A Tale of Two Kitties (1942) User Reviews

Spoofing Abbott & Costello, And Introducing 'Tweety'

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 11 November 2007]

A takeoff on Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, famous comedians of the classic era, we have two cats: "Babbit" and "Catstello" just trying to survive and find food, like climbing a very tall tree for a bird snack, if they can get it. That little bird turns out to be "Tweety," the little yellow (later on) canary making his Looney Tunes debut.

Actually, more than half of this cartoon features Tedd Pierce and Mel Blanc imitating the two comedians. They are far more scenes than the little bird but the best scenes are the ones with the little bird high up in his nest. Tweety is naked - no feathers. It's kind of weird, being skin color all over. It's like he's just a tiny baby that has been recently hatched. Anyway, he won't put up with a cat trying to get him - this is one strong little "boid."

"Catstello" can get a little too loud and abrasive (Blan was never subtle with his voices!) but otherwise this was a fun cartoon and interesting Tweety's start in animated films.

I thought the best thing about the cartoon was the direction by Bob Clampett. There are some great "camera" angles in here and it's drawn cleverly in many spots.

Tweety introduces that famous "putty tat" line...

[Doylenf · 7/10 · 22 February 2008]

This is one of the better Warner Bros. cartoons of the era ('42), with two cats patterned after Abbott and Costello (Babbitt and Catstello), with Abbott trying to get Costello to pry a teeny bird (who turns out to be Tweety Bird), out of his nest.

The gimmicks Abbott uses to get Costello launched into space are hilarious, each one more clever than the one before. This leaves little time to devote to Tweety Bird, but this is Tweety's first film and he doesn't look quite like the finished product that he became several cartoons later.

The usual high standard of animation is present, along with the character voices supplied by Mel Blanc (Catstello and Tweety) and Tedd Pierce (Babbit).

Enertaining Tweety cartoon

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 16 January 2010]

At 17, I still enjoy Looney Tunes, and a Tale of Two Kitties is no exception. It is not a favourite by all means, but it is fun to watch and a funny takeoff of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. With the exception of an odd-looking Tweety (as if he had just hatched), the animation is fine. The backgrounds are nice in particular and the camera angles are clever. The music is very good, and the humour is all intact and well timed. I particularly loved the "this little piggy went to market" bit, reminded me of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

The voice acting is commendable. While Mel Blanc slightly overdoes it as Catstello, he does a stellar job as Tweety, who is just as sweet, funny and likable as he is now. Strictly speaking, he is quite bad ass as well. Plus Ted Pierce does well as Babbit in a good grouchy straight talking impression. All in all, it is a lot of fun, not the best Looney Tunes cartoon, but recommended. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Abbott, Costello and Tweety

[Michael_Elliott · 29 March 2016]

A Tale of Two Kitties (1942)

*** (out of 4)

Babbit and Catstello are two cats who are hungry and find their chance at food in the small bird Tweety. What they don't know is that Tweety is a rather smart fellow who has enough fight in him to defend himself.

I must admit that I was a little shocked to see how much of a wink to Abbott and Costello this Warner short was. The fact that it was a homage wasn't too uncommon but it's rather strange that Warner would pay so much respect to a comedy group that wasn't with them. With that said, the introduction to Tweety was certainly a winner and it's easy to see why he'd eventually have his own series. The Catstello cat was actually a great copy of Costello and I especially loved that child-like nature that they gave him. I thought the studio did a terrific job at making this cat just like the real Lou Costello and it certainly added a lot of fun. There's even a very fun joke aimed at the Hayes Office.

Fundamental Cruelt

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 10 April 2018]

Warner Brothers often used caricatures of Hollywood stars in their cartoons. Here we have a pair of cats who are doing Abbott and Costello. I was never that fond of Bud Abbott because he always came across as a cruel man. Not just a straight man. Here the Costello cat is subjected to the nastiness of his partner and believes he is at fault. There is one element of significance here. This is the offering where Tweety Bird first appears. He is every bit as formidable as he ever becomes. He does look a little anemic, however.

a more sadistic bird thou shalt never find

[lee_eisenberg · 10/10 · 2 March 2007]

In this day and age, we have seemingly come to interpret Tweety Bird as "cute". In his first appearance, he was nothing like that; quite the opposite, he was a bad-ass. In "A Tale of Two Kitties", wandering felines Babbit and Catstello (spoofing Abbott and Costello) find a bird's nest. Grouchy, straight-talking Babbit sends the nervous Catstello up to get the bird, only the tiny avian - whose name isn't actually identified - proves to be the nastiest mother ever. There's naturally an anvil gag.

It's just great to see how the guys behind the Looney Tunes weren't afraid to show anything that they wanted. Definitely one to see.

With its Victory Gardens, Air Raid Marshals, and Bombings . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 12 July 2015]

. . . it's virtually impossible to view A TALE OF TWO KITTIES as anything other than a WWII allegory. With their willingness to invade the domain of an apparently defenseless neighbor, coupled with their use of seemingly overwhelming high-tech force when in their Blitzkreig Attack Mode (not to mention Babbit's condescending air of hubris), the cats of the title obviously represent Hitler's Nazi minions (S.S. storm troopers, by their colorization). Tweety Bird, ensconced in its Island of the Sky, plays the part of England. Though taken somewhat unaware at first (the Neville Chamberlain portion of the allegory), it doesn't take Tweety long to get on a solid War Footing, ready to ward off any ploy exercised by its nefarious feline enemies. Whether service member or civilian, a viewer's morale gets a giant boost from seeing the hardly defenseless bird triumphing again and again over an Ultimate Evil. Who needs AVENGERS when Tweety's around?

masterpiece comedy

[Quinoa1984 · 10/10 · 30 April 2016]

Somehow Bob Clampett cartoons were among the first I can remember seeing as a kid - they were the ones from the early days of the Warner brothers animation - and often they were on VHS tapes that even in the late 80's you could buy relatively cheaply as compilations. This involves a very anxious climb up a telephone pole for Catstello as Babbit is down below rooting him on (I think even as a kid it's evident who Mel Blanc is voicing, hint, it's the one who sounds like Daffy when he's exasperated).

This is fully of fantastic visual comedy and plenty of character-driven humor; it's "safe" for kids, don't get nervous parents about early Looney Tunes cartoons being too "edgy" (and even if it was who cares) - but it's more than simply a spoof of Abbott and Costello. It's its own brand of wild humor all about tensions and suspense and if the mission to go up that damn pole will work. I love it and think about it often, the kind of characterizations you see as a child and stays with you for the rest of your life. In that sense it's as essential as learning scripture for a Christian as a tot!

First Tweety Cartoon

[Markc65 · 10/10 · 28 June 2001]

This is the cartoon where Clampett first introduced Tweety. He is a funnier and much more aggressive character here. His design is slightly different from the later Tweety everyone remembers. He looks more like a bird that has just been hatched; tiny, featherless and colored a pinkish hue. The actually stars of the cartoon, though, are a couple of cat caricatures of Abbot and Costello. "Babbit" tries to use "Catstello" to catch Tweety for himself. The cats are very appealing as characters, the timing of the gags is crisp and the dialogue is very clever. This cartoon also marks the beginning of Clampett's breaking away from a more literal style of animation to a more expressive, cartoonier one.

Tale of "BABIT!", A

[TheMan3051 · 9/10 · 12 November 2002]

Soon after Tweety is hatched he is attacked by two dumb but HILARIOUS cats that are made to resemble Abbot and Costallo.

This short directed by Bob Clampett is an HILARIOUS short packed with the debut of Tweety! The short is filled with great gimmicks and outstanding voice work by Mel Blanc.

4(****)out of 4(****)stars

TURN OFF THOSE LIGHTS!!!!

Potential for more

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 12 May 2016]

"A Tale of Two Kitties" is another Warner Bros cartoon from the days of World War II. It runs for 6.5 minutes and features the usual suspects who worked on this film (Clampett, Foster, Blanc, Pierce). The most interesting thing is that we have cat versions of Abbott and Costello here and I really wish the focus could have been more on them. Instead, it is all about the gadgets and of course about Tweety (not yet yellow) prevailing. Shame. This was definitely a missed opportunity. There are a couple solid moments, but in the end it is just another fairly mediocre cartoon that could have been a lot more interesting. a missed opportunity. Thumbs down.

Hey, Babbott, weren't WE supposed to be the stars in this picture?

[slymusic · 16 May 2011]

"A Tale of Two Kitties" is a very good and very wild Warner Bros. cartoon directed by Bob Clampett. It attempted to cash in on the popularity of Abbott & Costello (caricatured by felines), but when a certain little devil of a baby bird uttered the phrase "I tawt I taw a putty tat!", guess what happened!

My favorite scenes from "A Tale of Two Kitties": Babbott (voiced by writer Tedd Pierce) tells Catstello (voiced by the "Man of a Thousand Voices" Mel Blanc) to give him the bird; a close-up on Catstello allows him to take the audience into his confidence in regards to censorship. Tweety (Blanc again) does his famous bit about running out of pitties. And Carl W. Stalling did a great job composing & arranging the music score for this film: "Rock-a-Bye Baby" is heard as Catstello slides down a stilt into Babbott's arms; "Someone's Rocking My Dream Boat" as Catstello literally springs into the air, to be attacked by the mischievously smiling Tweety; "I'll Pray for You" in the beginning of the film as Catstello asks about the itsy-bitsy bird; and "California, Here I Come" as Catstello flies upward eating an apple, following an explosion of TNT.

There's only one piece of criticism I have for "A Tale of Two Kitties", and it is an unusually rare piece of criticism for the outstanding vocal talent of Mel Blanc. As much as I love hearing all his vocal characterizations in the Warner Bros. cartoons, I believe he overacts his role as Catstello in this film.

Still funny after all this time.

[jack-260 · 10/10 · 27 October 2000]

Actually, the response phrase, "I did! I taw a puddy tat!" WAS included. It was clever how the filmmakers got around the Hayes office to include the line about Catstello wanting to give Babbet "the bird". A solid 8 of 10.

Tweetie Pie's first appearance - and Sylvester is not included.

[Mightyzebra · 8/10 · 15 July 2008]

The cats included instead are Babbit and Castello, spoofs on people called Bud Abbot and Lou Castello. Tweetie Pie is a lot different from the Tweetie Pie we know today, in this episode the bird has more of a mean streak and is not yellow. The two cats are very entertaining, Castello being a plump, cowardly cat who receives most of the action and Babbit is a braver, more grown-up cat.

I quite like this Looney Tunes episode because it is funny and Tweetie Pie does a good job in his first appearance. The only things here that bothered me were the references to WWII at the time, Castello pretends to be a Spitfire (he has a large wooden plank around him that resemble wings) and he is shot at. The way he falls to the ground is surprisingly disturbing.

The plot is similar to Tweetie Pie and Sylvester plots, Tweetie Pie sees a putty tat trying to eat him and he makes sure that he does not become breakfast, lunch or dinner. In this episode, Tweetie Pie is trying to make sure he is not eaten by Castello, who is hungry. Unfortunately, Castello is not finding his job easy at all...

I recommend this is anyone who likes Tweetie Pie and to anyone who does not mind references to WWII in a cartoon. Enjoy "A Tale of Two Kitties"! :-)

I Thaught I Saw A Putty Cat

[mirosuionitsaki2 · 10/10 · 26 July 2007]

Ah, I love the fat cat and the skinny cat, they're funny and reminds me of two classic comedians, but one of them died and the skinny one was depressed. I don't remember who they were. I think this was a parody of them. Tweety, who in this cartoon is known as Orson by this cartoon's developers, is sleeping peacefully in a nest and two cats are trying to capture Orson. His cute appearance is just an illusion for he can be quite a tough bird to catch. Many attempts have been tried but they all didn't work.One of the cats say, "If the Hays Office only let me, I'd give them the boid." Which means the middle finger. Very funny.Also, I thought the anvil accident was funny when the hole caused by the anvil sucked up everything. Haha.

The First Time For "I Tawt I Taw A Puddie Tat"???

[donzilla · 12 September 2000]

As the two cats struggle to retrieve Tweety from the nest high in a tree, each ploy is designed by Babbit and carried out by his dupe, Catstello. At one point Tweety says his characteristic "I tawt I taw a puddie tat!" This is possibly the first time he used the legendary line. But in this episode it is not joined by the response, "I did! I taw a puddie tat!"