''The Woods Are Full of Cuckoos'' is a 1937 '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Frank Tashlin. The short was released on December 4, 1937.

Plot

The cartoon starts with an owl named "Owl Kott" (satirizing Alexander Woolcott's ''Town Crier'' radio program) giving an introduction to the festivities. This is followed by a

Ben Bernie Benjamin Anzelwitz, known professionally as Ben Bernie (May 30, 1891 – October 23, 1943),DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. ...

caricature called "Ben Birdie", feuding with "Walter Finchell". The same spoof was used in the cartoon '' The CooCoo Nut Grove'' (1936).

Walter Winchell Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and co ...

had a well-publicized feud with Bernie at the time, which, like

Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century wit ...

's "feud" with

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...

, was faked for publicity purposes – Bernie and Winchell were actually good friends. Next is "Milton Squirrel" ( Milton Berle, Master of Ceremony , M.C. of ''Gillette Community Sing'') introducing "Wendell Howl" ( Wendell Hall) and an audience trying to figure out which page to go to in their songbooks, which results in Wendell getting pelted by the audience's songbooks. Then, "Billy Goat and "Ernie Bear" ( Billy Jones and

Ernie Hare Thomas Ernest Hare (March 16, 1883 – March 9, 1939) was an American singer who recorded prolifically during the 1920s and 1930s, finding fame as a radio star on ''the Happiness Boys'' radio program. Career Hare's recording career began in 1 ...

) and everyone else sings a song with the lyrics: :The Woods are full of cuckoos, :Cuckoos, cuckoos, :The Woods are full of cuckoos :and my heart is full of love. During the song, a fox (a caricature of

) called "Mr. Allen" is told that he's singing "Swanee River" instead of the actual song. Then the song is sung by "Eddie Gander" ( Eddie Cantor), "Sophie Turkey" ( Sophie Tucker), "W.C. Fieldmouse" ( W. C. Fields), "Dick Fowl" ( Dick Powell), "Fats Swallow" ( Fats Waller), "Deanna Terrapin" (

Deanna Durbin Edna Mae Durbin (December 4, 1921 – April 17, 2013), known professionally as Deanna Durbin, was a Canadian-born actress and singer, who moved to the USA with her family in infancy. She appeared in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s. With t ...

), "Irvin S. Frog" ( Irvin S. Cobb), "Fred McFurry" ( Fred MacMurray), "Bing Crowsby" ( Bing Crosby), "Al Goatson" (

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed ...

), "Ruby Squealer" (

Ruby Keeler Ethel Ruby Keeler (August 25, 1909 – February 28, 1993) was an American actress, dancer, and singer who was paired on-screen with Dick Powell in a string of successful early musicals at Warner Bros., particularly '' 42nd Street'' (1933). From ...

, Jolson's wife at the time), and "Lanny Hoss" (

Lanny Ross Lancelot Patrick Ross (January 19, 1906 – April 25, 1988)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. was an American singer, pianist an ...

). Then "Grace Moose" (

Grace Moore Mary Willie Grace Moore (December 5, 1898January 26, 1947) was an American operatic soprano and actress in musical theatre and film.Obituary ''Variety'', January 29, 1947, page 48. She was nicknamed the "Tennessee Nightingale." Her films helped ...

) and "Lily Swans" (

Lily Pons Alice Joséphine Pons (April 12, 1898 – February 13, 1976), known professionally as Lily Pons, was a French-American operatic soprano and actress who had an active career from the late 1920s through the early 1970s. As an opera singer, she s ...

) sing notes, each note higher than the other. Comedian and jazz singer

Martha Raye Martha Raye (born Margy Reed; August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994), nicknamed The Big Mouth, was an American comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including Broadway. She was honored ...

(caricatured here as a mule named "Moutha Bray") makes an appearance in a scatting jazz take. More caricatures appear, including movie critic and gossip columnist "Louella Possums" (

Louella Parsons Louella Parsons (born Louella Rose Oettinger; August 6, 1881 – December 9, 1972) was an American movie columnist and a screenwriter. She was retained by William Randolph Hearst because she had championed Hearst's mistress Marion Davies and s ...

), Raven McQuandry (Haven McQuarrie, emcee of ''Do You Want To Be An Actor?''), Joe Penguin (

Joe Penner Joe Penner (born József Pintér; November 11, 1904 – January 10, 1941) was an American vaudeville, radio, and film comedian. Early life Penner was an ethnic Hungarian born József Pintér in Nagybecskerek, Austria-Hungary, (present-day Zre ...

), Tizzie Fish ("Tizzie Lish", a character on

Al Pearce Albert Pearce (July 25, 1898 – June 2, 1961) was an American comedian, singer and banjo player who was a popular personality on several radio networks from 1928 to 1947. Biography After selling insurance door-to-door during the 1920s, Pear ...

's radio show), Jack Bunny (Jack Benny),

Mary Livingstone Mary Livingstone (born Sadya Marcowitz, later known as Sadie Marks; June 25, 1905–June 30, 1983) was an American radio comedienne and actress. She was the wife and radio partner of comedian Jack Benny. Enlisted casually to perform on her h ...

, and

Andy Devine Andrew Vabre Devine (October 7, 1905 – February 18, 1977) was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers in 10 feature fil ...

(a regular on Benny's radio program). Finally Owl Kott finishes the cartoon by bidding the audience goodnight, and saying "All is well, all is well..."

Home media

*LaserDisc - ''

The Golden Age of Looney Tunes ''The Golden Age of Looney Tunes'' is a collection of LaserDiscs released by MGM Home Entertainment, MGM/UA Home Video in the 1990s. There were five sets made, featuring a number of discs, and each disc side represented a different theme, being ...

, Volume 4, Side 5 *DVD - '' Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3'', Disc 2

Notes

*The cartoon is notable for being a parody/send-up of several different radio programs of the era, particularly the then-popular "community sing" programs. Author and critic

Alexander Woollcott Alexander Humphreys Woollcott (January 19, 1887 – January 23, 1943) was an American drama critic and commentator for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, a member of the Algonquin Round Table, an occasional actor and playwright, and a prominent radio ...

is parodied as ''Owl Kott'' in the cartoon, a parody that Tashlin would revisit in another ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon, " Have You Got Any Castles?", which was released in 1938.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Woods Are Full of Cuckoos, The 1937 films 1937 animated films Animation based on real people Merrie Melodies short films Short films directed by Frank Tashlin 1930s American animated films Films based on radio series Cultural depictions of W. C. Fields Cultural depictions of Bing Crosby Cultural depictions of Al Jolson Cultural depictions of Fats Waller American black-and-white films