Happy 80th Birthday, Bugs Bunny!

in which I argue this is a hero of the people

Because parents are now largely concerned their children will experience any joy that doesn't have bumpers on it,* I don't think kids really know about Bugs Bunny.  Which is a shame.

Being a 1980's latchkey kid who had a Zenith for a babysitter, like most of my generation, I had WB cartoons blasted at me day and night for my entire youth.  From my earliest memories straight through college, Looney Tunes were not just a staple, but a constant.  In a way, the cheap programming of a thousand UHF channels and basic cable options may be the truest common denominator for 2-3 decades of Americans.  All of us know "Rabbit Season/ Duck Season".  We all know the weird, hilarious poetic tragedy of Michigan J. Frog and those who find him.  We all know the best thing to do when pursued is to dress as a coquettish young blonde and flirt with our pursuer.

It's printed on our DNA.

Today Would Have Been the 100th Birthday of Chuck Jones

If you have to ask who Chuck Jones was, I pity you, for you were not born into a world in which Looney Tunes seemed to be on the air 24 hours per day.

I can't really state how much impact Bugs may have had on me and my occasionally completely inappropriate responses to thuggishness.

this is my manifesto

I contend that Warner Bros. and the cartoons made at the studio under the eyes of huge talents like Fritz Freleng (an extraordinary talent), Tex Avery (who would go on to do his own work) and Hanna & Barbera (also - left to do their own work), were a huge cultural touchstone for folks who grew up in multiple decades from the 60's - 80's, when one could pretty much count on the likes of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck to teach them important lessons about not taking things all that seriously, even when faced with dynamite or a falling anvil.

What's Opera, Doc? - Live Action?

I consider it a great tragedy that Bugs Bunny is no longer part of the television landscape. Bugs represented the great tradition of the wiseacre, keenly aware of the absurdity of his own situation and the people/ water fowl who had created that situation, and who responded with intentional absurdity.



These kids today with their Pokemons and their Hannah Montanas... No love of mayhem in their funny business, and the subversion is mostly sly nods to the adults who might be watching. No appreciation for the well crafted gag, these kids.

Like everyone else born between, oh.... 1950 and 1985, my first exposure to opera came from Bugs Bunny. Primarily "What's Opera, Doc?" (the "I Killed the Wabbit" one), and the always classic "Rabbit of Seville".



Anyhow, I stumbled upon this live action take on "What's Opera, Doc?". It made me laugh.




The original, for comparison:

What's Opera Doc? | Viral/Other | SPIKE.com

Dang, man. That's a heck of a great cartoon.