Dumb-Hounded

In March 1943's "Dumb-Hounded," the MGM Tex Avery-directed cartoon introduced the character Droopy, a sleepy-eyed basset hound who wasn't christened by his well-known name until his fifth film, 1949's 'Senor Droopy.' The dog was a departure to Avery's earlier more energetic personalities such as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, with Droopy possessing a slow, lethargic manner, including his distinctive monotonic voice. Droopy was first spoken by actor Bill Thompson, whose distinctive voice was the character Wallace Wimple's in the popular radio comedy 'Fibber McGee and Molly.' After Thompson enlisted in WW2, several actors, including Avery, assumed the voice of the hound in Droopy's 24 original cartoons.

In "Dumb-Hounded," Droopy's introduction sees him trailing a pack of bloodhounds chasing an escaped convict in the form of a wolf. Droopy's first words, spoken into the camera, are "Hello, all you happy people-you know what? I'm the hero." The hound continually frustrates the wolf by turning up at the world's most remotest locations, including the North Pole, before the escapee does. Film reviewer Dave Sindelar observed, "Most of the humor involves the juxtaposition of Droopy's terse one-liners with the wolf's extreme reactions and reality-bending attempts to get away." Droopy's appearances in MGM cartoons ended in 1957 when the studio shuttered its animation department. But incarnations of Droopy continued to be seen on television, appearing on the Cartoon Network and in 'The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show.' Droopy also has had a number of feature film cameos, including 1988's "Who Framed Roger Rabbit."

He inspired Kricfalusi and some plots on "I Love Lucy" as well as making kids and adults giggle he gave us all our ration of unlimited animation may Red Hot Riding Hood forever jiggle! This is my all-time favorite of Avery's MGM period..one joke, over and over, with the most incredible takes in the entire animation field..watch and see who REALLY was responsible for the icons at Warner's. You don't need Freudian analysis to see the raw sex and violence in everything he did, it's right out in the open, screamingly funny, unbridled by the mores of his day or any other. Evergreen, timeless, and inspirational.

This short is an early look at Droopy. He's drawn a bit differently, but is recognizable all the same. In many ways this is the archetypical Tex Avery short-the visual gags are among his most outrageous ever, all the trademarks are here-signs, asides to the audience, the lot. Avery would re-visit this theme again, more than once. An incredible cartoon. Glad to see it's in print. A must-see for anyone interested in animation. Most highly recommended.

Droopy is omnipresent. He never says much or does much--he is just there. When the escaped convict wolf meets him, he doesn't need to do anything. His very presence is enough. Tex Avery pulls out all the stops here with his vibrating, eye popping animation.

I love the opening to this cartoon; an introduction, if you will, to the great character named "Droopy." Here he was called "The Happy Hound" but that changed quickly into the name we Droopy fans are all familiar with.

Anyway, we see a bunch of dogs racing out of "Swing Swing Prison," chasing an escaped convict. Trailing the pack is a very slow hound, who turns to us with his very downcast voice, asks, "Hello, are you happy people? You know what? I'm the hero." Then, he just slowly saunters away. That's his introduction to us. Bill Thompson does a fantastic job with our hero's depressing-sounding voice.

One of the most endearing aspect of these cartoons is Droopy giving asides to us, the audience. They're almost always hilarious. An early example in here: he and another dog bark at each other and the other dog walks away. Droopy turns to us and explains, "Just dog talk" and moves on.

The gag in this story is the escaped convict being dogged by Droopy everywhere he tries to hide from the cops. The dog appears out of nowhere, even hundreds of miles away - in a flash. (You really have to see it to appreciate the humor.)

This isn't just a cartoon which provides sight gags. It has that, plus a lot of puns, funny "asides" to the the viewers, comments on people and society, a sexy woman who gives us a good song....just a ton of entertainment from start to finish. Even when the jokes are corny, they admit it on screen to us!