| Duck Dodgers in the24+1/2th Century | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Directed by | Charles M. Jones |
| Story by | Michael Maltese |
| Produced by | Edward Selzer John W. Burton[1] |
| Starring | Mel Blanc (all voices) |
| Edited by | Treg Brown |
| Music by | Carl Stalling |
| Animation by | Lloyd Vaughan Ken Harris Ben Washam Effects Animator: Harry Love |
| Layouts by | Maurice Noble |
| Backgrounds by | Philip DeGuard[1] |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | |
Release date |
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Running time | 7:03 |
| Language | English |
Duck Dodgers in the24+1/2th Century (spoken as "twenty-fourth-and-a-half") is a 1953Warner Bros.Merrie Melodies cartoon directed byChuck Jones.[2] The cartoon was released on July 25, 1953, and starsDaffy Duck as space heroDuck Dodgers,Porky Pig as his assistant, andMarvin the Martian as his opponent.[3] This cartoon marked the first of many appearances of the Duck Dodgers character.
Marvin the Martian had been introduced as an unnamed villain in Warner's cartoonHaredevil Hare (1948), playing oppositeBugs Bunny (Marvin would not receive his proper name until 1979). He was later given the title 'Commander, Flying Saucer X-2' in 1952'sThe Hasty Hare. TheDuck Dodgers cartoon is an extendedparody of thepulp magazine,newspaper comic strip, andcomic book characterBuck Rogers, and his longtime run of space adventures,Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.[4]
In 1994,Duck Dodgers was voted #4 ofThe 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.[5] Because he was such a fan of the short in particular,Star Wars creatorGeorge Lucas attempted to arrange that the short be shown beforethe originalStar Wars film during its initial run in theaters[6] and succeeded in making this happen for screenings at the Cinema 21 in San Francisco.[7] In 2004 at the62nd World Science Fiction Convention, it was retrospectively nominated for a RetroHugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation—Short Form.
In the latter half of 24th century (around2350), Duck Dodgers (Daffy Duck) is tasked with locating the uncharted "Planet X", the only known remaining source for the dwindling element Illudium Phosdex, "theshaving cream atom". After a few small mishaps, Dodgers and his assistant, the "Eager Young Space Cadet" (Porky Pig) set off by rocket. Once in flight, Dodgers plots what becomes an enormously complicated and inefficient course to Planet X, whereas the Cadet suggests a much simpler route, following a path of nearby planets bearing the letters of the alphabet (in order from A onward). After scoffing at the idea, Dodgers suddenly comes up with the same idea and takes credit for it. The ship then flies past the lettered planets and arrives on Planet X.
Dodgers immediately claims the planet in the name of theEarth, but is quickly greeted byMarvin the Martian, as he claims it in the name ofMars. In the ensuing battle, Dodgers is shot multiple times in the face and disintegrated and reintegrated once. The battle continues through most of the film, until Dodgers finally declares enough is enough, and deploys his "secret weapon" that surrounds Marvin's ship with explosives. Marvin deploys the same type of weapon against Dodgers' ship. When the two simultaneously detonate their weapons, the entire planet is destroyed, save for a small chunk. Dodgers pushes Marvin off this chunk, and once again claims it in his own name, as the Cadet and Marvin are seen hanging from a root underneath the chunk. The Cadet sarcastically dismisses Dodgers' claim as a "Big deal."
The cartoon was directed byChuck Jones (credited asCharles M. Jones), with the story byMichael Maltese, voices byMel Blanc, and original music byCarl Stalling. The animation was credited to Lloyd Vaughan,Ken Harris andBen Washam, withHarry Love receiving a credit for effects animation. The distinctive layouts were designed byMaurice Noble and the backgrounds produced by Phil DeGuard.[8]
Uncredited are Stalling's quotations of "Powerhouse" and "Egyptian Barn Dance" (in the opening credits), byRaymond Scott.
Jones saw Porky Pig's sidekick role as set apart from Daffy as the hero: "I always felt that Porky Pig was the subtlest of all the characters because he was consciously playing a part. He's obviously putting Daffy on, but it's a very subtle thing. InDuck Dodgers in the24+1/2th Century, he was playing the space cadet, but he wasaware that he was playing it. He was like I would be in a class play — in which the hero really thought he was the character."[9]
Comic book writerMark Evanier writes, "Director Chuck Jones and writer Mike Maltese inverted the usual cartoon convention of having the hero conquer the villain. Here, Daffy pretty much conquers himself with faulty disintegration rays and faultier personal swagger. As with the other times Jones handled the duck, theOliver Hardy principle prevails: The joke is never the destruction that befalls the luckless character but their loss of dignity afterward."[10]
This cartoon is available on Disc 2 of theLooney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 DVD and on Disc 2 of theLooney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1Blu-ray box set, with the cartoon restored inhigh definition, as well as Disc 1 ofThe Essential Daffy Duck. The short was included as a bonus feature on Disc 1 of theDuck Dodgers: The Complete Series Blu-ray set.[11]
The cartoon's copyright was renewed in 1980.[a]
The cartoon can be seen in the background of one scene inSteven Spielberg's filmClose Encounters of the Third Kind (1977).[12]
In the Season One episode of the 1990s hit science fiction TV seriesBabylon 5 entitledMidnight on the Firing Line, the head of securityMichael Garibaldi invites the Minbari ambassadorDelenn to his quarters with him, where they share popcorn and a night of watching Duck Dodgers, although the comedy is lost on her. Daffy Duck is Michael Garibaldi's favorite cartoon character.
