Down the Mississippi | 1920 | Animation, Short

Title: Down the Mississippi | 1920 | Animation, Short Director: Frank Moser. (imdb.com) Studio: Bray Productions. (en-academic.com) Starring: Bud and Susie. (drgrobsanimationreview.com) Release Date: July 25, 1920. (drgrobsanimationreview.com) Runtime: 5 minutes. (imdb.com) Format: Silent (English intertitles), black-and-white, 35mm, 1.33:1. (silentera.com) Country: United States. (filmpreservation.org) Language: Silent (English intertitles) Genres: Animation, Short, Adventure --- Summary: Two siblings, Bud and Susie, read Huckleberry Finn and drift into a dream of river adventure. In Bud’s reverie, the children raft down the Mississippi with their cat, tangling with fanciful river creatures and wilderness perils before the dream dissolves and everyday life returns. (imdb.com) The film blends simple gag animation with a child’s-eye sense of exploration, using the Mississippi as a backdrop for playful, imaginative incident rather than a literal Twain adaptation. (drgrobsanimationreview.com) --- Background: Down the Mississippi is an entry in Frank Moser’s Bud and Susie series, produced at Bray Productions and released in the Paramount screen-magazine pipeline during 1920–1921. Paramount had recruited Moser to supply these cartoons for its weekly magazine package; he would later co-found Terrytoons with Paul Terry in 1929. (filmpreservation.org) --- Trivia: Some sources date the short to November 9, 1919, when a Paramount Magazine issue containing Down the Mississippi was released; others list a standalone release on July 25, 1920. (silentera.com) The Bud and Susie series was produced by Bray Productions and circulated through Paramount’s magazines; at least twenty cartoons were made across 1920–1921. (en-academic.com) A version of the cartoon survives embedded in Paramount Magazine reels preserved and issued on home video; collectors have encountered it on DVD sets devoted to early Felix the Cat. (silentera.com) Director Frank Moser—celebrated for his speed at the drawing board—went on to co-found Terrytoons in 1929, a studio that became synonymous with economical cartoon production. (filmpreservation.org) Other entries in the series include The Jam Makers (1919) and Bud and Susie Join the Tecs (1920). (filmpreservation.org) --- Hashtags: DownTheMississippi BudAndSusie FrankMoser SilentFilm Animation BrayProductions ParamountMagazine 1920sCinema PublicDomain