Bone Trouble 1940

Pluto, Lee Millar the hungry dog, wakes up in his dog house to find that the birds — including Bird Chirps, Clarence Nash — have eaten his dish. He hears a snore from the next-door fence, where Butch the Bulldog sleeps with a bone he guards closely. Quietly and with a careful paw, Pluto schemes to steal the bone without waking the big sleeper, sidestepping between trees and tires as he edges closer to his prize. After a couple of patient attempts, he finally grabs the bone and tucks it away, but the moment he does, an angry Butch roars to wakefulness and give chase.

What follows is a brisk, cartoonish pursuit that runs through town and straight into a deserted carnival. The chase threads past colorful signs and faded lights, lending the moment a playful, old-fashioned vibe. Along the way, the action brushes past posters of a strongman and Belly Dancer, Elvia Allman, adding a hint of vaudeville atmosphere to the scene. The two fugitives race onward until Pluto slips into the Tunnel of Love ride, where the tables briefly turn and the pursuer loses sight of him.

Pluto reappears only after a moment of misdirection inside a hall of mirrors, a maze of reflective panels that multiply his image. In each pane, Pluto’s face morphs into a different animal shape, turning the moment into a playful, mischievous game. The mirrored reflections keep Butch guessing as Pluto toys with the maze, using the trickery to stay one step ahead. After a tense pause, Pluto makes a decisive move—he uses a set of mirrors to startle Butch, winks at his own reflected likeness, and then exits with the coveted bone, leaving the Bulldog’s chase behind in a trail of glimmering echoes.