Angel Puss is a short animated cartoon film made in 1944, animated by Ken Harris and directed by Chuck Jones. It is a Warner Bros. movie, released as part of their Loony Tunes series.
In Angel Puss, a young African American boy carries a sack to a river and is upset because he has been told to drown a cat. While the boy stress at the water, the cat escapes from the sack and fills it with bricks. The boy then says he cannot go through with this task, the hidden cat pretends to be the boy’s conscience and says “Go on Sambo, go ahead boy.” He reminds the boy that he has been paid for this job, and he would not like to have to return the money. The boy then drops the bag into the river, rather than return the money.
With A Little White Paint the Cat Becomes a Ghost
The cat then disguises itself as its own ghost. It paints itself white and dresses in wings and a halo, and begins to haunt Sambo by sneaking up on him and whispering “Boo”. Sambo runs away, but the cat shakes a pair of dice in a cup, and this hypnotises Sambo, and in a trance he walks back to the cat. The cat continues to haunt Sambo, but they both happen to fall into the pond, and the white paint on the cat washes off. Sambo is angry at being tricked, and shoots and kills the cat with his shotgun. At once a line of nine ghost cats appear, representing the cat’s nine lives, and march toward Sambo saying “And this time, brother, us ain’t kidding”
Angel Puss is no longer available in any form, as the stereotypical portrayal of an African American named Sambo can be regarded as racist. Angel Puss is the only one in the Looney Tune series to be censored.
Dice Used In Many Cultures
In the seven minutes that the animated film of Angel Puss lasts, it is never explained where the cat obtained the dice to roll in the cup. Dice have been popular and used in many cultures, with a six sided numbered cube having been found in China around 600 BC. Originally used for divination, dice were soon used for various games, including games of chance. There are various games where dice are used, and perhaps the best known is craps. There is a casino form of craps, and the street game. Other gambling games that include the use of two dice include Hazard, Mexican drinking dice and Farkle.
Dice games are under appreciated. The street craps, also known as shooting dice, is a simplified version of the casino craps. Most dice games only require you to know a few rules, and get a couple of dice in a cup. You can even learn to play Liar’s Dice, the game played in the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean, Dead Man’s Chest” movie, and you can play in your own home without any risk to your life! In fact, next time you are looking for a game to play, forget the board games and get out your dice.