Tag Archives: 1940s

December 5, 1941 – The Donald Duck Short Film Chef Donald is Released to Theaters

“Cooking is as simple as A, B, C, with a Mother Mallard’s recipe!”

On December 5, 1941, the Donald Duck short film Chef Donald was released to theaters. It was directed by Jack King.

Donald is listening to the radio while adding pages to his cooking scrapbook with rubber cement, accidentally adding a recipe for roast duck. He removes it before his favorite cooking show starts, and he hears the recipe for the day: waffles. Hungry, Donald quickly sets aside the rubber cement and gets ready to cook. As he goes to add the baking powder, he accidentally adds the rubber cement. When he tries to add the batter into his waffle iron, the batter refuses to leave the bowl. He then gets the bowl and mixing spoon stuck to the iron, and as he tries to unstick them, he knocks over his ironing board, and the iron presses his chef’s hat flat. Once again, he tries to mix the batter, but the strength of the batter and the amount of turns he gave it with his spoon give the spoon a propeller effect, and the bowl chases Donald around the room. The bowl catches the cord of the waffle iron and takes it for a spin before wrapping it around Donald. After the bowl finishes flying, Donald angrily attacks the batter, and gets his head stuck in the bowl. As he wriggles around, he ends up getting his tail stick in the waffle iron, cooking his tail instead. Still unaware of his mistake, Donald uses desperate measures to separate the batter from the bowl, using an axe and various other tools. The axe bounces off the batter and sends Donald flying up to the ceiling, where the hit of the axe creates a crack that travels through the entire house, and goes far enough to send the bowl flying at Donald’s head. Donald tries throwing the batter out the door, only to have the batter get caught on the doorknob and flying back in, trapping Donald in a web of batter. Angry, Donald decides to go to the radio station and let his temper get the best of him.

October 26, 1945 – The Donald Duck Short Film Cured Duck is Released to Theaters

“Temper, temper, shame on you! You never see me lose my temper, do you?”

On October 26, 1945, the Donald Duck short film Cured Duck was released to theaters. It was directed by Jack King, with story by Roy Williams.

Donald is walking down the street with a cigar, blowing smoke hearts as he heads to Daisy’s house. She gets herself ready as she sees him approach, although she is less than happy about his cigar smoke. He tries to open the window for her, and is angered when it is sealed shut. He throws a tantrum, breaking all of her belongings. Having had enough, she admonishes him for his temper, and gives him an ultimatum: she won’t go out with him again until he controls his temper. Donald dejectedly walks away, and comes across a newspaper ad for a mail-order temper cure. His package soon arrives, and enclosed is an insult machine from the Tootsberry Institute of Temperism, which tells him that if Donald can withstand its insults for ten minutes and still control his temper, he will be cured. The machines is really rough with Donald, and loses it after 30 seconds. The tests get more and more rough, but finally, Donald is able to pass the test and receive his certificate. He jumps in his car and drives back to Daisy’s, and she tests him with opening the window again, and although he has problems, he manages to get the window open and doesn’t lose his temper after all the mishaps. When she shows up with a new hat, he laughs at the ridiculousness of it, and she loses her temper, beating him over the head with a broom.

September 20, 1946 – The Donald Duck Short Film Lighthouse Keeping is Released to Theaters

“Hahaha, ain’t I a devil?”

On September 20, 1946, the Donald Duck short film Lighthouse Keeping was released to theaters. It was directed by Jack Hannah, with story by Harry Reeves and Jesse Marsh.

Donald is trying to read his book by the light of the lighthouse, but is having difficulty as the light only passes by so often. After being annoyed by the inability to read properly, he decides to play a prank on a sleeping pelican on a nearby rock, holding the light so it shines directly on the pelican’s face. The pelican grabs his nest and tries to move, but Donald moves the light again, angering the pelican. As Donald laughs, he hears the door knock, and he goes to answer it. The pelican rushes inside and blows out the candle in the lighthouse. The pelican continues to fight Donald over the light, until Donald grabs the pelican to throw him over the railing at the top. The pelican is able to use his beak to swing him back onto the balcony, sending Donald flying over the railing. Fortunately for the duck, a wave brings him right back to the top, and the two resume their fight over the light.

As the pelican has Donald trapped in his bill, he takes Donald to the balcony to drop him off the edge

Donald thinks he gains the advantage hiding in a trunk, not realizing that he’s hiding in the pelican’s beak. The pelican carefully walks to the balcony and sends Donald over the edge, but Donald only pretends to fall, and the fight once again resumes. The pelican then tricks Donadl into running into a glass door, knocking the duck out and giving the pelican a chance to extinguish the flame. The pelican traps Donald in his beak again, and Donald starts hitting the pelican with a mallet. The mallet breaks apart, with the head landing on the top of the pelican’s beak, and he uses this to beat Donald senseless. He soon loses the mallet head, and Donald uses it to light it on fire, making the pelican release him. The fight over the light continues once more, until the sun comes up. Eager to win, Donald closes the blinds, and the two continue their fight over the lighting of the lighthouse candle.