The Lyin' Mouse
| The Lyin' Mouse | |
|---|---|
| Merrie Melodies series | |
 Blue Ribbon reissue card | |
| Directed by | Friz Freleng, as I. Freleng |
| Produced by | Leon Schlesinger (uncredited in reissue) |
| Story by | Tedd Pierce |
| Voices by | Mel Blanc, Billy Bletcher (both uncredited) |
| Music by | Carl Stalling |
| Animation by | Ken Harris |
| Studio | Warner Bros. Cartoons |
| Distributed by |
Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation |
| Release date(s) | October 16, 1937 |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 7 minutes |
| Language | English |
The Lyin' Mouse is a 1937 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. It is the first to give story credit, in this case, to Tedd Pierce. This is also odd as Ken Harris is animating for another director besides Chuck Jones.
Plot
A mouse is trying to free himself from a trap when a cat arrives. The mouse, desperate to avoid being eaten, asks if the cat has heard the story of "The Lion And The Mouse." He tells a story about a ferocious lion in the jungle who scares all the animals; the mouse has a horn that imitates the lion's roar, and has some fun with it until the lion catches him. The mouse pleads for his life, and the lion, distracted by a bigger catch, agrees. The bigger catch is a trap set by the Frank Cluck expedition; the lion avoids the first trap, but falls for the second, and find himself in a circus lion-taming act (where he put his head inside the tamer's mouth). The mouse happens by, and chews a lion-shaped hole in the lion's wooden cart/cage, setting him free. Back to the cat: moved by this story, he releases the mouse. Just before entering his hole, the mouse yells one last word at the cat: "Sucker!". The cat shrugs and says "Well, can you imagine that." as the cartoon irises out.
Availability
This cartoon is available on Looney Tunes Mouse Chronicles: The Chuck Jones Collection in its Blue Ribbon reissue with the 1995 dubbed rings at the end. This print is also present on Volume 5 of The Golden Age of Looney Tunes.
Other Notes
◾This is the first cartoon to give story credit, here to Tedd Pierce. Unfortunately, the Blue Ribbon reissue removes the original titles, and thus the credit.
◾This is also the last Merrie Melodies cartoon to have the blue rings and the original Merrie Melodies logo in the opening titles.
◾The original BR ending is lost due to the dubbed LaserDisc version, which airs on TV as well. However, the original BR closing is available through CN Latin America.[1]
◾The EU dubbed uses the 1941-55 MM ending cue, while the US retains the original end cue.
◾The ostrich from Plenty of Money and You makes a cameo appearance, running away from the mouse's lion noise.