Tortoise Beats Hare
Tortoise Beats Hare is a 1941 Merrie Melodies animated short supervised and laid out by Tex Avery (solely supervisal credited as "Fred A-Very" and read by Bugs Bunny).[1] It was released on March 15, 1941.[2] The short, loosely based on the Aesopian fable The Tortoise and the Hare, stars Bugs Bunny and, in his first appearance, Cecil Turtle.
| Tortoise Beats Hare | |
|---|---|
 Lobby Card | |
| Directed by | Supervision: Fred Avery (read by Bugs Bunny) |
| Produced by | Leon Schlesinger |
| Story by | Dave Monahan (read by Bugs Bunny) |
| Starring | Mel Blanc (uncredited) |
| Music by | Musical direction: Carl W. Stalling (read by Bugs Bunny) Orchestra: Milt Franklyn (uncredited) |
| Animation by | Character animation: Charles and Robert McKimson (listed and credited as "Charles McKimson" and read by Bugs Bunny on the screen and listed as "Robert McKimson" and uncredited) Rod Scribner (uncredited) Virgil Ross (uncredited) Sid Sutherland (uncredited) Effects animation: A.C. Gamer (uncredited) |
| Layouts by | Character and background layout: Tex Avery (uncredited) Character design: Bob Givens (uncredited) |
| Backgrounds by | Background paint: John Didrik Johnsen (uncredited) |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release date | March 15, 1941 |
Running time | 7:55 |
| Language | English |
Plot
As the opening credits appear, Bugs Bunny comes on the screen while eating an obligatory carrot and absent-mindedly begins reading them, grossly mispronouncing all of them in the process (e.g. /əˈvɛrɪ/ for "Avery" over the correct /ˈeɪvərɪ/) except for the word "story," the first names of Dave Monahan and Fred Avery, and all of Carl W. Stalling's name. As he finishes, he sees the name of the cartoon and becomes exasperated, spitting out his mouthful of the carrot he was eating. After a brief tirade involving ripping apart the opening credits, he finds Cecil Turtle and bets him ten dollars he can win against him in a race. Cecil accepts and, ringing up his cousins on a telephone, devises a scheme in which they will double as him at significant points along the track while he himself crosses the finish line ahead of Bugs and claims the money. After Bugs realizes he may have been tricked the entire time, Cecil and his cousins appear behind him, each with a dollar in hand, and kiss him.
See also
Availability
- DVD - Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2, Disc One
- Blu-ray/DVD - Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc Two
References
- Beck, Jerry; Friedwald, Will (1989). Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to the Warner Bros. Cartoons. Henry Holt and Co. p. 114. ISBN 0-8050-0894-2.
- Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 60–61. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
External links
| Preceded by Elmer's Pet Rabbit |
Bugs Bunny Cartoons 1941 |
Succeeded by Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt |