Beans, Beans

Oswald the Rabbit’s boxing rooster Jumping Bean is almost out for the count—until the lucky rabbit pours some Mexican jumping beans into him. Then luck strikes.



The bean-powered Bean (even though he’s passed out) bounces into Pancho Pete’s rooster and knocks him cold. Bean wins. And since this is a cartoon from 1930, the ring posts come to life and dance around them.



The other “bean” in this cartoon is Frederick Bean Avery, listed in the credits for “Mexico” along with Manny Moreno, Ray Abrams, Les Kline, and Pinto Colvig, as well as co-producers Walter Lantz and Bill Nolan.

At one point, Jumping Bean rides a motor bike around in the ring, a far cry from the tricycle gag in “Porky and Daffy” eight years later at Warner Bros. The story isn’t great in this one but the second half of the cartoon is taken up with a song, which is about all a cartoon in 1930 was about.

Thanks to Devon Baxter for the frames.