Who Killed Who? is a 1943 cartoon directed by Tex Avery.
Summary[]
In a parody of whodunit stories combine with surreal moments, a detective investigate the murder victim while trying to figure out who done it.
Plot[]
The short begin with a live action cold opening where a host explained a murder mystery story base on criminals records, which later changed into a animated scene where inside the mansion the victim (while sitting in his chair with the neon words "The Victim" blinking on and off on the back of the chair) is reading a book near the fireplace as he is terrified upon reading the book entitled "Who Killed Who, From the cartoon of the same name" and explain to the audience that like the book he'll be killed. Just then a note with a blade attach to it that reads "YOU WILL DIE AT 11:30" while he said he can't die at that time, a smaller note with a smaller blade appeared saying "P.S. OK WE'LL MAKE IT 12:00"
Just then the clock began to tick all the way to midnight (while the ringing play the notes of the funeral march) as a skeleton bird appears and explain that the gun shot will announce it to be 12:00 AM, as a gun (which is revealed to be a large gun that the killer had to use two hands to handle it) appears and the killer shot the victim, who after being shot stopped himself and place a mattress on the floor but only to fall the other way and died as a sheet appeared out of nowhere and covered the victim.
Just then The Detective arrived and told everybody to stay where they are (including a man who left his seat as the detective whack him on the head) and began to investigate the body. First he tries to take a picture of the decease, only for him to be brought back to life and pose for the photo as he became dead again, which surprise the detective as he looked under the sheet only for the victim to come back again and told him not to be nosy and return to be dead again.
Later in the studies The Detective called all the suspect; the chauffer, the maid and the butler (who all has the same facial structure and bags under their eyes) as the detective told them that when he turn off the lights then suspect will place the murder weapon on the table but when he did he saw that instead of the one weapon it was a arsenal of weapons and told them he's going to do it again but when he did not only did the weapons disappeared but the servants, along with everything in the studies.
Later when he heard noises behind a curtain, the detective looked into it only to spot a gun and the killer but instead of bullets, he was hit by water. Then take out the torchlight and look at the picture but he saw a lady on the picture. Just then the rectangle door hole open and reveals two eyes but the detective looks at the door. The killer closes the rectangle door hole but the two eyes knocks onto the door and the rectangle door hole open again and two eyes goes to the rectangle door hole and close. The detective hold the hunter gun to tells to open the door while he count to three but the door open and reveals the ghost and count to twenty while the detective shrinks and as his gun droops down like limp spaghetti but the detective runs to the door and shuts the door. The ghost is walking while he laugh. Suddenly he saw the mouse and jumps onto the chair and scream revealing his legs. He covers them with a look of shock and embarrassment on her eyes but the ghost turn red. The detective opens the door and reveals the man cover in bandages but the detective look shock and run away causing the men collapse one by one but one of the man remove the bandage and say I am it’s t it and continues the man collapses one by one. So the Detective hide behind the wall and see the trap door closing and he open the trap door and see inside so he throw the vase inside the hole but the vase teleport and crashes into him so he pull out the hat causing his body to shake.
Availability[]
- (1988) VHS - Tex Avery's Screwball Classics
- (1999) LaserDisc - Tex Avery's Screwball Classics
- (1993) LaserDisc - The Compleat Tex Avery, Side 1
- (2006) DVD - Presenting Lily Mars
- (2019) Streaming - Boomerang
- (2020) Blu-ray - Tex Avery Screwball Classics: Volume 1 (restored)
Notes[]
- This is only short where the music was scored by Bernard Katz, while Scott Bradley did the opening title music as well as the closing sequence where the ending title cards appear.
- This is also one of three shorts from the MGM cartoon studio where the music was not composed by Scott Bradley. The others are "The Missing Mouse", composed by Edward H. Plumb, and "Wanted: No Master", composed by Bert Lewis.
- The police inspector was planned to have a cameo in the 1988 Disney/Touchstone film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but was later dropped for unknown reasons.
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