Fiery Firemen: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (Winkler, 1928)

This rare black-and-white archival footage presents "Fiery Firemen," a classic Oswald the Lucky Rabbit cartoon from October 15, 1928, produced by George Winkler’s Winkler Pictures for Universal Studios—nearly a century ago—offering a nostalgic laugh for early animation fans. The silent film follows Oswald, the mischievous black rabbit with expressive ears, as a firefighter in a highly efficient fire department where even the beds mechanically wake him and his horse colleague to respond to alarms. When a condo building catches fire, Oswald and his horse rush to the rescue, scaling buildings to save stranded mice with a rope, then attempting to rescue an unconscious hippo. Their efforts turn slapstick when the hippo awakens, her massive weight collapsing the ladder, sending them plummeting through the sidewalk, leaving a hole—only for Oswald to emerge from a basement door, comically carrying the hippo single-handedly. Co-directed by a young Friz Freleng and Rudolf Ising, this short marks Freleng’s first directorial credit, showcasing 1920s animation’s bold humor. A lively window into the Winkler era’s golden age, this preserved gem—among the few surviving Oswald shorts from this period—grips cartoon enthusiasts, animation historians, and nostalgic viewers, offering a timeless peek at a fiery rescue frozen in time.