Release Date:

August 21, 1948

Main Character(s):

Bugs Bunny

Summary:

A scientist plans to switch the brains of Bugs Bunny and a chicken as an experiment to present to his fellow scientists. After mistaking the scientists as an audience wanting to see him perform and then performing several acts, Bugs gets wise to what’s really going on and a chase ensues.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The production number is 1053 and was released as a Merrie Melodie.

This is the earliest cartoon to be given the new Blue Ribbon reissue system: where only the original opening RINGS are replaced but the opening credits are left intact. Sometimes, the original closing rings were replaced, which is the case here. When the cartoon was restored for HBO Max in 2020, the original opening and closing rings as well as the “Bugs Bunny In” title card that was removed from the reissue were all put back in. This same restored print with the original titles was later put out on the Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection Blu-ray set the same year.

This is the first non-Cinecolor cartoon to use the 1948-1949 green rings with the red background.

This is the last Warner cartoon to have animation from Izzy Ellis as well as Anatolle Kirsanoff.

In production order, this is the first McKimson cartoon to have animation by Phil DeLara.

The title is a pun for “hot cross buns”.

This is the only non-Freleng cartoon to feature Bugs doing his soft shoe number (that was just recently seen in “Bugs Bunny Rides Again”).

You can find out who animated what scene here.

Bugs does a Danny Kaye scat routine in one scene, similar to the one Daffy does when warning Little Red Riding Hood about the wolf in “Book Revue”.

The cartoon was originally titled “The Rabid Rabbit”.

One of the luxuries Bugs has is “gorgeous scenery” which is pictures of female rabbits in gorgeous poses (clearly friends of his as a picture from one at the beach is signed “Wish you were here”). Interestingly, Bugs’ next cartoon, Freleng’s “Hare Splitter” (which will be Thursday’s cartoon) is one of the only times in the Golden Age where he actually has a girlfriend (long before Lola was introduced in the 1996 movie “Space Jam”).

Bugs also proves he has excellent vision when asked to read the microscopic bottom line of an eye test chart. This gag would be reused in Jones’ “Forward March Hare”, where Bugs not only reads every letter on that chart correctly but also reads the microscopic printing label at the bottom.

In his book, “Cartoon Carnival: A Critical Guide to the Best Cartoons from Warner Bros., MGM, Walter Lantz, and DePatie-Freleng”, Michael Samerdyke says this when talking about this cartoon: “Bugs may have the body of a rabbit, but clearly, he has the soul of an entertainer”. I couldn’t agree more.

What I Like About This One:

The building the cartoon takes place in is called the “Paul Revere Foundation” with the motto, “Hardly a Man is Now Alive”.

After the scientist demonstrates the intention of his experiment (animated by Manny Gould), a sign saying “Experimental Rabbit No. 46” is seen (animated by Phil DeLara), with the camera panning back to reveal that Bugs has been living a life of luxury here, sleeping in a king-sized bed which he refers to as “The Life of Riley”. Such things include lovely flowers, three meals a day, carrots by the bushel, soft music, and gorgeous scenery, wolf-whistling at the latter. “I can’t understand it, but I love it. Just looooooooooooooooove it!” (animated by Charles McKimson)

When the scientist enters, Bugs asks him to get him a “rabbit nurse” and shaping her out with his hands as he “might take a turn for the worse, you know”. The scientist tells him he’s going to give him an examination (animated by Charles) which Bugs decides to go along with “to further science” (animated by Gould).

The scientist first attempts to listen to Bugs’ heartbeat but Bugs speaks into it like a drill sargent: “Tick, tick, tick, tick. Tick, tick, tick, tick. Hut, 2, 3, 4. Hut, 2, 3, 4. Squad right. Uh, uh, Roger and out!” (animated by Charles) The scientist then tests Bugs’ reflexes with a mallet which results in Bugs jumping into his arms. Bugs is told to stick out his tongue to see if it’s coated. It’s wearing a literal coat, and Bugs also shows “two pair of pants, doc”, where two pairs of pants literally appear. Finally, Bugs reads the tiny bottom line of an eye test chart, “Printed by the Allied Trades Council Logo 472” (animated by Anatolle Kirsanoff).

Wheeled around in a wheelchair (even though he can clearly move on his own), Bugs believes the scientist is kindly showing him around the place. “Hey, take it slow. I don’t want to miss a thing”. “You won’t”, the scientist replies to which Bugs gives him a confused look (animated by Gould). After he is wheeled into the lab (animated by DeLara), Bugs is told by the scientist he’s the attraction of the “audience” of scientists. Thinking the scientist wants him to perform, Bugs chuckles, “Oh, doc. You should’ve told me. I ain’t prepared. But I won’t let ya down, doc! I’ll ad-lib something!” He imitates Lionel Barrymore from the Dr. Kildare films: “I’m the mayor of the town and gentlemen of the jury, you can’t send that poor boy to prison! Calling Dr. Gillespie!” but the audience of scientists are unimpressed and only give him stone-faced looks (animated by Gould).

Bugs figures, “What a tough audience. It ain’t like St. Joe.” before nostalgically thinking, “St. Joe. They love me there” He then attempts a magic act where in the middle of it, the scientist attempts to catch him, but Bugs pushes him out of the way: “Cut it out, doc! You’ll crab my act!” The trick that Bugs performs ends with him pulling himself out of the hat. The audience is still unimpressed (animated by Gould), so Bugs performs his soft-shoe number tap dance (animated by Fred Abranz). The audience still has no reaction. After slapping the scientist away with “Go away, doc! Ya bother me!”, Bugs gives them the “all-out job”, which is a Danny Kaye scat routine. The scientist grabs him in the middle of it, and whacks him on the head offscreen (animated by Gould).

Before the scientist can get on with the experiment, he sees that Bugs has disappeared. He hears Bugs (animated by Charles) and finds him imitating a hot dog vendor in the stands. Bugs is grabbed by the scientist and whacked on the head offscreen again (animated by Izzy Ellis). Bugs comes to his senses in time to hear the scientist say, “And now to turn this rabbit into a chicken”. Not keen on the idea, Bugs leaves, “That’s out, doc! I don’t wanna be NO chicken!” The scientist chases after him: “Yes, you do. Come here. Come here. Come back here!” (animated by DeLara).

Bugs attempts to hide in a closet but it has a non-moving skeleton in it, which causes him to exit, freaked out. The scientist then chases him (animated by Ellis) into another room where Bugs believes he’s just made a deadly concoction: “Stop! (animated by John Carey) One more step and I’ll blow ya up! This contains manganese, phosphorus, nitrate, lactic acid, and dextrose!” The scientist laughs and reveals that it is the formula for a chocolate malted (animated by Charles). Bugs drinks it and finds it delicious: “Yum! Yum! I’m a better scientist than I thought!” (animated by Abranz)

Bugs runs into an oxygen tent and reappears as a boy scout roasting a hot dog, who misdirects the scientist: “He went that way, doc”. Announcing, “That was me good deed for the day!”, Bugs is suddenly confronted by the scientist face to face (animated by Abranz) before a chase in the hallway ensues, ending with Bugs and the scientist rising up from the floor in different spots. Armed with a sprayer of laughing gas (animated by Kirsanoff), the scientist chases Bugs into the other room (animated by Carey) and sprays at him offscreen, coming out with Bugs in a laughing fit (animated by Abranz).

Briefly snapping out of his laughing fit upon seeing a table full of sharp objects, Bugs continues laughing when the scientist puts him on the control panel, and looks at himself in a mirror with the brain-switching cap on like he’s wearing a ridiculous hat: “It don’t do a thing for me!” (animated by Abranz)

After the scientist pulls the switch however, he gets a shock too. Now with the chicken’s brain, the scientist starts clucking like one (animated by DeLara). With the scientist’s brain, the chicken says in the scientist’s voice, “In our next experiment, we will reverse the procedure. I hope” (animated by Abranz). It’s revealed that Bugs has cut his own brain-switching cap’s wires off as he comments, “Looks like doc is a victim of fowl play!” (animated by Charles)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕