We're the Goody Goody Monkeys every place we go.
Never have we gone astray,
Don't believe in being gay,note
Being good's the only thing we know; so,
Speak no hi-de, see no hi-de, hear no hi-de-ho! note
Not a single wild oat will we sow!
We're so very very good, wouldn't be bad if we could,
Speak no evil, see no evil, hear no evil, no!"
"Good Little Monkeys" was the tenth cartoon short in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Happy Harmonies series produced (and in this case directed) by Harman and Ising. It starred the Monkey Morality Pose simians of the title and their unforgettable theme song. The short, which premiered on April 13, 1935, followed the then common pattern of various inanimate objects, such as toys, ornaments, advertisements, or book illustrations, coming to life and frolicking while no humans are around.
Synopsis:
Out of a copy of Dante's Inferno comes a red devil, creeping up on the Goody Goody Monkeys, who sing of their unshakable morals. The devil rings a gong, to summon various book characters, etc., to make merry, and invites the monkeys to join the fun; they indignantly refuse, until he begins to tempt them with peanuts — to a Latin rhythm. The monkeys follow the peanut trail, until the devil summons a scantily clad belly dancer, to the prudish primates' horror. As the fiend attempts to seize the monkeys, all the other characters join together to rescue them; the devil dives back into the Inferno, and all cheer as the monkeys resume their places.
The cartoon was popular enough to inspire two sequels: The first, Pipe Dreams (February 5, 1938), featuring the monkeys smoking their way into nicotine visions, and the second, Art Gallery (May 13, 1939), having the monkeys induced by the statue of the Emperor Nero to get drunk on lighter fluid (!) and burn down the gallery's painted "Rome" — and most of the other paintings besides.
Good Little Tropes:
- Aesop Amnesia: The little monkeys never do learn not to get involved with dangerous things/people.
- Animated Music Video: The point of the whole Harman and Ising series.
- Anthropomorphic Vice: The anthropomorphic cigars, cigarettes, and tobacco products from Pipe Dreams.
- Art Evolution: The monkeys are redesigned in the later shorts to look distinctly cuter, with a much more child-like appearance (and sound).
- Ash Face: A painting of three cherubs singing, turns into a painting of three black stereotypes singing "Swanee River" after being burned by fire.
- Barbie Doll Anatomy: Satan from Good Little Monkeys is completely naked with no dirty parts in sight.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Downplayed for the Monkeys. As they put it they "wouldn't be bad if they could" but when the Devil tries grabbing them they actually try to fight him off, pulling on his tail and hammering on his head. They aren't able to actually do much against him though and can only try to run away, needing the other book characters to save them.
- Booze Flamethrower: Kind of. In "Art Gallery" one of the monkeys becomes an impromptu lighter after accidentally imbibing lighter fluid, having a flame come out of his mouth every time he hiccups. The other monkeys use him as a flamethrower by having him stand in front of the lighter fluid dispenser while they pump it.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall
- Catchphrase Interruptus: From Pipe Dreams:Hobo Cigar: Who are ya, anyhow?
Monkeys: *simultaneous deep breath* We're the Goody Goody Monkeys everywhere we go...
Hobo Cigar: Yeah? What's so good about bein' good?- In Art Gallery, Nero interrupts the monkeys' theme song and sings a portion of it in a mocking tone. He is then joined by several portraits who each sing a portion of the song.
- Cerebus Syndrome: In Good Little Monkeys, The Devil tries to lure the monkeys into the inferno, but they are saved by all of the storybook characters and The Devil is chased back into his book. In Pipe Dreams, the monkeys smoke a pipe and have a wild nightmare involving dancing cigars and Mexican cigarettes. Art Galley has the monkeys helping Nero burn a portrait of Rome, destroying most of the portraits and statues in the process.
- Crocodile Tears: In "Art Gallery" Nero starts sobbing and crying about how the monkeys won't help a poor old man start a little fire in order to manipulate the monkeys into helping him. It works.
- Curious as a Monkey: Although the monkeys try to hew to their stated moral philosophy, their playful curiosity causes them to get into trouble in each short.
- Didn't See That Coming: Satan either awakens or summons forth people from storybooks in order to help him tempt the Good Monkeys into evil...but doesn't expect them to keep to the morality espoused in their stories. Thus when they elect to save the monkeys from his torments he's caught flat-footed. That's what he gets for judging books by their covers.
- Dirty Coward: The Devil was all too happy to try and get his grimy hands on the monkeys and even laughed at their efforts to get away from him but the second he's faced with real adversity from the other book characters he's quick to duck back into his book.
- Downer Ending: ''Art Gallery". The painting of Rome burns, as do most of the other art pieces within the museum. The short ends with Nero reveling in the destruction he's caused and the traumatized Good Monkeys re-assuming their position, all closing their eyes so they can't see the carnage unfolding around them as the fire burns on unchecked.
- Evil Sounds Deep: The Devil, complete with Evil Laugh ("Hahahahahahahaaaaaa — and haaa!")
- Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: In Pipe Dreams the Monkeys' visions are implied to be the result of underaged smoking. (Since these visions are actually rather entertaining, this may seem something of a
Broken Aesop.) - Indecipherable Lyrics: What are The Three Musketeers singing in the middle portion of the song in Good Little Monkeys?
- Mickey Mousing
- Monkey Morality Pose
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: One of The Three Cigars in Pipe Dreams is based on Ned Sparks, a dour cigar-chomping character actor of the 1930's; in Art Gallery, Cleopatra is Mae West, a Puritan is Ned Sparks, "The Song of the Lark" is popular portly singer Kate Smith, "Maestro" is conductor Leopold Stokowski, "Mammoth Cave" is comedian Joe E. Brown, "The Town Crier" is columnist Alexander Woolcott, the man whose collar is burned off is Herbert Hoover, and "Spirit of '76" are the Marx Brothers.
- Omnicidal Maniac: Nero wants to burn a painting of Rome down. It is assumed that since the other paintings have people living in them that the Rome painting does as well. And of course, Nero's thrilled when the fire spreads to all the other occupied paintings.
- Rotoscoping: Used on the nautch girl in Good Little Monkeys.
- Satan: A story version of him is the villain of Good Little Monkeys.
- "Shaggy Dog" Story: Art Gallery.
- Terrible Trio: The Three Cigars in Pipe Dreams.
- Villain Song: The Three Cigars have one in Pipe Dreams, and it's catchy enough to for Monkeys to start singing along.
