Bugs loses his headgear in What's Opera, Doc?

What's Opera, Doc? is a short animated cartoon directed by Chuck Jones in which Elmer Fudd chases Bugs Bunny through a six-minute operatic parody of Wagner's operas, particularly Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). While sometimes characterized as a condensed version of Wagner's Ring, it actually makes only loose borrowings from that cycle, woven around the standard Bugs-Elmer conflict. It was first released theatrically on July 6, 1957. Mel Blanc and Arthur Q. Bryan do the voices, including the singing. The short is also sometimes referred to as Kill the Wabbit after the line sung by Fudd to the tune of the Ride of the Valkyries. Image File history File links Whats_Opera_Doc_still. ... Image File history File links Whats_Opera_Doc_still. ... An animated cartoon is a short, hand-drawn (or made with computers to look similar to something hand-drawn) film for the cinema, television or computer screen, featuring some kind of story or plot (even if it is a very short one). ... Charles Martin Chuck Jones (September 21, 1912–February 22, 2002) was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Brothers cartoon studio. ... Elmer Fudd The fictional cartoon character Elmer J. Fudd, now one of the most famous Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies characters, also has one of the more convoluted and disputed origins in the Warner Brothers cartoon pantheon (second only to Bugs Bunny himself). ... Bugs Bunny is a fictional street-smart gray rabbit that appears in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros. ... The Teatro alla Scala in Milan is one of the worlds most famous opera houses. ... Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813 – February 13, 1883) was an influential German composer, conductor, music theorist, and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or music dramas as he later came to call them). ... Valkyrie Warrior Maiden by artist Arthur Rackham (1912) Der Ring des Nibelungen, commonly translated into English as The Ring of the Nibelung or The Nibelungs Ring, is a series of four epic music dramas based loosely on figures and elements of Germanic paganism, particularly from the Icelanders sagas and... July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Melvin Jerome Blanc (May 30, 1908 – July 10, 1989), was a famous American voice actor for both classic American radio programs and many animation studios, primarily the Warner Bros. ... Arthur Q. Bryan, as seen in one of his few film roles, from the 1941 film The Devil Bat Arthur Q. Bryan (May 8, 1899 - November 18, 1959) was a United States comedian and voice actor. ... The Ride of the Valkyries (German: Walkürenritt) is the popular term for the beginning of Act III of Die Walküre by Richard Wagner. ...

Story

The screen pans on the silhouette of a mighty viking arousing ferocious lightning storms, but the zooms in to reveal that it is only Elmer Fudd (as the demigod Siegfried). Elmer sings his signature line (in operatic style), before arriving at Bugs Bunny's hole. Bugs watches Elmer fruitlessly jam his spear into the hole to "Kill the wabbit!" Bugs sings his signature line opera style and challenges Elmer as to how he is to do this, prompting a display of Elmer-as-Siegfried's supposed "mighty powers" from his "spear and magic helmet. At that, Bugs flees and the chase begins. The term Viking commonly denotes the ship-borne explorers, traders, and warriors of the Norsemen who originated in Scandinavia and raided the coasts of the British Isles, France and other parts of Europe from the late 8th century to the 11th century. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Elmer Fudd The fictional cartoon character Elmer J. Fudd, now one of the most famous Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies characters, also has one of the more convoluted and disputed origins in the Warner Brothers cartoon pantheon (second only to Bugs Bunny himself). ... A demigod, a half-god, is a modern distinction, often misapplied in Greek mythology. ... Siegfried could refer to: The opera by Richard Wagner; see Siegfried (opera). ... Bugs Bunny is a fictional street-smart gray rabbit that appears in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros. ...

Suddenly, Elmer is stopped in his tracks at the sight of the beautiful Valkyrie, Brünnhilde (Bugs in an obvious disguise), riding in grandly on a enormously fat horse. "Siegfried" and "Brünnhilde" exchange endearments: A statue from 1908 by Stephan Sinding located in Copenhagen, presents an active image of a valkyrie. ... Sigurd and Brynhilds funeral In Norse mythology, Brynhildr was a shieldmaiden and a valkyrie. ...

"Oh Bwunhiww-de, you'wuh so wuv-wee!"

"Yes I know it; I can't help it!"'

and after the usual "hard to get" pursuit (including a brilliant set design of pink flowers by Maurice Noble), they perform a short ballet, capping it off with a classic rendition of "Return My Love." Bugs' true identity is then exposed when his headdress falls off, enraging Elmer and prompting him to command fierce lightning, torrential rain, hail, wind storms, earthquakes and finally “Smog!!” (independently voiced by Blanc) to "kill the wabbit!" Maurice Noble (1911-2001)[1] was an American animation background artist and layout designer whose contributions to the industry spanned more than 60 years. ... The Waltz of the Snowflakes from Tchaikovskys The Nutcracker. ... Victorian London was notorious for its thick smogs, or pea-soupers, a fact that is often recreated to add an air of mystery to a period costume drama. ...

Eventually, a lightning bolt strikes Bugs dead. But upon seeing the bunny's corpse, Elmer as usual immediately regrets his commands and tearfully carries the bunny off, presumably to Valhalla in keeping with the Wagnerian theme. Bugs suddenly breaks character, raises his head to face the audience and remarks, "Well, what did you expect in an opera? A happy ending?" Thus, this cartoon marks one of the few times that Fudd actually succeeds in beating Bugs Bunny.

Wagner's music

The musical score to What's Opera Doc? is adapted from several operatic works by Wagner, including: Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813 – February 13, 1883) was an influential German composer, conductor, music theorist, and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or music dramas as he later came to call them). ...

• the overture from The Flying Dutchman - opening storm scene
• the Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walküre - "Kill the wabbit"
• Siegfried's horn call from Siegfried - "O mighty warrior of great fighting stock"
• the overture and Pilgrims’ Chorus from Tannhäuser - "Return my love" and the closing scene
• the Bacchanal from Tannhäuser - ballet scene between Elmer and Bugs

The Flying Dutchman (German title: Der fliegende Holländer) is an opera, music and libretto by Richard Wagner. ... The Ride of the Valkyries (German: Walkürenritt) is the popular term for the beginning of Act III of Die Walküre by Richard Wagner. ... Die Walküre (The Valkyrie) is the second of the four operas that comprise Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung), by Richard Wagner. ... Siegfried could refer to: The opera by Richard Wagner; see Siegfried (opera). ... Tannhäuser (Tannhäuser and the Singers Contest on the Wartburg), an opera in three acts, music and text by Richard Wagner, based on the two Germanic legends of Tannhäuser and the song contest at Wartburg. ... Tannhäuser (Tannhäuser and the Singers Contest on the Wartburg), an opera in three acts, music and text by Richard Wagner, based on the two Germanic legends of Tannhäuser and the song contest at Wartburg. ...

A magnum opus

This cartoon is widely regarded as Chuck Jones’ masterpiece. In fact, many film critics, animation fans, and filmmakers (as well as Jones himself) consider this to be the greatest animation achievement of all the cartoons Warner Bros. released since the endeavour began in 1930. It has also topped many Top Ten lists of the greatest animated cartoons of all time. In fact, it was rated by Jerry Beck in his book The Fifty Greatest Cartoons as the #1 greatest cartoon. What's Opera, Doc? required about 6 times as much work and expense as any of the other 6-minute cartoons his production unit was turning out at the time. Jones has admitted as much, having described a surreptitious re-allocation of production time to completing the short. During the 6 minutes of What’s Opera, Doc?, Jones lampoons: Warner Bros. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link is to a full 1930 calendar). ... Jerry Beck (born February 9, 1955) is a well known animation historian, with ten books and numerous articles to his credit. ...

• Disney's Fantasia,
• the contemporary style of ballet,
• Wagner's perceived ponderous operatic style, and even
• the by-then cliché Bugs-and-Elmer formula.

What's Opera, Doc? marked the end of an era for Warner Bros. cartoons, for it was perhaps the last Bugs Bunny cartoon to truly capture the essence of WB's Golden Age of Animation. Fans have argued that no theatrical or made-for-TV cartoon has since done so. The Walt Disney Company (most commonly known as Disney) (NYSE: DIS) is one of the largest media and entertainment corporations in the world. ... Fantasia is a 1940 motion picture, the third in the Disney animated features canon, which was a Walt Disney experiment in animation and music. ... The Waltz of the Snowflakes from Tchaikovskys The Nutcracker. ...

The cartoon and lyrics were written by Michael Maltese, the music adapted from various operatic works by Richard Wagner, the impressive and unusual background work by Maurice Noble. It was the first cartoon short to be deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. Duck Amuck and One Froggy Evening were also later inducted into the registry, making Chuck Jones the only animator with three shorts thus recognized. Michael Maltese (February 6, 1908 - February 22, 1981) was born on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York. ... Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813 – February 13, 1883) was an influential German composer, conductor, music theorist, and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or music dramas as he later came to call them). ... Maurice Noble (1911-2001)[1] was an American animation background artist and layout designer whose contributions to the industry spanned more than 60 years. ... The Great Hall interior. ... The National Film Registry is the registry of films selected by the United States National Film Preservation Board for preservation in the Library of Congress. ... Scene from Duck Amuck Duck Amuck is a surreal 1953 animated cartoon produced by Warner Bros. ... Michigan J. Frog One Froggy Evening is a six-minute Technicolor animated short film written by Michael Maltese and directed by Chuck Jones. ... Charles Martin Chuck Jones (September 21, 1912–February 22, 2002) was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Brothers cartoon studio. ...

Availability

What's Opera, Doc? is part of the compilation film, The Bugs Bunny-Road Runner Movie, together with Duck Amuck and other Chuck Jones shorts. In the linking material in this compilation, Bugs Bunny directly recognizes Wagner’s contribution to the operatic version of the “classic chase” (he loves opera), but has a difficult time pronouncing the title in his “Brooklynese”, finally settling on “The Rings of Nibble-lung.” He also says he “squashed” the Ring down to “seven minutes”, though this is a bit of a generous estimate. The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie is a 1979 Looney Tunes film with a compilation of classic Warner Bros. ... Scene from Duck Amuck Duck Amuck is a surreal 1953 animated cartoon produced by Warner Bros. ...

The film is also part of the recently-released Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2 DVD box-set (it’s on Disc Four), supplemented with two audio commentaries, optional music-only and voice-only audio tracks, and accompanied by a making-of documentary entitled Wagnerian Wabbit. A major selling point of DVD video is that its storage capacity allows for a wide variety of extra features in addition to the feature film itself. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

The cartoon was homaged in the Looney Tunes video game Bugs Bunny and Taz: Time Busters, in which Fudd-as-Siegfried is the boss of the Viking level. Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a cultural phenomenon. ...

References

• Beck, Jerry and Friedwald, Will (1989): Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Company.

See also

• Looney Tunes
• The Rabbit of Seville
• Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies filmography

Looney Tunes opening title Looney Tunes is a Warner Brothers animated cartoon series which ran in many movie theatres from 1930 to 1969. ... The Rabbit of Seville is a Warner Brothers Looney Tunes theatrical cartoon short released in 1950. ... This is a listing of the shorts, feature films, television programs, and television specials in Warner Bros. ...

External links

• What's Opera Doc? at the Internet Movie Database
• What's Opera Doc Analysis