Pica-Pau Ataca Novamente

Walter Lantz produced and directed several Memorable cartoons, he was always a persevering man who continued to work and do what he liked even if he was not in good times, after a couple of shorts of an Andy Panda Character, Lantz included a new character in which he inspired after a woodpecker made holes in the roof of a cabin where he spent his honeymoon, his wife reassured him and encouraged him to create a caricature of it, Lantz also thought of shooting the bird!, but he just chased him away and he himself made a sound similar to a laugh, and from there Woody's iconic laugh was born! Which, Some Characters and Ideas arose after some situation that happened to the Creator, Walt Disney created Mickey Mouse in revenge against Universal for Stealing the Rights of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit!, but let's ignore that and focus on Universal.

Lantz had already worked at Universal with Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, but after Oswald the Lucky Rabbit lost popularity, he decided to look for new ideas and characters, among them the one that stood out the most was Andy Panda, who had several short films until "Knock Knock" arrived in 1940. In which as I said was the first appearance of Woody, Woody achieved popularity in the public and although critics treated the character badly for his ugly design and strange personality, Lantz did not listen to criticism and continued making Woody Woodpecker shorts.

To be the first appearance of our favorite woodpecker is not bad at all, although the protagonist is Andy Panda and his father, Woody steals the show, we see him for the first time playing a trick on the father thinking that they were knocking on the door so that Finally Andy told him that Woody was actually hitting the ceiling, after saying his Iconic Phrase "Guess Who" Andy Panda and his Father decide to kill Woody!.

The Animation in this short was very good, I liked the backgrounds, they look quite detailed and although the character design, especially Woody's, looks bizarre, they are quite decent and have fluid movements that favor visual pleasure.

Frank Marsales offers good music and this was the last job he had with Lantz, the music has some rhythm to it and although it is not as energetic as Carl Stalling's music or as fun as Scott Bradley's, it is a decent effort as it is nice to listen to and syncs up nicely with the animation.

The Incredible Mel Blanc did the Voice of Woody in his First 4 Shorts, this veteran of Voice acting discovered a voice of his in High School and after practicing it for a while he unknowingly created Woody's Iconic Voice and Laughter! Of course, the Other characters have good voices but no one beats the Great Mel Blanc!.

Without knowing it, Walter Lantz created the Universal Animated Star, although it was not well received at the beginning, it currently has the recognition it deserves and has amused and entertained us all, the Animation is Good as well as the Music, the Cartoon has Good rhythm and it favors some gags that are out there that are quite funny and show that Woody was already Crazy from the start!.

In itself, Knock Knock is not the best of Woody but it was a great First appearance that he shared with Andy Panda, I liked the Animation and the Gags, it was fun to see how The Pandas failed in their Mission and Woody Ended up victorious, although somewhat petty, Woody is a great character here, I liked how he humiliated Andy's father, the Pandas are also fun but nothing that beats the Great Woody!.

For everything I said above, Knock Knock gets an 8.

Was very fond of Woody Woodpecker and his cartoons as a child. Still get much enjoyment out of them now as a young adult, even if there are more interesting in personality cartoon characters and better overall cartoons.

Despite being an Andy Panda cartoon, 'Knock Knock' is significant for being Woody's debut, and, while he was basically a supporting character (it was his next cartoon 'Woody Woodpecker' where he first properly qualified as a lead), it made him a breakout star and no wonder. He is enormous fun to watch and has all the best and funniest moments in 'Knock Knock', and while with some different character traits to the Woody Woodpecker one is more familiar with there are also parts of his personality that are recognisable.

Andy Panda is a nice, cute and appealing lead character, if a little bland especially when compared to Woody. So much so 'Knock Knock' would have perhaps been even better with him in support and Woody as the leading character, and it's once Woody is introduced that the cartoon properly comes to life. The father is fun too.

For so early on for Woody Woodpecker, the animation in 'Knock Knock' is mostly very good. The one exception is the character design of Woody, the design itself is a little odd and the drawing compared to later was pretty ugly. Otherwise, the colours are rich and vibrant and the backgrounds meticulous in their detail.

Love the music too. It's characterful, lushly orchestrated and is not only dynamic with the action it even enhances it. The writing is suitably witty and raises a number of chuckles, while the never less than amusing and beautifully timed sight gags are even more impressive especially in the parts where Woody is on the rampage.

'Knock Knock's' voice acting is strong, with as ever impeccable work from Mel Blanc, even though the later voice actors were more familiar to me.

In summary, very good fun, more than just historical interest. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Inspiration for an artist sometimes comes when least expected. The idea for cartoon's Woody Woodpecker is a story of legends when the bird made his film debut in November 1940 "Knock Knock." Director Walter Lantz found himself in need of a new character for Universal Pictures' animated division. During his honeymoon at a Nevada ranch with bride actress Grace Stafford, the newlyweds heard a persistent woodpecker doing his work on the roof. Grace, knowing Walt was searching for a new cartoon protagonist, suggested he use the irksome bird.

Although Lantz was a bit dubious a bird could successfully carry a cartoon series, he assigned animator Ben Hardaway to draw the pesky avian (Some, including the director, claim drawer Alex Lovy deserves credit for its initial design). Hardaway, who drew the first sketches of Bugs Bunny, promptly outlined a rendition of the Woody Woodpecker seen in "Knock Knock." He showed the drawing of the woodpecker to voice actor Mel Blanc who spoke for Woody in the first three cartoons, only to be replaced by a number of actors, including Lantz's wife Grace in 1950. She's uncredited because she felt kids shouldn't know the pecker's verbal skills were voiced by a woman. Meanwhile, Blanc sued Lantz in 1948 for using his laughter in the Academy Award-nominated "The Woody Woodpecker Song." While a judge ruled Blanc had no standing because he failed to copyright his Woody voice, Lantz paid him an out-of-settlement amount on appeal.

Andy Panda, who appears in "Knock, Knock," was Universal studio's primary character at the time before Woody knocked him off his mantle. Earlier Andy had replaced Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (originally a Walt Disney creation) series in 1939. The bear's popularity soared until Woody arrived on the scene. In Woody's debut Andy Panda and his father, Papa Panda, are irritated by the woodpecker's constant drilling on the roof of their house. Woody's first words when he breaks through the roof is "Guess who?" which soon became his trademark phrase. In a series of misdirected attempts to capture the woodpecker, both pandas are frustrated by the crafty Woody. A trick Andy always was successful in using, sprinkling salt on the bird's tail, boomerangs on the bears, resulting in a surprise ending.

At first Bernie Krieser, the distributor for Universal, didn't want to handle the cartoon, telling Lantz, "He's the ugliest thing I've ever seen." Walter replied, "You're not paying for these pictures, all you're doing is distributing them, so release him, because I'm taking a chance." The response to Woody was overwhelmingly off the charts by the enthusiastic paying public. Universal green lit Lantz's new character for further cartoons in the woodpecker's new series, with his solo cartoon, 1941's "Woody Woodpecker," the first to call him that name. Since then, Woody's physical appearance has somewhat been altered with the times. As a mainstay and official mascot for Universal studio, the bird's popularity remains consistent in film and on television. Woody is ranked by TV Guide as the 46th Greatest Cartoon Character of All Time. His image is seen on the nose of William Engineering team's racing cars in the Formula One Grand Prix while his balloon is one of the highlights in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

"Knock Knock" is the first cartoon with Woody Woodpecker, though it was considered an Andy Panda movie by Universal Studios. However, Andy really has little to do in the film...it's mostly Andy's dad fighting with this annoying Woodpecker!

The story is very simple. The Panda household is being annoyed by incessant pecking on their house by the woodpecker (his name is never given in the film). So, Papa Panda tries to stop the woodpecker...with expected results.

The quality of this cartoon is nearly as good as a film by Looney Tunes or MGM. This quality of animation and story were not the norm for Universal....usually they were more limp. Worth seeing...especially for its historical value.

Knock Knock (1940)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Andy Panda wants to know if you can catch a woodpecker simply by putting salt on its tail and he gets his shot of finding out when Woody Woodpecker shows up to drive his father crazy. This isn't the greatest cartoon ever made but it was the first to feature the famous woodpecker so that there makes it rather historic and worth seeing. There are certainly some funny moments here with the majority of them going to Woody so there's no question as to why he ended up becoming a big star. The movie's best moments happen after a fake, sexy woodpecker is used to kiss Woody who then goes on a rampage through the forest. Another funny sequence happens when the father panda thinks he has captured Woody but soon the two go flying. I really didn't find either panda overly interesting here but Woody makes it worth sitting through.