Ali Baba Bunny
Encyclopedia
Ali Baba Bunny is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies
short featuring Bugs Bunny
and Daffy Duck
, directed by Chuck Jones
and released in 1957. In 1994, it was voted #35 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. Several lines spoken by Daffy—among them "Mine mine mine!", "I can't help it, I'm a greedy slob—it's my hobby" and "I'm rich—I'm a happy miser!"—have become popular catchphrases amongst fans and students of Chuck Jones' style of animation and fans of Daffy Duck
as well; the line "Hassan chop!" has also become a favorite quote.
The film was edited into two of the Looney Tunes greatest hits features: The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie
(1979), and Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales
(1982).
In the middle of the Arabian Desert
, a rich Sultan
has stored all his treasure in a cave, the door of which he closes with the command "Close, Sesame". He leaves a burly guard named Hassan to watch the cave, ordering him to let nobody enter, or else he will be punished. As the Sultan leaves on his tiny camel, the trail of a burrowing rabbit crosses the desert towards the cave. Hassan spots the burrow tunneling under the entrance of the cave and attempts to chase out the intruders, but finds he cannot remember the command to open the door again, trying "Open, sarsaparilla
", "Open, Saskatchewan
", "Open, septuagenarian", "Open, saddle soap
" and so on. Hassan noticeably loses his fierceness and appears dumbfounded when he struggles to remember the proper command, until he correctly guesses it, to which he immediately regains his toughness and bellows out his usual favorite saying; "Hassan chop!"
Inside the cave, Bugs Bunny
and his traveling companion Daffy Duck
emerge from the burrow, believing they have arrived at Pismo Beach "and all the clams we can eat" (having once again missed that important left turn at "Alba-koi-kee"). Daffy's complaints about having to travel underground ("What a way for a duck to travel; underground!") and about seeing that they're not at the right place ("Hey, wait a minute! Since when is Pismo Beach inside a cave?") are soon silenced when he spots the mound of treasure. Determined to keep it all for himself he stomps repeatedly on Bugs to force him back into the burrow ("It's mine, you understand?! Mine! All mine! Get back in there! Down, down, down! Go, go, go! Mine, mine, mine! Mwahahahahahaha!") and dives into the treasure pile with whoops of delight to the tune of the song "We're in the Money" ("I'm rich! I'm wealthy! Yahoo! I'm comfortably well off.").
Outside the cave, Hassan eventually says the correct command to open the door and storms in to deal with the intruders. He is met by Daffy, who is wheeling a trolley full of loot. Daffy, believing him to be a Redcap
, addresses him as "Boy" and asks him to call a cab. In response, Hassan brings his sword down on Daffy's head, splitting in half both the diamond-adorned hat he is wearing and a single upstanding hair underneath. Daffy, clearly amazed that he has not been cut in half himself, flees in terror and uses a large gem to try bribing Bugs into saving him, but Bugs, although himself susceptible to money-hunger in such cartoons as Baby Buggy Bunny
and Barbary Coast Bunny
, simply tosses Daffy's gem aside, only concerned with dusting himself off from the earlier abuse from Daffy.
Hassan rushes towards them both, sword raised, with the cry of "Hassan chop!" Daffy tells Hassan to chop the rabbit instead, but Bugs has already concocted a plan. He has squeezed into a tiny glass bottle, proclaiming himself to be a genie
and offering Hassan a rich reward for releasing him. Hassan is fooled (though Daffy isn't, saying "He's lying! Chop him, chop him!") and shakes Bugs out of the bottle. In return, Bugs rewards Hassan by proclaiming him the new owner of the treasure (performing his "magic" to do so with a bizarre "iggity-aggity-oop" dance and chant). Daffy sardonically mocks Bugs for allowing Hassan access to the treasure he wanted for himself.
Later, outside the cave, Bugs surveys the desert and concludes that he has indeed come to the wrong place. A scream comes from the cave as Daffy runs out carrying an enormous diamond, with the enraged Hassan in hot pursuit shrieking "Hassan chop!". Daffy begs Bugs to save him, and this time Bugs reluctantly complies while berating Daffy for his greed. He sets up an Indian rope trick
behind a rock, and when Hassan finds him, tells him that Daffy climbed up the rope. As Hassan disappears into the clouds, Bugs pulls the rope down, and, as with some variants of the fabled trick, Hassan has disappeared completely. With the coast clear, Daffy runs back to the cave to claim the treasure ("I'm rich! I'm wealthy! I'm independent! I'm socially secure!").
Some time later, Daffy has emptied the cave of treasure and is taking one last look around for any missed trinkets. He spots an old oil lamp and rubs the dust off it. A genie emerges from the lamp, but Daffy thinks the genie
is after the treasure and proceeds to stomp him back into the lamp like he did with Bugs earlier ("Oh, no you don't! You want my treasure! Well, it's mine, understand?! All mine! Down! Down! Go! Go! Mine!"). The furious genie erupts from the lamp, declaring Daffy will suffer the consequences for "desecrating the Spirit of the Lamp", (Genie: Duck, you have desecrated the spirit of the lamp! Prepare to take the consequences!) and Bugs, knowing that nothing can save Daffy now, is so terrified that he utters a frightened Yipe and hurriedly escapes via burrow. Daffy dismissively tells the genie, "Consequences, shmonsequences
, as long as I'm rich!" but the genie zaps Daffy with magic bolts from his fingertips.
Much later, Bugs has finally made it to Pismo Beach and, while tucking into the area's famous clam
s, casually wonders how Daffy's encounter with the genie worked out. Opening one clam and discovering a pearl
inside, he soon finds out; Daffy, shrunk to a few inches in height, emerges from Bugs' burrow trail in the sand and claims the pearl for his own ("It's mine, you understand? Mine! Mine! All mine! Go! Go! Go! Do you hear me? Out! Out Out! Mine! Mine! Mine! There's only enough for me!"). Bugs closes the clam on the greedy duck ("I'm rich..I'm a happy miser!") with the words "Close, sesame."
Merrie Melodies
Merrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures between 1931 and 1969.Originally produced by Harman-Ising Pictures, Merrie Melodies were produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1933 to 1944. Schlesinger sold his studio to Warner Bros. in 1944,...
short featuring Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
and Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, often running the gamut between being the best friend and sometimes arch-rival of Bugs Bunny...
, directed by Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
and released in 1957. In 1994, it was voted #35 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field. Several lines spoken by Daffy—among them "Mine mine mine!", "I can't help it, I'm a greedy slob—it's my hobby" and "I'm rich—I'm a happy miser!"—have become popular catchphrases amongst fans and students of Chuck Jones' style of animation and fans of Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, often running the gamut between being the best friend and sometimes arch-rival of Bugs Bunny...
as well; the line "Hassan chop!" has also become a favorite quote.
The film was edited into two of the Looney Tunes greatest hits features: The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie
The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie
The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie is a 1979 Looney Tunes film with a compilation of classic Warner Bros. cartoon shorts and animated bridging sequences, hosted by Bugs Bunny...
(1979), and Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales
Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales
Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales is a 1982 Looney Tunes film with a compilation of classic Warner Bros. cartoon shorts and animated bridging sequences, hosted by Bugs Bunny...
(1982).
Plot
The film is a very loose parody of the tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.In the middle of the Arabian Desert
Arabian Desert
The Arabian Desert is a vast desert wilderness stretching from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and Oman to Jordan and Iraq. It occupies most of the Arabian Peninsula, with an area of...
, a rich Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
has stored all his treasure in a cave, the door of which he closes with the command "Close, Sesame". He leaves a burly guard named Hassan to watch the cave, ordering him to let nobody enter, or else he will be punished. As the Sultan leaves on his tiny camel, the trail of a burrowing rabbit crosses the desert towards the cave. Hassan spots the burrow tunneling under the entrance of the cave and attempts to chase out the intruders, but finds he cannot remember the command to open the door again, trying "Open, sarsaparilla
Sarsaparilla
is a perennial trailing vine with prickly stems that is native to Central America. Common names include Sarsaparilla , Honduran Sarsaparilla, and Jamaican Sarsaparilla...
", "Open, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
", "Open, septuagenarian", "Open, saddle soap
Saddle soap
Saddle soap is a preparatory compound containing mild soap and softening ingredients such as neatsfoot oil, glycerin, and lanolin. It also contains bee's wax to protect leather. It is used for cleaning, conditioning and softening leather, particularly that of saddles and other horse tack, hence...
" and so on. Hassan noticeably loses his fierceness and appears dumbfounded when he struggles to remember the proper command, until he correctly guesses it, to which he immediately regains his toughness and bellows out his usual favorite saying; "Hassan chop!"
Inside the cave, Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
and his traveling companion Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck
Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons, often running the gamut between being the best friend and sometimes arch-rival of Bugs Bunny...
emerge from the burrow, believing they have arrived at Pismo Beach "and all the clams we can eat" (having once again missed that important left turn at "Alba-koi-kee"). Daffy's complaints about having to travel underground ("What a way for a duck to travel; underground!") and about seeing that they're not at the right place ("Hey, wait a minute! Since when is Pismo Beach inside a cave?") are soon silenced when he spots the mound of treasure. Determined to keep it all for himself he stomps repeatedly on Bugs to force him back into the burrow ("It's mine, you understand?! Mine! All mine! Get back in there! Down, down, down! Go, go, go! Mine, mine, mine! Mwahahahahahaha!") and dives into the treasure pile with whoops of delight to the tune of the song "We're in the Money" ("I'm rich! I'm wealthy! Yahoo! I'm comfortably well off.").
Outside the cave, Hassan eventually says the correct command to open the door and storms in to deal with the intruders. He is met by Daffy, who is wheeling a trolley full of loot. Daffy, believing him to be a Redcap
Porter (carrier)
A porter, also called a bearer, is a person who shifts objects for others.-Historical meaning:Human adaptability and flexibility early led to the use of humans for shifting gear...
, addresses him as "Boy" and asks him to call a cab. In response, Hassan brings his sword down on Daffy's head, splitting in half both the diamond-adorned hat he is wearing and a single upstanding hair underneath. Daffy, clearly amazed that he has not been cut in half himself, flees in terror and uses a large gem to try bribing Bugs into saving him, but Bugs, although himself susceptible to money-hunger in such cartoons as Baby Buggy Bunny
Baby Buggy Bunny
Baby Buggy Bunny is a Merrie Melodies animated short film directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese in 1954. The story is about a dwarf gangster named "Babyface" Finster who, after a clever bank robbery, loses his ill-gotten gains down Bugs Bunny's rabbit hole, forcing him to don the...
and Barbary Coast Bunny
Barbary Coast Bunny
Barbary Coast Bunny is a 1956 Warner Bros. theatrical cartoon short produced by Edward Selzer. It was directed by Chuck Jones and written by Tedd Pierce....
, simply tosses Daffy's gem aside, only concerned with dusting himself off from the earlier abuse from Daffy.
Hassan rushes towards them both, sword raised, with the cry of "Hassan chop!" Daffy tells Hassan to chop the rabbit instead, but Bugs has already concocted a plan. He has squeezed into a tiny glass bottle, proclaiming himself to be a genie
Genie
Jinn or genies are supernatural creatures in Arab folklore and Islamic teachings that occupy a parallel world to that of mankind. Together, jinn, humans and angels make up the three sentient creations of Allah. Religious sources say barely anything about them; however, the Qur'an mentions that...
and offering Hassan a rich reward for releasing him. Hassan is fooled (though Daffy isn't, saying "He's lying! Chop him, chop him!") and shakes Bugs out of the bottle. In return, Bugs rewards Hassan by proclaiming him the new owner of the treasure (performing his "magic" to do so with a bizarre "iggity-aggity-oop" dance and chant). Daffy sardonically mocks Bugs for allowing Hassan access to the treasure he wanted for himself.
Later, outside the cave, Bugs surveys the desert and concludes that he has indeed come to the wrong place. A scream comes from the cave as Daffy runs out carrying an enormous diamond, with the enraged Hassan in hot pursuit shrieking "Hassan chop!". Daffy begs Bugs to save him, and this time Bugs reluctantly complies while berating Daffy for his greed. He sets up an Indian rope trick
Indian rope trick
The Indian rope trick is stage magic said to have been performed in and around India during the 19th century. Sometimes described as "the world’s greatest illusion", it reputedly involved a magician, a length of rope, and one or more boy assistants....
behind a rock, and when Hassan finds him, tells him that Daffy climbed up the rope. As Hassan disappears into the clouds, Bugs pulls the rope down, and, as with some variants of the fabled trick, Hassan has disappeared completely. With the coast clear, Daffy runs back to the cave to claim the treasure ("I'm rich! I'm wealthy! I'm independent! I'm socially secure!").
Some time later, Daffy has emptied the cave of treasure and is taking one last look around for any missed trinkets. He spots an old oil lamp and rubs the dust off it. A genie emerges from the lamp, but Daffy thinks the genie
Genie
Jinn or genies are supernatural creatures in Arab folklore and Islamic teachings that occupy a parallel world to that of mankind. Together, jinn, humans and angels make up the three sentient creations of Allah. Religious sources say barely anything about them; however, the Qur'an mentions that...
is after the treasure and proceeds to stomp him back into the lamp like he did with Bugs earlier ("Oh, no you don't! You want my treasure! Well, it's mine, understand?! All mine! Down! Down! Go! Go! Mine!"). The furious genie erupts from the lamp, declaring Daffy will suffer the consequences for "desecrating the Spirit of the Lamp", (Genie: Duck, you have desecrated the spirit of the lamp! Prepare to take the consequences!) and Bugs, knowing that nothing can save Daffy now, is so terrified that he utters a frightened Yipe and hurriedly escapes via burrow. Daffy dismissively tells the genie, "Consequences, shmonsequences
Shm-reduplication
Shm-reduplication is a form of reduplication in which the original word or its first syllable is repeated with the copy beginning with shm- , pronounced...
, as long as I'm rich!" but the genie zaps Daffy with magic bolts from his fingertips.
Much later, Bugs has finally made it to Pismo Beach and, while tucking into the area's famous clam
Clam
The word "clam" can be applied to freshwater mussels, and other freshwater bivalves, as well as marine bivalves.In the United States, "clam" can be used in several different ways: one, as a general term covering all bivalve molluscs...
s, casually wonders how Daffy's encounter with the genie worked out. Opening one clam and discovering a pearl
Pearl
A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other...
inside, he soon finds out; Daffy, shrunk to a few inches in height, emerges from Bugs' burrow trail in the sand and claims the pearl for his own ("It's mine, you understand? Mine! Mine! All mine! Go! Go! Go! Do you hear me? Out! Out Out! Mine! Mine! Mine! There's only enough for me!"). Bugs closes the clam on the greedy duck ("I'm rich..I'm a happy miser!") with the words "Close, sesame."
In Popular Culture
- In the dubbed version of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Japanese anime, there is an episode where one of the main characters, Joey WheelerKatsuya Jonouchiis a fictional character and the deuteragonist in the manga and anime series Yu-Gi-Oh! He is known as Joseph "Joey" Wheeler in the English-language anime and video games....
, is transformed into the Duel Monster, Flame Swordsman. During a scene in which he swings his sword to destroy a rival creature, he accompanies it with the cry of "Hassan chop!", parodying this cartoon.
- In the comicComic bookA comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series Cable and Deadpool, Deadpool exclaims "Mine mine all mine! Pismo Beach here I come!" while fighting over a harddrive with the mutantMutant (Marvel Comics)In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...
SenyakaSenyakaSuvik Senyaka is a fictional mutant villain character in the Marvel Comics Universe.-Fictional character biography:Senyaka is a mutant recruited by Fabian Cortez as a member of a second group of the Acolytes. On their first mission, this new team of Acolytes attacked the Our Mother of The Sacred...
, a clear reference to the episode.
- During his SportsCenterSportsCenterSportsCenter is a daily sports news television show, and the flagship program of American cable network ESPN since the network launched on September 7, 1979. Originally broadcast only daily, SportsCenter is now shown up to twelve times a day, replaying the day's scores and highlights from major...
tenure, Rich Eisen would occasionally use the "Hassan chop!" phrase when a highlight showed a baseball player tossing his bat in disgust.
- In the animated show Robot ChickenRobot ChickenRobot Chicken is an American stop motion animated television series created and executive produced by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. Green provides many voices for the show...
, a rap battle is held between Bugs BunnyBugs BunnyBugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
and Elmer FuddElmer FuddElmer J. Fudd/Egghead is a fictional cartoon character and one of the most famous Looney Tunes characters, and the de facto archenemy of Bugs Bunny. He has one of the more disputed origins in the Warner Bros. cartoon pantheon . His aim is to hunt Bugs, but he usually ends up seriously injuring...
. At one point, Bugs asks Daffy where the stage is to which Daffy replies by pointing to a sign. The sign reads "Pismo Beach" with a directional arrow and "the stage" on a sign below it with a directional arrow. The Pismo Beach sign is a reference to the cartoon classic Ali Baba Bunny.
- In the cult Super Nintendo game "EarthBoundEarthBoundEarthBound, also known as EarthBound: The War Against Giygas! and released as in Japan, is a role-playing video game co-developed by Ape and HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
", the player character encounters an item shop in the town of Scaraba called "Hassan's Shop", a reference to the phrase "Hassan chop!" from the episode.
Censorship
- When shown on the syndicated "Merrie Melodies Show" and CBS's Bugs Bunny Road Runner Show, the part where Hassan slices Daffy's hat in half with his sword was cut (http://looney.goldenagecartoons.com/ltcuts/ltcutsa.html) ((That citation goes to a 404 page)) This part was also deleted from Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit TalesBugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit TalesBugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales is a 1982 Looney Tunes film with a compilation of classic Warner Bros. cartoon shorts and animated bridging sequences, hosted by Bugs Bunny...
, but the scene could still be seen on The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie.
Trivia
- Hassan re-appeared as the Arabian Era boss character in the video game Bugs Bunny & Taz: Time Busters with the name 'Babba Chop'. He is less obese than he appeared in this short, and also has a beard and waistjacket in the game. When Daffy finds himself in the Babba's Cave, all of the lines he speaks are taken from this short (with the exception of asking Babba where the exit was), only Daffy's quote of response to Babba's directive is "Take that as a NO!".