Two Long Pigs

The story’s a little ill-conceived in spots, but there’s some nice work in “Alley to Bali,” a 1954 Woody Woodpecker cartoon directed by Don Patterson. Some effective layouts, good use of colour and Clarence Wheeler’s arrangements (or whoever was arranging for him) are highlights. And some of the animation’s pretty good, too. Herman Cohen, Ray Abrams and Ken Southworth aren’t known for being A-listers, but Cohen and Abrams were animating in the ‘30s and Southworth worked at Disney (in 1940, he was an office clerk for a wholesale grocer in Chicago).

There’s a really interesting speed/outline effect in this cartoon. I couldn’t tell you who drew it. Woody and Buzz Buzzard are sailors—deemed edible “long pigs” to some echoing volcano god in Indonesia. They’re lured to the volcano by the god’s female servant (using her femininity as bait).



Buzz rushes over top of Woody to get to the woman, but he consists of mutliple outlines.



Then Woody stretches back and he becomes a multiple outlines as races after Buzz.




The effect is used later when Homer Brightman’s story suddenly, and misguidedly, plays the dramatic climax for laughs. Somehow a frying pan is conjured up, Woody and Buzz land in it, there’s a salt-and-pepper-shaker gag, a temporary-transformation-into-sausage gag, then both become multiple outlines as they make a dash for it.





Yeah, that’s the creative way they get out of their predicament. They just run away. Nice going, Homer.

Patterson got bumped back into animating when producer Walter Lantz hired Tex Avery, then when Avery left, he wasn’t rehired to direct; Lantz brought in Alex Lovy from one of the commercial houses. Nothing against Lovy, but it’s too bad Patterson didn’t get a second shot.