Bewitched Bunny
Encyclopedia
Bewitched Bunny is a Looney Tunes
cartoon featuring Bugs Bunny
directed by Chuck Jones
and written by Michael Maltese
. Jones created the character Witch Hazel
which debuted in this episode. Witch Hazel later appeared in Broom-Stick Bunny
(1956), A Witch's Tangled Hare
(1959), and in A-Haunting We Will Go (1966). She also has a brief cameo appearance in Transylvania 6-5000
(1963).
. Witch Hazel
plays the witch who tries to cook and eat the children. (Her cookbook has such recipes as "Waif Waffles", "Kiddie Kippers" and "Smorgas Boy".) Bugs witnesses Witch Hazel coaxing the children inside and goes in her house, disguised as a truant officer, and saves the youths from her clutches. The children both turn to Hazel as they leave and say in a thick German accent, "Ach - your mother rides a vacuum cleaner
!"
However, once Hazel realizes that Bugs is a rabbit, she tries to cook him instead, using a carrot filled with sleeping potion as a lure. Bugs eats the carrot and falls asleep and Witch Hazel puts him into a pot to make rabbit stew.
While the witch is occupied, a character resembling Prince Charming
enters the house and kisses Bugs' hand. Bugs wakes up and says, "You're looking for Snow White
, this is the story of HAHHN-sel and Gretel", and the Prince leaves, confused about how Hansel is pronounced. Bugs then tries to escape down a corridor but is trapped by Hazel. As she approaches, Bugs finds her magic power and uses it to transform her into a gorgeous lady bunny who has a feminine voice but still has Hazel's laugh.
As he gets ready to leave with the bunny beauty, Bugs looks at the audience, breaking the fourth wall
, and comments, "Ah sure, I know. But aren't they all witches inside?".
, and the first disk of Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection
, Volume 5.
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
cartoon 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...
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 written by Michael Maltese
Michael Maltese
Michael "Mike" Maltese was a long-time storyboard artist and screenwriter for classic animated cartoon shorts.-Career:...
. Jones created the character Witch Hazel
Witch Hazel (Looney Tunes)
Witch Hazel is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. Disney, MGM, Famous Studios, and the Little Lulu comic book also had characters named Witch Hazel, and Rembrandt Films had one named Hazel Witch. This article is chiefly concerned...
which debuted in this episode. Witch Hazel later appeared in Broom-Stick Bunny
Broom-Stick Bunny
Broom-Stick Bunny is a Warner Brothers Looney Tunes short released in 1956 and directed by Chuck Jones.-Plot:As the short opens, it shows a plaque which states that Witch Hazel is a member of the Malevolent Order of Witches, an "A. F...
(1956), A Witch's Tangled Hare
A Witch's Tangled Hare
A Witch’s Tangled Hare is a 1959 Warner Bros. Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short directed by Abe Levitow. In this cartoon Mel Blanc plays voice roles for Bugs Bunny, while June Foray voices Witch Hazel...
(1959), and in A-Haunting We Will Go (1966). She also has a brief cameo appearance in Transylvania 6-5000
Transylvania 6-5000 (1963 film)
Transylvania 6-5000 is a short Merrie Melodies animated film directed by Chuck Jones and starring Bugs Bunny. Bugs demonstrates how to handle a pesky vampire with six simple magic incantations...
(1963).
Plot
The story begins with Bugs reading the classic fairy tale Hansel and GretelHansel and Gretel
"Hansel and Gretel" is a well-known fairy tale of German origin, recorded by the Brothers Grimm and published in 1812. Hansel and Gretel are a young brother and sister threatened by a cannibalistic hag living deep in the forest in a house constructed of cake and confectionery. The two children...
. Witch Hazel
Witch Hazel (Looney Tunes)
Witch Hazel is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. Disney, MGM, Famous Studios, and the Little Lulu comic book also had characters named Witch Hazel, and Rembrandt Films had one named Hazel Witch. This article is chiefly concerned...
plays the witch who tries to cook and eat the children. (Her cookbook has such recipes as "Waif Waffles", "Kiddie Kippers" and "Smorgas Boy".) Bugs witnesses Witch Hazel coaxing the children inside and goes in her house, disguised as a truant officer, and saves the youths from her clutches. The children both turn to Hazel as they leave and say in a thick German accent, "Ach - your mother rides a vacuum cleaner
Vacuum cleaner
A vacuum cleaner, commonly referred to as a "vacuum," is a device that uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust and dirt, usually from floors, and optionally from other surfaces as well. The dirt is collected by either a dustbag or a cyclone for later disposal...
!"
However, once Hazel realizes that Bugs is a rabbit, she tries to cook him instead, using a carrot filled with sleeping potion as a lure. Bugs eats the carrot and falls asleep and Witch Hazel puts him into a pot to make rabbit stew.
While the witch is occupied, a character resembling Prince Charming
Prince Charming
Prince Charming is a stock character who appears in a number of fairy tales. He is the prince who comes to rescue of the damsel in distress, and stereotypically, must engage in a quest to liberate her from an evil spell...
enters the house and kisses Bugs' hand. Bugs wakes up and says, "You're looking for Snow White
Snow White
"Snow White" is a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm...
, this is the story of HAHHN-sel and Gretel", and the Prince leaves, confused about how Hansel is pronounced. Bugs then tries to escape down a corridor but is trapped by Hazel. As she approaches, Bugs finds her magic power and uses it to transform her into a gorgeous lady bunny who has a feminine voice but still has Hazel's laugh.
As he gets ready to leave with the bunny beauty, Bugs looks at the audience, breaking the fourth wall
The Fourth Wall
The Fourth Wall is a 1992 play by the American playwright A.R. Gurney.It was originally produced in the United States in regional theatre...
, and comments, "Ah sure, I know. But aren't they all witches inside?".
Controversy
- This cartoon caused some controversy in Canada due to Bugs' end line about the Witch Hazel being turned into a rabbit being perceived as misogynistic http://web.archive.org/web/20000302190830/www.megalink.net/~cooke/looney/cen-witch.html. This controversy was briefly mentioned by Eric Goldberg on the DVD commentary of the fifth volume of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set.
Availability
Bewitched Bunny is available on the second disk of Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 5Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 5
Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 5 is a Looney Tunes collection on DVD. Following the pattern of one release each year of the previous volumes, it was released on October 30, 2007....
, and the first disk of Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection
Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection
Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection is a collection of animated shorts released on DVD by Warner Brothers, created as a more family-friendly, affordable companion to the higher priced Looney Tunes Golden Collection sets aimed at collectors. The collection contains cartoons from the Merrie Melodies...
, Volume 5.