The Barber of Seville (1944 film) Culhane later called "The Barber of Seville" "one of my most satisfying achievements as a director". By 1944, Rossini's opera was a staple of American cartoon humor, with a noted earlier use in the "Looney Tunes" short "Notes to You" (1941) starring Porky Pig. Later cartoons to parody Rossini's music include "Rabbit of Seville" (Warner Bros.), "Kitty Foiled" (MGM), and "Magical Maestro" (MGM). In 1994, "The Barber of Seville" was voted #43 of The 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time, as voted by 1000 animation professionals and edited by Jerry Beck. It is the only "Woody Woodpecker" entry included in
The Barber of Seville (1944 film) is lifted from Woody's first starring appearance in the 1941 cartoon "Woody Woodpecker", in which Woody was voiced by Mel Blanc. Ben Hardaway, also the co-storyman on "Barber of Seville", provides Woody's voice for the first time (replacing Kent Rogers, who was killed in a World War II plane crash three months after this short's release), and Lee Sweetland performs as Woody's singing voice. Hardaway would become Woody's sole speaking voice for the remainder of the decade. Finally, "The Barber of Seville" was the first Woody cartoon directed by veteran animator James "Shamus" Culhane, who had been working on Lantz's