Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar (1967)

[bunniefuu]

hello, Charlie

Lonesome Charlie

talkin' about Charlie,

it's a natural fact

that cat didn't know

how a cat should act

he figured

he was a human kind

when all the time he'd been

designed to be a... Cougar

talkin' about Charlie,

good-time Charlie

everybody's friend

he didn't dig

that nature scene

those grizzly bears

were too darn mean

he figured

his rightful fittin' place

was kicking around

with the human race

lumberjacks, mostly

talkin' about Charlie,

good-time Charlie

everybody's friend

how come he was lonesome?

well, that's the story

we're here to tell

so let's get started

right from the top

when we come to the end...

we'll stop

talkin' about Charlie,

good-time Charlie

everybody's friend

Charlie, good-time Charlie

everybody's friend

this is

timberland, USA,

The cascade range

in the pacific northwest,

A great big chunk of wilderness

that's best known

For logging, lumberjacks

and mountain lions,

Commonly called "cougar"

in these parts.

Now, there's some folks that

say a cougar is just about

The biggest mistake

mother nature ever made:

200 pounds of tooth,

claw and trouble.

But this is a story about

one cougar that was different.

You see, right from the beginning,

he didn't know he was a cougar,

Because he didn't have

a mother to tell him.

A hunter took her for bounty

three days ago,

And he'd been walking

the lonesome trail ever since.

Right about now, though,

fate came up

With a prime prospect

for a soft touch...

A lumber company forester

by the name of Jess Bradley.

Jess had come here today

to mark some selected trees

For a logging crew.

Well, there was a kitten

in his own pocket of poverty

And not far away, one innocent,

unsuspecting human.

Fate was about ready to move in

and make the connection.

Now, Jess not only had

a college degree in forestry,

He was pretty well-schooled

by mother nature, too.

well, hello there.

Where'd you come from?

right away,

he read the signs.

This was Forest land,

And a female cougar

likes to den in the rimrocks.

So the kitten must have

wandered down here on his own.

No mother cougar

would let that happen,

Not if she was alive

to stop it.

You poor little fella.

come on. Come on.

Come on. Huh?

I'm not gonna hurt you now.

Looks to me like you

could use a square meal.

so, there was

only one thing

For a nature-loving man to do.

Of course, Jess wasn't

planning anything permanent.

He'd have to turn

the cat loose, sooner or later.

Meantime, though,

it might be kind of fun

Having a kitten

around the house.

Well, the fun started

that very night.

Come on. That's it.

Whoops!

Sloppy eater, aren't you?

Being a bachelor,

Jess didn't have any experience

In this line of work,

But with a little thinking,

he came up with a formula,

And it seemed

to serve the purpose.

You got a hollow leg?

You're gonna have to

get on to a schedule.

Shh.

Easy.

That's a boy.

There you go, now.

Jess named his new pet

good-time Charlie,

And he soon got downright fond

of that little cat.

The little cat got right down

to living up to that name.

One thing about Charlie,

he caught on quick.

Wasn't any trick

to taking trout -

All you had to do

was play it right.

Hey, Charlie...

Charlie! Hey, Charlie!

You come back here

with that fish!

Right from the beginning,

Charlie had made

an acquaintance

With all

the neighborhood critters,

But lately, a young raccoon

seemed small for a playmate,

And so did a fox cub.

The pine marten

never did see Charlie

As a real close companion.

So, being a friendly,

outgoing sort of cougar,

Charlie decided to explore

the whole wide Forest world,

See if he couldn't find himself

a bigger and better playmate.

Wow! What in creation

were these?

One sure was bigger,

all right,

But it just didn't have

that fun-loving look.

For Charlie,

that made the other one

Look a whole lot better.

Now, if bigger would stay put

for a while,

And if better

would just keep on moving,

There ought to be

plenty of room

For two youngsters

to have a friendly frolic.

There never was a kitten,

or a cub either,

That could pass up a Chance

to bed down in a hollow log.

Only difference

is how they go about it.

With a cat, it's a matter

of instant relaxation.

A bear likes to prepare.

Well, that took care

of the itching and twitching.

He was all ready

for napping now.

Just one thing left -

Find a good,

comfortable position.

That'd take a little doing.

In one way or another,

they got in about 39 winks,

But they'd never make it to 40,

Because right outside,

A rude awakening

was on the way:

One mean male bachelor bear.

He set a lot of store

by this log.

It was always well-stocked

with mully-grubs, beetles,

And other delicacies

dear to the stomach of a bear,

And he sure wouldn't

take kindly

To the beat generation

making a pad out of his pantry.

To old grouch,

the current crop of youngsters

Was just a lot

of nuisance and noise.

As it turned out,

The noise was

an emergency call for help.

Well, mother was already

halfway there.

It started out

as a pretty even match.

Of course, the cub was cheering

for mom all the way.

Charlie couldn't even

tell them apart.

They were both wearing

black trunks.

When old grouch tried

to tag up for a time-out,

The cub figured it was safe

To shinny down

and get himself a closer view.

Mom was losing a little ground

when Junior lowered the boom.

Heading for home -

one small cougar

And one sore-headed

old bachelor

And one mother bear,

complete with cub.

The carbon county mill

Was Jess Bradley's

headquarters,

And by the time

Charlie was quarter-grown,

He had full run

of the mill yard.

Charlie made friends

everywhere,

But come lunch hour,

He always headed

for one special place:

That little caf?.

It was a hot spot

for handouts.

It was also home base

For a cougar-hating fox terrier

named Chainsaw.

Whenever he saw

that overgrown house cat

Fixing to invade his territory,

Chainsaw would set a trap.

Today, he decided

to sort of make out

Like he was going somewhere

to bury a bone.

Like always,

Charlie fell for the trick.

He figured it was safe now

to move in and mooch a meal.

Charlie stopped

just long enough

To check all possible

hiding places -

Except the right one.

Then he put in a call to

his personal friend Potlatch.

Hey, be right there,

Charlie.

Of course,

Potlatch liked his dog,

But he had a lot of sympathy

for a born loser, too.

Chainsaw?

Chainsaw!

Wherever you are,

you beat it!

Come on. Inside.

Quick!

You've come to see me

to get a little snack, huh?

Well, come on.

I got something nice

for you. Look.

Chainsaw figured he had

that cat cornered for sure.

All he needed now

Was a kindly customer

heading his way.

That would be Jess Bradley.

Ok, Chainsaw.

Go on in.

Oh, no!

Catch him! Charlie,

come back here!

Don't let him get

on the shelf! Charlie!

aw, my new kitchen!

Corner him!

He's heading

for the door, Jess!

Hey, Tim, grab the cat!

He's your cat.

You grab him.

Chainsaw!

Get down, Chainsaw!

Potlatch, get your dog.

Stop that!

Chainsaw,

when that cat grows up,

You're gonna have a problem.

When he grows up?

What do you call him now?

Just a great big,

overgrown kitten.

That's what

he's always gonna be.

Aren't you,

good-time Charlie, huh?

Aren't you fella?

Hey, hey, hey, hey!

In the nature of things,

Charlie did keep growing up,

But at heart,

he was still one man's kitten.

Right now, Charlie was helping

supervise the finish

Of the winter logging

activities.

Next would come a full-scale,

old-fashioned River drive.

The start of a River drive

Is something

worth going to see.

It's the biggest operation

of the whole year.

60 million feet of timber

ready to ride the River

120 Miles

through the wilderness.

It always begins

in early spring,

When the River

is high and rising.

Then one giant nudge

at the key log,

And the River drive

really gets rolling.

Now, a big-scale

River drive like this

Swings into action through

several well-planned stages.

First to move out

after the main body of logs

Is the number-one crew

of River men.

They'll make sure there aren't

Any major center jams

or wing jams

Or any other kind

of hang-ups.

Last to leave

would be the cook,

In a well-stocked

floating kitchen

Called the little wonigan.

Moving out now,

the big wonigan.

For the next 10 or 15 days,

these seagoing shacks

Would be living quarters

for the whole drive crew -

About 40 men.

Well, the big push was over now

for Jess and Charlie.

They figured things would be

getting back to normal again.

Come on, Charlie.

Let's go home.

But old fickle fate

had other ideas.

It seems Potlatch had brought

the ton of food it took

To feed the River crew.

Hiya, Jess!

Hello, Potlatch.

He'd also brought

15 pounds of trouble.

You got 'em all loaded,

ready to go? Hey, Charlie!

You get that drive

started ok?

Hey, window's open!

Chainsaw, get back!

Charlie, come back here!

Chainsaw!

You leave that cat alone!

Charlie! Charlie!

Come back here!

Charlie!

Charlie!

Charlie, come back here!

Chainsaw, stop!

Hey, Potlatch, they're

coming your way! Head 'em off!

Hey, grab him!

Hey, that's enough

of that.

Charlie had left

one problem behind

Only to head straight

for another.

This cook was a new man.

He'd never even heard

of good-time Charlie.

Well, he was about

to make his acquaintance.

Whoa!

Cougar!

Yeah, I know.

There's a cougar!

Charlie! Charlie!

Hold on, Charlie!

Oh, great.

Charlie had already

found himself a lifeboat,

But Jess just kept going

down and down with the ship.

Charlie!

Charlie!

Jess figured if he was

gonna save the wonigan

And his cougar and himself,

He'd better be dressed

for the occasion.

There was white water ahead,

and plenty of it.

All Jess could do now

was steer a middle course,

Stay in the main stream

and hope somehow

To salvage that cougar

from his one-log catamaran.

The current was doing

about 15 knots,

And that can use up an awful

lot of River in a hurry.

Rescue wasn't getting

one quarter-inch closer

As far as Charlie could see.

Then came along this Chance

To get out of

his own little jam

By getting onto a bigger one.

Now he'd just wait here

For the boss to drop by

and pick him up.

Charlie!

Charlie! Charlie!

Charlie! Stay right there!

I'll be back for you!

It looked like Charlie

had sure missed the boat.

All he'd got was promises,

When what he really needed

was help.

So being left

to his own natural resources,

Charlie figured he'd just

have to launch out on his own.

That free-floating kitchen was

getting quite a bit behind schedule,

And now a search party

was on its way upriver.

Hey, there it is!

Hey, it's Jess Bradley.

When did you

take up cooking, Jess?

And what did you do

with our cook?

Never mind the questions.

Just help me get this

River shack under control.

Upstream, Charlie kept right on

logging travel time,

And he was fast

closing the gap.

Meanwhile, Jess was explaining

to the drive boss

How come his kitchen

was minus a cook.

I'm sorry, Mac, but

I didn't have much choice.

By the time I got there, the

wonigan was headed down the River

And the cook was hightailing

up the bank.

Do you realize

I have 40 men to feed?

Mac, look, can we worry

about the cook later?

Right now, I've

gotta get Charlie.

Charlie? Yeah, he's marooned on a

center jam about 10 Miles upriver.

I need a boat.

Looks like a short

10 Miles to me.

Hey, here he is!

Hey, hold on!

Hang on, Charlie!

Don't go away!

Charlie!

Give me a boat.

Come on, Mac. Uh-uh.

What do you mean?

I gotta get Charlie.

I Will be reasonable,

though.

You get our supper,

we'll get your cougar.

Look, I'm no cook.

No cook, no cougar.

I'm a cook.

Let's go get Charlie.

We'll get Charlie.

You start peeling spuds.

How about a little of

that salad? You bet.

Mac, you drive a hard

bargain. Here you are, Ray.

Well, you're doing

all right, Jess.

Clean it up, Charlie.

Only one to a customer.

Say, we're gonna have to

hang on to this fella.

Good cook.

I think we should be able

to figure out a way.

Coffee, Joe?

Oh, no, thanks, Jess.

I've had plenty.

Everything else ok,

gentlemen?

No complaints.

fine.

Just like uptown.

Ok, let's get me back upriver

and bring back your cook.

Not so fast, Jess.

I've been, uh... I've been

concerned about you.

Yeah?

You've been looking

a little peaked lately.

We figure you need a little

break from your regular job.

Little change

in scenery.

Something like a...

A River cruise downstream.

No, sir. Uh-uh.

Now, look, I've got a job

and you've got a cook,

And they're both waiting

upstream, so let's go.

But we're working

downstream,

And about 40, 50 Miles,

when we hit the road,

Our cook Will be there.

And meantime?

Well, in the meantime,

you cook real well.

Just keep it up.

Come on, boys.

You guys. Come on,

fellas. Good night, Jess.

Hey! Now, Mac, look...

Breakfast at 5:00.

Five...?

Oh, boy!

In a River drive,

the main body of logs floats

Right on down to the mill,

But all kinds of drifters

get hung up and stranded.

Every last log

has to be pried loose

And prodded along.

The very first day,

Charlie moved in

And made out like he was

a born and bred River cat.

Whenever the jet boats

ferried a crew

From one trouble spot

to another,

Charlie was

right on top of the action.

In no time at all, Charlie

figured he was the ramrod

Of this whole operation,

And anybody who seemed

to be easing up

Was likely

to get a dressing-down.

There were a few strangers

in the crew,

And at first

they didn't look kindly

On a cougar being part

of the team,

But pretty soon,

Good-time Charlie

was everybody's friend.

One thing about Charlie -

he didn't expect the workmen

To do anything

he wouldn't do himself.

He was always willing

to get in there

And lend a helping paw.

If the fellas seem to be making

a fairly clean sweep of things,

Charlie was ready to move on

to other responsibilities -

After he'd made sure

the boat was shipshape.

For the next few days,

The River drive moved along

in good order.

As one section

was cleaned out,

The wonigans moved downstream

to a new base of operation.

Today, that meant

taking the big wonigan

Through a rough stretch

of white water

Called the devil's elbow.

Now the crew would spot

the big wonigan downstream,

Then come back for the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Jess was using

the slack time

For some extra sack time,

And Charlie was k*lling

a little time

With a piece of twine.

Charlie knew

he'd done something,

But there was no way

he could undo

What he'd already undone.

Well, in a case like this,

There was only one thing

left to do:

Find the best vantage points

and enjoy the passing show.

Holy smoke!

What's going on?

Oh, no!

Oh, crock it!

It wasn't very far downstream

That the River men had come

up against a tangle of logs

That manpower alone

couldn't unravel.

Dynamite was the only answer.

Of course, they couldn't know

they were lighting a wick

That was gonna bust up

something more than a logjam.

Charlie moved in right on time

for the countdown,

Because there was one thing now

that was plain for all to see:

Charlie's River carnival

was headed

Straight for a flash finish.

Go back!

Go back!

Dynamite!

Go back! Go back!

Dynamite!

She's gonna blow!

How come you're acting

so guilty?

It wasn't your fault.

Or was it?

Charlie!

Jess!

Jess, are you hurt?

Man, we thought

you was a goner.

We sure did.

Are you all right?

Oh, I'm-I'm fine.

Just fine.

The long chain of circumstances

that started on the River drive

Finally ended up

back at the mill,

With Charlie on the short end.

You see, when the big boss

started adding lost man-hours

To mangled groceries,

to busted-up wonigans,

He decided

to subtract one cougar,

And he ordered Jess

to keep a curb on that cat.

Charlie didn't like

the new setup at all.

He had the growing feeling

that he was getting left out,

Put-upon and neglected.

What's more,

he was just plain bored.

Then Charlie heard the sound

of folks having fun.

What Charlie heard was a bunch

of the boys a-whoopin' it up

With a noon-hour roll-eo.

round and round she goes, and

where she stops nobody knows.

Come on, somebody else

get out here.

five bucks

on Jimmy.

five more

you're wrong.

Well, here came the River cat

That once rode a log 21 Miles

through 25 rapids.

As soon as there was

an opening,

He was gonna get in there and

really give that thing a whirl.

ok, who's next? Come on,

I want some competition.

How about you? Come over.

Hey, Mike, come on over.

Come on, ed. You're the

Guy I want to get on here.

Hey, now this

is gonna be a ride!

Come on, Charlie.

You asked for it.

I'll cover all bets.

I'll take five of that.

Roll him under, Jimmy.

Charlie had the edge

with his four-wheel drive.

The only thing now

That could cut him out

of first place was... Chainsaw.

Charlie was too shook up

to catch up.

cut it out, Chainsaw.

Don't shorten my odds.

His chances for victory

went right down the drain.

Thanks a lot, Charlie.

it was Chainsaw!

Somebody drown that dog!

no, you don't.

He won money for me.

Ok, wise guy, next time

you're gonna get

A shorter chain

and a tighter collar.

All right, you guys, this is

a saw mill, not a side show.

Let's cut some lumber, huh?

I'm sorry, cliff. I don't

know how he got loose.

It won't happen again.

Maybe we better make sure

it doesn't, Jess.

Ok. I'll keep him

at home

From now on.

Charlie's sure gonna miss

his friends around here.

Well, his friends

Will miss Charlie, too.

Yeah.

Come on, Charlie.

Let's get out of here.

And so the free-roaming days

were over.

Even worse, Jess was in town

about eight nights a week now.

It seems a certain nurse

just might be the cure

For his "bacheloritis."

So, Charlie was left right in

the middle of all this quiet

With not one thing to do.

He was just about

the lonesomest cougar

In all of carbon county.

But this particular evening,

Things took a turn

for the better.

It happened right on

the stroke of moonrise.

There was music on the air.

What Charlie wanted

was to move in

For a little closer Harmony,

If he could just get himself

unpacked from this cougar crate.

There's no doubt that Charlie

was a mighty smart cat,

But he did have one flat spot

in his well-rounded education:

He still hadn't learned

he was a cougar.

Now he got the big news

from old mother nature...

...And a young cougarette.

Hallelujah and howdy-do!

Now, these two teenagers

were too young to be mates,

But they were just right

to be playmates.

Their first moonlight madness

finally tapered off

Into a more leisurely

moonlight stroll,

And when that was over,

They'd covered

about 25 Miles of mountain.

They were both

plum tuckered out.

So, one last little tussle,

Then taking a rest

for the rest of the night

Seemed a mighty good idea.

First thing next morning,

The cougars hit

the happiness trail again.

Charlie had never seen

snow before,

But his new friend

got the ball rolling.

That started a regular

winter carnival for cougars.

Charlie figured

the fun was done

At the end of the slide,

But little Miss Patty Paws

was working up something new.

With all that exercise,

the two youngsters

Had built up a couple

of full-sized appetites.

Now, being born to the wild

and mountain brought-up,

The lady cat knew all about

Rounding up vittles

for breakfast.

"finders, keepers"

is part of a cougar's code,

But Charlie

hadn't read that book.

He saw that somehow

his friend had found food,

And he mistook that look

for "come and get it."

So he did.

And he got it.

Well, thanks a lot

and so long, sister.

Right about now,

Charlie began to realize

He wasn't just hungry,

he was homesick, too.

But where was home?

Maybe just over this Ridge.

Nope, that wasn't it,

But surely

those kindly folks down there

Would give a poor,

lonesome cougar a bite to eat.

As it turned out,

Charlie did hit feeding time

Right on the button,

But it seems another breed

of cat had the inside track

With the friendly folks

around here.

Right now, they were enjoying

their morning target duty

For the boss's

milksmanship marksmanship.

Kitty, kitty, kitty...

And bronco!

Chester, come on, baby.

There you go, kitten.

There you go.

There you go. Bronco,

bronco, baby. There you go.

Bronco, there you go.

Get that!

By now, Charlie had caught

The inviting scent

of that warm, fresh milk.

So, might as well

accept the invitation.

Whoop. Better hold up

for a minute

And mind his manners

Till those poor little

underfed cousins

Had their fill.

Then, when they moved out,

he'd move in.

Bronco, come on.

There you go.

Chester, Chester.

Come on, there you go, kitty.

Chico, come on.

There you go.

Chic... Chic-ooh!

Charlie was

a little embarrassed.

He didn't know

what he'd done,

But maybe if

he cleaned up the mess,

That nice man

would hurry back

And talk things over,

Friendly-like

and peaceable.

Blackie, the farm dog,

Figured that shot meant

the boss was going hunting,

And he didn't want

to miss out on that.

Now, in just about

two more jumps,

Blackie was gonna pick up

the scent of cat

With a capital "c."

Well, that's how Charlie

Hit the lonesome trail

for good.

Only, it wasn't so good.

He was lost and hungry,

And he'd never learned

to provide for himself.

The days kept going by,

And so far

he hadn't even learned

How to read the Forest menu.

In a showdown fight,

A raccoon can give away

a lot of weight

And still come out on top.

But whenever he sees

really big trouble coming,

It only makes sense

to run from it.

When the raccoon finally

ran out of running room,

Charlie figured he had him

cornered, but as it turned out,

This was no place

for a cougar

To start throwing

his weight around.

That feisty little rascal

had Charlie all washed up.

What he wanted now was

to get wrung out

And holler "quits!"

The raccoon's answer

to that was, "ok, buster,

"but if you ever want

any more of the same,

Come on back... Anytime."

Well, mother nature

finally decided

To come to the aid

of this underprivileged cougar.

He was gonna get

a little lesson in self-help

Through visual education.

When the lynx saw

he had a backward pupil

Bent on promoting himself,

Seemed a mighty good idea

to close the kindergarten

And declare a long recess.

That gave Charlie

an open Chance

At the cafeteria.

At first, Charlie couldn't

catch one mouse

In a whole meadowful.

Persistence finally paid off,

But since he could only get

one ounce to the pounce,

It took all afternoon

Before Charlie's need for food

was finally satisfied.

Well, the days turned

into weeks

And the Summer passed.

By Autumn,

Charlie had learned

To hunt all kinds

of small game.

But a cougar is born

to play a bigger part

In keeping nature's balance.

A deer is the natural prey

of a king cat.

His timing was perfect,

But this was one k*ll

he would never make,

For now he became the hunted.

Charlie's time

was fast running out,

But right now

Things were gonna

start looking up again.

It happened when Charlie

found this log flume

And got himself treed

On the left-bank plank.

Although Charlie was giving

a good account of himself,

He had a notion he ought to

find some way out of here.

Well, it better be quick.

The dogs weren't leaving,

And the Hunter

was closing in.

So, right in the Nick of time,

Charlie set sail

For parts unknown.

Now, ridin' the bark

was an old story to Charlie,

But he'd never tried it

on a homemade creek before.

Oh, he'd have howled

a whole lot louder

If he'd known what lay ahead.

Well, that log had covered

about nine Miles of flume,

And it still had three to go

before it hit the River,

But for Charlie,

the end was already in sight.

Ooh-ow!

Out of Charlie's

giddy adventure,

There was

a strange development.

Sometime, somewhere,

He'd seen

this same flume before.

He aimed to check out

the whole vicinity...

Just as soon

as he got his land legs again.

From daylight

far into the dark,

Charlie had been

following a River

That seemed to get

more and more familiar.

Mile after mile,

hour after hour,

He kept plodding on,

Heading for some distant,

half-remembered place.

That place was

the carbon county lumber mill.

The operation here was always

shut down to an idle at night,

And on the stroke of 12,

Charlie was just bridging

the last gap

In his own memory Lane.

Now, there was a place

no hungry cougar

Could ever forget.

At Potlatch's bean pot caf?,

Charlie had always done

his mooching at the back door,

But tonight

he couldn't get an answer.

So he headed around front.

Then that unforgettable

restaurant scent

Stopped him short.

It was coming from... Where?

Whoop. Back there.

Nope, up there.

This was a place of plenty all

right, but it was all unavailable

To a cougar

without a can opener.

Now, there was

one small exception.

This little device

had been set for mice...

...But it sure trapped

one king-sized cat.

Charlie wanted out.

He was more wild

than tame now,

And he had a wild animal's

fear and hatred of confinement.

For the first time

in his life,

Charlie was

a very dangerous cougar.

Next morning started out

just like any other morning

For Potlatch and Chainsaw,

But right about now,

That bean pot was

a real expl*sive can of peas,

And the one thing

it didn't need

Was opening.

What's the matter,

Chainsaw?

You on a trail

or something?

Chainsaw! Shut up!

Hello, Potlatch.

Smokey. Henry.

How's the coffee? It should

be hot. Help yourself.

Chainsaw,

Will you shut up!

What's the matter

with that mutt, Potlatch?

Chainsaw, be quiet!

Chainsaw, Will you shut up?

Chainsaw.

Chainsaw, Will you

knock it off?

What's wrong with you?

There's nothing in there.

is that Charlie?

I didn't ask him.

He went for me! Came

right at me! Let's get him!

Let's get him before he

nails somebody at the yard!

How'd he get in there?

Stop him!

Stop the cougar!

He's going into the yard!

Hurry! He's got Chainsaw!

No, he's ok.

Here he comes!

Look at the size

of that cat!

Missed him!

Come on!

Keep after him!

Hey, look out over there!

Cougar!

Wild cougar!

Hey, get some help!

Everybody, look out!

There's a cougar loose!

Get him, Smokey!

get back, Jim!

It's a cougar!

Cougar! Cougar!

Let's get out of here!

There's a cougar loose!

Cougar!

Go around the other way!

Maybe he went high.

Watch out overhead.

hey, over here!

there he goes!

Nail him, Jack!

Up there!

we'll corner him now.

what with, my bare

hands? Grab a board!

I betcha he's Charlie!

Are you kidding? Charlie?

He's headed

for the elevator.

We need a g*n!

Down that way. Let's go!

Hurry up!

Hey!

Hurry! There's a cougar

on the elevator!

Right there!

Let me handle this, Smokey.

You guys,

give me some room.

Wait a minute!

Hold it! Hold it!

Wait a minute!

Wait a minute!

Charlie?

Charlie.

Cliff, that's Charlie.

Maybe so, Jess,

but he's gone bad.

No, no.

Let me handle this.

Ok, it's your hide.

Ok. Ok, Charlie.

Ok, take it easy now, boy.

Slim, let me down

on that rope.

I'm gonna try to...

Calm him down first.

Then I'll take him

out of here.

You guys, just back up

a little, huh?

Sure that's Charlie

there?

It's gonna be ok, Charlie.

No problems, boy.

Ok, now, Charlie.

Take it easy now, boy.

Ok, let me down a little.

Ok, easy does it, Charlie.

Relax now, Charlie.

Take it easy now.

Easy now.

Don't let me down now.

Throw me down

that rope. Easy.

Ok, Charlie.

It's all right, Charlie.

It's ok, boy.

Stand still now, please.

All right, Charlie.

It's ok, boy.

You're all right, feller.

It's ok.

Remember me? Huh?

Come on now, boy.

Come on!

Right.

It's me.

Take it easy now, Charlie.

That's a boy.

It's all right.

It's ok.

It's old home week, buddy.

Come on, easy now.

Get those ears up.

Ok, Charlie.

That's a boy.

All right, Jess.

Look at that, Will ya?

Be careful.

It's Jess' cat, all right.

Ok, Charlie-boy.

Ok, bring us up!

Bring 'em up. Give 'em

plenty of room, there.

Stand back.

Stand back.

It was early the next day

That Charlie took his last ride

with Jess Bradley.

It would be a long drive

to where they were going,

So Jess brought along somebody

To keep him company

on the return trip.

It seems a certain ex-nurse

Was just about to become

Mrs. Jess Bradley.

Well, that guaranteed

a happy future for Jess,

And now he was figuring

to do the same for Charlie.

Way up in a high corner

of the cascade country,

There's about

1,000 square Miles

Of protected

primitive wilderness,

And it's all out of bounds

For dogs and g*ns

and bounty hunters.

This would be

Charlie's new home.

Well, I guess this spot's

as good as any.

Come here, Charlie.

Down.

You're on your own.

Go on, now.

Looks like Charlie's

gonna be real happy here.

Now, being

the sort of cat he was,

There's just a little Chance

That Charlie

somehow, sometime,

Might have found his way back

To Jess and the carbon county

lumber mill again,

Except for one thing...

It seemed there was

this bewitching,

Bewildering scent on the air

And it was coming

from just up the hill.

Charlie took a long look.

A closer look.

Well, hallelujah

and howdy-do again!

There's no way of telling if this

really was the same cougarette

That Charlie took a fancy to

a long time ago,

But Charlie was sure she was,

and that settled that.

So that's how

Charlie's lonesome days ended

In the best

of all possible ways.

He was a king cat now.

From this time on he'd reign

Over all this bountiful

wilderness domain.

He'd have a whole new life

with a brand-new mate.

That means it's time

for us to state

There'll be no more talking

about Charlie.

So long, Charlie.

so long

so long, Charlie

let his story end