Release Date:

October 5, 1946

Main Character(s):

Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd

Summary:

Fed up with always getting the worst of it, Elmer Fudd quits his career with Warner Bros. and rips up his contract. Bugs Bunny turns his peaceful dream into a nightmare to get him to reconsider.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The production number is 6-16, the 6th Looney Tune in the 16th release season.

This is Clampett’s last cartoon and this is one of the absolute best finales for any director. He is uncredited due to leaving before it was released. Clampett would later open his own studio and create Beany and Cecil.

Being one of the animators on this cartoon, Bill Melendez himself provided a commentary for this cartoon on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2 DVD set. This is also the first cartoon where he is credited as “JC Melendez”.

The cartoon is in the 100 Greatest Looney Tunes Cartoons book.

Bugs’ expression when he’s about to drink “Hare Tonic- Stops Falling Hare” became a meme in 2015 known as “Bugs Bunny’s No”.

Speaking of which, that label also references the two previous cartoons of the same names.

“Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals” plays during the scene where Bugs smears Elmer’s dream with “nightmare paint”.

This is the second usage of the log gag from “All This and Rabbit Stew”.

What I Like About This One:

Elmer chases Bugs all through the countryside to the tune of the William Tell Overture (animated by Manny Gould). Bugs has Elmer pursue him through a hollow log which Bugs maneuvers so that Elmer exits in mid-air every time (animated by Bill Melendez).

Instead of falling, Elmer runs back (animated by Melendez) and tears up his rifle. “I quit! I’m thwough! I get the worst of it from that wabbit in evewy one of these cartoons! Of course, there’s the wittle matter of my contwact with Mr. Warner.” (animated by Gould) He then rips it to pieces, “Well, this for my contwact! And that for my contwact!” (animated by Izzy Ellis) Shocked, Bugs asks him, “You ain’t serious, are ya? You’re kiddin’, ain’t ya?” But Elmer decides that from now on, it’s nothing but fishing for him (animated by Gould), “and no more wabbits!” (animated by Melendez) Crestfallen, Bugs tries to get him to reconsider: “Think what we’ve been to each other. We’ve been like Rabbit and Costello, Damon and Runyon, Stan and Laurel! You don’t want to break up the act, do ya?” He stops to confide, “Bette Davis is gonna hate me for this.” before continuing, “Think of your career! And for that matter, think of MY career!” (animated by Rod Scribner)

Happy with “west and wewaxation at wast! And no more wabbits!”, Elmer takes a snooze just as Bugs pops out of his tackling box (animated by Gould). Bugs takes a few “Sleeping Pills. Eat Dese and Doze” (animated by Ellis) and makes his way into Elmer’s dream with a sailboat while singing “Someone’s Rockin’ My Dreamboat” (animated by Fred Abranz, with Melendez animating the shot of Bugs dropping an anchor in one of the clouds).

To the tune of “Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals”, Bugs smears “nightmare paint” over the heavenly clouds in Elmer’s dream, where throughout the dream, Elmer is nude except for his derby and a bunch of leaves around his waist. Singing, “The Rabbits are Coming, Hooray, Hooray”, Bugs then has Elmer trampled by “miwwions and twiwwions of wabbits” (animated by Ellis) which are multiplied by means of an adding machine (animated by Abranz).

Getting an idea from “A Thousand and One Arabian Nightmares” (animated by Melendez), Bugs ties Elmer to the railroad tracks (animated by Scribner). Elmer cries in agony at his upcoming fate but instead of a train, Elmer is run over by Bugs (animated by Ellis) and several baby bunnies imitating a train (animated by Gould).

Angry (animated by Ellis), Elmer chases Bugs, who dives into his hole, but pulls the extra one away before Elmer can dive into it. Elmer starts grumbling, but it only comes out as shivering-like noises so Bugs asks, “What’s the matter, doc? Ya cold? Here, I’ll fix that!” He then puts a prom-like dress on Elmer as well as a wig and lipstick. Bugs pulls up the background like a curtain shade where they are now on the streets of Hollywood and Vine where a pack of sex-hungry wolves are immediately smitten (animated by Melendez).

In the middle of being chased, Elmer stops to ask in a feminine voice, “Have any of you girls ever had an expewience wike this?” (animated by Gould)

Offering help, Bugs has Elmer run a certain way that includes all sorts of ridiculous runs which include on all fours, upside down, and doing the Russian kick dance (animated by Gould). After they jump off a cloud, Elmer thanks Bugs for getting him out of that situation only to realize they’re plummeting. As Bugs calmly sings “September in the Rain”, Elmer desperately pleads to Bugs: “What’ll we do, Mr. Wabbit? What’ll we do?” Bugs tells him, “I don’t know about you, doc. But as for me-” and brings out “Hare Tonic. Stops Falling Hare”. Bugs remains in mid-air as Elmer continues falling (animated by Ellis)

Elmer wakes up after he in his dream falls into his body. He then zooms back to where Bugs is waiting and quickly pastes his contract back together. “Oh, Mr. Warner. I’m back. (laughs)”. The chase at the start of the cartoon resumes with Elmer giving Bugs the green light: “Ok, Mr. Wabbit, woll it!” (animated by Gould) After Bugs maneuvers the log for Elmer to exit in mid-air once more, he laughs, “I love that man!” (animated by Melendez)

Where Can I Watch It?

At archive.org!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕🥕