I was searching for this very motif to find its origin. I came across a march written by Mayhew L. Lake from the year 1912, aptly entitled "The Joker."(I found it here at https://www.bandmusicpdf.org/catalogsearch/result/?q=joker). The whole song is built around this 5-note motif. Based on the title, I assume that it was well-known at this time adding to the humor. Now I wonder if M.L. Lake composed this theme or borrowed it for his composition.
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All Categories > Name that Tune! > Melody forum > Private Snafu theme, cartoon gag theme: 'What a Sucker!'
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Found an answer elsewhere. This is a very old musician's gag theme that goes with the lyrics 'You're a horse's ass.' It may have it's roots in barbershop quartet (kind of like 'Shave and a haircut...six bits). BTW, where did that come from?
Someone told me 'Horse's ass' dates back to vaudeville, or possibly before. I have found one reference to it in a Dixieland jazz discussion group, where one musician played it to another across a lake, and got an identical reply.
Someone told me 'Horse's ass' dates back to vaudeville, or possibly before. I have found one reference to it in a Dixieland jazz discussion group, where one musician played it to another across a lake, and got an identical reply.
I'm just guessing, but much of the earlier cartoon music was based upon themes from old vaudeville shows. That could be your starting point. I know the one you are talking about. I also heard it, mostly in the old Warner Bros. cartoons. I don't think it was a muted trumpet. It was a cup or hat over the trumpet, a technique also used in vaudeville.
Sorry I can't be more helpful.
Sorry I can't be more helpful.
search Musipedia for this
This five-note melodic sequence I hear over and over in cartoons of the thirties and forties from many different studios. It was used in the opening of many Private Snafu cartoons, and is frequently used when a character has been played for a fool. Orchestrated most often with variably-muted horns (waa-wa-waa-waa-waaa!) , but I have also heard it used as a musical automobile horn.
Was this an advertising jingle from the period? It seems to be used too frequently to be purely coincidental. There seems to be some sort of 'joke' associated with quoting this melody, but in all my years of watching old cartoons, I never figured out what the gag is! Can anybody help?
Total Posts: 4 - Pages (1): [1]
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