The cat came back the very next day . . . and brought all the Canadian cartoons along

[AmyJohn]

I asked a question in GQ about a week ago regarding this cartoon, and found that many Dopers have a penchant for the strange shorts from our friendly neighbors to the north. Any fans of Canadian cartoons out there?

[ShakeNBake]

I'd love to see a link. Does Doonsbury count? Or was that a different Trudeau?

[AmyJohn]

What kind of link did you have in mind? And Doonesbury counts if it's Canadian . . . and animated.

[StompyGodzilla]

I don't think Prime Minister Trudeau knocked off 'Doonesbury' in his spare time. :)

'Twas done by Gary Trudeau, American through and through. It originally started out as a strip for his college newspaper.

[lolagranola]

Well, my favourite cartoon short isn't my fave because of content. My (now deceased) grandmother who raised me used to love the cartoon short of the Log Drivers Waltz. Anyone remember it? Anyway, it reminds me of her.

[Fyodor]

lola, I've seen and enjoyed The Log Driver's Waltz. It's more a music video than a cartoon. It's a woman with a beautiful voice singing a ballad about the log drivers. When there's a dance in her little town the stuffy business men and government bureaucrats in their fancy suits all try to court her, but it's her log driving man, with his wiry muscles and feathery dancing feet (from spending his days dancing on logs on the river), that wins her heart by dancing her breathless.

It's very sweet and teaches a lesson. Girls, if you want to be happy throughout your long life, don't just go for the suit with the money. Keep an eye out for the hard working guys. They're healthy, happy, and strong, and they'll out-dance the suits any day of the week.

[Fyodor]

Also, the Log Driver's Waltz touches me because there really aren't any more log drivers.

In eastern Canada, many men used to leave the farms and go into the bush to cut logs all winter. They'd stack 'em on lakes and rivers and, in the spring, there'd be a log drive down the rivers to the mills. Tough manly work. Logs are all hauled by truck now, the lakes and rivers are a lot cleaner as a result, but a piece of history is gone.

I worked one of the last log drives when I was 18. I remember my gang, tough young guys. I put on 20 pounds that summer, all muscle. We'd run on the logs for hours - if you stop you sink. If you fell in the water you looked around for three logs lined up parallel, put two hands on the first one, with all your weight push it under water until your foot was on it, then very quickly push the next two under water with your hands while walking up and out of the water like going up steps, and in seconds you are up and out and running again. Sometimes you'd find a big log that you could stop and stand still on, and take a rest. But if your buddies saw you standing still they'd run over and join you and start a log rolling contest. A wonderful memory.

[Spoons]

Lolagranola, yes, I remember the Log Driver's Waltz very well. I spoke about it in the other thread, but I'll do the same here: it was Wade Hemsworth who originally write the song, and IIRC, Kate and Anna McGarrigle who sang it on the film.

"Their manners are fine but their feet are of clay," our young lady sings about the stuffy businessmen with whom her parents want her to dance, "so I'd much rather dance with a log driver." And she does, beautifully.

Great song, and terrific little film!

[Ukulele Ike]

Neat-o! The other "Cat Came Back" thread prompted me to buy the Leonard Maltin video anthology of Canadian animation, and I was just watching it with the kids this morning!

And I was thinking "Hey, I like 'The Log Driver's Waltz' even BETTER than 'The Cat Came Back!' Too bad it's only three minutes long."

Everyone realizes, right, that "dancing" is (ahem) a metaphor?

[lolagranola]

Uke, is there anything that isn't a metaphor when it comes to you??? :p

[rjk]

Damn, I must be psychic! (Or maybe psycho?) I was just talking about that one last night! Great tune and pretty good animation too!

I'd recommend any of the animations by Norman Mclaren (http://www.nfb.ca/FMT/E/real/M/McLaren_Norman.html). He did a lot of stuff for the National Film Board, including painting directly on the film. He did some live-action (more or less) as well; Pas de Deux might be one of the most beautiful short films ever.

[rocking chair]

g b trudeau of doonesbury and pierre trudeau are cousins. gb did mention his cuz in his strip while he was pm.

[Narile]

Al Zheimers, these days they go to the lakes/rivers and try to find logs that sank...big money in the old wood often.

[silent_rob]

I am a huge fan of Canadian cartoons. I'm Canadian and a film student, so I've seen a lot (I'm currently taking an animation class that also covers a lot of the history).

So, instead of listing off my favourites (which are way too numerous to name), I'll instead point you all in the direction of the wonderful book: Cartoon Capers, by Karen Mazurkewich. It is the definitive guide to Canadian animation. It's got everything on the different Winnipeg animators (which did "The Cat Came Back", "The Big Snit", and a lot of other great cartoons), a lot on Norman Maclaren, and everything since the beginning right up to when it was published in 1999. It's a great book, and I highly recommend it.

It's easy to get in Canada, and not as easy to get anywhere else. But if you can get it, do. It even has stuff on the more obscure stuff, and on the more experimental stuff (like the wonderful stuff from troubled filmmaker Arthur Lipsett).

[silent_rob]

Looking back at my post, I realize I used the word "stuff" way too much. I apologize to those who were offended. :D

[Ukulele Ike]

Originally posted by lolagranola
Uke, is there anything that isn't a metaphor when it comes to you??? :p

Have a cigar, sweetie...Now it's tomorrow morning and I can't get that damn song OUT OF MY HEAD.

And he goes twirling, twirling, down white water
That's how the log driver learns to step lightly
By twirling, twirling, down the river
The log driver's waltz pleases girls completely.

Yeah, you're right, no hanky panky THERE. He's just...driving his log. {whistles innocently}

[Feynn]

Here's the link and don't say I didn't warn you. This tune will be stuck in your head for days...

The Cat Came Back (http://www.nfb.ca/classics/)

[Suo Na]

The Log Driver's Waltz is my favourite, too, though I haven't seen it in years. Another of my favourites, the name of which I can't remember, is about people who harness dragons as a power source.

For those who don't know, these shorts were produced by the National Film Board of Canada, and more can be found from Feynn's link.

[Miss Gretchen]

Ahh, "The Big Snit"!!

"Alright teens, begin to saw!"


A classic of Canadian animation, no question.

[Olentzero]

Will you STOP SAWING the TABLE?!

I'm NOT! I'M NOT!! I'M NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!

:D

And now for another song to get stuck in CN toonfans' heads...

The black flies, the little black flies
Everywhere the black flies no matter where you go
I'll die with the black flies pickin' my bones
In north Ontar-I-O, I-O,
In north Ontar-I-O...

silent_rob, thanks for the book suggestion! Something to add to the christmas/birthday list.

[Gregor Samsa]

Winnipeggers (and specifically the Winnipeg Film Group) have put out some of the best short cartoons going.

I think my favourite is the one (whose title escapes me) where the guy is supposed to be practicing for the piano recital and keeps procrastinating. It's like they based it on my life.

[Poysyn]

Pipeliner - I LOVE that one! My sister and I caught it one night on late night Canadian cable. i think it's called "The Piano Lesson". All of those were great, The Big Snit, The Cat Came Back and The Piano Lesson. A friend of mine from Junior high's older siter was one of the animators who worked on "The Log Driver", another classic.

[Ukulele Ike]

Originally posted by Pipeliner
I think my favourite is the one (whose title escapes me) where the guy is supposed to be practicing for the piano recital and keeps procrastinating.

It's called "Getting Started," and it's also on the Maltin anthology tape.

[Gregor Samsa]

Thanks, Uke. Of course, you're right.

Poysyn: One of the advantages of living in a town like Winnipeg is that you can head down to the WFG (it's in the Market District - I think on Albert Street) and meet all these filmmakers. I used to date a member of the WFG, and I met all of these cats - the cartoonists, as well as John Paiz (I think that's misspelled), Guy Maddin, etc.

I don't know if that's interesting to anyone but me, but these people are quite down to earth. As far as artist-types go, anyway.

[Kamino Neko]

Originally posted by Olentzero
Will you STOP SAWING the TABLE?!

I'm NOT! I'M NOT!! I'M NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!

And don't shake your eyes at me!

The black flies, the little black flies
Everywhere the black flies no matter where you go
I'll die with the black flies pickin' my bones
In north Ontar-I-O, I-O,
In north Ontar-I-O...

I think that second line is 'Always the blackflies everywhere you go'. There's too many beats in your version.