Release Date:

August 11, 1945

Main Character(s):

Bugs Bunny

Summary:

Bugs Bunny is part of a department store display of sporting goods. The department store manager, who sounds like the Great Gildersleeve, wants to transfer Bugs to the taxidermy department for him to be stuffed. Not keen on the idea, Bugs leads Gildersleeve on a chase throughout the store.

That’s Not All, Folks:

Despite the production number being 5-14 (the fifth Merrie Melodie in the 14th release season), the cartoon was released as a Looney Tune.

Frank Graham provides the Gildersleeve imitation, and previously did so as the wolf in Tex Avery’s MGM cartoon, “One Ham’s Family” (1943).

The title is a pun for “air conditioned”. Another cartoon, Freleng’s “Heir Conditioned” (1955) uses the same pun, but a different plot with Sylvester inheriting a fortune and wanting to spend it with his alley cat friends, but Elmer wants to consider investing the money for greater uses.

This is one of two Bugs Bunny cartoons to use the Porky drum ending, with the other being “Buckaroo Bugs”.

Gildersleeve would later appear in the Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries episode “Happy Pranksgiving”.

The music that plays during the elevator scene is Smetana’s “Dance of the Comedians”, which would gain fame as a piece frequently used in the Roadrunner cartoons (what also supports the foreshadowing is that Jones directed this cartoon).

This is a rare instance where Bugs and his antagonist both lose in the end.

This was the last cartoon featuring a starring character to be released during World War II. The last was the next cartoon, “Fresh Airedale”, which is a one-shot.

What I Like About This One:

The rendition of “A Little on the Lonely Side” over the opening credits.

The opening where Bugs just gets out of his hole, hops around on all fours, dives back into his hole, and repeats this only to stop in mid-dive when the quitting time alarm rings. Seeing there are still people watching the display, Bugs gets them to leave: “Next demonstration tomorrow morning. Go on, scram!”, unaware that the closing curtain has a sign attached to it saying, “Final demonstration. New show tomorrow” (animated by Ben Washam).

Bugs sighing, “A rabbit’s work is never done!” when Gildersleeve informs him they’re transferring him to another department (animated by Washam).

With Gildersleeve showing Bugs where he will be placed after he’s been stuffed, Bugs gets on the tree display for “rabbit” and does a modelling pose asking, “Eh, how will this look, doc, after I’m stuffed?” Suspicious at the word “stuffed”, Bugs asks Gildersleeve who’s sharpening a knife if he said “stuffed” to which Gildersleeve chuckles, “Yes, stuffed”. Bugs calmly says, “Oh” before screaming and running off (animated by Washam).

Grabbing his rifle, Gildersleeve sees Bugs’ ears peeking out behind some furniture and shoots but Bugs dodges this shot. With Bugs seemingly coming out with his hands up, Gildersleeve confidently says, “Now I’ll finish you off!” But Bugs reveals he actually put an extra pair of his gloves on his ears and counters Gildersleeve’s threat with a rifle of his own: “On the contrary, I’ll finish YOU!” Bugs shoots, but the only thing that comes out of his rifle is three pieces of paper that all say “BANG!” Three pieces of paper then come from Gildersleeve’s grinning mouth that all say “OUCH!” (animated by Robert Cannon)

Gildersleeve pinning Bugs against the furniture and asking, “Kind of outsmarted you, eh, little chum?” Bugs recognizes the voice and asks Gildersleeve to say it again. When he does, Bugs tells him “you sound just like that guy on the radio, the Great Gildersneeze!” Flattered at the connection, Gildersleeve says the line a third time before Bugs tosses his gun aside and a shot fires above them. Getting wise, Gildersleeve asks Bugs if he’s trying to pull a fast one. Bugs’ reply is, “Well, uh, confidentially, chubby…. I just did!” (animated by Cannon)

Gildersleeve then encounters a female customer: Bugs in disguise who would like to see “something nice with a pair of bedroom slippers”. “Confidentially, so would I!”, Gildersleeve replies. Bugs then gives Gildersleeve a fake leg to “kitchy, kitchy” but gets caught when he slips out of his disguise and continues laughing (animated by Cannon).

The chase continues with Bugs and Gildersleeve running through every department and coming out wearing the appropriate attire: “Boys’ Attire” has them dressed like little boys, “Turkish Bath” has them coming out wearing only shower caps and towels, “Costume Department” has them out in a horse costume, “Sports Department” has Bugs in a rowboat and Gildersleeve on skis, and lastly “Lingerie Department” has a wolf-whistling Bugs chasing after a negligee-clad Gildersleeve! (animated by Basil Davidovich)

Chased to the elevator, Bugs imitates an operator and while they’re in said elevator, Bugs and Gildersleeve silently tuck in the top parts on each others’ outfits. After getting out on the sixth floor which has several rationed items, Gildersleeve gets on another elevator which Bugs still disguised as the operator gets out of as Gildersleeve ascends and sees Bugs outside the elevator shaft and standing in various positions while pointing up (animated by Lloyd Vaughan).

Ending up on the main floor, Gildersleeve takes the stairway all the way to the top (animated by Vaughan), only for Bugs to beat him by a few seconds and shove him back down the shaft! Laughing over this, Bugs is suddenly confronted by a bandaged and bruised Gildersleeve. Bugs tells him about a book he just read where a big guy was chasing a little guy but the big guy was unaware of “a horrible Frankincense monster, breathing fire on the back of his neck!” and imitates said monster by making a scary face from behind Gildersleeve. This terrifies Gildersleeve so badly that he jumps off the roof. Bugs then makes the scary face in a mirror and gets frightened into jumping off the roof himself! (animated by Ken Harris)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕 ½