Author Archives: Phil Hall

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Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Big Top Bunny (1951)

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Big Top Bunny (1951)
Directed by Robert McKimson
Story by Tedd Pierce
Animation by Charles McKimson, Rod Scribner, Phil DeLara, Bob Wickersham
Music by Carl Stalling

The reigning animal star of Col. Korny’s Circus is Bruno the Slobokian Acrobatic Bear – the ursine star is a burly biped with a tan body, a chalk white face and a green and red derby, as well as a heavy accent that sounds like it comes from any country behind the Iron Curtain. Bruno’s spotlight reign is threatened when he is given a new performing partner with Bugs Bunny. Bruno is furious at this arrangement and tries to sabotage Bugs during their premiere engagement. Bugs quickly realizes Bruno’s intentions and deftly turns the tables on the arrogant acrobat, ultimately resulting in a big top ejection via a cannon.
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Bargain Daze (1953)

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No one approaches Heckle and Jeckle cartoons expecting art – or, for that matter, coherent storytelling, sophisticated dialogue or an ironic reflection on the emotional palette. But, of course, they were never intended to provide cerebral invigoration or display the fullest spectrum of animated creativity. As the producer of the cartoons Paul Terry once succinctly declared regarding the quality of his work compared to the master of the genre: “Let Walt Disney be the Tiffany’s, I want to be the Woolworth’s.”
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The Bootleg Files – B.C.: The First Thanksgiving

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BOOTLEG FILES 887: “B.C.: The First Thanksgiving” (1973 animated television special).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On a VHS video release.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It fell through the cracks.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Probably not.

The transition from newspaper comic strip to film or television production is not an easy journey. For every “Popeye the Sailor” or “Peanuts” that seamlessly moved from the funny pages to the screen, there are too many comic strips that tried and failed to make the jump.
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Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Ballot Box Bunny (1951)

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Ballot Box Bunny (1951)
Directed by Friz Freleng
Animation by Ken Champin, Virgil Ross, Arthur Davis,Manuel Perez
Music by Carl Stalling

Yosemite Sam is running for mayor of an unnamed town, and part of his platform is the promise “to rid this country of every last rabbit.” Needless to say, this doesn’t sit well with Bugs Bunny, who starts a rival campaign. Sam repeatedly tries to sabotage Bugs’ electioneering, but his tricks inevitably backfire badly on him. However, neither candidate prevails as the race goes to a dark horse candidate, literally – a car carrying a sign that reads “Our New Mare” features a large horse as its passenger that is cheered as the election victor by off-screen crowds. Shocked by their respective loses, Bugs and Sam opt to extinguish their disappointment with a game of Russian roulette.
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Daytime Revolution (2024) [DVD / Blu-ray]

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During the week of February 14, 1972, daytime television was thrown for a loop as John Lennon and Yoko Ono joined “The Mike Douglas Show” as co-hosts, bringing along a selection of unlikely guests to provoke and entertain the show’s Philadelphia-based studio audience and a national viewership of 40 million.
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The Big Noise (1944)

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The other day, I saw a post on Facebook asking for input on whether the 1944 Laurel and Hardy feature “The Big Noise” deserved to be considered among the worst films ever made. After all, many Laurel and Hardy aficionados label it as the duo’s on-screen nadir, and it was also cited in a book that allegedly ranked the all-time 50 worst films.
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The Bootleg Files: The Wonderful Land of Oz

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BOOTLEG FILES 886: “The Wonderful Land of Oz” (1969 kiddie matinee feature).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On public domain-friendly platforms.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A lapsed copyright.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: This is just what The Criterion Collection needs!

On this particular day – November 22, 2024, to be precise – most moviegoers are fixated on the release of the big-budget musical “Wicked.” But since I prefer the rat-a-tat-tat from a different drum, I am venturing to a lower rent corner of the Yellow Brick Road to celebrate the no-budget 1969 feature “The Wonderful Land of Oz.”
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