Oh! So Spooky. Oh! So Scary.

Alice's Spooky Adventure (1924)

2010-01-29T19:31:00.000-08:00

Early Disney Alice Comedy. A combination of live action and animation. The only place I know of to get this on DVD is from Tom Stathes' Cartoons on Film.

Jeepers Creepers with Porky Pig (1939)

2009-10-18T14:59:00.000-07:00

Shiver Me Timbers (1934)

2009-08-26T08:15:00.000-07:00

This cartoon from 1934 features Popeye, Olive Oyl & Wimpy, out for a picnic when they come upon a ghost ship. This version that I present above, has been colorized. The cartoon was originally in black & white, and is contained on the DVD set, Popeye the Sailor: 1933-1938, Vol. 1. I am not a huge Popeye fan, but I am interested in vintage animation, and I am a fan of the Fleischer studios work. And I was actually able to pick up this set at a local Big Lots for $3!! I still haven't watched all the way thru it yet, but I am especially interested in the special features that are included.

Swing You Sinners (1930)

2009-08-24T13:13:00.000-07:00

One of my favorites, from Fleischer Studios. Not available on DVD, as far as I know.

The Cuckoo Murder Case (1930)

2009-07-02T08:08:00.000-07:00

A Flip the Frog cartoon for you today. Another great cartoon from the DVD 'Cartoons that Time Forgot Vol:2, Ub Iwerks Collection'. There are a lot of great cartoons on this disc. Not all of them spooky, but it actually has a section on it entitled 'Things that go Bump in the Night'. You will see that in the youtube clip, as it has been taken from this collection.

Magic Mummy (1933)

2009-06-29T10:09:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorites. It features two great little songs. Neither are very spooky, but are very catchy. While I'm pretty sure this film is public domain, I had some trouble trying to find a DVD collection this cartoon is included on. My copy of this came on a $1 double feature movie DVD I bought at Target a few years back at Halloween. This great little short was an intermission feature between 'Dementia 13' & 'Tormented'.

Skeleton Frolic (1937)

2009-06-27T07:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a great color "re-imagining" of 'Skeleton Dance'. This was also directed by Ub Iwerks, who directed 'Skeleton Dance' back in 1929. The background paintings in this are very rich & beautiful. If you're interested in looking at a good side by side comparison of both skeleton cartoons, let me direct you to 'classic cartoons' blog http://classiccartoons.blogspot.com/2006/04/skeleton-frolic.html
This great little cartoon was an included DVD extra on one of my favorite movies, 'The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra'. A fantastic movie shot in the style of an old 50's B-movie. When this film was shown at screenings & festivals, 'Skeleton Frolic' ran before the feature.

Hell's Bells (1929)

2009-06-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

Ub Iwerks give us the early Disney treatment of what Hell might be like. Some fun little devils running around in this one.
This short is included on the More Silly Symphonies DVD set. Although it is out of print, there are copies to be found around at a reasonable price. I finally got around to ordering this set last week and it should be here any day now.

The Skeleton Dance (1929) – Classic!

2009-06-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

Most everyone knows this little cartoon. This is the cartoon that put me on a path to seek out other cartoons with similar themes. I thought that 'If this exists, there must be more out there like it' right?

I wish that Disney would make a collector's DVD of all their early 'spooky' shorts. For me it would be a dream. In the past they have released VHS tapes of this type of collected material. Back in the 90's, I bought two Walt Disney Cartoon Classics tapes. The first being Halloween Haunts, which contains Trick or Treat (1952), Pluto's Judgement Day (1935) and Lonesome Ghosts (1937). And the second, Donald's Scary Tales contains Donald Duck & the Gorilla (1944), Duck Pimples (1945), and Donald's Lucky Day (1939). I really love the Halloween Haunts tape. The Donald tape is good, but it doesn't do much for me on the 'spooky' level. There was a video tape released in the 80's called Walt Disney Cartoon Classics SCARY TALES. This tape contained all three of the shorts that are on Donald's Scary Tales, along with Pluto's Judgement Day, The Skeleton Dance (1929) and Haunted House (a Mickey Mouse cartoon from 1929).
Now, if we could just combine all of these along with a few other choice shorts and get that out on DVD, I would be very pleased indeed. It will never happen. A DVD version of what I'm talking about might roll out at some point, but it won't ever be my complete ideal list. Sigh.

I miss VHS only because I could make me own 'mixed tape'. I haven't figured out how to do that with DVD yet.

Skeleton Dance is available on Walt Disney Treasures Silly Symphonies. This was the first of two Silly Symphonies collections. Both sets are now out of print, but the second one is still kind of easy to find at a decent price. This first collection however, I have seen selling for upwards $70. If you find it for under $35 I would consider that a great deal.

The Cat's Out (1931)

2009-06-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

I adopted a kitten from an animal shelter this weekend and one of the conditions of adoption is 'must be an indoor cat only'.
Along with little kitty's paperwork was a list of reasons why you shouldn't let your cat outside. Now, this cartoon will show additional reasons why your cat should remain indoors. This cartoon is also known as 'A Cat's Nightmare'.
This cartoon is available on the Disney Treasures: More Silly Symphonies. This set is out of print, so I recommend picking it up as soon as you can, while it's still at a reasonable price.

Scrappy's Ghost Story (1935)

2009-06-16T06:51:00.000-07:00

I haven't been keeping up with this because I've been too busy working on my art stuff. Here's another little gem, Scrappy's Ghost Story from 1935. If you are lucky enough to own a copy of Halloween Stomp (one of the greatest Halloween Records, in my opinion) you will probably recognize some of the samples that were taken from this cartoon.
This is not available on an official DVD release, as far as I know.

2009-03-08T12:29:00.000-07:00

Spooky fun from 1934.

2008-09-29T10:58:00.000-07:00

Felix the Cat in Felix the Ghost Breaker (1923)

This film is public domain and can be downloaded here:
http://www.archive.org/details/FelixTheCat-FelixTheGhostBreaker1923

2008-06-30T06:27:00.000-07:00

SKELETON RAG (1912) – Premier Quartet/American Quartet with Billy Murray

Find it here.
http://www.archive.org/details/PremierQuartetAmericanQuartetwithBillyMurray

Flip the Frog in Spooks (1932)

2008-06-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

This is available on the DVD, 'Cartoons That Time Forgot – The Ub Iwerks Collection, Vol. 2'.

I got my copy from Amazon.com.

Halloween Classics – Songs that Scared the Bloomers off Your Great-Grandma

2008-06-18T05:08:00.000-07:00

Available from itunes and Amazon.com for download.

1. Hush, Hush, Hush (Here Comes the Boogie Man) (Album Version) Henry Hall

2. It Must Be Swell (Remastered 2003) Alex Bartha & his Hotel Traymore Orchestra

3. Mr. Ghost Goes to Town (Album Version) The Five Jones Boys

4. Taint No Sin (To Take Off Your Skin) (Album Version) Fred Hall

5. Ghost In The Graveyard (Album Version) Prairie Ramblers

6. Ol' Man Mose (78 rpm Version) Wingy Mannone & His Orchestra

7. The Ghost of Smokey Joe (Album Version) Cab Calloway

8. The Skeleton In The Closet (Album Version) Putney Dandridge

9. The Ghost Walk (Album Version) Borrah Minevitch & The Harmonica Rascals

10. The Boogie Man (Album Version) Todd Rollins & his Orchestra with Chick Bullock

11. Hell's Bells (Album Version) Art Kassel & his Orchestra

12. Mysterious Mose ( Album Version) Rube Bloom

13. Minnie the Moocher at the Morgue (Album Version) Smiley Burnette

14. With Her Head Tucked Underneath Her Arm (Album Version) Rudy Vallee & his Connecticut Yankees

Uncle Josh in a Spooky Hotel

2008-06-17T10:40:00.000-07:00