''A Knight for a Day'' is a 1946

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

short film starring

Goofy Goofy is a cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. He is a tall, Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic dog who typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fe ...

, which is loosely based on the novel ''

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court ''A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'' is an 1889 historical novel by American humorist and writer Mark Twain. The book was originally titled ''A Yankee in King Arthur's Court''. Some early editions are titled ''A Yankee at the Court ...

''. Directed by

Jack Hannah John Fredrick Hannah (January 5, 1913 – June 11, 1994) was an American animator, writer and director of animated shorts. He worked for Disney and Walter Lantz. Biography Hannah was born on January 5, 1913, in Nogales, Arizona. After attend ...

, this 7-minute animated comedy short was scripted by

Bill Peet William Bartlett Peet (''né'' Peed; January 29, 1915 – May 11, 2002) was an American children's book illustrator and a story writer and animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios. Peet joined Disney in 1937 and worked first on ''Snow Wh ...

. While classified as a

cartoon, Goofy himself is not used in this film, but his appearance is used as the basis for all the characters.

Plot

The story takes place at a stadium in

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

(which is later incorrectly indicated to be in the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

), and features a jousting competition between Sir Loinsteak and

Sir Cumference ''Sir Cumference'' is a series of children's educational books about math by Cindy Neuschwander and Wayne Geehan. The books have been studied for their use in mathematics education. Characters Most of the characters of the book are named after ...

, who is a

black knight The black knight is a literary stock character who masks his identity and that of his liege by not displaying heraldry. Black knights are usually portrayed as villainous figures who use this anonymity for misdeeds. They are often contrasted with ...

and the current champion, with a sportscaster-like announcer calling the action of the battle. The prize for the contest is the right to marry Princess Esmeralda. Due to a pre-bout accident, Sir Loinsteak is knocked out, leaving his loyal and humble

squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Boys served a knight as an attendant, doing simple but important tasks such as saddling a horse or caring for the knight's weapons and armour. Terminology ''Squire'' ...

Cedric to take his place in the tournament. While Sir Cumference dominates the inexperienced simpleton early on, Cedric's unorthodox improvisations gradually begin to tip the scales in his favor. Finally, after launching assaults with his lance, sword, mace, and (surprisingly) a jackhammer, Sir Cumference collapses from exhaustion. Cedric wins by default and is crowned the new champion. Princess Esmeralda leaps down to her new fiancé with glee, while a

serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...

nonchalantly pushes Sir Cumference from the field in a scoop shovel.

Voice cast

* Hawkers, misc.: Jack Mather, Arch Denison * Narrator:

John Brown John Brown most often refers to: *John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia, in 1859 John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to: Academia * John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...

Home media

This short is included on the VHS releases of '' Here's Goofy'' and '' The Sword in the Stone'' and the DVD releases of ''Volume 3: The Prince & The Pauper'' and ''The Sword in the Stone''.

References

External links

* 1946 films 1940s Disney animated short films Films directed by Jack Hannah Films produced by Walt Disney Films set in Kent Films set in the Middle Ages Goofy (Disney) short films Films scored by Oliver Wallace Films with screenplays by Bill Peet Films based on A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court 1950 and before films about time travel Animated films based on works by Mark Twain 1946 animated short films Animated films based on American novels {{Disney-animation-film-stub