Saturday Cartoon

Northwest Hounded Police Produced in 1946 for MGM and directed by Tex Avery, Northwest Hounded Police is a masterpiece of cartoon "takes" - a character's reaction to an event conveyed by facial expression and body language. The film is built on a series of "takes," eye-bulging/tongue-protruding/body-exploding action, each one increasingly exaggerated, building to an extreme of Picasso-esque abstraction, the creation of which made Avery legend. Avery was also particularly inventive in breaking the fourth wall for gags - in this case, the pursued is running so hard from his pursuer that he runs off the edge of the film and past the sprockets. Avery was a genuine creative genius, and he is still regarded as one of the funniest and most imaginative cartoonists of all time. Story: Heck Allen Animation: Walt Clinton, Ed Love, Ray Abrams. Preston Blair Music: Scott Bradley