Who's Who in the Zoo is one of the cartoons that Warner would occasionally produce, particularly in theWorld War II era, that featured a series of loosely related gags, usually based on outrageous stereotypes and plays on words, as a narrator (in this caseRobert C. Bruce) describes the action. The plot is substantially similar to that of 1939'sA Day at the Zoo, except thatPorky Pig (voiced byMel Blanc as usual) appears as the zookeeper of the "Azusa Zoo", and that the now-discontinuedElmer Fudd is absent. Some excerpts:
In a comic "triple", a timber wolf is shown, then a gray wolf, then a "Hollywood wolf" (a frequent reference in the 1940s WB cartoons).
There is also a running joke about alion who is awaiting the arrival of the ice cream truck.
An Alaskan Bear who's known for hugging its prey to death picks up and starts hugging a defenseless sheep. When the narrator begs the bear to stop hugging the sheep, the sheep responds, in a feminine voice sounding likeSterling Holloway: "Oh, for goodness' sake, mind your own business!"
A group of seals that the narrator says only eat fresh mountain trout. Porky attempts to feed them a mackerel instead, claiming it to be indistinguishable, but a seal plants a sign saying "No substitutes accepted".
The famousCapistranoswallows are featured. The narrator asks them why they always go back to Capistrano, to which they, in unison, reply, "I dunno. I guess we're just in a rut."
Some gags reference the then-ongoingWorld War II, including ablack panther drinking cream from its dish, then noticing the dish is aluminum and throwing it into a scrap pile, a reference to theSalvage for Victory campaign; as well as a distressedrabbit father of dozens of babies given a note from the government to "increase your production 100%," as the song "What's The Matter with Father" plays in the background.
^Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989).Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 125.ISBN0-8050-0894-2.
