''Birds Anonymous'' is a 1957

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 ...

Merrie Melodies ''Merrie Melodies'' is an American animation, animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. starting in 1931, during the golden age of American animation, and ending in 1969. Then some new cartoons were produced from the late 197 ...

'' animated short, directed by

Friz Freleng Isadore "Friz" Freleng (August 21, 1905May 26, 1995), credited as I. Freleng early in his career, was an American animator, cartoonist, director, producer, and composer known for his work at Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

and written by

Warren Foster Warren Foster (October 24, 1904 – December 13, 1971) was an American writer, cartoonist and composer for the animation division of Warner Brothers and later with Hanna-Barbera. Early life He was born in Brooklyn, New York to Marion B. Fos ...

. The short was released on August 10, 1957, and stars

Tweety Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for t ...

and Sylvester.

Plot

The cartoon starts with Tweety swinging in his cage, but then Sylvester opens a door and sneaks up on Tweety with blood-shot eyes.

Production notes

''Birds Anonymous'' is a reference to the self-help movement

Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international mutual aid fellowship of alcoholics dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program. Following its Twelve Traditions, AA is non-professi ...

. The voice of Clarence the cat is similar to that of

Marvin the Martian Marvin the Martian is an extraterrestrial character from Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons. He frequently appears as a villain in cartoons and video games, and wears a helmet and skirt. The character has been voice ...

, the creation of

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 ...

. The voice of the B.A. Cat was used by Blanc for the love-bird in ''

Life With Feathers ''Life with Feathers'' is a 1945 Warner Bros. '' Merrie Melodies'' animated short film directed by Friz Freleng. The short was released on March 24, 1945, and is the first cartoon to feature Sylvester the Cat. The title is a play on the long ...

'', among other places. The premise was later adapted into ''

The Last Hungry Cat ''The Last Hungry Cat'' is a Warner Bros. '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoon animated short directed by Friz Freleng and Hawley Pratt. The short was released on December 2, 1961, and stars Tweety and Sylvester. Plot The short opens with a shadow of ...

'', again with Sylvester struggling against his conscience over Tweety.

Reception

Shannon K. Garrity writes, "Mel Blanc's amazing vocal performances — it was reputedly the Warner Bros. short of which he was proudest — rank high among the many joys of this lovingly crafted, hilariously self-aware cartoon. Freleng and his team went all out to give ''Birds Anonymous'' a film noir look, with dramatic camera angles drawn by layout artist

Hawley Pratt Hawley B. Pratt (June 9, 1911 – March 4, 1999) was an American film director, animator, and illustrator. He is best known for his work for Warner Bros. Cartoons and as the right-hand man of director Friz Freleng as a layout artist and late ...

and moody backgrounds by Boris Gorelick... Above all, ''Birds Anoymous'' satirizes Warner Bros. cartoons themselves. The structure of the standard Sylvester and Tweety cartoon — and all chase cartoons — is threatened by Sylvester's resolution to walk away from the conflict and be a better cat. In the Looney Tunes world, of course, this can't be allowed."

Honors

''Birds Anonymous'' won the

Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film is an award given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as part of the annual Academy Awards, or Oscars, since the 5th Academy Awards (with different names), covering the year 1 ...

in 1958, beating ''

Tabasco Road ''Tabasco Road'' is a 1957 Warner Bros. '' Looney Tunes'' cartoon directed by Bob McKimson. The short was released on July 20, 1957, and stars Speedy Gonzales. It was an Academy Award nominee for best short subject but it lost out to ''Birds Anon ...

'' starring

Speedy Gonzales Speedy Gonzales is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He is portrayed as "The Fastest Mouse in all Mexico" with his major traits being the ability to run extremely fast ...

; both shorts were eventually given Blue Ribbon reissues in 1961. When

Eddie Selzer Edward Selzer (January 12, 1893 – February 22, 1970) was an American film producer and publicist who served as head of Warner Bros. Cartoons from 1944 to 1958. He served in the US Navy and fought as a Golden Gloves boxer. He won a boxing exhibi ...

died, the statuette was passed on to Mel Blanc, who said that this was his favorite cartoon to do voices for, especially when it came to Sylvester.Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission
/ref>

Home media

This film appeared in ''

The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie ''The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie'' (credited onscreen as ''Friz Freleng's Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie'') is a 1981 American animated comedy package film with a compilation of classic ''Looney Tunes''/''Merrie Melodies'' War ...

'''s third act "The Oswalds" where Sylvester and Clarence fight over Tweety again with Granny intervening. , ''Birds Anonymous'' can also be found, uncut and restored, on the '' Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3'', ''

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 ...

'', and the '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection, Vol. 3''. It can also be found on the former UK rental VHS tape of '' The Bodyguard'' from 1993. A music/effects only track is also available.

References

External links

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{{AcademyAwardBestAnimatedShortFilm 1941–1960 1957 short films 1957 animated films Best Animated Short Academy Award winners Short films directed by Friz Freleng Merrie Melodies short films Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films Films scored by Milt Franklyn Works about addiction Animated films about cats 1950s Warner Bros. animated short films Films produced by Edward Selzer Tweety films Sylvester the Cat films 1950s English-language films American animated short films Animated films about birds