In the 1930s and 1940s, the animation studio departments of Walt Disney, Warner Brothers Pictures and others included celebrity caricatures of the day into their cartoons. Sometimes, the entire cartoon was filled with caricatures, other times they made "guest appearances" along with Bugs Bunny, Donald Duck, Popeye, or Felix the Cat.I've always wanted to watch them to see how many I could recognize. I tried doing that this year, but it wasn't as easy as I thought. Many stars I had never heard of.
Please let me know if you have trouble viewing any of the video clips. (e-mail to: oldtimemovie@yahoo.com)
1. "Hollywood Steps Out" (1941) Warner Brothers
Cary Grant, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Dorothy Lamour, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, The Marx Brothers and more.
2. "Mickey's Gala Premire" (1933) Disney
Mickey Mouse and loads of popular 30s stars: Jimmy Durante, Laurel and Hardy, Eddie Cantor, The Barrymores, Charlie Chaplin, Clark Gable and more!
3. "Mother Goose Goes Hollywood" (1938) Disney
Lots of caricatures in this one: Katherine Hepburn, Laurel and Hardy, Spencer Tracy, Stepin Fetchit and more.
4. "The Autograph Hound" (1941) Disney
Donald Duck meets Mickey Rooney, Shirley Temple, Greta Garbo, and more!
5. "Mickey's Polo Team" (1936) Disney
Mickey and friends clown around on the racetrack with Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, Marx Brothers, WC Fields, Shirley Temple and more.
6. "Slick Hare" (1946) Warner Brothers
Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd meet Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Gregory Peck, Frank Sinatra, Ray Milland, The Marx Brothers, and more! Hilarious!
7. "Racketeer Rabbit" (1946) Warner Brothers
Bugs Bunny gets mixed up with Edward G. Robinson and Peter Lorre.
8. "The Coo Coo Nut Grove" (1936) Warner Brothers
See caricatures of John Barrymore, Laurel and Hardy, Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, Helen Morgan, Edward G. Robinson, George Raft and many many more!
9. "Hollywood Canine Canteen" (1946) Warner Brothers
See caricatures of Abbott and Costello, Bob Hope and Jerry Colonna, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, and Harry James/Tommy Dorsey/Benny Goodman/Lionel Hampton and more!
10. "Felix the Cat in Hollywood" (1923) Pat Sullivan Studios
Felix meets Charlie Chaplin, Gloria Swanson, Ben Turpin, Douglas Fairbanks, and other stars from the 1920s in this black-and-white silent cartoon.
11. "Parade of the 1933 Award Nominees" (1933)(Disney)
Caricatures of all of the major acting Oscar nominees of 1932, includingWallace Beery (& Jackie Cooper) from "The Champ", Marie Dressler from "Emma", and Frederic March from "Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde".
12. "Popeye's Twentieth Anniversary" (1954) (Paramount)
Popeye is honored at a gala banquet with emcee Bob Hope. In attendance: Bing Crosby, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, and Jimmy Durante.
13. "Bosko's Picture Show" (1933) (Warner Bros)
The last short featuring depression-era 'toon Bosko is a lampoon of the movies, featuring caricatures of The Marx Bros, Laurel and Hardy, and Jimmy Durante.
14. "Malibu Beach Party" (1940) (Warner Bros)
We get to laugh again at Jack Benny's cheapskate persona and amateurish violin-playing as he and loads of celebrities are lampooned: Bette Davis, Spencer Tracy, Robert Donat, Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Greta Garbo, Bob Hope, Mickey Rooney, Deanna Durbin, Caesar Romero, Don Ameche, Alice Faye, and lots more!!!