Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century

Not to be confused with Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (disambiguation).

Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century
Merrie Melodies (Daffy Duck/Porky Pig/Marvin The Martian) series
Lobby card.
Directed by	Chuck Jones
Produced by	Eddie Selzer
Story by	Michael Maltese
Voices by	Mel Blanc
Music by	Carl Stalling
Animation by	Lloyd Vaughan Ken Harris Ben Washam
Layouts by	Maurice Noble
Backgrounds by	Philip DeGuard
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation
Release date(s)	July 25, 1953 (USA)
Color process	Technicolor
Running time	7:00
Language	English

Duck Dodgers in the 24½^th (twenty-fourth and a half) Century is a Merrie Melodies cartoon created in 1952 and released on July 25, 1953, starring Daffy Duck as space hero Duck Dodgers, Porky Pig as his assistant, and Marvin the Martian as his opponent. Marvin the Martian had been introduced as an unnamed villain in Haredevil Hare (1948) playing opposite Bugs Bunny (and was given the title 'Commander, Flying Saucer X-2' in 1951's The Hasty Hare), but this cartoon was the first of many appearances of Duck Dodgers. The title is a pun on the comic book character Buck Rogers, and especially on one collective title of his adventures in particular, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.

In 1994 it was voted #4 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. In 2004, it was retrospectively nominated for a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.

Credits

The cartoon was directed by Chuck Jones (credited as Charles M. Jones), with the story by Michael Maltese, voices by Mel Blanc, and original music by Carl Stalling. The animation was credited to Lloyd Vaughan, Ken Harris and Ben Washam, with Harry Love receiving a credit for effects animation. The distinctive layouts were designed by Maurice Noble and the backgrounds produced by Phil DeGuard.

Uncredited is the noteworthy quotation of Powerhouse by Raymond Scott in the score by Stalling.

Plot

The plot of the cartoon involves Daffy—as Duck Dodgers—in his search for the rare element Illudium Phosdex, "the shaving cream atom." In the future, the only remaining supply of the element is on the mysterious "Planet X," which fortunately is found when Dodgers follows a path leading from Planet A to Planets B, C, D (where the only landmasses on the planets form the letters themselves), and so on, even though Dodgers plotted his own course by connecting the stars on his map in an elaborate but complex path. Dodgers is about to claim Planet X in the name of Earth when Marvin the Martian lands on the same planet (in a ship called the Martian Maggot) and claims it in the name of Mars (presumably because the Martians also wanted the Illudium Phosdex for themselves). The stage is set for a battle of wits (or lack thereof) between the two cartoon stars.

Porky Pig also appears in the cartoon, playing the role of the "Eager Young Space Cadet." As he does in a number of Jones's cartoons where he is paired with Daffy, he plays the role of the comic foil, getting the job done and foiling the villain while Daffy Duck blusters, blunders, bungles, and repeatedly gets himself blown to smithereens. Both Daffy and Marvin have disintegrating pistols; Daffy's pistol crumbles to dust (i.e. the pistol itself disintegrates) while Marvin's pistol disintegrates Daffy! (Fortunately, Porky just happens to pack an "integrating pistol," to undo the effects of a "DIS-integrating pistol." However Dodgers angrily complains to the Cadet, saying he had the Martian on the run.) When Marvin chases Daffy into the duck's ship, Porky comes out and smartly gives the martian a stick of dynamite as a "birthday present", the stick of course blows up in Marvin's hands and he hides in his helmet to avoid being exploded, forcing a very angry Marvin to scuttle back to his ship.

Dodgers then tries to send an ultimatum to Marvin from a bullet-like object, telling him to "Surrender, or be blown into 17,670,002 micro cells"—but Dodgers gets a blast in the face as a reply from Marvin, and sends another ultimatum, humorously saying "OUCH!", as a reply. Then in a gag similar to the one in Buccaneer Bunny, Dodgers tries to get a peek at what Marvin's up to through a "Super Video-Detecto Set"—only to get blasted by Marvin again through the set! Dodgers loses all patience and decides to blow up Marvin's ship, unaware that Marvin is preparing to do the same to his ship. Both activate their weapons at the same time, resulting in the destruction of Planet X.

Considering the period in which the cartoon was produced (the Red Scare was in full swing during the 1950s), some scholars^[who?] have used the cartoon to parallel the ultimate futility of both the Cold War and the arms race.^{[citation needed]} They note that by the end of the cartoon, Planet X, which Duck Dodgers and Marvin the Martian are fighting over has been almost totally destroyed, and the remaining area claimed by Daffy at the end is barely large enough for him to stand upon. The dismissive attitude to Dodgers's pyrrhic victory is epitomized by Porky's cynical response to his boss's overblown proclamation, "B-b-big deal," as he and Marvin are left hanging below.

Sequels

Main article: Duck Dodgers

• Duck Dodgers and the Return of the 24½th Century (1980).
• Tiny Toon Adventures: "Duck Dodgers Jr.", segment in the episode "The Return of the Acme Acres Zone" (1990)
• Marvin the Martian in the Third Dimension (1996), a 3D cartoon.
• Attack of the Drones (2003).
• Duck Dodgers (2003–2005), television series on Cartoon Network.

Other media

• In the US TV science fiction series Babylon 5, the character of Michael Garibaldi is a fan of Daffy Duck, and describes "Duck Dodgers" as his "second favorite thing in the universe". In the episode "Midnight on the Firing Line", Garibaldi looks for someone to share it with, and eventually watches the cartoon with Ambassador Delenn.

• When the main character of the science fiction film Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) wakes up, after trying all night to make contact with the aliens, his daughter is watching "Duck Dodgers".

• In Planet of the Apes parody webtoon Planet of the Taz, Daffy and Porky are first seen in their Duck Dodgers and Cadet outfits from this short.

DVD

This cartoon is available on Disc 2 of Volume 1 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection.

See also

• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
• List of cartoons featuring Daffy Duck
• List of cartoons featuring Porky Pig

External links

• Duck Dodgers at Big Cartoon Database
• Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century at the Internet Movie Database