"Lady, Play Your Mandolin!" Merrie Melodies (Foxy title) Released: August 1931 Length: 7:06 Starring: Foxy and Roxy

Credits:

Supervision by - Rudolf Ising
Drawn by - Rollin Hamilton, Norm Blackburn
Musical Score and Direction by - Frank Marsales
With Abe Lyman and his Brunswick Recording Orchestra

Summary:

Foxy visits a saloon.

Description:

Customers in a south-of-the-border saloon are whooping it up and singing the title tune, while an ape waiter is serving everyone liquor. Meanwhile Foxy is riding along on his horse while whistling the title tune. He arrives outside at the saloon (the sign outside reads "Café"), and his horse gets up and begins dancing to the music. Foxy ties the horse's head around a cactus, enters the saloon and yells "Hola!". He walks through the saloon singing "I Am a Gay Caballero". He gives his hat to a walking coat rack, then sits down for a beer. When Foxy gives the ape waiter a tip, the ape pulls his mouth out of his head like a cash register and drops the coin in. When Roxy appears on stage Foxy yells out "Oh, lady! Play your mandolin". "Oh baby, hear my song of sin," replies Roxy, who begins singing the song -- "Lady play your mandolin / Lady let that tune begin / When you sing that song of sin I'm a sinner too". Foxy, a hippo, and a mouse repeat "I'm a sinner too!". Outside the saloon, Foxy's horse unties itself and pokes its head through the doors, singing. Foxy appears and bashes the horse over the head with a bottle, which then starts to play its own head and neck like a trombone. Back inside, Foxy begins singing the title tune like Al Jolson. A dog customer has a mouse playing music with his hat, then has his beard dance, and then has his teeth extend out of his mouth and chatter. Foxy's horse enters the saloon dazed, then strolls through while drinking. He spits fire, then looks into a mirror and starts seeing monsters. He screams and begins running around the saloon until he spontaneously combusts. Foxy, the hippo and the waiter gather around the ashen horse and shout "Play your mandolin!"

Notes:

• This is Warner Bros. first Merrie Melodies cartoon. The Merrie Melodies series replaced WB's "Spooney Melodies" series of live-action shorts.

• The only difference between Foxy and Mickey Mouse is the pointy ears and bushy tail.

• The female fox was first called "Roxy" in the Tiny Toon Adventures episode "Two-Tone Town".

Memorable Scenes:

NOTE: Due to the poor quality of my copy of this cartoon, the available shot selection and picture resolution for these screen shots was severely limited.

		Click on images to make them larger

Video Availability:

None