Today in 1940 Bugs Bunny made his "official" debut in the cartoon "A Wild Hare." It is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies animated short film. It was produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, directed by Tex Avery, and written by Rich Hogan. "A Wild Hare" is considered by many film historians as the first "official" Bugs Bunny cartoon.
According to Wikipedia, "The basic plot of A Wild Hare, which centers on Elmer Fudd's hopeless pursuit of the much smarter Bugs, would serve as a template for many subsequent cartoons. In addition, many of the specific gags and plot devices in this cartoon became part of the template for later Bugs/Elmer confrontations, with subsequent shorts repeating them or varying them for comic effect. Examples include Elmer failing to recognise Bugs as a rabbit, Bugs kissing Elmer, and Bugs feigning death."
As a kid I LOVED those Warner Brothers cartoon characters - Bugs especially. He was always so clever! He'd do whatever it took to escape being caught. And who doesn't know the phrase, "What's Up, Doc?"
1 comment:
I was always more of a Daffy Duck fan. His zanier nature just appealed to me.
"Daffy Doodles" is still probably my most favorite Looney Tunes cartoon. With Daffy as "the Moustache Feind." I still die laughing at the end, when after being found not guilt in a court of law, he swears he will never paint another moustache, because "I'm doing Beards now!" And he proceeds to paint the judge one and then the camera lens. Totally classic hilarity. Not just for the goofiness of the scene, but the statement it makes on society, in that even when we know we were wrong, if you give someone "an even break" they will not learn their lesson, nor appreciate it.
That might not seem funny to some, but I always get a kick out of it. ;)
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