Release Date:

February 26, 1955

Main Character(s):

Daffy Duck, Drunk Stork

Summary:

Having gotten drunk from proud parents giving him several toasts for their delivered babies, the Drunk Stork attempts to deliver an unhatched egg to Daffy Duck and his wife, Daphne. Daffy, however, doesn’t want a baby and proceeds to keep the Drunk Stork out.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The production number is 1326 and was released as a Merrie Melodie.

This is notably the most “despicable” Daffy has been at this point where he is outright selfish and willing to kill others himself (he was willing to have Bugs killed in the Hunting Trilogy, but he wasn’t intending to shoot Bugs himself). This same persona would be used again in “Show Biz Bugs” (1957), and “The Iceman Ducketh” (1964), and in a good majority of the cartoons in the mid-to-late 1960’s when he was the nemesis of Speedy Gonzales (with “Assault and Peppered”, “Well Worn Daffy”, and “Snow Excuse” being the most notable examples).

The title is a pun for “stark naked”. This is easily the boldest title ever used in a Warner cartoon (and maybe even Golden Age cartoons, in general) and it makes one feel very surprised that Freleng and Warren Foster got away with a title like that. Fortunately, there is no nudity present (that’s because it is rightfully considered a no-no by the censors).

The cartoon was restored for the Looney Tunes Super Stars Daffy Duck Frustrated Fowl DVD set in 2010 but was cropped to widescreen. The corrected full frame version was seen online in the late 2010’s, and was later put on the Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice Volume 4 Blu-ray set in 2024.

This is the only time the Drunk Stork appears sober, which is only at the start of the cartoon. His sober voice is also Mel Blanc’s regular voice.

The first couple that the Drunk Stork delivers a newborn to is named Mr. and Mrs. Pierce. This is a reference to Tedd Pierce.

A painting of a barn signed by “Harry Love” (referring to the effects animator of the same name) can be seen in the background when Daffy begins pushing the Drunk Stork out the door and when Daffy catches the egg (after its legs have hatched out) near the end.

Daffy’s booby traps could be seen as a precursor to the ones in “Home Alone” (1990), albeit these traps backfire.

Daffy also pronounces “guillotine” with the “U” silent and with the “L”’s sounded out.

Favorite Scene:

The Drunk Stork attempts to break the door down only for Daffy to open the front door, causing the Drunk Stork to run all the way to the back door which has an elastic band in the doorway. The Drunk Stork hangs onto a telephone pole which gets Daffy impatient. He goes to see what’s keeping him just as the Drunk Stork lets go and flies back into Daffy, who futilely attempts to shield himself with a garbage can lid.

What Happens in This One:

Flying along sober, the Drunk Stork is annoyed with the amount of babies he has to deliver, “Whew! What a load. Used to be one baby at a time. Now, it’s a bunch of ‘em every trip. Production’s at an all-time high. Huh. Just not enough storks to keep up with them, I guess” (animated by Arthur Davis).

At an apartment building, the Drunk Stork delivers a newborn to Mr. and Mrs. Pierce at “Apartment B”. Mr. Pierce is delighted at who’s at the door, “Hey, Wanda. It’s the stork! Come right in”. After he does, the Drunk Stork is offered by Mr. Pierce, “How about a toast to the new baby?” The Drunk Stork agrees, “Don’t mind if I do”, to which Mr. Pierce says, “Say when!” After the Drunk Stork is heard drinking the champagne he’s given, Mr. Pierce comments on his state, “Uh….. when”, putting emphasis on the latter word. Slightly tipsy, the Drunk Stork staggers out, “One thing about this job, (hiccup), everyone’s always glad to see the stork”. In Paris, he is offered “champagne Vintage 28” by a French man whose wife’s name is Yvonne. The Drunk Stork decides, “Well, since it’s Vintage 28, maybe just one” (animated by Virgil Ross up to here). At an Indian’s tepee, the Indian inside is also pleased, “Big feather bird bring-um papoose! Make-um big toast with fire water!” Now completely plastered, the Drunk Stork staggers out of the tepee to look into his bag, “Well, (chuckles), let’s see now. What have we got left?” All he finds is “Well! An egg! Oh. This’ll be a cinch to deliver!” He begins to fly away to deliver it while hiccuping (animated by Davis).

At Daffy’s place, Daphne is knitting a small pink sweater in the living room before Daffy walks in wearing slippers and smoking a pipe. “Good morning, Daphne, old girl!” He then takes notice of what she’s knitting, “What’s this? Knitting a sweater? Well, very thoughtful of you”. Daphne attempts to explain, “But-but-but, Daffy, i-it’s not-it’s not-”, but it proves to be futile as Daffy puts it on, getting it stuck around his neck and trapping both of his arms in place. With the tiny sweater choking him, Daffy asks hoarsely, “Don’t you think this might be a size or so too small?” Daphne then tells him what she was trying to say, “But, Daffy, that sweater’s not for you. I’m making it for the little visitor that’s coming”. Initially questioning, “Visitor?”, Daffy immediately realizes she’s talking about a new baby and becomes angry, “Oh! It’s that stork again! I’ll give that stork a reception he won’t forget!” (animated by Ross)

With the top of the house now lined up with artillery, Daffy looks over his checklist, “Now, let’s see, uh, I think I’ve taken care of everything. There’s the bear trap hidden in the bushes. Uh, the trampoline’s in the fireplace. The guillotine’s in place. And the alligators are in the basement”, with the basement also being filled with water for the gators to be in. Sitting at his radar, Daffy vows, “That stork will never break through THIS little black duck’s defenses!” The Drunk Stork then suddenly staggers past from behind him slurring, “Neither snow nor rain nor sleet nor slush stays us couriers from our appointed rounds”, which causes Daffy to jump off of his seat and yell, “Hey, buster! We don’t want any! Take it back!” (animated by Davis)

The Drunk Stork jumps into the chimney but bounces back up from the trampoline in the fireplace. Daffy attempts to hit him with a club, but misses, causing him to fall into the chimney and bounce back out from falling on the trampoline and landing on the ground offscreen back-first (animated by Davis).

“Oh, lucky (hiccup). Not a crack”, the Drunk Stork observes, referring to the egg. Daffy comes to and runs into the house, slamming the door on the Drunk Stork. He takes a mat covering up a trap door leading down to the basement and then takes the door off, causing the alligators to start roaring aggressively and attempt to get up at him. Daffy keeps them down with an umbrella, “Down, down, down, down, Snapper! Down, Blitzen! Down, Prancer! Down, boy!” The alligators then tear the umbrella to shreds, much to Daffy’s disbelief before he tosses it down in annoyance and covers the trap door back up with the mat. Daffy opens the door, only for the Drunk Stork to walk around the trap door as he enters, “Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Duck. I brought you glad tidings”. Daffy starts pushing him out, “Out! Out you go!” and repeats “Out!” several times, only for him to fall into the basement instead. Daffy comes out of the basement door with most of his feathers missing and struggling to keep the alligators back before managing to shut the door while panting heavily (animated by Davis).

Walking past the windows, the Drunk Stork slurs, “Through rain and sleet and slush and…”, but upon opening one of the windows, nearly gets shot by Daffy holding a rifle. He goes into the other window before his body is revealed to be sticking out of the barrel of a large cannon emerging from said window, which then blasts him into the distance. Although charred and missing a few feathers, the Drunk Stork is pleased to see the egg still intact and lands safely by flapping his right arm, the one not holding the egg in a sling (animated by Ross).

Daffy nails an elastic band to the exterior doorway of the back door and runs back in to go the front door. After banging on said front door, the Drunk Stork demands, “Open up!” before failing to break it down two times. He again slurs, “Through rain and sleet and snow…”, before running back a good distance and then running towards it to break it down with force. Daffy opens the door, causing the Drunk Stork to run all the way to the back door with the elastic band. The Drunk Stork is then seen holding onto a telephone pole for support. Getting impatient, Daffy goes to the back door to see what’s going on as he exclaims, “What in the Sam Hill is keeping that darn stork!?” At this moment, the Drunk Stork and most of the pole fly backward towards Daffy as the elastic band lets him and the pole go. Daffy attempts to shield himself with a garbage can lid but the impact of the Drunk Stork and the pole crashing into him cause him to fly out the front door, leaving a Daffy-shaped hole (animated by Manuel Perez).

The Drunk Stork then attempts to enter the basement from the outside, only to be confronted by the aggressive alligators in there. Quickly shutting the door, he exclaims, “Crocod- (hiccup), crocodi-, (hiccup) alligators!” Daffy then runs into view, armed with an ax, as he shouts, “Beat it, stork! Scram!” He pursues the Drunk Stork up another telephone pole. Once the Drunk Stork starts walking across the wire, Daffy chops at said wire with his ax, only for the pole he’s standing on to give way instead, causing him to fall into the open door of the basement. Keeping the alligators back with a club, a mostly featherless Daffy makes his way out of the basement, “Down! Down! Get down! Down, boy!” (animated by Davis)

The Drunk Stork sees the egg shaking and then two tiny bird-like legs popping out of it, “(Hiccup) It’s hatching!” He brings it up to the front door before running off, knocking on it quickly, and then running away again. Daffy answers with a blast of his rifle and is confused to not find the Drunk Stork anywhere. He then notices the egg running in and goes after it (animated by Ross). The egg runs through the doorway, but when Daffy runs through it, the guillotine blade falls from behind him, shaving the feathers off of his back, “The guillotine! I forgot about that silly thing!” He manages to catch the egg, “Gotcha!”, before noticing, “Well, sasparilla! I't’s hatching!” The egg hatches into a baby stork that wears a hat exactly like the one the Drunk Stork wears. He asks Daffy, “Hewwo. You my daddy?” Daffy then gets a somewhat devious idea. The last shot reveals a chuckling Daffy acting like a stork and flying with the baby stork in a sack of Daffy’s own, “For once, that stork’s gonna get a dose of his own medicine!” (animated by Davis)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕