As in the classic fable, the grasshopper plays his fiddle and lives for the moment, while the industrious ants squirrel away massive amounts of food for the winter. With his song, he's able to convince at least one small ant until the queen arrives and scares him back to work. The queen warns the grasshopper of the trouble he'll be in, come winter. Winter comes, and the grasshopper, near starvation, stumbles across the ants, who are having a full-on feast in their snug little tree. They take him in and warm him up. The queen tells him only those who work can eat so he must play for them. Written by Jon Reeves
Score
Grasshopper's fiddling is genuinely catchy propaganda.
Director
Wilfred Jackson
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Released during the Great Depression, this Silly Symphony reflects anxiety about work ethic and scarce resources—though the ants' hoarding reads differently in 2024.
Pinto Colvig, the grasshopper's voice, also created Goofy—explaining why both characters radiate 'lovable disaster energy.'
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