A Witch's Tangled Hare
Encyclopedia
A Witch’s Tangled Hare is a 1959 Warner Bros.
Looney Tunes
theatrical cartoon short directed by Abe Levitow
. In this cartoon Mel Blanc
plays voice roles for Bugs Bunny
, while June Foray
voices Witch Hazel
. The cartoon makes many references to various plays by William Shakespeare
(Hamlet
, Macbeth
, Romeo and Juliet
, and As You Like It
).
, trying to write and coming across a castle with a mailbox with "Macbeth" written on it. At this he begins to write a story based on this title. He hears the loud screeching laugh of Witch Hazel and watches her stir her cauldron
. The witch has Bugs Bunny trapped, sleeping on a platter and wakes him up. He believes the cauldron to be a bath and readily climbs in, only realising his mistake after reading her open recipe book. He quickly jumps out of the boiling cauldron and runs away from Witch Hazel, towards the castle, when she tries to attack him with a meat cleaver
. Witch Hazel pursues Bugs Bunny on her flying broomstick. We then see the poet again trying to write after Bugs and the witch have departed.
At the castle, the chase continues and as Bugs Bunny acts as Romeo
to try and trick Witch Hazel, who starts to quote Juliet
's lines from the play but soon the two improvise. Witch Hazel jumps out of castle window as Bugs pretends that he will catch her and rapidly runs off.
As Bugs runs out from the castle he runs into the poet who is crying because he will never be a writer. Bugs finds out that he is not William Shakespeare, but is actually called Sam Crubish. The witch hears this and it appears that the two know each other but haven't seen each other in a while because Crubish had the wrong apartment number (2B). The poet and Witch Hazel leave talking about who made the mistake of saying "2B" and the cartoon closes with Bugs Bunny quoting the famous line from Hamlet
- "To be, or not to be
".
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
theatrical cartoon short directed by Abe Levitow
Abe Levitow
Abraham "Abe" Levitow was an American animator who worked at Warner Bros. Cartoons, UPA and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer ....
. In this cartoon Mel Blanc
Mel Blanc
Melvin Jerome "Mel" Blanc was an American voice actor and comedian. Although he began his nearly six-decade-long career performing in radio commercials, Blanc is best remembered for his work with Warner Bros...
plays voice roles for Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
, while June Foray
June Foray
June Foray is an American voice actress, best known as the voice of many animated characters...
voices Witch Hazel
Witch Hazel (Looney Tunes)
Witch Hazel is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. Disney, MGM, Famous Studios, and the Little Lulu comic book also had characters named Witch Hazel, and Rembrandt Films had one named Hazel Witch. This article is chiefly concerned...
. The cartoon makes many references to various plays by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
(Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
, Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
, Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
, and As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
).
Plot
The cartoon opens with the poet, who looks similar to William ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, trying to write and coming across a castle with a mailbox with "Macbeth" written on it. At this he begins to write a story based on this title. He hears the loud screeching laugh of Witch Hazel and watches her stir her cauldron
Cauldron
A cauldron or caldron is a large metal pot for cooking and/or boiling over an open fire, with a large mouth and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger.- Etymology :...
. The witch has Bugs Bunny trapped, sleeping on a platter and wakes him up. He believes the cauldron to be a bath and readily climbs in, only realising his mistake after reading her open recipe book. He quickly jumps out of the boiling cauldron and runs away from Witch Hazel, towards the castle, when she tries to attack him with a meat cleaver
Cleaver (knife)
A cleaver is a large knife that varies in its shape but usually resembles a rectangular-bladed hatchet. It is used mostly for hacking through bones as a kitchen knife or butcher knife, and can also be used for crushing via its broad side, typically garlic....
. Witch Hazel pursues Bugs Bunny on her flying broomstick. We then see the poet again trying to write after Bugs and the witch have departed.
At the castle, the chase continues and as Bugs Bunny acts as Romeo
Romeo Montague
Romeo is one of the fictional protagonists in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Romeo is the son of old Montague and his wife, who secretly loves and marries Juliet, a member of the rival House of Capulet...
to try and trick Witch Hazel, who starts to quote Juliet
Juliet Capulet
Juliet is one of the title characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, the other being Romeo. She is the daughter of old Capulet, head of the house of Capulet. The story has a long history that precedes Shakespeare himself....
's lines from the play but soon the two improvise. Witch Hazel jumps out of castle window as Bugs pretends that he will catch her and rapidly runs off.
As Bugs runs out from the castle he runs into the poet who is crying because he will never be a writer. Bugs finds out that he is not William Shakespeare, but is actually called Sam Crubish. The witch hears this and it appears that the two know each other but haven't seen each other in a while because Crubish had the wrong apartment number (2B). The poet and Witch Hazel leave talking about who made the mistake of saying "2B" and the cartoon closes with Bugs Bunny quoting the famous line from Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
- "To be, or not to be
To be, or not to be
"To be, or not to be" is the opening phrase of a soliloquy from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet , Act III, Scene 1. It is the best-known quotation from the play and probably the most famous in world literature but there is disagreement on its meaning, as there is of the whole speech.- Text :This...
".