Best Animation Movies of 1942

Tom and Jerry are in a bowling alley. Both spend a lot of time sliding on the well-polished lanes. Eventually, Jerry takes up residence among the pins and Tom tries to bowl him down.

It's snowed, and Donald Duck is going sledding. Meanwhile, his nephews have built a snowman at the bottom of the hill. Donald aims his sled at their snowman and demolishes it, so the boys get even by including a boulder in the bottom of their next snowman. This means war, so they retreat to opposing snow forts for battle.

Live-action segments show members of the Disney staff touring South America and recording their impressions in sketches. These segue into four animated sections: "Lake Titicaca" depicts tourist Donald Duck's troubles with a stubborn llama; and in "Aquarela do Brasil," Jose Carioca shows Donald the sights and sound of Rio de Janeiro.

Tom hears a ghost story on the radio and is spooked by it; Jerry notices this and takes advantage of it, using a variety of tricks to scare Tom.

Chased by Tom around the barnyard, Jerry takes refuge under a hen, who, in her nest, is sitting on eggs. Tom has to figure out ways to get Jerry out from under the protective hen.

Tom's chasing Jerry when he runs right into a sleeping dog and the two of them must work together to fend him off.

Mama Buzzard wants her children to learn to bring back meat for dinner. One buzzardling is shy and has to be kicked out of the nest. He's told to at least bring back a rabbit.

After a traveling magician puts a poster over his home, Bugs visits his act to get revenge.

Goofy shows us the national pastime. After a brief overview, we have a demonstration of the many possible pitches. On to the World Series, where we go through an eventful inning, culminating in a baseball that disintegrates when being hit.

Tom is playing with Jerry when a cute lady cat is delivered to Mammy for her to take care of. Tom is smitten at first sight.

Two alley cats, Babbitt and Catsello, decide to make a meal out of Orson as he sleeps in his nest atop a telephone pole. The gullible (and loud) Catsello is repeatedly gulled into trying to "get the bird," earning a variety of thrashings from the casually murderous little canary. Catsello finally resorts to an air strike (with a pair of wooden boards for wings), but it's wartime, and Orson has the cat blasted out of the sky by anti-aircraft guns.

Bugs Bunny exploits the situation when an uncle leaves Elmer Fudd three million dollars on the condition that he harm no animals, especially rabbits.

Three fun-loving, morally upright brothers from Pimento University save their fiancée from their fiendish archenemy, Dan Backslide, in this spoof of the Rover Boys.

Goofy's plans to give a swimming lesson and enjoy a day at the beach go awry.

Yet another variation on the Three Little Pigs theme, this time told as WW2 anti-German propaganda (the US had just entered the war), with the wolf as a thinly-disguised Hitler.

A narrator explains the history of the Olympic Games while Goofy demonstrates events.

Goofy's demonstration of fishing is fouled up by his clumsy casting and fly fishing, and problems with his boat.

An experiment into what the director termed 'colour rhythm'.

It's the dead of winter, a hungry wolf is out of food, and he's desperate.

A vacuum cleaner selling raven pesters the inhabitant of a castle.

Superman comes to the rescue when a volcano erupts.

Porky tries to relax on a hunting and fishing trip, but Daffy, smugly pointing out the "No Duck Hunting" signs, subjects him to constant irritation. Then the "Duck Hunting Season Open" signs start going up.

When police interfere with a reckless scientist's experiment, it creates a deadly meteor shower only Superman can stop.

Mickey guest-directs a radio orchestra. The sponsor loves the rehearsal, but come the actual performance, Goofy drops all the instruments under an elevator, so they sound like toys. The sponsor hates it, but the audience loves it anyway.

José Carioca, showing Donald Duck around South America and introducing him to the samba

Barney has run out of firewood in mid winter. His quest for more is not too successful. Meanwhile, the beavers have been busily cutting and stacking their wood, which proves too tempting for Barney. The beavers are not pleased.

Robbers target a special train carrying a billion dollars worth of gold, and the only one who can stop them is Superman!

Butch, a beaten up pug of a tomcat, is having a good day, and everything is peaceful. Then the doorbell rings. He finds the unexpected present of four kittens left on his doorstep (and from their coloring, there's little question as to who's the father). Butch spends his time trying to hide the mischievous kittens from his owner.

Elmer Fudd goes after Bugs using hypnotism, only the plan backfires.

The Wacky Wabbit is a Warner Bros. cartoon in the Merrie Melodies series. It was released on May 2, 1942. It was directed by Robert Clampett. It stars Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd (both are voiced by Mel Blanc and Arthur Q. Bryan).

In this Puppetoon animated short film (an Academy Award Best Short Subject, Cartoons nominee), a young Dutch couple find their idyllic countryside being overrun by unfeeling, unthinking mechanical men and machines that lay waste to everything in their path. In 1997 this film, deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant," was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

A frozen Tyrannosaurus rex is found and put on display in a museum, but when he thaws out and revives, Superman has to stop his rampage!

Criminals with rocket powered car loot and extort the city, and only Superman can stop them!

A scientist uses an earthquake machine to threaten the city, and only Superman can stop his extortion plan!

When things go wrong at the circus, it's up to Superman to stop the escaped animals.

Horton the elephant agrees to watch over lazy Maisie bird's egg while she vacations. Much later, after...

The origin story of Super Mouse (later changed to "Mighty Mouse").

A cat-about-town fancies himself such an irresitible "hunk" he momentarily resembles Victor Mature. His wooing of a cute kitten gets derailed by a prankster dog using a cat hand puppet to trap him.

Popeye's nephews have been practicing their music and are getting good, but it's bedtime. After Popeye puts them to bed, they discover that many of the things in their bedroom can also be used to make music. And they are also blessed with an uncanny ability to appear to sleep every time Popeye comes to check on them.

Bugs Bunny is wanted "dead or alive" by the Mounted Police, led by Elmer Fudd. The "Fresh Hare" episode was banned from television for almost 30 years because it was considered too racey for the time.

Donald is visiting South America, where he is first overcome by altitude sickness. He spends some time in the picturesque market. Then he take a llama up into the mountains, with exciting results.

A lion wants to prove he's still "King of the Jungle" and, to prove it, he hunts rabbit.

Popeye and Bluto agree that women are too much trouble, so they agree to swear off them, which lasts about five seconds, until Olive comes on board ship for a tour. The boys vie for her attention.

Superman's reputation is tarnished when a crook begins committing crimes in a Superman costume.

Pluto walks past the zoo and sees the huge bone the sleeping lion has but getting it out is easier said than done. He gets it out of the lion's cage, but then has to face the kangaroo and its playful joey. Next is the gorilla, then the crocodiles.

Private Duck is a camouflage painter. He paints a giant cannon with some very gaudy colors, until Sergeant Pete explains that the point is to make it so the cannon can't be seen. Donald finds a bucket of experimental invisible paint and makes the cannon disappear. Pete isn't happy with this, and knocks Donald into the paint, then chases him, until he runs into the general. As Pete tries to explain, Donald prods him with a cactus, then goes off to steal some pies. Eventually, Pete goes berserk and starts throwing grenades willy-nilly and gets in more trouble with the general.

Donald tries his best to be polite and dignified as a hotel bellboy. But when his first guest is Pete Junior, the job is next to impossible.

A pigeon wants to be a carrier pigeon for the Military so he can win the heart of his sweetheart.

Superman has to thwart wartime saboteurs tampering with things at the Metropolis Munitions Plant...who have captured Lois Lane and loaded her into a torpedo!