The Night Watchman (1938)
The Night Watchman (1938), directed by Chuck Jones, starring Mel Blanc and Margaret Hill-Talbot.
score
Synopsis
A little cat must take his sick father's place as night watchman, but is bullied by a tough mouse and his gang, leaving the rest of the mice free to eat all the food and stage a musical floor show.
- Chuck JonesDirector
- Treg BrownEditing
- Henry BinderProducer
- Leon SchlesingerProducer
About the film
The Night Watchman is a 1938 American animated comedy short film directed by Charles Jones. The short was released on November 19, 1938. It is part of the Merrie Melodies series and the first to be directed by Jones, who replaced Frank Tashlin and would become one of the series' most prominent directors. It was re-released as a "Blue Ribbon" reissue in 1946.
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The Night Watchman is a 1938 American animated comedy short film directed by Charles Jones. The short was released on November 19, 1938. It is part of the Merrie Melodies series and the first to be directed by Jones, who replaced Frank Tashlin and would become one of the series' most prominent directors. It was re-released as a "Blue Ribbon" reissue in 1946.
Plot
A cat who watches over the kitchen at night in pursuit of mice gets sick, so he requests that his clumsy son Thomas take over for one night. Thomas makes his way to the kitchen after breaking various objects, where he meets a gangster rat, who realizes that Thomas is of no threat when he innocently tells them of his father's situation. He and his friends immediately devour food in humorous manner.
Thomas fails to make his presence known and scare away the rats, even mockingly made to assist a rat while he cooks and serve a steak to the gangster rat. The rats perform a musical routine, but are disrupted by Thomas, who tries to stop them, but is pummeled backwards. His conscience convinces him to muster the courage and beat up the rats. He uses a plunger to force the gangster rat into returning a button he stole earlier in the film.
Home media
The Night Watchman is available with original titles restored on Disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 4 DVD set.
Voice cast
Mel Blanc as Hoodlum Rats, Thomas Cat, Thomas's father
Margaret Hill-Talbot as Thomas Cat
The Paul Taylor Group as the singing rat quartet
References
External links
The Night Watchman at IMDb
Text from The Night Watchman (1938 film) on Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Night_Watchman_(1938_film)
Trivia
- It premiered on November 18, 1938, a Friday.
- This film's quiz has 8 questions — enough to play more than once without repeats.
Production
- StudiosLeon Schlesinger Productions
- CountriesUnited States
- LanguagesEnglish
- StatusReleased
Cast
Mel Blanc
Tough Mice (voice) Quiz about this movie
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Tags
Crew
- Chuck Jones Director
- Treg Brown Editing
- Henry Binder Producer
- Leon Schlesinger Producer
- Carl W. Stalling Original music
- Tedd Pierce Story
Questions about this film
What is The Night Watchman about?
The Night Watchman: A little cat must take his sick father's place as night watchman, but is bullied by a tough mouse and his gang, leaving the rest of the mice free to eat all the food and stage a musical floor show.
Who directed The Night Watchman?
The Night Watchman was directed by Chuck Jones in 1938.
Who stars in The Night Watchman?
The cast of The Night Watchman includes Mel Blanc and Margaret Hill-Talbot.
How long is The Night Watchman?
The Night Watchman runs for 7 minutes, or 0h07.
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Page updated on 09/15/2026.
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