The Discontented Canary
| The Discontented Canary | |
|---|---|
| Happy Harmonies series | |
| Directed by | Rudolf Ising |
| Produced by |
Hugh Harman Rudolf Ising |
| Music by | Scott Bradley |
| Animation by |
Cal Dalton Carman Maxwell Thomas McKimson Jim Fabian Robert Strokes (all uncredited)[1] |
| Studio | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Distributed by |
Loew's Inc Warner Bros. (today's distributors) |
| Release date(s) | September 1, 1934 |
| Color process | Technicolor (2-hue) |
| Running time | 8:38 |
| Language | English |
The Discontented Canary is a 1934 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Happy Harmonies short directed by Rudolf Ising. It is the first MGM Cartoon and the oldest MGM cartoon to be owned by Turner Entertainment/Warner Bros..
Plot
The cartoon begins with a canary in his cage and a parrot singing. The canary wants to get out of his cage, but is locked inside. Then, their owner arrives. But she accidentally left the cage open. Then, the canary flies out and goes outside. He descends into a garden and a cat slyly sneaks up on him. The weather then gets windy as a thunderstorm arrives in. Then, the cat chases the canary around the garden. Suddenly, a lightning bolt strikes the cat's tail and he runs away screaming in agony. Realizing the outside world isn't as safe as his cage, the canary flies back home and sings as the cartoon ends.
Availability
- Various public domain VHS/DVD. (These copies are missing the entire scene with the canary interacting with other wildlife. The censored print jumps from the cat lurking towards the bird to the start of the thunderstorm.)[2][3]
- DVD - Myrna Loy and William Powell Collection - Disc 2 (Evelyn Prentice) DVD (1995 Turner "dubbed" version, DVNR) [4]