The Leghorn Blows at Midnight

1950 film

The Leghorn Blows at Midnight

Directed by| Robert McKimson
Story by| Warren Foster
Starring| Mel Blanc
Music by| Carl Stalling
Animation by| Charles McKimson
Phil DeLara
Rod Scribner
J.C. Melendez
Emery Hawkins
Layouts by| Cornett Wood
Backgrounds by| Richard H. Thomas
Color process| Technicolor

Production
company

Warner Bros. Cartoons

Distributed by| Warner Bros. Pictures

Release date

* May 6, 1950 (1950-05-06) (USA)

Running time

| 7 minutes
Language| English

The Leghorn Blows at Midnight is a 1950 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon directed by Robert McKimson.[1] The cartoon was released on May 6, 1950, and features Foghorn Leghorn, Henery Hawk and the Barnyard Dawg.[2]

The title is a play upon the 1945 Jack Benny film The Horn Blows at Midnight.[3]

## Plot

[edit]

In the barnyard, Foghorn is playing solitaire when Dawg sneaks up from behind with two large clash cymbals intending to crash Foghorn's head between them, and though he misses the first time when Foghorn unknowingly ducks to lay down a card, he gets him the second time. Foghorn later retaliates by taking a cream pie from a nearby windowsill and mashing it into Dawg's face. Dawg, his face covered with cream, chases Foghorn but is strangled by his rope. Foghorn returns, throws a large metal valve pipe over Dawg's body and, much like a barber, uses a straight razor to remove the cream from Dawg's face. Foghorn then gets a scalding hot towel from a pot of boiling water and places in on Dawg's face.

Henery enters looking for a chicken and approaches Dawg who is sharpening an ax on a grinder. Thinking Dawg is a chicken, Henery tries to pull Dawg's neck rope from behind. Dawg explains that he is not a chicken, and then points to Foghorn prancing on a fence in the distance. Henery starts out after Foghorn but Dawg stops him and states that Henery has to outwit Foghorn if he is going to catch him.

Henery piques Foghorn's curiosity by trying to secure a catapult with a large pumpkin on it. Foghorn helps Henery by securing the catapult for him, and as he walks away Henery launches the pumpkin at Foghorn, which plops down over his head. Henery tells Foghorn that he wants to take him home and eat him for dinner. Playing along, Foghorn replies that he is too old and tough, and then tells him that a better choice would be pheasant under glass.

Having never seen a pheasant, Henery asks Foghorn where he can find one. Foghorn, as only he can, points to Dawg's doghouse, telling Henery that a pheasant lives inside. Foghorn provides Henery with a glass cover and Henery walks into Dawg's house and slams it over him. Dawg runs out with the glass over him but is again constrained by his rope. With Dawg temporarily immobile, Foghorn returns with a set of golf clubs, placing a golf ball on the Dawg's nose. Foghorn swings, but hits Dawg instead of the ball, sending Dawg swinging tetherball-style around the tree to which his rope is tied.

Foghorn then covers Henery with vanishing cream and Henery is led to believe that he is invisible. Henery, still under the impression that the Dawg is a pheasant, goes after him again, but when Dawg puts a mirror in front of Henery he realizes has been tricked again by Foghorn. Dawg chases Henery out of his doghouse but is again caught by the rope, and Foghorn returns with an accordion which he stuffs over the Dawg's head while playing the instrument.

Henery is about to give up his hunt, but Foghorn, citing historical episodes, convinces Henery to resume his quest; when he marches straight into the doghouse, the Dawg explains to Henery that as a chicken hawk he should be after chicken and has Henery unhook his collar from his rope. He then lures Foghorn out pretending to be again constrained by his rope. Foghorn jumps over the fence with a hammer and a platter cover only to have Dawg grab the cover, plunge it over Foghorn's head and bang on it with the hammer. Angered at being "hornswaggled", Foghorn starts fighting with Dawg.

The story closes with Henery standing next to a pot of boiling water rooting for both Foghorn and Dawg (still calling him "pheasant"), then turning to the audience saying, "I don't care who wins; I'll fricassee the loser".

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 210\. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
2. ^ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 81–82\. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
3. ^ https://thefilmfrenzy.com/2024/01/05/view-from-the-couch-casino-last-man-standing-underworld-etc/

## External links

[edit]

* The Leghorn Blows at Midnight at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Foghorn Leghorn in animation

Short films|

* Walky Talky Hawky (1946)
* Crowing Pains (1947)
* The Foghorn Leghorn (1948)
* Henhouse Henery (1949)
* The Leghorn Blows at Midnight (1950)
* A Fractured Leghorn (1950)
* Leghorn Swoggled (1951)
* Lovelorn Leghorn (1951)
* Sock a Doodle Do (1952)
* The EGGcited Rooster (1952)
* Plop Goes the Weasel (1953)
* Of Rice and Hen (1953)
* Little Boy Boo (1954)
* Feather Dusted (1955)
* All Fowled Up (1955)
* Weasel Stop (1956)
* The High and the Flighty (1956)
* Raw! Raw! Rooster! (1956)
* Fox-Terror (1957)
* Feather Bluster (1958)
* Weasel While You Work (1958)
* A Broken Leghorn (1959)
* Crockett-Doodle-Do (1960)
* The Dixie Fryer (1960)
* Strangled Eggs (1961)
* The Slick Chick (1962)
* Mother Was a Rooster (1962)
* Banty Raids (1963)
* False Hare (1964)
* Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol (1979; cameo)
* The Yolk's on You (1980)
* Carrotblanca (1995; cameo)
* Superior Duck (1996; cameo)
* Pullet Surprise (1997)
* Cock-A-Doodle Duel (2004)

Feature films|

| Theatrical|

* The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie (1981)
* Daffy Duck's Fantastic Island (1983)
* Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988; cameo)
* Space Jam (1996)
* Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003; cameo)
* Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021)
* Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022; cameo)
* Coyote vs. Acme (2026)

|

Direct-to-video|

* Tweety's High-Flying Adventure (2000)
* Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006; cameo)
* Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run (2015)

TV series|

* Baby Looney Tunes (2002-2005)
* The Looney Tunes Show (2011–2013)
* New Looney Tunes (2015–2020)
* Looney Tunes Cartoons (2020–2024)
* Bugs Bunny Builders (2022–present)
* Tiny Toons Looniversity (2023–present)

* v
* t
* e

Henery Hawk in animation

Short films|

* The Squawkin' Hawk (1942)
* Walky Talky Hawky (1946)
* Crowing Pains (1947)
* You Were Never Duckier (1948)
* The Foghorn Leghorn (1948)
* Henhouse Henery (1949)
* The Scarlet Pumpernickel (1950; cameo)
* The Leghorn Blows at Midnight (1950)
* Leghorn Swoggled (1951)
* The EGGcited Rooster (1952)
* All Fowled Up (1955)
* Strangled Eggs (1961)

Feature films|

* Space Jam (1996; cameo)
* Tweety's High-Flying Adventure (2000)

* v
* t
* e

Barnyard Dawg in animation

Short films|

* Walky Talky Hawky (1946)
* One Meat Brawl (1947)
* Crowing Pains (1947)
* The Foghorn Leghorn (1948)
* Daffy Duck Hunt (1949)
* Henhouse Henery (1949)
* The Leghorn Blows at Midnight (1950)
* A Bone for a Bone (1951)
* Leghorn Swoggled (1951)
* Lovelorn Leghorn (1951)
* Sock a Doodle Do (1952)
* The EGGcited Rooster (1952)
* Plop Goes the Weasel (1953)
* Of Rice and Hen (1953)
* All Fowled Up (1955)
* The High and the Flighty (1956)
* Fox-Terror (1957)
* Don't Axe Me (1958)
* Feather Bluster (1958)
* Weasel While You Work (1958)
* Gopher Broke (1958)
* Mother Was a Rooster (1962)
* Banty Raids (1963)
* Carrotblanca (1995; cameo)

Feature films|

* Daffy Duck's Fantastic Island (1983)
* Space Jam (1996)
* Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003; cameo)
* Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006; cameo)

TV series|

* Baby Looney Tunes (2002-2005)
* The Looney Tunes Show (2011–2013)
* Looney Tunes Cartoons (2020–2024)
* Bugs Bunny Builders (2022–present)

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Robert McKimson

Short subjects|

| 1940s|

* The Return of Mr. Hook (1945)
* Tale of Two Mice (1945)
* Hare Remover (1946)
* Daffy Doodles (1946)
* Hollywood Canine Canteen (1946)
* Acrobatty Bunny (1946)
* Walky Talky Hawky (1946)
* The Mouse-Merized Cat (1946)
* One Meat Brawl (1947)
* Birth of a Notion (1947)
* Hobo Bobo (1947)
* Easter Yeggs (1947)
* Crowing Pains (1947)
* A Horse Fly Fleas (1947)
* Gorilla My Dreams (1948)
* Daffy Duck Slept Here (1948)
* Hop, Look and Listen (1948)
* The Up-Standing Sitter (1948)
* The Shell Shocked Egg (1948)
* Hot Cross Bunny (1948)
* The Foghorn Leghorn (1948)
* A-Lad-In His Lamp (1948)
* Paying the Piper (1949)
* Daffy Duck Hunt (1949)
* Rebel Rabbit (1949)
* Henhouse Henery (1949)
* The Grey Hounded Hare (1949)
* The Windblown Hare (1949)
* Swallow the Leader (1949)
* Hippety Hopper (1949)
* A Ham in a Role (1949)

|

1950s|

* Hurdy-Gurdy Hare (1950)
* Boobs in the Woods (1950)
* Strife with Father (1950)
* The Leghorn Blows at Midnight (1950)
* An Egg Scramble (1950)
* What's Up, Doc? (1950)
* It's Hummer Time (1950)
* Hillbilly Hare (1950)
* A Fractured Leghorn (1950)
* Pop 'im Pop! (1950)
* Bushy Hare (1950)
* Dog Collared (1950)
* Hare We Go (1951)
* A Fox in a Fix (1951)
* Corn Plastered (1951)
* Early to Bet (1951)
* French Rarebit (1951)
* Leghorn Swoggled (1951)
* Lovelorn Leghorn (1951)
* Sleepy Time Possum (1951)
* Big Top Bunny (1951)
* The Prize Pest (1951)
* Who's Kitten Who? (1952)
* Thumb Fun (1952)
* Kiddin' The Kitten (1952)
* Sock a Doodle Do (1952)
* The Turn-Tale Wolf (1952)
* Oily Hare (1952)
* Hoppy Go Lucky (1952)
* The EGGcited Rooster (1952)
* The Super Snooper (1952)
* Rabbit's Kin (1952)
* Fool Coverage (1952)
* Upswept Hare (1953)
* A Peck o' Trouble (1953)
* Muscle Tussle (1953)
* There Auto Be a Law (1953)
* Plop Goes the Weasel (1953)
* Cat-Tails for Two (1953)
* Easy Peckin's (1953)
* Of Rice and Hen (1953)
* Cat's A-weigh (1953)
* Wild Wife (1954)
* Design for Leaving (1954)
* Bell Hoppy (1954)
* No Parking Hare (1954)
* Little Boy Boo (1954)
* Devil May Hare (1954)
* The Oily American (1954)
* Gone Batty (1954)
* Quack Shot (1954)
* Feather Dusted (1955)
* All Fowled Up (1955)
* Lighthouse Mouse (1955)
* The Hole Idea (1955)
* Dime to Retire (1955)
* Too Hop To Handle (1956)
* Weasel Stop (1956)
* The High and the Flighty (1956)
* Mixed Master (1956)
* The Unexpected Pest (1956)
* Stupor Duck (1956)
* Half-Fare Hare (1956)
* Raw! Raw! Rooster! (1956)
* The Slap-Hoppy Mouse (1956)
* Wideo Wabbit (1956)
* The Honey-Mousers (1956)
* Bedevilled Rabbit (1957)
* Cheese It, the Cat! (1957)
* Fox-Terror (1957)
* Boston Quackie (1957)
* Tabasco Road (1957)
* Ducking the Devil (1957)
* Mouse-Taken Identity (1957)
* Rabbit Romeo (1957)
* Don't Axe Me (1958)
* Tortilla Flaps (1958)
* Feather Bluster (1958)
* Now Hare This (1958)
* Dog Tales (1958)
* Weasel While You Work (1958)
* Pre-Hysterical Hare (1958)
* Gopher Broke (1958)
* Mouse-Placed Kitten (1959)
* China Jones (1959)
* The Mouse That Jack Built (1959)
* A Mutt in a Rut (1959)
* Backwoods Bunny (1959)
* Cat's Paw (1959)
* Bonanza Bunny (1959)
* A Broken Leghorn (1959)
* People Are Bunny (1959)

1960s|

* West of the Pesos (1960)
* Wild Wild World (1960)
* Crockett-Doodle-Do (1960)
* Mice Follies (1960)
* The Dixie Fryer (1960)
* Dog Gone People (1960)
* Cannery Woe (1961)
* Hoppy Daze (1961)
* Strangled Eggs (1961)
* Birds of a Father (1961)
* Daffy's Inn Trouble (1961)
* What's My Lion? (1961)
* Wet Hare (1962)
* Fish and Slips (1962)
* Bill of Hare (1962)
* The Slick Chick (1962)
* Mother Was a Rooster (1962)
* Good Noose (1962)
* Fast Buck Duck (1963)
* The Million Hare (1963)
* Banty Raids (1963)
* Aqua Duck (1963)
* Claws in the Lease (1963)
* A Message to Gracias (1964)
* Bartholomew Versus the Wheel (1964)
* Freudy Cat (1964)
* Dr. Devil and Mr. Hare (1964)
* False Hare (1964)
* Moby Duck (1965)
* Assault and Peppered (1965)
* Well Worn Daffy (1965)
* Suppressed Duck (1965)
* Rushing Roulette (1965)
* Tease for Two (1965)
* Chili Corn Corny (1965)
* Go Go Amigo (1965)
* The Astroduck (1966)
* Mucho Locos (1966)
* Mexican Mousepiece (1966)
* Daffy Rents (1966)
* A-Haunting We Will Go (1966)
* Snow Excuse (1966)
* Cock-A-Doodle Deux Deux (1966)
* A Squeak in the Deep (1966)
* Feather Finger (1966)
* Swing Ding Amigo (1966)
* Sugar and Spies (1966)
* A Taste of Catnip (1966)
* Toulouse La Trick (1966)
* Daffy's Diner (1967)
* Le Quiet Squad (1967)
* Bomb Voyage (1967)
* Bunny and Claude (We Rob Carrot Patches) (1968)
* The Great Carrot Train Robbery (1969)
* Fistic Mystic (1969)
* Rabbit Stew and Rabbits Too! (1969)
* Shamrock and Roll (1969)
* Bugged by a Bee (1969)
* Injun Trouble (1969)

1970s|

* Pink DaVinci (1975)
* It's Pink, But Is It Mink? (1975)
* Mystic Pink (1976)
* The Pink Pro (1976)
* Sherlock Pink (1976)

TV shows|

* The Oddball Couple (1975)
* Misterjaw (1976)
* Baggy Pants and the Nitwits (1977)

People|

* Charles McKimson (brother)
* Thomas McKimson (brother)

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