The Coo Coo Bird
| The Coo Coo Bird | |
|---|---|
| Woody Woodpecker series | |
 | |
| Directed by | Dick Lundy |
| Produced by | Walter Lantz |
| Story by |
Ben Hardaway Milt Schaffer |
| Voices by | Ben Hardaway |
| Music by | Darrell Calker |
| Animation by |
Hal Mason Sidney Pillet Grim Natwick |
| Backgrounds by | Fred Brunish |
| Studio | Walter Lantz Productions |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 9, 1947 (U.S.) |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 6' 46" |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Smoked Hams |
| Followed by | Well Oiled |
The Coo Coo Bird is the 22nd animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series. Released theatrically on June 9, 1947, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal Pictures.
Plot
Woody decides to go to bed early so he can get a head start on quail season the next morning. However, circumstances conspire to keep him awake: first a bright flashing sign on a nearby building, then a loudly ticking cuckoo clock, and finally an insubordinate folding table that he tries (and fails) to use as a bed after inadvertently destroying his own. Acting like a bucking bronco, the table eventually throws him out the window and into a bush; three quails, in turn, toss him out into the open, where he literally gets mixed up with a hunter's dogs.
Notes
The Coo Coo Bird is unusual in that Woody is portrayed as somewhat short-tempered and winds up on the losing end of every confrontation. This is similar to how characters at other studios, such as Donald Duck (at Disney) and Daffy Duck (at Warner Bros.), were portrayed.
Woody also does not emerge the victor in other entries such as The Beach Nut, Real Gone Woody, Tepee for Two, Ski for Two, Smoked Hams, Under the Counter Spy, Well Oiled, Bye, Bye, Blackboard and The Screwball.
References
- Cooke, Jon, Komorowski, Thad, Shakarian, Pietro, and Tatay, Jack. "1947". The Walter Lantz Cartune Encyclopedia.