Greetings Bait

If you are a surviving member of the Jerry Colonna fan club (there are currently six), then this film is a must. If, on the other hand, you are among the 95% of the folks who have no idea WHO Mr. Colonna was, then it is not imperative you see the film--but it is a decent example of an early 40s Looney Tunes film.

Jerry Colonna was a mustachioed singer and comedian that worked mostly with Bob Hope on radio and followed him on his USO tours. He did a few small movie appearances and had a brief TV show. His trademarks were his mustache and huge big-eyed grin. He died in 1986. I've seen him a few times but not enough to really comment on his abilities.

The main character of this short is a worm that looks like Colonna (is THAT a complement?!). The worm is very bright and spends much of the film enticing and then catching fish for his master who is in the boat above. The antics are roughly like those of a Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck cartoon and the film ends with a cartoon shot of the comedian (not in worm form).

There's nothing particularly noteworthy about the film's contents. It's middle of the road entertainment for the studio but somehow got Oscar nominated.

This cartoon (deservedly nominated for an Oscar) features a parody of the great Jerry Collona, a radio and motion picture comedian. The title is a play on one of his signature bits ("Greetings, gate! Let's osculate!) that were his trademarks. Collona was parodied several times by the guys at Termite Terrace and was popular at the time. Little-remembered today, he really was very funny and is humorously well-done here. This cartoon should really be in-print, as it's fabulous! With worms lke this, fish don't have a chance! But I have just one question: where's Yehoodi? Recommended.