Uncle Tom's Cabaña

Uncle Tom's Cabana
Uncle Tom's Cabana
	Theatrical poster
Directed by	Tex Avery
Story by	Heck Allen
Produced by	Fred Quimby
Starring	Paul Frees; Sara Berner; Imogene Lynn
Music by	Scott Bradley
Animation by	Ray Abrams; Robert Bentley; Preston Blair; Walt Clinton;
Color process	Technicolor
Production; company	MGM cartoon studio
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date	July 19, 1947;
Running time	8 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Uncle Tom's Cabaña is a 1947 American animated short film directed by Tex Avery.^[2] The short is a parody of Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, and is Avery's second parody of the novel, the first being Uncle Tom's Bungalow in 1937 while at Warner Bros. Cartoons.

The cartoon was well-received by the film press in 1947, but was fiercely criticized by an African-American weekly newspaper on its re-release in 1954, which, seven years after the cartoon's first release, accused the film of inflaming racial misunderstanding.^[3] The short was later banned from television airings.

Premise

Uncle Tom tells the blood-curdling story of how the evil Simon Legree tried to foreclose on Tom's simple log cabin. Also features Red from Red Hot Riding Hood as Little Eva.

Reception

In 1954, the African-American weekly Pittsburgh Courier published an editorial titled "Uncle Tom's Cabana Outrages Negro Audiences: What Price Brotherhood If Movies Play Up Handkerchief Heads?" The editorial called the cartoon "a base stereotype and an insult to Negroes", saying, "Even though there has been a general loosening of the Production Code in order to hype the box office, there is no reason why Negroes should continue to be ridiculed and jeered at in motion pictures. This medium reaches all levels of mentalities and feeds the flames of prejudice by projecting such canards as Uncle Tom's Cabana... Showing this insult during Brotherhood Week was a kick in the teeth to a fine effort to wipe out prejudice in America. With the world in ferment, Uncle Tom's Cabana set the movies back ten years."^[3]

However, the film press had no such objections in 1947. The Film Daily said, "A modern version of the old tale, it is a real seller." Motion Picture Herald described it as "a modern version with the emphasis on swing," and Motion Picture Exhibitor said, "This will appeal, especially to kids."^[3]

Uncle Tom's Cabaña, along with Half-Pint Pygmy, were banned from television airings in the United States due to ethnic stereotyping of African-Americans. Despite the controversy, this short and Half-Pint Pygmy were released on The Compleat Tex Avery laserdisc in the 1990s.

Availability

The short was included on the 1993 laserdisc compilation The Compleat Tex Avery.^[4]

References

^ "Tralfaz: A Nose for Beauty". 25 April 2022.
^ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 146–147. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sampson, Henry T. (1998). That's Enough, Folks: Black Images in Animated Cartoons, 1900-1960. Scarecrow Press. p. 145. ISBN 978-0810832503.
^ "Compleat Tex Avery, The [ML102681]". Laserdisc Database. Retrieved May 23, 2015.

External links

Uncle Tom's Cabaña at IMDb

This article about an animated film of the 1940s is a stub. You can help Wik.ipedia.Pro by expanding it.

This article related to an American film of the 1940s is a stub. You can help Wik.ipedia.Pro by expanding it.

[1] "Tralfaz: A Nose for Beauty". 25 April 2022.

[2] Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 146–147. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7.

[Enough-3] Sampson, Henry T. (1998). That's Enough, Folks: Black Images in Animated Cartoons, 1900-1960. Scarecrow Press. p. 145. ISBN 978-0810832503.

[4] "Compleat Tex Avery, The [ML102681]". Laserdisc Database. Retrieved May 23, 2015.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin
Characters	Uncle Tom
Film adaptations	Uncle Tom's Cabin (1903) Uncle Tom's Cabin (Thanhouser, 1910) Uncle Tom's Cabin (Vitagraph, 1910) Uncle Tom's Cabin (1914) Uncle Tom's Cabin (1918) Topsy and Eva (1927) Uncle Tom's Cabin (1927) Onkel Toms Hütte (1965) Uncle Tom's Cabin (1987)
Related works	A Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin Tom show
Animation	Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land (1931) Mickey's Mellerdrammer (1933) Uncle Tom's Bungalow (1937) Uncle Tom's Cabaña (1947) Southern Fried Rabbit (1953)
Anti-Tom literature	Aunt Phillis's Cabin The Planter's Northern Bride Little Eva: The Flower of the South Uncle Tom's Cabin As It Is Uncle Robin's Cabin "Uncle Tom's Cabin" Contrasted with Buckingham Hall, the Planter's Home Ellen; or, The Fanatic's Daughter The Ebony Idol Frank Freeman's Barber Shop The North and the South; or, Slavery and Its Contrasts Mr. Frank, the Underground Mail-Agent The Cabin and Parlor; or, Slaves and Masters The Black Gauntlet White Acre vs. Black Acre Antifanaticism The Lofty and the Lowly The Leopard's Spots
Related	Josiah Henson 1849 autobiography Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site Dimples Goodbye Uncle Tom Tit for Tat Uncle Tom syndrome Underground Railroad The National Era Onkel Toms Hütte (Berlin U-Bahn) Harriet Beecher Stowe House (Brunswick, Maine)