Operation: Rabbit

Operation: Rabbit
Production company	Warner Bros. Cartoons
Distributor	Warner Bros. Pictures The Vitaphone Corporation
Release date	January 19, 1952
Run time	7:20
Starring	Mel Blanc
Music composed by	Carl Stalling
Story by	Michael Maltese
Animation	Lloyd Vaughan Ben Washam Ken Harris Phil Monroe
Director(s)	Charles M. Jones
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Title card

Operation: Rabbit is the two hundred and ninety-sixth Looney Tunes theatrical short. It was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Vitaphone Corporation on January 19, 1952. It was written by Michael Maltese, and directed by Chuck Jones.

Bugs is pitted against a "genius" coyote, who persuades himself to be "much cunning, faster and larger" than him. However, the coyote's words would be proven wrong once Bugs outsmarts him at his attempts to catch him.

Memorable quotes

Wile E.: Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Wile E. Coyote, genius. I am not selling anything nor am I working my way through college.
Bugs: I...
Wile E.: So let's get down to basics: you are a rabbit and I am going to eat you for supper. Now don't try to get away; I am more muscular, more cunning, faster and larger than you are, and I am a genius, while you could hardly pass the entrance examinations to kindergarten. So I'm going to give you the customary two minutes to say your prayers.
Bugs: I'm sorry, Mac, da lady of da house ain't home. And besides, we mailed you people a check last week.

Bugs: I have come ta give myself up, on da account of "I cannot fight no more against such genius."
Wile E.: A wise decision, my friend. You have just saved yourself from a fate worse than the frying pan.
Bugs: I have only one last request. I have made out my last will of testament, but I need a witness ta make it official! Will ya sign it on dis fountain pen?
Wile E.: Certainly, my boy! Delighted to be of service... (small chuckle) Very amateurish attempt at my person. Being a genius certainly has it's own advantages.

Wile E.: Wile E. Coyote, super genius... I like the way it rolls out. Wile E. Coyote, super genius! (suddenly notices the train and pulls down the blinder before the train makes impact on the shed, exploding it all together. Wile E. is now hanging on a branch as the train passes by. And in a slurred voice, he says:) Wile... E... Coyote... Super Genius...

Wile E.: Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Mud.
Bugs: And remember, "Mud" spelled backwards is "Dum!"

Characters

Legend
Character debut	Speaking debut	Ep. debut	No lines	Mentioned

In order of appearance:

Character	Actor
Wile E. Coyote	Mel Blanc
Bugs Bunny	Mel Blanc

Locations

• Earth
  • United States
    • Southwest American Desert
      • Wile E.'s Den
        • Construction Site
          • TNT Explosives Shack

Objects

• Collapsible Door
• Battery-powered Pressure Cooker
• Vegetables: Carrots, Tomato, Turnip, Celery and Lettuce
• An egg
• Vinegar Oil
• Pepper Grinder
• A big beefy club
• Lump Massager (Pat. Pend.)
• PVC Pipes and a Cannon
• Time Bomb-rigged Female Rabbit Decoy
• Detonator-rigged Female Coyote Decoy
• ACME Explosive Flying Saucer with Radarscope
• Nitroglycerin-filled Carrots

Vehicles

• Tractor
• Train

Production

Filming

After his debut in Fast and Furry-ous, this cartoon would be the first speaking role for Wile E. Coyote. He was portrayed by Mel Blanc, who gave him an upper-class Mid-Atlantic dialect to contrast Bugs' Brooklyn accent.

Music

The music was composed by Carl W. Stalling.

Release

Dates are in order of release:

• United States: January 19, 1952 in theatres

Behind the scenes

• Wile E.'s eyebrows are brown in this cartoon, unlike his other appearances where they are cream-colored like his jaw and chest.
• Bugs' final remark of "'Mud' spelled backwards is 'Dum'" may have been a reference to Serutan laxative, referring to the slogan "Serutan spelled backwards is natures".

Errors

• The cigarette on the female coyote bomb decoy briefly flashes from white to green (the same color of the door at his home) when Wile E. romances over it.

Everlasting influence

• This cartoon marks the official name for the coyote being 'Wile E. Coyote'.
• Wile E. would attempt to capture Bugs again in four more shorts after this: To Hare Is Human, Rabbit's Feat, Compressed Hare and Hare-Breadth Hurry.
  • He would be paired once more with Bugs in the first season of New Looney Tunes, then known as Wabbit: A Looney Tunes Production.

Home availability

• In the United States:
  • Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 4
  • Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Looney Tunes
  • Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 3