Cats A-weigh!

Cats A-weigh! is a 1953 Merrie Melodies short directed by Robert McKimson.
== Title ==
The title is a play on the phrases "castaway" and "Anchors Aweigh", alluding to the nautical theme.
== Plot ==
Sylvester brings his son to the wharf to scavenge for fish heads. Junior laments the fact they have to scrounge for food and wishes they had a real home. When they see a ship advertising for a mouser, Junior urges his dad to apply. Sylvester doesn't want to work, but agrees to take the job when Junior says he'll help.
Sylvester lounges aboard ship while his son chases the mice. When Junior bemoans the iniquity, Sylvester says Junior is a little cat so he should handle all the little mice, and that he himself is a big cat so he'll take care of any big mice that come along. Soon, Junior chases a little mouse into a crate in the cargo hold. He opens the crate to get the mouse, but out hops Hippety Hopper, a baby kangaroo. The cats think it's a giant mouse, so Sylvester tries to hold up his end of the bargain, but Hippety pummels him.
Sylvester now strikes a new bargain. Since there are a whole bunch of little mice, he should take care of them, and Junior can take care of the big one. Junior agrees halfheartedly and soon encounters Hippety again. He notices that Hippety imitates his actions, so he starts dancing and leads the kangaroo back into its cage. He proudly shows it to his father, who again tries to uphold his end of the bargain. Sylvester chases a little mouse around the hold until it scurries into a crate of Super Muscle-Building Vitamins, where the mouse then relentlessly beats up Sylvester as Junior cheers for his father, where Sylvester's cries to open the locked door to escape are all ignored.
== Availability ==
LTCE VOL 13 COMIC CAT-TASTROPHIES.jpg|(1999) VHS Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 13: Comic Cat-Tastrophies
LooneyTunesSuperStars SylvesterAndHippetyHopper.jpg|(2013) DVD Looney Tunes Super Stars' Sylvester & Hippety Hopper: Marsupial Mayhem
=== Streaming ===
lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max (2020 - 2022)
== Censorship ==
* When this cartoon aired on CBS's The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Show, the part near the end where the mouse that Sylvester chases runs into a crate filled with muscle-building vitamins and beats Sylvester up with his newfound strength was cut to remove the mouse running into the crate and the sound of him swallowing the pills, making it obvious that something is missing.https://web.archive.org/web/20240418084427/https://www.intanibase.com/gac/looneytunes/censored-c.aspx
== Gallery ==
CatAweighCredits1.png
CatAweighCredits2.png
Cats A-Weigh (1953) - Ship.jpg
Cats A-Weigh (1953) - Chase.jpg
515yUX9VlFL.jpg|Lobby card
Extra1-3.jpg|Lobby card
CatsA-Weigh!LeadSheet1.jpg|Animator draft
CatsA-Weigh!LeadSheet2.jpg|Animator draft
CatsA-Weigh!LeadSheet3.jpg|Animator draft
CatsA-Weigh!LeadSheet4.jpg|Animator draft
== References ==
Category:1953
Category:Merrie Melodies Shorts
Category:Shorts
Category:Sylvester Cartoons
Category:Sylvester Junior Cartoons
Category:Hippety Hopper Cartoons
Category:Cartoons directed by Robert McKimson
Category:Cartoons written by Tedd Pierce
Category:Cartoons animated by Charles McKimson
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Robert Givens
Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Richard H. Thomas
Category:Cartoons with film editing by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with sound effects edited by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer