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The Scarlet Pumpernickel is a 1950 Warner Bros.Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese. The cartoon was released on March 4, 1950, and stars Daffy Duck along with a number of other prominent Looney Tunes characters. The title is a play on the 1905 novel The Scarlet Pimpernel.
In 1994 it was voted No. 31 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.
Plot
Daffy Duck, tired of comedic roles, pitches a dramatic script called The Scarlet Pumpernickel to studio head Jack L. Warner. In the story, the daring Scarlet Pumpernickel (played by Daffy) outsmarts the Lord High Chamberlain (Porky Pig) to rescue Lady Melissa (Melissa Duck) from having to marry the villainous Grand Duke (Sylvester the Cat). When Daffy realizes that he has neglected to write an ending, he ad-libs a chaotic cliamax involving various natural disasters, culminating in the Scarlet Pumpernickel's comedic "suicide", to sell the story. Warner remains unimpressed.
Production notes
The Scarlet Pumpernickel is notable for boasting a large cast of Looney Tunes star characters, including Daffy, Porky, Sylvester, Melissa (who is named for the first time), Elmer Fudd, Henery Hawk, and Mama Bear from Jones' Three Bears series.
Mel Blanc voices Elmer Fudd, who serves as an innkeeper. While Elmer was originally voiced by Arthur Q. Bryan, Blanc imitated Bryan's voice for the character despite his reservations about impersonating another actor.
Reception
Animation historian Greg Ford writes, "It's the 'real-life' Daffy, as seen in the cartoon's wraparound plot of the studio script meeting, that best clues us in to what separates this film from the spate of animated genre parodies currently being churned out. Most modern-day satires trade on anachronism, and the hero and the audience end up complicit in their smug superiority to the antiquated vehicle. But what's funny about The Scarlet Pumpernickel is the tremendous investment its hero puts into his costumed character, and the vast chasm that yawns between Daffy's inflated perception of himself and the highly flawed little black duck that he really is."
Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 208. ISBN0-8050-0894-2.
