# Japanese cartoon: Spider and Ladybug (1943)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-cartoon-spider-and-ladybug-1943/527555>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [February 3, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-cartoon-spider-and-ladybug-1943/527555 "2010-02-03T17:56:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\
**Post date:** [February 3, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-cartoon-spider-and-ladybug-1943/527555/1 "2010-02-03T17:56:43Z")

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I was looking around for some info on the classic Japanese Spider and Ladybug cartoon (well, I think the Ladybug is Japanese, the Spider, not so much). Anyway, I found [this analysis on Japanese animation](http://www.quilts-club.com/animation/japanese1.html). I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that English is probably not his/her first language.  
(If I recall correctly, as the spider makes a hammock from his web, he’s singing something like “Who will sleep in my hammock, today.” Also, I think the translated title is more like “Ladybug and Tulip.”)

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**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\
**Post date:** [February 3, 2010, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-cartoon-spider-and-ladybug-1943/527555/2 "2010-02-03T22:38:03Z")

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Here is something IMDB called “spider and tulip”

> **[The Spider and the Tulip (Short 1943) ⭐ 6.7 | Animation, Short, Adventure](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163040/)**
>
> 16m

Here it is on Youtube:

[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EH1v4vkUBt8)

Hope that helps.

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**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2010, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-cartoon-spider-and-ladybug-1943/527555/3 "2010-02-04T00:51:40Z")

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Ha! I saw it on youtube a couple of years ago and loved it. I posted about it here, and got a bit razzed about promoting something which portrayed a “blackface” character.

Your idea is similar to mine: I think the spider represents foreigners, what with the blackface, the straw hat and all, and he’s threatening to the insularity of Japan.

It’s a brilliant cartoon, and the spider’s song is surprisingly haunting and beautiful, IMO. Thanks for reminding me of it; I’ll have to watch it again.

I don’t have time to search right at the moment, but I watched another classic Japanese cartoon on youtube recently. Search for “routing the tengu”. It’s not as good, but it’s certainly watchable.

ETA: Oh, yeah, and the film entitled something like “Momotaru and the divine sea warriors”, a piece of strange and mesmerizing wartime propaganda.