Pepe Le Pew, Wild Cat, and the zoo-keeper.Director: CHARLES M. JONES. Story: Michael Maltese. Animation: Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Richard Thompson, Abe Levitow, Ken Harris. Lay-outs: Maurice Noble. Backgrounds: Phil De Guard. Voice characterizations: Mel Blanc. Music director: Carl Stalling. Color by Technicolor. Producer: Edward Selzer.Copyright 27 July 1953 (in notice: 1952) by The Vitaphone Corp. A Warner Bros "Looney Tunes" cartoon. U.S. release: 11 July 1953. 7 minutes.COMMENT: One of my favorite Pepes, this one is set against a marvellously stylized art deco background of the 1900 Paris Exposition. Our very introduction to Pepe here is a classic variation as he saunters on to the garden scene singing, "Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Pepe Boy, Pepe Boy, Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Charming Pepe." Director Jones uses an unusual number of inventive high angles to punch his visual points home, as our masochistic little hero chases a determinedly antagonistic wild cat from one delightfully period-flavored set-up to a final flight in an ever-ascending balloon. Even for non-Pepe fans, the artistic charm of this outing must surely prove irresistible.

Pepe le Pew is my favorite character along with Pussyfoot & Marc Anthony and Hubie & Bertie created by Chuck Jones, one of my favorite animators. This cartoon is one of my favorite Pepe cartoons, because of its animation and design.In this short, a female wildcat had escaped from the zoo during the Paris Exposition of 1900. To avoid the animal control, she use black and white paint to disguise herself as a "king-size skunk de pew". But the disguise attracts Pepe le Pew, who thinks the wildcat is a giant girl skunk. And here comes the running gag (if you would call it), in which before fleeing from the amorous skunk, the wildcat mauls him.You know, I had looked on Wikipedia, that Pepe's quote after he first gets mauled: "I like it," has caused this cartoon much controversy for implying sadomasochism. Of course I didn't know that until now. Overall, I thought it was a good cartoon and that is all I have to say, except that it is another favorite starring Pepe le Pew.

By 1953, the Pepe Le Pew formula is getting to be pretty set in stone--Pepe comes upon a cat that looks like a skunk and he spends the rest of the film ardently in pursuit. This time, it's a bit different due to the setting (the famous Paris Exposition) and because the cat is in this case an escaped wild cat from the zoo. The bottom line is that if you love Pepe Le Pew, you'll love this one as well. If not, then there are no major differences that will change your mind (though, if you DON'T like these cartoons, you are a real curmudgeon).One thing I particularly liked were all the terrible puns and plays on words when it comes to the French in the film. Again and again, terribly funny but bad puns abound when you see a sign in this short.

Before I start this review, I would like to point out two things:1) There are/could be spoilers in this review.2) This review is dedicated to the men behind Pepe Le Pew, Michael Maltese (who created Pepe's fractured French and died in 1981), Mel Blanc (who lent a very realistic Charles Boyer impression to Pepe and died in 1989), and the last of the great WB animators, Chuck Jones (who created the character and died this year). May God rest both of your souls, you oh-so-talented men. Okay, on to the review...To the eye of someone who still thinks that Looney Tunes are children's fare, this cartoon is nothing more than your typical Pepe cartoon (cat gets painted, Pepe mistakes the cat for a skunk, Pepe seduces cat, cat runs off, hilarity ensues until the end). To the eye of someone who knows that Looney Tunes cartoons are not kid-friendly, this cartoon has a twist from the usual Pepe routine. Instead of the cat running off, the cat (here shown as a wildcat from a French zoo) claws Pepe half to death whenever he's near her.This unabashed cartoon made my side hurt the first time I watched it (and proved that Looney Tunes is not for children). I was never this overcome with laughter since "Cow and Chicken" (and believe me, their innuendo could make a Le Pew cartoon AND a Simpsons episode blush). Cartoon Network does air this somewhat frequently. GRADE: A+