Release Date:

July 17, 1943

Main Character(s):

Daffy Duck, Porky Pig

Summary:

Porky Pig and Daffy Duck attempt to escape the Broken Arms Hotel when they are unable to pay their hotel bill due to Daffy losing all their money by gambling with the elevator operator, but the persistent manager is always one step ahead of them.

That’s Not All, Folks:

This is Tashlin’s first cartoon upon his return to Warner Bros. after having spent four and a half years working at Disney and Columbia/Screen Gems. This is also the first of five Daffy cartoons directed by him (all of which are absolutely superb).

This is Porky’s final appearance in a black and white cartoon (and counting his cameo at the end, Bugs’ only appearance in a black and white cartoon).

This is the very first Warner Bros. cartoon where the production number was used onscreen underneath the shield. Every cartoon from this point onward up until the original studio’s closure in 1964 would have their production numbers shown in the opening titles.

This cartoon’s production number is 11-13, meaning that in production order this is the 11th Looney Tune in the 13th release season.

This is the first cartoon to have animation by future director Arthur Davis.

The cartoon is in the 100 Greatest Looney Tunes Cartoons book.

This is the first usage of “Powerhouse”, which was the Raymond Scott tune that was used the most in Warner cartoons. In this case, it plays during the scene where the manager tries to break down the door just before he falls down the stairs. "The Penguin” also plays during the first time Daffy and Porky try to leave the room, while a soundalike of “Twilight in Turkey” plays when the manager falls down the stairs.

Interestingly, when Daffy and Porky consider calling Bugs Bunny for advice in the end, Daffy claims to be an admirer of Bugs (“Yeah, Bugs Bunny! My hero! He can get out of any spot!”). Starting in the 1950’s when they were first officially paired up, Daffy becomes a jealous rival to Bugs when he moves out of his “daffy” phase and into his “despicable” phase.

What I Like About This One:

The opening title card: “Any similarity between this hotel and hotels- living or dead is purely co-incidental”.

The bill charges some rather ridiculous items which include: “Bath (with hot and dirty running water)”, “One Louis XVI Bed (without Louie)”, “Air (for breathing)”, “Sunshine (2 Days)”, “Goodwill”, and “Extra Goodwill”.

The elevator operator’s comment on Daffy’s loss: “Uh oh. Snake eyes. Too bad. You is a dead duck- duck!” In addition, Phil Monroe’s animation of Daffy walking slowly and dejectedly back to the room to the tune of “Blues in the Night” is also a hoot.

Hearing Porky reassure the manager that Daffy will be back with the money, Daffy heavily sweats before barging into the room (animated by Ray Patin up to here), and pushing his face far into the manager’s while ranting: “Insulting my integrity, eh, fatso!? Insinuating I’d flee this flea-bitten dump, eh, fatso!? Intimating I’d abscond with your financial remunerations, eh, fatso!?” Seeing how far he’s pushed the manager’s face in, Daffy comments, “Hey, look, a Dick Tracy character- Prune Face!” (animated by Arthur Davis)

Insulted and declaring they will “meet on the field of honor!” (animated by Patin), the manager slaps Daffy with his glove with the slap mark being briefly visible (animated by Monroe). He then makes the mistake of handing Daffy his card, to which Daffy turns it into a paper cutout via a hole puncher while saying: “You’ve had your coffee ration for this week, Robespierre!” Daffy then declares they will “meet on the field of onion!” and slaps the manager with a glove after putting a horseshoe in it. Daffy then presents his card- a piece of flypaper that he plasters over the manager’s face (animated by Izzy Ellis).

Daffy then carries off all their suitcases with Porky on top and making it to the elevator. As soon as they get to the bottom however, they go back up so fast that it breaks the clock showing which floor the elevator is on. In time to a drum roll march, Porky and Daffy are backed into their room by the manager who insists, “And you don’t get out until you pay up!” before taking his monocle out of the stickiness of the flypaper (animated by Cal Dalton).

Presenting his other “card”, Daffy pulls the flypaper off the manager’s face (animated by Ellis), and after failing to open the door, the manager tears off a piece of the railing to use as a battering ram, only for Daffy to pull the rug out from under him (animated by Dalton). This results in the manager falling down the spiral staircase and shouting noises of pain all the way down (animated by Patin).

Daffy whispering to Porky, “I guess I showed that overstuffed turnip!” only for the manager to suddenly appear next to them and shout “WHAT!?” Daffy quietly says, “Yipe” and Porky agrees: “Me too. Yipe” before going back into their room (animated by Dalton) and pulling out the rug from under the manager again. This time, the manager steps off the rug and imitates the pained noises to lure Daffy and Porky into a false sense of security. Realizing they’ve been tricked once they step out, Porky moves Daffy’s head in the direction of the manager’s (animated by Monroe).

After a chase through several doors (animated by Patin), the manager slams smack into Daffy and Porky’s door. Attempting to open it, he opens up one door after another. After opening several doors, he is greeted by a sign saying, “Monotonous, isn’t it?” (animated by Davis)

Using the sheets, Daffy and Porky tie them like a rope to climb out of the window and down to the street (animated by Patin). Daffy gets distracted by a sexy pin-up in someone else’s room and wolf-whistles at it (animated by Ellis). Once Porky makes it to the ground, the manager sneaks under the sewer and gives him a hot-foot, causing Porky to shoot up like an arrow (animated by Patin). Poking Daffy in the behind, Daffy is sent upward too, but again stops to whistle at the pin-up (animated by Ellis).

Porky and Daffy’s attempt to swing across to the building on the other side (animated by Davis) being foiled by the manager who swings them back and boards up their window to ensure they can’t escape that way (animated by Patin).

Months pass, and by winter time, Daffy and Porky are still in their room, complete with balls and chains. Clearly being impressed by Bugs Bunny’s ability to “get out of any spot”, they describe him outsmarting a hunter in a “Leon Schlesinger cartoon” and decide to call him for advice (up to here, Ellis animated all shots of Daffy with Davis animating all shots of Porky). Bugs asks Daffy about everything they’ve tried, to which he lists everything they actually did (animated by Ellis). Confirming they’ve tried all those ways, the room next door opens revealing Bugs too is held captive with a ball and chain, but he’s shown to rather accept this. “Ah, don’t work do they?”, he asks Daffy and Porky (animated by Monroe)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕