Detouring America

Deprecated

We have moved to portable infoboxes using the new Template:Shorts

Please do not use this template anymore. It is left here for reference purposes.

Detouring America

Directed By: Fred Avery Produced By: Leon Schlesinger Released: August 26, 1939 Series: Merrie Melodies Story: Jack Miller Animation: Rollin Hamilton Layouts: Backgrounds: Film Editor: Treg Brown Voiced By: Mel Blanc Robert C. Bruce Music: Carl W. Stalling Starring: Narrator Mr. Butterfinger Cow Puncher Full-Grown Papoose Mosquito Prairie Dog Prospector Fawn Preceded By: Hare-um Scare-um Succeeded By: Porky's Hotel Detouring America (Uncut)-0 UNCUT, dubbed version, baby and black singer RESTORED

Detouring America is a 1939 Merrie Melodies film directed by Tex Avery.

Plot

A tour of the United States, with recurring checks on the progress of the human fly climbing the Empire State Building. Also featured are jokes and gags on the Everglades, the Wyoming prairies, Alaska, a California prospector, Sioux Indians and a Jerry Colona-esque (literal) Texas cow-puncher.

In the end, the human fly screams for help when the narrator tells him to say a word to the audience.

Censorship

Two scene are cut from the AAP print, which airs on Cartoon Network and Boomerang airings (though as of 2015, an uncut dubbed version has aired on Boomerang) in the United States due to ethnic stereotyping:

• A poor, black hitchhiker at the North Pole, singing "Carry Me Back to Ol' Virginny", and, as he does so, an Eskimo grabs and carries him and drops him off at the Virginia State Line.
• Although the Native American segment is not removed entirely, only one scene from the segment is cut: An Indian mother dealing with the dopey, oversized, adult son she's carrying on her back.

Trivia

• In 1995, Turner Entertainment restored the cut scenes for the dubbed version. The US dubbed version is shown in the video chart, which is the DVD dubbed version, in its restored format. The LaserDisc dubbed version, which is on vk.com in English, is somewhat unrestored. The dubbed version is only present on the Each Dawn I Die DVD and Volume 5 LaserDisc.

• Detouring America's original ending card was never released on any home video format, but the original ending does exist on the censored AAP print, which was cut in the mid 80s to censor 2 scenes, cutting a minute into the cartoon. This AAP print is currently shown on Boomerang. The video on the chart was the home video release from the Each Dawn I Die DVD.

• 2nd cartoon to have WARNER BROS. without the yellow banner, the first was Wise Quacks. This would be another prototype WARNER BROS. design. One of 3 cartoons to have WARNER BROS. not on a banner with the 1938-39 rings.