Spies (1943)

Private Snafu has a secret: his ship leaves for Africa at 4:30. He's determined to keep it, but bit by bit it slips out, and eventually, the details end up right on Hitler's desk and the ship is attacked.

Stars:

Mel Blanc

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Mel Blanc	...	Private Snafu / Adolf Hitler / Pigeon / Spies (voice) (uncredited)

Storyline

The doltish but self-confident and self-congratulatory Private Snafu is in possession of a military secret during World War II. Over the course of the day, spouting rhymed couplets, he divulges the secret a little at a time to listening Axis spies. He tells his mom some of the secret when he calls her from a phone booth; the rest he spills to a dolly dolly spy who plies him with liquor. Snafu's loose lips put himself at risk.

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Plot Keywords:

secret | private snafu | spy | hitler | hell | 

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Genres:

Animation | Short | Comedy | War

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

August 1943 (USA)

Also Known As:

Private Snafu: Spies

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

4 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the 50 films in the 4-disk boxed DVD set called "Treasures from American Film Archives (2000)", compiled by the National Film Preservation Foundation from 18 American film archives. This film was preserved by the National Archives and Records Administration.

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Quotes

Snafu: I just learned a secret, it's a honey, it's a pip. But the enemy is listening, so I'll never let it slip. 'Cause when I learn a secret, boy, I zipper up my lip!

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Connections

Followed by A Few Quick Facts: Inflation (1944)

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Soundtracks

"Powerhouse"
(uncredited)
Music by Raymond Scott

User Reviews

In the correct context, this is a wonderful little film

This film must be understood in the context for which it was made. While this is a film made by talent from Warner Brothers (with voice work by Mel Blanc and production by the folks at Looney Toons), it was NOT intended for general release--but was meant to be shown to soldiers to illustrate the importance of keeping troop activities secret. You can tell this is the case for several reasons--the cartoon is black and white (when Looney Toons had just recently switched to color), the guy at the newspaper stand is reading a magazine entitled "SEX" and the female Nazi spy has a radio hidden in her boobs. This was certainly NOT intended to be seen by the kids! So, with it's more adult humor designed to appeal to those in combat, the movie did a wonderful job of conveying its central message in a cute way--using great animation and a crazy rhyming style that is very, very catchy. Even today, this film is worth seeing--not just by history teachers but by anyone wanting a good laugh or wanting to see what life was like during the war.