Fright to the Finish is a Halloween-themed Popeye the Sailor cartoon from Famous Studios. It was directed by Al Eugster and William B. Pattergill. It features the voices of Jack Mercer as Popeye, Jackson Beck as Bluto and Mae Questel as Olive Oyl. It was released in the United States on August 27, 1954. It is a partial remake of the 1939 Popeye cartoon Ghosks is the Bunk.
In common with many cartoons based around the character of Popeye the Sailor, the plot involves Popeye and his bearded burly rival Bluto both competing for the attentions of the woman Olive Oyl. Bluto soon gains the advantage but Popeye wins out in the end. Unusually for a Popeye cartoon, at no point does the hero gain superhuman strength by eating a can of spinach.
The film is now in the public domain in the United States.
Plot
Title card.
It is Halloween night and a jack-o-lantern is sitting on the fence outside Olive Oyl's house. Inside the house, Olive is reading aloud to Popeye and Bluto, telling them a tale about witches from a book of ghost stories. Neither of the men are interested in the story. Both of them want the other to leave because they each want to spend time alone with Olive Oyl.
When Popeye comments that there are no such things as ghosts and hobgoblins, Bluto comes up with a plan to get rid of his rival and get close to Olive. Bluto announces that he should be in bed and leaves. Shortly afterwards, the doorbell rings. Olive opens the door to see a man with a detachable jack-o-lantern where his head should be, not realizing that it is Bluto in disguise. When Popeye goes to investigate, he finds a jack-o-lantern with a firecracker inside it. The firecracker explodes, causing Popeye to temporarily appear headless and further frightening Olive Oyl.
Disguised as a headless man, Bluto frightens Olive Oyl.
Bluto goes on to frighten both Olive Oyl and Popeye with a large marionette in the shape of a skeleton and makes a fake ghost by placing a sheet on top of a balloon. Standing outside one of the house's windows, Bluto bursts the balloon, causing the sheet to land on top of Popeye. When Olive Oyl lifts the sheet and sees Popeye underneath, she concludes that he must have been behind the various attempts to scare her and chases him out of the house.
Outside the house, Bluto drops the skeleton marionette in front of Popeye. He taunts his rival before returning to comfort Olive Oyl.
Popeye sneaks into Olive's house through an open bedroom window. He covers himself in vanishing cream, which causes him to become invisible. While invisible, Popeye pulls Bluto's hat over his eyes and makes inanimate objects appear to float in front of him. Bluto flees in terror. When Popeye reappears, Olive Oyl is glad to see him again and covers his face in kisses.
External links
- Fright to the Finish on the Internet Movie Database.
- Fright to the Finish on the Big Cartoon Database.
- Fright to the Finish on YouTube. The cartoon is in the public domain in the United States.