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The Great Piggy Bank Robbery is a 1946 Looney Tunes short directed by Bob Clampett.

Title[]

The title is a play on the 1941 film The Great Train Robbery.

Plot[]

On a farm, Daffy waits for his new Dick Tracy comic book to the tune of Raymond Scott's song "Powerhouse". The mailman then arrives, and he receives the comic book. To the tune of the Poet and Peasant overture, he sprints to a corner of the farm and reads it. Then, he wishes to become Dick Tracy and then knocks himself out by accidentally punching himself.

He then imagines himself to be "Duck Twacy, the famous detec-a-tive." Ignoring a piggy bank theft crime wave, he goes into action when he learns that his own bank has also been stolen from his secure safe. He calls a taxi to follow a car but leaves without him ("Keeps them on their toes."). Daffy, at one point bumped into one Sherlock Holmes and told him he is working on the side of the street.

Daffy's search leads him to a tram with Porky as the driver leading to the gangsters' not-so-secret hideout, where he faces off against all the dangerous criminals in town: Mouse Man, Snake Eyes (spoof of B.B. Eyes), 88 Teeth (spoof of 88 Keys), Hammerhead, Pussycat Puss (who looks like Sylvester), Bat Man (a parody name of the real Batman where DC Comics is now owned by WB), Doubleheader (spoof of Tulza "Haf-and-Haf" Tuzon), Pickle Puss (spoof of Pruneface), Pumpkinhead, Neon Noodle (spoof of Frankenstein), Jukebox Jaw, Wolfman (spoof of the real Wolf Man), Flattop, Rubberhead, Ironman,  and a host of other unnamed grotesques (the villains are obvious parodies of Dick Tracy's rogues gallery). He declares "You're all under arrest!!" The villains then roar at our hero and the chase begins.

The bad guys use well-known Dick Tracy villain Flattop's head (perhaps a Mount Rushmore-style variant) as an airstrip with planes taking off. Rubberhead "rubs him out" with his head as an eraser but Daffy appears at the door. Pumpkinhead meanwhile moves in with submachine gun blazing. Daffy tosses a hand grenade directly to Pumpkinhead's head, which becomes a stack of pumpkin pies.

After being chased about, Daffy eventually turns the tables on the villains and traps them inside a hallway closet. He slams the door shut on them and eradicates the group with sustained fire from a Tommy gun (which, if this were not a cartoon, would be a grim scene indeed, echoing the climactic scene from Warner's film The Big Sleep, released the same year).

He faces one last adversary, Neon Noodle (who survived because he is a mere neon outline with no physical "center" for Daffy to shoot), whom Daffy defeats by turning into a neon sign that reads "Eat at Joe's" (a standard WB cartoon gag). He then finds the missing piggy banks, including his own. He begins to kiss his bank, but since he is dreaming he doesn't realize that he is on the farm again, kissing a real female pig. The plump yet slightly curvaceous pig is rather smitten by Daffy since she believes he's trying to woo her with the barrage of smooches he plants all around her face while saying things like "I've found you at last!" He wraps his kisses up with a peck to the pig's little nose. So in an elegant female voice she says "Shall we dance?" and lovingly kisses him right in the mouth. Now wide awake, Daffy wipes the kiss away disgustedly and runs away. The lady pig says "I love that duck!" and laughs.

Caricatures[]

Television[]

  • a.a.p. (1957-mid 1990s)
  • Bugs Bunny and Friends [TBS] (1979-late 1980s)
  • Tom and Jerry's Funhouse [TBS] (1988-1997)
  • Bugs Bunny and Friends [TNT] (1988-1998)
  • The Bugs Bunny Show [TBS] (early 1990s-1997)
  • Bugs and Daffy Tonight [Cartoon Network] (1992-1994)
  • Droopy's Guide to the Cartoon Network (1992)
  • The Bugs and Daffy Show [Cartoon Network] (1995-2004)
  • Acme Hour [Cartoon Network] (1998-2003)
  • Toonheads [Cartoon Network] (1998-2003)
  • The Bob Clampett Show [Cartoon Network] (2000-2005)
  • The Looney Tunes Show [Cartoon Network] (2001-2004)
  • Looney Tunes on Boomerang (2003-2005; 2017)
  • TCM (2004-2007)
  • Looney Tunes on Cartoon Network (2009-2010) AAP print
  • Bugs Bunny and Friends [MeTV] (2021-present)
  • Sunday Night Cartoons [MeTV] (2021-present)
  • Toon In with Me [MeTV] (2021-present)

Availability[]

Streaming[]

Censorship[]

  • When this cartoon aired on the Kids WB shows Bugs 'n' Daffy and The Daffy Duck Show, the scene of Daffy locking all the criminals in a closet, blasting them with his Tommy gun, and all of the criminals falling out in rapid succession was cut.[3]

Reception[]

In the 25 July 1946 edition of movie trade publication Film Daily, the film was given the ranking "Very Good", stating;

"Daffy Duck, that exuberant spirit, out-does himself while admiring Dick Tracy, and experiences some of the thrills and chills that come to the super sleuth."[4]

In recent years, the short has achieved cult classic status, and is said by many people to be one of Clampett's greatest cartoons.

John Kricfalusi, the creator of Ren and Stimpy and fan/protege to director Bob Clampett, named this as his favorite cartoon on the DVD commentary for Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2. In 1994, it was voted #16 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.[5] In the book, animation historian Steve Schneider said of the film;

"Bob Clampett's forever priceless "The Great Piggy Bank Robbery" is clearly a work of the highest cinematic poetry, for prompting the film's manic hilarity are a sequence of images that remain among the most indelible in cartoon history."[5]

Notes[]

  • Daffy's early line about Dick Tracy, "I love that man!" and the pig's closing line, "I love that duck!" are references to a popular catch-phrase of the time, "Love dat man!", said by the character Beulah on the radio series Fibber McGee and Molly. Clampett would use the gag again in his next and final cartoon at Warner Bros. Cartoons, "The Big Snooze".
  • In the Tiny Toon Adventures episode "New Character Day", there was a segment called "The Return of Pluck Tracy" where Plucky Duck is in the same role that Daffy had here. Here, Pluck Tracy had to rescue Shirley the Loon's aura (who is really Hatta Mari) from gangsters like Ticklepuss, Boxcars, Millipede Pete, etc.
    • In another Plucky-based Tiny Toons short called "Bat's All Folks", Bat-Duck (Plucky's Batman-like alter ego) reveals his many foes in a similar manner to Duck Twacy in this short.
  • When Duck Twacy takes a street car to the gangsters' hideout, the conductor is a thinly-disguised Porky Pig dressed in a driver's uniform and a handlebar mustache.
  • This is the first Looney Tunes cartoon with a new opening and closing arrangement of "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down", which would be used until 1955.
  • Some sources erroneously credit animation by Robert McKimson, who had his own directing unit at the time this cartoon was in production.[citation needed]
  • Daffy says "Sufferin' succotash" while waiting for his Dick Tracy comic. This line would eventually become the catchphrase of Sylvester, who also has a lisp in his voice.
  • In the scene in which Daffy is seen through a door in silhouette as Duck Twacy, his shadow briefly morphs into Dick Tracy's trademark profile.
  • Although the sound effect is heard, the WB shield does not zoom to the viewers. This error also occurred in "Kitty Kornered".
  • An episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold titled "Legends of the Dark-Mite" contains a sequence which heavily parodies the cartoon. Unlike when Daffy faces criminals which are parodies, here Bat-Mite faces actual Batman villains (namely Joker, Penguin, Riddler, Catwoman, Two-Face, Mr. Freeze, Mad Hatter, Catman, Polka-Dot Man, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Killer Moth, Kite Man, Zebra-Man, and Tiger Shark). As an example, miniature Kite Man figures launch off the top hat of the Mad Hatter.
  • A clip from the cartoon is shown in Son of Batman.
  • This cartoon was the third cartoon in the a.a.p. package to bear that company's logo on a Cartoon Network broadcast since the return of Looney Tunes to that channel in 2009 after a three-year hiatus (with a five-year hiatus for the post-7/48 package), the first two such cartoons also starred Daffy Duck: "Daffy Duck in Hollywood" and "Nasty Quacks". The a.a.p. print of this cartoon aired on the 2010 New Year's Day LT marathon.[citation needed]
  • This cartoon was mentioned on an episode of Golden Book Video Killers where Daffy Duck was too scared after watching What Was That?
  • This was the third cartoon and second Looney Tunes cartoon shown on Cartoon Network when the channel launched on October 1, 1992, just after "Rhapsody Rabbit". Both were part of a special called "Droopy's Guide to The Cartoon Network".
  • Daffy's line after falling into the trap door "Was that trip really necessary?" is a reference to the World War II slogan "Is this trip really necessary?", which discouraged Americans from doing non-essential travelling in order to save oil, gas and rubber (tires) for the benefit of the WWII soldiers fighting overseas. At the time the cartoon was released in theaters, World War II had ended.
  • "Flat Top" is the only actual Dick Tracy villain depicted in the cartoon, but he is never explicitly named or labeled. He is shown launching miniature fighter planes off the top of his head.
  • Warren Beatty wanted this cartoon to be re-released in theaters preceding his live-action movie Dick Tracy (1990). Disney (who was making and distributing the film) refused.
  • When the mailman delivers Daffy's mail, one of the letters is addressed to Rod Scribner, who was one of the animators on this short.
  • This cartoon was shown in theaters with Of Human Bondage during its original release.
  • The production code might have presumed the cartoon was going to be a Merrie Melodies cartoon instead of a Looney Tunes cartoon.
  • The working title of the cartoon was "Duck Twacy".

Gallery[]

References[]

Daffy Duck Cartoons
1937 Porky's Duck Hunt
1938 Daffy Duck & EggheadWhat Price PorkyPorky & DaffyThe Daffy DocDaffy Duck in Hollywood
1939 Daffy Duck and the DinosaurScalp TroubleWise Quacks
1940 Porky's Last StandYou Ought to Be in Pictures
1941 A Coy DecoyThe Henpecked Duck
1942 Conrad the SailorDaffy's Southern ExposureThe Impatient PatientThe Daffy DuckarooMy Favorite Duck
1943 To Duck .... or Not to DuckThe Wise Quacking DuckYankee Doodle DaffyPorky Pig's FeatScrap Happy DaffyA Corny ConcertoDaffy - The Commando
1944 Tom Turk and DaffyTick Tock TuckeredDuck Soup to NutsSlightly DaffyPlane DaffyThe Stupid Cupid
1945 Draftee DaffyAin't That DuckyNasty Quacks
1946 Book RevueBaby BottleneckDaffy DoodlesHollywood DaffyThe Great Piggy Bank Robbery
1947 Birth of a NotionAlong Came DaffyA Pest in the HouseMexican Joyride
1948 What Makes Daffy DuckDaffy Duck Slept HereThe Up-Standing SitterYou Were Never DuckierDaffy DillyThe Stupor SalesmanRiff Raffy Daffy
1949 Wise QuackersHoliday for DrumsticksDaffy Duck Hunt
1950 Boobs in the WoodsThe Scarlet PumpernickelHis Bitter HalfGolden YeggsThe Ducksters
1951 Rabbit FireDrip-Along DaffyThe Prize Pest
1952 Thumb FunCracked QuackRabbit SeasoningThe Super SnooperFool Coverage
1953 Duck AmuckMuscle TussleDuck Dodgers in the 24½th CenturyDuck! Rabbit, Duck!
1954 Design for LeavingQuack ShotMy Little Duckaroo
1955 Beanstalk BunnySahara HareStork NakedThis Is a Life?Dime to Retire
1956 The High and the FlightyRocket SquadStupor DuckA Star Is BoredDeduce, You Say
1957 Ali Baba BunnyBoston QuackieDucking the DevilShow Biz Bugs
1958 Don't Axe MeRobin Hood Daffy
1959 China JonesPeople Are BunnyApes of Wrath
1960 Person to Bunny
1961 The Abominable Snow RabbitDaffy's Inn Trouble
1962 Quackodile TearsGood Noose
1963 Fast Buck DuckThe Million HareAqua Duck
1964 The Iceman Ducketh
1965 It's Nice to Have a Mouse Around the HouseMoby DuckAssault and PepperedWell Worn DaffySuppressed DuckCorn on the CopTease for TwoChili Corn CornyGo Go Amigo
1966 The AstroduckMucho LocosMexican MousepieceDaffy RentsA-Haunting We Will GoSnow ExcuseA Squeak in the DeepFeather FingerSwing Ding AmigoA Taste of Catnip
1967 Daffy's DinerQuacker TrackerThe Music Mice-TroThe Spy SwatterSpeedy Ghost to TownRodent to StardomGo Away StowawayFiesta Fiasco
1968 Skyscraper CaperSee Ya Later Gladiator
1980 The Yolks on YouThe Chocolate ChaseDaffy Flies NorthDuck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century
1987 The Duxorcist
1988 The Night of the Living Duck
1990 Box Office Bunny
1991 (Blooper) Bunny
1992 Invasion of the Bunny Snatchers
1995 Carrotblanca
1996 Superior Duck
2003 Attack of the Drones
2004 Daffy Duck for President
2012 Daffy's Rhapsody
Porky Pig Cartoons
1935 I Haven't Got a HatGold Diggers of '49
1936 Plane DippyAlpine AnticsThe Phantom ShipBoom BoomThe Blow OutWestward WhoaFish TalesShanghaied ShipmatesPorky's PetPorky the Rain-MakerPorky's Poultry PlantPorky's Moving DayMilk and MoneyLittle Beau PorkyThe Village SmithyPorky in the North WoodsBoulevardier from the Bronx
1937 Porky the WrestlerPorky's Road RacePicador PorkyPorky's RomancePorky's Duck HuntPorky and GabbyPorky's BuildingPorky's Super ServicePorky's Badtime StoryPorky's RailroadGet Rich Quick PorkyPorky's GardenRover's RivalThe Case of the Stuttering PigPorky's Double TroublePorky's Hero Agency
1938 Porky's PoppaPorky at the CrocaderoWhat Price PorkyPorky's Phoney ExpressPorky's Five & TenPorky's Hare HuntInjun TroublePorky the FiremanPorky's PartyPorky's Spring PlantingPorky & DaffyWholly SmokePorky in WackylandPorky's Naughty NephewPorky in EgyptThe Daffy DocPorky the Gob
1939 The Lone Stranger and PorkyIt's an Ill WindPorky's Tire TroublePorky's Movie MysteryChicken JittersPorky and TeabiscuitKristopher Kolumbus Jr.Polar PalsScalp TroubleOld GloryPorky's PicnicWise QuacksPorky's HotelJeepers CreepersNaughty NeighborsPied Piper PorkyPorky the Giant KillerThe Film Fan
1940 Porky's Last StandAfrica SqueaksAli-Baba BoundPilgrim PorkySlap Happy PappyPorky's Poor FishYou Ought to Be in PicturesThe Chewin' BruinPorky's Baseball BroadcastPatient PorkyCalling Dr. PorkyPrehistoric PorkyThe Sour PussPorky's Hired HandThe Timid Toreador
1941 Porky's Snooze ReelPorky's Bear FactsPorky's PreviewPorky's AntA Coy DecoyPorky's Prize PonyMeet John DoughboyWe, the Animals - Squeak!The Henpecked DuckNotes to YouRobinson Crusoe Jr.Porky's Midnight MatineePorky's Pooch
1942 Porky's Pastry PiratesWho's Who in the ZooPorky's CafeAny Bonds Today?My Favorite Duck
1943 Confusions of a Nutzy SpyYankee Doodle DaffyPorky Pig's FeatA Corny Concerto
1944 Tom Turk and DaffyTick Tock TuckeredSwooner CroonerDuck Soup to NutsSlightly DaffyBrother Brat
1945 Trap Happy PorkyWagon Heels
1946 Baby BottleneckDaffy DoodlesKitty KorneredThe Great Piggy Bank RobberyMouse Menace
1947 One Meat BrawlLittle Orphan Airedale
1948 Daffy Duck Slept HereNothing but the ToothThe Pest That Came to DinnerRiff Raffy DaffyScaredy Cat
1949 Awful OrphanPorky ChopsPaying the PiperDaffy Duck HuntCurtain RazorOften an OrphanDough for the Do-DoBye, Bye Bluebeard
1950 Boobs in the WoodsThe Scarlet PumpernickelAn Egg ScrambleGolden YeggsThe DuckstersDog Collared
1951 The Wearing of the GrinDrip-Along DaffyThe Prize Pest
1952 Thumb FunCracked QuackFool Coverage
1953 Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
1954 Claws for AlarmMy Little Duckaroo
1955 Jumpin' JupiterDime to Retire
1956 Rocket SquadDeduce, You Say
1957 Boston Quackie
1958 Robin Hood Daffy
1959 China Jones
1961 Daffy's Inn Trouble
1965 Corn on the Cop
1966 Mucho Locos
1980 Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century
1996 Superior Duck
2004 My Generation G...G... Gap
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