Sea Wolf

Anyone who is a real fan of old cartoons knows about the crazy reactions of the Wolf to Red in the cartoons Tex Avery made at MGM. Other studios tried the same kind of thing.

One of them was, of all places, Harman-Ising Productions, which picked up a contract to make one of the Snafu cartoons for military audiences. Seaman Tarfu in the Navy appeared on screens after the war (January 1946). It’s in the vein of Warners’ spot gag cartoons and even features Robert C. Bruce, who narrated most of them (Mel Blanc adds his voice as well).

At the beginning, a sailor gives a woman the eye and turns into a wolf. The reaction isn’t anywhere close to what Avery gave general audiences in the Red cartoons. It’s pretty blah.



The sailor now follows her (in cycle animation) as a running gag throughout the cartoon.



The cartoon is an odd mix of stylised character designs and the standard, rounded type you’d find in theatricals at that time (notice the change from sailor to wolf).

George Gordon, formerly of MGM, directed this cartoon. Soon he was on his way to John Sutherland Productions.