The "How to..." Goofy Cartoons
The late 1930s was both a promising and confusing time for Disney's cartoon character, Goofy. On the one hand, he had become one of their most recognizable supporting characters in the Mickey Mouse cartoons, and was now being prepared to star in his own cartoon series. The problem was that he no longer had a voice.
OK, let me explain. The original voice of Goofy was Pinto Colvig. Colvig was a story man for the Disney Studios who had many talents, which included doing unique voices. Unfortunately, he and Disney are rumored to have had a falling out during this period which resulted in Colvig's departure from the studio. He ended up moving to Florida to work at Max Fleischer's studio, so even if they could convince him to work freelance, he was not readily available to record dialogue.
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| Goofy and Wilbur (1939) |
As I've previously hinted, Colvig's departure came at the worst possible time, since Goofy was being prepared for his own series. The first cartoon in his new series was more along the lines of a standard Disney cartoon at that time, Goofy and Wilbur. In this cartoon, Goofy goes fishing and uses his friend Wilbur, a grasshopper, as bait. It’s a somewhat funny cartoon with emphasis on gags involving nature and non-anthropomorphized animals. It also features an imitator (possibly George Johnson or Danny Webb) voicing Goofy, and it’s pretty obvious too, given the amount of dialogue.
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| Goofy's Glider (1940) |
A new approach was taken with the next cartoon in the series, Goofy's Glider. In this cartoon, Goofy tries to learn how to fly with the help of an unseen narrator, voiced by John McLeish. The idea of this cartoon is that the narrator would explain a method, and Goofy would continue trying these methods, only for each method to backfire. According to Frank Tashlin in an interview with Michael Barrier, the idea for these types of cartoons came from Ralph Wright, a new story man at the time who would later become best known for being the voice of Eeyore in Disney’s Winnie the Pooh shorts. It was an idea that would become the basis for many different series, including the Road Runner cartoons over at Warner Bros., but in this context it was especially important because it stressed the visual aspect of the cartoon. The most extensive dialogue came from McLeish and though there was some dialogue from a Goofy imitator in this cartoon, they also were able to recycle some Colvig dialogue as well. This soon became the basis of the Goofy cartoon series, especially with regards to the "How to..." subseries, which is the focus of this article. Today I’ll be discussing all the cartoons with this label, including the two "The Art of..." films. There’s a lot to cover, so let’s get on with it.
How to Ride a Horse (1941)
This cartoon was originally shown as part of the live-action behind the scenes movie, The Reluctant Dragon. In the cartoon, Goofy attempts to demonstrate the proper ideas when it comes to riding a horse, but the horse is in a mischievous mood and makes things difficult for him, ranging from tripping him to throwing him off. There's an especially fun gag involving the narrator attempting to explain the difference between the "right" and "wrong" way to get on to the horse, but he rambles on so much that both Goofy and the horse show visible boredom over his rambling.
From the beginning, it's clear that they had finally figured out a way around the whole voice problem, because Goofy does not talk at all here. It's not as though it's obvious they're avoiding the voice issue, though. The whole silent approach does feel very natural, since Goofy is basically demonstrating a visual concept. Overall, it's a fun cartoon, and a good preview of what was to come.
The Art of Skiing (1941)
This time, Goofy attempts to teach the proper methods for skiing, with the expected disastrous results. I especially love the end of this cartoon. Goofy flying through the air has a very thrilling aspect to it that makes what I think is a pretty effective climax. Once again, the comedy is stressed through the visuals, ranging from Goofy struggling to getting the proper attire on to him falling off a cliff.
Another major milestone in Goofy’s career debuted with this short. As part of this cartoon, they recorded the yodels of an actual ski racer named Hannes Schroll. A couple of these sounds were given directly to Goofy during his attempts to ski, and later got a life of their own as the "Goofy holler." Disney used the sounds in other animated films, but they have since been associated specifically with Goofy.
The Art of Self Defense (1941)
Goofy demonstrates how to fight in this short, with a shadow (get it? "Shadow boxing") beating him up. While this part of the short is funny, the best part of the this short for me is at the beginning when it’s showing the history of fighting throughout the years, via the use of multiple Goofys. This would also become a regular feature of the series and I absolutely love the idea, because then you’re not restricted in what can be done with the character. They don't have to worry about keeping him in character, because...well, there's multiple versions of him, all of which are similar but can still work with slightly different character traits.
How to Play Baseball (1942)
I've always been so fascinated by baseball comedies like Baseball Bugs or Buster Keaton’s One Run Elmer, and this short does not disappoint. The idea of multiple Goofys is taken to a much more extreme level here. Both teams are taken up entirely by Goofys, and it's not just a case of them being...well, Goofy. We also get some edgier characteristics from them, like when they're attacking the umpire. One standout bit to me was when "pitcher Goofy" hits a batter Goofy by mistake, as well as the exaggerated way that the Goofys run. Overall, this short provides a good, humorous look into both the fun and problematic aspects of America’s pastime.
How to Swim (1942)
Interestingly, instead of starting out in the water, Goofy instead demonstrates how to swim at first by pretending to swim on a stool in a hilarious bit that involves him going through traffic and then falling (and struggling) in his bathtub. Other good gags here involve Goofy struggling in a changing room and knocking over others in the process as well as his body going out of control after eating underwater. My favorite part is when Goofy attempts to go diving, only to fall into a pool not filled with water. It's another really fun cartoon, definitely worth checking out.
How to Fish (1942)
This one's a bit underwhelming compared to the previous entries in the "How to..." series, though it still has its moments. The best moments consist of fish dancing in a conga line with Goofy's bait, and McLeish totally going out of control with his delivery at the end while ironically trying to tell everyone to stay calm. It's an improvement over Goofy and Wilbur, but still feels a bit lacking at times.
How to Be a Sailor (1944)
The people behind these cartoons must have really been fascinated by the sea, because this is the third "How to..." cartoon in a row that somehow involves the subject. Goofy has a little bit of dialogue here, at least one line of which seems to Colvig, indicating that he had returned by this point to freelance. This was good because it stopped limiting what could be done with Goofy's dialogue, but keeping in line with the tone of previous cartoons, this is once again mostly a visual cartoon.
As with The Art of Self Defense, a good amount of this cartoon consists of multiple Goofys throughout history demonstrating various comedic methods of sailing. Standout bits here include a ship falling off the edge of the world as a Neptune Goofy watches as well as Goofy's walk during the "captain Goofy" scene. Probably the best part is when Goofy is demonstrating various different "sailor dances," continually getting more and more outrageous until he finally falls over. This is another one that's definitely worth checking out.
How to Play Golf (1944)
This time, Goofy attempts to learn how to golf properly with the help of a blueprint stick figure. Fred Shields provides the narration this time, as he did in How to Play Baseball, and does a decent job filling in for McLeish. Goofy's a bit more aggressive here, losing his temper in a particularly funny scene where he can't get a ball out of a pit, and even attempts to cheat at one point by moving his ball. The climax here is especially fun. It involves Goofy and the stick figure being chased by a bull while still attempting to hit the golf ball. It's thrilling, but still very comedic, with the bull even taking moments to stop and do a few funny gags. Overall, it's a very funny, fast-paced cartoon, which is a bit ironic considering it deals with a slow-paced sport.
How to Play Football (1944)
Well, considering how they took a slow-paced sport like golf and managed to make a funny, fast-paced cartoon out of it, it should come as no surprise that they also made a funny, fast-paced cartoon out of football. As with How to Play Baseball, the multiple Goofys idea is at an extreme level here, with some even having slightly more unique designs such as being bigger. There's lots of great slapstick here involving Goofys beating each other up. My personal favorite part is when the cheer team of Goofys try to do their routine, but also manage to beat each other up in the process. This cartoon definitely meets the expectations that come with its title.
How to Be a Detective (1952)
This time, Goofy attempts to find a mysterious "Al," while also dealing with gangsters and police who don't want him to be involved in the case. Keeping in line with many radio mysteries of the time, many elements of this cartoon are rather dark, to the point where it shows several silhouettes being murdered. So, yeah, it's a rather dark comedy, but dark comedy can still be funny, and this one is indeed very funny.
The best gags involve the gangsters attempting to bump off Goofy, such as throwing him underwater or attempting to shoot him while he's inside a phone booth. Another really funny gag is when Goofy attempts to talk to a gangster robbing the police, completely unaware of what's going on. All of this amounts to an exciting, fun climax involving Goofy, Pete, Goofy's client, and a gangster in a car chase. With its fast-paced comedy, thrilling action, and a stellar voice cast including Colvig, June Foray, and Billy Bletcher, this stands out as one of the best cartoons not only in the "How to..." subseries, but also in the Goofy series in general.
How to Dance (1953)
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| The Firehous Five Plus Two in animated form |
This was around the time Goofy was being portrayed more as an "everyman" character (he's referred to as "George Geef" in this cartoon). As the title implies, he attempts to learn how to properly dance, with the usual Goofy results. The highlights of this cartoon include Goofy's (or Geef's, depending on how you want to refer to him) practicing with a dress on a stand as well as the ending in which he unintentionally gets beat up by a bunch of dancers. It's not as visually interesting as many other cartoons in the series, but it does still stand out thanks to the music at the end provided by the Firehouse Five Plus Two, a band consisting of Disney employees.
How to Sleep (1953)
This is a rather odd idea for a cartoon, because...well, it's mostly about Goofy just being tired and trying to sleep. They do try to incorporate some slapstick gags into it, and a few do work such as Goofy being slapped out of his dream, but overall this one feels just a bit too tame, with very few standout moments.
How to Catch a Cold (1986)
How to Hook Up Your Home Theater (2007)
Now this is a real throwback to the classic "How to..." cartoons. Goofy attempts to hook up a new home theater system here, but he chose the largest system possible and therefore fails spectacularly at understanding its setup. The slapstick is great here, featuring explosions, crashes, and even a throwback to How to Play Football. Bill Farmer is a great voice for Goofy and Corey Burton sounds exactly like John McLeish. All the right elements are here and they certainly deliver. If you're a fan of the classic Goofy cartoons, this is certainly worth checking out.
It is interesting to watch these Goofy cartoons, as well as other Goofy cartoons from the 1940s and 1950s, because they're so much edgier compared to what came before and after. That's not to say that the more known version of Goofy isn't funny, because he can be, but these ones have a Looney Tunes feel to them that makes them so fascinating, especially for Disney cartoons. If you haven't checked them out already, give them a chance and be prepared for a very entertaining experience.
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