WWII CARTOON Private SNAFU Dr. Seuss / Chuck Jones WARNER BROS. ANIMATION

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• published: 07 Aug 2013
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This reel features several cartoons featuring Private Snafu, that were produced between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. They include "The Home Front" (dir: Frank Tashlin), "Diarrhea and Dysentery" (dir: unknown), "Rumors" (dir: Friz Freleng), "Camouflage" (dir: Chuck Jones), "Gas" (dir: Chuck Jones) and "Payday" (dir: Friz Freleng). It also includes "A Few Quick Facts", an animation that appeared (like the Snafu series) as part of the "Army / Navy Screen Magazine" during the war . The character of Private SNAFU ("Situation Normal: All Fouled Up") was created by director Frank Capra, chairman of the U.S. Army Air Force First Motion Picture Unit, and most were written by Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel, Philip D. Eastman, and Munro Leaf. Although the United States Army gave Walt Disney the first crack at creating the cartoons, Leon Schlesinger of the Warner Bros. animation studio underbid Disney by two-thirds and won the contract. Disney had also demanded exclusive ownership of the character, and merchandising rights. The purpose of these cartoons was to help enlisted men with weak literacy skills learn basic and important facts about military life. The highly entertaining shorts feature simple language, racy illustrations, mild profanity, and subtle moralizing. Private Snafu did everything wrong, so that his negative example taught basic lessons about secrecy, disease prevention, and proper military protocols. Private Snafu cartoons were something of a military secret — intended to be seen by the armed forces only. Eventually however, some of the less off-color toons were shown to the public. Surveys during the war to ascertain the soldiers' film favorites showed that the Snafu cartoons usually rated highest or second highest. Each cartoon was produced in six weeks, compared to the six months usually taken for short cartoons of the same kind. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com