Levelheaded, easygoing, cool, calm, collected and always with complete self-control. These are certainly not phrases to describe Donald Duck, particularly in the cartoon short Self Control, which was released to theaters on this day in 1938. While listening to the radio, Donald hears Smiling Uncle Smiley, “your musical philosopher,” talk about self-control, then offers advice in the form of a jingle. “When anger rises in your soul, laugh and count to 10. Self control should be your goal. Laugh and count to 10.” When situations ruffle Donald’s feathers, this theory seems to work, at least at the beginning. But a pesky worm, a hungry chicken, a bird who decides to bathe in his lemonade and an uncooperative hammock all prove too much for Donald, who finds that rather than laughing and counting to 10, it is much more satisfying to take a stick and beat the radio silent.
