Doggone Cats

Doggone Cats is a 1947 Merrie Melodies short directed by Arthur Davis.

Plot[]

Sylvester and his orange cat friend are being harassed by a bulldog named Wellington, who keeps slamming the two in the head with trashcan lids. The chase comes to a stop when the dog is called by his mistress, who forces him to deliver a package to Uncle Louie, telling him, "And don't let go of it or else!" The cats take advantage of this and torment him:

1. The orange cat stops by a corner, blocking Wellington's path. The cat puts on a glove and slaps the dog twice, angering Wellington. However, Sylvester whistles from behind to egg the dog in the face.
2. Enraged, Wellington puts down the package to bop the orange cat, but Sylvester uses a fishing rod to reel the package. As the dog tries to fetch it back, he slams into a fence, and the orange cat whacks the dog with a wooden plank, spinning Wellington across the city until he falls down a manhole.
3. With the two cats holding the package, Wellington comes back to give the cats a beating and take the package back. Sylvester tangoes with Wellington to push him back into a fencing sword held by the orange cat.
4. The orange cat throws the package into a railway. When Wellington tries to get it back, he hears a train and runs off, only to be just the two cats with a wagon and a train whistle. Wellington runs after the two then gets hit by a real train.
5. Wellington storms after the two cats but is hit by an iron shielded by the orange cat.
6. Sylvester and the orange cat makes a fake package with an iron in it, and throws it off a bridge. Wellington notices the fake package and tries to catch it, and ends up sinking into the river after the fake package falls onto a rowboat Wellington is on.
7. When Sylvester hides in a corner with a mallet to catch Wellington, he ends up accidentally smashing his friend. When he tries again, Wellington immediately punches Sylvester in the face, allowing Wellington to recover the package.
8. The orange cat uses a pepper cigar in front of Wellington, causing the dog to sneeze and lose the package. The package lands onto the middle of the road with a steamroller driven by Sylvester about to flatten it. Wellington scurries to save the package, despite being run over by the steamroller in the progress.

Wellington arrives at Uncle Louie's house, with the package safely delivered. However, he finds out that it contains dinner for the two cats, and Louie closes the door on the dog. Upon finding out that he has helped the cats in return for all of their trickery, Wellington brays like a donkey and repeatedly hits himself with a mailbox and trashcan lids.

Music Cues^[2][]

• Keep Cool, Fool (by Josef Myrow and James P. Johnson)
  • Played during the opening titles
• Furioso (by J.S. Zamecnik)
  • Plays during the opening scene when Willington chases the two cats.
• You Never Know Where You're Goin' Till You Get There (by Jule Styne)
  • Played when the cats parade down the street with the package

• Eres Mujer - (by Jose Melis and Jose Forns Puig)
  • Plays when Willington and Sylvester dance.
• Freddy the Freshman (by Cliff Friend and Dave Oppenheim)
  • Played when the cat tosses the package over the fence and onto the railroad track
• Keep Cool, Fool (by Josef Myrow and James P. Johnson)
  • Plays again when the cats wrap the package on the bridge

• Sobre las olas [Over the Waves] (by Juventino Rosas)
  • Played when the cats prepare to toss the package off the bridge
• Keep Cool, Fool (by Josef Myrow and James P. Johnson)
  • Plays for a third time when the cat sprinkles pepper into the rolling paper
• Keep Cool, Fool (by Josef Myrow and James P. Johnson)
  • Played for the final time when Wellington delivers the package
• You Never Know Where You're Goin' Till You Get There (by Jule Styne)
  • Also played when the cats parade into the house

Availability[]

8mm
(Associated Artists Productions print)

(1993) LaserDisc
The Golden Age of Looney Tunes Volume 4, Side 4: Cartoon All-Stars (aap print)

(2023) Blu-ray
Looney Tunes Collector's Choice: Volume 1 (restored)

Streaming[]

Boomerang App (2017 - 2024) (1995 USA Turner print)

Censorship[]

On Cartoon Network, Boomerang (TV version only; the gag is retained on the streaming service),^[3] The WB, and MeTV, the scene of Wellington harassing the cats by banging trash can lids against the can they're in and Wellington's mistress yelling at him to come to her was shortened to remove a trash can lid landing on Wellington's head and Wellington briefly impersonating a Chinese peasant. While Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and The WB cut the scene off after Wellington's mistress screams, "WELLINGTON!", the MeTV version left in the split-second part where the trash can lid lands on Wellington's head before cutting to Wellington coming to his mistress. As of 11 March 2022, this scene airs uncut on MeTV, while MeTV Toons airs the edited version.

Coincidentally, the scene of Wellington falling backward into a cigar store Indian statue and the statue stuffing cigars in his mouth was left in on all four channels, despite all four channels having a history of editing Native American stereotypes and, in the cases of Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and The WB, scenes of characters smoking tobacco products.

Notes[]

• When the short was reissued, the cartoon's title was renamed to Dog Gone Cats.
• According to an interview with Lloyd Turner by Michael Barrier. Lloyd discuss his first jam-session he ever did which was with this cartoon. (A jam-session is a pitch from the storymen which would involve all of the directors, storymen, animators and studio managers) Bill told the story, however nobody laughed. Art Davis was "terrified", then Chuck Jones stood up and said "Well, if nobody else wants it, I'll take it," and all of a sudden the room becomes lively including Davis.
• The original opening rings, title, and ending card survive on a 16mm print.^[4] However, Warner Bros. does not restore non-35mm prints, hence the Blue Ribbon titles were restored instead.
• This one of the only two shorts featuring Sylvester to be directed by Arthur Davis. The other is "Catch as Cats Can". Coincidentally, they were both released in 1947 and have Sylvester portrayed with a different personality. In this short, he has an unnamed orange feline partner, is more of a trickster, and doesn't talk (contrast with "Catch as Cats Can", where Sylvester can talk, but has a dopier voice with no lisp and reluctantly takes orders from a parrot who looks and sounds like Bing Crosby). The trickster personality would reappear in the 1948 Merrie Melodies short "Back Alley Oproar".
  • While this short is the first Sylvester cartoon released under Davis' unit, it is actually their second Sylvester cartoon based on production order. "Catch as Cats Can's" earliest known production date is January 1946 under prod. #1038, while this cartoon's earliest known production date is 13 July 1946 under prod. #1054.
• Wellington would eventually reappear in "Odor of the Day", which was the only Pepé Le Pew short to be directed by Arthur Davis (and also had an established Looney Tunes character with a different personality under Arthur Davis' direction).
• The design of Sylvester's orange cat friend was possibly the inspiration for his brother Alan, who appeared in The Looney Tunes Show episode "Point, Laser Point".
• On the original credits, it uses "and" for Lloyd Turner & Bill Scott credit. Whereas most other cartoons with two story credits use "~"

Gallery[]

Original end titles

Lobby card

Wellington's model sheet

Lobby card drawing

Owner threatens Wellington

Wellington as a spinning coin

Wellington slams his head with two trash tops

Doggone Cats original title sequences

References[]