''Porky's Hare Hunt'' is a 1938

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American media franchise produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The franchise began as a series of animated short films that originally ran from 1930 to 1969, alongside its spin-off series ''Merrie Melodies'', during t ...

animated Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

directed by Ben "Bugs" Hardaway and an uncredited Cal Dalton, which stars

Porky Pig Porky Pig is a cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his celebrity, star power, and the animators created man ...

as a hunter whose quarry is a little white rabbit. The short was released on April 30, 1938.

Plot

Several rabbits are causing havoc by eating carrots and destroying crops. One rabbit, warning them to flee, encounters Porky and his dog in the forest. A confrontation ensues, with Porky attempting to outsmart the rabbit, but ultimately failing. When Porky tries to shoot the rabbit, his gun malfunctions, leading to a humorous exchange about hunting licenses. The resourceful rabbit outwits Porky by destroying his hunting license and escaping using his ears as helicopter blades. Despite Porky's attempts to stop him, including throwing a rock and dynamite, the rabbit emerges victorious. Eventually, Porky finds himself in the hospital, where the rabbit ironically brings him flowers before pulling a prank that ensures Porky's prolonged stay.

Production notes

''Porky's Hare Hunt'' marked the first appearance of the rabbit that would evolve into

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 ' ...

, who is barely recognizable compared to his more familiar later form. Bugs' first official appearance would come two years later in ''

A Wild Hare ''A Wild Hare'' (reissued as The 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 Ju ...

''. According to the cartoon's copyright date in the opening title card, this cartoon began production in 1937, but was released in theatres on April 30, 1938. Hardaway, according to

Martha Sigall Martha Goldman Sigall (April 17, 1917 – December 13, 2014) was an American inker and painter who worked in the Hollywood animation industry for 53 years. Sigall moved to California from Buffalo, New York, in 1926 and by chance lived around the ...

, said he was going to put "a rabbit suit on that duck", referring to ''

Porky's Duck Hunt ''Porky's Duck Hunt'' is a 1937 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon directed by Tex Avery. The cartoon was released on April 17, 1937, and stars Porky Pig and Daffy Duck, the latter making what is considered his first official appearance. Plo ...

'', released a year earlier. The rabbit's

hyperactive Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple con ...

personality and laugh provided by

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908 – July 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 come ...

predated the 1940

Walter Lantz Walter Benjamin Lantz (April 27, 1899 – March 22, 1994) was an American cartoonist, animator, producer and director best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker. Biography Early years and start in animat ...

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

release '' Knock Knock'' which starred

Andy Panda Andy Panda is a cartoon character who starred in his own series of animated cartoon short subjects produced by Walter Lantz. These "cartunes" were released by Universal Pictures from 1939 to 1947, and United Artists from 1948 to 1949. The title ...

and introduced

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently Animation, animated, in an realism (arts), unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or s ...

audiences to

Woody Woodpecker Woody Woodpecker is a cartoon character that appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz Productions, Walter Lantz Studio and Universal Animation Studios, Universal Animation Studio and distributed by Universal Pictures sinc ...

, who was created for the Lantz studio by Hardaway after his departure from the

Leon Schlesinger Leonardo Schlesinger ( ; May 20, 1884 – December 25, 1949) was an American film producer who founded Leon Schlesinger Productions, which later became the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio, during the Golden Age of American animation The gold ...

studio.

Music

The

incidental music Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, or some other presentation form that is not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as th ...

heard throughout the piece are scored arrangements of "

Bei Mir Bistu Shein "Bei Mir Bistu Shein" ( , "To Me You're Beautiful") is a popular Yiddish song written by lyricist Jacob Jacobs and composer Sholom Secunda for a 1932 Yiddish language comedy musical, ''I Would If I Could'' (in Yiddish , "You could live, but ...

", a popular song which was a hit for

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (1911–1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (1916–1995), and mezzo ...

around this time, and "

Hooray for Hollywood "Hooray for Hollywood" is a popular song first featured in the 1937 movie ''Hollywood Hotel'', and which has since become (together with " That's Entertainment" and "There's No Business like Show Business") the staple soundtrack element of any Ac ...

" from the contemporary motion picture ''

Hollywood Hotel The Hollywood Hotel was a famous hotel, society venue of early Hollywood landmark, formerly located at 6811 Hollywood Boulevard, on the north side, extending from Highland Avenue to Orchid Avenue, in central Hollywood, Los Angeles, Californ ...

''.

Home media

*Blu-ray: '' Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2'', Disc 2 *DVD: '' Porky Pig 101'', Disc 2

Rediscovered colorized version

The redrawn colorized version was long considered to be a lost cartoon, until the redrawn was found on a recorded tape and uploaded on the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

on April 30, 2021, exactly 83 years after the short premiered in theaters.

References

External links

*
''Porky's Hare Hunt'' (Restored) on Youtube
{{Bugs Bunny in animation 1938 films Looney Tunes shorts Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films Films about hunting Bugs Bunny films Porky Pig films Films directed by Ben Hardaway Films directed by Cal Dalton Films scored by Carl Stalling Films produced by Leon Schlesinger 1930s Warner Bros. animated short films American animated black-and-white films 1938 animated short films