Of Course You Know This Means War, Part Two

Bugs Bunny gets his revenge on opera star Giovanni Jones in Long-Haired Hare. Mike Maltese’s story contains what director Chuck Jones liked calling a a “discipline” based on two simple facts—an opera singer obeys the conductor, and he bows at the end of a performance. The ending of the cartoon features Giovanni holding a note so long, the Hollywood Bowl comes crashing down on him.

Giovanni takes his bow. Bugs decides to get a last lick in. Chuck Jones shows his love for silent film as these frames tell the story.



The cartoon ends the way it started, with Bugs and his banjo.



The smear animation is by Ben Washam. Lloyd Vaughan, Phil Monroe and Ken Harris also animated this wonderful cartoon, with backgrounds by Pete Alvarado from layouts by Bob Gribbroek.

Of Course You Know This Means War, Part One

Giovanni Jones shows his displeasure with Bugs Bunny’s musical skills at the start of Long-Haired Hare.



And that sets up Bugs’ declaration to the audience: “Of course, you know this means war.”



The last drawing may be Ben Washam’s.

More on this great Chuck Jones cartoon tomorrow.

That Left Toin

You know the gag so well, I don’t need to explain it. So here are the consecutive frames of the burrowing Bugs Bunny surfacing in a middle of a bull ring in Bully For Bugs.



Bugs looks around and realises something is amiss therein.



You know the next line.



Is this Ken Harris animation? Ben Washam and Lloyd Vaughn are the only other credited animators. I suspect Dick Thompson and Abe Levitow were assisting in the unit at the time. The cartoon is full of the kind of masterful expressions that are in the best Chuck Jones shorts.

He Clocked Him

“A Bear For Punishment” shows off Chuck Jones’ mastery of poses in scene after scene.

Junior Bear has a table full of alarm clocks to make sure he wakes up so he can celebrate Father’s Day with his dad, who just wants his dullard family and the rest of the world to leave him alone. Including noisy alarm clocks.

“How do you turn these blasted things off?” bellows Papa Bear. Junior Bear simply goes “Shhh.” Pa shakes in frustration that he failed and his son didn’t. The drawings speak for themselves. Carl Stalling’s score builds up to the inevitable sock.



Ken Harris, Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan and Phil Monroe animated this cartoon; I suspect Dick Thompson and Abe Levitow were among the assistants.

To Hare Is Human Backgrounds

Phil De Guard painted from Maurice Noble’s layouts in “To Hare Is Human,” a 1956 Warners cartoon from the Chuck Jones unit. I can’t get a clear shot of Bugs Bunny’s bed with the carrot-shaped posts but here are some other backgrounds.



Critics claim Jones starting making Bugs far too self-satisfied and flouncy. You might detect some of that in this cartoon.