Walky Talky Hawky

Walky Talky Hawky
Production company	Warner Bros. Cartoons
Distributor	Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation
Release date	August 31, 1946
Run time	8:18
Starring	Mel Blanc
Producer(s)	Eddie Selzer
Music composed by	Carl W. Stalling
Story by	Warren Foster
Animation	Richard Bickenbach Arthur Davis Don Williams Cal Dalton
Director(s)	Robert McKimson
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Walky Hawky Talky is the two hundred and sixty-fifth Merrie Melodies theatrical short. It was released by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Vitaphone Corporation on August 31, 1946. It was written by Michael Maltese and directed by Robert McKimson.

A chickenhawk by the name of Henry is sent by his father to find a chicken. During his hunt, he comes across a blabbering rooster, who tricks him into thinking that a dog is a chicken.

Memorable quotes

Foghorn: You lose somethin', I say, you lose somethin', kid?
Henery: I'm a chickenhawk. I'm after my first chicken!
Foghorn: A chicken, eh? Well, I'm a horse, I say, I'm a horse myself!
(Foghorn imitates a horse trotting)
Foghorn: But I've seen a chick-, I SAY I've seen a chicken around here-, Pay attention sonny, somewhere.

Foghorn: Well, there's the foxy chicken. We'll just have, I SAY we just have to outsmart him!

Barnyard Dawg: Hubba, hubba, hubba! I'm no chicken! That's a chicken!
Foghorn: Don't you call m-, I say, don't you call me a chicken! You chicken!
Henery: Hubba, hubba, hubba, hubba!

Henery: One of those things, someone, I say, one of those things has got to be a chicken.

Characters

Legend
Character debut	Speaking debut	Ep. debut	No lines	Mentioned

In order of appearance:

Character	Actor
Poppa Hawk	Mel Blanc
Momma Hawk
Henery Hawk	Mel Blanc
Barnyard Dawg	Mel Blanc
Foghorn Leghorn	Mel Blanc

Locations

• Earth
  • United States
    • Henery's residence
    • Farm
      • Barnyard Dawg's residence

Objects

• Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies Comics
• Esquire magazine
• Watermelon
• Wooden plank

Vehicles

• None

Production

Development

After McKimson was promoted as a director in late 1944, Foster developed a story about a large rooster, a barnyard dog and the inclusion of Henery Hawk; the latter of which was originated by Chuck Jones for The Squawkin' Hawk.

Foghorn himself was directly inspired by Senator Claghorn, a radio character played by Kenny Delmar known for his "southern-fried" banters, and catchphrases such as "That's a joke, son!". The rooster's voice was also inspired by another character, known simply as The Sheriff, from the 1930s radio program Blue Monday Jamboree; although in a later interview, McKimson had likely misremembered the connection and referred to Claghorn as the personality basis for Foghorn. While Foghorn actually preceded Claghorn in his debut, the influence of the latter's personality was more pronounced in Foghorn in the cartoons following this short, particularly in his voice.

Filming

The dialogue was recorded on January 13, 1945.

It was copyrighted in 1946 (MCMXLVI).

Music

The music was composed by Carl W. Stalling.

Crew credits

• Layouts: Cornett Wood
• Backgrounds: Richard H. Thomas

Release

Dates are in order of release:

• United States: June 22, 1946 in theatres

Behind the scenes

• The title is a play on the words "walkie-talkie" and hawk".
• Foghorn's voice sounds more harsher in this short, resembling more on Yosemite Sam.
• Henery's line, line, "so round, so firm, so easy on fully packed," is a reference to a tagline for Lucky Strike cigarettes in the 1940s.

Home availability

• In the United States:
  • October 25, 2005: Warner Home Video releases Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3 on DVD.
  • November 14, 2006: Warner Home Video releases Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 4 on DVD.
  • August 12, 2014: Warner Home Video releases Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 3 on Blu-ray.