The Diet (cartoon)
Encyclopedia
The Diet is a 1963 animated short from King Features Syndicate
that stars Beetle Bailey
.
blowing the chow music and every single major character running for chow. Sgt. Snorkel and Otto
run right past them all and are the first in line. Once they get their food, they quickly wolf it down.
During the rest of that day, signs of Sarge gaining weight start to show; from buttons on his uniform popping and his belt breaking, to a scale going haywire and breaking, to him breaking his mirror and his bunk. Due to this and the ensuing laughter from the rest of the platoon, he decides to go on a diet.
He buys a diet book from the PX
which has three simple rules:
When Otto seems to smile over possibly getting more food, Sarge points out one more thing in the book:
The chow call goes and, like trained Pavlov
dogs, he and Otto run to the mess hall, but before he digs in, he remembers the three rules. He also tells Otto, "When I don't eat, you don't eat." to remind him of the other rule. He also sees the rest of the platoon about to dig in, and says, "And when WE don't eat, NOBODY eats!" then takes everyone's food away, even General Halftrack's.
In ensuing nights, Sarge and Otto end up having a dream where they sleepwalk
to the mess hall and think Cookie is serving them chow, then proceed to eat the imaginary food at the table. While this goes on, Cookie explains to the rest of the platoon that this has been going on for a week, to which Beetle gets an idea.
The next night, Sarge and Otto have the same dream, but this time Cookie is really there and serves them real food. Just as they're about to finish their portions, the rest of the platoon surprises them awake. Sarge is not angry about breaking his and Otto's diet, but when Beetle says they're sticking to their diet, Sarge tells them they break their diet when he breaks his, and demands they all get fed.
King Features Syndicate
King Features Syndicate, a print syndication company owned by The Hearst Corporation, distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, puzzles and games to nearly 5000 newspapers worldwide...
that stars Beetle Bailey
Beetle Bailey
Beetle Bailey is an American comic strip set in a fictional United States Army military post, created by cartoonist Mort Walker. It is among the oldest comic strips still being produced by the original creator...
.
The plot
The short is about Sergeant Snorkel's attempt to diet. It starts with a bugle boyBugle Boy
Bugle Boy is a brand of pants popular in the 1980s founded by Dr. William Mow in 1977. It declared bankruptcy in 2001.William Mow was born in Hang-Chow, China, and later moved with his family to the United States. He graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1959 and then earned a Ph.D....
blowing the chow music and every single major character running for chow. Sgt. Snorkel and Otto
Otto
Otto is a given name of Germanic origin meaning wealthy.-Given name:*Otto , mayor of the palace of Austrasia briefly in the mid-seventh century*Otto I, Duke of Saxony*the Ottonian dynasty...
run right past them all and are the first in line. Once they get their food, they quickly wolf it down.
During the rest of that day, signs of Sarge gaining weight start to show; from buttons on his uniform popping and his belt breaking, to a scale going haywire and breaking, to him breaking his mirror and his bunk. Due to this and the ensuing laughter from the rest of the platoon, he decides to go on a diet.
He buys a diet book from the PX
Base exchange
A Base Exchange is a type of retail store operating on United States military installations worldwide...
which has three simple rules:
- Rule 1: Don't eat.
- Rule 2: Don't eat.
- Rule 3: When not eating...don't eat.
When Otto seems to smile over possibly getting more food, Sarge points out one more thing in the book:
- ...and that goes for your DOG too.
The chow call goes and, like trained Pavlov
Pavlov
-People:*Pavlov *Ivan Pavlov, a psychologist famous for his experiment in classical conditioning.-Places:*in the Czech Republic:**Pavlov **Pavlov **Pavlov **Pavlov...
dogs, he and Otto run to the mess hall, but before he digs in, he remembers the three rules. He also tells Otto, "When I don't eat, you don't eat." to remind him of the other rule. He also sees the rest of the platoon about to dig in, and says, "And when WE don't eat, NOBODY eats!" then takes everyone's food away, even General Halftrack's.
In ensuing nights, Sarge and Otto end up having a dream where they sleepwalk
Sleepwalking
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...
to the mess hall and think Cookie is serving them chow, then proceed to eat the imaginary food at the table. While this goes on, Cookie explains to the rest of the platoon that this has been going on for a week, to which Beetle gets an idea.
The next night, Sarge and Otto have the same dream, but this time Cookie is really there and serves them real food. Just as they're about to finish their portions, the rest of the platoon surprises them awake. Sarge is not angry about breaking his and Otto's diet, but when Beetle says they're sticking to their diet, Sarge tells them they break their diet when he breaks his, and demands they all get fed.