The Bugs Bunny Mother's Day Special

Friz Freleng, the Bugs Bunny Mother's Day Special, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises/Warner Bros. Television 

Also known as Bugs Bunny's Baby Boomers

And so we end another feature here, and we go out on a holiday special. Mother's Day doesn't get the quite the love that Halloween or Christmas does but it is nice to see it recongized. 

Bugs runs into Granny in the park and they chat about the importance of mothers and motherhood. A certain stork shows up, sober for once and we segue into the various shorts dealing with mothers. 

Not awful and they way they handle the shorts is fine, although I was surprised by the amount of Daffy Duck shorts but the focus here is the shorts and not a new narrative. Mostly, while there is new animation it mostly occurs after the shorts with the character commenting and/or setting up the next sequence. 

Bugs Bunny's Valentine

 Hal Greer, Bugs Bunny's Valentine, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises/Warner Bros. Television

Also known as Bugs Bunny's Cupid Capers

Nearing the end, and by 1979 rolled on we went back to the specials that were compilations with a few minutes of original animation. 

We open with Bugs getting ready for a date with Daisy [Hare Splitter (1948)] when Cupid (Elmer) flies down and makes the pitch that he helps the lonely hearted folks. Bugs disagrees, arguing that with the advent of spring is motivation enough. 

Bugs heads to the local racing track [the Gray Hounded Hare (1949)] with Cupid in hot pursuit...

Not bad and while it does handle things better than the Halloween special it is a stepdown from the King Arthur one, but as far as holiday specials go this could have been worse. 

A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court

 Chuck Jones, A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court, Chuck Jones Enterprises/Warner Bros. Television

Also known as Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court, this would set the standard for most Tv specials.

Bugs is trying to get to a peanut festival in Georgia when he makes a wrong turn and ends up England, circa 526 AD. He runs into Sir Elmer of Fudde, who mistakes him for a transformed dragon. Bugs is captured and dragged before King Arthur (Daffy Duck) and his wizard, Merlin of Monroe (Yosemite Sam). 

Bugs is sentenced to be burned at the stake but some quick thinking and a handy eclipse convinces them to let him go. After that, Bugs starts to makes some changes to things, but can he handle the schemes around him?

Pretty darn good and the first special was not just old shorts recycled or edited. Honestly this may have set the bar too high, as we would rarely see the likes again for a while.

How Bugs Bunny Won the West

 Hal Greer, How Bugs Bunny Won the West, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises 

With all the other specials going, Warner Bros pressed on and in 1978, we saw another special. The difference this time is while it shows many shorts, the new animation is minimal. Instead, famed Western actor Denver Pyle acts as the narrator as the shorts (mostly focusing on Bugs but a few Daffy ones are featured) play out more or less normally. 

Barbary-Coast Bunny (1956) kicks things off, but from the edits the story is now Bugs being a fresh off the boat rube who just happens to ruin a gambling house by winning, with new animation showing him deciding to head over to Sutter's Mill to try some of that prospecting he's head so much about. 

The rest of the special goes about the same way. One short segues into another, sometimes with new animation but only a brief scene or two. 

Decent and at least it isn't as convoluted as the Halloween one.  

Bugs Bunny Howl-oween Special

David Detiege, Bug Bunny Howl-oween Special, Warner Bros. Animation

Now this is a step up from the space special.

Daffy and his nephew are trick or treating when they encounter Witch Hazel, while at the same time Bugs is dressed the same as Daffy's nephew [or to be more exact, they blended A-Haunting We Will Go (1960) and Broom-Stick Bunny (1956)].

Bugs, after tea with Hazel, leaves to prove that his doc's brew is better [Hyde and Hare (1955)] and drinks it. After Hazel chases him to an ancient ruin [A Witch's Tangle Hare (1960] and fails to bring him down, Hazel opts for a night off and turns a nearby Speedy Gonzales into her exact double.

We also get some of Hyde and Go Tweet (1960) plus a blending of Scaredy Cat (1948) and Claws for Alarm (1954). After all this, Bugs hands over Dr. Jekyll's formula to Witch Hazel, which turns her into Count Bloodcount [Transylvania 6-5000 (1963)].

Finally restored to her proper witchy self, Witch Hazel decides to end things on a permanent note. It looks like curtains, at least until Bugs uses some nearby magic powder [Bewitched Bunny (1954)] and one line reworking later, has a new for Halloween. 

Decent but the new animation doesn't blend with the old stuff at all. For all its faults this is what I think of when I think of the Looney Tunes TV specials. A mix of old and new to introduce the characters for a new generation. 

Bugs Bunny in Space

 Chuck Jone/Friz Freleng, Bugs Bunny in Space, Warner Bros. Television 

Star Wars was quite the hit in 1977. Blowing up the box office in May, by the fall 20th Century Fox knew they had something and so did every other studio. Everybody was rushing to put out science fiction be it television, movies, or even comic books. 

So why shouldn't Warner Bros. get into the act? They already had hit bringing back the Looney Tunes as TV specials but apparently they felt the spark from Lucas and Co.'s efforts was going to fade.

Thus is the first special with no wraparound or original animation. Nope, they just grabbed some shorts and tossed them together.

The Hasty Hare, Hare-Way to the Stars, Mad as a Mars Hare, His Hare-Raising Tale, and we finally end with Duck Dodgers in the 24th1/2 Century (which we'll get to at some point). 

I mean, the shorts still work but it did seem a bit silly not to have something new. Maybe just have Bugs introduce the shorts?

In other news, around the same time there was a live stage show with the same name. Got some interesting results when I went looking for this one.

Bugs Bunny's Easter Special

 Friz Freleng, Bugs Bunny Easter Special (1977), DePatie-Freleng Enterprise

So, Bugs was back. Since False Hare, Bugs had been regulated to Kool-Aid ads and Saturday Morning reruns. The last special was a hit, so why not do another one?

The Easter Bunny is down and a replacement is needed ASAP. Granny is on the case-she'll get Bugs Bunny! A quick jaunt over to the Warner Bros lot finds her star, but his contract is apparently ironclad. he's simply booked solid and can't help.

Daffy Duck overhears and tries to offer his services, but his outfits are too weird. We then go through a montage of other Looney Tunes characters but none of them fit the bill. Bugs finally finds a loophole, but he can't begin the work for another week at least. 

When the Easter Bunny himself hops in, is the crises over?

Decent. This would be the standard for most TV specials. There would be a wraparound followed by shorts from earlier in the studio's history. Here they just use clips and the difference between the old animation and the new is startling. Not in a good way either, but I suppose by '77 they weren't as picky. 

Bugs and Daffy's Carnival of Animals

 Chuck Jones, Bugs and Daffy's Carnival of Animals, Chuck Jones Enterprises, 1976

1964 would be the last we'd see of Bugs in a short format. Warner Bros by the early 70's had shuttered their animation department; they'd even almost handed the whole thing over to Filmation if you can believe it. 

After a few other specials, this would be Bugs's grand return, along Daffy Duck.

This would be primetime however and thus the subject would be weighty. 

Bugs and Daffy are conductors, presenting a special performance of Camile Saint-Saens' musical suite "the Carnival of the Animals".

That's about it. Not terribly deep but Bugs and Daffy get up to their usual hijinks as they conduct and the music is a nice feature. Some of the best shorts were music themed and Jones works that connection. Just seeing Bugs in proper primetime animation is a treat in unto itself and the special works well with that.

False Hare

 Robert McKimson, False Hare, USA 1964

Well, this is it. The last Bugs Bunny short. 

The Big Bad Wolf, or Uncle Big Bad as he's called here, is hanging out his nephew and pitching him his latest idea; 'Club Del Conejo'. Basically they'll make up a fake club for rabbits and when they signup, BANG-rabbit stew!

Bugs happens by but yeah, he isn't fooled and proceeds to wreck Uncle Big Bad all throughout the picture. 

Certainly not the worse short ever but there is a certain element of melancholy. The shorts department would continue on for a few more years but it would finally shutter in 1969. Bugs still had the Bugs Bunny Show but after this it would be a rerun program.

This wouldn't be the final word on Mr. Bunny but we'll get to that later.

The Iceman Ducketh

Phil Monroe/Maurice Noble, the Iceman Ducketh, USA 1964

And things are nearing the end. This was going to be directed by Chuck Jones but he left Warner Bros by this point (although there was some uncredited work). 

This would also be the last official short Bugs would have with Daffy until the 90s. 

Up in the Klondike, Daffy notices how much cash trappers earned for pelts. Ignoring the manager's warning that the season is over due to winter, Daffy marches around in the snow for Bugs. 

Much to his regret, he finds him. 

Bit like watching Sting VS Ric Flair circa the late 1990s. The whole premise is a bit overdone, although I suppose Daffy taking the fight directly to Bugs rather than manipulating Elmer is novel. Some of the gags were clearly lifted from Wile E. and Roadrunner shorts giving it a whole rerun feel. 

Decent but they could have gone out on a higher note. 

Dr. Devil and Mr. Hare

 Robert McKimson, Dr. Devil and Mr. Hare, USA 1964

Moving into 1964, this would be the last Merrie Melodie short and the last time Bugs would go up against the Tasmanian Devil. 

Honestly just a rehash of the previous Devil shorts. Bugs is in the jungle when the Tasmanian Devil goes on a rampage. All the animals stampede save for Bugs and he outwits the Devil each time. The ending gag is a bit different, in that the Frankenstein Monster that Bugs creates goes on a rampage.

The outwitting gags are just ok. Bugs just slips on a disguise (mostly variants on doctors) and rehashes the same jokes. All told, very weak.

Dumb Patrol

 Gerry Chiniquy, Dumb Patrol, USA 1964

Kicking off 1964 and yeah, by this point the writing was on wall. The shorts division at Warner Bros. was shutting down. What could they produce?

Well, this has been called the WORST short Bugs ever did, so there's that. 

1917 and World War One rages. The Allies are bedeviled by Baron Sam Von Shpamm. It's so bad that straws are drawn with the winner picked to do early morning battle in the skies. Captain Smedley (Porky Pig) is the lucky winner, but the next day as he readies himself for battle, Bugs opts to smack him over the head with a brick and take his place. "He has a wife and seven piglets!" 

Very noble, but on the German front, Baron Sam is refusing to fly anymore. He's been awarded yet another Iron Cross and he's sick of them. He wants to drink Schnapps and make whoopie with frauleins, and he ain't flying until he gets both of those.

He stick by it too, at least until Bugs taunts him. Now it's personal.

I'm not sure I'd call this the WORST but it isn't very good. Bugs and Porky never teamed up that much and this short doesn't really do that much with them. This would also be the last time (in a short) that we see Yosemite Sam, so it is rather fitting he's blown up. 

Could and should have been better but it also could have been a lot worse. 

Transylvania 6-5000

 Chuck Jones/Maurice Noble, Transylvania 6-5000, USA, 1963

Keeping with our final theme here, we're showcasing the second to last short Chuck Jones did at Warner Bros. and the last one he did with Bugs Bunny during the short era. 

Bugs is traveling to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania but makes a wrong turn and ends up in Transylvania. Easy mistake, I know. He walks to the castle of Count Bloodcount in search of a telephone but the count insists he spend the night.

To the count, Bugs is an easy meal. 

He doesn't know Bugs very well, does he?

A perfect swansong for Jones and a perfect foil for Bugs. Count Bloodcount hasn't been used that much, and that's a pity. He's dangerous enough to be a challenge yet Bugs can still foil him. The battle of magic words is pure genius and one of the better routines Bugs did on camera. 

Mad as a Mars Hare

 Chuck Jones/Maurice Noble, Mad as a Mars Hare, USA 1963

Keeping with our unintentional theme of endings, this would be the last Marvin the Martian short in the Golden Age. 

Marvin is just minding his own business when a rocket nearly takes out his lab. To the shock of no one reading (or viewing), it's Bugs. Seems he got volunteered to be an astronaut, a fact he is most unhappy about. Marvin is most put out as well.

Unwilling to hand over Mars, Marvin busts out the heavy artillery. Since this isn't Duck Dodgers he's facing, things go poorly. 

Decent and Jones/Noble are both at the top of their game. The final gag would be reused later this year too, but we'll get to that. 

The Unmentionables

 Friz Freleng, the Unmentionables, USA 1963

Always one of my favorites, this sees Bugs tackling hoods Rocky and Mugsy.

As Special Agent Elegant Mess, Bugs is tasked with taking down the mobs. Good use of Rule of 3. Rocky tries to give Bugs some cement shoes but he easily works around that. The second encounter has Bugs going after Rocky at his birthday party whereas the third is Bugs going after Rocky at a cereal factory. The final gag is somewhat of a letdown but still a good short. 

Hare-Breadth Hurry

 Chuck Jones and Maurice Noble, Hare-Breadth Hurry, USA 1963

One of the few co-directed shorts plus the last we'll see of Wile E. VS Bugs. 

Honestly the whole short is a mesh. We have Wile E. Coyote tacking on Bugs Bunny like before but the difference here is Bugs is using super speed (using Acme Super Speed pills, natch) plus Wile E. is silent. 

Funny enough the pills wear off thus Bugs has to rely on his wits as before. Decent, and you really can't go with an adversary who is so relentless in his pursuit. 

The Millon Hare

 Robert McKimson, the Millon Hare, USA 1963

Is there a better pairing than Bugs and Daffy? Here they start out peaceful, to a point. Daffy is watching TV at Bugs' place, who remarks that all Daffy has done is watch TV.

Something he can't do with Bugs yanking all the time.

But before the conversation can continue, it's time for Beat Your Buddy, in which two friends compete for a grand prize of a million bucks. Guess who gets picked?

Wonderful and easily one of the best shorts of the 1960's. 

Devil's Feud Cake

 Friz Freleng, Devil's Feud Cake, USA 1962

Oddly appropriate for Friday the 13th

So it's come to this, another clip show. Yosemite Sam robs a bank and hijacks a plane that Bugs happens to goofing off in (Hare Lift) and steals the plane's only parachute; at least he thinks it's the only parachute. Much to his shock it only contains silverware. 

So naturally he ends up in Hell. The Devil has had his eye on Bugs for a while, so he offers a trade. If Sam can get Bugs, he'll get a pass. Sam ends up in the desert as Bugs seeks shelter in a fort (Sahara Hare). Sam's stubbornness gets him blown up and sent down, but the Devil gives him another shot.

Sam's back and in modern times. He sees Bugs shooting a Roman empire flick nearby and one costume change later (Roman Legion-Hare), Sam tries to off the rabbit. Will he succeed?

Average, I mean the shorts are certainly good but seeing them again does take away their specialness a bit. The wraparound is good and the final gag is better than the short deserves.

Shiskabugs

 Friz Freleng, Shishkabugs USA 1962'

Back to Sam as the foil, although this time out he's Sam the Cook. 

Yes, cook. Serving at the pleasure of the Charles Laughton-esque king, Sam is frustrated when the King complains again. "Everyday the same thing-variety!" what the king wants is hasenpfeffer, and he wants it NOW.

Sam is stumped when Bugs strolls looking for a cup of carrots, then Sam learns that the main ingredient in hasenpfeffer is rabbit...

Decent, but Sam is really the victim here. I'm rather surprised Bugs didn't torment the king instead, since he did start this whole mess. 

This is also the shortest Bugs short made too, so there's that.

Bill of Hare

 Robert McKimson, Bill of Hare, USA 1962

Bugs VS the Tasmanian Devil, again. Which isn't a bad match but the plot does feel a bit run through.

Bugs is on the seaside cooking a meal when the Tasmanian Devil escapes his cage. He wants some rabbit for lunch but thankfully Bugs is a bit smarter than old baggy eyes. The gags are still pretty good, with Bugs tricking Tazzy pretty easy (truck crank for a rotisserie, train tunnel for a moose cave, etc.)

Decent but nothing special. We've seen more elaborate gags in other shorts, but Taz is still a decent foil. 

Wet Hare

 Robert McKimson, Wet Hare, USA 1962

Kicking off 1962 and we have the debut of one of Bugs' lesser-known foes: Blacque Jacque Shellacque. The story itself is pretty basic. All Bugs wants to do is take a shower in the nearby river but local lumberjack Blacque Jacque has dammed the water. His reason? So he can bottle up the river and sell the water at an outrageous price!

Naturally Bugs takes this kind of personal.

Decent; Blacque Jacque is more or less an evil Pepe Le Pew, only he's fixated on dam building than romancing a mis painted cat but he does have a bit more bit than Elmer. Yosemite Sam would be a poor fit here, but I could buy him as a lumberjack. 

Prince Violent

 Friz Freleng and Hawley Pratt, Prince Violent, USA 1961

Also known as Prince Varmint, rather odd they'd parody Prince Valiant by this point, but eh, who's complaining?

Sam the Terrible and his elephant are invading whatever country the story is set in, and only Bugs stands a chance of stopping them. Can he stop them? What do you think?

Decent, slight gags are good, if a bit basic. Sam had become a bit cliche by this point but the chemsitry is still there. 

Compressed Hare

 Chuck Jones/Maurice Noble, Compressed Hare, USA, 1961

Bugs VS Wile E. Coyote; I know, again? But while this doesn't break any new ground we still have Wile E. at his arrogant best trying to have Bugs for lunch. The end gag is wonderful bit of escalating madness.

I always enjoyed the few interactions Bugs and Wile E had. Bugs wasn't the Roadrunner but that was what worked, plus Wile E. only talking with Bugs gives him another dimension. 

The Abominable Snow Rabbit

 Chuck Jones, The Abominable Snow Rabbit, USA 1961

Kicking off 1961, we see the last time Chuck Jones would handle Daffy Duck (at least in the theater shorts). 

Bugs and Daffy are taking a vacation, and wouldn't you know it, Bugs missed that turn in New Mexico and took them to the Himalayan Mountains. Daffy is rather put out and tries to leave, but on his travels, he runs into Hugo...better known to the world at large as the Abominable Snowman. 

And there's nothing Hugo wants more in this world than a little baby bunny rabbit of his own. Pity he can't quite tell the difference between a rabbit and a duck with some misplaced sleeves. 

Easily one of Jones' best, especially during this period. Hugo is a slight reworking on Lenny from Of Mice and Men but he still manages to provide some needed danger to the plot. 

Lighter Than Hare

 Friz Freleng, Lighter Than Hare, USA 1960

So we end 1960, with yet another Bugs/Sam short and also one written by Freleng. 

Bugs is just trying to enjoy his day when Yosemite Sam of Outer Space drops by. Sam has his orders but Bugs has his wits. Which one will prove superior?

Decent. Honestly this could have stared Marvin; Sam isn't quite a fit for sci-fi but the gags are decent enough.

From Hare to Heir

 Friz Freleng, From Hare to Heir, USA, 1960

One of the better shorts from the 60's I think, plus one of the better Yosemite Sam roles. 

Sometime in the past, Sam, Duke of Yosemite, is having a slight cash flow problem. His uncle the king has cut off his allowance and the books are no longer balanced. In walks Bugs Bunny and with him a deal-one million pounds, provided Sam can prove himself a model of good manners. 

The catch is for every display of temper, Bugs deducts from that million. "Blow your stack, blow some dough". Bugs then moves in and proceeds to drive Sam slowly insane.

Wonderful. Sam is utterly perfect as the short-fused noble and Bugs as the instigator of everything. Freleng really was the best guy to handle Sam, as this was one of the few shorts Frelenfg wrote and directed. 

Rabbit's Feat

 Chuck Jones, Rabbit's Feat, USA, 1960

Chuck Jones plus Wile E. Coyote plus Bugs Bunny? Heck, one could end the review right there. 

Seriously though, Wile E. decides to match wits with Bugs. The gags are wonderful and Wile E. provides a perfect foil to Bugs with his supposed intellect proving no match against Bugs and his general trickery.

Person to Bunny

 Friz Freleng, Person to Bunny, USA 1960

Bit of a sad note here, as this would be the last time Arthur Q. Bryan would voice Elmer Fudd. 

Bugs is being featured on the TV show People to People, with the host Cedric R. Burrows via live remote. Daffy Duck, on the other hand, figures he would be a vastly more entertaining subject. 

Elmer comes a calling, shotgun in tow but when Daffy slips into a rabbit costume, things start to get a bit silly. 

Decent, although Daffy is more 'jealous' rather than crazy. He's not even the usual Primadonna he was usually portrayed as at the time. 

Bugs is a bit passive but he does mess with Daffy in ways both subtle and overt.

Horse Hare

 Friz Freleng, Horse Hare, USA, 1960

Moving into the 1960s, and yeah, this isn't one of the shorts that gets a lot of play nowadays. 

1886, and Sgt. Bugs Bunny of the US Calvary is ordered to guard a fort. The only issue is Renegade Sam (Yosemite Sam in a poorly thought out idea) but thankfully Bugs is still Bugs and he quickly gets the little nimrod crushed by two armies. 

Yeah, this didn't age well even by the 60's standards. Sam is still Sam but there's no reason why he couldn't be a cowboy. 

 

People are Bunny

Robert McKimson, People are Bunny, USA 1959

And so we bring back June Bugs and we end 1959 with a Bugs and Daffy team-up.

Mostly a spoof of People are Funny (ask your grandparents kids), this sees Daffy trying to drag Bugs to the local TV station to win a thousand bucks for bringing a rabbit to a taping of the QTTV Sportsman Hour. 

Bugs isn't interested but a shotgun to the back is rather convincing. Bugs quickly turns the tables and has fun with Daffy and the TV trappings of the studio. 

Decent and a perfect use of Daffy and Bugs. Daffy is a greedy little jerk who is easily manipulated and Bugs is a perfect foil.