| Good Night Elmer | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Charles Jones |
| Story by | Rich Hogan |
| Produced by | Leon Schlesinger |
| Starring | Mel Blanc (uncredited) |
| Edited by | Treg Brown (uncredited) |
| Music by | Carl W. Stalling |
| Animation by | Philip Monroe Robert Cannon (uncredited) Ken Harris (uncredited) Rudy Larriva (uncredited) A.C. Gamer (effects, uncredited) |
| Layouts by | Bob Givens (uncredited) |
| Backgrounds by | Paul Julian (uncredited) |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 7 minutes |
Good Night Elmer is a 1940Warner Bros.Merrie Melodiescartoon short, directed byChuck Jones, animated byPhil Monroe and written by Rich Hogan.[1] The short was released on October 26, 1940, and featuresElmer Fudd.[2]
The cartoon depicts ill-fated attempts by Elmer, in a rare leading role, to extinguish acandle by his bedside so that he can retire for the night, with the flame always surging again in spite of Elmer's best efforts. Elmer finally succeeds, but only at the expense of wrecking hisbedroom in the process, and no sooner than he lies down, the sun comes up, precipitating a nervous breakdown in Elmer, who starts weeping and bawling.
Good Night Elmer was produced around the time Chuck Jones was directing cartoons that bear similarities towards those made byDisney andHarman and Ising. In retrospect, the short was derided by critics and animation enthusiasts, particularly for its slow pacing and lack of jokes. A review from theMotion Picture Herald in 1942 called the cartoon a "Very poor reel. Not up to standard."[3] Animation historiansJerry Beck andWill Friedwald also called the short "one of the most irritating cartoons ever made" in their bookLooney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons.[4]
Beck again discussed the cartoon on his website, Cartoon Research, in a post about his least favorite Warner Bros. shorts. He would state:
"BOR-ring! One of the slowest moving animated shorts I’ve ever seen. First he can’t take off his jacket. Then he can’t blow out the candle. The character [Elmer] is so stupid its painful. The short ends with him crying in frustration (something we in the audience can identify with).It’s the equivalent of anEdgar Kennedy live action comedy short… only without the humor, the pacing… or Edgar Kennedy. The animation is beautiful, but there is nothing – I repeat nothing – in this film that couldn’t have been done in live action. A depressing film – far opposite of what Jones would start producing in a year or two."[5]
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