Bonanza Bunny

Bonanza Bunny is a 1959 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon directed by Robert McKimson.[2] The short was released on September 5, 1959, and stars Bugs Bunny.[3] In the cartoon, Bugs faces off with the French-Canadian claim jumper Blacque Jacque Shellacque during a fictionalized version of the Klondike Gold Rush.

Bonanza Bunny
Directed byRobert McKimson
Produced byJohn Burton, Sr.
Story byTedd Pierce
StarringMel Blanc
Narrated byRobert C. Bruce
Music byMilt Franklyn
Animation byTom Ray
George Grandpre'
Ted Bonnicksen
Warren Batchelder
Layouts byRobert Gribbroek[1]
Backgrounds byWilliam Butler[1]
Color processTechnicolor
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
September 5, 1959 (US)
Running time
6:30
LanguageEnglish

Plot
Blacque Jacque Shellacque jumps Bugs' claim.

Set in 1896 in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada, Bugs Bunny walks into the saloon with a bag full of gold nuggets. Bugs has no use for these yellow rocks, admitting that he confused "karats" with the vegetable when he traveled to the area (having actually heard about the Klondike Gold Rush). The men in the saloon look suspiciously at Bugs, who requests a glass of carrot juice, to which an eager bartender give Bugs his best serving of carrot juice, complimenting the stone, to which Bugs pays him with it, apparently naive as to what they are. Abruptly, Bugs is almost shot at by a man who identifies himself as Blacque Jacque Shellacque - a wanted criminal claim-jumper.

Jacque is oblivious to Bugs' naivety in regards to the gold and demands he hand it over. When Bugs refuses to cooperate, Jacque engages in a series of tricks to seize the gold. Bugs and Jacque play blackjack, during which Bugs stands on one card and to Jacque's shock the one card is the "21 of hearts". Bugs, seemingly unaware of the danger he is in, recovers his wagered bag of gold and calmly begins to leave, but is stopped by an enraged Jacque.

Right after Jacque openly states how dangerous he is, Bugs convinces Jacque that there's someone in another room who claims to be twice as dangerous. As Jacque goes into confront this stranger, whom we see is Bugs in disguise, he sees Bugs pull out a pop gun. Just as Jacque pulls out the cork, the gun blasts him in the face. Bugs then pretends to have a phone call for Jacque from "Fifi from Montreal" - with the receiver being a lit stick of dynamite; Jacque takes the bait and the dynamite explodes.

In the final scene, Jacque corners Bugs in a back storeroom and in a form of armed robbery, holds a pistol to Bugs Bunny and demands the gold. Bugs then pretends to cower and "surrenders" the gold, actually handing him a bag filled with gunpowder that begins to leak, leaving a trail behind Jacque, who proceeds to run off into the mountains until Bugs lights the trail. This creates a large and colorful explosion off in the distance, to which Bugs remarks, "Gee, those Northern Lights are pretty this time of year." Furthermore, as he departs, Bugs reveals that the 'gold' was merely rocks painted yellow.

Production

This short marks the first appearance of Blacque Jacque Shellacque.[1] Gags are reused from "Bunker Hill Bunny" (1950) and "Bugs Bunny Rides Again" (1948). Animation of the gamblers fleeing when Blacque Jacque Shellacque arrives at the saloon is re-used from "Drip-Along Daffy" (1951).[1]

See also

References
  1. "Bonanza Bunny". Big Cartoon DataBase, June 3, 2016
  2. Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 319. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
  3. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 60–62. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
Preceded by
Wild and Woolly Hare		 Bugs Bunny Cartoons
1959		 Succeeded by
A Witch's Tangled Hare
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