 With the help of Joe and some pelicans who resemble Jimmy Durante, Elmer uses his trunk like a fire hose to successfully put out the fire and rescue Tillie.Due to his heroic acts, he won both the respect of the other animals and the heart of Tillie.Elmer is theorized to be the precursor of "Dumbo"; the common trait of both characters being that they have insecurities about a specific body part they get ridiculed for (in this case, Elmer's trunk) and eventually achieving success with the body part in question.