Don't Give Up the Sheep
Encyclopedia
Don't Give Up the Sheep is a 1953 Looney Tunes
cartoon directed by Chuck Jones
and released by Warner Bros. Pictures featuring Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog
. Mel Blanc
provided for the voices of all the characters in this cartoon, however, like all Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf shorts, this short is mostly composed of visual gag
s.
This is the first short featuring Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf and is the prototype for the following 6 episodes. The title is a play on the expression "Don't Give Up the Ship
".
1. Ralph's first plan is to trick Sam into going home early, by turning the time on the punch clock forward and setting the whistle off. Sam is initially tricked into thinking that the whistle indicated quitting time, punches out, and heads home. However, he quickly notices the clock
on a church steeple
it's 9:00 with its bells chiming and hurries back to see Ralph carrying a comically large pile of sheep. Sam Sheepdog suddenly appears behind a tree and breaks a tree branch over Ralph's head, driving Ralph into the ground (although this all happens off-screen, and the viewer is left to figure out what happened after seeing the after effects).
2. Ralph's second attempt involves disguising himself as a bush. After stealing a sheep and starting to run away, he runs past Sam, who himself is disguised as a tree and starts to follow Ralph. Sam hits Ralph on the head with a branch, leaving Ralph very confused and with a large lump on his head. After attempting to run further, this occurs once more, and Ralph is left with two lumps on his head. Ralph then gives up and carries the sheep back to the field as Sam impatiently taps his foot (disguised as a tree root).
3. For Ralph's third attempt, he reads a book of Greek myths
which explains that Pan
would "lull shepherds to sleep with the music of his pipes and then steal the sheep." Disguising himself as Pan, Ralph attempts to lull Sam to sleep with a flute, but Sam merely punches Ralph in the face and Ralph stumbles away and continues to play his song, out of tune.
4. Ralph's fourth attempt involves tunnelling under the field and pulling each sheep down through very small holes. This is mostly successful, until Ralph unwittingly pulls Sam underground and gets punched in the face. Ralph politely returns all the sheep and refills his tunnel.
5. In Ralph's next attempt, he places an Acme
product behind Sam, labelled "One Acme wild-cat - Handle with care". Ralph carefully opens the box with a rope from a distance behind another hill, but the wildcat
simply runs in circles towards Ralph, maims him and scratches him.
6. Ralph's sixth attempt is to swing on a rope over the field and snatch a sheep. Unfortunately, he unwittingly snatches Sam out of the flock. After realizing this, he leaves Sam at the bottom of the rope and climbs to the branch that the rope is tied to and saws the end of the branch off. After seemingly sending Sam crashing to the ground, Sam appears on further down the branch and saws it off at that point, sending Ralph falling. After Ralph seemingly hits the ground, he appears at the start of the branch. This gag continues until Sam is on the end of a cliff and Ralph uses a pick axe to detach the edge of the cliff and send Sam falling. The cartoon then disobeys gravity and leaves Sam's piece of earth floating in the air, as the rest of the cliff which Ralph is standing on falls down.
7. Ralph's next, seventh, and seemingly final attempt is to snatch a sheep which is drinking from edge of a lake. He uses a hollow rush
to swim through the lake unnoticed. Sam notices the rush sticking out of the water and drops a stick of dynamite
into it. Damaged by a small underwater explosion
like "tsunami", Ralph surfaces and then sinks like a ship.
8. At the end of the short, Sam walks toward the punch clock as his replacement Fred Sheepdog punches in and greets him. Sam hits him over the head with a plank, and the viewers see that Fred is really Ralph in a disguise
. As Sam begins spanking Ralph with the club, the REAL Fred Sheepdog shows up and takes over for him, continuing to spank Ralph.
, the names in this short are inconsistent with the rest of the shorts. At the beginning and end of the short, Sam's replacement refers to him as "Ralph", and Sam refers to him as "Fred". Ralph Wolf is never named.
On ABC
the end of the short where Sam spanks Ralph as the real Fred Sheepdog punched in was removed.
(2003).
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
cartoon directed by Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
and released by Warner Bros. Pictures featuring Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog
Wolf and Sheepdog
Ralph E. Wolf and Sam Sheepdog are characters in a series of animated cartoons in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies line of cartoons. They were created by Chuck Jones....
. Mel Blanc
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
provided for the voices of all the characters in this cartoon, however, like all Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf shorts, this short is mostly composed of visual gag
Visual gag
In comedy, a visual gag or sight gag is anything which conveys its humor visually, often without words being used at all.There are numerous examples in cinema history of directors who based most of the humour in their films on visual gags, even to the point of using no or minimal dialogue...
s.
This is the first short featuring Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf and is the prototype for the following 6 episodes. The title is a play on the expression "Don't Give Up the Ship
Don't Give Up the Ship
Don't Give Up the Ship may refer to:* "Don't give up the ship", the dying command of James Lawrence in 1813 aboard the USS Chesapeake* "Don't Give Up the Ship", words on the battle flag of Oliver Hazard Perry aboard the USS Niagara in the same year and also the name of a documentary video series by...
".
Plot
Introduction: Like all Sam Sheepdog and Ralph Wolf shorts, this one revolves around Ralph Wolf trying to steal the sheep which Sam Sheepdog is guarding. Ralph does not work with Sam in this one, unlike later shorts.Clock
A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...
on a church steeple
Steeple (architecture)
A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...
it's 9:00 with its bells chiming and hurries back to see Ralph carrying a comically large pile of sheep. Sam Sheepdog suddenly appears behind a tree and breaks a tree branch over Ralph's head, driving Ralph into the ground (although this all happens off-screen, and the viewer is left to figure out what happened after seeing the after effects).
2. Ralph's second attempt involves disguising himself as a bush. After stealing a sheep and starting to run away, he runs past Sam, who himself is disguised as a tree and starts to follow Ralph. Sam hits Ralph on the head with a branch, leaving Ralph very confused and with a large lump on his head. After attempting to run further, this occurs once more, and Ralph is left with two lumps on his head. Ralph then gives up and carries the sheep back to the field as Sam impatiently taps his foot (disguised as a tree root).
3. For Ralph's third attempt, he reads a book of Greek myths
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
which explains that Pan
Pan (mythology)
Pan , in Greek religion and mythology, is the god of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature, of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music, as well as the companion of the nymphs. His name originates within the Greek language, from the word paein , meaning "to pasture." He has the hindquarters, legs,...
would "lull shepherds to sleep with the music of his pipes and then steal the sheep." Disguising himself as Pan, Ralph attempts to lull Sam to sleep with a flute, but Sam merely punches Ralph in the face and Ralph stumbles away and continues to play his song, out of tune.
4. Ralph's fourth attempt involves tunnelling under the field and pulling each sheep down through very small holes. This is mostly successful, until Ralph unwittingly pulls Sam underground and gets punched in the face. Ralph politely returns all the sheep and refills his tunnel.
5. In Ralph's next attempt, he places an Acme
Acme Corporation
The Acme Corporation is a fictional corporation that features prominently in the Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote cartoons as a running gag featuring outlandish products that fail catastrophically at the worst possible times...
product behind Sam, labelled "One Acme wild-cat - Handle with care". Ralph carefully opens the box with a rope from a distance behind another hill, but the wildcat
Wildcat
Wildcat is a small felid native to Europe, the western part of Asia, and Africa.-Animals:Wildcat may also refer to members of the genus Lynx:...
simply runs in circles towards Ralph, maims him and scratches him.
6. Ralph's sixth attempt is to swing on a rope over the field and snatch a sheep. Unfortunately, he unwittingly snatches Sam out of the flock. After realizing this, he leaves Sam at the bottom of the rope and climbs to the branch that the rope is tied to and saws the end of the branch off. After seemingly sending Sam crashing to the ground, Sam appears on further down the branch and saws it off at that point, sending Ralph falling. After Ralph seemingly hits the ground, he appears at the start of the branch. This gag continues until Sam is on the end of a cliff and Ralph uses a pick axe to detach the edge of the cliff and send Sam falling. The cartoon then disobeys gravity and leaves Sam's piece of earth floating in the air, as the rest of the cliff which Ralph is standing on falls down.
7. Ralph's next, seventh, and seemingly final attempt is to snatch a sheep which is drinking from edge of a lake. He uses a hollow rush
Juncus
Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of some 200 to 300 or more species of grassy plants commonly called rushes...
to swim through the lake unnoticed. Sam notices the rush sticking out of the water and drops a stick of dynamite
Dynamite
Dynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
into it. Damaged by a small underwater explosion
Underwater explosion
An underwater explosion, also known as an UNDEX, is an explosion beneath the surface of water. The type of explosion may be chemical or nuclear...
like "tsunami", Ralph surfaces and then sinks like a ship.
8. At the end of the short, Sam walks toward the punch clock as his replacement Fred Sheepdog punches in and greets him. Sam hits him over the head with a plank, and the viewers see that Fred is really Ralph in a disguise
Latex mask
Latex mask generally refers to a full-head enclosure or disguise, often worn by someone as a part of a costume and usually made from natural latex rubber, though some masks can be made of vinyl, silicone rubber or foam latex. Latex masks are particularly popular around holidays such as Halloween,...
. As Sam begins spanking Ralph with the club, the REAL Fred Sheepdog shows up and takes over for him, continuing to spank Ralph.
Inconsistency in naming
Like Sheep AhoySheep Ahoy
Sheep Ahoy is a 1954 American Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones and released by Warner Bros. Pictures featuring Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog...
, the names in this short are inconsistent with the rest of the shorts. At the beginning and end of the short, Sam's replacement refers to him as "Ralph", and Sam refers to him as "Fred". Ralph Wolf is never named.
Censorship
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
the end of the short where Sam spanks Ralph as the real Fred Sheepdog punched in was removed.
DVD availability
This cartoon is featured on disc 3 of Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1
Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 is a DVD box set that was released by Warner Home Video on October 28, 2003. It contains 56 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons and numerous supplements...
(2003).
See also
- Sam Sheepdog and Ralph WolfWolf and SheepdogRalph E. Wolf and Sam Sheepdog are characters in a series of animated cartoons in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies line of cartoons. They were created by Chuck Jones....
- Looney TunesLooney TunesLooney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
- Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies filmography (1950–1959)