Cracked Quack

Cracked Quack is a 1952 Merrie Melodies short directed by I. Freleng.
== Plot ==
Daffy is flying south in a blizzard, late in the winter season. Cold and tired, he notices something in front of him; he crashes into the roof of a mansion, falling to a windowsill ("Holy smokes! That building ran right out in front of me!"). When he looks through the window and spots a stuffed duck on the fireplace, he remarks “Well, there's one of our boys that's got this 'flying south' business licked!” and goes inside. Thinking the duck is a living one, he talks to it about spending the winter with it, but does not get any response. After confronting the duck for being "a snob", his prodding of the stuffed duck causes it to fall forward slightly. Thinking it was "pushing" him, he pushes it right back and ends up being hit on the head. Now thinking the stuffed duck is attacking him when he is not looking, he beats it up, literally knocking the stuffings out of it. Now fully realizing it is a stuffed duck, he then decides that "this is where this innocent little black duck gets himself some free room and board."
After putting the stuffed duck in a closet, Daffy heads for the kitchen. He spots Porky, who is going through income tax forms in his study, and Rover, a dog, who walks to the fireplace for a nap. When Daffy rushes onto the fireplace to take the stuffed duck's place, Rover notices and keeps watch of him suspiciously. Hours later, Daffy, getting tired of staying still, realizes Rover's suspicion of him, saying "I can see where this moron is gonna give me trouble..." He promptly shoves a vase off the fireplace and onto Rover, causing the dog to yelp. Rover's suspicions are fully confirmed when Daffy swats a fly, the latter telling Rover that Daffy is indeed alive ("He's not a stuffed duck at all, he's a live duck!" He put it over on ya, he intends to take over the joint! He has a $2 sign. He's a live duck, I tell ya! [imitating rapid-fire quacking]"), Upon which Rover starts barking at Daffy. An annoyed Porky notices the barking and tells Rover to stop, stating that the duck in the room is stuffed. He demonstrates by bashing Daffy’s head on the floor, leaving Daffy dazed and with lumps on his head.
When Daffy goes into the kitchen for a meal, Rover spots him. Seeing the dog sneaking up on him, Daffy tricks him into going out a window by throwing a bone, leaving him stuck outside, complete with closing the blind on him believing he "can't stand to see a dumb animal suffer". Rover later taps on a window near Porky's desk, alarming him. After getting Rover back into the mansion, Porky threatens to send him outside if he causes any more trouble.
Daffy takes the stuffed duck and makes it waddle across the hall. When Rover notices it, he chases after it thinking it is Daffy and proceeds to tear it up. Porky angrily makes him stop and makes good on his promise of dragging Rover outside, threatening to put his tail in a pencil sharpener if he does it again. As Daffy proceeds to sneak away, Porky grabs him, thinking he is the stuffed duck, and stuffs cotton into him.
When a flock of ducks approach Porky's mansion, they spot the stuffed Daffy inside, with one of them making a similar observation as Daffy did earlier. Porky, still working on his taxes, states that "This darn income tax would come out alright if I only had a few dependents". Daffy asks "Did you say dependents?" and opens a door, adding "You've got 'em, brother!" To Porky's shock, the flock of ducks from earlier have invaded his home and are having a party.
== Availability ==
lt vs13.jpg|(1984) VHS The Looney Tunes Video Show, Volume 13
Lt ppsc.jpg|(1985) VHS Porky Pig's Screwball Comedies
Lt ppsc beta.jpg|(1985) Beta Porky Pig's Screwball Comedies
Lt clt 1992.jpg|(1992) VHS Christmas Looney Tunes
DAFFY DUCK'S SCREEN CLASSICS.jpg|(1993) LaserDisc Daffy Duck's Screen Classics Duck Victory
ClassicCollection.jpg|(1995) VHS Classic Collection (WHSmith Exclusive Video)
LTCE VOL 9 A LOONEY LIFE.jpg|(2000) VHS Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 9: A Looney Life
Christmas Collection Looney Tunes UK VHS.jpg|(2003) VHS Christmas Collection Looney Tunes
331779_front.jpg|(2023) Blu-ray Looney Tunes Collector's Choice: Volume 1 (restored)
=== Streaming ===
lt boomerang.jpg|Boomerang App (2017 - )
lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max (2020 - 2022) (restored)
Lt max.jpg|Max (2024 - ) (restored)
== Notes ==
* This is the last Porky Pig short to be directed by Friz Freleng.
* This cartoon was used in Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales, but with some changes to it:
** Daffy's line, "We'll just put it away in the storage for the winter", is replaced with, "Thermopolis will just have to wait."
** The ending, instead of Daffy winning, had Porky shoot all of the ducks out of his house.
* The short was later loosely remade as the Pink Panther short "Slink Pink" in 1969.
* This short plays in PAL audio on Cartoon Network and Boomerang.
* The stuffed duck replaced by Daffy is mounted on a stand containing the common name “BLACK DUCK” and the species name “ILEX OPACA”. The Ilex Opaca is not a duck, or even a bird. It is actually a type of evergreen tree known as the American Holly.
== Gallery ==
CrackedQuackCredits1.png
CrackedQuackCredits2.png
51Grbx4gh+L.jpg|Lobby card
File:Gha8wtogihla.jpg|Lobby card
Category:Daffy Duck Cartoons
Category:Porky Pig Cartoons
Category:Cartoons directed by Friz Freleng
Category:Shorts
Category:1952
Category:Blue Ribbon reissues
Category:Re-released cartoons whose original titles are known to exist
Category:Merrie Melodies Shorts
Category:Cartoons written by Warren Foster
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Hawley Pratt
Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Irv Wyner
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
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