Bewitched Bunny
8 /10 1 Votes
Duration | Director Charles M. Jones Language English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Release date July 24, 1954 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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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 who debuted in this cartoon. 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).
Contents
That was also the final Looney Tunes cartoon to air on Cartoon Network, prior to 2009. This final airdate was on October 3, 2004.
Plot
The story begins with Bugs Bunny reading the classic fairy tale Hansel and Gretel. 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 (hollowed out and filled with a sleeping potion) as a lure. Bugs eats the carrot and falls asleep and Witch Hazel puts him into a roasting pan 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 takes his leave, confused about how Hansel is pronounced. Then Hazel emerges from the basement and Bugs races down a nearby hallway to escape, but is trapped by Hazel. As she approaches, Bugs quickly finds a grenade full of her magic powder (in a case marked with the message "in case of emergency") and uses it to transform her into a gorgeous female 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?".
Cast
Mel Blanc as Bugs Bunny, Hansel and Prince Charming
Bea Benaderet as Witch Hazel and Gretel (uncredited)
Controversy
This cartoon caused some controversy in Canada due to Bugs' ending line about Witch Hazel being turned into a rabbit being perceived as misogynistic. And Bugs' closing line, "Ah sure, I know. But aren't they all witches inside?" was edited out of commercial broadcasts in the 1980s, and was replaced in later versions with "Sure uh, I know. But after all, who wants to be alone on Halloween?" This controversy was briefly mentioned by Eric Goldberg on the DVD commentary of the fifth volume of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set. However, the original version has been aired in Canada (as recently as 2015) on the Canadian cable channel Teletoon Retro.
Availability
Bewitched Bunny is available on the second disc of Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 5, and the first disc of Looney Tunes: Spotlight Collection, Volume 5.