{"id":39098,"date":"2023-03-21T00:02:45","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T04:02:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=39098"},"modified":"2023-03-08T12:08:35","modified_gmt":"2023-03-08T17:08:35","slug":"every-bugs-bunny-ever-the-wabbit-who-came-to-supper-1942","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2023\/03\/21\/every-bugs-bunny-ever-the-wabbit-who-came-to-supper-1942\/","title":{"rendered":"Every Bugs Bunny Ever: The Wabbit Who Came to Supper (1942)"},"content":{"rendered":"

2023 marks the 85th<\/sup> Anniversary of Bug Bunny\u2019s first animated appearance in 1938’s \u201cPorky\u2019s Hare Hunt.\u201d Debuting originally as Happy Rabbit, Bugs eventually became one of the most iconic animated characters of all time. In honor of the landmark anniversary, we\u2019re discussing every animated appearance by Bugs Bunny. We\u2019re big fans of Bugsy and we hope that you are, too. <\/em><\/p>\n

Follow us on this massive journey where we discover and re-discover Every Bugs Bunny Ever.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Wabbit Who Came to Supper (1942)
\n<\/strong>Directed by Friz Freleng
\nWritten by Michael Maltese
\nMusic by Carl W. Stalling
\nAnimation by Richard Bickenbach<\/p>\n

I have a big sentimental value attachment to \u201cThe Wabbit Who Came to Supper.\u201d When I was a kid we didn\u2019t have cable television, but VHS tapes were readily available and often cheap. Back then stores would sell cartoon compilation tapes filled with hours of animated shorts for dirt cheap (often times they were a dollar, two dollars tops). So my mom and dad would buy at least four of them and give them to me and my brother and sister, and we\u2019d watch them for hours. I spent so many days watching random shorts from MGM and Warner.<\/p>\n

Basically, it consisted of whatever was public domain at the time, as the \u201cunofficial\u201d compilation tapes were filled with public domain animated shorts. That\u2019s basically how I familiarized myself with Popeye, and Felix the Cat, and how I fell in love with the Fleischer Brothers Superman series.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also how I watched \u201cThe Wabbit Who Came to Supper,\u201d since the short has been public domain for a very long time after the rights were not renewed by United Artists. The title of \u201cThe Wabbit Who Came to Supper\u201d is a reference to the 1942 Warner Brothers film version of the Broadway comedy \u201cThe Man Who Came to Dinner.\u201d In it an overbearing house-guest threatens to take over the lives of a small-town family. With this short, it\u2019s basically the same premise with Bugs Bunny taking over the life of Elmer Fudd. The short begins with Bugs Bunny who is being chased by Elmer Fudd and his pack of hunting dogs.<\/p>\n

Bugs has run out of hiding spots, and decides to try to outwit the dogs to survive. While Elmer is about to snatch the poor Wabbit, he receives a telegram from his Uncle Louie. Louie has given Elmer an inheritance of three million dollars. The only stipulation is that he absolutely cannot hurt animals. Elmer lets Bugs go without harm, but Bugs uses this opportunity to torment Elmer and camp out at his house. This begins the chaotic battle of wits between Elmer and Bugs, the mischievous Rabbit pushes Elmer as far as he can and keeps dangling the inheritance over his head. He makes himself comfortable by taking a long shower, singing off key to \u201cAngel in Disguise,\u201d and there\u2019s a fun gag involving a shaver.<\/p>\n

Mid-way there\u2019s a twist in the story that\u2019s even more relevant now than it was back then as Elmer is granted the inheritance but due to an obscene amount of taxes, he<\/em><\/strong> ends up owing the government two bucks. This prompts even more wacky shenanigans with Elmer chasing Bugs around the house, and Bugs diverts him with a hilarious \u201cHappy New Year!\u201d gag and a great scene involving being chased in to a basement (\u201cDon\u2019t go down there! It\u2019s dark!\u201d). This also has the distinction of being the first short where Bugs cross dresses, as Elmer walks in on him in the powder room prompting Bugs in ladies underwear to shriek in horror. This, as we know, would become a common practice for Bugs as a way to trick and or evade his enemies.<\/p>\n

This is one of the few shorts where we once again meet \u201cFat Elmer\u201d Fudd, who is not yet quite the hunter we know him as. As per this version he spends most of his time in a casual dress shirt and pants, and dons a bowler hat. The distinct red nose is gone oddly enough. I\u2019m not really a fan of \u201cFat Elmer\u201d Fudd, mainly because the character doesn\u2019t need further elements that make him a villain. The rhotacism is unique enough for the Bugs Bunny foil. And yet again, the idea that he\u2019s overweight never once plays in to any of the gags, nor does it contribute to the story.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve never been too sure about the closing scene, as it ends with Elmer receiving an Easter basket filled to the brim with baby Bunnies, all of whom are copies of Bugs. I\u2019m not sure what the whole point of it is, as the gag never really gels with the rest of the short. In either case, while the short itself is not entirely what I personally consider classic Bugs Bunny, it\u2019s outweighed by its strong nostalgic value, and laying the groundwork for a lot of future gags that Bugs would implement throughout his film life.<\/p>\n

Find out what we think are the BEST<\/a> and WORST<\/a> Bugs Bunny shorts of all time!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n