Screwy Squirrel on Head". When he finishes, the dog remarks, "Gee whiz! He hit me with !" Screwy responds with, "Well, don't want to disappoint you, chum," then pulls out that very item and bashes him over the head with it. The final cartoon in the series, "Lonesome Lenny", a broad parody of the characters of George and Lenny from the John Steinbeck novel "Of Mice and Men", ended with a joking reference to indicate that Screwy had been "crushed" to death by his antagonist, who commented "You know, I had a little friend once, but he don't move no more." Both
John Steinbeck to name names in the House Un-American Activities Committee trials. Steinbeck called the period one of the "strangest and most frightening times a government and people have ever faced." In 1967, when he was sent to Vietnam to report on the war, his sympathetic portrayal of the United States Army led the "New York Post" to denounce him for betraying his liberal past. Steinbeck's biographer, Jay Parini, says Steinbeck's friendship with President Lyndon B. Johnson influenced his views on Vietnam. Steinbeck may also have been concerned about the safety of his son serving in Vietnam. Steinbeck complained publicly about government