- Another entry in the "books come alive" subgenre, with possibly more books coming alive than any other. We begin with some musical numbers, notably the various pages of Green Pastures all joining in on a song, The Thin Man entering The White House Cookbook and exiting much fatter, and The House of Seven (Clark) Gables singing backup to Old King Cole. The Three Musketeers break loose, become Three Men on a Horse, grab the Seven Keys to Baldpate, and set the Prisoner of Zenda free. They are soon chased by horsemen from The Charge of the Light Brigade and Under Two Flags and beset by the cannons of All Quiet on the Western Front. All this disturbs the sleep of Rip Van Winkle, who opens Hurricane so that everyone is (all together now) Gone with the Wind.—Jon Reeves <jreeves@imdb.com>
- The setting is a library during the night, when characters from its books come alive and interact. The sound of cuckoo clock opens the narrative. A town crier delivers an introduction and explains the film's premise.
The first characters to emerge from their books are Mr. Hyde, Fu Manchu, the Phantom of the Opera, and Frankenstein's monster. They all have monstrous forms, and they roar in unison. But then they cheerfully dance to the tune of "Gavotte. by François-Joseph Gossec. A crowd of mostly unnamed characters cheers the quartet's performance.
The next book to be introduced is "The Good Earth". It features a globe-headed character who is saying prayers by his bedside. The scene shifts to the Invisible Man, who is dancing. His dance is followed by the dance of Topper the ghost.
The scene shifts to the cover of the book "The Thirty-Nine Steps". A caricature of Bill "Bojangles" Robinson appears and starts dancing down the steps. Followed by the cover of the book "So Big". It features a caricature of Greta Garbo with unusually large feet.
The next book to appear is "The Green Pastures". A big band consisting of African-American angels and led by a caricature of Cab Calloway start performing music, to the tune of "Swing for Sale" . Following them is a solo singing performance by Heidi.
A thin man emerges from the book "The Thin Man", looking like a caricature of William Powell . He enters "The White House Cook Book", and has a meal off-screen. By the time he emerges, the thin man has gained weight. His posterior appears much larger than before.
The next singing number opens with the cover of an art book, featuring Whistler's Mother. The woman whistles, and then three young girls appear on the cover of "Little Women". They are caricatures of Jane Withers, and start singing as a trio. Their song is joined by three young boys who emerge from the cover of "Little Men". They are caricatures of Freddie Bartholomew.
The group is soon joined by a portly version of Old King Cole, who starts singing in a deep voice. He is drawn as a caricature of Eugene Pallette. On the cover of "The House of the Seven Gables" appear seven versions of Clark Gable, who perform as a chorus to Old King Cole's song. From the cover of "Bulldog Drummond" appears a drumming bulldog. Literally a bulldog who plays the drums and joins the group' s musical performance,
The scene shifts to scientist Louis Pasteur, who is drawn as a caricature of Paul Muni. He is preoccupied with mixing chemicals in his test tubes, The chemicals eventually explode and kill him. Pasteur is then seen as an angel, on the cover of the book "Seventh Heaven".
A brief scene introduces the book "Mutiny on the Bounty". The character on its cover is Captain William Bligh, who is drawn as a caricature of Charles Laughton. All the music and noise wakes up Rip Van Winkle, who complains about how noisy Old King Cole is. Rip takes the scissors from his neighbor, the Valiant Little Tailor. He uses them to cut off some of the woolly-looking hair of his other neighbor, Uncle Tom. He uses the hair as makeshift ear plugs, and tries to get back to sleep.
The Three Musketeers (caricatures of the Ritz Brothers) perform a rendition of the film's title song. From the novel "Drums Along the Mohawk", a Native American drummer accompanies their tune. Nearby Emily Host (a parody of etiquette writer Emily Post), scolds Henry VIII for his poor table manners. The King seemingly ignores her, as he focuses on devouring a feast.
On the cover of the book "Mother India", an Indian snake charmer performs with his snakes. Rip Van Winkle can not sleep with all this noise. He again tries to cut off some of Uncle Tom's hair. An enraged Uncle Tom punches Rip in the face. Uncle Tom takes Rip's scissors and cuts off part of Rip's long beard as a trophy.
Wealthy businessman Diamond Jim Brady appears, with money in his hands. He is drawn as a caricature of Edward Arnold, and pitches a mortgage payment plan. The scene returns to the Native American drummer, who is playing a louder tune. Nearby, Henry VIII continues to enjoy his feast. Emily Host has forgotten her good manners, and has joined him in devouring large quantities of food.
The scene shifts to Oliver Twist, who is twisting his legs while listening to the music. On the cover of "So Red the Nose" , appears a red nosed W. C.. Fields. Then the Pied Piper of Hamelin performs a jazz tune, while followed by a herd of ecstatic mice.
The scene returns to the Three Musketeers, who have decided to rescue the Prisoner of Zenda. They take a horse from the book "Three Men on a Horse" and take a set of keys from the book "Seven Keys to Baldpate". They release the prisoner, but Aladdin tries to alert others about the jailbreak. A Musketeer starts punching Aladdin to silence him, leaving the man with a black eye.
While the Three Musketeers and the former prisoner attempt to escape, they are observed by an informer (drawn as a caricature of Victor McLaglen). He whispers news of the escape to the Little Boy Blue (renamed to the "Little Boy Blew") . The boy blows a trumpet and sounds the alarm. In response, the Light Brigade appears and starts chasing the Musketeers,.
Robinson Crusoe uses a firearm to shoot at the Musketeers, though he misses his target. A cannon emerges from the cover of "All Quiet on the Western Front", and starts firing at the Musketeers. Camel riders emerge from the book "Under Two Flags" and starts chasing the Musketeers. Other (unnamed) characters join the new battle.
The battle noises prevent Rip Van Winkle from sleeping. He opens the book "Hurricane", and a real hurricane emerges. The hurricane sweeps away most of the combatants, as the book "Gone With the Wind" appears. With the gathering over, Rip muzzles the cuckoo of the cuckoo clock and falls asleep. The film ends.
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