Tuesday, August 28, 2007

The Beach Nut

Here's another excellent Shamus Culhane Lantz cartoon breakdown, courtesy of Mark Mayerson. This may be the perfect Woody Woodpecker cartoon, gaining many points for its strong story and characterization (this short was the first appearance of Wally Walrus, and the Swedish accent is a stroke of genius) and a lacking of sloppy animation that was typical of early 40s Lantz.

Dick Lundy seems to have a cartoony style in his Lantz animation, which I find surprising, considering he just came from Disney's, and that his own films are revered for their slickness. Emery Hawkins' scenes show his usual sense of action phrasing and great subtlety, with Woody shaking involuntarily as Wally pounds on the table. Don Williams' animation of Wally walking into the tent is absolutely hilarious. Verne Harding's scene of Woody appearing in Wally's trunks is also a very well-timed piece.


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