Release Date:

December 3, 1949

Main Character(s):

Bugs Bunny

Summary:

In Africa, a witch doctor named I.C. Spots is preparing a potion, which requires a rabbit to be complete. Spots encounters Bugs Bunny and decides to use him, but of course, Bugs won’t cooperate that easy.

That’s Not All, Folks:

The production number is 1099 and was released as a Looney Tune.

The cartoon has been banned from airing on television since the 1990’s due to racial stereotyping and also includes a very infamous scene of Bugs disguising as a Zulu native by putting rings around his neck and ears and putting plates in his mouth to resemble the Zulus’ enormous lips (animated by Virgil Ross). Because of its stereotyping, this cartoon has never been put out on home video although in 2021, on one of their special discs, Thunderbean put a very beautiful-looking copy of this cartoon on there (while not restored, this is VERY likely the best we’re ever going to see it look unless Jerry Beck manages to convince the upper management to put the racially insensitive cartoons out on disc fully restored). Shockingly, this one WAS part of a Bugs Bunny Show episode in the 1960’s.

This is also the only 1949 cartoon to not be restored.

The cartoon was originally going to be put on the Looney Tunes Super Stars Bugs Bunny Hare Extraordinaire DVD set in 2010, but for obvious reasons, it was withdrawn. Interestingly, though, McKimson’s “Bushy Hare” (1950), where Bugs’ antagonist is a stereotypical Aborigine, is available on that set (as one of the few cartoons presented properly).

Spots’ name is a parody of “I see spots”; seeing spots before one’s eyes was often a symptom for a disease back then.

This is the first Freleng cartoon to have animation by Arthur Davis, due to Davis no longer being a director. This is also the only time this is the case in the 1940’s.

Spots is somewhat of a precursor to Witch Hazel (introduced five years later in Jones’ “Bewitched Bunny”) as Hazel also performs, well, witchcraft, and she would often require a rabbit for her brew.

This is the last cartoon to have effects animation by AC Gamer. Harry Love would shortly take his place.

This is one of the few Bugs Bunny cartoons to not have the words “hare”, “doc”, “Bugs”, “rabbit”, or “bunny” in it.

The title is a pun for “which is which”. Twenty years later, this pun would be somewhat reused for the Scooby Doo Where Are You episode, “Which Witch is Which?” (1969). While Mystery Inc. encountered a witch (as well as a zombie) in that episode, they would encounter a witch doctor a year later in the episode “A Tiki Scare is No Fair” (1970).

“Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals” plays during the scene where Bugs first meets Spots, and also when Spots finds out Bugs was disguised as one of the Zulus he just bowed like a gentleman to, up to the point where Bugs swims to a riverboat.

This one is notable for being one of the few times Bugs saves the life of his antagonist.

The ending scene, where Bugs says, “Very becoming, short stuff. Gives you that, uh, NEW look” before making the facial expression in the screenshot used in this post would become a meme known as “Disappointed Bugs”.

What I Like About This One:

The music over the opening credits, which appears to be an original tune by Carl Stalling.

Every time Spots pours specific ingredients for his potion into his pot (which include “lizard tongue”, “fish eyes”, “gnats’ eyebrows”, “Jigger of XXX”, “1 Doz. bee stingers”, “5 leopard spots”, “powdered spots”, and “frogs’ legs saute”), he dances around said pot in time to a catchy war dance tune. Upon finding out he doesn’t have the last ingredient, 1 rabbit, he angrily smashes the vase it was supposed to be in, and rants in unintelligible gibberish (animated by Gerry Chiniquy).

Meanwhile, Bugs comes across a tiki with mile markers: one points left saying “Huba Huba (1 Mile)” and the other points right saying, “Kuka Munga (1 Mile)”. He decides, “Hmm. Well, I’ll flip to see which way I go. Heads, I go this way. Tails I go that way”. Instead of flipping a coin, he does a jumping flip and lands with his tail sticking up, so it’s “Heh. Tails I go that way”, heading towards “Kuka Munga” (animated by Arthur Davis).

While scatting to “Don’t Sweetheart Me”, Bugs walks toward “Kuka Munga” and is being followed closely by Spots, who is sneaking across and hiding behind the trees and tikis. Spots eventually stops in front of Bugs, and does his gibberish rant again. Bugs assumes, “Hmm. Must be Halloween in these parts”. After asking, “Eh, what’s up, doc?”, Spots stops ranting and asks, “Hey. How you know me doctor?” “Doctor? Did you say doctor?”, Bugs asks. Spots proudly nods and Bugs returns disguised as Stanley from the Dr. Livingston films. “Dr. Livingston, I presume”, Bugs greets him and then shakes his hand very hard, “Put it there, doc. Gee, doc. This is quite a momentous, hysterical occasion, ya know. Uh, we gotta preserve it for prostrerity”. He pulls out a camera and asks Spots to “give us a big smile”. Spots does so, but Bugs decides to “skip it” before asking him to “watch the birdie”. He actually sticks his arm through the lens and honks Spots’ nose. As Spots just stares at him with a hilarious open-mouthed expression, Bugs leaves, telling him, “You’ll have to wait a few days for the proofs” (animated by Davis).

Realizing he was duped, Spots rants once more before telling us, “Keep your eye on the bulls-eye”. He charges at Bugs with his spear, who angrily retaliates, “Hey, what’s the idea!? Gimme that dart!” before smashing it against a rock, rendering the spear head useless. “ There! And don’t let me hear about you playin’ with matches either!” Spots changes out his spear head and pokes Bugs in the rear with it again. Bugs starts to rant, “Why I got a notion to-”, but Spots then pokes him again, so Bugs finishes with, “Do just as you say” (animated by Virgil Ross).

Pointing his spear like a bayonet all the way back, Spots marches Bugs to his hut (animated by Ross), where Bugs mistakes Spots’ large pressure cooker for a hot bath. “How thoughtful! (kisses Spots on the head) And to think I had the little mutt all wrong”. Once Bugs gets settled in, Spots puts the large lid over it and seals it. In the interior, Bugs asks, “Hey, what’s goin’ on here? What is this, a steam cabinet!?” Upon smelling something cooking and then seeing his tail in the boiling water, Bugs gets wise and demands to be let out, before getting himself out through the pressure cooker’s lid (animated by Chiniquy).

Despite the scene of Bugs disguising as a Zulu native being offensive, the rendition of “Congo” during this scene is quite catchy (animated by Ross).

Once the springs around Bugs’ ears and neck come undone, and reveals him as his normal self, Spots gets wise and chases Bugs (animated by Ross) all the way to the edge of the riverbank where Bugs swims to a riverboat (animated by Ken Champin).

With only his ears poking out of the water, Bugs avoids a crocodile by having his ears go in separate directions around him. Once Bugs reaches the riverboat, he bids a ranting Spots, “Au revoir. Adios. Auf wiedersehen. Aloha” and then utters an annoyed “Goodbye”. Spots swims after him, but the crocodile emerges instead, wearing Spots’ hat. Shocked, Bugs asks the crocodile, “Hey! Where’s the little guy at?” The well-fed crocodile pats his stomach, implying that he consumed Spots. Bugs angrily raves, “Why, you grinnin’ lug! Come on! Come on! Cough him up!” to which the crocodile refuses. “Oh, yes you will!”, Bugs responds and goes in after him with a club to beat him up (animated by Champin).

The crocodile is soon turned into an alligator bag as Bugs comes back up with his broken club, having won the fight. Thinking Spots is dead, Bugs laments, “Eh, too bad. But, eh, at least I got something for me trouble”, referring to the bag. Spots is shown to have survived, “Me too!” and he comes out wearing alligator shoes and an alligator purse (animated by Champin). “Very becoming, short stuff. Gives you that, eh, NEW look”, Bugs tells him (animated by Chiniquy).

Where Can I Watch It?

At toontales.net!

Carrot Rating:

🥕🥕🥕🥕