Case of the Missing Hare
Encyclopedia
Case of the Missing Hare is a 1942 Warner Bros.
cartoon in the Merrie Melodies
series, directed by Chuck Jones
and starring Bugs Bunny
. The title is a typical play on words, and although it suggests a Mystery story, it bears no apparent relationship to the plotline.
It is also one of the few cartoons where Bugs doesn't say "Eh, what's up, Doc?" - and one of few to fall into the public domain, as United Artists
failed to renew the copyright in time.
: "Of course you realize this means war!"
The rest of the movie takes place in a theater during Ala Bahma's act. Bugs heckles him, upstages him, and interrupts his performance with a mixture of comic violence and his own strange cartoon magic. After his revenge, he brandishes his own pie. He says to the audience, quoting Red Skelton
's "Mean Widdle Kid", "If I dood it, I dit a whippin'... I DOOD IT!" and splatters the pie in Ala Bahma's face. Bugs sings "Aloha `Oe" on a ukelele as he descends into the hat and the cartoon irises out.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
cartoon in the Merrie Melodies
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,...
series, 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 starring 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...
. The title is a typical play on words, and although it suggests a Mystery story, it bears no apparent relationship to the plotline.
It is also one of the few cartoons where Bugs doesn't say "Eh, what's up, Doc?" - and one of few to fall into the public domain, as United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
failed to renew the copyright in time.
Plot
A magician named Ala Bahma is nailing self-promoting posters on every conceivable surface, including the tree where Bugs lives. He protests until the magician apologizes and asks Bugs if he likes blackberry pie. The bunny shows joy as Ala Bahma magically brings forth a pie and hits him with it. As the magician walks away saying "What a dumb bunny !", Bugs, with pie-filling and crumbled crust on his face, calmly turns to the audience and echoes Groucho MarxGroucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
: "Of course you realize this means war!"
The rest of the movie takes place in a theater during Ala Bahma's act. Bugs heckles him, upstages him, and interrupts his performance with a mixture of comic violence and his own strange cartoon magic. After his revenge, he brandishes his own pie. He says to the audience, quoting Red Skelton
Red Skelton
Richard Bernard "Red" Skelton was an American comedian who is best known as a top radio and television star from 1937 to 1971. Skelton's show business career began in his teens as a circus clown and went on to vaudeville, Broadway, films, radio, TV, night clubs and casinos, all while pursuing...
's "Mean Widdle Kid", "If I dood it, I dit a whippin'... I DOOD IT!" and splatters the pie in Ala Bahma's face. Bugs sings "Aloha `Oe" on a ukelele as he descends into the hat and the cartoon irises out.
Note
- A few clips from this, Fresh HareFresh HareFresh Hare is a Warner Bros. theatrical Merrie Melodies cartoon. It was directed by Isadore "Friz" Freleng, written by Michael Maltese, and produced by Leon Schlesinger...
and Wackiki WabbitWackiki WabbitWackiki Wabbit is a 1943 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon, starring Bugs Bunny. It was written by Tedd Pierce and directed by Chuck Jones. Voices were provided by Mel Blanc , Tedd Pierce , and Michael Maltese...
were used in the documentary Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePantsSquare Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePantsSquare Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants is a documentary produced by Patrick Creadon and Christine O'Malley that aired on VH1 on July 14, 2009. The documentary chronicles the pop culture success of the animated series SpongeBob SquarePants, including its impact on U.S. President Barack...
.
Censorship
- For unknown reasons (possibly time constraints), TBS cut several shots in the beginning where Ala Bahma's posters are plastered all over trees and telephone poles.
Availability
- The Case of the Missing Hare is available, uncut and restored, on Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3 is a DVD box set from Warner Home Video that was released on October 25, 2005. It contains 60 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical short subject cartoons, 9 documentaries, 32 commentary tracks from animators and historians, 11 "vintage treasures from...
.