No Smoking
Encyclopedia
No Smoking is a cartoon
made by Walt Disney Productions in 1951, featuring Goofy
. This cartoon is another episode of the "Goofy the Everyman" series of the 1950s. This cartoon begins by tracing the brief history of smoking, including how Christopher Columbus
brought tobacco to Europe
from the Native Americans, and then moves on to Goofy, as "George Geef" in this cartoon, trying unsuccessfully to drop the smoking habit
.
This cartoon, because of its content, was kept off from TV
broadcasts. It was eventually included as one of the cartoons featured in A Salute to Father (later renamed Goofy's Salute to Father), a 1961 episode of the Walt Disney anthology series, but the ending was changed. After being subjected to the exploding cigar gag (see below), the revised ending had Goofy announcing that he quits smoking for good.
Finally, the short was included on DVD with the original ending, as part of the Walt Disney Treasures
line.
lights it with a small torch, and we see the impact of the popularity of smoking today.
Then we fade to Goofy, in the role of George Geef, who is an extreme nicotine
addict
, smoking various cigarette
s, cigar
s and pipes, as we watch him smoke during the evening and as he goes to bed (as a huge cloud of smoke covers his head), when he wakes up in the morning, as he shaves, as he drinks coffee and at work. But soon his throat tickles and his eyes get irritated and he cannot blow out his matches. So he throws away all of his smoking products and decides to quit. It works fine at first, and feels he can do it.
But then the boss congratulates "George" for being able to quit smoking, and as he lights up a cigarette, he says "It ain't easy. If it was, I'd quit!" Another employee, who is now a father
, nearly offers Goofy a cigar in honor of the occasion, but then remembers that he quit smoking. Almost everyone at the office still smokes, and Goofy admits that he loves smoking, and he babbles like crazy and runs out of the office like a madman, leading into the following montage...
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
made by Walt Disney Productions in 1951, featuring Goofy
Goofy
Goofy is a cartoon character created in 1932 at Walt Disney Productions. Goofy is a tall, anthropomorphic dog, and typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fedora. Goofy is a close friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck...
. This cartoon is another episode of the "Goofy the Everyman" series of the 1950s. This cartoon begins by tracing the brief history of smoking, including how Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
brought tobacco to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
from the Native Americans, and then moves on to Goofy, as "George Geef" in this cartoon, trying unsuccessfully to drop the smoking habit
Tobacco smoking
Tobacco smoking is the practice where tobacco is burned and the resulting smoke is inhaled. The practice may have begun as early as 5000–3000 BCE. Tobacco was introduced to Eurasia in the late 16th century where it followed common trade routes...
.
This cartoon, because of its content, was kept off from TV
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
broadcasts. It was eventually included as one of the cartoons featured in A Salute to Father (later renamed Goofy's Salute to Father), a 1961 episode of the Walt Disney anthology series, but the ending was changed. After being subjected to the exploding cigar gag (see below), the revised ending had Goofy announcing that he quits smoking for good.
Finally, the short was included on DVD with the original ending, as part of the Walt Disney Treasures
Walt Disney Treasures
The Walt Disney Treasures is a two-disc DVD set of classic Disney works. They cover work from the studio's earliest days to their more recent work...
line.
Plot
In this cartoon, we start with flashbacks featuring a "Goofy"-like version of Christopher Columbus, who is given a cigar by a Native American. His three ships bring it back to their country, with smoke floating from them. A man in Europe rolls a cigar with a leaf and a midgetMidget
A midget is a short person with relatively average bodily proportions in comparison with other human beings. The term is often improperly used to describe a person with the medical condition dwarfism. The two terms are often used synonymously because both terms originate as words defining small...
lights it with a small torch, and we see the impact of the popularity of smoking today.
Then we fade to Goofy, in the role of George Geef, who is an extreme nicotine
Nicotine
Nicotine is an alkaloid found in the nightshade family of plants that constitutes approximately 0.6–3.0% of the dry weight of tobacco, with biosynthesis taking place in the roots and accumulation occurring in the leaves...
addict
Substance dependence
The section about substance dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not use the word addiction at all. It explains:...
, smoking various cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
s, cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
s and pipes, as we watch him smoke during the evening and as he goes to bed (as a huge cloud of smoke covers his head), when he wakes up in the morning, as he shaves, as he drinks coffee and at work. But soon his throat tickles and his eyes get irritated and he cannot blow out his matches. So he throws away all of his smoking products and decides to quit. It works fine at first, and feels he can do it.
But then the boss congratulates "George" for being able to quit smoking, and as he lights up a cigarette, he says "It ain't easy. If it was, I'd quit!" Another employee, who is now a father
Father
A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
, nearly offers Goofy a cigar in honor of the occasion, but then remembers that he quit smoking. Almost everyone at the office still smokes, and Goofy admits that he loves smoking, and he babbles like crazy and runs out of the office like a madman, leading into the following montage...
Goofy's search for a smoke
Throughout the rest of the cartoon, Goofy (or "George") is searching for a smoke, while he keeps crying, "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke!" Here's where he finds them, only to have them removed in some way or another.- He tries to go into a tobacco store, but it's now closed. He then swipes a cigar from the wooden Indian statue near the door. He is about to light it, but a voice calls out "Ugh!" and a well-thrown tomahawkTomahawk (axe)A tomahawk is a type of axe native to North America, traditionally resembling a hatchet with a straight shaft. The name came into the English language in the 17th century as a transliteration of the Powhatan word.Tomahawks were general purpose tools used by Native Americans and European Colonials...
splits the cigar in half. - He finds some tobacco from a man filling his pipe and a small piece of paper. He then tries to roll his own cigarette the old-fashioned way, but he gets it everywhere.
- He tries to pick up a discarded cigar, but a foot steps on it, flattening it and gets his hand in the process, leaving an imprint on his hand that reads, "PussyfootPussyfootPussyfoot was the name of a British recording act of the late 1970s.The act consisted of former The Mixtures member, songwriter, producer and musician Mick Flinn, and vocalist Donna Jones. Flinn remained behind the scenes, and Jones was marketed as a solo artist...
". - He picks up another cigar near an elevator doorway, but the door closes on the cigar and as the elevator rises, so does the cigar.
- He goes into a smoking roomSmoking roomA Smoking room is a room which is specifically provided and furnished for smoking, generally in buildings where smoking is otherwise prohibited....
, but is kicked out because it's for women only. - He struggles with a hobo to get a cigarette, but the hobo wins and says "You lose!".
- He tries to grab a cigar rolling down the street, but it falls into a drainage grate.
- He grabs what looks like a cigar from a man with a bunch of them, but it's actually a now-leaky fountain penFountain penA fountain pen is a nib pen that, unlike its predecessor the dip pen, contains an internal reservoir of water-based liquid ink. The pen draws ink from the reservoir through a feed to the nib and deposits it on paper via a combination of gravity and capillary action...
. - He picks up a white pipe, but it gets blasted to bits as a target in an amusement parkAmusement parkthumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
shooting galleryShooting galleryA Shooting gallery or Shooting Gallery is a carnival game typically featuring a pellet gun and numerous moving mechanical tracks with small targets worth various minor prizes or points towards a major prize...
. A man then says, "And the little man wins a big cigar!" - He looks up to see a janitor on a skyscraper drop a cigarette. He eagerly holds out his hand to get it, and even tries to use a ladder to get it, but when he does, it's spent completely; nothing but ashes are left of the cigarette.
- Finally, an elderly gentleman gives him a cigar, but it's an exploding cigarExploding cigarAn exploding cigar is a variety of cigar that explodes shortly after being lit. Such cigars are normally packed with a minute chemical explosive charge near the lighting end or with a non-chemical device that ruptures the cigar when exposed to heat...
, which Goofy still smokes, while the narrator says, "Give a smoker enough ropeRopeA rope is a length of fibres, twisted or braided together to improve strength for pulling and connecting. It has tensile strength but is too flexible to provide compressive strength...
, and he'll hang on to his habit."
Historical and cultural references
- One of the Goofies in this short is smoking a cigarette that's from "Phyllis Morrison", which is a parody of Phillip MorrisPhilip Morris USAPhilip Morris USA is the United States tobacco division of Altria Group, Inc. Philip Morris USA brands include Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Benson and Hedges, Merit, Parliament, Alpine, Basic, Cambridge, Bucks, Dave's, Chesterfield, Collector's Choice, Commander, English Ovals, Lark, L&M, Players and...
. A subsequent Goofy skywrites an ad telling to "Smoke LOOKYs", which parodies the advertising message, "Smoke LUCKYs" (Lucky StrikeLucky StrikeLucky Strike is a brand of cigarette owned by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company and British American Tobacco groups. Often referred to as "Luckies", Lucky Strike was the top selling cigarette in the United States during the 1930s.- History :...
brand). - When Goofy pleads to the elderly stranger for something to smoke, he quotes various slangSlangSlang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...
terms for various tobacco products, in the following order: cig, fag, pipe, nail, weed, rope, chaw, cigar, and snuffSnuffSnuff is a product made from ground or pulverised tobacco leaves. It is an example of smokeless tobacco. It originated in the Americas and was in common use in Europe by the 17th century...
. (It is interesting for some modern audiences to find the British/Irish/Australian slang word for cigarette, "fag", used in this 1950's American cartoon instead of its current meaningFaggotFaggot, fagot, faggots, or faggoting may refer to:* faggot or fagot, branch or twig, or bundle of these** Fasces** Faggot , archaic unit of measurement for bundles of sticks...
, and also to find "weed" being used to mean tobacco, instead of the term's current meaningCannabisCannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
.)