The Ducktators

The Ducktators is a Looney Tunes black and white cartoon that was produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions and was released in 1942 by Warner Bros.. Directed by Norman McCabe, the cartoon satirizes various events of World War II. The title is a pun on dictator.

Story

The cartoon takes place on a farm, beginning with a few ducks, geese and chickens being shown. After a brief few moments, two ducks (who are expecting a duckling) go over to their unusually black-colored egg as it starts to hatch. Once the egg has hatched, a duckling with an Adolf Hitler appearance emerges and yells "Sieg Heil!" while giving the Nazi salute.

After time passes, the baby Hitler duck grows into adulthood, holding aggressive speeches toward other ducks and geese. One goose, representing Benito Mussolini, agrees with him and gives the Nazi salute. Afterward, a postcard from The Management of the Theatre that says "We wish to apologize to the NICE DUCKS and GEESE who may be in the audience" is shown (which possibly means that the "Nice Ducks and Geese" are German-Americans and Italian-Americans respectively). The Hitler duck then gathers up a group of soldiers to join him in his own Axis Powers Army, including a Daffy Duck-like character (but talks like Foghorn Leghorn), who claims to be from South Germany. The Mussolini goose then delivers a speech to the only listener: a little chick who had been forced to stay and applaud. After these happenings, storm troopers are sent marching across the area, while the Dove of Peace, grieves at what is happening ("Have they forgot? 'Tis love that's right, and naught is gained by show of might.").

Daffy Duck

Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character produced by Warner Bros. Styled as an anthropomorphic black duck, the character has appeared in cartoon series such as Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, where he usually has been depicted as the best friend and occasional arch-rival of Bugs Bunny. Daffy was one of the first of the new "screwball" characters that emerged in the late 1930s to replace traditional everyman characters who were more popular earlier in the decade, such as Mickey Mouse and Popeye. Daffy starred in 133 shorts in the golden age, making him the third-most frequent character in the Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoons, behind Bugs Bunny's 166 appearances and Porky Pig's 159 appearances.

Daffy was number 14 on TV Guide's list of top 50 best cartoon characters and was featured on one of the issue's four covers as Duck Dodgers with Porky Pig and the Powerpuff Girls (all of which are Time Warner-owned characters).

Origin and history

Daffy first appeared in Porky's Duck Hunt, released on April 17, 1937. The cartoon was directed by Tex Avery and animated by Bob Clampett. Porky's Duck Hunt is a standard hunter/prey pairing for which Leon Schlesinger's studio was famous, but Daffy (barely more than an unnamed bit player in this short) was something new to moviegoers: an assertive, completely unrestrained, combative protagonist. Clampett later recalled:

Looney Tunes

Looney Tunes is an American animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. from 1930 to 1969 during the golden age of American animation, alongside its sister series Merrie Melodies. Drawing inspiration for its name from Walt Disney's then-concurrent musical series Silly Symphonies, Looney Tunes initially showcased Warner-owned musical compositions through the adventures of cartoon characters such as Bosko and Buddy.

Later, following the animation studio's addition of directors Tex Avery and Chuck Jones among others, as well as the voice actor Mel Blanc, Looney Tunes rose to greater fame for introducing such cartoon stars as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Tweety Bird, Sylvester the Cat, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Marvin the Martian, Pepé Le Pew, Speedy Gonzales, Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner, the Tasmanian Devil and many others. These characters themselves are commonly referred to as the "Looney Tunes" (or "Looney Toons"). From 1942 to 1964, Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies were the most popular animated shorts in movie theaters, exceeding the works of Disney and other popular competitors including Fleischer Studios, Walter Lantz Productions, UPA, Terrytoons and MGM.