Little Red Walking Hood



Little Red Walking Hood is a Merrie Melodies cartoon short, released in 1937 by Warner Bros. Directed by Tex Avery.

Instead of watercolors, the backgrounds for this cartoon were rendered in colored pencil, giving it a unique visual style.

The cartoon marks the second appearance of Tex Avery's Egghead character.

Storyline
The cartoon begins with an excerpt from a story, "Once upon a time, while Little Red Riding Hood was carrying a basket of lunch to Grandma's house, the Mean Old Wolf was lurking in the nearby pool hall. He was-" then the episode shows the wolf inside the pool hall playing a game of pinball. After he pulls back the lever, he tilts the machine trying to get the pinball in the right spot. Right about to drop into the 2,500,000 hole, it bounces off of one single peg and lands in the Out hole...

The wolf sees Little Red Riding Hood walking by with a basket and he gets into his yellow vehicle. He then follows along right next to the girl before subtly flirting with her. At first Red gives him a cold-shoulder and she begins to talk to the girl audience members before she resumes walking. The wolf refuses to give up however and while trailing behind her gets hit on the head with a Stop sigh. While waiting to cross the road, Egghead walks by while whistling and carrying a case. After the sign changes, the wolf continues to follow Red and resumes trying to catch her attention by telling her that she has everything a woman could want to be popular or famous. She only gives him the cold shoulder in response.

After he bumps into the mailbox, Red asks him to go away and informs him that he could never tempt her. She then tells him that she has to get to her grandmother's house and she is fine traveling on her own. Then before she leaves, she tells him to scram.

The wolf is momentarily stuck until Egghead pops out of the mailbox with a sign pointing out the directions to Grandma's house. Along the way he shoots by a hitch-hiking Egghead until his arrival. Unaware that Egghead still managed to catch a ride with him, the wolf approaches the door and knocks on it, getting all bashful and momentarily goofy. When he is asked of who he is, the wolf claims to be Little Red Riding Hood. Grandma opens the door piece to see it is really the wolf and she quickly shuts it.

She tells the wolf to get away from it and he keeps yanking on the door. Egghead approaches and walks right on in. Very angry now the wolf bursts his way into the building, through many doors, and eventually out the very final door of the house and right into a tree. He tries to open the door, pulling the doorknob which grants him access. He then proceeds to chase grandma around the table and into another room where her phone begins to ring. She tells the wolf to wait a moment makes conversation with the figure on the other line. She sits down and describes a shopping list to them, telling the audience she will need a minute.

The wolf meanwhile, is growing angry and they resume chase until she runs into a closet and the wolf opens the door, in which Egghead exits. As Grandma hides, the wolf makes her hand over her items upon hearing Red Riding Hood. She points out his strange features and they begin to struggle as he attempts to eat her. The wolf then sees a few of the audience members moving about and tells Red to wait a moment. Then after the audience members sit they resume fighting.

Egghead makes yet-another appearance and the wolf stops again. This time to ask him why he keeps showing up throughout the cartoon and who he is. Egghead then opens the guitar case he has been carrying to reveal a big wood mallet inside. He then hits the wolf with it and informs him that he is the Hero of this picture and he begins to laugh as an Iris out momentarily begins, just to open up again and show Egghead kissing Little Red Riding Hood as the episode truly ends.

Credits

 * Producer: Leon Schlesinger
 * Supervision: Fred Avery
 * Story: Cal Howard
 * Animation: Irven Spen
 * Musical Direction: Carl W. Stalling

Trivia

 * This is the first appearance of Granny.

Goofs

 * As Egghead crosses the road, the wolf is shown wearing his hat. But a second later it is in his hand.