Smile, Darn Ya, Smile!
| Smile, Darn Ya, Smile! | |
|---|---|
| Merrie Melodies (Foxy) series | |
 The opening scene | |
| Directed by | Rudolf Ising (uncredited) |
| Produced by |
Hugh Harman Rudolf Ising Leon Schlesinger |
| Music by |
Frank Marsales Abe Lyman |
| Animation by |
Drawn by: Friz Freleng Carman Maxwell Additional drawing: Larry Martin (uncredited) |
| Studio | Harman-Ising Productions |
| Distributed by |
Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation |
| Release date(s) | September 5, 1931 |
| Color process | Black-and-white (later redrawn colorized in 1992) |
| Running time | 7 minutes |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Lady, Play Your Mandolin! |
| Followed by | One More Time |
Smile, Darn Ya, Smile! is a Merrie Melodies cartoon short (September 5, 1931) and also the title of the song performed in the cartoon. This is one of only three Merrie Melodies cartoons to star Foxy; the other two are Lady, Play Your Mandolin! (August, 1931) and One More Time (October 3, 1931). This short is a remake of Trolley Troubles, a Disney short featuring Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in whose creation Hugh Harman had once been involved.
A colorized version was produced in Korea by Fred Ladd, for Sunset Productions, the copyright holder at the time. It was made by re-drawing the cels and backgrounds. The animation in this version is inferior, since many drawings were left out, causing jerky movement.
Synopsis
Foxy is a trolley engineer whose problems include a fat lady hippo who can't fit into the trolley and a set of wheels that detach from the trolley car while it's moving. Foxy picks up his vixen girlfriend and gives her a ride, but along the way, the car is blocked by a cow wearing a dress, and glasses, and who won't get off the track. A group of nearby hobos sing the title song while Foxy tries to move the cow; he finally runs the car underneath the cow and goes on his way.
The trolley then goes down a hill and runs out of control; Foxy tries to stop it, but the brakes don't work. Finally, the trolley runs off of a cliff, throwing Foxy right into the camera... and then he falls from bed, waking up from what has turned out to be just a nightmare. The radio by his bed is playing the title song, and the annoyed Foxy smashes the radio with a bedpost upon hearing it.
The song
The theme song later appeared in Robert Zemeckis's Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Christoph Waltz also sang it when he hosted Saturday Night Live.
Availability
- Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 6
- Return of the 30s Characters