''Self Control'' is an
animated
Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...
short film
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
in the ''Donald Duck'' series, produced in
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films running through a special ...
by
Walt Disney Productions
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...
and released to theaters on February 11, 1938, by
RKO Radio Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...
. The film follows Donald trying to learn to control his temper by following the advice of a radio program.
It was directed by
Jack King and features the voice of
Clarence Nash
Clarence Charles "Ducky" Nash (December 7, 1904 – February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor. He was best known as the original voice of the Disney cartoon character Donald Duck. He was born in the rural community of Watonga, Oklahoma, and ...
as Donald Duck and
Florence Gill
Florence Gill (27 July 1877 – 19 February 1965) was a British actress.
In Walt Disney's animated films, Gill made a specialty for 20 years of voicing hens, including Clara Cluck, The Wise Little Hen and other assorted fowl.
Gill was a member ...
as the clucking voice of a chicken. The voice of Uncle Smiley was uncredited.
Plot
Donald Duck is enjoying a leisurely day in his
hammock
A hammock (from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno and Arawak ) is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swinging, sleeping, or resting. It normally consists of one or more cloth panels, or a wove ...
sipping
lemonade
Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage.
There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using le ...
and listening to his radio. Soon Uncle Smiley's radio program comes on. Smiley is described as a "musical philosopher" and uses songs to maintain a positive attitude. Donald insists that he has never lost his temper.
However Donald's temper is soon put to the test first by a fly that lands on his foot, followed by a caterpillar which crawls down the underside of his hammock and tickles him. A chicken comes along and pecks Donald's rear end while trying to grab the caterpillar. Finally Donald antagonizes with a
woodpecker
Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar region ...
for bathing in his bowl of lemonade, who retaliates by causing a huge amount of apples to fall onto the hammock tearing it up before pecking Donald's hat into a riddled rag.
At the end of the film Donald loses his temper and smashes the radio with a shotgun.
Voice cast
* Donald Duck:
Clarence Nash
Clarence Charles "Ducky" Nash (December 7, 1904 – February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor. He was best known as the original voice of the Disney cartoon character Donald Duck. He was born in the rural community of Watonga, Oklahoma, and ...
* Hen:
Florence Gill
Florence Gill (27 July 1877 – 19 February 1965) was a British actress.
In Walt Disney's animated films, Gill made a specialty for 20 years of voicing hens, including Clara Cluck, The Wise Little Hen and other assorted fowl.
Gill was a member ...
Home media
The short was released on May 18, 2004, on ''
Walt Disney Treasures: The Chronological Donald, Volume One: 1934-1941''.
References
External links
*
*
1930s color films
Donald Duck short films
1938 animated films
1938 short films
1930s Disney animated short films
Films directed by Jack King
Films produced by Walt Disney
Films scored by Oliver Wallace
Films with screenplays by Carl Barks
American animated short films
1930s English-language films
Films about ducks
RKO Pictures short films
RKO Pictures animated short films
1930s American films
{{Disney-animation-film-stub