Tweety's Circus
Encyclopedia
Tweety's Circus is a "Merrie Melodies
" cartoon animated short starring Tweety, Sylvester
, and various circus animals. Released June 4, 1955, the cartoon is directed by Friz Freleng
. All the voices were performed by Mel Blanc
.
(an attraction billed as "King of the Cats").
A carefree Sylvester walks into the circus singing his theme "Meow!" where he visits the various animal exhibits. There, upon seeing the lion exhibit, the unimpressed puddy tat immediately expresses his displeasure over the large feline's billing. However, Sylvester is far more interested in Tweety ... and thus the chase begins.
Tweety runs into the big top, where the lion (now uncaged) is waiting to maul Sylvester for his earlier remarks. From this point forward, the lion serves as both an antagonist for Sylvester and a protecter of Tweety.
Sylvester tries beating what he thinks is a fire hose to free Tweety, unknowing that the "hose" is an elephant
's trunk. The elephant grabs Sylvester with his trunk and — after crushing his chest — throws the battered puss into the lion's cage, where the lion finishes the job.
Other run-ins with the lion, elephant and other animals — all ending with Sylvester getting the worst of things — involve him exploiting his abilities as a high diver (Tweety directs the elephant to "drink it all down" (referring to the water) before Sylvester lands), a fire eater (the lion makes Sylvester eat the fire) and a high-wire walker.
In the end, Sylvester finally gets rid of the lion ... only to unwittingly lock himself in a cage with even more lions (also the antagonists for Sylvester). Tweety immediately takes a hat and cane and becomes a carnival barker
("Huwwy! Huwwy! Huwwy! Step wight up for da gweatest show on Eawth! Fifty wions and one puddy tat!") A loud roar erupts, and with Sylvester presumably having met his fate, Tweety changes his spiel: "Step wight up! Fifty wions, count 'em, fifty wions!"
Merrie Melodies
Merrie 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,...
" cartoon animated short starring Tweety, Sylvester
Sylvester (Looney Tunes)
Sylvester J. Pussycat, Sr., Sylvester the Cat or simply Sylvester, is a fictional character, a three-time Academy Award-winning anthropomorphic Tuxedo cat in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies repertory, often chasing Tweety Bird, Speedy Gonzales, or Hippety Hopper...
, and various circus animals. Released June 4, 1955, the cartoon is directed by Friz Freleng
Friz Freleng
Isadore "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....
. All the voices were performed 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...
.
Plot
The story centers on Sylvester visiting a circus, where he not only tries to catch Tweety for his meal, but attempt to one-up a lionLion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
(an attraction billed as "King of the Cats").
A carefree Sylvester walks into the circus singing his theme "Meow!" where he visits the various animal exhibits. There, upon seeing the lion exhibit, the unimpressed puddy tat immediately expresses his displeasure over the large feline's billing. However, Sylvester is far more interested in Tweety ... and thus the chase begins.
Tweety runs into the big top, where the lion (now uncaged) is waiting to maul Sylvester for his earlier remarks. From this point forward, the lion serves as both an antagonist for Sylvester and a protecter of Tweety.
Sylvester tries beating what he thinks is a fire hose to free Tweety, unknowing that the "hose" is an elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
's trunk. The elephant grabs Sylvester with his trunk and — after crushing his chest — throws the battered puss into the lion's cage, where the lion finishes the job.
Other run-ins with the lion, elephant and other animals — all ending with Sylvester getting the worst of things — involve him exploiting his abilities as a high diver (Tweety directs the elephant to "drink it all down" (referring to the water) before Sylvester lands), a fire eater (the lion makes Sylvester eat the fire) and a high-wire walker.
In the end, Sylvester finally gets rid of the lion ... only to unwittingly lock himself in a cage with even more lions (also the antagonists for Sylvester). Tweety immediately takes a hat and cane and becomes a carnival barker
Barker (occupation)
A barker is a person who attempts to attract patrons to entertainment events, such as a circus or funfair, by exhorting passing public, describing attractions of show and emphasizing variety, novelty, beauty, or some other feature believed to incite listeners to attend entertainment...
("Huwwy! Huwwy! Huwwy! Step wight up for da gweatest show on Eawth! Fifty wions and one puddy tat!") A loud roar erupts, and with Sylvester presumably having met his fate, Tweety changes his spiel: "Step wight up! Fifty wions, count 'em, fifty wions!"
Censorship
- The ABC version of this cartoon edits two scenes http://looney.goldenagecartoons.com/ltcuts/ltcutst.html:
- The part where Sylvester beats the lion with a mallet had the beatings cut from six to one (much like in the ABC version of the 1955 Freleng cartoon Roman Legion-Hare).
- The part where Sylvester hides from the lion by impersonating Flammo the fire-eater (by swallowing a flaming sword) was cut.