Rabbit Transit

Rabbit Transit is a 1947 Looney Tunes short directed by I. Freleng.
== Title ==
The title is a play on the phrase "rapid transit."
== Plot ==
While relaxing in a steam bath, Bugs reads about the original fable and becomes incensed at the idea of a turtle outrunning a rabbit. Cecil, also in the steam bath, claims that he could outrun Bugs, prompting Bugs to challenge him to a race. This time, Bugs and Cecil agree to no cheating. Cecil, however, quickly reveals that his shell is now rocket propelled, allowing him to go a surprising combination between fast and slow. Enraged by Cecil's lack of commitment to a fair challenge, Bugs speeds up as best as he can until he receives a telegram from his rival. When he reads it, the greeting card says, "At this joyous time of year, I wish you loads of Xmas cheer" signed by Cecil. Bugs pauses for a second to realize how neighborly Cecil is and decides to do something to return the favor. So he rushes over to the post office.
At the beach, Cecil is seen relaxing with his shell off. He receives a present from the delivery man. When he opens it, Bugs pops out of the gift box and gives Cecil a kiss on the lips before resuming the race. Annoyed, Cecil puts his shell back on and continues racing against Bugs while claiming that he doesn't like that character at all. Bugs manages to steal and wear Cecil's rocket-propelled carapace. Cecil took notice of this and runs after his rival.
Bugs does his best to steal, dismantle, and destroy the device, but all to little effect. Cecil then tricked Bugs into repairing his shell before zooming off. Bugs roasts a hot dog over the afterburners of the exhaust pipes, and then pours into Cecil's shell to slow the turtle down. Cecil quickly scoops all the water out of his shell and continues racing against the rabbit. Bugs paints a short tunnel on a tree to try and trick Cecil into running into it. But when Cecil actually passed through it, Bugs tries to do the same only to knock himself out cold. Then the hallucination of himself wakes him up and Bugs continues racing against the turtle. Cecil slows down as soon as he saw Bugs catching up at high speed. Bugs tops Cecil and crosses the finish line first. Nevertheless, it is Cecil who has the last laugh when he rooks the rabbit into confessing to "doing a hundred easy" in a thirty-miles-per-hour zone. Bugs is taken away by the police. Cecil says, "Ain't I a...um...stinker?"
== Availability ==
Cartoon Moviestars 1.jpg|(1988) VHS Cartoon Moviestars: Bugs!
LT Laserdisc 1.jpg|(1988) LaserDisc Cartoon Moviestars: Bugs! and Elmer!
Bugs Bunny Collection VHS 6.jpg|(1991) VHS Bugs Bunny Collection: Bugs Bunny's Zaniest Toons
Golden Age LT Vol 1.jpg|(1991) LaserDisc The Golden Age of Looney Tunes, Vol. 1, Side 10: The Art of Bugs
Lt galt vhs 10.jpg|(1992) VHS The Golden Age of Looney Tunes, Vol. 10: The Art of Bugs
LTCE VOL 9 A LOONEY LIFE.jpg|(2000) VHS Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 9: A Looney Life (1995 Turner dubbed version)
Golden Collection box 2.jpg|(2004) DVD Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2, Disc One
lt cbobb2.jpg|(2005) DVD Looney Tunes Collection Best of Bugs Bunny Volume 2
LTPC VOL 2 Blu Ray.jpg|(2012) Blu-ray Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc 2
LTPC VOL 2 DVD.jpg|(2012) DVD Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 2, Disc 2
LooneyTunesSpotlightVol8-210x300.jpg|(2014) DVD Looney Tunes Spotlight Collection: Volume 8 Disc 1
Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny Golden Carrot Collection.png|(2020) DVD Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny Golden Carrot Collection Disc 2
Manilovebd.jpg|(2024) Blu-ray The Man I Love
=== Streaming ===
Lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max (2020 - 2023)
Lt max.jpg|Max (2023 - )
== Goofs ==
* When Bugs agrees with Cecil to not cheat while saying "Okay, mac. It ain't that I don't trust you, BUT-" before tipping Cecil upside-down, his mouth does not move properly in sync to what he is saying.
* Bugs' front and back views do not match up when he smashes into the tree, as when Bugs smashes into the tree, he hits it face first. Yet when he slides to the ground, his back is facing the tree instead of his front.
== Notes ==
* The painted tunnel gag in this cartoon would become a recurring gag by Chuck Jones in his Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote shorts, starting two years later in 1949.
* Cecil Turtle and Bugs Bunny had previously raced each other in "Tortoise Beats Hare" (1941) and "Tortoise Wins by a Hare" (1943). This cartoon was their final encounter. Unlike "Tortoise Wins by a Hare", this cartoon presumes that Bugs and Cecil have never met before.
* This is the second time Cecil is seen without his shell, the first time being in "Tortoise Beats Hare". Unlike that cartoon, where Cecil is seen wearing underwear underneath his shell, here Cecil is seen wearing a bathing suit underneath his shell.
== Gallery ==
496-Credits1.png
496-Credits2.png
Rabbit Transit (1947) - Challenge.jpg
A2bf68280eada08ac15c125fc05db381.jpg|Lobby card
496-PC1.png|Production cel
Transit layout.jpg|Layout drawing
== References ==
Category:Bugs Bunny Cartoons
Category:Cecil Turtle Cartoons
Category:Shorts
Category:1947
Category:Looney Tunes Shorts
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons directed by Friz Freleng
Category:Cartoons written by Michael Maltese
Category:Cartoons written by Tedd Pierce
Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Hawley Pratt
Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Philip DeGuard
Category:Cartoons with film editing by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with sound effects edited by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn
Category:Cartoons in a.a.p. package