Cheese Chasers
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This article does not cite any references or sources. (October 2010) |
| Cheese Chasers | |
|---|---|
| Merrie Melodies (Hubie and Bertie) series | |
 "This is a dream?!" Claude Cat with suicidal mice Hubie and Bertie in a scene from Cheese Chasers. |
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| Directed by | Charles M. Jones |
| Produced by | Eddie Selzer |
| Story by | Michael Maltese |
| Music by | Carl W. Stalling |
| Animation by | Ken Harris Ben Washam Lloyd Vaughan Phil Monroe |
| Studio | Warner Bros. Cartoons The Vitaphone Corporation |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | August 25, 1951 |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 7 min (one reel) |
| Language | English |
Cheese Chasers is a 1951 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones, and starring Hubie and Bertie in their final appearances of the Classic era. Also starring are Claude Cat and a bulldog predecessor to Marc Antony. Mel Blanc plays Claude, Hubie, and the bulldog, while Stan Freberg plays Bertie.
Plot
At the end of a raid on a cheese factory, Hubie determines that, based on the amount of cheese the average mouse eats in their lifetime (12 lbs.), they've eaten enough to have lived two thousand years (48 tons). Believing they have nothing else to live for, Hubie and Bertie get suicidal and try to get eaten by Claude Cat. Claude figures the mice are poisoned, and refuses to eat them. Claude finally concludes that he's now too scared to eat mice, has no more reason to live, and also decides to commit suicide. Claude heads outside and punches the sleeping bulldog.
The bulldog sees Claude standing there blindfolded and with a cigarette and asks what's going on. When Claude begs the dog to "massacre" him, the bulldog figures out that Claude no longer wants to eat mice, and now the mice don't like cheese. Finding it doesn't add up, he runs after a dog catcher wanting to get committed, with Claude and the mice in hot pursuit, still bent on ending their own lives.
Censorship
When this cartoon aired on The WB, the part where Hubie and Bertie hit Claude's foot with a hammer in an attempt to be eaten by him was cut.
Availability
This cartoon can be seen (uncut and restored) on the second volume of The Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set. It is also occasionally available on the Looney Tunes website (although high pitched).
