Super-Rabbit - Revision history

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{{short description|1943 film by Chuck Jones}}
{{about|the Bugs Bunny cartoon|the Timely Comics character|Super Rabbit}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Super-Rabbit
| image = LC SuperRabbit.jpg
| director = [[Chuck Jones|Charles M. Jones]]
| story = [[Tedd Pierce]]
| animator = [[Ken Harris]] Robert Cannon [[Ben Washam]] [[Rudy Larriva]]
| layout_artist = [[John McGrew]]
| background_artist = Gene Fleury
| starring = [[Mel Blanc]] [[Kent Rogers]] [[Tedd Pierce]]<ref>{{Cite book |title=Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, 1930-70 |last=Scott |first=Keith |publisher=BearManor Media |year=2022 |isbn=979-8-88771-010-5 |pages=54}}</ref>
| music = [[Carl W. Stalling]]
| producer = [[Leon Schlesinger]]
| studio = [[Warner Bros. Cartoons|Leon Schlesinger Productions]]
| distributor = [[Warner Bros. Pictures]] [[The Vitaphone Corporation]]
| released = {{Film date|1943|04|03}}
| color_process = [[Technicolor]]
| runtime = 8 minutes 13 seconds
| language = English
}}

'''''Super-Rabbit''''' is a 1943 [[Warner Bros.]] cartoon starring [[Bugs Bunny]]. The cartoon is a [[parody]] of the popular comic book and radio character [[Superman]] by [[DC Comics]].<ref name=Beck>{{cite book |last1=Beck |first1=Jerry |last2=Friedwald |first2=Will |title=Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons |date=1989 |publisher=Henry Holt and Co |isbn=0-8050-0894-2 |page=139}}</ref> ''Super-Rabbit'' was the 16th Bugs Bunny entry,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lenburg |first1=Jeff |title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons |date=1999 |publisher=Checkmark Books |isbn=0-8160-3831-7 |access-date=June 6, 2020 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/60/mode/2up |pages=60–61}}</ref> and the 47th short directed by [[Chuck Jones]].

== Plot ==
Professor Cannafraz (a [[Richard Haydn]] impression) creates a "super carrot" and uses it on his test subject – Rabbitus idioticus americanus (Bugs Bunny), who immediately consumes the proffered carrot. Armed with temporary superhero abilities that need to be replenished with additional super carrots, Bugs remembers a newspaper article about [[Texas]] hunter "Cottontail" Smith, who wants to exterminate all rabbits.

Bugs, adorned in a superhero costume complete with cape, flies to [[Deep in the Heart of Texas|Deepinaharta, Texas]], and assumes the guise of a mild-mannered forest creature by wearing oversized reading glasses and a hat. He encounters Smith, who attempts to shoot Bugs, only for the bullets to form an outline of the rabbit before harmlessly falling to the ground. Bugs then hands Smith a cannon, eats another super carrot as a precaution, then, upon being struck by the cannonball, plays [[basketball]] with it, quickly shoving Smith and his horse onto bleachers while he acts as his own cheerleader. After Bugs returns to the sky, the bemused Smith and his horse follow the rabbit in an airplane. Using his super powers, Bugs then snatches the shell of the plane away from them, plunging Smith and the horse to the ground.

Cruising through the sky, Bugs begins to run out of power, but when he tries to recharge again, he accidentally drops his carrots and he falls to the ground. After Bugs lands, he opens his eyes to see a line of chewed carrot tops eaten by Smith and his horse-turned-Superhero, both wearing cape and costume. Bugs turns to the camera and says "This looks like a job for a ''REAL'' Superman!" He ducks into a phone booth. Both Smith and the horse are ready to attack – until the booth opens and they both snap to attention and salute. Bugs marches out in a [[U.S. Marine Corps|Marine]] uniform, singing the "[[Marines' Hymn]]." He dismisses the two, claiming he has "''important'' work to do!", and marches off to "[[Berlin]], [[Tokyo]] and points East."<ref name="Shull">Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 157</ref>

== Reception ==
The [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marine Corps]] were so thrilled that Bugs Bunny decided to become a Marine in this cartoon that they insisted the character be officially inducted into the force as a private, which was done, complete with [[Dog tag (identifier)|dogtag]]s. The character was regularly promoted until Bugs was officially "discharged" at the end of [[World War II]] as a [[Master Sergeant]].<ref>[[Audio commentary]] by [[Paul Dini]] for ''Super-Rabbit'' on the ''[[Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3]]'' (2005).</ref>

Cottontail Smith later appears as one of [[Yosemite Sam]]’s sidekicks in ''[[Looney Tunes: Back in Action]]''. The character’s voice is a less raucous version of Sam’s and [[Foghorn Leghorn]]’s.

== Analysis ==
The cartoon parodies the [[Max Fleischer]] [[Superman (1940s cartoons)|Superman]] animated shorts as a figure soars across the sky from random directions. Onlookers are heard speculating on its nature: "Look! Up there in the sky" "It’s a boid" [bird], "Nah, it ain’t a boid, it’s a [[dive bomber|dive-bommah]]".<ref name="Shull"/><ref name="Weldon">Weldon (2013), unnumbered pages</ref>

A Marine is described as "a real superman" by Bugs.<ref name="Shull"/>

==Home media==
*VHS – Bugs Bunny Cartoon Festival featuring "[[Hold the Lion, Please]]"
*VHS and Laserdisc – Bugs and Daffy: The Wartime Cartoons
*VHS – Bugs Bunny On Parade
*VHS – Looney Tunes Collectors Edition: Running Amuck
*Laserdisc – The Golden Age of Looney Tunes Volume 3
* DVD – [[Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3]]
* DVD – [[Superman Ultimate Collector's Edition#Franchise collections|Superman: The Ultimate Collection]]
* Blu-ray – [[Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection]]

==Sources==
* {{Cite book| last1=Shull | first1=Michael S.| last2=Wilt | first2=David E.| title=''Doing Their Bit: Wartime American Animated Short Films, 1939–1945'' | chapter= Filmography 1943| year=2004 | publisher=[[McFarland & Company]]| isbn=978-0786481699|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hKrmuvh4PQkC&pg=PA245 }}
* {{citation | last1=Weldon | first1=Glen| author-link1=Glen Weldon|title=''Superman: The Unauthorized Biography'' | chapter= ...and the American way (1942-1945)| year=2013 | publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]]| isbn=978-1118483787| chapter-url =https://books.google.com/books?id=3z3PRjc-QGYC&pg=PT66 }}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
*{{IMDb title|0036402}}

{{S-start}}
{{succession box
| before = ''[[Tortoise Wins by a Hare]]''
| title = [[List of Bugs Bunny cartoons|Bugs Bunny Cartoons]]
| years = 1943
| after = ''[[Jack-Wabbit and the Beanstalk]]''
|}}
{{S-end}}

{{Bugs Bunny in animation}}
{{Chuck Jones}}

[[Category:1943 comedy films]]
[[Category:1940s animated superhero films]]
[[Category:1940s superhero comedy films]]
[[Category:Short films directed by Chuck Jones]]
[[Category:Films set in Texas]]
[[Category:American World War II propaganda shorts]]
[[Category:American animated science fiction films]]
[[Category:Merrie Melodies short films]]
[[Category:Warner Bros. Cartoons animated short films]]
[[Category:Films about the United States Marine Corps]]
[[Category:Parody superheroes]]
[[Category:Fictional United States Marine Corps personnel]]
[[Category:Superman in other media]]
[[Category:Films scored by Carl Stalling]]
[[Category:Bugs Bunny films]]
[[Category:Parodies of Superman]]
[[Category:Films produced by Leon Schlesinger]]
[[Category:1940s Warner Bros. animated short films]]
[[Category:American science fiction comedy films]]
[[Category:American animated black-and-white films]]
[[Category:1943 animated short films]]

← Previous revision		Revision as of 17:34, 28 June 2025
Line 10:		Line 10:
	\| layout_artist = [[John McGrew]]		\| layout_artist = [[John McGrew]]
	\| background_artist = Gene Fleury		\| background_artist = Gene Fleury
	\| starring = [[Mel Blanc]]<br>[[Kent Rogers]]<br>[[Tedd Pierce]]<ref>{{Cite book \|title=Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, ~~1930-70~~ \|last=Scott \|first=Keith \|publisher=BearManor Media \|year=2022 \|isbn=979-8-88771-010-5 \|pages=54}}</ref>		\| starring = [[Mel Blanc]]<br>[[Kent Rogers]]<br>[[Tedd Pierce]]<ref>{{Cite book \|title=Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, 1930–70 \|last=Scott \|first=Keith \|publisher=BearManor Media \|year=2022 \|isbn=979-8-88771-010-5 \|pages=54}}</ref>
	\| music = [[Carl W. Stalling]]		\| music = [[Carl W. Stalling]]
	\| producer = [[Leon Schlesinger]]		\| producer = [[Leon Schlesinger]]
Line 26:		Line 26:
	Professor Cannafraz (a [[Richard Haydn]] impression) creates a "super carrot" and uses it on his test subject – Rabbitus idioticus americanus (Bugs Bunny), who immediately consumes the proffered carrot. Armed with temporary superhero abilities that need to be replenished with additional super carrots, Bugs remembers a newspaper article about [[Texas]] hunter "Cottontail" Smith, who wants to exterminate all rabbits.		Professor Cannafraz (a [[Richard Haydn]] impression) creates a "super carrot" and uses it on his test subject – Rabbitus idioticus americanus (Bugs Bunny), who immediately consumes the proffered carrot. Armed with temporary superhero abilities that need to be replenished with additional super carrots, Bugs remembers a newspaper article about [[Texas]] hunter "Cottontail" Smith, who wants to exterminate all rabbits.

	Bugs, adorned in a superhero costume complete with cape, flies to [[Deep in the Heart of Texas\|Deepinaharta, Texas]], and assumes the guise of a mild-mannered forest creature by wearing oversized reading glasses and a hat. He encounters Smith, who attempts to shoot Bugs, only for the bullets to form an outline of the rabbit before harmlessly falling to the ground. Bugs then hands Smith a cannon, eats another super carrot as a precaution, then, upon being struck by the cannonball, plays [[basketball]] with it, quickly shoving Smith and his horse onto bleachers while he acts as his own cheerleader. After Bugs returns to the sky, the bemused Smith and his horse follow the rabbit in an airplane. Using his super powers, Bugs then snatches the shell of the plane away from them, plunging Smith and the horse to the ground.		Bugs, adorned in a superhero costume complete with cape, flies to [[Deep in the Heart of Texas\|Deepinaharta, Texas]], and assumes the guise of a mild-mannered forest creature by wearing oversized reading glasses and a hat. He encounters Smith, who attempts to shoot Bugs, only for the bullets to form an outline of the rabbit before harmlessly falling to the ground. Bugs then hands Smith a cannon, eats another super carrot as a precaution, then, upon being struck by the cannonball, plays [[basketball]] with it, quickly shoving Smith and his horse onto bleachers while he acts as his own cheerleader. After Bugs returns to the sky, the bemused Smith and his horse follow the rabbit in an airplane. Using his super powers, Bugs then snatches the shell of the plane away from them, plunging Smith and the horse to the ground.

	Cruising through the sky, Bugs begins to run out of power, but when he tries to recharge again, he accidentally drops his carrots and he falls to the ground. After Bugs lands, he opens his eyes to see a line of chewed carrot tops eaten by Smith and his horse-turned-Superhero, both wearing cape and costume. Bugs turns to the camera and says "This looks like a job for a ''REAL'' Superman!" He ducks into a phone booth. Both Smith and the horse are ready to attack – until the booth opens and they both snap to attention and salute. Bugs marches out in a [[U.S. Marine Corps\|Marine]] uniform, singing the "[[Marines' Hymn]]." He dismisses the two, claiming he has "''important'' work to do!", and marches off to "[[Berlin]], [[Tokyo]] and points East."<ref name="Shull">Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 157</ref>		Cruising through the sky, Bugs begins to run out of power, but when he tries to recharge again, he accidentally drops his carrots and he falls to the ground. After Bugs lands, he opens his eyes to see a line of chewed carrot tops eaten by Smith and his horse-turned-Superhero, both wearing cape and costume. Bugs turns to the camera and says "This looks like a job for a ''REAL'' Superman!" He ducks into a phone booth. Both Smith and the horse are ready to attack – until the booth opens and they both snap to attention and salute. Bugs marches out in a [[U.S. Marine Corps\|Marine]] uniform, singing the "[[Marines' Hymn]]". He dismisses the two, claiming he has "''important'' work to do!", and marches off to "[[Berlin]], [[Tokyo]] and points East."<ref name="Shull">Shull, Wilt (2004), p. 157</ref>

	== Reception ==		== Reception ==
	The [[United States Marine Corps\|U.S. Marine Corps]] were so thrilled that Bugs Bunny decided to become a Marine in this cartoon that they insisted the character be officially inducted into the force as a private, which was done, complete with [[Dog tag (identifier)\|dogtag]]s. The character was regularly promoted until Bugs was officially "discharged" at the end of [[World War II]] as a [[Master Sergeant]].<ref>[[Audio commentary]] by [[Paul Dini]] for ''Super-Rabbit'' on the ''[[Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3]]'' (2005).</ref>		The [[United States Marine Corps\|U.S. Marine Corps]] were so thrilled that Bugs Bunny decided to become a Marine in this cartoon that they insisted the character be officially inducted into the force as a private, which was done, complete with [[Dog tag (identifier)\|dogtag]]s. The character was regularly promoted until Bugs was officially "discharged" at the end of [[World War II]] as a [[Master Sergeant]].<ref>[[Audio commentary]] by [[Paul Dini]] for ''Super-Rabbit'' on the ''[[Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 3]]'' (2005).</ref>

	Cottontail Smith later appears as one of [[Yosemite Sam]]’s sidekicks in ''[[Looney Tunes: Back in Action]]''. The ~~character’s~~ voice is a less raucous version of ~~Sam’s~~ and [[Foghorn Leghorn]]’s.		Cottontail Smith later appears as one of [[Yosemite Sam]]'s sidekicks in ''[[Looney Tunes: Back in Action]]''. The character's voice is a less raucous version of Sam's and [[Foghorn Leghorn]]'s.

	== Analysis ==		== Analysis ==
	The cartoon parodies the [[Max Fleischer]] [[Superman (1940s cartoons)\|Superman]] animated shorts as a figure soars across the sky from random directions. Onlookers are heard speculating on its nature: "Look! Up there in the sky" "~~It’s~~ a boid" [bird], "Nah, it ain’t a boid, ~~it’s~~ a [[dive bomber\|dive-bommah]]".<ref name="Shull"/><ref name="Weldon">Weldon (2013), unnumbered pages</ref>		The cartoon parodies the [[Max Fleischer]] [[Superman (1940s cartoons)\|Superman]] animated shorts as a figure soars across the sky from random directions. Onlookers are heard speculating on its nature: "Look! Up there in the sky!" "It's a boid" [bird]!" "Nah, it ain’t a boid, it's a [[dive bomber\|dive-bommah]]."<ref name="Shull"/><ref name="Weldon">Weldon (2013), unnumbered pages</ref>

	A Marine is described as "a real superman" by Bugs.<ref name="Shull"/>		A Marine is described as "a real superman" by Bugs.<ref name="Shull"/>

	==Home media==		==Home media==