Wunderliche Walzerträume

Her Bob Clampett uses two lovely Strauss Waltzes, "Tales from the Vienna Woods," and "The Beautiful Blue Danube." They are conducted by our friend Elmer Fudd. In the former, Bugs Bunny reigns supreme over a hunter, Porky Pig, and his dog. As is usually the case, our rabbit friend is in total control. There is a great scene where Bugs is playing dead and Porky tries to pull his arms up so they can check him for a gunshot. Great results. In the second, Daffy tries to join a trio of little swans. The music is gorgeous and the animation is right on. The color never ceases to amaze me. Apparently, this was Warner Brothers answer to Disney's "Fantasia."

Cartoonists just love puns; have you noticed? Here, we begin this corny parody of "Fantasia" at "Corny-Gie Hall."

Elmer Fudd is the conductor and tells us what to expect in the concert, using as many "w's" instead of "r's" the writers could think of for a 10-second speech. We then witness the Strauss waltz, "Tales From The Vienna Woods" featuring hunter Porky Pig, his dog and their prey, Bugs Bunny. All the action is done to the music.

The same holds true for the second number, "The Blue Danube." This second part was totally lame except for the great artwork.

The colors in here at stunning, and might be the highlight of the whole cartoon. The laughs were not plentiful, but you can't win them all.This cartoon is part of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume Two and can be seen on disc three.

And, I ask you - Who could possibly be a better choice as "Master of Ceremonies" for "A Corny Concerto" than good, old Elmer Fudd? I mean - Don't you think that Elmer added a special flair of dignity to his all-important role?

Anyway - I'd say that this "Fantasia" parody was pulled off quite enjoyably by the imaginative team (headed by director, Robert Clampett) at Warner Bros. Studios.

Featuring the likes of Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny - (IMO) "A Corny Concerto" (from 1943) did a fine job of introducing its audience (through these zany animated ballets) to the classical music of Johann Strauss (with no disrespect intended).

A Corny Concerto, what can I say? Simply wonderful. Maybe not as hysterically funny as other Looney Tunes cartoons, but it is special to me for many reasons. A Corny Concerto isn't necessarily what you call hilarious, the funniest it comes to is Elmer's struggles with his loose fitting evening clothes though Porky and the pointer dog sobbing in Waltz time at Bug's "death" was funny too as was Bugs revealing his bra, tutu and pointe shoes and the stunned looks on Porky and Pointer Dog's faces. The animation though is wonderful, the wood in Tales from the Vienna Woods is beautifully rendered, but in terms of animation On the Beautiful Blue Danube was superior, with vibrant colouring particularly of the river itself. In terms of humour, Tales from the Vienna Woods is the better of the two, On the Beautiful Blue Danube is beautiful essentially but rather humourless in comparison. But what both segments have in common is that the music is outstanding. Johann Strauss II is rightly nicknamed "The Waltz King". Both pieces featured are fantastic and two of my favourite classical music pieces of all time, though I am more familiar with On the Beautiful Blue Danube. What impresses me most is how so much is fitted in in such a short running time without feeling bloated. This cartoon is fantastic, perfect for a classical music listener. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Elmer Fudd is the conductor at Corny-gie Hall. He is struggling to dress and presents the performance of Strauss's waltzes. The first segment is "Tales from the Vienna Woods" where Porky Pig and his dog are hunting Bugs Bunny. The second segment is "The Blue Danube" where a young black duck tries to join a swan family.

The music is classical and terrific. It is a little funny to see Porky Pig taking over Elmer Fudd's role in the first segment. Initially, I thought they might be recycling the segments. That doesn't seems to be the case. I do like the two segments despite the limited dialogue. I really like the use of sound effects to accentuate the music. This is nice.