Release Date:

November 5, 1938

Main Character(s):

None

Summary:

On a rainy night in a travel agency, the characters on the brochures come to life. All the characters then have to team up to catch the Thief of Bagdad after he robs the Kimberly Diamond Mine.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The cartoon was given a Blue Ribbon reissue. The title song played under the opening credits:

Supervision: Frank Tashlin

Story: Dave Monahan

Animation: AC Gamer

Musical Direction: Carl W. Stalling

Unfortunately, several scenes were cut in the Blue Ribbon reissue, which included a caricature of Hugh Herbert accompanied with “Hooray for Hollywood”, a brochure of “Sunny California” accompanied with “All’s Fair in Love and War” (which was used in another cut scene), a reference to Greta Garbo’s line “I Want to be Alone”, as well as missing lyrics to the tune sung to “When the Yuba Plays the Rhumba on the Tuba”. I highly recommend taking a look at Devon Baxter’s free Patreon post that reveals all of the missing information on the cartoon, and it even includes a typed transcript for the cartoon, including the cut footage. Additionally, a print of the cartoon with the original titles along with the missing footage intact is rumored to exist at UCLA’s Film and Television Archive. Hopefully, it will be unearthed one day and when it is, I will do a special post about it.

Caricatures include Bill Robinson (on “The Steppes of Russia”) and Lawrence Tibbett (on a brochure for “Tibet”).

This is Tashlin’s last cartoon before he left the studio for a few years. He would return in 1943.

This is the first cartoon to use the late 1938-early 1941 Merrie Melodies end theme.

What I Like About This One:

The opening song to the tune of “Let the Rest of the World Go By”.

The rendition of “We’re Working Our Way Through College” over a brochure of Oxford, England with men in a rowboat.

Avalon Bay having “flying fish”- fish flying in airplanes.

A leprechaun on an Ireland brochure singing an Irish folk tune before singing “Bi Mir Bist Du Schoen”.

On a brochure for the Isle of Capri, everyone on the beach gets washed up by an ocean wave before it brings them back with them all in the same positions as they were before.

On a brochure of Russia, two Russians are struggling to pull something (with a low voice singing, “Sweat and shiver for Old Man River”) before breaking into the Russian kick dance with nonsensical lyrics sung to the tune of it (“Hey! Why be sad and weary when vodka makes you gay? Hey! Just be bright and cheery and this is while we say”).

The entire “When the Yuba Plays the Rhumba on the Tuba” segment with a tuba player from Cuba (who keeps turning different colors indicating he’s out of breath), Bombay (with bombs exploding in tune in the water), a fish imitating an Indian in the Indian Ocean, a caricature of Lawrence Tibbett (on a brochure for Tibet) singing “Oh, Havana loves this funny-looking buba, who plays the rhumba on the tuba down in Cuba”, the Rocky Mountains rocking back on forth (as if on a rocking horse), and ending with the tuba player AND his tuba panting in exhaustion.

The title tune being sung as “Food’s an Education” with two “Hungary” (hungry) boys getting food from a chef on “Cook Islands”, forks from “Twin Forks”, turkey legs from “Turkey”, sandwiches from “Sandwich Islands”, thousand island dressing from “Thousand Islands”, hamburgers from “Hamburg”, onions from “Bermuda”, chili sauce from “Chili” (instead of Chile), oysters from “Oyster Bay”, a “China” cup to fill with “Java” before setting up a picnic with the “Cape of Good Hope”.

The music that plays when the Thief of Bagdad sneaks around and steals the Florida Keys to rob the Kimberly Diamond Mine.

The thief accidentally stepping on a toy duck that quacks and wakes up a crying baby (representing “Wales”). A woman for “Central America” then radios for “Radio City”, who calls out, “Calling all countries! Calling all countries! Kimberly Diamond Mine has been robbed!” Two “sirens” (women from Tahiti) then do a Tarzan yell.

The rousing music during the chase when a detective from Scotland Yard chases the thief in an “Egyptian Sudan” (rather than “sedan”). The Leaning Tower of Pisa then falls over to cause the Thief to crash and get poked by “Western Pointers”.

A cowboy lassoing the thief and dipping him in the Red Sea (which dyes his whole body red), the Black Sea (which dyes his whole body black), and the Yellow Sea (which dyes his whole body yellow). The thief is then kicked by Italy (since it’s shaped like a boot) and a Missouri mule before getting away by hitching a ride with the Lone Ranger (with his turban, still dyed yellow, flying through the iris-out).

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕