Batty Baseball (1944)

A series of visual gags about baseball. One running gag has an angry fan screaming "Kill the ump!" Be careful what you wish for.....

Director:

Tex Avery

Stars:

Pinto Colvig, Wally Maher, Jack Mather

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Pinto Colvig	...	Pitcher (voice) (uncredited)
Wally Maher	...	First Ballplayer (voice) (uncredited)
Jack Mather	...	Baseball Player (voice) (uncredited)
John Wald	...	Narrator (uncredited)

Storyline

It's the first game in the baseball series between the Yankee Doodlers and the Draft Dodgers. The pitcher uses the variety of equipment and a variety of pitches to thwart the opposing batters, resulting in an unusual game of baseball that often resembles things other than baseball. The crowd is generally happy with the outcome, except one fan who blames everything on the umpire. The team in the field may use one trick too many which results in a sad ending.

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Plot Keywords:

baseball | fan | umpire | pitcher | surrealism | 

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Genres:

Animation | Short | Comedy | Family | Sport

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 April 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

Screwball Baseball

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Loew's, MGM Cartoon Studio

Technical Specs

Runtime:

6 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The field full of 1A signs, the narrators comment "Oops, forgot about the war. ", and the pitcher with the number 4F are all references to the number of men in military service at the time. 1A was a prime draft classification while 4F was unfit for service.

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Quotes

Person in Crowd: Kill the Umpire! Get him outta there! KILL the umpire! Kill the...
[a gunshot is heard, and everybody stands as "Taps" plays for a moment of silence]

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Crazy Credits

The main credits (including the MGM lion) don't appear until a character asks to see them.

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Connections

Featured in MGM Parade: Episode #1.4 (1955)

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Soundtracks

Three Blind Mice
(uncredited)
Traditional children's song

User Reviews

Baseball has never been this batty

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Also have much admiration for Tex Avery, an animation genius whose best cartoons are animated masterpieces and some of the best cartoons ever made by anybody. 'Batty Baseball' may not be one of Avery's best from his finest period, but it has all of his trademarks and has a huge amount going for it. Even though it can get corny at times and the portrayal of baseball here is very interesting and lots of fun but baseball fans today will have a field day pointing out its lack of accuracy. It is a very well made, very funny, very wild and very clever and inventive cartoon, even if other Avery cartoons did all that even better and took more risks.

It is no surprise that, as with a vast majority of Avery's cartoons regardless of the period, the animation is excellent. Very rich in colour, the backgrounds have meticulously good detail and the character designs are distinctively Avery in style and are fluid in movement. The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is typically lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms and fits very well indeed, even enhancing the action.

'Batty Baseball' is never less than very funny and even hilarious frequently, managing to make baseball entertaining regardless of whether one is a fan of the sport or not. The timing is immaculate, coming thick and fast, and there are plenty of sight gags in classic Avery fashion, all hitting their mark.

Avery's directing can't be faulted. Likewise with the voice acting and the engaging characters.

In summary, very well made and wonderfully batty. 8/10 Bethany Cox