O que É que Há, Velhinho?

This is a bit different from most Bugs Bunny cartoons: the life story of Bugs, from when he knew he was "a bit different" (the rest of the babies were humans and he was a rabbit) to his beginnings in the world of show business.

However, the latter doesn't pan out. Bugs is down on his luck and moping around on a park bench, when Elmer Fudd passes by and says, "Why are you hanging around with these guys? They'll never amount to anything." (They are Al Jolson, Jack Benny, Eddie Cantor and Bing Crosby!)

Elmer gets him a job back in the theater. The vaudeville show opens in Peoria (where else?). It travels on to Buffalo and then New York City, but Bugs is getting bugged. He's tired of being Elmer's foil and getting pies shoved in his face, etc. He reverses the act and finishes with "What's up, doc?" It's a smash! Offers come in from everywhere and the two head off to Hollywood and Warner Brothers. The rest is history.

There are not a lot of laughs in here: very few, in fact, but it's fairly interesting. This is good for one viewing only, unless you're a big fan or a collector of BB cartoons, then it might be of historical significance.

Okay, now, I'm sick of hearing about how Robert McKimson doesn't match up with against the "great" Looney Tunes directors like Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng, Tex Avery, Bob Clampett, and I've even read in a book written by one of the foremost cartoon critics, Leonard Maltin, that he doesn't even compare well against Art Davis! I'm not going to denigrate those other directors (well, maybe Davis), we come here to praise McKimson. Sure, he's had his stinkers, but so has everyone else mentioned. When anyone says he's not in the the same league as these others, just remember that those four are a few of the greatest names in cartoon history. As evidence for my case I call upon "A Lad in His Lamp", "Hillbilly Hare", "Walky Talky Hawky", "Devil May Hare", "Stupor Duck", and the list of great 'toons goes on. How about the creation of such characters as Foghorn Leghorn, Henery Hawk, Hippety Hopper, Sylvester Jr., Speedy Gonzales, and the Tasmanian Devil, amongst others.

In What's Up Doc? (yes, my little rant is over) we have another of those wonderful devices where a cartoon character tells us about his rise to stardom, and it's never been done better. (Quick Quiz: Name all of the stars in the park). The vaudeville scenes are highlighted by the duo of Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd singing "What's Up Doc?". Although I'll admit that the joke at the end is a little tame, overall this is one of those memorable Warner Bros. cartoon from their golden age. Oh, and did I mention that this is directed by Robert McKimson?

Robert McKimson is one of the "other" Warner Brothers directors, after the Big Four-Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng and Bob Clampett. While nowhere near as innovative, with work that varied sometimes wildly in quality, he was probably the most solid of the other directors and this was one of his best efforts and an excellent addition to the Bugs Bunny efforts. The scene in the park is marvelously done! Wonderful short that deserves to be seen. Most highly recommended.

For my money, the penultimate of Bugs Bunny's career.

Bugs tells his life story over the phone to the Disassociated Press (a clue for what we're in for.) We follow the trace of his career from dancing school, vaudeville, unemployment, a break from "big vaudeville star" Elmer Fudd (!), a twist in the act that's a hit with the audience and puts them in the big time.

And finally, Hollywood. The bit where they sing the title song does it for me. But even then, they still have a joke on him at the end. See it yourself.

Before Hollywood biographies centered on drug abuse and such things, "What's Up Doc?" portrayed Bugs Bunny telling his life story from childhood - "I knew I was different, and then it hit me: I was a rabbit in a human world." - up to his career in entertainment. However, it seems like there's a little less in this cartoon than the Looney Tunes cartoons usually showed. But I'd say that it's strength lies in its portrayal of the lack of employment in Hollywood (which I've heard is actually around 95%), and how it forces individuals into self-degrading work. I always get the feeling that whenever the Termite Terrace crowd made cartoons spoofing Tinseltown, they were probably basing the cartoons on their personal experiences. Maybe I can't prove that, but I just get that feeling.

So, it's not the greatest cartoon, but worth seeing. I don't know whether or not you're rooting for me, so now I have to go.