Run, Sheep, Run! (1935) [N/A]
Featuring:
Rudolf Ising, Fred MacAlpin, The Rhythmettes
Directed by:
Hugh Harman
Release Date:
December 13, 1935
Original Title:
Run, Sheep, Run!
Genres:
Animation
Production Companies:
Harman-Ising Studio
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Countries:
United States of America
Ratings / Certifications:
N/A
Runtime: 10
Bosko is dreaming of sheep following the music he is making.
At the end of 1933, the production team of Hugh Harmon and Rudolf Ising left Looney Tunes and took their creation, Bosko, with them to MGM. Considering how insipid many of the Bosko cartoons had been, it was actually a blessing for Looney Tunes, as it forced them to be more creative and come up with other characters.As for Harmon-Ising, their first couple Bosko cartoons were a mixed bag. On one hand, they looked much like the old Bosko but using a two-color film process. They couldn't use full color until late 1935 because DIsney had exclusive rights to Technicolor for cartoons until that time. On the other, the first was quite nice...they second was burdened with singing and a saccharine story.I have no idea why, but the somewhat ambiguous race of Bosko was no longer in doubt starting in the third MGM Bosko film. Up until then, he seemed pretty stereotypically black in the first couple Looney Tunes versions but the studio made a conscious choice to make him more ambiguous after...possibly to avoid alienating much of the audience. But by 1935, Bosko clearly had become a black child....and "Run Sheep, Run!" is one of these later cartoons...and in full color. The character looked a lot like "Little Black Sambo"...a VERY offensive and divisive character from this era....and so because of that, I strongly doubt if you'd ever seen any of these cartoons on TV. I found a few on YouTube.So is this any good? Well, the art work is nice. Apart from that, it's just okay...better than some because it IS violent and less sweet....and Bosko uses a gun and is nearly eaten by a bear! But there still is some singing and cuteness that I find annoying...perhaps you don't mind cutesy characters. But the way the child is drawn is offensive...whether it was intended of not....is sure to annoy most viewers.
