The Unbearable Salesman


The Unbearable Salesman is the 76th animated cartoon short subject in the Woody Woodpecker series, with Knothead and Splinter. Released theatrically on June 3, 1957, the film was produced by Walter Lantz Productions and distributed by Universal International.

Plot

Knothead and Splinter, sitting on Woody Woodpecker's knee, ask Woody to tell them how he acquired his bearskin rug. So Woody starts: "Once upon a time..." We flash back to Woody's days as a door-to-door salesman. We see a large bear, who's relaxing, on a warm day, in the shade of a large tree with a cooling drink in his hand. Suddenly, the bear feels a cool something drop on his nose. Upon closer inspection, it proves to be a flake of snow. The bear suddenly realizes that he should be back in his winter quarters hibernating. He gets up and, with all possible speed, rushes to his hibernating bed and immediately falls into a deep sleep. Later, he's awakened by a knock on his door. As he sleepily opens it, there stands Woody, wanting to demonstrate and sell various household items. The bear listens, gets mad and throws Woody out. Undaunted, Woody returns again and again to peddle his wares, only to be thrown out time after time by the bruin, who's trying desperately to sleep. Finally, exasperated beyond all endurance, the bear rigs up a four-cannon device to eliminate Woody, but it backfires, and the bear fades into space. "And that's how I got the bearskin rug," says Woody, as he bids "good night" to Knothead and Splinter.