Bits of Gay Purree stars Mewsette and Jaune Tom in Cyclia
Gay Purr-ee is a 1962 animated feature, produced by UPA but distributed by Warner Bros. This continental story of French felines in Paris was scripted by legendary Looney Tunes director Chuck Jones (with wife Dorothy) and directed by Jones' veteran animator Abe Levitow. The musical tale features the voices of Judy Garland (as Mewsette), Robert Goulet (as Jaune Tom), Red Buttons (as Robespierre), Paul Frees (as Meowrice), Hermione Gingold (as Madame Rubens-Chatte), and Mel Blanc (in various bits). The movie also spawned an unusual amount of merchandise for a non-Disney animated feature at that time, including a soundtrack album, puzzles, and toys.
In the late 1960s, Jim Henson utilized Gay Purr-ee jigsaw puzzle pieces in the film footage for his Cyclia nightclub project. Various pieces, showcasing the faces of the principal cats Jaune Tom, Mewsette, and Robespierre, move across the screen in a variation of stop-motion/cut-out animation.
