1979
Bugs Bunny's Valentine
Release date: 1979-02-14
Plot: This Valentine's Day TV special is a clip show stitched together with new wraparound animation: Bugs Bunny bumps into an Elmer Fudd-like Cupid who stirs up romance all over the Looney Tunes universe pairing Pepe Le Pew and Penelope, matchmaking Foghorn Leghorn and Miss Prissy, and even nudging a murder suspect toward private eye Daffy Duck. In the final stretch Bugs tries to prove he can play matchmaker too, engineering a Tasmanian Devil romance and disguising himself as an elderly heiress to snare Yosemite Sam.
Name and role: Bugs is both host and guinea pig: he opens the special as the smug skeptic of romance, acting like he's above all this mushy stuff, but spends most of the runtime literally dragged through other characters' love stories and occasionally meddling in them.
Trivia and other appearances: The special reuses nine romance-themed shorts-Hare Splitter (1948), The Grey Hounded Hare (1949), Little Beau Pepe (1952), Of Rice and Hen (1953), Devil May Hare (1954), Hare Trimmed (1953), The Super Snooper (1952), Rabbit Romeo (1957) and Wild Over You (1953)
Release date: 1979-02-14
Plot: This Valentine's Day TV special is a clip show stitched together with new wraparound animation: Bugs Bunny bumps into an Elmer Fudd-like Cupid who stirs up romance all over the Looney Tunes universe pairing Pepe Le Pew and Penelope, matchmaking Foghorn Leghorn and Miss Prissy, and even nudging a murder suspect toward private eye Daffy Duck. In the final stretch Bugs tries to prove he can play matchmaker too, engineering a Tasmanian Devil romance and disguising himself as an elderly heiress to snare Yosemite Sam.
Name and role: Bugs is both host and guinea pig: he opens the special as the smug skeptic of romance, acting like he's above all this mushy stuff, but spends most of the runtime literally dragged through other characters' love stories and occasionally meddling in them.
Trivia and other appearances: The special reuses nine romance-themed shorts-Hare Splitter (1948), The Grey Hounded Hare (1949), Little Beau Pepe (1952), Of Rice and Hen (1953), Devil May Hare (1954), Hare Trimmed (1953), The Super Snooper (1952), Rabbit Romeo (1957) and Wild Over You (1953)
Bugs Bunny's Valentine
or Bugs Bunny's Cupid Capers
Release date: 1979-02-14
Plot: In this special, a Cupid bearing the unmistakable features of Elmer Fudd tries to make Bugs Bunny fall in love by shooting him with a magical arrow. Bugs, ever the skeptic, watches as Cupid fumbles his way through pairing up unlikely Looney Tunes couples like Penelope Pussycat and Pepé Le Pew, or Foghorn Leghorn and Miss Prissy. Amused and intrigued, Bugs decides to try his hand at matchmaking himself... with predictably hilarious results.
Name and role: Elmer's Cupid role highlights the Looney Tunes' tradition of subverting romantic clichés. His stiff, awkward demeanor makes him an ironic choice for the god of love, which is exactly what makes his appearances so memorable.
Trivia and other appearances: Of course, Elmer isn't new to this role: the whole idea is actually inspired by The Stupid Cupid (1944), where he first donned the wings and halo of a very confused cherub.
or Bugs Bunny's Cupid Capers
Release date: 1979-02-14
Plot: In this special, a Cupid bearing the unmistakable features of Elmer Fudd tries to make Bugs Bunny fall in love by shooting him with a magical arrow. Bugs, ever the skeptic, watches as Cupid fumbles his way through pairing up unlikely Looney Tunes couples like Penelope Pussycat and Pepé Le Pew, or Foghorn Leghorn and Miss Prissy. Amused and intrigued, Bugs decides to try his hand at matchmaking himself... with predictably hilarious results.
Name and role: Elmer's Cupid role highlights the Looney Tunes' tradition of subverting romantic clichés. His stiff, awkward demeanor makes him an ironic choice for the god of love, which is exactly what makes his appearances so memorable.
Trivia and other appearances: Of course, Elmer isn't new to this role: the whole idea is actually inspired by The Stupid Cupid (1944), where he first donned the wings and halo of a very confused cherub.
The Bugs Bunny Mother's Day Special
Release date: 1979-05-12
Plot: The special features a selection of classic Looney Tunes shorts centered around the theme of motherhood, tied together by new animated segments in which Bugs Bunny interacts with other characters, including Granny and the drunken stork.
Name and role: In this special, Granny appears selling flowers in a park, where she meets Bugs Bunny. Together, they discuss the importance of mothers, introducing the shorts featured throughout the special. Rarely have we seen Granny drawn this poorly, the design here looks almost like a bootleg version of herself...
Trivia and other appearances: Granny is a well-known character in the Looney Tunes universe, appearing in nearly every Looney-related brand, including the feature films. Though she always plays a maternal role, there's no evidence she's ever had children of her own.
Release date: 1979-05-12
Plot: The special features a selection of classic Looney Tunes shorts centered around the theme of motherhood, tied together by new animated segments in which Bugs Bunny interacts with other characters, including Granny and the drunken stork.
Name and role: In this special, Granny appears selling flowers in a park, where she meets Bugs Bunny. Together, they discuss the importance of mothers, introducing the shorts featured throughout the special. Rarely have we seen Granny drawn this poorly, the design here looks almost like a bootleg version of herself...
Trivia and other appearances: Granny is a well-known character in the Looney Tunes universe, appearing in nearly every Looney-related brand, including the feature films. Though she always plays a maternal role, there's no evidence she's ever had children of her own.
The Bugs Bunny Mother's Day Special
Release date: 1979-05-12
Plot: The special features a selection of classic Looney Tunes shorts centered around the theme of motherhood, tied together by new animated segments in which Bugs Bunny interacts with other characters, including Granny and the drunken stork.
Name and role: The drunken stork is a recurring Looney Tunes character, despite never receiving an official name. He's famous for delivering babies to the wrong families due to his habit of toasting every drop-off. In this special, he recounts stories of his misdelivered bundles, adding a comic touch to the celebration of motherhood.
Trivia and other appearances: He appears in several classic shorts, including Baby Bottleneck (1946), A Mouse Divided (1953), Goo Goo Goliath (1954), Stork Naked (1955), Pappy's Puppy (1955), and Apes of Wrath (1959).
Release date: 1979-05-12
Plot: The special features a selection of classic Looney Tunes shorts centered around the theme of motherhood, tied together by new animated segments in which Bugs Bunny interacts with other characters, including Granny and the drunken stork.
Name and role: The drunken stork is a recurring Looney Tunes character, despite never receiving an official name. He's famous for delivering babies to the wrong families due to his habit of toasting every drop-off. In this special, he recounts stories of his misdelivered bundles, adding a comic touch to the celebration of motherhood.
Trivia and other appearances: He appears in several classic shorts, including Baby Bottleneck (1946), A Mouse Divided (1953), Goo Goo Goliath (1954), Stork Naked (1955), Pappy's Puppy (1955), and Apes of Wrath (1959).
The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie
Release date: 1979-09-14
Plot: The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, released in 1979, is a compilation film directed by Chuck Jones and Phil Monroe. The film features Bugs Bunny as the host, introducing a series of classic Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts, primarily directed by Jones himself. The film includes full or partial segments from notable cartoons such as "Duck Amuck," "What's Opera, Doc?," "Robin Hood Daffy," "Bully for Bugs," and "Ali Baba Bunny." The final segment is an extended compilation of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner chases, blending scenes from multiple shorts into a continuous pursuit.
Name and role: Bugs invites us into his home as if we were watching a documentary. He wears a very elegant dark red smoking jacket and leads us through hallways filled with portraits, retracing the history of his colleagues. Each portrait introduces us to new shorts, and the film unfolds in this way. A fun fact about the house, which appears only in the newly animated scenes created for this film: it is modeled after Frank Lloyd Wright's famous architectural design, Fallingwater.
Trivia and other appearances: At this point, there's no need to explain Bugs' history, so here's a trivia about the film: a segment in the film addresses Bugs Bunny's "several fathers," subtly omitting Bob Clampett's name. This was a deliberate move by Chuck Jones to counter Clampett's claims of being the sole creator of Bugs Bunny, highlighting the ongoing dispute between the two animators.
Release date: 1979-09-14
Plot: The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, released in 1979, is a compilation film directed by Chuck Jones and Phil Monroe. The film features Bugs Bunny as the host, introducing a series of classic Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts, primarily directed by Jones himself. The film includes full or partial segments from notable cartoons such as "Duck Amuck," "What's Opera, Doc?," "Robin Hood Daffy," "Bully for Bugs," and "Ali Baba Bunny." The final segment is an extended compilation of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner chases, blending scenes from multiple shorts into a continuous pursuit.
Name and role: Bugs invites us into his home as if we were watching a documentary. He wears a very elegant dark red smoking jacket and leads us through hallways filled with portraits, retracing the history of his colleagues. Each portrait introduces us to new shorts, and the film unfolds in this way. A fun fact about the house, which appears only in the newly animated scenes created for this film: it is modeled after Frank Lloyd Wright's famous architectural design, Fallingwater.
Trivia and other appearances: At this point, there's no need to explain Bugs' history, so here's a trivia about the film: a segment in the film addresses Bugs Bunny's "several fathers," subtly omitting Bob Clampett's name. This was a deliberate move by Chuck Jones to counter Clampett's claims of being the sole creator of Bugs Bunny, highlighting the ongoing dispute between the two animators.
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In this transitional segment, some cast members sing Christmas carols. I chose not to include Sam again since he already appears later as Scrooge. I found it a bit odd that they gave at least a hat to everyone but left Pepe' and Foghorn "naked," but here they are.
Trivia and other appearances: The cast is very well know to tell you where they also appears but despite being one of the most prominent Looney Tunes characters, Daffy Duck does not appear in this special. This is particularly notable given that even lesser-known characters like Bugs Bunny's nephew, Clyde, and Petunia Pig make appearances.
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In this transitional segment, some cast members sing Christmas carols. I chose not to include Sam again since he already appears later as Scrooge. I found it a bit odd that they gave at least a hat to everyone but left Pepe' and Foghorn "naked," but here they are.
Trivia and other appearances: The cast is very well know to tell you where they also appears but despite being one of the most prominent Looney Tunes characters, Daffy Duck does not appear in this special. This is particularly notable given that even lesser-known characters like Bugs Bunny's nephew, Clyde, and Petunia Pig make appearances.
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: The Tasmanian Devil falls from a cargo plane and lands accidentally putting on a Santa's suit, Taz takes control of the sleigh near Bugs Bunny's house. Taz, here more of a goofball than a menace, is used almost like a reverse Grinch: he's not trying to steal Christmas, he wants to eat it.
Trivia and other appearances: We'll see Taz in a similar role again in the December 25, 1993 episode "No Time for Christmas" from the series Taz-Mania.
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: The Tasmanian Devil falls from a cargo plane and lands accidentally putting on a Santa's suit, Taz takes control of the sleigh near Bugs Bunny's house. Taz, here more of a goofball than a menace, is used almost like a reverse Grinch: he's not trying to steal Christmas, he wants to eat it.
Trivia and other appearances: We'll see Taz in a similar role again in the December 25, 1993 episode "No Time for Christmas" from the series Taz-Mania.
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: Clyde Bunny is Bugs' little nephew. This Christmas, he's absolutely determined to meet Santa Claus but what he ends up facing is more like a red-and-brown devil straight outta the North Pole's darker corners. In the short, his role is to bring that essential "kid quotient" to a holiday special that's otherwise all about punches, pratfalls, and good ol' cartoon violence.
Trivia and other appearances: Clyde Bunny also pops up in other shorts, including His Hare-Raising Tale (1951), Yankee Doodle Bugs (1954), Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979), Bugs Bunny: All American Hero (1981), Bunk Bedlam (2004), and 10-4, Good Bunny (2018).
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: Clyde Bunny is Bugs' little nephew. This Christmas, he's absolutely determined to meet Santa Claus but what he ends up facing is more like a red-and-brown devil straight outta the North Pole's darker corners. In the short, his role is to bring that essential "kid quotient" to a holiday special that's otherwise all about punches, pratfalls, and good ol' cartoon violence.
Trivia and other appearances: Clyde Bunny also pops up in other shorts, including His Hare-Raising Tale (1951), Yankee Doodle Bugs (1954), Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979), Bugs Bunny: All American Hero (1981), Bunk Bedlam (2004), and 10-4, Good Bunny (2018).
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: No one in the Looney world could possibly play Bob Cratchit better than Porky Pig. Kind, calm, tender... delicious... Sorry, my inner Taz took over for a second. Porky takes on the classic role of Scrooge's long-suffering employee, except this time, his son Timmy is none other than Tweety. Don't ask. Just roll with it.
Trivia and other appearances: Porky would reprise the same role in the direct-to-video movie Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006).
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: No one in the Looney world could possibly play Bob Cratchit better than Porky Pig. Kind, calm, tender... delicious... Sorry, my inner Taz took over for a second. Porky takes on the classic role of Scrooge's long-suffering employee, except this time, his son Timmy is none other than Tweety. Don't ask. Just roll with it.
Trivia and other appearances: Porky would reprise the same role in the direct-to-video movie Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006).
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In the grand finale, Sam doesn't exactly do as Scrooge did but, you know, back then, nobody was dressing up as Santa Claus. But there he is, our microscopic cowboy, strutting down, red dressed, the street hurling banknotes into people's faces like festive confetti.
Trivia and other appearances: Sam's been through dozens of costumes and roles, but this is the one true moment where he's dressed in full, classic red holiday spirit.
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts: Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In the grand finale, Sam doesn't exactly do as Scrooge did but, you know, back then, nobody was dressing up as Santa Claus. But there he is, our microscopic cowboy, strutting down, red dressed, the street hurling banknotes into people's faces like festive confetti.
Trivia and other appearances: Sam's been through dozens of costumes and roles, but this is the one true moment where he's dressed in full, classic red holiday spirit.
Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tale
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts. Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In the "Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol" segment, Sam plays Scrooge, and Bugs, as you can see, plays a really cheap version of the Ghost of Christmas. We've definitely seen him put in way more effort than this. I've always found it super creepy how tiny his eyes look through the sheet, so I left them exactly as they were. It's one of those details I just can't unsee.
Trivia and other appearances: We've seen these two torment each other in the past, the present, and no doubt we'll see it again in the future. Since Hare Trigger (1945), the two have clashed (during the Golden Age alone) a total of 15 times. If you're interested in other Warner Bros. takes on A Christmas Carol, the movie Bah, Humduck! gives you the full story but with Daffy taking on the role of Scrooge.
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales features three new Christmas-themed shorts. Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol, Freeze Frame, and Fright Before Christmas; all linked together by brand-new animated bridging sequences starring Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang, giving the special a continuous and festive flow.
Name and role: In the "Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol" segment, Sam plays Scrooge, and Bugs, as you can see, plays a really cheap version of the Ghost of Christmas. We've definitely seen him put in way more effort than this. I've always found it super creepy how tiny his eyes look through the sheet, so I left them exactly as they were. It's one of those details I just can't unsee.
Trivia and other appearances: We've seen these two torment each other in the past, the present, and no doubt we'll see it again in the future. Since Hare Trigger (1945), the two have clashed (during the Golden Age alone) a total of 15 times. If you're interested in other Warner Bros. takes on A Christmas Carol, the movie Bah, Humduck! gives you the full story but with Daffy taking on the role of Scrooge.
Freeze Frame
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Thanks to the ACME Little Giant Snow-Cloud Seeder, Wile brings winter to the desert, or at least he tries. Apparently, Road Runners are easier to catch on snow, so for the first time we leave behind the yellow sands for white snow-capped peaks. The chase, of course, goes on.
Name and role: In this short, Wile shows off his adaptability in new terrain: he skates, he skis, and, as always, he gets absolutely wrecked. In the finale, he's flattened by a massive snowball, and his little umbrella folds down over his head, accidentally turning him into a makeshift Santa Claus, for the first and only time.
Trivia and other appearances: There are two other snowy links in Wile's career: Winter Blunderland (2017), and a vintage AD with Shamu for Green Cross, where Wile somehow shares the stage with a killer whale to promote winter safety.
Release date: 1979-11-07
Plot: Thanks to the ACME Little Giant Snow-Cloud Seeder, Wile brings winter to the desert, or at least he tries. Apparently, Road Runners are easier to catch on snow, so for the first time we leave behind the yellow sands for white snow-capped peaks. The chase, of course, goes on.
Name and role: In this short, Wile shows off his adaptability in new terrain: he skates, he skis, and, as always, he gets absolutely wrecked. In the finale, he's flattened by a massive snowball, and his little umbrella folds down over his head, accidentally turning him into a makeshift Santa Claus, for the first and only time.
Trivia and other appearances: There are two other snowy links in Wile's career: Winter Blunderland (2017), and a vintage AD with Shamu for Green Cross, where Wile somehow shares the stage with a killer whale to promote winter safety.
Bugs Bunny's Thanksgiving Diet
Release date: 1979-11-15
Plot: Dietitian Bugs, sporting a professional lab coat, helps his fellow Looney patients work through their food-related issues in time for Thanksgiving. During his sessions, he screens clips from classic cartoons as therapeutic case studies, naturally, all delivered with his usual sly charm and wink-at-the-camera antics.
Name and role: A memorable patients is Millicent, the Slobovian rabbit, who's deeply concerned about her weight. Bugs gently nudges her toward the idea that her overactive appetite might stem from emotional hunger: a lack of love and affection in her life, more than a craving for carrot cake.
Trivia and other appearances: The short includes footage from no fewer than eleven classic cartoons, among them Rabbit Every Monday, Birds Anonymous, Canned Feud, Guided Muscle, and Bedevilled Rabbit. As for Millicent, you can catch her original appearance in Rabbit Romeo (1957), and her long-awaited comeback in The Magnificent Millicent (2018) from the series Wabbit.
Release date: 1979-11-15
Plot: Dietitian Bugs, sporting a professional lab coat, helps his fellow Looney patients work through their food-related issues in time for Thanksgiving. During his sessions, he screens clips from classic cartoons as therapeutic case studies, naturally, all delivered with his usual sly charm and wink-at-the-camera antics.
Name and role: A memorable patients is Millicent, the Slobovian rabbit, who's deeply concerned about her weight. Bugs gently nudges her toward the idea that her overactive appetite might stem from emotional hunger: a lack of love and affection in her life, more than a craving for carrot cake.
Trivia and other appearances: The short includes footage from no fewer than eleven classic cartoons, among them Rabbit Every Monday, Birds Anonymous, Canned Feud, Guided Muscle, and Bedevilled Rabbit. As for Millicent, you can catch her original appearance in Rabbit Romeo (1957), and her long-awaited comeback in The Magnificent Millicent (2018) from the series Wabbit.