The House of Tomorrow is a 1949 animated theatrical short directed by Tex Avery.[2] It was part of a series of cartoons Avery did satirizing technology of the future which included: The Car of Tomorrow, The T.V. of Tomorrow, and The Farm of Tomorrow. These were spoofs of live-action promotional films that were commonly shown in theaters at the time.
The House of Tomorrow | |
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Directed by | Tex Avery |
Story by | Jack Cosgriff Rich Hogan |
Produced by | Fred Quimby |
Starring | Frank Graham Tex Avery Joi Lansing[1] |
Narrated by | Frank Graham Don Messick |
Music by | Scott Bradley |
Animation by | Walter Clinton Michael Lah Grant Simmons |
Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
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Running time | 7:00 |
Language | English |
The film is a straightforward narrated showcase of appliances said to be found in a typical house in the year 2050, roughly a hundred years after the cartoon was made, each one actually an outlandish joke. Most of the time, the inventions follow a similar pattern of being made for each member of the family, but ending with a fatal version for the "mother-in-law".
An off-screen narrator introduces The House of Tomorrow, a pre-fabricated luxury residence that unfolds from a tiny gift box. The house has separate entrances for each member of the family: for Fido, a tiny door surrounded by bones; for Junior, a door covered in muddy handprints; for the mother, a wide and curvy door to accommodate her large form from eating sweets; for the father, a saloon door; and, for the mother-in-law, a heavily barricaded door with a welcome mat that reads "SCRAM!"
Once inside, the narrator offers a tour of the house's modern conveniences, presented as a series of brief vignettes consisting of sight gags. The house contains all of the following:
As the narrator signs off, a typewritten letter suddenly appears on the screen:
The short then ends with a repeat of the film of Joi Lansing in her swimsuit.