Cuckoo clock in culture
Encyclopedia
The cuckoo clock
, more than any other kind of timepiece, has often featured in literature, music, cinema, television, etc., in the Western culture
, as a metaphor
or allegory
of innocence, childhood, old age, past, fun, mental disorder, etc. It has apparently been viewed more as a symbol or a toy -a folksy musical apparatus with animated figures- fascinating and a bit mysterious rather than as a serious timekeeper.
Although the cuckoo clock functions as a symbol of Switzerland
and Swissness, in fact it only has a slim connection with that country in terms of production. Its real home is the Black Forest
of Germany.
), is being built the monumental 10.000 Year Clock based upon an idea of Daniel Hillis who in 1995 expressed as follows: "I want to build a clock that ticks once a year. The century hand advances once every 100 years, and the cuckoo comes out on the millennium. I want the cuckoo to come out every millennium for the next 10,000 years." Funded by Jeff Bezos
, it is designed to run for ten millennia with minimal maintenance and interruption.
The Discovey Channel TV series Big!
, consisted of a team of craftspeople, in welding and metal construction, manufacturing the world's biggest items scaled up to proportions for the sake of setting world records, the devices had to function to qualify. One of the enlarged objects was a cuckoo clock in the episode number 9, although the Guinness World Record was not finally achieved.
, comics
and cartoons
, for educational, comical and/or entertainment purposes. All this is due to children are usually enchanted by the “magic” of a happy bird which lives in a house-shaped clock and pops out to announce the hours. In literature
for children examples include:
Regarding novels for adults, there are "The Cuckoo Clock" (1946) by Milton K. Ozaki
, or "The Cuckoo Clock Scam" (2009) the book nº 14 in the Detective Inspector Angel Mystery series, a character created by Roger Silverwood.
can be quoted both two poems and two poetry books with the title “The Cuckoo Clock", which were authored, the first one by the major English poet William Wordsworth
between 1836 - 1842, first published in "Poems chiefly of Early and Late Years" (1842), the second one by the American writer and publisher John C. Farrar, contained in his booklet "Songs for Parents" published in 1921 and finally the poem books by the Scottish poet and writer Andrew Young
(1922) and the Irish Shane Leslie's
"The Cuckoo Clock and Other Poems" published in 1987.
There are two poems which share the same name too, it is "My Cuckoo Clock", composed by William John Chamberlayne, included in the book of poems "The Enchanted Land" in 1892 and the other one by Robert W. Service
, published in the book "Carols of an Old Codger" (1954).
of music
, there is a musical work of the Spanish composer, conductor and violinist Tomás Bretón
entitled "El reloj de cuco" (The Cuckoo Clock) (1898), a one-act Comedy Zarzuela
divided into three scenes prose, libretto
by Manuel de Labra and Enrique Ayuso. Other classical music
pieces are;
And the compositions used for piano and string students (or for family entertainment) such as:
In popular music
, serve as examples the Christmas carol
"The Cuckoo Clock" by James Hipkins and contained in the weekly British music journal "The Musical World" in 1856, the song "The Cuckoo Clock" (published in April 1909 in “The Ladies' Home Journal
), music by Louis R. Dressler and words by William Henry Gardner, the ballad
"The Cuckoo Clock" (1916) chanted by Lucy Gates (soprano), and "Cuckoo in the clock" (words by Johnny Mercer
and music by Walter Donaldson
) recorded by the Glenn Miller
orchestra and vocals by Marion Hutton
, which became a popular 1939
song in the U. S. To say that the hit was also performed by Johnny Mercer, Bobby Troup
, Lena Horne
, Sully Mason, Steve Jordan
, Mildred Bailey
and Martha Tilton
.
Years later, in 1962, The Beach Boys
released their album "Surfin' Safari
" including the theme "Cuckoo Clock". Another example in popular music is Fernando Olvera, the vocalist and leader of the Mexican pop-rock band Maná
, who composed one of their most popular and emotive songs “El reloj cucú” (The Cuckoo Clock), from their album “Cuando los ángeles lloran”
(1995), nominated for a 1996 Grammy Award
for Best Latin Pop Performance.
one of the foremost origami
artists, Robert J. Lang
made in 1987 a work called "Black Forest cuckoo clock" (opus 182).
Likewise, exist two pieces titled "Cuckoo Clock", the first one was cast in bronze in 1991 by the Hungarian sculptor Armand Gilanyi and the second one in Styrofoam and acrylic paint by the American artist Bill Davenport (2005).
On the other hand, the German Stefan Strumbel has been producing since 2005 an unconventional reinterpretation of the traditional c. clock, transforming them with the addition of elements of urban and pop art and painting them with spray using florescent and loud colours.
, "Old Samovar and Cuckoo Clock" (1997), a cubist watercolor by the Russian Boris Smirnoff and "The Cuckoo Clock" (2007), oil on canvas painted by the American artist Ann Elizabeth Schlegel.
, in addition to the illustrators already quoted in the Literature section, it is worth to be mentioned a cuckoo clock plate of the British artist Walter Crane
for Mrs. Molesworth's book "The Cuckoo Clock", as well as the pictures created by different illustrators for the various editions of the novel, such as; Charles Copeland
(1895), Maria L. Kirk (1914), Florence White Williams (1927), C. E. Brock
(1931) and E. H. Shepard
for the 1954 edition. Also the print by the American painter and illustrator Norman Rockwell
"Courting at Midnight" (1919) display this clock.
On the other hand it has been drawn by cartoonist
s such as Vahan Shirvanian
in his gag cartoon
"Cat Hunting in a Cuckoo Clock", Edward McLahlan's "Cuckoo Clock Judge", Dan Reynolds in "Clown's Cuckoo Clock", etc.
, it is a recurring character in series, shorts and feature films (many made during The Golden Age of American animation
) such as:
Based on a composition by the musician Stephen Coates from The Real Tuesday Weld
, the animated music video "Bathtime in Clerkenwell" (2003) directed by Alex Budovsky and being about "The Great Revolution of the British Cuckoos taking over London", won the next awards: The Grand Jury Award for the best animated short at Florida Film Festival
2003, The Best of Show Award from ASIFA-East
2003, the 2004 best animated short at Sundance
and the 2004 Sundance Online Film Festival Viewers Award in the animation category.
in two acts "Ganksklukka" (The Cuckoo Clock) (1962), by the Icelandic dramatist, writer and poet Agnar Thórdarson, the author presents a powerful play on the dehumanizing effect of modern life.
, and not by chance, but used as an allegory to tell or indicate us something about the story, characters, reinforce the expressive content of a certain scene, etc. Examples include:
, it plays a meaningful role in the next episodes of different TV series such as:
It has appeared on several children's shows as well, such as The Banana Splits Show where it was a secondary character, two same name episodes entitled "The Cuckoo Clock", the first one on Jackanory
(season 10, episodes from 36 to 40, 1971) based on Mrs. Molesworth's novel and the second one on Ivor the Engine
(1975), as well as some episodes of Fraggle Rock
, like “The Thirty-Minute Work Week” (1983), Goosebumps
"The Cuckoo Clock of Doom" (1995), a Canadian/American horror series for children based on the same name books by R. L. Stine
or in JoJo's Circus
episode "Time Flies" (2005).
The British comedy Dave Allen at Large has a sketch taking place in the American West, in which an outlaw loads his revolver and heads for a saloon
just before noon, against the pleas and begging of his woman not to go through with it. He tells her, "It's high noon and a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. There ain't no other time I can do it!" He goes into the saloon where there is a cuckoo clock on the wall. At the stroke of twelve, when the door on the cuckoo clock swings open he shoots the bird. He then tells her, "Like I said, there ain't no other time I can do it!"
British comedian Eric Sykes
frequently obtained humour from the cuckoo clock in his house in the 1970s sit-com Sykes
. Sykes and on -screen Sister Hattie Jaques treated the clock as though it were a pet, and spoke it as though it was alive. The temperamental bird inside was called Peter, who could usually be called upon to 'cuckoo' at the most opportune moment.
Cuckoo clock
A cuckoo clock is a clock, typically pendulum-regulated, that strikes the hours with a sound like a common cuckoo's call and typically has a mechanical cuckoo that emerges with each note...
, more than any other kind of timepiece, has often featured in literature, music, cinema, television, etc., in the Western culture
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
, as a metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
or allegory
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
of innocence, childhood, old age, past, fun, mental disorder, etc. It has apparently been viewed more as a symbol or a toy -a folksy musical apparatus with animated figures- fascinating and a bit mysterious rather than as a serious timekeeper.
Although the cuckoo clock functions as a symbol of Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Swissness, in fact it only has a slim connection with that country in terms of production. Its real home is the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
of Germany.
Science and technology
Inside Sierra Diablo mountains (TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
), is being built the monumental 10.000 Year Clock based upon an idea of Daniel Hillis who in 1995 expressed as follows: "I want to build a clock that ticks once a year. The century hand advances once every 100 years, and the cuckoo comes out on the millennium. I want the cuckoo to come out every millennium for the next 10,000 years." Funded by Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos
Jeffrey Preston "Jeff" Bezos is the founder, president, chief executive officer , and chairman of the board of Amazon.com.-Early life and background:...
, it is designed to run for ten millennia with minimal maintenance and interruption.
The Discovey Channel TV series Big!
Big!
Big! is a TV series in which an episode consists of a team of engineers manufacturing the world's biggest items for the sake of setting world records.The devices have to function to qualify.The series originally aired on Discovery Channel in...
, consisted of a team of craftspeople, in welding and metal construction, manufacturing the world's biggest items scaled up to proportions for the sake of setting world records, the devices had to function to qualify. One of the enlarged objects was a cuckoo clock in the episode number 9, although the Guinness World Record was not finally achieved.
Literature
Since its popularization, from the mid-1850s on, it has been a common character in children's literatureChildren's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
, comics
Comics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
and cartoons
Animated cartoon
An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot...
, for educational, comical and/or entertainment purposes. All this is due to children are usually enchanted by the “magic” of a happy bird which lives in a house-shaped clock and pops out to announce the hours. In literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
for children examples include:
- "The Cuckoo Clock", by Mrs. MolesworthMary Louisa MolesworthMary Louisa Molesworth was an English writer of children's stories who wrote for children under the name of Mrs Molesworth. She was born in Rotterdam, a daughter of Charles Augustus Stewart who later became a rich merchant in Manchester and his wife Agnes Janet Wilson . Mary had three brothers...
and first published in EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
(Scotland, U. K.) in 1877, which is the best-known and one of her most celebrated novels for children. - "The Story of a Cuckoo Clock" (1887), by Robina F. Hardy.
- "The Cuckoo in the Clock", a story by Enid BlytonEnid BlytonEnid Blyton was an English children's writer also known as Mary Pollock.Noted for numerous series of books based on recurring characters and designed for different age groups,her books have enjoyed huge success in many parts of the world, and have sold over 600 million copies.One of Blyton's most...
, first published in the book "Round the Clock Stories" in 1945. - "The Mouse and the Cuckoo in the Clock" (1947), by William Glynne-Jonnes and illustrated by Will Nickless.
- "Curly Cobbler and the Cuckoo Clock" (1950), written and illustrated by Margaret Tempest.
- "The Happy HollistersThe Happy HollistersThe Happy Hollisters is a series of books about a family who loves to solve mysteries. The series was created by the Stratemeyer Syndicate and entirely written by Andrew E. Svenson under the pseudonym Jerry West. Helen S. Hamilton illustrated the books...
", a book series by Andrew E. SvensonAndrew E. SvensonAndrew E. Svenson was an American children's author, publisher, and partner in the Stratemeyer Syndicate. Under a variety of pseudonyms, many shared with other authors, Svenson authored or coauthored more than 70 books for children, including books for the Hardy Boys, Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift, and...
whose number twenty-four is "The Happy Hollisters and the Cuckoo Clock Mystery" (1956). - "Barnaby's Cuckoo Clock" (Tales of Hopping Wood) (published in 1958), text and illustrations by Rene Cloke.
- "The Late Cuckoo" (1962), text and art by Louis SlobodkinLouis SlobodkinLouis Slobodkin , born in Albany, New York was a sculptor, author and illustrator of numerous children's books....
. - "Hildy and the Cuckoo Clock" (1966), by Ruth Christoffer Carlsen, illustrations by Wallace TrippWallace TrippWallace Whitney Tripp is an American illustrator, anthologist and author. He is known for creating anthropomorphic animal characters of emotional complexity and for his great visual and verbal humor. He is one of several illustrators of the Amelia Bedelia series of children's stories...
. - "Peter Nick-Nock and the Cuckoo Clock" (1971), authored by Dorothy EdwardsDorothy EdwardsDorothy Edwards was a British children's writer.Born as Dorothy Violet Ellen Brown into a working-class family, her father taught her to read at an early age, enabling her to write her first story at four years of age...
, illustrations by Alexy Pendle. - "Cuckoo Clock Island" (1974), author; Frances Eagar, art by Ann Strugnell.
- "The Cuckoo Clock Castle of Shir" (1980), authored and illustrated by Michoel Muchnik.
- "The Cuckoo Clock" (1986), by Mary StolzMary StolzMary Stolz was an American writer of fiction for children and young adults. Her works received Newbery Honors in 1962 and 1966 and her entire body of work was awarded the George G. Stone Recognition of Merit in 1982.Her literary works range from picture books to young-adult novels...
and Pamela Johnson (illustrator). - "Cuckoo Clock" (1986), by the writer Kavery BhattKaveri NambisanKaveri Nambisan is a novelist from India. She is also a surgeon who practices in rural India. Her career in medicine has been a strong influence in her fiction.-Life:...
, art by Subir Roy. - "Cuckoo - Clock Cuckoo" (1988), by the german illustrator and writer Annegert Fuchshuber.
- "Sam Pig and the Cuckoo Clock" (published in 1988), written by Alison UttleyAlison UttleyAlison Uttley , née Alice Jane Taylor, was a prolific British writer of over 100 books. She is now best known for her children's series about Little Grey Rabbit, and Sam Pig....
and illustrated by Graham PercyGraham PercyGraham Percy was a noted illustrator of children's books. He was born and brought up in New Zealand. He studied Graphic Design at the Royal College of Art, graduating in 1967 and becoming a freelance artist specializing in children's book illustration. He had over 100 books to his credit, some of...
. - "The Cuckoo Clock of Doom" (1995), part of the GoosebumpsGoosebumpsGoosebumps is a series of children's horror fiction novels written by American author R. L. Stine and first published by Scholastic Publishing. It is a collection of stories that feature semi-homogenous plot structures, with fictional children being involved in scary situations...
series by R.L. Stine
Regarding novels for adults, there are "The Cuckoo Clock" (1946) by Milton K. Ozaki
Milton K. Ozaki
Milton K. Ozaki , born in Racine, Wisconsin from a Japanese father and an American mother, Augusta Rathbun, was a journalist, a reporter and a beauty parlor operator...
, or "The Cuckoo Clock Scam" (2009) the book nº 14 in the Detective Inspector Angel Mystery series, a character created by Roger Silverwood.
Poetry
In poetryPoetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
can be quoted both two poems and two poetry books with the title “The Cuckoo Clock", which were authored, the first one by the major English poet William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
between 1836 - 1842, first published in "Poems chiefly of Early and Late Years" (1842), the second one by the American writer and publisher John C. Farrar, contained in his booklet "Songs for Parents" published in 1921 and finally the poem books by the Scottish poet and writer Andrew Young
Andrew Young (poet)
Andrew John Young was a Scottish poet and clergyman. His status as a poet was recognised quite late and he received the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry in 1952.-Life:...
(1922) and the Irish Shane Leslie's
Shane Leslie
Sir John Randolph Leslie, 3rd Baronet, generally known as Shane Leslie , was an Irish-born diplomat and writer. He was a first cousin of the British war time Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill...
"The Cuckoo Clock and Other Poems" published in 1987.
There are two poems which share the same name too, it is "My Cuckoo Clock", composed by William John Chamberlayne, included in the book of poems "The Enchanted Land" in 1892 and the other one by Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service
Robert William Service was a poet and writer who has often been called "the Bard of the Yukon".Service is best known for his poems "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "The Cremation of Sam McGee", from his first book, Songs of a Sourdough...
, published in the book "Carols of an Old Codger" (1954).
Music
When it comes to the artArt
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
of music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, there is a musical work of the Spanish composer, conductor and violinist Tomás Bretón
Tomás Bretón
Tomás Bretón was a Spanish musician and composer.-Biography:Tomás Bretón was born in Salamanca.He gained renown as a result of the success of his zarzuela La verbena de la Paloma, although other were well-received works, included his operas Los amantes de Teruel, based on the eponymous legend,...
entitled "El reloj de cuco" (The Cuckoo Clock) (1898), a one-act Comedy Zarzuela
Zarzuela
Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance...
divided into three scenes prose, libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Manuel de Labra and Enrique Ayuso. Other classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
pieces are;
- "The Cuckoo Clock" (1920), by Leopold GodowskyLeopold GodowskyLeopold Godowsky was a famed Polish American pianist, composer, and teacher. One of the most highly regarded performers of his time, he became known for his theories concerning the application of relaxed weight and economy of motion in piano playing, principles later propagated by Godowsky's...
, the composition number twenty-six from his thirty pieces suiteSuiteIn music, a suite is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral pieces normally performed in a concert setting rather than as accompaniment; they may be extracts from an opera, ballet , or incidental music to a play or film , or they may be entirely original movements .In the...
for piano called “TriakontameronTriakontameronThe Triakontameron is a suite of 30 pieces for piano composed in 1920 by Leopold Godowsky; each was written in a single day, and all are written in three-quarter time. The title was inspired by that of Boccaccio's Decameron. Among the best-known excerpts of the suite are Alt Wien, Nocturnal...
". - "The Cuckoo Clock" (1932), a song for piano and vocal by Thomas Griselle and Victor YoungVictor YoungVictor Young was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. He was born in Chicago.-Biography:...
. It was recorded in 1934, performed by the sopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
Rosa PonselleRosa PonselleRosa Ponselle , was an American operatic soprano with a large, opulent voice. She sang mainly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and is generally considered by music critics to have been one of the greatest sopranos of the past 100 years.-Early life:She was born Rosa Ponzillo on January 22, 1897,...
and conducted by Andre KostelanetzAndre KostelanetzAndré Kostelanetz was a popular orchestral music conductor and arranger, one of the pioneers of easy listening music.-Biography:...
. - "Cuckoo clock", the best known composition of Lloyd del Castillo recorded in 1939 by Arthur FiedlerArthur FiedlerArthur Fiedler was a long-time conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, a symphony orchestra that specializes in popular and light classical music. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one of the best-known orchestras in the country...
and the Boston Promenade Orchestra. - "The Cuckoo in the Clock" (published in 1957), a piano solo piece by William Scher.
And the compositions used for piano and string students (or for family entertainment) such as:
- "The Old Cuckoo Clock", by Nina Batschinskaja, for piano solo.
- "Cuckoo Clock Piano Duet", by Stuart Young.
- "The Cuckoo Clock", by John Thompson. Published in "The First Grade Book" (1936).
- "The Cuckoo Clock" (2003), composed by Lauren Bernofsky for elementary string orchestra.
- "The Cuckoo Clock Duet" (2005), by Andy Beck, for 2-part voices and piano.
- "Cuckoo Clock" (2006), by Deborah Ellis Suarez, piano solo.
In popular music
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
, serve as examples the Christmas carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
"The Cuckoo Clock" by James Hipkins and contained in the weekly British music journal "The Musical World" in 1856, the song "The Cuckoo Clock" (published in April 1909 in “The Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal
Ladies' Home Journal is an American magazine which first appeared on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States...
), music by Louis R. Dressler and words by William Henry Gardner, the ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
"The Cuckoo Clock" (1916) chanted by Lucy Gates (soprano), and "Cuckoo in the clock" (words by Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
and music by Walter Donaldson
Walter Donaldson
Walter Donaldson was a prolific United States popular songwriter, composing many hit songs of the 1910s and 1920s.-History:...
) recorded by the Glenn Miller
Glenn Miller
Alton Glenn Miller was an American jazz musician , arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big Bands"...
orchestra and vocals by Marion Hutton
Marion Hutton
Marion Hutton was a United States singer and actress.-Biography:Born as Marion Thornburg, the elder sister of actress Betty Hutton, their father abandoned their family when they were both young: he later committed suicide. Their mother worked a variety of jobs to support the family until she...
, which became a popular 1939
1939 in music
-Events:*March 23 – Béla Bartók's Violin Concerto No. 2 is premiered by Zoltán Székely and the Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Willem Mengelberg...
song in the U. S. To say that the hit was also performed by Johnny Mercer, Bobby Troup
Bobby Troup
Robert William "Bobby" Troup Jr. was an American actor, jazz pianist and songwriter. He is best known for writing the popular standard " Route 66", and for his role as Dr...
, Lena Horne
Lena Horne
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was an American singer, actress, civil rights activist and dancer.Horne joined the chorus of the Cotton Club at the age of sixteen and became a nightclub performer before moving to Hollywood, where she had small parts in numerous movies, and more substantial parts in the...
, Sully Mason, Steve Jordan
Steve Jordan (musician)
Steve Jordan is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, musical director and Grammy Award-winning artist, who has made a name for himself as a producer from the Bronx in New York City. A graduate of the Fiorello H...
, Mildred Bailey
Mildred Bailey
Mildred Bailey was a popular and influential American jazz singer during the 1930s, known as "The Rockin' Chair Lady" and "Mrs. Swing"...
and Martha Tilton
Martha Tilton
Martha Tilton was an American popular singer, best-known for her 1939 recording of "And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman. She was sometimes introduced as The Liltin' Miss Tilton.Tilton and her family lived in Texas and Kansas, relocating to Los Angeles when she was seven years old...
.
Years later, in 1962, The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
released their album "Surfin' Safari
Surfin' Safari
-Musicians:*Alan Jardine - vocals, acoustic bass *Mike Love - vocals*David Marks - rhythm guitar, vocals *Brian Wilson - bass guitar, piano, vocals*Carl Wilson - lead guitar, vocals*Dennis Wilson - drums, vocals...
" including the theme "Cuckoo Clock". Another example in popular music is Fernando Olvera, the vocalist and leader of the Mexican pop-rock band Maná
Maná
Maná is a pop rock band from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, whose career has spanned more than three decades. They have earned three Grammy Awards, seven Latin Grammy Awards, five MTV Video Music Awards Latin America, five Premios Juventud awards, nine Billboard Latin Music Awards and 13 Premios Lo...
, who composed one of their most popular and emotive songs “El reloj cucú” (The Cuckoo Clock), from their album “Cuando los ángeles lloran”
Cuando los Ángeles Lloran
Cuando los Ángeles Lloran is the eighth album and fourth studio album by the Latin American Mexican rock band Maná...
(1995), nominated for a 1996 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Latin Pop Performance.
Sculpture
In the art of sculptureSculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
one of the foremost origami
Origami
is the traditional Japanese art of paper folding, which started in the 17th century AD at the latest and was popularized outside Japan in the mid-1900s. It has since then evolved into a modern art form...
artists, Robert J. Lang
Robert J. Lang
Dr. Robert J. Lang is an American physicist who is also one of the foremost origami artists and theorists in the world. He is known for his complex and elegant designs, most notably of insects and animals. He has long been a student of the mathematics of origami and of using computers to study the...
made in 1987 a work called "Black Forest cuckoo clock" (opus 182).
Likewise, exist two pieces titled "Cuckoo Clock", the first one was cast in bronze in 1991 by the Hungarian sculptor Armand Gilanyi and the second one in Styrofoam and acrylic paint by the American artist Bill Davenport (2005).
On the other hand, the German Stefan Strumbel has been producing since 2005 an unconventional reinterpretation of the traditional c. clock, transforming them with the addition of elements of urban and pop art and painting them with spray using florescent and loud colours.
Painting
With regard to this art, it has been depicted in paintings like; "The Fiddler" (1932), an oil on canvas by the Irish painter Leo WhelanLeo Whelan
Leo Whelan, RHA was an Irish painter.Born in Dublin and educated at Belvedere College and the Metropolitan School of Art, Whelan was a student of William Orpen. He first exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1911, and was awarded the Taylor Art Scholarship five years later in 1916...
, "Old Samovar and Cuckoo Clock" (1997), a cubist watercolor by the Russian Boris Smirnoff and "The Cuckoo Clock" (2007), oil on canvas painted by the American artist Ann Elizabeth Schlegel.
Graphic arts
In the field of graphic artsGraphic arts
A type of fine art, graphic art covers a broad range of art forms. Graphic art is typically two-dimensional and includes calligraphy, photography, drawing, painting, printmaking, lithography, typography, serigraphy , and bindery. Graphic art also consists of drawn plans and layouts for interior...
, in addition to the illustrators already quoted in the Literature section, it is worth to be mentioned a cuckoo clock plate of the British artist Walter Crane
Walter Crane
Walter Crane was an English artist and book illustrator. He is considered to be the most prolific and influential children’s book creator of his generation and, along with Randolph Caldecott and Kate Greenaway, one of the strongest contributors to the child's nursery motif that the genre of...
for Mrs. Molesworth's book "The Cuckoo Clock", as well as the pictures created by different illustrators for the various editions of the novel, such as; Charles Copeland
Charles Copeland (illustrator)
Charles Copeland was an American book illustrator active from about 1887 until about 1940. He was a member of the Boston Watercolor Society and the Boston Art Club. His illustrations were used in a variety of books.-External links:*...
(1895), Maria L. Kirk (1914), Florence White Williams (1927), C. E. Brock
C. E. Brock
Charles Edmund Brock was a widely published English line artist and book illustrator, who signed his work C. E. Brock. He was the eldest of four artist brothers, including Henry Matthew Brock, also an illustrator....
(1931) and E. H. Shepard
E. H. Shepard
Ernest Howard Shepard was an English artist and book illustrator. He was known especially for his human-like animals in illustrations for The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame and Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne....
for the 1954 edition. Also the print by the American painter and illustrator Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of American culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening...
"Courting at Midnight" (1919) display this clock.
On the other hand it has been drawn by cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
s such as Vahan Shirvanian
Vahan Shirvanian
Vahan Shirvanian is a cartoonist. He received the National Cartoonist Society Gag Cartoon Award in 1959 for his work.-External links:* *...
in his gag cartoon
Gag cartoon
A gag cartoon is most often a single-panel cartoon, usually including a hand-lettered or typeset caption beneath the drawing. A pantomime cartoon carries no caption...
"Cat Hunting in a Cuckoo Clock", Edward McLahlan's "Cuckoo Clock Judge", Dan Reynolds in "Clown's Cuckoo Clock", etc.
Animation
As animated cartoonAnimated cartoon
An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot...
, it is a recurring character in series, shorts and feature films (many made during The Golden Age of American animation
The Golden Age of American animation
The Golden Age of U.S. animation is a period in the United States animation history that began with the advent of sound cartoons in 1928 and continued into the early 1960s when theatrical animated shorts slowly began losing to the new medium of television animation.Many memorable characters emerged...
) such as:
- Flip the FrogFlip the FrogFlip the Frog is an animated cartoon character created by American cartoonist Ub Iwerks. He starred in a series of cartoons produced by Celebrity Pictures and distributed through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 1930 to 1933...
, "The Cuckoo Murder Case" (1930), by Ub IwerksUb IwerksUb Iwerks, A.S.C. was a two-time Academy Award winning American animator, cartoonist, character designer, inventor, creator of Mickey Mouse, and special effects technician, who was famous for his work for Walt Disney....
. - Silly SymphoniesSilly SymphoniesSilly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
, "The clock store" (1931), by Walt DisneyWalt DisneyWalter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
. - Betty BoopBetty BoopBetty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
, "Ha! Ha! Ha!"Ha! Ha! Ha! (1934 cartoon)Ha! Ha! Ha! is a 1934 Fleischer Studio animated short film starring Betty Boop, and featuring Koko the Clown.-Synopsis:Max Fleischer draws Betty, then leaves her for the night in the studio. Koko escapes from the inkwell and helps himself to a candy bar left behind by Max. He soon gets a terrible...
(1934), by Max FleischerMax FleischerMax Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
. - Merrie MelodiesMerrie MelodiesMerrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures between 1931 and 1969.Originally produced by Harman-Ising Pictures, Merrie Melodies were produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1933 to 1944. Schlesinger sold his studio to Warner Bros. in 1944,...
; "Little Dutch Plate" (1935), by Friz FrelengFriz FrelengIsadore "Friz" Freleng was an animator, cartoonist, director, and producer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros....
, "Cinderella Meets Fella" (1938), animation by Virgil Walter RossVirgil Walter RossVirgil Walter Ross was an American artist, cartoonist, and animator best known for his work on the Warner Bros. animated shorts.-Early years:...
, etc. Cuckoo clocks abound in 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,...
cartoons. - "Charlie Cuckoo" (1939) and Woody Woodpecker'sWoody WoodpeckerWoody Woodpecker is an animated cartoon character, an anthropomorphic acorn woodpecker who appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz animation studio and distributed by Universal Pictures...
"The Coo Coo Bird" (1947) or "Calling All Cuckoos" (1956), by Walter LantzWalter LantzWalter Benjamin Lantz was an American cartoonist, animator, film producer, and director, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.-Early years and start in animation:...
. - "Pinocchio"Pinocchio (1940 film)Pinocchio is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the story The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. It is the second film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, and it was made after the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and was released to theaters by...
(1940), Walt Disney. - Tom and JerryTom and JerryTom and Jerry are the cat and mouse cartoon characters that were evolved starting in 1939.Tom and Jerry also may refer to:Cartoon works featuring the cat and mouse so named:* The Tom and Jerry Show...
, "Dog TroubleDog TroubleDog Trouble is a 1942 one-reel animated cartoon and is the 5th Tom and Jerry short. It was produced in Technicolor, released to theatres on April 18, 1942 by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer and reissued for re-release in 1952. It was animated by George Gordon, Irven Spence, Jack Zander, Cecil Surry and Bill...
" (1942), by William HannaWilliam HannaWilliam Denby Hanna was an American animator, director, producer, and cartoon artist, whose film and television cartoon characters entertained millions of people for much of the 20th century. When he was a young child, Hanna's family moved frequently, but they settled in Compton, California, by...
and Joseph BarberaJoseph BarberaJoseph Roland Barbera was an influential American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist, whose film and television cartoon characters entertained millions of fans worldwide for much of the twentieth century....
. - PopeyePopeyePopeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
, "Ration fer the Duration" (1943), character created by Elzie Crisler Segar. - "The Bored Cuckoo" (1948), by Bill TytlaBill TytlaVladimir Peter "Bill" Tytla was one of the original Disney animators and is considered by many to be the best character animator to work during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation...
. - "The Cuckoo Clock" (1950), by Tex AveryTex AveryFrederick 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...
. - Secret SquirrelSecret SquirrelSecret Squirrel is a cartoon created by Hanna-Barbera. Secret Squirrel was one of two co-stars of The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show, which debuted in 1965. He was given his own show in 1966, but was reunited with Atom Ant for one more season in 1967...
, "Cuckoo Clock Cuckoo" (1965), by Hanna-BarberaHanna-BarberaHanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
. - Pink Panther, "In the Pink of the Night" (1969), by David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng.
- Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying MachinesDastardly and Muttley in their Flying MachinesDastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines is a cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS. Originally the series was broadcast as a Saturday morning cartoon, airing from September 13, 1969 to January 3, 1970...
, "The Cuckoo Patrol" (1969), produced by Hanna-Barbera. - The Adventures of Tintin (TV series)The Adventures of Tintin (TV series)The Adventures of Tintin is an animated television series based on The Adventures of Tintin, a series of books by Hergé. It debuted in 1991, and 39 half-hour episodes were produced over the course of three seasons...
, The Red Sea SharksThe Red Sea SharksThe Red Sea Sharks is the nineteenth of The Adventures of Tintin, a series of classic comic-strip albums written and illustrated by Hergé, featuring young reporter Tintin as a hero...
Part 1 (1992), characters created by HergéHergéGeorges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. His best known and most substantial work is the 23 completed comic books in The Adventures of Tintin series, which he wrote and illustrated from 1929 until his death in 1983, although he was also...
. - Rupert (TV series)Rupert (TV series)Rupert is an animated television series based on the Mary Tourtel character Rupert Bear, produced by Nelvana, Ellipse Programmé and TVS for the first season, with Scottish Television taken over control when TVS closed. Aired from 1991 to 1997 with 65 half-hour episodes produced. It was broadcast...
, "Rupert and the Clock Cuckoo" (1994). - The Tangerine BearThe Tangerine BearThe Tangerine Bear is an animated 48-minute feature film for children. It was directed by Bert Ring. The voice cast include Tom Bosley, Jenna Elfman, Howie Mandel, David Hyde Pierce, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and Marlon Wayans. The story was narrated and sung by country singer Trisha Yearwood...
, (2000). Etc.
Based on a composition by the musician Stephen Coates from The Real Tuesday Weld
The Real Tuesday Weld
The Real Tuesday Weld are a British band, fronted by lead singer and founder Stephen Coates. They are known for producing jazzy cabaret-style music with subtle electronica influences, a style dubbed "antique beat" by Coates. They have six albums, several singles and eps and many tracks on...
, the animated music video "Bathtime in Clerkenwell" (2003) directed by Alex Budovsky and being about "The Great Revolution of the British Cuckoos taking over London", won the next awards: The Grand Jury Award for the best animated short at Florida Film Festival
Florida Film Festival
The Florida Film Festival, produced by Enzian Theater in Maitland, Florida, is an annual international film festival. Showcasing the best American independent and foreign films, the festival has become one of the most respected regional film events in the United States.-Overview:The Festival...
2003, The Best of Show Award from ASIFA-East
International Animated Film Association
The International Animated Film Association or ASIFA is an international non-profit organization founded in 1960 in Annecy, France by the best known animation artists of the time such as the Canadian animator, Norman McLaren...
2003, the 2004 best animated short at Sundance
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
and the 2004 Sundance Online Film Festival Viewers Award in the animation category.
Computer animation
On computer animation is being used with the objective of telling a story, entertaining and/or commercializing a product. Examples inlude:- "Coucou clock" (2005), by François Cailleau & Audrey Fobis.
- "Jack the Cuckoo" (2005), a 7 episodes series awarded with the Best Viral MarketingViral marketingViral marketing, viral advertising, or marketing buzz are buzzwords referring to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of viruses...
campaign (2006), in the area of InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
and MultimediaMultimediaMultimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
, in the tenth edition of the Italian awards Mediastars, the authoritative national event dedicated to advertising, corporate design and multi-media communications campaigns. - "L'engrenage" (2007), several authors.
- "Le Cou Cou" (2009), by Zed Bennett Jr.
- "Mickey's Adventures in Wonderland" (2009), from the TV series Mickey Mouse ClubhouseMickey Mouse ClubhouseMickey Mouse Clubhouse is a children's television series, that premiered in prime time on Disney Channel on May 5, 2006. The program was originally part of the Playhouse Disney daily block intended for preschoolers...
.
Theatre
In the dramaDrama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
in two acts "Ganksklukka" (The Cuckoo Clock) (1962), by the Icelandic dramatist, writer and poet Agnar Thórdarson, the author presents a powerful play on the dehumanizing effect of modern life.
Cinema
As the seventh art, this timepiece has figured in different movies throughout the history of cinemaFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, and not by chance, but used as an allegory to tell or indicate us something about the story, characters, reinforce the expressive content of a certain scene, etc. Examples include:
- "The Cuckoo Clock" (1912), a short film with Edward P. Sullivan, Julia Hurley and Charles Herman.
- "The Lodger: A Story of the London FogThe Lodger: A Story of the London FogThe Lodger: A Story of the London Fog is a silent film directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1926 and released on 14 February 1927 in London and on 10 June 1928 in New York City. The film, based on a story by Marie Belloc Lowndes and a play Who Is He? co-written by Belloc Lowndes, concerns the hunt for a...
" (1927), Alfred HitchcockAlfred HitchcockSir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
. - "MM (1931 film)M is a 1931 German drama-thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou. It was Lang's first sound film, although he had directed more than a dozen films previously....
" (1931), by Fritz LangFritz LangFriedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
. Where it can be seen a cuckoo and quail clock. - "Doctor XDoctor X (film)Doctor X is a First National/Warner Bros. horror and mystery film based on the play of the same name. It was directed by Michael Curtiz and stars Lee Tracy, Fay Wray, and Lionel Atwill....
" (1932), by Michael CurtizMichael CurtizMichael Curtiz was an Academy award winning Hungarian-American film director. He had early creditsas Mihály Kertész and Michael Kertész...
. - Laurel and Hardy'sLaurel and HardyLaurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
short "Dirty Work"Dirty Work (1933 film)Dirty Work is a Laurel and Hardy short film Classic comedy made in 1933. It was directed by Lloyd French, produced by Hal Roach and distributed by MGM.-Plot:...
(1933), by Lloyd FrenchLloyd FrenchLloyd French, was an American director of short films, most of them comedies. His best remembered films are several Laurel and Hardy comedies in the 1930s...
. - "L'Orologio a cucù" (The Cuckoo Clock) (1938), by Camillo MastrocinqueCamillo MastrocinqueCamillo Mastrocinque was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 63 films between 1937 and 1968.-Selected filmography:* Lost in the Dark * Gli Inesorabili...
. - "The Third ManThe Third ManThe Third Man is a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed and starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, and Trevor Howard. Many critics rank it as a masterpiece, particularly remembered for its atmospheric cinematography, performances, and unique musical score...
" (1949), directed by Carol ReedCarol ReedSir Carol Reed was an English film director best known for Odd Man Out , The Fallen Idol , The Third Man and Oliver!...
, in which Harry Lime (played by Orson WellesOrson WellesGeorge Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
) said: "You know what the fellow said—in Italy for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace—and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock." This remark was not in the script by Graham GreeneGraham GreeneHenry Graham Greene, OM, CH was an English author, playwright and literary critic. His works explore the ambivalent moral and political issues of the modern world...
but was added by Welles (in the published script, it is in a footnote); Greene wrote in a letter (Oct. 13, 1977) "What happened was that during the shooting of The Third Man it was found necessary for the timing to insert another sentence." Welles apparently said the lines came from "an old Hungarian play"; the painter Whistler, in a lecture on art from 1885 (published in Mr Whistler's 'Ten O'Clock 1888), had said, "The Swiss in their mountains ... What more worthy people! ... yet, the perverse and scornful [goddess, Art] will none of it, and the sons of patriots are left with the clock that turns the mill, and the sudden cuckoo, with difficulty restrained in its box! For this was Tell a hero! For this did Gessler die!" In This is Orson Welles (1993), Welles is quoted as saying "When the picture came out, the Swiss very nicely pointed out to me that they've never made any cuckoo clocks." - "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956), a science fiction film directed by Don SiegelDon SiegelDonald Siegel was an influential American film director and producer. His name variously appeared in the credits of his films as both Don Siegel and Donald Siegel.-Early life:...
. - "LampaLampa (film)Lampa is one of Polish director Roman Polanski's early short films. The eight-minute piece, released in 1959, has an elderly doll-maker hard at work in his shop. Once he's headed off home, the film focuses on apparent whisperings amongst the miscellaneous doll-parts he's left behind...
" (The Lamp) (1959), a short film by Roman PolanskiRoman PolanskiRoman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
and one of his earliest works. - "Bunny Lake Is MissingBunny Lake Is MissingBunny Lake Is Missing is a 1965 British psychological thriller film directed and produced by Otto Preminger, who filmed it in black and white widescreen format in London. It was based on the novel of the same name by Merriam Modell. The score is by Paul Glass and the opening theme is often heard as...
" (1965), by Otto PremingerOtto PremingerOtto Ludwig Preminger was an Austro–Hungarian-American theatre and film director.After moving from the theatre to Hollywood, he directed over 35 feature films in a five-decade career. He rose to prominence for stylish film noir mysteries such as Laura and Fallen Angel...
. - "Blade RunnerBlade RunnerBlade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
" (1982), a cult movie directed by Sir Ridley ScottRidley ScottSir Ridley Scott is an English film director and producer. His most famous films include The Duellists , Alien , Blade Runner , Legend , Thelma & Louise , G. I...
. - "Out of Africa" (1985), by Sidney Pollack.
- "SarabandSarabandSaraband is a 2003 Swedish drama film directed by Ingmar Bergman, and his last theatrically released work. The film is a sequel to Bergman's Scenes from a Marriage , bringing back to the screen the characters of Johan and Marianne...
" (2003), the last film of Ingmar BergmanIngmar BergmanErnst Ingmar Bergman was a Swedish director, writer and producer for film, stage and television. Described by Woody Allen as "probably the greatest film artist, all things considered, since the invention of the motion picture camera", he is recognized as one of the most accomplished and...
. Etc.
Television
Regarding to televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, it plays a meaningful role in the next episodes of different TV series such as:
- Kraft Television TheatreKraft Television TheatreKraft Television Theatre is an American drama/anthology television series that began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. In January 1948, it moved to 9pm on Wednesdays, continuing in that timeslot until 1958. Initially produced by the J...
, "The Cuckoo Clock" (1954). - Alfred Hitchcock PresentsAlfred Hitchcock PresentsAlfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. The series featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the premiere of the show on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades...
, "Triggers in Leash" (1955) and "The Cuckoo Clock" (1960). - The PrisonerThe PrisonerThe Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
, "Hammer into AnvilHammer Into Anvil"Hammer into Anvil" is an episode of the 1960s television program The Prisoner. It is one of the minority of episodes that do not deal with Number Six attempting to escape or the Village authorities attempting to coerce him into revealing information....
" (1967). - Hogan's HeroesHogan's HeroesHogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to March 28, 1971, on the CBS network. The show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. Bob Crane had the starring role as Colonel Robert E...
, "The Antique" (1969). - Are you being served?Are You Being Served?Are You Being Served? is a British sitcom broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was set in the ladies' and gentlemen's clothing departments of Grace Brothers, a large, fictional London department store. It was written mainly by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, with contributions by Michael Knowles and John...
, "The Clock" (1974). - Twin PeaksTwin PeaksTwin Peaks is an American television serial drama created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series follows the investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper , of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer...
, "Realization Time" (1990). - Married with children, "The Wedding Show" (1993).
- MartinMartin (TV series)Martin is an American sitcom produced by HBO Independent Productions that aired for five seasons, from August 27, 1992 to May 1, 1997 on Fox...
, "Auction" (1997). - My Name is EarlMy Name Is EarlMy Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States...
, "Randy's Touchdown" (2005).
It has appeared on several children's shows as well, such as The Banana Splits Show where it was a secondary character, two same name episodes entitled "The Cuckoo Clock", the first one on Jackanory
Jackanory
Jackanory is a long-running BBC children's television series that was designed to stimulate an interest in reading. The show was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, the first story being the fairy-tale Cap o' Rushes read by Lee Montague. Jackanory continued to be broadcast until 24 March 1996,...
(season 10, episodes from 36 to 40, 1971) based on Mrs. Molesworth's novel and the second one on Ivor the Engine
Ivor the Engine
Ivor the Engine is a British children's animation by Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin's Smallfilms company. It is a children's television series relating the adventures of a small green locomotive who lived in the "top left-hand corner of Wales" and worked for The Merioneth and Llantisilly Railway...
(1975), as well as some episodes of Fraggle Rock
Fraggle Rock
Fraggle Rock is a children's live action puppet television program series created by Jim Henson. The central characters were a set of "Muppet" creatures called Fraggles. The show ran from January 10, 1983, to March 30, 1987, on CBC Television in Canada, ITV in the UK, HBO in the United States,...
, like “The Thirty-Minute Work Week” (1983), Goosebumps
Goosebumps (TV series)
Goosebumps is a Canadian children's horror anthology television series based on R. L. Stine's Goosebumps books.-Networks:...
"The Cuckoo Clock of Doom" (1995), a Canadian/American horror series for children based on the same name books by R. L. Stine
R. L. Stine
Robert Lawrence Stine , known as R. L. Stine, and Jovial Bob Stine, is an American writer. Stine, who is called the "Stephen King of children's literature," is the author of hundreds of horror fiction novels, including the books in the Fear Street, Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, and The...
or in JoJo's Circus
JoJo's Circus
JoJo's Circus is a musical comedy series for preschool children. The series debuted in 2003 and airs in the United States on the Disney Channel as part of the Playhouse Disney morning programming schedule at 6am eastern time. The program airs daily on both the UK and Australian versions of...
episode "Time Flies" (2005).
The British comedy Dave Allen at Large has a sketch taking place in the American West, in which an outlaw loads his revolver and heads for a saloon
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
just before noon, against the pleas and begging of his woman not to go through with it. He tells her, "It's high noon and a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. There ain't no other time I can do it!" He goes into the saloon where there is a cuckoo clock on the wall. At the stroke of twelve, when the door on the cuckoo clock swings open he shoots the bird. He then tells her, "Like I said, there ain't no other time I can do it!"
British comedian Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
frequently obtained humour from the cuckoo clock in his house in the 1970s sit-com Sykes
Sykes
Sykes is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1972 to 1979. Starring Eric Sykes and Hattie Jacques, it was written by Eric Sykes, who had previously starred with Jacques in Sykes and A... and Sykes and a Big, Big Show ....
. Sykes and on -screen Sister Hattie Jaques treated the clock as though it were a pet, and spoke it as though it was alive. The temperamental bird inside was called Peter, who could usually be called upon to 'cuckoo' at the most opportune moment.