Search/Recent Changes
DBTropes
...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!

Screwball Squirrel (1944)

 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
type
TVTItem
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
label
Screwball Squirrel (1944)
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
page
ScrewballSquirrel1944
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
comment
Screwball Squirrel is a 1944 animated short film (6 1/2 minutes) directed by Tex Avery, one of the Tex Avery MGM Cartoons.It introduces the character of Screwy Squirrel, who appears in only five cartoons. It actually starts with a deliberately-saccharine Disney-style forest scene showing a chipper, cutesy little squirrel named Sammy collecting acorns accompanied by the whimsical sound of a musical triangle. He is soon pushed aside, however, by Screwy Squirrel, who, apparently with nothing better to do, beats Sammy to a pulp and subsequently taunts a slow-witted bird dog named Meathead Dog into chasing him. The rest of the cartoon is an utterly insane chase, even for Tex Avery, in which Screwy continually gets the best of the poor dog.Despite being an iconic character, Screwy appeared in only five cartoons, possibly because he was just too mean.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
fetched
2023-08-25T08:14:42Z
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
parsed
2023-08-25T08:14:42Z
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
isPartOf
DBTropes
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26b2747
type
Alliterative Title
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26b2747
comment
Alliterative Title: "Screwball Squirrel". The character is also sometimes called "Screwball Squirrel" instead of Screwy.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26b2747
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26b2747
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26b2747
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26bc3413
type
EfficientDisplacement
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26bc3413
comment
Efficient Displacement: One scene has Meathead Dog crashing into a tree and leaving a bend on the tree shaped just like his head.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26bc3413
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26bc3413
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_26bc3413
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_28d27987
type
Screwball Squirrel
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_28d27987
comment
Screwball Squirrel: This short is the Trope Namer. Screwy is an especially sociopathic example. Meathead Dog doesn't even want to chase Screwy—he's a bird dog! But Screwy taunts him into a chase, and then inflicts all sorts of punishment, from hammering Meathead into the ground to whacking him in the head with a bat to ripping his face off with flypaper, to eventually having Meathead run over by an oncoming train. This is Comedic Sociopathy that even Jerry wouldn't go for. Averted with Sammy, who's a nice, innocent squirrel (whom Screwy almost instantly beats up).
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_28d27987
featureApplicability
-1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_28d27987
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_28d27987
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_3b4f620a
type
No Fourth Wall
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_3b4f620a
comment
No Fourth Wall: Screwy addresses the audience repeatedly.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_3b4f620a
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_3b4f620a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_3b4f620a
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_50f17484
type
Fake-Out Opening
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_50f17484
comment
Fake-Out Opening: Starts out with a very cutely-drawn squirrel skipping through the forest and singing a song. Then, just when you think it's going to be a Disney-style cute and cuddly cartoon, Screwy jumps in and the whole thing goes sideways.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_50f17484
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_50f17484
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_50f17484
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_5619ea34
type
Blowing a Raspberry
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_5619ea34
comment
Blowing a Raspberry: Screwy does this over the phone when trying to get Meathead angry enough to chase him. It works.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_5619ea34
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_5619ea34
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_5619ea34
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_70cde27a
type
Disneyesque
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_70cde27a
comment
Disneyesque: The opening sequence isn't just cute and cuddly, it's Walt Disney's version of cute and cuddly, with a big-eyed happy squirrel named Sammy who's drawn to strongly resemble Thumper from Bambi.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_70cde27a
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_70cde27a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_70cde27a
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_745bb9ab
type
Green Around the Gills
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_745bb9ab
comment
Green Around the Gills: At one point Meathead chases Screwy to the beach and on to a wrecked ship. Screwy draws a picture of waves on a piece of paper, holds it outside a window, and moves it around. Sure enough Meathead gets sick and his whole body turns green. Right after this Screwy laughs at his cleverness as he bobs the picture around—until he makes himself turn green and rush off camera to vomit.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_745bb9ab
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_745bb9ab
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_745bb9ab
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7df17d74
type
Dogs Hate Squirrels
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7df17d74
comment
Dogs Hate Squirrels: Meathead Dog is initially an aversion, claiming he's a "bird dog" who never chases squirrels, but Screwy provokes him until he becomes a straight example.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7df17d74
featureApplicability
-1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7df17d74
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7df17d74
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7fede331
type
Card-Carrying Jerkass
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7fede331
comment
Card-Carrying Jerkass: Screwy is a cross between this trope and the Screwball Squirrel trope named after him. The five shorts he starred in saw him happily tormenting a slow-witted bird dog to such an extent that he's remembered partly for being one of the meanest cartoon characters of all time.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7fede331
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7fede331
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_7fede331
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_8797239c
type
Bait-and-Switch
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_8797239c
comment
Bait-and-Switch: Screwy is insulting Meatball over the phone and is about to curse him out when he apologizes to the audience and closes the phone booth door so they won't hear what he's about to say. Instead of seeing him hurl obscenities as was implied, we see Screwy blow a raspberry into the phone.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_8797239c
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_8797239c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_8797239c
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_884e513b
type
Medium Awareness
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_884e513b
comment
Medium Awareness: Screwy first appears in the cartoon by greeting Sammy with an insolent question: "What kind of cartoon is this going to be anyway?" Later, he wonders what the next gag is supposed to be, so he lifts the corner of the cartoon to find himself under a tree. Screwy then takes his place under the tree and performs the next scene. At the end, Sammy returns and says "My cartoon would have been cuter."
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_884e513b
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_884e513b
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_884e513b
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_a18042f1
type
Left the Background Music On
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_a18042f1
comment
Left the Background Music On: Along with the Broken Record gag above, Screwy is seen doing all the sound effects for Meatball rolling inside a barrel and crashing.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_a18042f1
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_a18042f1
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_a18042f1
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_b97ac034
type
The Not Catch
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_b97ac034
comment
The Not Catch: Played straight and then played with—the first time Screwy pretends to be catching Meathead Dog and pulls away the net at the last second. ("Too bad. Juuuust missed him! Hahahahahahaha!"). The second time, Screwy gets so caught up in pretending to catch the dog that he actually falls off a cliff himself, and Meathead (somehow) catches him. Screwy thanks him with a dozen blows to the head.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_b97ac034
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_b97ac034
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_b97ac034
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_c75df49a
type
Shout-Out
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_c75df49a
comment
Shout-Out: Among all the cute friends that Sammy says he's going to have fun times in the forest with is Barney Bear, star of his own series of MGM cartoons.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_c75df49a
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_c75df49a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_c75df49a
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ca72702e
type
Hammered into the Ground
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ca72702e
comment
Hammered into the Ground: Screwy takes his bat and hammers Meathead into the ground like a spike—and this after Meathead saved his life by catching him with the net!
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ca72702e
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ca72702e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ca72702e
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_cc5c18b6
type
Iris Out
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_cc5c18b6
comment
Iris Out: Played for a gag. Meathead begs for mercy, asking for the cartoon to be over. The Iris Out starts but Screwy grabs it, pulls it back open, and then tempts Meathead into one last challenge. Meathead is then run over by a train.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_cc5c18b6
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_cc5c18b6
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_cc5c18b6
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_d71073b5
type
Subverted Kids' Show
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_d71073b5
comment
Subverted Kids' Show: We see a lovely forest scene and a cute squirrel picking up acorns. Then Screwy Squirrel appears and asks him what kind of picture this is going to be? The squirrel says it will be about him and his "cute, furry friends in the forest", whereupon Screwy groans "Oh, brother, not that!" and takes him behind a tree where he beats him up.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_d71073b5
featureApplicability
-0.3
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_d71073b5
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_d71073b5
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_e085feeb
type
Broken Record
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_e085feeb
comment
Broken Record: At one point when Meathead is chasing Screwy the animation frames and music repeat over and over until Screwy moves the needle on the record.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_e085feeb
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_e085feeb
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_e085feeb
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ed23decc
type
Big Ball of Violence
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ed23decc
comment
Big Ball of Violence: At the end Screwy, Meathead, and their twins attack Sammy Squirrel for interrupting the cartoon.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ed23decc
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ed23decc
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_ed23decc
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_f44ad3e1
type
Twin Switch
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_f44ad3e1
comment
Twin Switch: At the end, Screwy reveals that he has a twin he used to fool Meatball. Then Meatball shows up with his twin to catch them both.
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_f44ad3e1
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_f44ad3e1
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_f44ad3e1
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
type
ItemName
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
comment
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
featureApplicability
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
featureConfidence
1.0
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
 Screwball Squirrel (1944) / int_name
itemName
Screwball Squirrel (1944)

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Hammered into the Ground / int_f9db1308
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Vibrant Orange / int_f9db1308
 Screwball Squirrel (1944)
hasFeature
Woodland Creatures / int_f9db1308