''Jungle Drums'' (1943) is the fifteenth of seventeen
animated
Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
Technicolor
Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...
short film
A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...
s based upon the
DC Comics
DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
character of
Superman
Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
. Produced by
Famous Studios
Famous Studios (renamed Paramount Cartoon Studios in 1956) was the first animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was established as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount seized contr ...
, the cartoon was originally released to theaters by
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
on March 26, 1943.
Plot
Deep in the African jungle, a tribe of aboriginal warriors are having a celebration. Their leader is a tall man in a white cloak. Secretly, he's a
Nazi
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
commander, and the tribe's sacred temple is actually an underground Nazi outpost. The Nazis eagerly await the arrival of an American convoy with information about an Allied attack. When a military plane flies overhead, the Nazis shoot it down. The commander sends the warriors to search for survivors.
At the wreck site, the mortally wounded Lieutenant hands his secret documents to the crew's only survivor, Lois Lane. He tells her to destroy the documents, and then he dies. Lois is caught by the natives and tied up, but she frees herself, then runs into the jungle and avoids capture long enough to hide the documents under a rock. She is then captured and brought back to the temple for interrogation where she is tied to a chair. When she refuses to talk, the commander orders the warriors to burn her at the stake.
Meanwhile, Clark Kent and another pilot are flying out to meet with Lois's convoy. They spot the wrecked plane not far from the aboriginal village. Clark parachutes down to investigate. Once on the ground, he changes into Superman. He flies to the village. Lois is already being burned at the stake with the commander watching her. Just then, one of the warriors approaches the commander and gives him the documents Lois hid in the woods. Overjoyed with success, the commander has his men radio headquarters and send the Nazi
U-boats
U-boats are naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the First and Second World Wars. The term is an anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the German term refers to any submarine. Austro-Hungarian Na ...
to attack the Allied fleet.
Superman arrives and saves Lois from burning to death. When the warriors see a man who can walk through fire, they run in terror. The Nazi soldiers futilely fight back against Superman. Meanwhile, Lois takes a spare white cloak and sneaks in to use the radio. The commander catches her but before he can do anything to stop her, Superman comes to her rescue. She sends a message to the American headquarters, warning them about the Nazi subs.
Out at sea, the Nazi subs prepare to decimate the Allied fleet. Before they can attack, they are bombed by a squadron of Allied B-26 bombers sent in response to Lois' warnings. The subs are destroyed, and the Allied fleet is saved.
Meanwhile, in
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
during a
thunderstorm
A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustics, acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorm ...
,
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
listens to a newsflash about the defeat of his U-boat force. Angered, he flips a switch on the radio and hangs his head in frustration as the tune '' Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition'' is heard.
Reception
On April 29, 1943, ''
The Film Daily
''The Film Daily'' was a daily publication that existed from 1918 to 1970 in the United States. It was the first daily newspaper published solely for the film industry. It covered the latest trade news, film reviews, financial updates, informati ...
'' said: "It's all wild, woolly, and in two words, in credible!"
Voice cast
*
Bud Collyer
Bud Collyer (born Clayton Johnson Heermance Jr., June 18, 1908 – September 8, 1969) was an American radio actor and announcer and game show host who became one of the nation's first major television game show stars. He is best remembered for ...
Joan Alexander
Joan Alexander (born Louise Abrass; April 16, 1915 – May 21, 2009) ''
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning ...
*
Jackson Beck
Jackson Beck (July 23, 1912 – July 28, 2004) was an American actor best known as the announcer on radio's '' The Adventures of Superman'' and the voice of Bluto in the Famous era Popeye theatrical shorts.
Early years
Beck was born on July 23, ...
as the Narrator
*
Jack Mercer
Winfield Bennett Mercer (January 31, 1910 – December 7, 1984), known professionally as Jack Mercer, was an American voice actor. He is best known as the voice of cartoon characters Popeye the Sailor Man and Felix the Cat. The son of vaudevil ...
as First Pilot, Lt. Fleming
* Julian Noa as German Commander