lonesome-lenny
05-02-2007, 08:37 PM
NORWOOD was the debut novel by Arkansas humorist Charles Portis. Published in 1966, it would be one of just five novels the man would write. Portis is still alive, but hasn't published a book since 1990's uneven GRINGOS.
In NORWOOD, Portis makes an amusing (if eccentric) mention of Warner Brothers and Famous cartoons. This passage is characteristic of Portis' style of humor.
* * *
The book's protagonist, Norwood Pratt, has hitched a ride in a bread delivery truck. The driver gets to talking about animated cartoons:
"I like the Road Runner."
"Yeah, I do, too."
"I could watch that scutter for an hour."
"I believe I could too."
The bread man began to rumble with quiet laughter. "That coyote or whatever he is, a wolf or something, every time he gets up on a clift or somewhere with a new plan, why the Road Runner comes along on some skates or has him a new invention like a rocket or a big wrecker's ball and just busts that coyote a good one."
He laughed some more, then fell into repose. In a minute or two his face clouded with a darker memory. "Noveltoons are not any good at all," he said. "It's usually a shoemaker and a bunch of damn mice singing. When one of them comes on I get up and go get me a sack or corn or something."
They shimmied on down the road...
* * *
If your sense of humor runs into the off-beat, you may find Mr. Portis' books gut-bustingly funny. I recommend NORWOOD, the painfully funny THE DOG OF THE SOUTH, and his masterpiece, MASTERS OF ATLANTIS. Portis' biggest seller, TRUE GRIT, isn't a hilarious book, but is colorful, well-written, and compares favorably to Mark Twain's wit.
DOG OF THE SOUTH briefly mentions cartoons; while in Belize, the book's protagonist is awakened by "bouncy 1937 clarinet tootling," which comes from a Felix the Cat cartoon being screened elsewhere in the building. I suppose this would be one of the Van Beuren Felix cartoons. Mr. Portis, while obviously not an animation scholar, does seem to have fondness for cartoons.
Does anyone else know of other passages from novels that refer to classic cartoons?
In NORWOOD, Portis makes an amusing (if eccentric) mention of Warner Brothers and Famous cartoons. This passage is characteristic of Portis' style of humor.
* * *
The book's protagonist, Norwood Pratt, has hitched a ride in a bread delivery truck. The driver gets to talking about animated cartoons:
"I like the Road Runner."
"Yeah, I do, too."
"I could watch that scutter for an hour."
"I believe I could too."
The bread man began to rumble with quiet laughter. "That coyote or whatever he is, a wolf or something, every time he gets up on a clift or somewhere with a new plan, why the Road Runner comes along on some skates or has him a new invention like a rocket or a big wrecker's ball and just busts that coyote a good one."
He laughed some more, then fell into repose. In a minute or two his face clouded with a darker memory. "Noveltoons are not any good at all," he said. "It's usually a shoemaker and a bunch of damn mice singing. When one of them comes on I get up and go get me a sack or corn or something."
They shimmied on down the road...
* * *
If your sense of humor runs into the off-beat, you may find Mr. Portis' books gut-bustingly funny. I recommend NORWOOD, the painfully funny THE DOG OF THE SOUTH, and his masterpiece, MASTERS OF ATLANTIS. Portis' biggest seller, TRUE GRIT, isn't a hilarious book, but is colorful, well-written, and compares favorably to Mark Twain's wit.
DOG OF THE SOUTH briefly mentions cartoons; while in Belize, the book's protagonist is awakened by "bouncy 1937 clarinet tootling," which comes from a Felix the Cat cartoon being screened elsewhere in the building. I suppose this would be one of the Van Beuren Felix cartoons. Mr. Portis, while obviously not an animation scholar, does seem to have fondness for cartoons.
Does anyone else know of other passages from novels that refer to classic cartoons?