Underplayed Gems

The Flea Circus (1954)

The Flea Circus poster
Directed by
Tex Avery
Genre
animation, comedy, family
Country
United States
Runtime
7 min
Rated
NR
Rating
5.5 of 10 from 20 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

More films like this

How it feels

This is a Tex Avery animated short where a tiny circus puts on a show. The cartoon follows the frantic antics of the performers and the ringmaster.

fast-pacedwhimsicalsillyplayfulenergeticcartoonishlighthearted

What happens

Tex Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, voice actor, and director. He became famous for producing animated cartoons during the Golden age of American animation and produced his most significant work while employed by the Warner Bros. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. He created the characters of Daffy Duck in Porky's Duck Hunt (1937), Egghead in Egghead Rides Again (1937), Elmer Fudd in Little Red Walking Hood (1937), Bugs Bunny in A Wild Hare (1940), Cecil Turtle in Tortoise Beats Hare (1941), Droopy in Dumb-Hounded (1943), Screwy Squirrel in Screwball Squirrel (1944), George and Junior in Henpecked Hoboes (1946), Spike/Butch the Bulldog (Tex Avery's version) in Bad Luck Blackie (1949), and Smedley Dog in I'm Cold (1954). He developed the characters of Porky Pig from the Warner Bros. studio and Chilly Willy from Walter Lantz Productions into the personas for which they are best remembered. Avery first began his animation career at the Walter Lantz studio in the early 1930s, working on the majority of the Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoons from 1931-35. He is listed as "animator" on the original title card credits on the Oswald cartoons. He later claimed to have directed two cartoons during this time. By 1942, Avery was in the employ of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, working in their cartoon division under the supervision of Fred Quimby. At MGM, Avery's creativity reached its peak. A burnt-out Avery left MGM in 1953 to return to the Walter Lantz studio. Avery's return to the Lantz studio did not last long. He directed four cartoons in 1954-1955: the one-shots Crazy Mixed-Up Pup and Shh-h-h-h-h, and I'm Cold and The Legend of Rockabye Point, in which he defined the character of Chilly Willy the penguin. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.