''You Ought to Be in Pictures'' is a 1940

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.

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

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 '' ...

. The cartoon was released on May 18, 1940, and stars

Porky Pig Porky Pig is an animated character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his celebrity, star power, and the animators created ma ...

and

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...

. The film combined

live-action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ga ...

and

animation Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...

, and features live-action appearances by

Leon Schlesinger Leon Schlesinger (May 20, 1884 – December 25, 1949) was an American film producer who founded Leon Schlesinger Productions, which later became the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio, during the Golden Age of American animation. He was a distant r ...

, writer

Michael Maltese Michael Maltese (February 6, 1908 – February 22, 1981) was an American story man for classic animated cartoon shorts. He is best known for working in the 1950s on a series of ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons with director Chuck Jones, notably "Wha ...

, animator

Gerry Chiniquy Germain Adolph Chiniquy (pronounced "chin-a-KEE"; June 23, 1912 – November 22, 1989) was an American animator known for his work with Friz Freleng, at both Warner Bros. and DePatie-Freleng Enterprises. Chiniquy joined Freleng's animation ...

and other Schlesinger Productions staff members. The title comes from the popular 1934 song "

You Oughta Be in Pictures "You Oughta Be in Pictures" is a 1934 song composed by the American songwriting team Dana Suesse and Edward Heyman. It was recorded two weeks later by Rudy Vallée for RCA Records and rapidly became the unofficial anthem of the American film indu ...

" by

Dana Suesse Nadine Dana Suesse (; December 3, 1911 – October 16, 1987) was an American musician, composer and lyricist. Biography Dana Suesse was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1909. When she grew too tall for ballet, she began piano lessons with Gertru ...

and

Edward Heyman Edward Heyman (March 14, 1907October 16, 1981) was an American lyricist and producer, best known for his lyrics to " Body and Soul," "When I Fall in Love," and " For Sentimental Reasons." He also contributed to a number of songs for films. Biogr ...

, which plays in the beginning of the film. In 2016, it was shortlisted for the 1941 Retro-Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.1941 Retro-Hugos
at TheHugoAwards.org; retrieved August 28, 2017

Plot

An animator is seen drawing Porky Pig, after Porky is drawn the animator looks at a clock and realizes that it's time for the studio's lunch break at 12 'o clock. The animator advises all the staff that it is lunch break. Quickly the staff runs out of the building. The Porky drawing comes to life after a Daffy Duck drawing hanging on a frame wants to talk to Porky. Daffy tells Porky that he wants to be the top star in the studio. To this end, he persuades Porky to resign from the Schlesinger studios to pursue a career in

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

s as

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...

' co-star . Porky goes to

and asks to have his contract torn up. Schlesinger reluctantly agrees, and wishes Porky the best of luck. Once Porky is out of earshot, Schlesinger assures the audience that Porky will be back. Porky spends the rest of the film trying to get into the lots and sets of the Warner Bros studio, with little success. After several failures from convincing the security guard (played by

, voiced by

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...

) to let him in, dressing up as

Oliver Hardy Oliver Norvell Hardy (born Norvell Hardy; January 18, 1892 – August 7, 1957) was an American comic actor and one half of Laurel and Hardy, the double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted from 1926 to 1957. He appeared with his c ...

to gain access, (until the guard realizes the real Hardy already entered the studio) and inadvertently interrupting the shooting of a dance film, he decides to see if Schlesinger will take him back. He returns to Schlesinger's office after frantically dodging his cartoon car in and out of live-action Los Angeles traffic, only to see Daffy doing a wild

audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece giv ...

to become the new star of Warner Bros. cartoons, openly disparaging Porky. Porky then takes Daffy with him to another room, where he beats Daffy up. After this, he hurriedly runs into Schlesinger's office to beg for his job back. Schlesinger, laughing heartily and saying he knew he would return, reveals that he did not really rip up Porky's contract, and happily tells him to get back to work. Porky gladly thanks him and runs back into the animation paper that he was in when the short started. Daffy, wrapped in bandages after being beaten up by Porky but still not quite having learned his lesson, again attempts to persuade Porky to resign and work with

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragedy, ...

, only to get splattered with a tomato, which irritates him.

Cast

(voice) as

and

as himself * Fred Jones as the animator *

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 ...

as himself (cameo) *

Bob Clampett Robert Emerson Clampett Sr. (May 8, 1913 – May 2, 1984) was an American animator, director, producer and puppeteer. He was best known for his work on the '' Looney Tunes'' animated series from Warner Bros. as well as the television shows '' ...

as himself (cameo) *

as security guard *

as director * Henry Binder and Paul Marin as stagehands

Production

On this occasion,

is seen as a much more self-centered individual who shows willingness to do anything to get what he wants, whether it was money or fame, instead of being seen as a trouble-inducing screwball. This, in turn, is indirectly a foreshadowing of the character he would later become, particularly in ''

Rabbit Fire ''Rabbit Fire'' is a 1951 ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Elmer Fudd. Directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese, the cartoon is the first in Jones' "hunting trilogy"—the other two cartoons following it ...

'', and onward until he was returned to his original screwball personality in the 2010s. It was also

's first film back at the studio after being at MGM for two years. The film has become one of the better known shorts made by

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 ...

, and in 1994 was voted #34 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. Beck, Jerry (ed.) (1994). '' The 50 Greatest Cartoons: As Selected by 1,000 Animation Professionals''.

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

: Turner Publishing. * First Daffy Duck cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. * In a real-life parallel of the storyline, the short was directed by

, who had just returned to Schlesinger after a stint as a director at

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 ...

's cartoon division. * As noted, many staff members have cameos in this short: ** Leon Schlesinger — appears as himself **

— one of the crowd rushing out during the lunch break **

— another one of the

Termite Terrace Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was an American animation studio, serving as the in-house animation division of Warner Bros. during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in United States, American media h ...

employees rushing frantically off to lunch **

— the studio security guard **

— studio director calling for quiet ** Henry Binder, Paul Marin — stagehands also calling for quiet. Binder is also the stagehand throwing Porky off the set * This is the second longest ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon ever made in the Golden Age of Animation, running for nine minutes and 45 seconds. The longest ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon of all is the 1942 Bob Clampett (coincidentally seen in this picture in a cameo) cartoon ''

Horton Hatches the Egg ''Horton Hatches the Egg'' is a children's book written and illustrated by Theodor Geisel under the pen name Dr. Seuss and published in 1940 by Random House. The book tells the story of Horton the Elephant, who is tricked into sitting on a bird's ...

'', beating ''You Ought to be in Pictures'' by three seconds. * Because the animation unit did not have access to location sound recording equipment, all of the live-action footage was shot silent. The voices had to be dubbed in later (which is why most of them were dubbed by Mel Blanc, except for Leon Schlesinger). * To keep the short on-budget, relatively few special effects were used to marry the animation and live action. Where possible, the crew simply took still pictures of the office background and had them enlarged and placed directly on the

animation stand An animation stand is a device assembled for the filming of any kind of animation that is placed on a flat surface, including cel animation, graphic animation, clay animation, and silhouette animation. Traditionally, the flat surface that the a ...

. * Stock footage from the 1936 Western ''

California Mail '' California Mail '' is a 1936 American Western film directed by Noel M. Smith and written by Roy Chanslor and Harold Buckley. The film stars Dick Foran, Linda Perry, Edmund Cobb, Milton Kibbee, Tom Brower and James Farley. The film was rele ...

'' was used in the sequences of Porky driving through the backlot. * Despite being in

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, this short was shown regularly on ''Looney Tunes on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

'', particularly during the ''

Nick at Nite Nick at Nite (stylized as nick@nite) is an American nighttime basic cable television channel that broadcasts over the channel space of Nickelodeon. It typically broadcasts Mondays to Thursday nights from 9 p.m. - 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time Zone, ET/Pac ...

'' version. * In 1995, the film was computer colorized and became a regular part of the

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 ...

rotation. The film could also be seen in its original

form on the network's installment show ''Late Night Black and White''.

Reception

Animation historian

Jerry Beck Jerry Beck (born February 9, 1955, in New York City) is an American animation historian, author, blogger, and video producer. Beck wrote or edited several books on classic American animation and classic characters, including ''The 50 Greatest C ...

writes, "Predating ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American live-action/animated comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely adapted by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman from Gary K. Wolf's 1 ...

'' by several decades — in fact, it's credited with inspiring the 1988 film — ''You Ought to Be in Pictures'' is one of the most memorable of the black-and-white-era Porky Pig cartoons. It's also one of the funniest."

Home media

''You Ought to Be in Pictures'' is available on '' Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2'', on Disc 4, on '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2'', on Disc 1 and also on ''Porky Pig 101'', Disc 4. Prior to that, it had been included as part of the 1985 VHS release ''Warner Bros. Cartoons Golden Jubilee 24-Karat Collection: Porky Pig's Screwball Comedies''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:You Ought to Be in Pictures 1940 films 1940 short films 1940 comedy films 1940 animated films 1940s children's comedy films 1940s children's animated films 1940s English-language films 1940s Warner Bros. animated short films American children's animated comedy films American animated short films American black-and-white films Metafictional works Looney Tunes shorts Daffy Duck films Porky Pig films Anthropomorphic animals Films based on real people Animation based on real people Films about films Films about animation Films about actors Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles Films set in Burbank, California Animated films set in Los Angeles Films set in studio lots Films set in 1940 Short films with live action and animation Short films directed by Friz Freleng Films produced by Leon Schlesinger Films scored by Carl Stalling Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films