Pantry Panic
Encyclopedia
Pantry Panic is the third animated cartoon
short subject
in the Woody Woodpecker
series. Released theatrically on November 24, 1941, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures
.
(Danny Webb) stays behind to swim while the other birds in the forest
migrate south for the winter. Just after the other birds leave, the cold of winter sets in instantly, to the point that Woody's swimming hole freezes instantly solid just after he jumps in ("Must be hard water", he remarks). Woody does not worry, because he has stored up plenty of food. However, a snow storm enters his house and makes off with all of his possessions, food included.
Two weeks later, a title card informs the audience that "his food all gone, starvation stares Woody in the face!" Cut to a shot of Woody, seated at his dinner table, having a staring (and cackling) contest with the ghost of "Starvation", personified as something vaguely resembling as the Grim Reaper, smoking a cigar
. A month later, a hungry cat (Webb) happens upon Woody's cabin, and conspires to eat the woodpecker. The famished Woody, however, plans just as quickly to eat the cat, and the two spend much of the remainder of the short trying to decapitate, bake, broil, and season each other. After several minutes of battling, a moose appears at Woody's open door, and the starving cat and woodpecker chase after it.
Sitting near a pile of moose bones with full bellies, Woody and the cat appear content. However, the cat looks over at Woody and remarks, "Y'know, I'm still hungry." "Yeah," replies Woody (in a normal, not sped-up voice), "so am I!" Brandishing knives, the two go right back at each other's throats.
Like most of the early 1940s Lantz cartoons, Pantry Panic carried no director's credit. Lantz himself has claimed to have directed this cartoon, which features animation by Alex Lovy
and LaVerne Harding
, a story by Ben Hardaway
and Lowell Elliott, and music by Darrell Calker
.
Pantry Panic was the third cartoon in the Woody Woodpecker series (thus featuring an early garish Woody Woodpecker design), and the fourth short to star the character. It was the first short with Danny Webb as Woody's voice. However, the woodpecker's famous laugh (provided by Mel Blanc
) would continue to be recycled until 1951, when Grace Stafford
rerecorded a softer version. Woody's "Guess Who?" (also supplied by Blanc), however, would continue to be used right up until the end of the series in 1972.
Today, Pantry Panic is the only Woody Woodpecker cartoon in the public domain
. As such, it is freely distributed, and can be downloaded from the Internet Archive
and seen on YouTube
. It is available as a part of the 200 Classic Cartoon Collection.
Pantry Panic would be reworked in 1946 as Who's Cookin' Who?
The Starvation personification used here would be used on that short as well as 1951's The Redwood Sap
.
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...
short subject
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
in the Woody Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker
Woody 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...
series. Released theatrically on November 24, 1941, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
.
Plot
WoodyWoody Woodpecker
Woody 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...
(Danny Webb) stays behind to swim while the other birds in the forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
migrate south for the winter. Just after the other birds leave, the cold of winter sets in instantly, to the point that Woody's swimming hole freezes instantly solid just after he jumps in ("Must be hard water", he remarks). Woody does not worry, because he has stored up plenty of food. However, a snow storm enters his house and makes off with all of his possessions, food included.
Two weeks later, a title card informs the audience that "his food all gone, starvation stares Woody in the face!" Cut to a shot of Woody, seated at his dinner table, having a staring (and cackling) contest with the ghost of "Starvation", personified as something vaguely resembling as the Grim Reaper, smoking a cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
. A month later, a hungry cat (Webb) happens upon Woody's cabin, and conspires to eat the woodpecker. The famished Woody, however, plans just as quickly to eat the cat, and the two spend much of the remainder of the short trying to decapitate, bake, broil, and season each other. After several minutes of battling, a moose appears at Woody's open door, and the starving cat and woodpecker chase after it.
Sitting near a pile of moose bones with full bellies, Woody and the cat appear content. However, the cat looks over at Woody and remarks, "Y'know, I'm still hungry." "Yeah," replies Woody (in a normal, not sped-up voice), "so am I!" Brandishing knives, the two go right back at each other's throats.
Production notes
Alex Lovy
Alex Lovy was an American animator, who spent the majority of his career as an animator and director at Walter Lantz Productions, later being a producer at Hanna-Barbera, and also supervising the cartoon unit at Warner Bros...
and LaVerne Harding
Laverne Harding
Laverne Harding was an American animator.Harding, who worked for the Walter Lantz studio for much of her half-century career in animation, is among the earliest woman animators....
, a story by Ben Hardaway
Ben Hardaway
Joseph Benson "Ben/Bugs" Hardaway was a storyboard artist, animator, voice actor, gagman, writer, and director for several American animation studios during the The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He was sometimes credited as J.B. Hardaway, Ben Hardaway, Buggsy Hardaway, and B. Hardaway.While...
and Lowell Elliott, and music by Darrell Calker
Darrell Calker
Darrell Wallace Calker was a composer and arranger who worked on films and animated cartoons.-Biography:...
.
Pantry Panic was the third cartoon in the Woody Woodpecker series (thus featuring an early garish Woody Woodpecker design), and the fourth short to star the character. It was the first short with Danny Webb as Woody's voice. However, the woodpecker's famous laugh (provided by Mel Blanc
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
) would continue to be recycled until 1951, when Grace Stafford
Grace Stafford
Gracie Lantz , also known by her stage name Grace Stafford, was an American actress and the wife of animation producer Walter Lantz. Stafford is best known for providing the voice of Woody Woodpecker from 1950 until 1972.-Career:Grace appeared in feature live action films from 1935, Dr...
rerecorded a softer version. Woody's "Guess Who?" (also supplied by Blanc), however, would continue to be used right up until the end of the series in 1972.
Today, Pantry Panic is the only Woody Woodpecker cartoon in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
. As such, it is freely distributed, and can be downloaded from the Internet Archive
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
and seen on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. It is available as a part of the 200 Classic Cartoon Collection.
Pantry Panic would be reworked in 1946 as Who's Cookin' Who?
Who's Cookin' Who?
Who's Cookin' Who? is the 17th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on June 24, 1946, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.-Notes:...
The Starvation personification used here would be used on that short as well as 1951's The Redwood Sap
The Redwood Sap
The Redwood Sap is the 36th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on October 1, 1951, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal International.-Plot:...
.
External links
- Download Pantry Panic from the Internet Archive
- Pantry Panic at Cinemaniacal.com - Viewable and downloadable in a variety of useful formats.
- Watch Pantry Panic at YouTube