Beanstalk Bunny

Beanstalk Bunny, a 1954 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon was released on 12 February 1955. This theatrical cartoon was directed by Chuck Jones, and starred Mel Blanc as the voices of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. Elmer Fudd, voiced by Arthur Q. Bryan, was also featured.

Plot

The story begins with Jack summing up resent events leading up to the start of the story:

Subsequently he tosses out the beans and they land right into Bugs Bunny’s rabbit hole. A beanstalk erupts shortly after, and Jack decides to climb it for the cartoon's sake. During his climb, he meets Bugs who is in bed, and kicks him away, not wanting him to interfere. Realizing his situation, Bugs decides to tag along for the sake of having a rabbit in the story.

Meanwhile, Jack reaches the top of beanstalk, excited about stealing the fortune that the giant's castle holds, until he meets the giant himself. Jack's excitement turns into fear and he runs from the giant just as Bugs reaches the top. As the giant closes in on the duo, Bugs tells the giant to get Jack instead, because in the source material the giant wasn't after a "wabbit", to which the giant agrees with. Jack frantically tries to pass this off as a lie, declaring his name to be Aloysius, and that Bugs is Jack (Jack-rabbit). As the two start to argue of who the real Jack is, the giant decides to capture both of them and takes them to his castle, where he traps Bugs and Jack under a glass cake dome to prepare to grind their bones to make some bread. However, they manage to escape because Bugs has a ACME glass cutter in his possession. The giant then continues to chase the two around his castle as they are trying to escape.

The chase continues until Bugs manages to trip the giant, knocking him unconscious. Bugs wants to go home; however, the greedy Jack decides to stay so that he can steal from the giant. As Bugs is running towards the beanstalk, he comes across the giant's equally large carrot garden ready to be eaten. Later that night, as a very full Bugs rests under one of the giant carrots he has been eating, he wonders what has become of Jack, who is shown inside the giant's pocket watch, acting like the minute and hour hands, while constantly making tick tock sounds.

Availability

This cartoon is now available on laserdisc and has been since its release in 1994. The cartoon itself runs seven minutes and can be seen on the disc, Hare Beyond Compare.

Censorship

• The CBS version of this cartoon cuts out the part where Elmer the giant tries to smoke Bugs and Daffy out of his head with champagne corks and cigarettes (with Bugs and Daffy blowing out the match before Elmer can light it).
• The Cartoon Network version aired this uncut until 2003, when it showed the CBS-edited version (and sometimes, alternated between showing the edited version and the uncut version).

External links

• Beanstalk Bunny at the Internet Movie Database