Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 07:54, 23 June 2007

Revision as of 02:18, 27 June 2007

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==Summary==

[[Image:Steamboat Willy - Hittin' the Trail comparison.png|thumb|left|upright|Comparison or steamboat piloting scenes in ''[[Steamboat Willy]]'' (top) and ''Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land'']]

Unlike most ''Merrie Melodies'' shorts of the period, ''Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land'' has a rudimentary plot.<ref>Beck and Friedwald 12.</ref> The cartoon stars the [[Mickey Mouse]]-esque [[Piggy (Merrie Melodies)|Piggy]], his girlfirend Fluffy, and a canine [[Uncle Tom]].<ref name="Cruz"/> The film opens with a singing steamboat dancing down a river. On the deck, three [[blackface]] caricatures play the song for which the short is named on the harmonica, banjo, and bones. Meanwhile, Uncle Tom drives Fluffy toward the boat by donkey cart. The scene shifts to Piggy the riverboat captain in a sequence reminiscent of Disney's 1928 film ''[[Steamboat Willy]]''.<ref name="Cruz"/> Fluffy joins the frolicking steamboat passengers and reunites with her boyfriend, but during the revelry, Piggy falls overboard. The pig has a run in with an alligator, but he makes it back to the boat. Meanwhile, Uncle Tom's donkey bucks him into a cemetery. There, in a variation on a stock gag featuring a superstitious black man,<ref>Lindvall 128.</ref> he is scared by three dancing skeletons reminiscent of those in Disney's 1929 short ''[[The Skeleton Dance]]''. Tom escapes to the middle of the river, but a shoddy boat leaves him stranded and drowning. Piggy saves the day but not before a [[vaudeville|vaudevillian]] villain kidnaps his porcine paramour. Piggy captures the villain on a passing mail hook, leaving the villain tortured over a buzz saw. This short marks the second and last appearance of the characters Piggy and Fluffy.<ref name="Cruz"/>

==Distribution==

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==References==

* Beck, Jerry, and Will Friedwald (1989). ''Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons''. Owl Books. ISBN 0805008942.

* Cruz, Brian (2003). "[http://bosko.toonzone.net/1931/hittin_the_trail_for_hallelujah_land/ Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land]". ''Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: The Early Years''. Toon Zone. Accessed [[21 June]] [[2007]].

* Lindvall, Terry, and Ben Fraser (1998). "Darker Shades of Animation: African-American Images in Warner Bros. Cartoons". ''Reading the Rabbit: Explorations in Warner Bros. Animation''. Rutgers University Press.