''Hare-Way to the Stars'' is a 1958 American animated

science fiction comedy Science fiction comedy (sci-fi comedy) or comic science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that exploits the science-fiction (SF) genre's conventions for comedy, comedic effect. Comic science fiction often mocks or satirize ...

short film directed by

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...

and written by

Michael Maltese Michael Maltese (February 6, 1908 – February 22, 1981) was an American story man for classic animated cartoon shorts. He is best known for working in the 1950s on a series of ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons with director Chuck Jones, notably "Wha ...

. The short was released by

Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment (both ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery). The studio is the flagship producer of liv ...

on March 29, 1958 as part of the ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.

'' series, and stars

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

and

Marvin the Martian Marvin the Martian is an extraterrestrial character from Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons. He frequently appears as a villain in cartoons and video games, and wears a helmet and skirt. The character has been voice ...

. The title is a play on the song "

Stairway to the Stars "Stairway to the Stars" is a popular song composed by Matty Malneck and Frank Signorelli, with lyrics by Mitchell Parish. It was based on a theme from Malneck and Signorelli's 1934 instrumental piece, "Park Avenue Fantasy." Hit recordings in 19 ...

Plot

The cartoon starts when Bugs Bunny, feeling the effects of mixing radish juice with carrot juice the night before, unknowingly climbs out of his hole and into a rocket ship that is about to be launched into space. He realizes what has happened once he screws open the tip of the ship, and is immediately hit by the satellite

Sputnik Sputnik 1 (; see § Etymology) was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program. It sent a radio signal back to Earth for t ...

and lands on what appears to be a space station. While there, Bugs meets

who is trying to blow up the

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

with his Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator (which is actually a stick of dynamite) because "Earth obstructs his view of

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

". Bugs quietly steals Marvin's explosive, and Marvin quickly discovers what happened. He creates a trio of "Instant Martians" (who somewhat resemble the Martians of ''

A Martian Odyssey "A Martian Odyssey" is a science fiction short story by American writer Stanley G. Weinbaum originally published in the July 1934 issue of ''Wonder Stories''. It was Weinbaum's second published story (in 1933 he had sold a romantic novel, ''The ...

'' and ''

Jumpin' Jupiter ''Jumpin' Jupiter'' is a 1955 Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on August 6, 1955 and stars Porky Pig and Sylvester. It is the third and last of a series of horror-themed cartoons that starr ...

'') by adding water to "Instant Martian" pills. The Martians all leave to capture Bugs. Bugs gets on a rocket scooter and is pursued by a Martian. After noticing it mimics his every move to catch up with him, Bugs mimes driving out of the space station, causing the Martian to actually do that. He is then pursued by the Martians and hides behind a door so that he can chase them. The Martians use the same trick to get behind Bugs and chase him, but he uses the same trick again to make the Martians run into a trapdoor and make them fall out of the space station. Bugs then steals a

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

and when Marvin attempts to make more Martians, Bugs swaps the lit Space Modulator for the Instant Martian dispenser. The Modulator explodes in Marvin's hand just after he finishes saying its name, destroying his space station. Standing amid the shattered remains, Marvin concedes defeat and that it is "back to the old drawing board" for his plans to destroy the Earth. Bugs arrives on Earth in the UFO, but crashes into a construction site warning sign and finds himself and the bottle of "Instant Martians" falling into the sewer and splashing all the pills. The ground shakes as Bugs climbs out of the sewer, frantically replaces the

manhole cover A manhole cover or maintenance hole cover is a removable plate forming the lid over the opening of a manhole, an opening large enough for a person to pass through that is used as an access point for an underground vault or pipe. It is designed to ...

and warns the audience "Run for the hills folks, or you'll be up to your armpits in Martians!", before proceeding to take his own advice as Martian antennas poke out of the cracks appearing in the ground.

Crew

*Story:

*Animation: Richard Thompson,

Ken Harris Karyl Ross "Ken" Harris (July 31, 1898 – March 24, 1982) was an American animator best known for his work at Warner Bros. Cartoons under the supervision of director Chuck Jones. Life and career Ken Harris was born in Tulare County, Calif ...

Abe Levitow Abraham Levitow (July 2, 1922 – May 8, 1975) was an American animator who worked at Warner Bros. Cartoons, UPA and MGM Animation/Visual Arts. He is best known for his work under Chuck Jones' direction. Career Levitow was born in Los Angeles ...

*Layouts:

Maurice Noble Maurice James Noble (May 1, 1911 – May 18, 2001) was an American animation production designer, background artist and layout designer whose contributions to the industry spanned more than 60 years. He was a long-time associate and right-hand man ...

*Backgrounds: Philip DeGuard *Effects Animation: Harry Love *Film:

Treg Brown Tregoweth Edmond "Treg" Brown (November 4, 1899 – April 28, 1984) was an American motion picture sound editor who was responsible for the sound effects in Warner Bros.' ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons from 1936 to 1963. ...

*Voice Characterizations:

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...

*Music: Milt Franklyn *Produced by

Edward Selzer Edward Selzer (January 12, 1893 – February 22, 1970) was an American film producer and publicist who served as head of Warner Bros. Cartoons from 1944 to 1958. He served in the US Navy and fought as a Golden Gloves boxer. He won a boxing exhibi ...

& John W. Burton *Directed by

Home media

The cartoon was featured on the '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1''

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...

box set (released November 15, 2011) with the cartoon restored and in high definition. This cartoon was also made part of the feature film ''

The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie ''The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie'' is a 1979 American animated comedy package film directed by Chuck Jones, consisting of a compilation of classic '' Looney Tunes/ Merrie Melodies'' shorts and newly animated bridging sequences hosted by Bugs ...

'' (sometimes known as ''The Great American Chase'').

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hare-Way To The Stars 1958 films 1958 animated films 1958 short films 1950s science fiction comedy films 1950s Warner Bros. animated short films Looney Tunes Short films directed by Chuck Jones Films scored by Milt Franklyn Animated films about extraterrestrial life Films set in outer space Mars in film Bugs Bunny films Marvin the Martian films Films with screenplays by Michael Maltese 1950s English-language films