| Stage Door Cartoon | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Directed by | I. Freleng |
| Story by | Michael Maltese |
| Starring | Mel Blanc |
| Music by | Carl W. Stalling |
| Animation by | Jack Bradbury |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | |
Release date |
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Running time | 8:04 |
| Language | English |
Stage Door Cartoon is a 1944 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. [1] [2] The short was released on December 30, 1944, and features Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. [3]
Elmer Fudd attempts to catch Bugs Bunny with a carrot on a fish hook, but Bugs attaches the hook to Elmer's pants and reels Elmer in. Then Elmer chases Bugs into a theater; Bugs disguises himself as a can-can dancer, but Elmer recognizes Bugs, and prevents him from exiting the stage. Bugs dances, then plays the piano where Elmer hides and gets bounced around. Bugs then tricks Elmer into high-diving into a glass of water. Elmer is then tricked into wearing a Shakesperean costume, then, prompted by Bugs, acts, then does poses and silly faces; Bugs prompts the booing audience to throw a tomato at Elmer.
Elmer is then tricked into performing a striptease down to his shorts. Bugs disguises himself as a southern sheriff while the real sheriff arrests Elmer for "indecent southern exposure". But the sheriff stays for the Bugs Bunny cartoon on the movie screen. Elmer notices the scene with Bugs' disguise, thinks the sheriff is an impostor, and pulls off his pants — disrobing a real sheriff, who furiously escorts Elmer out of the theater with his rifle as Bugs conducts the orchestra in a finale.
The cartoon's title is a parody of the 1943 musical film Stage Door Canteen .
This is the first cartoon to feature Bugs' signature song "What's Up Doc?" playing during the title card.
Bugs' goofy yell to Elmer, "Here I ya-um!" was a catchphrase used by radio star Red Skelton's country bumpkin character "Clem Kadiddlehopper".
The Southern sheriff in this cartoon is a prototype of Yosemite Sam, which was later confirmed in the ToonHeads episode "Before They Were Stars". This prototype version of Sam appears to be a little taller in height (almost as tall as Bugs), older in age (hence the white hair), and is a good guy who is a fan of Bugs and his cartoons, in contrast to the "official" Sam who is evil, hates rabbits (including Bugs), shorter in height and younger in age with red hair.
Bugs' final line, "I got a million of 'em!" was a Jimmy Durante catchphrase; Bugs also mimics Durante's standard body language while saying it.
This cartoon marks the debut of "Untitled Soft Shoe Number", an original music score by Carl Stalling. Portions of the foreground (character) animation layer from the scene of Bugs dancing to this music cue would later be re-used in Bugs Bunny Rides Again and Hot Cross Bunny (both 1948).
The basic plotline was re-used in the 1949 Bugs-and-Elmer cartoon, Hare Do and again in the 1950 Bugs-and-Elmer cartoon, Rabbit of Seville . A modified version of the high dive is used in Hare Do, where Bugs tricks a blindfolded Elmer into riding a unicycle from a wire high above a stage into the jaws of a man-eating lion, with the result having an ending reminiscent to the ending of A Day at the Zoo (1939), which featured Elmer's prototype Egghead being swallowed up by a lion.
The high-diving gag from this cartoon is later used as the entire plot device for High Diving Hare (1949), where Yosemite Sam tries to force Bugs Bunny to perform the high-diving act when Fearless Freep is unavailable.
The line Elmer is prompted by Bugs Bunny to recite is based upon Romeo and Juliet II.ii.2 (which is actually "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?") Elmer, due to his speech impediment, cannot properly pronounce the line.
Yosemite Sam is a cartoon character in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of short films produced by Warner Bros. His name is taken from Yosemite National Park in California. He is an adversary of Bugs Bunny and his archenemy alongside Elmer Fudd. He is commonly depicted as a mean-spirited and extremely aggressive, gunslinging outlaw or cowboy with a hair-trigger temper and an intense hatred of rabbits, Bugs in particular. In cartoons with non-Western themes, he uses various aliases, including "Chilkoot Sam" and "Square-deal Sam" in 14 Carrot Rabbit, "Riff Raff Sam" in Sahara Hare, "Sam Schultz" in Big House Bunny, "Seagoin' Sam" in Buccaneer Bunny, "Shanghai Sam" in Mutiny on the Bunny, "Von Schamm the Hessian" in Bunker Hill Bunny, "Baron Sam von Schpamm" in Dumb Patrol, and many others. During the golden age of American animation, Yosemite Sam appeared as antagonist in 33 animated shorts made between 1945 and 1964.
A Wild Hare is a 1940 American animated comedy short film directed by Tex Avery, produced by Leon Schlesinger, and distributed by Warner Bros. as part of the Merrie Melodies series. The film was released on July 27, 1940, and features Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny, the latter making what is considered his first official appearance.
Elmer's Pet Rabbit is a 1941 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on January 4, 1941, and features Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny.
Elmer's Candid Camera is a 1940 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon short directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on March 2, 1940, and features Elmer Fudd and an early Bugs Bunny prototype.
From Hare to Eternity is a 1997 Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam cartoon in the Looney Tunes series, directed by Chuck Jones. This short had a simultaneous release on November 4, 1997. The voice of Bugs is performed by Greg Burson and the voice of Yosemite Sam is performed by Frank Gorshin.
Hare Trigger is a 1945 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Friz Freleng. The cartoon was released on May 5, 1945, and features Bugs Bunny. The short featured the first appearance of Yosemite Sam, as well as the first short to credit (almost) the whole animation staff who worked on the short.
Duck! Rabbit, Duck! is a 1953 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Charles M. Jones. The cartoon was released on October 3, 1953 and stars Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.
Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 is a DVD box set that was released by Warner Home Video on October 28, 2003. The first release of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD series, it contains 56 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons and numerous supplements. The set won the Classic Award at the Parents' Choice Awards.
High Diving Hare is a 1948-produced Warner Brothers Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short starring Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam. Released to theaters on April 30, 1949, the short is an expansion of a gag from Stage Door Cartoon, which was also directed by Friz Freleng, and co-stars Elmer Fudd. High Diving Hare can be seen in the third act of The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie, and a segment can be seen in the special Bugs Bunny's Wild World of Sports.
The Old Grey Hare is a 1944 Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Bob Clampett. The short was released on October 28, 1944, and features Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd.
Easter Yeggs is a 1947 Looney Tunes theatrical animated short. The cartoon was released on June 28, 1947, and features Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. The title is a play on "Easter eggs" and on "yegg", a slang term for a burglar or safecracker.
The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie is a 1981 American animated comedy package film with a compilation of classic Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies Warner Bros. cartoon shorts and animated bridging sequences produced and directed by Friz Freleng, hosted by Bugs Bunny. The new footage was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and the first Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies film with a compilation of classic cartoon comedy shorts produced by Warner Bros. Animation.
The Bugs Bunny Mystery Special is an animated television special that was broadcast on CBS October 15, 1980. Presented by Porky Pig as an Alfred Hitchcock-style whodunit, the plot is modeled after those of North by Northwest and The Fugitive.
Hare Do is a 1949 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon. The short was released on January 15, 1949, and stars Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd.
This Is a Life? is a 1955 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Friz Freleng, written by Warren Foster, and produced by Edward Selzer, with music directed by Milt Franklyn. The short was released on July 9, 1955, and stars Bugs Bunny. The voices were performed by Mel Blanc, Arthur Q. Bryan, and June Foray in her first work for Warner Bros. This is one of the few Bugs Bunny cartoons whose title does not contain Bugs, bunny, rabbit/wabbit or hare.
Elmer J. Fudd is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies series and the archenemy of Bugs Bunny alongside Yosemite Sam. His aim is to hunt Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring himself and other antagonizing characters. He speaks in an unusual way, replacing his Rs and Ls with Ws, so he often refers to Bugs Bunny as a "scwewy" or "wascawwy (rascally) wabbit". Elmer's signature catchphrase is, "Shhh. Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting wabbits", as well as his trademark laughter.
Looney Tunes: Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection is a Blu-ray Disc box-set released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on December 1, 2020. It contains 60 Bugs Bunny shorts and numerous bonus features and supplementary content. The set's packaging includes a slip book, a booklet, and a collectible Bugs Bunny Funko! POP doll.
