User Reviews

The title to this cartoon is the name of a song, sung by a parrot in this story. The message is that the bird is happy in the pet shop, where all his needs are met, so why deal with the outside world?

He sings that to Popeye after our "am-inal" (his pronunciation) lover gives the pet shop owner $500 to let loose all the dogs in the store. There are probably 20 to 30 of the mutts. There are some good sight gags with that transaction as the owner, Olive Oyl (who doesn't know Popeye in this story) tries to figure out how much all the pets are worth.

Anyway, in no time the free-running dogs are all rounded up by the dog catcher (do they still have them?) and Popeye has to dig into his wallet to save the pooches, once again. The irony is that he finally brings them all back to the store and the parrot says, "See, I told ya!," and then sings his song again. Even Popeye has to laugh, now.

No, it's not a very funny cartoon but it's extremely "cute" and likable and guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

HAVING COME TO an age where one can look back and recall incidents that occurred 20, 30 or even 50 years or more ago. Such it is as it concerns viewing these B & W as well as Colour POPEYE Cartoons. At first, we preferred to watch the latter-day product from the '40s and '50s; which were done by Paramount's Famous Studios and were filmed in color.

THOSE PRODUCED UNDER the banner of "Famous" Studios were what we had seen at the Movie Houses at the time. Little did we know that the "Famous" Productions were the output of an Animation Production Company that had been the object of a hostile takeover of the old Fleischer Animation Studios by Paramount Pictures.

AS TIME PASSED and we gained some more wisdom, we found ourselves greatly appreciating that those mainly Black & White earlier Popeye cartoons had heart & soul. Their story lines were greatly diverse and avoided falling into the rut that the Famous Studios' product did.

TYPICALLY, WE WOULD have a Famous production adhering to the following plot line or some slight variation. Popeye and Olive are together. Bluto comes into the picture and woos her away from the little guy. After forcing himself on her with that oft used phrase of, "Hey Babe, how 'bout a kiss?", Olive hollers, "Help! Help, Popeye!" Popeye eats spinach from his usual can from his sailor uniform and proceeds to beat the tar out of Bluto! OUR HONORED CARTOON Short of today is a prime example of the superiority of the previous product. LEAVE WELL ENOUGH ALONE has that bright outlook, high energy and gentle moral instruction imparted in a method that is definitely a non-heavy handed way.

AS OUR STORY opens, a very happy go lucky Popeye skips down the street, coming upon Olive Oyl's Pet Shop. Spotting the large number of puppies for sale in the window. Feeling empathy for the pups and all of the other canine creatures for sale being caged, he purchases all and immediately releases them.

HE THEN OBSERVES a sole parrot, who has not and will not leave his perch. Opting instead to remain an item of stock for sale, the bird croons the song, "Leave Well Enough Alone!" WE ARE QUICKLY transported to scenes of both pups and full grown dogs wandering on the streets, eating from garbage cans, being run out of a meat market and being captured by the local Dogcatcher. Popeye immediately realizes the folly of his actions and pays the fines for the unlicensed doggies and returns them to the Pet Store.

THE PICTURE CLOSES with Popeye enthusiastically singing that very same song that the Parrot had taught him earlier.

WE'RE NOT SURE if the lessons to be learned were in relation to the Great Depression or if it is a much more general bit of wisdom that is being imparted here. But we know for sure that its charmingly simple and straightforward style of presenting us with a story that is both an example of a morality parable and an example of entertainment and amusing cartoon short.

ANF IT'S ALSO the sort of film that we all will remember for many, many years to come.