriage and uses a whip to play the horse's tail like a violin
. He tunes the "horse" by twisting his ear. The horse seems to enjoy the music and dances in an odd fashion. He skates along, floats a few feet above the ground and makes swishing movements, with his hoofs, as if mimicking a mop. Bosko then takes a rake
and starts playing it like a fiddle
, as the horse begins trotting on two legs.
The scene cuts to three ducklings and their mother. Whilst walking in single file, they start bouncing on their rears in tune to the music. The mother duck starts to sway and the ducklings follow her lead. One of the ducklings, crosses its legs and whispers something in the mother duck's ear. She undoes a flap on his rear, as if he was wearing pants, and motions him off screen, presumably to use the loo
. When he returns, she replaces the flap and they all jump into a pond
.
The scene moves back to Bosko and the horse. It seems to be an exact repeat of the earlier dance routine, with Bosko playing the horse's tail while the horse goes through his unique dance moves. Bosko eventually slides down the horse's neck and goes to feed the pigs, who seem to be squealing in hunger. He tilts a trash can into their trough
, and they eat greedily. One of the piglets finds a bottle of booze
and tries to loosen the cork. Eventually, he manages to open it using the other piglet's tail as a corkscrew
. Bubbles begin to float out, and the piglets pop them merrily, making xylophone
-like sounds that play How dry I am. They soon get drunk. Their father comes over and starts drinking from the bottle too. He laughs with a deep bass guffaw and sings One Little Drink, using nonsense syllables. He gestures expressively and flings the bottle away which shatters against Bosko's head.
Bosko becomes soaked in booze and inebriated. He walks over to the pigs and they sing Sweet Adeline together, barbershop style
. The father pig launches into One Little Drink again, but the effort causes him to belch up a corn cob. Looking embarrassed, he uses his belly button like a knob to open the door to his stomach and puts the cob back inside. He starts to sing again and Bosko helps him reach for the final low note by pulling his tail, which deflates him temporarily.
Bosko and the pigs dance some more until the end credits.
(a Mickey Mouse
cartoon) and Song of the Flame (a musical operetta film
). The latter features a song titled The Goose Hangs High from which this short gets its name.
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
series and features Bosko
Bosko
Bosko is an animated cartoon character created by animators Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising. Bosko is the first recurring character in Leon Schlesinger's cartoon series, and is the star of over three dozen Looney Tunes shorts released by Warner Bros...
, 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,...
' first cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
character.
Plot
The scene opens with a close upClose up
A close-up is tightly framed image of a person or an object.Close-Up or Close Up may refer to:- Film and television :*Close Up, two different New Zealand current affairs programmes...
shot of a cow's rear end. She moos as she walks away, tail and udders swaying in tune to Turkey in the Straw
Turkey in the Straw
"Turkey in the Straw" is a well-known American folk song dating from the early 19th century.The song's tune was first popularized in the late 1820s and early 1830s by blackface performers, notably George Washington Dixon, Bob Farrell and George Nichols. Another song, "Zip Coon", was sung to the...
. Bosko
Bosko
Bosko is an animated cartoon character created by animators Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising. Bosko is the first recurring character in Leon Schlesinger's cartoon series, and is the star of over three dozen Looney Tunes shorts released by Warner Bros...
appears and does a Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
style dance with the cow. At one point, the cow's "pants" drop, revealing polka-dotted underwear. Bosko points and laughs, at which the cow pulls her pants back on and walks off in a huff—with her nose up and tail held erect.
Next, Bosko laughs heartily at a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
and the horse laughs back. He then climbs onto the horse carriage and uses a whip to play the horse's tail like a violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
. He tunes the "horse" by twisting his ear. The horse seems to enjoy the music and dances in an odd fashion. He skates along, floats a few feet above the ground and makes swishing movements, with his hoofs, as if mimicking a mop. Bosko then takes a rake
Rake (tool)
A rake is a broom for outside; an horticultural implement consisting of a toothed bar fixed transversely to a handle, and used to collect leaves, hay, grass, etc., and, in gardening, for loosening the soil, light weeding and levelling, removing dead grass from...
and starts playing it like a fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, as the horse begins trotting on two legs.
The scene cuts to three ducklings and their mother. Whilst walking in single file, they start bouncing on their rears in tune to the music. The mother duck starts to sway and the ducklings follow her lead. One of the ducklings, crosses its legs and whispers something in the mother duck's ear. She undoes a flap on his rear, as if he was wearing pants, and motions him off screen, presumably to use the loo
Loo
- Painting :* Charles-Amédée-Philippe van Loo , French painter of allegorical scenes and portraits* Charles-André van Loo , French subject painter* Jean-Baptiste van Loo , French subject and portrait painter...
. When he returns, she replaces the flap and they all jump into a pond
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
.
The scene moves back to Bosko and the horse. It seems to be an exact repeat of the earlier dance routine, with Bosko playing the horse's tail while the horse goes through his unique dance moves. Bosko eventually slides down the horse's neck and goes to feed the pigs, who seem to be squealing in hunger. He tilts a trash can into their trough
Trough
Trough may refer to:* Trough , the lowest turning point of a business cycle* Trough or manger, a container for animal feed* Watering trough, a receptacle of drinking water for domestic and non-domestic livestock...
, and they eat greedily. One of the piglets finds a bottle of booze
Booze
Booze is an informal term for an alcoholic beverage. It can also refer to:Places*Booze, North Yorkshire, an English hamletPeople*Bea Booze , American jazz singer*Tyrone Booze , American boxer...
and tries to loosen the cork. Eventually, he manages to open it using the other piglet's tail as a corkscrew
Corkscrew
A corkscrew is a kitchen tool for drawing stopping corks from wine bottles. Generally, a corkscrew consists of a pointed metallic helix attached to a handle. The user grips the handle and screws the metal point into the cork, until the helix is firmly embedded, then a vertical pull on the...
. Bubbles begin to float out, and the piglets pop them merrily, making xylophone
Xylophone
The xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets...
-like sounds that play How dry I am. They soon get drunk. Their father comes over and starts drinking from the bottle too. He laughs with a deep bass guffaw and sings One Little Drink, using nonsense syllables. He gestures expressively and flings the bottle away which shatters against Bosko's head.
Bosko becomes soaked in booze and inebriated. He walks over to the pigs and they sing Sweet Adeline together, barbershop style
Barbershop music
Barbershop vocal harmony, as codified during the barbershop revival era , is a style of a cappella, or unaccompanied vocal music characterized by consonant four-part chords for every melody note in a predominantly homophonic texture...
. The father pig launches into One Little Drink again, but the effort causes him to belch up a corn cob. Looking embarrassed, he uses his belly button like a knob to open the door to his stomach and puts the cob back inside. He starts to sing again and Bosko helps him reach for the final low note by pulling his tail, which deflates him temporarily.
Bosko and the pigs dance some more until the end credits.
Censorship
- When this cartoon aired on Nickelodeon, the part where the father pig regurgitates a corncob, flicks off the one kernel that remains on it, and puts it back into his stomach through a trapdoor was cut.
Other references
This cartoon references Plane CrazyPlane Crazy
Plane Crazy is an American animated short film directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. The cartoon, produced in 1928 by The Walt Disney Studio, was the first to feature the character Mickey Mouse. It was made as a silent film and given a test screening to a theater audience on May 15, 1928, but...
(a Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
cartoon) and Song of the Flame (a musical operetta film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
). The latter features a song titled The Goose Hangs High from which this short gets its name.
External links
- The Booze Hangs High at the Big Cartoon DatabaseBig Cartoon DataBaseThe Big Cartoon DataBase is an online database of information about animated cartoons, animated feature films, animated television shows and cartoon shorts....