Writer Warren Foster and director Bob McKimson decided it would be funny to use Updyke’s attitude and catchphrases, and put them—and Backus’ voice—into a genie in the Bugs Bunny cartoon A-Lad-In His Lamp (released in 1948).
The early McKimson cartoons are filled with arm-waving and varied expressions. This cartoon doesn’t disappoint. Bugs is debating to himself about what wish he wants the genie to grant him. The genie keeps interrupting him before even revealing what he wants. Finally, Bugs has made a decision, which is stopped in mid-sentence by the genie saying “Heavens to Gimbels, no!” (This was an Updyke catchphrase). Here are some random frames to show how appealing McKimson’s shorts could be.
“Now cut it out!” yells Bugs. Multiples and floppy tongue.
Whether this is a Manny Gould scene, I don’t know, but Gould loved floppy tongues and he animated on this cartoon. Gould may not have loved Bob McKimson; he was gone by the time this cartoon was released, working for Jerry Fairbanks on “Speaking of Animals” shorts.
The other credited animators are Chuck McKimson, Phil De Lara and John Carey.
This cartoon deserves to be restored for home video.
This is indeed a Gould scene, Yomp. We got a great breakdown of this short from Baxter a while back.
ReplyDeleteThe Jean Blanchard model Bugs--chunky, eyes too small, nose too big, lower lip too prominent--is probably the most disagreeable, as these stills illustrate only too well (Bugs should be too cool to get this angry, regardless of the situation). But that was the tendency with the Warner cartoon stars in the late '40s when UPA decreed animal characters passe.
ReplyDelete"Oh heavens to gimbels, no!"
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my all-time favorites, and I thought Backus's best moment was, "They call me Genie with the light brown hair. Oh, that was a witty one. Yahulda, hulda, hulda, hulda," or something that sounds like that.
ReplyDeleteI also am a McKimson fan. He later said of changes in animation led by Charles M., "Sometimes you make progress in the wrong direction." It seems to me that he and Freleng moved toward Jones's love for subtlety, but it wasn't really in McKimson.
More like "yahida-hida-hida-how!"
DeleteWouldn't it be great to know how Warren Foster spelled it?
DeleteThis is my favorite version of Bugs.
ReplyDeleteHeavens to Gimbels! I also love this. BTW..even Keith Scott didn't mention this, but Backus does the very first two sentences or less of another fairy tale spoof/McKimson unit/Bugs short, soon after, "THE WIND-BLOWN HARE" before Blanc taking over!@
ReplyDelete