The Honey-Mousers (1956)

by Linda Kay

Directed by: Robert McKimson

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this film!

Synopsis: The first of several Warner Bros. Looney Tunes cartoon shorts based on the popular television series The Honeymooners. The mice Ralph Crumden and Ned Morton are excited when new tenants move into their vacant apartment but not so thrilled when they realize the people own a cat.

Cartoon Cat: The short begins with Ralph coming home with only a small portion of cheese and his tail caught in a trap. Ned arrives to tell him and Alice that new people are moving in. Ralph notices the people’s state-of-the-art refrigerator but not the rough-looking orange cat with one red eye and one black eye being released from a carrier (this same cat would appear in the second Honey-Mousers entry called Cheese It, the Cat! and is sometimes credited as being named Sam, although Sam Cat is a character who appeared in some Sylvester and Tweety cartoons and is not similar to this cat).

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon mouse Ned at mousehole as orange cat climbs out of carrier

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon mouse Ned at mousehole as orange cat approaches

Later Ralph goes out to get food and comes back beat up and shivering, explaining there is a cat. Ned looks out the mousehole and claims he doesn’t see anything while the cat’s paw appears with claws unsheathed and cuts him into pieces.

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon mouse Ned being sliced to pieces by cat's claws

Next Ned suggests Ralph wear a tomato can to sneak out but the cat’s paw just flattens it.

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat's paw flattening tomato can

Ned and Ralph then build a Trojan poodle and use it to travel across the kitchen to the refrigerator. The cat passes by and sees them stealing food, so sneaks up behind the “dog” and climbs inside, giving Ned and Ralph quite a surprise.

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat looking startled in doorway

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat creeping across kitchen floor

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat climbing into back of Trojan poodle

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat's paw reaching out of Trojan poodle to grab Ned

The cat then chases them back to the mousehole and dives after the pair but misses.

The Honey-Mousers - cartoon orange cat laying on floor next to mousehole

Alice asks Ralph why he doesn’t just get rid of the cat and volunteers to do it herself. She storms out and confronts the cat, backhand slapping the surprised kitty before telling the feline to “Beat it! Scram!”