''Katnip Kollege'' is a 1938

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. Di ...

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 ...

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...

directed by

Cal Howard Calvin Henry Howard (March 24, 1911 – September 10, 1993) was an American cartoon story artist, animator and director mostly remembered for his work at Walter Lantz Productions and Warner Bros. Cartoons. He was also the voice actor of Gabby Goat ...

and

Cal Dalton Cal Dalton (December 2, 1908 – June 1974) was an American animator and director at Warner Bros. Cartoons. Work Dalton's first commercial animation work was in 1930 at the ill-fated Romer Grey Studios. He later worked on an animated short vers ...

. The short was released on June 11, 1938.

Plot

In the "Swingology" classroom at Katnip Kollege, the Professor (a parody of

Kay Kyser James Kern Kyser (June 18, 1905 – July 23, 1985), known as Kay Kyser, was an American bandleader and radio personality of the 1930s and 1940s. Early years James Kern Kyser was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, the son of pharmacists Emil ...

) requires each student to sing their lessons to a jazz rhythm, all the while singing "

The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down" is a song written in 1937 by Cliff Friend and Dave Franklin and published by Harms Inc., New York. It is best known as the theme tune for the ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon series and ''Merrie Melodies'' reissued cartoon ...

". Johnny Cat just doesn't have it, and as a result, he has to stay after class wearing the dunce cap. Kitty Bright returns his fraternity ring as she leaves the room, telling him to call her when he learns how to swing. That night, as all the other cats jam at an outdoor caterwaul, Johnny is suddenly inspired by the rhythm of a

Pendulum clock A pendulum clock is a clock that uses a pendulum, a swinging weight, as its timekeeping element. The advantage of a pendulum for timekeeping is that it is a harmonic oscillator: It swings back and forth in a precise time interval dependent on it ...

. He runs to join the group and shocks everyone with a flawlessly jazzy rendition of "Easy as Rollin' Off a Log" sung (and trumpeted) to Kitty. At the end of the song the two cats actually roll off the log they were using as a stage, and Kitty covers Johnny's face with kisses. .

Voice Cast and Crew

;Voice Cast * Johnnie "Scat" Davis voices Johnny Cat * Mabel Todd voices Kitty Bright * George "Spanky" McFarland voices Mr. Jones *

Poley McClintock James Roland "Poley" McClintock (September 22, 1900 in Tyrone, PA -January, 1980, in East Stroudsburg, PA) was a member of Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians, a popular jazz band of the 1920s. As a child, McClintock was a neighbor of Waring in Tyrone, ...

voices Frog Voice Vocal * Singing Groups: Fred Waring's Glee Club ;Crew Members * Film Edited by

Treg Brown Tregoweth Edmond "Treg" Brown (November 4, 1899 – April 28, 1984) was an American motion picture sound editor who was responsible for the sound effects in Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons from 1936 to 1963. ...

(uncredited) * Orchestration by

Milt Franklyn Milton J. Franklyn (born Milton Julius Frumkin; September 16, 1897 – April 24, 1962) was an American musical composer and arranger who worked on the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes animated cartoons. Career Franklyn was born in New York City Sept ...

(uncredited) * Uncredited Animation by

Rod Scribner Roderick H. Scribner (October 10, 1910 – December 21, 1976) was an American animator best known for his work on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons from Warner Bros. Cartoons. He worked during the Golden age of Am ...

, Volney White, Herman Cohen * Visual Backgrounds Supervised by Art Loomer (uncredited)

Music

The music in the short is pieced together from a number of contemporary Warner Brothers features. The featured song, "Easy as Rollin' Off a Log", is written by M. K. Jerome and Jack Scholl and sung by

Johnnie Davis John Gustave Davis (April 11, 1910 – October 28, 1983) was an American actor, singer and trumpeter. Born in Brazil, Indiana, into a family of musicians, Davis developed an interest in music during his childhood. He learned to play the tr ...

and Mabel Todd in the 1937 film ''

Over the Goal ''Over the Goal'' is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Noel M. Smith and written by William Jacobs and Anthony Coldeway. The film stars June Travis, William Hopper, Johnnie Davis, Gordon Oliver, William Harrigan and Willard Parker. The f ...

'' . Other songs used include "You're an Education" by

Al Dubin Alexander Dubin (June 10, 1891 – February 11, 1945) was an American lyricist. He is best known for his collaborations with the composer Harry Warren. Life Al Dubin came from a Russian Jewish family that emigrated to the United States from Swi ...

and

Harry Warren Harry Warren (born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ...

which was written for, but never used in Warner Brothers' 1938 feature film ''

Gold Diggers in Paris ''Gold Diggers in Paris'' is a 1938 Warner Bros. movie musical directed by Ray Enright with musical numbers created and directed by Busby Berkeley, starring Rudy Vallee, Rosemary Lane, Hugh Herbert, and Allen Jenkins. Plot Maurice Giraud (He ...

'' and the Richard A. Whiting/

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallich ...

song "We're Working our Way through College" from Warner Brothers' 1937 feature ''

Varsity Show The Varsity Show is one of the oldest traditions at Columbia University and its oldest performing arts presentation. Founded in 1894 as a fundraiser for the university's fledgling athletic teams, the Varsity Show now draws together the entire Colu ...

''.

Carl Stalling Carl William Stalling (November 10, 1891 – November 29, 1972) was an American composer, voice actor and arranger for music in animated films. He is most closely associated with the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' shorts produced by War ...

supervised the music soundtrack.

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, havi ...

’s music video “As Easy As Rolling Off A Log” contains clips from this cartoon, accompanied by Taylor’s recording sessions.

Home media

Though a frame of the original titles has been discovered, Warner Bros. does not restore frames or non-35mm prints, hence the Blue Ribbon titles were restored on the DVD copy. *LaserDisc - ''

The Golden Age of Looney Tunes ''The Golden Age of Looney Tunes'' is a collection of LaserDiscs released by MGM/UA Home Video in the 1990s. There were five sets made, featuring a number of discs, and each disc side represented a different theme, being made up of seven cartoon ...

'', Volume 1 (unrestored) *DVD - '' Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2'', Disc 4 (interpositive restoration, SD) *DVD/Blu-Ray - '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1'', Disc 2 (restored in HD) *DVD/Blu-Ray - ''Looney Tunes Musical Masterpieces'' *DVD/Blu-Ray - ''

The Adventures of Robin Hood ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de H ...

'' (included as a bonus)

References

External links

* 1938 films Merrie Melodies short films Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films Films directed by Cal Dalton Films scored by Carl Stalling 1938 animated films 1930s Warner Bros. animated short films Films set in schools 1930s English-language films {{MerrieMelodies-stub