''Elmer's Pet Rabbit'' is a 1941 Warner Bros. '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by

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

. The short was released on January 4, 1941, and features

Elmer Fudd Elmer J. Fudd is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes''/''Merrie Melodies'' series and the archenemy of Bugs Bunny. Elmer Fudd's aim is to hunt Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring himself and other antag ...

and

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is a cartoon character created in the late 1930s at Warner Bros. Cartoons (originally Leon Schlesinger, Leon Schlesinger Productions) and Voice acting, voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his featured roles in the ' ...

Plot

Elmer Fudd buys Bugs Bunny from a pet store and builds a pen to hold him in. Elmer gives Bugs a bowl of vegetables, which Bugs says isn't fit food for him, even as he eats it. Bugs pretends to drown in the bathtub, Elmer pulls him out, and they continue to fight. When Elmer is ready to go to bed, he finds Bugs already there. They fight more, and when at the end Elmer tries to go to bed, he once again finds Bugs is already there.

Production notes

This is the first cartoon in which the name Bugs Bunny is given (on a title card, edited onto the end of the opening title following the success of 1940's '' A Wild Hare''), but the rabbit is similar to the prototype version of him seen and heard in '' Elmer's Candid Camera'' (though his voice is different) and other prototype-Bugs Bunny shorts. This is Chuck Jones' first cartoon featuring the recognizable Bugs Bunny, and it was written by Rich Hogan. Voices are provided by Mel Blanc and Arthur Q. Bryan. It was produced by Leon Schlesinger.

Music

The music in the cartoon includes a variation on " While Strolling Through the Park One Day," arranged by Carl Stalling, performed by Elmer and the rabbit. Elmer, of course, has trouble with many of the words, due to his "rounded L and R" speech impediment.

Home media

Although the short was included on three VHS compilations in 1985, 1990 and 1999, as well as a 1992 ''Golden Age of Looney Tunes''

LaserDisc LaserDisc (LD) is a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. It was developed by Philips, Pioneer Corporation, Pioneer, and the movie studio MCA Inc., MCA. The format was initially marketed in the United State ...

release, it was not issued again until 2020, when HBO Max included the cartoon in its collection of other Looney Tunes shorts. It was released on the Looney Tunes Collector's Choice Volume 3 Blu-Ray disc in 2024.

References

External links

* {{Chuck Jones 1941 films 1941 comedy films 1940s English-language films 1940s Warner Bros. animated short films Merrie Melodies short films Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films Short films directed by Chuck Jones Films scored by Carl Stalling Bugs Bunny films Elmer Fudd films Films about pets Films produced by Leon Schlesinger English-language short films 1941 animated short films