''The Ducktators'' is a 1942

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 ...

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.

'' directed by

Norman McCabe Norman McCabe (February 10, 1911 – January 17, 2006) was an English-born American animator who enjoyed a long career that lasted into the 1990s. Early career McCabe was born in England and raised in the United States. He soon developed a ...

. The short was released on August 1, 1942, and satirizes events of

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 ...

. The title is a pun on ''

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in times ...

''.

Plot

A pair of farm ducks anticipate the hatching of their duckling from an unusually black-colored egg. A white duckling with a

toothbrush mustache The toothbrush moustache is a style of moustache in which the sides are vertical (or nearly vertical) rather than tapered, giving the hairs the appearance of the bristles on a toothbrush that are attached to the nose. It was made famous by such ...

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 ...

, emerges from the egg and immediately shouts "

Sieg Heil The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. Th ...

!" while giving the

Nazi salute The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. Th ...

. Hitler's adulthood is spent giving aggressive speeches toward the other ducks and geese. His only ally is a large black Neapolitan-accented goose,

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

, who promotes his own warmongering rhetoric to a solitary chick who is forced to attend and applaud. Hitler's stormtroopers surround the farm while a

Dove of Peace Doves, typically domestic pigeons white in plumage, are used in many settings as symbols of peace, freedom, or love. Doves appear in the symbolism of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and paganism, and of both military and pacifist groups. Mytho ...

, observing from above, weeps in anticipation of the upcoming violence. A

peace conference A peace conference is a diplomatic meeting where representatives of certain states, armies, or other warring parties converge to end hostilities and sign a peace treaty. Significant international peace conferences in the past include the follo ...

is held between the ducks and geese, but the unstable Hitler puts the

peace treaty A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring ...

through a

paper shredder A paper shredder is a mechanical device used to cut sheets of paper into either strips or fine particles. Government organizations, businesses, and private individuals use shredders to destroy private, confidential, or otherwise sensitive docum ...

and instigates a furious brawl. Meanwhile, an odd Japanese duck,

Hideki Tojo Hideki Tojo (, ', December 30, 1884 – December 23, 1948) was a Japanese politician, general of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), and convicted war criminal who served as prime minister of Japan and president of the Imperial Rule Assistan ...

, travels to the farm to support Hitler and Mussolini and "to make a silly

Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis * Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...

of himself". During his voyage across the sea, he absentmindedly plants a sign reading " Japanese Mandate Island" on a turtle's back. When the turtle emerges, sees what has been placed on his shell and subsequently attacks Tojo, this 'Ducktator' vainly attempts to pass himself off as

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

, the turtle replies sarcastically, and continues attacking Tojo. With their troops, Hitler, Mussolini and Tojo set out toward their planned conquest of the farm. The Dove attempts to reason with them, but they ignore and trample him. The Dove violently retaliates and, with the aid of other animals - including a rabbit that is a send-up of Jerry Colonna (possibly a caricature of

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

). The Ducktators are seen running as a

Minuteman Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...

emerges from a poster that says "For Victory, Buy United States

Victory Bond War bonds (sometimes referred to as Victory bonds, particularly in propaganda) are debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war without raising taxes to an unpopular level. They are ...

s" and begins firing his musket. The Dove is then seen relating the tale to his two children, Peace and Quiet, while proudly displaying the battered heads of his enemies as

trophies A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, and serves as a recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics. In many sports medals (or, in ...

mounted above his

fireplace A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design. ...

. A final message invites the audience to express their patriotism by buying state bonds.

Political references

The duckling that hatched from the egg had a mustache and a

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

emblem throughout the cartoon, indicating that this character symbolized

. The goose who became a comrade to the duck had an open

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

accent and, at the end of one of his speeches, a chick can be heard yelling "

Duce ( , ) is an Italian title, derived from the Latin word 'leader', and a cognate of ''duke''. National Fascist Party leader Benito Mussolini was identified by Fascists as ('The Leader') of the movement since the birth of the in 1919. In 192 ...

!" multiple times, indicating that this goose is Benito Mussolini. The second duck utilized the flag of the Empire of Japan, and openly sang'' "

The Japanese Sandman "The Japanese Sandman" is a song from 1920, composed by Richard A. Whiting and with lyrics by Raymond B. Egan. The song was first popularized in vaudeville by Nora Bayes, and then sold millions of copies as the B-side for Paul Whiteman's song ...

"''. He is presumably intended to be

, judging by the military hat he is wearing. However, he is commonly misidentified as

Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

. The black duck may be a reference to

Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...

as he was also from South Germany and spoke with an accent, but can also relate to how African Americans were a huge demographic in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

at the time.

Changes in Sunset Productions version

The ending which has the dove is sitting with his kids and pointing out that his enemies have been defeated (and are now heads mounted above the fireplace), followed by a notice to buy war bonds, has been rarely seen since the short was sold to Sunset Productions in the 1950s and syndicated through them (as Guild Films). As the cartoon is in the public domain, this edited version has frequently been found on VHS and DVD home video collections. However, on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 6 DVD set and the World War II cartoons special on the Cartoon Network show ''ToonHeads'', the full ending is shown uncut and uncensored.

Reception

The Film Daily ''The Film Daily'' was a daily publication that existed from 1918 to 1970 in the United States. It was the first daily newspaper published solely for the film industry. It covered the latest trade news, film reviews, financial updates, informatio ...

'' called the short "Acceptable", saying, "Hitler, Mussolini and Hirohito are taken for a ride — a one-way ride — in this animated cartoon, which produces many laughs at their expense."

Home media

Due to the short's World War II stereotypes, it has rarely been shown on American television, except for

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 ...

as part of its anthology television show, ''

ToonHeads ''ToonHeads'' is an American animation anthology series consisting of Hanna-Barbera, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros., and ''Popeye'' cartoon shorts, with background information and trivia, prominently about animators and voice actors of the shor ...

''. ''The Ducktators'' is available uncut on '' Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 6'', Disc 2.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ducktators, The 1942 films 1942 animated films 1942 short films 1940s animated short films Looney Tunes shorts American World War II propaganda shorts American black-and-white films Cultural depictions of Adolf Hitler Cultural depictions of Benito Mussolini Cultural depictions of Hideki Tojo Animation based on real people Films scored by Carl Stalling Films directed by Norman McCabe Films produced by Leon Schlesinger Films about chickens Films about ducks Films about fascism Stereotypes of East Asians Japan in non-Japanese culture Ethnic humour 1940s Warner Bros. animated short films World War II films made in wartime 1940s English-language films