Vimacone In 1937, the Disney Studio and the Harman-Ising studio were in a jam. Disney was barely meeting the deadline for completing Snow White; They were at the inking and painting stage, but there was not enough people to complete it on time. MGM canceled their distribution contract with Harman-Ising after their films were running over budget. Walt contacted Harman-Ising and asked them if they could loan him their inking and painting department. In return Disney had them produce a Silly Symphony that was in development since 1935, Merbabies. Harman-Ising's cartoons for MGM were so lush that they could be almost mistaken for a Disney cartoon, which is probably why Disney warranted this consideration. Although, animation buffs and historians would be the only ones to notice that house style-wise, this does not resemble a Disney cartoon, but an MGM cartoon. Even Scott Bradley, the composer for virtually every MGM cartoon through the 1950's composed the score. Like most of the cartoons Harman-Ising directed, there isn't much story as there is lush visuals. It's mostly the Merbabies putting on an underwater show. I couldn't make sense out of the ending. Disney had Harman-Ising produced two additional cartoons for him, but RKO wouldn't allow this. It would be interesting to see if this was released as a Happy Harmony or a regular MGM cartoon. This makes for an interesting mash-up of two great animation studios. Worth checking out for the lush visuals and breathtaking musical score.

Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "Merbabies" is an 8-minute short film from 1938, in color and with sound and just like its prequel "Seababies", this one is by Disney too. This prequel had a major problem in the lack of a story really and this is here also the case. Still I believe this one here is superior because it actually has some funny moments, mostly involving the animals (posing as other animals) unlike the earlier film. The music is good and the animation is truly outstanding taking into account that this one here is almost 80 years old. The ending was quite brutal to be honest, even if I must say I cared more for the animals than the babies in this little film, so maybe that's why I wasn't that touched by the last scene. All in all, certainly worth a watch. Here is one example why the 1930s and 1940s are called the Golden Age of Animation.

tavm My main interest in watching this Walt Disney Silly Symphony was in my knowledge that Hugh Harmon and Rudolf Ising-former Disney animators-were the actual producers of this cartoon but went to their former employer because their M-G-M contract had recently run out. Disney himself was looking for some extra facilities for his Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (which was released about a year before this short) so Harmon-Ising lent them some of theirs. The result was another of H-I's cutesy endeavors without much of a plot and little actual humor but as always beautiful animation. Besides the title characters, there's a circus-parade of various sea creatures performing with the whale providing the climax. Like I said, not very funny but if you love seeing good animation, Merbabies is worth a look.

Ron Oliver A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short.The MERBABIES are frolicking beneath the salt waves - swimming & playing with various sea creatures. An elaborate underwater circus parade & performances fill much of their day, culminating in a rise to the surface in the expelled breath of a whale at sunset.While the plot is virtually invisible in this little film, there's much to fill the eye as the colorful images cavort about the screen. The real significance of this cartoon is that it gave the folks in Disney Animation some excellent experience in working with the particular aspects of underwater scenes (bubble movement, light & shadow) which would be so important in the under seas sequence in PINOCCHIO.The SILLY SYMPHONIES, which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929, are among the most interesting of series in the field of animation. Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount, with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music. There was little plot in the early Symphonies, which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals, all moving frantically to the soundtrack. Gradually, however, the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot, characterization & photographic special effects. The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale, Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed. It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring. In 1939, with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon, Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES; they had run their course & served their purpose.