Hare Trigger
Encyclopedia
Hare Trigger is a 1945 Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies
cartoon short starring Bugs Bunny
directed by Friz Freleng
. It marks the first appearance of Yosemite Sam
, who appears as a train robber. Mel Blanc
does both characters' voices.
The title is a play on "hair trigger", referring to any weapon or other device with a sensitive trigger.
", an old-fashioned train is seen rolling along through the desert. It passes another train going around a utility pole, and voices are heard repeating "Bread and Butter".
Bugs is riding in the mail car of a train, singing a nonsense song called "Go Get the Axe", when a pint-sized bandit attempts to rob the train (with the underscore playing stereotypical "villain music"), only to have it pass clear over his head. He then calls for his horse, which he needs a rolling step-stair to mount. He catches up and boards the train and begins to rob it while the mail clerk wraps himself in a package marked DON'T OPEN 'TIL XMAS
. The bandit accidentally throws Bugs Bunny in his sack. Bugs assumes he's Jesse James
. The bandit scoffs and tells him (and the audience) who he actually is: "I'm Yosemite Sam, the meanest, toughest, rip-roarin'-est, Edward Everett Horton
-est hombre what ever packed a six-shooter!" (This pattern of Sam introducing himself to Bugs and the audience would continue in other cartoons.) Bugs tells Sam that there is another tough guy in the train packing a "seven-shooter", and Sam goes looking for him – and he is actually Bugs in disguise.
Various fights ensue, as each character temporarily gets the upper hand for a while. After another skirmish, Bugs tricks Sam into dashing into a lounge car in which a horrific fight is occurring, actually stock film footage of a stereotypical western saloon fight. With the sounds of crashes and bangs in the background, Bugs calmly sings "Sweet Georgia Brown
" to himself. Sam emerges tottering, banged and bruised, to a comical instrumental of "Rally 'Round the Flag
", and a race-based gag occurs that is subtle enough it is usually left intact in network showings: Bugs effects the stereotyped voice of an African-American train porter, and has the dazed Sam convinced he's supposed to disembark the train, piling him up with luggage; Sam even hands Bugs a silver coin as a tip, and Bugs says, "Thank you, suh!" As Sam steps off the moving train, the mail-drop hook grabs him and temporarily whisks him off the train. Bugs thinks he has vanquished Sam, and yells "So long, screwy, see ya in Saint Louie
!" in a line that will be echoed in Bugs Bunny Rides Again
and A Feather in His Hare
. But he gets back on board somehow.
Finally, Sam has Bugs tied up, dangling from a rope, weighted down by an anvil, and fiendishly cutting through the rope, while the train is passing over a gorge. The screen fills with the words the narrator (also Mel Blanc, in pretty much his natural voice) is saying, "Is this the end of Bugs Bunny? Will our hero be dashed to bits on the jagged rocks below?" and so on. Then Bugs walks across the screen, dressed in top hat and tails, carrying a bag full of gold (reward money), and dragging the tied-up villain behind him, mocking the on-screen words ("Will he be doomed to utter destruction and be rendered non compos mentis
?"). Bugs closes by turning to the audience and repeating a popular radio catch-phrase from Red Skelton
's "Mean Widdle Kid": "He don't know me vewy well, do he?" as a bar of Kingdom Coming
plays on the track at iris-out.
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,...
cartoon short 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...
directed by Friz Freleng
Friz Freleng
Isadore "Friz" Freleng was an animator, cartoonist, director, and producer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons from Warner Bros....
. It marks the first appearance of Yosemite Sam
Yosemite Sam
Yosemite Sam is an American animated cartoon character in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros. Animation. The name is somewhat alliterative and is inspired by Yosemite National Park...
, who appears as a train robber. Mel Blanc
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
does both characters' voices.
The title is a play on "hair trigger", referring to any weapon or other device with a sensitive trigger.
Plot
After opening credits underscored by a lively instrumental of "CheyenneCheyenne (song)
"Cheyenne" is a popular and sentimental song written in 1906, with words by Harry Williams and music by Egbert Van Alstyne. It became a hit for a number of artists. The chorus is:...
", an old-fashioned train is seen rolling along through the desert. It passes another train going around a utility pole, and voices are heard repeating "Bread and Butter".
Bugs is riding in the mail car of a train, singing a nonsense song called "Go Get the Axe", when a pint-sized bandit attempts to rob the train (with the underscore playing stereotypical "villain music"), only to have it pass clear over his head. He then calls for his horse, which he needs a rolling step-stair to mount. He catches up and boards the train and begins to rob it while the mail clerk wraps himself in a package marked DON'T OPEN 'TIL XMAS
Xmas
"Xmas" is a common abbreviation of the word "Christmas". It is sometimes pronounced , but it, and variants such as "Xtemass", originated as handwriting abbreviations for the typical pronunciation...
. The bandit accidentally throws Bugs Bunny in his sack. Bugs assumes he's Jesse James
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
. The bandit scoffs and tells him (and the audience) who he actually is: "I'm Yosemite Sam, the meanest, toughest, rip-roarin'-est, Edward Everett Horton
Edward Everett Horton
Edward Everett Horton was an American character actor. He had a long career in film, theater, radio, television and voice work for animated cartoons. He is especially known for his work in the films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.-Early life:Horton was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Isabella...
-est hombre what ever packed a six-shooter!" (This pattern of Sam introducing himself to Bugs and the audience would continue in other cartoons.) Bugs tells Sam that there is another tough guy in the train packing a "seven-shooter", and Sam goes looking for him – and he is actually Bugs in disguise.
Various fights ensue, as each character temporarily gets the upper hand for a while. After another skirmish, Bugs tricks Sam into dashing into a lounge car in which a horrific fight is occurring, actually stock film footage of a stereotypical western saloon fight. With the sounds of crashes and bangs in the background, Bugs calmly sings "Sweet Georgia Brown
Sweet Georgia Brown
"Sweet Georgia Brown" is a jazz standard and pop tune written in 1925 by Ben Bernie and Maceo Pinkard and Kenneth Casey .The tune was first recorded on March 19, 1925 by bandleader Ben Bernie, resulting in a five-week No. 1 for Ben Bernie and his Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra...
" to himself. Sam emerges tottering, banged and bruised, to a comical instrumental of "Rally 'Round the Flag
Battle Cry of Freedom
"Battle Cry of Freedom" is a song written in 1862 by American composer George F. Root during the American Civil War. A patriotic song advocating the cause of the Union, it became so popular that composer H. L. Schreiner and lyricist W. H. Barnes adapted it for the Confederate States of America...
", and a race-based gag occurs that is subtle enough it is usually left intact in network showings: Bugs effects the stereotyped voice of an African-American train porter, and has the dazed Sam convinced he's supposed to disembark the train, piling him up with luggage; Sam even hands Bugs a silver coin as a tip, and Bugs says, "Thank you, suh!" As Sam steps off the moving train, the mail-drop hook grabs him and temporarily whisks him off the train. Bugs thinks he has vanquished Sam, and yells "So long, screwy, see ya in Saint Louie
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
!" in a line that will be echoed in Bugs Bunny Rides Again
Bugs Bunny Rides Again
Bugs Bunny Rides Again is a 1947 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies short, released in 1948, directed by Friz Freleng, and written by Tedd Pierce and Michael Maltese. Voice characterizations are performed by Mel Blanc. The cartoon features Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam. This is a sequel, of sorts, to the...
and A Feather in His Hare
A Feather in His Hare
A Feather in His Hare is a Warner Brothers Looney Tunes animated short, directed by Chuck Jones. It was originally released on February 7, 1948...
. But he gets back on board somehow.
Finally, Sam has Bugs tied up, dangling from a rope, weighted down by an anvil, and fiendishly cutting through the rope, while the train is passing over a gorge. The screen fills with the words the narrator (also Mel Blanc, in pretty much his natural voice) is saying, "Is this the end of Bugs Bunny? Will our hero be dashed to bits on the jagged rocks below?" and so on. Then Bugs walks across the screen, dressed in top hat and tails, carrying a bag full of gold (reward money), and dragging the tied-up villain behind him, mocking the on-screen words ("Will he be doomed to utter destruction and be rendered non compos mentis
Non compos mentis
Non compos mentis is a term meaning 'not of sound mind'. Non compos mentis derives from the Latin non meaning "not", compos meaning "having ", and mentis , meaning "mind"...
?"). Bugs closes by turning to the audience and repeating a popular radio catch-phrase from 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": "He don't know me vewy well, do he?" as a bar of Kingdom Coming
Kingdom Coming
"Kingdom Coming" or "The Year of Jubilo" is a American Civil War song, written and composed by Henry C. Work in 1862, prior to the Emancipation Proclamation....
plays on the track at iris-out.
See also
- Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies filmography (1940–1949)
- List of Bugs Bunny cartoons