''Blitz Wolf'' is a 1942 American

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anim ...

propaganda short film produced and distributed by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

. A parody of the

Three Little Pigs "The Three Little Pigs" is a fable about three pigs who build three houses of different materials. A Big Bad Wolf blows down the first two pigs' houses which made of straw and sticks respectively, but is unable to destroy the third pig's house ...

told via a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

perspective, the short was directed by

Tex Avery Frederick Bean "Tex" Avery (February 26, 1908 – August 26, 1980) was an American animator, cartoonist, animation director, director, and voice actor. He was known for directing and producing animated cartoons during the golden age of American a ...

(in his first cartoon for MGM) and produced by

Fred Quimby Frederick Clinton Quimby (July 31, 1886 – September 16, 1965) was an American animation producer and journalist best known for producing the ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon series, for which he won seven Academy Awards for Best Animated Short Films ...

. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Short Subject: Cartoons but lost to ''

Der Fuehrer's Face ''Der Fuehrer's Face'' (originally titled ''A Nightmare in Nutziland'' or ''Donald Duck in Nutziland'' ) is a 1943 American animated anti-Nazi propaganda short film produced by Walt Disney Productions, created in 1942 and released on January 1, ...

'', another

anti-Nazi Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...

World War II parody featuring

Donald Duck Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor shirt and cap with a bow tie. Donald is known fo ...

.Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 113-114

Plot

The plot is a parody of the

, told from a

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

anti-German propaganda Anti-German sentiment (also known as Anti-Germanism, Germanophobia or Teutophobia) is opposition to or fear of Germany, its inhabitants, its culture, or its language. Its opposite is Germanophilia. Anti-German sentiment largely began with t ...

perspective. In this cartoon, the danger is from Adolf Wolf (

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

), who is set on invading the pig's nation of Pigmania. The pig who built his house of stone, "Sergeant Pork" (an homage to '' Sergeant York)'', take his precautions and outfits his house with defense machinery, but the two pigs who built their houses of straw and sticks claim they don't have to take precautions against the wolf because they signed a

non-aggression pact A non-aggression pact or neutrality pact is a treaty between two or more states/countries that includes a promise by the signatories not to engage in military action against each other. Such treaties may be described by other names, such as a tr ...

with him. Adolf Wolf invades Pigmania, despite the two pigs protesting that he signed a treaty with them. He destroys their houses, the straw house with "Der Mechanized Huffer Und Puffer" and the stick house with an artillery shell, forcing the pigs to take shelter in the third pig's house, prompting a battle between the two parties. Towards the end of the cartoon, Adolf Wolf is blown out of his bomber plane by the pigs' artillery shells, fired from their multi-barreled "secret weapon" and filled with Defense bonds, and plummets down to Earth followed by a bomb from his own plane, which promptly blows him to

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

upon impact. There he realizes he is dead and says: ''"Where am I? Have I been blown to... ?",'' whereupon a group of devils adds: ''"Ehhhh, it's a possibility!''", in reference to a then well-known

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

Artie Auerbach Arthur Auerbach (May 17, 1903 – October 3, 1957), was an American comic actor and professional photographer who became famous as "Mr. Kitzel", first on the Al Pearce radio show in 1937 then as a regular on the Jack Benny radio show for 12 y ...

on the

Al Pearce Albert Pearce (July 25, 1898 – June 2, 1961) was an American comedian, singer and List of banjo players, banjo player who was a popular personality on several radio networks from 1928 to 1947. Biography After selling insurance door-to-door ...

radio show.

Voice cast

* Bill Thompson as Adolf Wolf (uncredited) *

Pinto Colvig Vance DeBar Colvig Sr. (September 11, 1892 – October 3, 1967), professionally Pinto Colvig, was an American voice actor, newspaper cartoonist, and circus and vaudeville performer whose schtick was playing the clarinet off-key while mugging. Co ...

as Sgt. Pork (uncredited) * Frank Graham as narrator (uncredited) *

Sara Berner Sara Berner (born Lillian Ann Herdan; January 12, 1912 – December 19, 1969) was an American actress. Known for her expertise in dialect and characterization, she began her career as a performer in vaudeville before becoming a voice actress for r ...

as pigs (uncredited) *

Kent Rogers Kent Byron Rogers (July 31, 1923 – July 9, 1944) was an American actor who appeared in several live-action features and shorts, and a voice actor for Warner Bros. Cartoons and Walter Lantz Productions. Career For Warner Bros. Cartoons, R ...

as devils (uncredited)

Cultural references

*This is Tex Avery's first cartoon at MGM, and also the first film at MGM for animator

Ed Love Edward H. Love (May 24, 1910 – May 6, 1996) was an American animator who worked at various studios during the Golden age of American animation. He is well known for animating Walt Disney Animations' shorts ''Mickey's Trailer'' and '' Fan ...

. Love had arrived at MGM with

Kenneth Muse Kenneth Muse (July 26, 1910 – July 26, 1987) was an American animator best known for his work on the ''Tom and Jerry'' series at MGM. Biography Muse worked briefly at Walt Disney Productions, where he was Preston Blair's assistant on '' Fa ...

just after the 1941

Disney animators' strike The Disney animators' strike in 1941 reflected anger at inequities of pay and privileges at the non-unionized Walt Disney Productions. Walt Disney responded to the five-week strike by firing many of his animators, but was eventually pressured i ...

. *The

MGM lion Leo the Lion is the mascot for the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and one of its predecessors, Goldwyn Pictures, featured in the studio's production logo, which was created by the Paramount Pictures, Paramou ...

, Tanner, roars to the tune of "

Hold That Tiger "Tiger Rag" is a jazz standard that was recorded and copyrighted by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. It is one of the most recorded jazz compositions. In 2003, the 1918 recording of "Tiger Rag" was entered into the U.S. Library of Con ...

", with 5 quick and short roars. Same background music of "

" occurs in

Rudolf Ising Rudolf Carl Ising (August 7, 1903 – July 18, 1992) was an American animator best known for collaborating with Hugh Harman to establish the Warner Bros. and MGM Cartoon studios during the early years of the golden age of American animation. In ...

's ''Chips Off the Old Block'' (1942) start. 21 days (3 weeks) differ among their dates. This film, Tex Avery's ''Blitz Wolf'' (1942) was first, Saturday, August 22, 1942 and Rudolf Ising's ''Chips Off the Old Block'' (1942), was second on Saturday, September 12, 1942. Adolf Wolf, the antagonist of the cartoon, would serve as inspiration for Tex Avery's unnamed wolf, who would appear in other cartoons such as ''

Red Hot Riding Hood ''Red Hot Riding Hood'' is an animated cartoon short subject, directed by Tex Avery and released with the movie '' Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case'' on May 8, 1943, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1994, it was voted number 7 of The 50 Greatest Cartoo ...

'' and ''

Northwest Hounded Police ''Northwest Hounded Police'' is a 1946 American animated short film directed by Tex Avery, produced by Fred Quimby, and featuring Droopy and Avery's wolf character. A remake of Droopy's first cartoon '' Dumb-Hounded'' (also adopting elements from ...

''. *Tex Avery would once again parody the story of the Three Little Pigs in ''One Ham's Family'' and ''The Three Little Pups''. *This short was widely available, uncut, on the MGM/UA video label's VHS release, ''Tex Avery's Screwball Classics, Vol. 4'' and on the

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

/ UA laserdisc collection ''The Compleat Tex Avery''. A fully restored and uncut version is available on Academy Awards Animation Collection DVD set by

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video ...

, and as a bonus feature (in standard definition) on Disc 3 of the '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2'' Blu-Ray set. The high definition version was later included on the '' Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 3'' Blu-Ray by

Warner Archive Collection The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inte ...

. *There is a reference to the

Doolittle Raid The Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, was an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II. It was the first American air operation to strike the Japan ...

Jimmy Doolittle James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II. He also made early coast-to-coast flights ...

on Tokyo. When the bomb lands and destroys Tokyo, there is a sign "Doolittle Dood It!" coming out from the water. "Doolittle Dood It!" was an actual newspaper headline of the

Los Angeles Herald Examiner The ''Los Angeles Herald Examiner'' was a major Los Angeles daily newspaper, published in the afternoon from Monday to Friday and in the morning on Saturdays and Sundays. It was part of the Hearst syndicate. It was formed when the afternoon ' ...

. *

provides the voice of "Practical Pig", as he did in Disney's ''

''. *Adolf Wolf's voice was provided by Bill Thompson, who would later voice

Droopy Droopy is an animated character from the golden age of American animation. He is an anthropomorphic white Basset Hound with a droopy face; hence his name. He was created in 1943 by Tex Avery for theatrical cartoon shorts produced by the Metro-Go ...

. Droopy starred in his own adaptation of the story called ''The Three Little Pups''. *In the beginning, the two little pigs mockingly sing to Sergeant Pork: ''

You're in the Army Now ''You're in the Army Now'' is a 1941 comedy film directed by Lewis Seiler and starring Jimmy Durante, Phil Silvers, Jane Wyman, and Regis Toomey. It featured the longest kiss in film (lasting three minutes and five seconds), between Toomey and ...

,''/ ''You're Not Behind the Plow,''/ ''You're Diggin' a Ditch,''/ '' ause and motion freeze''/ ''You're in the Army Now!'' The pause was inserted to replace the line "You Son of a Bitch", which would be inappropriate for a film at the time. This is much similar to a gag in the

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

cartoon ''

The Draft Horse ''The Draft Horse'' is a Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on May 9, 1942. The title is a pun on draft horse and the draft (conscription). Plot A farm horse sees a poster that says the U.S ...

''. *The wolf saying "Is that you Mert?" on the phone is a reference to the radio show

Fibber McGee and Molly ''Fibber McGee and Molly'' (1935–1959) was a longtime highly popular husband-and-wife team radio comedy program. The situation comedy was a staple of the NBC Red Network from 1936 on, after originating on NBC Blue in 1935. One of the most p ...

. *Most of the scenery doesn't resemble World War II at all. The

trenches A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from erosi ...

and the pigs' uniforms resemble those of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. *As the tanks arrive, one small tank has the line "

Good Humor Good Humor is a Good Humor-Breyers brand of ice cream started in Youngstown, Ohio, US, in the early 1920s with the Good Humor bar, a chocolate-coated ice cream bar on a stick sold from ice cream trucks and retail outlets. It was a fixture in Ame ...

" written on its side and makes the sound of an ice cream truck. This is similar to a joke later used in ''

Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips ''Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips'' is a 1944 ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. The cartoon, released on April 22, 1944, features Bugs Bunny. The film depicts Bugs fighting against the Imperial Japanese Army in the Pacific War. The ...

.'' *A lone

flame tank A flame tank is a type of tank equipped with a flamethrower, most commonly used to supplement combined arms attacks against fortifications, confined spaces, or other obstacles. The type only reached significant use in the Second World War, dur ...

not spewing fire holds up a sign with the line 'I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire'. *When the straw house is blown away, a sign says 'Gone with the Wind', referring to the 1939 film (with another smaller sign agreeing that this is a corny gag), which was also released by MGM. *One of the pigs' artillery shells blasts the Wolf's tank into tin cans, a reference to the Allied Scrap Metal Drives of World War II. *At one point, Sgt. Pork distracts incoming shellfire by holding up a copy of ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'' magazine's (unseen-by-the-audience) Petty Girl

pin-up A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...

artwork by

George Petty George Brown Petty IV (April 27, 1894 – July 21, 1975) was an American pin-up artist. His pin-up art appeared primarily in ''Esquire'' and Fawcett Publications's ''True'' but was also in calendars marketed by ''Esquire'', ''True'' and Ridgid T ...

Analysis

Out of 15 cartoon shorts released by the

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio was an American animation studio operated by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) during the Golden Age of American animation. Active from 1937 until 1957, the studio was responsible for producing animated shorts to a ...

in 1942, this was the only one to have World War II as its subject matter. Besides targeting Adolf Hitler, the short includes references to

Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States has existed since the late 19th century, especially during the Yellow Peril, which had also extended to other Asian immigrants. Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States would peak during World Wa ...

.Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 52-54 The Wolf holds a sign inviting the audience to hiss at him, as nobody cares about their reaction. This breaks the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

and reveals the character's contempt for the audience. There is a mixed message regarding the characters. The Wolf is a

sociopath Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits. Different conceptions of psychopathy have been u ...

with enough

panache Panache () is a word of French origin that carries the connotation of flamboyant manner and reckless courage, derived from the helmet-plume worn by cavalrymen in the Early Modern period. The literal translation is a plume, such as is worn on a h ...

to keep the audience interested in him. Conversely,

Sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

Pork is a humorless, stoic character who fails to stand out. The MGM pressbook termed the short as pro-democracy

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

. The two lazy pig brothers reject preparation for defense because of their

, an allusion to the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg , image_width = 200 , caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...

. Their brother Sgt. Pork is named after Sgt. Alvin C. York, a World War I hero who inspired the film '' Sergeant York'' (1941). He represents the attitude of preparing for war. The Wolf violates a

to blow down the pigs' homes. The two lazy pigs become

fugitive A fugitive (or runaway) is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also known ...

s of war and seek asylum in their brother's

fortified A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

home. Said home demonstrates a sign: "No Japs allowed". The three pigs use a huge cannon to bomb

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. The city is destroyed with the image of the Rising Sun Flag collapsing in the background, replaced by a sky with red, white and blue stripes. During the showdown, the Wolf fires an artillery shell against the fortified house. Sgt. Pork in his trench reaches down for his copy of the ''

'' magazine. The pig opens the magazine and shows the centerfold to the shell. The shell stops in midflight and whistles in appreciation. It then retreats and returns with ten other shells. This group of friends are fascinated by the image presented to them. They make catcall sounds and then fall down de-activated.Kakoudaki (2004), p. 339-341 The pinup here is used as more than a talisman for boosting morale. It exploits the male vulnerability of the enemy through eliciting erotic arousal. The shells stand-in for their human operators. In another scene where a weapon stands-in for military personnel, Pork's cannon collapses exhausted. Its owner revives it through feeding it B-1 vitamins. ( B1 helps the body generate energy.) The cannon stands erect again, a phallic image, and begins blasting away all on its own. The label may reference the number system of military hardware like the

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

. The Wolf utilizes a "Stinka Bomber PU". This is a parody of the German Stuka, a

dive bomber A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...

used by the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

. The shells that down the aircraft are filled with defense bonds. The cartoon concludes with two printed titles: "The end of Adolf" and "If you'll Buy a Stamp or Bond- We'll Skin that Skunk Across the Pond!" According to

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...

, Tex Avery was criticized by an MGM producer for being overly rough in his depiction of Hitler. The producer reminded Avery that the victor of the war was yet to be determined.Thompson, Phelps (2005), p. 174 This cartoon has rarely been shown in the United States since World War II. However, it was shown on

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

's ''ToonHeads'' and TCM's ''Cartoon Alley'' with the word "Japs" airbrushed out from the "No Japs Allowed" sign, and the scene involving a missile hitting

cut (this edited version is also available on the Region 2 Tex Avery 5-disc DVD set).

Availability

;VHS: *Tex Avery's Screwball Classics 4 ;LaserDisc: *All This and Tex Avery Too! *The Compleat Tex Avery ;DVD: *

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Academy Awards Animation Collection Warner Bros.' library of Oscar-nominated cartoons were showcased in a DVD set released by Warner Home Video on February 12, 2008 that included their own Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, as well as Tom and Jerry, Droopy, and other classic MGM car ...

: 15 Winners, 26 Nominees ;Blu-ray: * Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc 3 *

Tex Avery Screwball Classics ''Tex Avery Screwball Classics'' is a series of single-disc Blu-ray and DVD sets by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment's Warner Archive unit collecting various theatrical cartoons from animation director Tex Avery during his tenure at the Metro-Goldw ...

: Volume 3

References

Sources

* * * *

External links

* *
Screenshots and commentary
on Classic Cartoons {{The Three Little Pigs 1942 films 1942 animated films 1942 short films 1940s American animated films 1940s animated short films 1942 comedy films Animated films about wolves Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer animated short films Self-reflexive films Cultural depictions of Adolf Hitler American World War II propaganda shorts Films directed by Tex Avery Films set in a fictional country Films set in Germany Films based on The Three Little Pigs Films based on fairy tales Films about pigs American parody films Fairy tale parody films Animation based on real people Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films scored by Scott Bradley Films set in hell Tex Avery's Big Bad Wolf films Films produced by Fred Quimby Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio short films 1940s English-language films