Dog Gone South

Dog Gone South is a 1950 Merrie Melodies short directed by Charles M. Jones.
== Title ==
The title is a play on the term "doggone."
== Plot ==
Charlie Dog is kicked out of a train coach into the South, near Platt Falls. Complaining to himself about being treated like a tramp just because he hasn't got a home, he wanders the area and eventually hears singing from a nearby plantation house, which turns out to belong to Colonel Shuffle, who's busy singing a variation of "Dixie" while playing a banjo. Charlie's attempt to endear himself into this new home doesn't start well, least of all because he starts singing "Yankee Doodle", which offends Shuffle enough to slam the banjo over Charlie's head. Charlie soon realises the location he's in when Shuffle demands him to get off of his plantation, asking Shuffle if he's from the South, with Shuffle confirming "I'm not only from it, sir, I'm in it!" Pretending to be from the south himself, Charlie suggests he take him in as his dog. Not only is Shuffle not fooled, he already has a dog and just to prove it, he calls said dog, Belvedere, over to him (by calling "Oh, Belvedere. Come here, boy."). Charlie immediately takes offense to Belvedere's presence, demanding to Shuffle that it's either himself or Belvedere. Shuffle answers that for Charlie by kicking him away from the house, causing Charlie's butt to scrape along the grass.
Later on, Charlie, with a confused-looking pig in one arm and an ear of corn in his other hand, tries suggesting to Shuffle about having some sowbelly and cornpone for lunch but is immediately turned down.
Not too long afterwards, Charlie determines that he has to do something about Belvedere so that he can make himself Shuffle's dog instead. Therefore, he puts a Civil War kepi on the sleeping Belvedere's head and a sign in his mouth that reads "The North Forever!" and tricks Belvedere into running over to Shuffle by imitating Shuffle's earlier call to his dog. When Shuffle sees Belvedere in his current appearance, he freaks out and chases after his own dog guns blazing (in Confederate Civil War uniform). Out of sight, Charlie lights a string of firecrackers and blows a bugle as they go off, before coming out of hiding disguised as an injured Confederate soldier; Shuffle falls for the deception and takes Charlie into his house, promising to take care of him. However Shuffle also ends up realizing the trick when, upon asking Charlie if there was anything else he can do for him, Charlie (in his normal voice, no less) requests Yankee pot roast; Shuffle kicks him directly out the window.
Charlie, with a package in hand, notices Belvedere is asleep again, and starts to put on another deceptive disguise trick. When Charlie runs off and Belvedere seemingly hears Shuffle calling to him again, Belvedere finds he has been placed in a New York Yankees baseball uniform. Immediately guessing Charlie to be responsible, Belvedere takes a club, runs over to where Charlie is hiding and throttles him with the club. However, it turns out Belvedere has accidentally beaten up Shuffle instead, which he quickly realises in horror just as he is about to kick him. Hearing Charlie imitating Shuffle again, and realising what might have happened, Belvedere runs straight after Charlie again intending to club him. But Charlie quickly substitutes himself with the dazed Shuffle whom Belvedere unwittingly beats up again. An angry Shuffle advances on Belvedere with the club in hand as Belvedere tries in vain to beg his master not to beat him up, but fails.
Finally, as a battered and bruised Belvedere takes his leave from the plantation, Charlie bids him farewell, additionally telling him to say hello to his aunt in Boston. Shuffle immediately takes offense from this, before Charlie quickly corrects himself by clarifying "South Boston, Alabama". Shuffle, upon hearing this, reluctantly decides that in that event Charlie can be his dog, which delights Charlie. At that moment, another Southern gentleman appears and, noticing Charlie, remarks how he always wanted a dog like that, which he would treat like a king with "lots of food, rest and pamparin'". Charlie immediately takes this man up on his offer. Shuffle tries to protest, but Charlie tells him to keep out of it, while clarifiying that it's North Boston, Massachusetts that his aunt actually lives in. As the new gentleman and Charlie take their leave, the latter asks where his new home is; the gentleman promptly kicks Charlie onto a train heading out of Platt Falls and the South. Shuffle then calls for Belvedere and the gentleman reveals himself to have been Belvedere in disguise. The cartoon ends with Shuffle and Belvedere, satisfied that they have gotten rid of Charlie, singing "Dixie".
== Availability ==
Lt vs8 uk.jpg|(1984) VHS The Looney Tunes Video Show Volume 8
Gfdgsdg.jpg|(1993) LaserDisc Looney Tunes Assorted Nuts
Bumper01.jpg|(1994) VHS Special Bumper Collection (Vol. 1)
Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 6.jpg|(2008) DVD Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 6, Disc One (restored with original titles)
lt spotlight 6.jpg|(2008) DVD Looney Tunes Spotlight Collection: Volume 6, Disc 1 (restored with original titles)
LTPC Volume 3 Cover.png|(2014) Blu-ray Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 3, Disc One (restored with original titles)
LT Platinum Collection VOL 3 DVD Cover.png|(2014) DVD Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 3, Disc One (restored with original titles)
=== Streaming ===
lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max Latin America / Brazil (2021 - 2024)
== Notes ==
* The original print is copyrighted MCML (1950), while the reissue print is copyrighted MCMXLIX (1949).
* Belvedere the Bulldog physically resembles Hector the Bulldog, but with yellow fur and super-deformed back legs shorter than its front legs, so short that they stay mid-air when it walks on all fours.
* This cartoon marks the second and final classic appearance of Colonel Shuffle.
* Charlie, when Colonel Shuffle threatens him late in the short, claims his aunt is from South Boston, Alabama. While there is no South Boston, Alabama (there is one in Virginia), there is a Boston, Alabama (also known as West Greene among other things), an unincorporated community in Alabama's Greene County.
* Charlie would later reappear with the flower headdress he briefly wore on his head upon arrival at Platt Falls at the beginning of this cartoon once again during his brief cameo scene in Looney Tunes: Back in Action when playing poker at a casino with the Russian Dog, Spike and Chester, Barnyard Dawg and Ham and Ex.
* The "Charlie Dog in..." title card in Looney Tunes Cartoons is based on the title card for this short.
== Gallery ==
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IMG_2664.png|CLICK! CLICK!
IMG_2665.png|"Ah said, a-way down south!"
IMG_2666.png|"Watch me endear myself into a good home."
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IMG_2669.png|"YANKEE???!!!"
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== References ==
Category:1950
Category:Cartoons directed by Chuck Jones
Category:Shorts
Category:Charlie Dog Cartoons
Category:Merrie Melodies Shorts
Category:Blue Ribbon reissues
Category:Cartoons written by Michael Maltese
Category:Cartoons animated by Emery Hawkins
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Robert Gribbroek
Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Philip DeGuard
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn
Category:Cartoons with film editing by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with sound effects edited by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer
Category:Re-released cartoons whose original titles are known to exist