Tag Archives: Silly Symphony

December 16, 1929 – The Silly Symphony The Merry Dwarfs Premieres in Theaters

On December 16, 1929, the Silly Symphony The Merry Dwarfs was released to theaters. It was directed by Walt Disney.

The short begins with the dwarfs dancing in their village to the opening of the “Anvil Chorus” from Il Trovatore. The dwarfs are then seen hard at work at their chores, including working at a shoemaker shop and a blacksmiths. Afterwards, they prepare for a party, where plenty of beer is served and consumed before they continue to dance and be merry. Two of the dwarves fall into a barrel of beer while dancing and end up dancing while heavily intoxicated.

December 27, 1930 – The Silly Symphony Playful Pan is Released to Theaters

On December 27, 1930, the Silly Symphony Playful Pan was released to theaters. The short was inspired by the tale of the Greek god Pan, a god of nature. It was directed by Burt Gillett.

Pan appears on a rock and starts playing his flute, causing the fish to dance around him. As he continues to play his pan flute, the flowers also begin to dance around at his command. He begins to play around an apple tree, calling all the worms to attention. They begin to dance around as he changes his tune. The trees and clouds begin to join in as well, with one of the clouds creating lightning so bad that it cuts a tree in half and starts a fire in the forest. The animals flee as the forest quickly burns, though many try to douse the flames and save their families. One of the raccoons alerts Pan, who rushes to the scene and puts the fire under his musical spell. He leads them into the river like a pied piper and they put themselves out. Pan cheers and disappears after saving the forest.

December 17, 1931 – The Silly Symphony The Ugly Duckling is Released to Theaters

On December 17, 1931, the Silly Symphony The Ugly Duckling was released to theaters. The short was based on the short story by Hans Christian Andersen, and was one of the only Silly Symphonies remade in color; the color version was also the last Silly Symphony, and won an Academy Award for Best Cartoon of 1939. The 1931 short was directed by Wilfred Jackson.

A hen is sound asleep in her nest, when her chicks start to hatch. The last egg, however, is of a duck, and the hen is alarmed to find a duckling in her nest. She escorts her chicks far away from the duckling, and the poor ducking is upset at being abandoned. When the chicks steal his food and dismiss him, he is upset. The constant abandonment causes him to cry, but he tries to find a new mother within the farm. He cries by the side of a pond, until he spies a tornado sweeping through the farm. He tries to warn the hen and her chicks, and does so just in time, though they kick him out of their hiding place. The chicks are swept up into the air and land into the rushing river, much to the hen’s dismay. The duckling, exhibiting an ability to swim, goes after the chicks and manages to save them just in the nick of time. The chicks and the hen embrace him as one of their own, and he quacks happily.

September 28, 1931 – The Silly Symphony The Clock Store Premieres in Theaters

On September 28, 1931, the Silly Symphony The Clock Store premiered in theaters. It is also known by its copyright title In a Clock Store. One of the pocket-watches has familiar initials on its cover: W.E.D. The short was directed by Wilfred Jackson.

It’s late at night when an old man walks around the town, lighting the lamplights. He whistles a tune as he passes by a nearby clock store. Inside, the clocks are all ticking away, showing various times on their faces. A row of cuckoo clocks go off one after another, as do some alarm clocks, creating a simple melody. Different kinds of clocks and watches dance their own way to their peculiar rhythm, including a beautiful castle clock that features two figures around it hitting chimes, and two dancers on an elegant antique piece. Two alarm clocks end up in a fist fight thanks to the antics of a wall clock, with all the other clocks cheering the fight on. One clock knocks itself out, which the other clock is badly beaten.