Aqua Duck should not be confused with AquaDuck (water coaster).
| Aqua Duck | |
| Director: | Robert McKimson |
| Layout Artist: | Robert Gribbroek |
| Background Artist: | Robert Gribbroek |
| Animator: | Ted Bonnicksen Warren Batchelder George Grandpre' Keith Darling |
| Story: | John Dunn |
| Starring: | Mel Blanc |
| Music: | Bill Lava |
| Producer: | David H. DePatie |
| Distributor: | Warner Bros. |
| Color Process: | Technicolor |
| Runtime: | 6 min. |
| Language: | English |
Aqua Duck is a 1963 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Robert McKimson and written by John Dunn.[1] The short was released on September 28, 1963, and stars Daffy Duck.[2]
Daffy is wandering across a Dalí-style desert. Under the broiling sun, he is suffering from hyperthermia and dehydration. He seeks water, but finds a gold nugget instead. A pack rat wants to give him water in exchange for the gold, but Daffy refuses to trade.
The desert heat and his thirst take a toll on Daffy's sanity, as he begins imagining that he is in a bar, in a hotel, playing baseball, waiting for the bus, and dancing with a cactus. Finally, Daffy becomes so severely dehydrated that he turns to dust and agrees to surrender the gold after the rat restores him with a drop of water.
As he takes a glass of water, a storm swamps him in a flood. For the closing line, he says, "One thing's for sure, when I buy water, I sure get my money's worth!"
Leonard Maltin, writing in Of Mice and Magic, considered this film a low point among Daffy Duck cartoons.[3] Charles Gardner found John Dunn's story creditable but was disappointed with the animation, direction and voice characterization.[4] The Daffy on Video page gives Aqua Duck one star out of four, finding its execution "cheap and lazy."[5]