| Bugs Bunny Rides Again | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | I. Freleng |
| Story by | Tedd Pierce Michael Maltese |
| Produced by | Edward Selzer |
| Starring | Mel Blanc Robert C. Bruce Michael Maltese Tedd Pierce |
| Music by | Carl Stalling |
| Animation by | Gerry Chiniquy Manuel Perez Ken Champin Virgil Ross |
| Layouts by | Hawley Pratt |
| Backgrounds by | Paul Julian |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 7:11 |
| Language | English |
Bugs Bunny Rides Again is a 1948Merrie Melodies animated short directed byFriz Freleng.[1] The short was released on June 12, 1948, and starsBugs Bunny andYosemite Sam.[2]
The animated short is both aWestern and aparody of the genre's conventions.[3]
Voice characterizations are performed byMel Blanc. It is the third cartoon to pair Bugs and Yosemite Sam, afterHare Trigger (1945) andBuccaneer Bunny (1948). The title is a typicalWestern reference, as in "The Lone Ranger rides again", and also suggests a reference to theJack Benny comedy,Buck Benny Rides Again (1940).[4]
Underscored by a high-energy version of "Cheyenne", a constant hail of bullets flies around the Western town of Rising Gorge. A stream of them sail one way along the main street; atraffic light (anAcme Regulator, in keeping withLooney Tunes tradition) turns red and those bullets hover in mid-air while another torrent of them shoot by on the cross street, though they hesitate to resume when they get the green light when one last bullet zips past on the cross street, running the red light. Inside the GunshotSaloon ('Come in and get a slug') at the bar a cowboy shoots another, apparently only for his drink. Outside there is a commotion and women screaming, then Yosemite Sam, guns smoking in his hands, walks in (being so short, he passes beneath the saloon doors). The patrons react with fear, yelling his name as the score quotes fromErlkönig[5] (as is often the case for villains in Looney Tunes).
Sam orders everyone ("all you skunks") out of the place, firing his guns for emphasis. All comply (including an actual skunk), except one cowboy Sam catches trying to sneak out the back and turns into a shooting gallery target. He demands to know if there is anyone there who dares to think they might tame him. Bugs Bunny, lazily leaning against a wall and rolling a cigarette declares, "I aims to."
The two approach each other in exaggerated gunfighter fashion. When they are literally nose-to-nose, Bugs unholsters a carrot and delivers his classic, "What's up, Doc?" Sam says, "This town ain't big enough for the two of us." Bugs tries to accommodate him by instantly building an entire city skyline, but Sam is not appeased. They then draw on each other with increasingly larger-cylinder-capacity guns (seven-shooter, eight-shooter, etc.) until Sam makes it to a 'ten shooter'. Bugs then pulls out a pea shooter; Sam reacts to the pea-shot bounced off his nose by opening fire. Bugs runs outside, right into Sam who, in typical Western parlance, demands the rabbit "Dance!" as he fires bullets at his feet.
Bugs performs a soft shoe routine; entertainment-style, he turns the 'floor' over to Sam who does a routine of his own. As he dances 'off stage', Bugs opens the door to a mine shaft which Sam then falls into. ("Tsk tsk tsk. Poor little maroon. So trusting. So naïve.")[6] When Sam returns to the surface and is immediately confrontational, Bugs draws lines in the sand, each time daring Sam to step over them. Sam does so, for quite a distance, until he falls off a cliff. During Sam's fall, Bugs places a mattress at the bottom saying, "Me conscience bodders me sometimes", before taking the mattress away ("But notdis time!") and letting Sam crash to the bottom. The two end up on horseback, Sam giving chase, through a series of gags until Bugs suggests they play cards, as is common in "the Western pictures" to determine who leaves town.
The two playgin rummy, and Bugs wins the game (by cheating); he rushes Sam onto the stagecoach to the train station accompanied by a rushed rendition ofCheyenne. As he is shoving Sam onto the train, they discover that the passenger car is theMiami Special, full of swimsuit-clad women heading for a beauty contest. Accompanied by a rendition ofOh You Beautiful Doll fit for astriptease number, the plot twist completely changes the tone.[7][5] Bugs fights with Sam to be the one boarding the train, and prevails (to the strains ofAloha Oe) as usual, with lipstick-kisses on his face shouting, "So long, Sammy! See ya in Miami!"
Yosemite Sam's statement when he first enters the saloon - "the roughest, toughest he-man stuffest hombre that's ever crossed theRio Grande, and I don't meanMahatma Gandhi" is changed in some versions of the film to "And I ain't no namby pamby" instead of "Mahatma Gandhi." This modification was likely due to Gandhi's assassination five months before the cartoon's release.[8][9]
Because the film is organized as "one gag after the next", rather than clearly defined narrative segments ofexposition,climax, and conclusion,Carl Stalling created a series of shortmusical cues accompanying and fitting each scene or gag. A total of 18 such cues appear in this short.[5]
The title music is a short sample of the "William Tell Overture" (1829) byGioachino Rossini.[5] Theestablishing shot for Rising Gorge, the name of the town of the film, is accompanied with a sample of "Cheyenne" (1906) byEgbert Van Alstyne andHarry Williams.[5] The establishing shot for the saloon and its customers is accompanied with a sample ofNavajo (1903), also by Van Alstyne and Williams.[5] The entry ofYosemite Sam is accompanied by a sample ofErlkönig (1821) byFranz Schubert.[5] WhenBugs Bunny emerges as the only one willing to stand against Sam, the music is a sample ofYosemite Sam, a song created by Stalling himself.[5]
When Sam and Bugs start their duel, the music is a sample ofInflamatus, a section of theStabat Mater (1841) by Rossini.[5] When Sam states that the town is not big enough for the two of them, the music is a sample ofSonata Pathétique (1799) byLudwig van Beethoven.[5] The dancing scene is set to the tune ofUntitled Soft-Shoe Number, which was also heard with a similar dance inStage Door Cartoon, and the fall of Sam down the mine shaft to the tune ofWise Guy. Both were compositions by Stalling himself.[5] When Sam rages following his fall, the music is a sample of the act 3 prelude toSiegfried (premiered 1876) byRichard Wagner.[5] (Goldmark attributes theSiegfried reference to a later appearance in Wagner'sGötterdämmerung.)
When the two rivals exit the town, the music is a sample ofFighting Words by Stalling, while the horse chase is set to another sample of theWilliam Tell Overture. When the two rivals agree to play cards, the music isThe Loser by Stalling.[5] Part of the card playing is set to a sample ofMy Little Buckaroo by M.K. Jerome and Jack Scholl.[5] The victory of Bugs and the rush towards the train station is set to another sample of "Cheyenne". The scene with the bathing beauties is set to the tune ofOh, You Beautiful Doll (1911) byNat Ayer and Seymour Brown.[5] When Bugs subdues Sam, the music isMiami Special by Stalling. Finally, the train leaves to the tune ofAloha ʻOe (1878) byLiliuokalani.[5]
In part, Stalling relied on the musical codes of theWestern genre. "Cheyenne",My Little Buckaroo,Navajo, and theWilliam Tell Overture were already associated with theOld West,cowboys, andcattle, and were familiar to audiences.[5]Der Erlkönig, theInflamatus, and theSonata Pathétique fit the function of generic dramatic or agitated music used in genre films.[5] In contrast, the titular tune ofBugs Bunny Rides Again is styled after the music ofvaudeville shows.[5][11]
The full version of Finale part of "William Tell Overture" would be used in 2008 rhythm gameLooney Tunes: Cartoon Conductor.
The animated parody short received favourable critical response. Animator historianGreg Ford praised the musical accompaniment to the horse chase,[12] and author Piotr Borowiec describes it as "Probably the funniest cartoon starring Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam".[13] InCartoon Carnival: A Critical Guide to Best Cartoons, writer Michael Samerdyke considers it as "one of Friz Freleng's best."[14]
| Preceded by | Bugs Bunny Cartoons 1948 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Yosemite Sam cartoons 1948 | Succeeded by |