March 12, 1943 – The Donald Duck Short, The Flying Jalopy, is Released to Theaters
“Ah, yes, a little matter of insurance…”
On March 12, 1943, The Flying Jalopy, a Donald Duck short, was released to theaters. Directed by Dick Lundy, the short is about Donald dealing with a shady used plane dealer, who tries to get Donald to have an accident so he can collect on a $10,000 insurance policy. Although Donald is known for being accident-prone, this short is one of the few that shows Donald avoiding a major accident, for the most part.
The short opens with a billboard sign for Ben Buzzard and his used planes (which used to be called “wrecked planes,” but the word “wrecked” is crossed out in bold back strokes). The camera zooms out and shows the airfield where the “used” planes sit as scrap sculptures, except for one last plane that is very Wright Brothers-esque. Donald is seen examining the plane, which has been marked down to a down payment of $59.98. Donald feverishly checks to see if he has enough money, but unfortunately is a bit short of the asking price.
Ben Buzzard, the proprietor, lurks in the office doorway, observing the cash in Donald’s hands. Thinking quickly, he starts the salesman act, pulling Donald back with his cane and asking Donald if he is interested in an airplane. Donald nods excitedly, and Ben launches into his sales pitch. The first one he calls attention to has its wheel burst while they are observing it, but Ben offers Donald the chance to buy it with an offer of no down payment. He hits the tail of the plane with his cane, making the tail fall off. He quickly puts it back on and rushes to get Donald to take a test flight.
The shady insurance document Ben was able to have Donald sign
As Donald is sitting in the cockpit, ready for his test flight, Ben tells him there is one more thing: an insurance policy he unrolls from his coat pocket. Donald eagerly signs it, as it seems to say that in the event of an accident, he will be paid $10,000. As Ben takes the paper, he unfolds it, revealing that in the event of an accident, $10,000 will be paid to Ben, signed by Donald. To get this money, Ben decides that Donald will have to die.
Ben begins the test flight, breaking the front propeller, and continuing his plan of making Donald have an accident. Unfortunately for him, Donald is able to avoid hitting the side of a cliff, and manages to keep the plane in the air, with Ben watching angrily from the ground as his plans are foiled. Ben swears that he will get Donald, and takes off to the sky.
Donald feels pretty good about his flying skills as he keeps the jalopy in the air
Ben greets Donald in the air, telling the beaming duck that he is rather good at flying, and suggesting a game of Follow the Leader. Donald agrees, and Ben offers to lead. He gracefully dives around the clouds, and Donald tries to follow him, but both of the plane’s wings rip from the body of the plane. Quickly, as Donald begins to plummet to the ground, he grabs the wings floating in the air and reattaches them, and is able once again to keep himself in the air.
Ben sits on a cloud and furiously tries to come up with a plan, only to be blown away by Donald, who is quickly flying by. As Ben dangles in the air from his cane that has caught a part of a cloud, he spies a small opening between two cliffs, which he knows the plane won’t possibly make it through. He then surrounds the cliff tops with cloud cover, and calls Donald over to continue the game. As he slips to the other side, Ben gives an evil grin and brags to the audience with death in his eyes, “He’ll never make it!” Unfortunately for Ben, once again, Donald is able to save himself from danger at the last minute, turning the plane sideways and slipping through quite easily.
As Donald tries to put out the flames with his hat, he looks in alarm as it catches on fire
Having had enough, Ben cries out that Donald is a dirty cheat, and begins to destroy the plane outright, being done with underhanded plans. It becomes an outright war between the two, especially after Ben opens Donald’s gas tank and sets the stream of gasoline on fire. Donald tries to blow the flames out, but to no avail. Ben, meanwhile, perches on a cloud and laughs, thinking the policy will soon be his. He doesn’t count on Donald flying in his direction, and while Ben tries to make a break for it, he continues to be in the plane’s path. The plane finally meets its demise when the flames reach the gas tank, but all is not lost: Donald safely flies his new plane – Ben, who is trapped inside the last piece of the body of the plane – through the air, laughing all the way.
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