Rabbit of Seville

Rabbit of Seville is a 1950 Looney Tunes short directed by Charles M. Jones.
== Plot ==
People fill a theater to see The Barber of Seville. In back of the theater, Bugs is chased by Elmer and runs through an open back door. Elmer, now behind the curtain, doesn't see it rise when Bugs raises it. The conductor, after a brief confused look at his watch, shrugs and then starts the orchestra, which causes Elmer to turn wide-eyed towards the audience. Bugs then steps out from behind a stage door, dressed as a barber and ropes Elmer into getting a shave, rendering him "nice and clean, although [his] face looks like it might have gone though a machine".
After recovering, Elmer starts the chase again, "Oh, Wait till I get that wabbit," but is stopped by Bugs dressed as a temptress singing, "Oh, what would you want with a rabbit? Can't you see that I'm much sweeter? I'm your little senioriter. You're my type of guy, let me straighten your tie, and I will dance for you." He then ties the barrels of Elmer's shotgun into a bowtie and snips off Elmer's pants suspender buttons, while dancing around him. After being thoroughly embarrassed when his pants fall down, Elmer sees through Bugs' disguise, he tries shooting him, but is blown back into the barber's chair. Bugs has another go with Elmer's scalp, beginning with a scalp massage with his hands and feet, turning his head into a fruit salad bowl complete with cherry on top. Enraged, Elmer chases Bugs again, but Bugs plays a snake charmer to get an electric shaver to chase Elmer. Elmer disables the shaver with a shotgun blast and chases Bugs back to the barber's chairs. Bugs and Elmer raise their chairs to dizzying heights, and Bugs cuts loose a stage sandbag which bonks Elmer, causing Elmer to wander around in a daze until he's back in Bugs' barber chair.
Before Bugs' third go-round with Elmer's scalp, he gives one of his feet a pedicure with a can opener, hedge clippers, file and red paint. This is followed by growing a beard on Elmer's face and shaving it with a miniature mower, and finally beauty clay for the face which Bugs handles like cement. Then it's back to the scalp as Bugs massages it with hair tonic first, then adds "Figaro Fertilizer", causing hair to grow from Elmer's head which sprouts into flowers. A short 'arms chase' ensues as a result where Bugs and Elmer chase each other off stage with bigger weapons. First, Elmer chases Bugs with an ax, then Bugs chases Elmer with a bigger ax, Elmer chases Bugs with a pistol, Bugs chases Elmer with a rifle, Elmer chases Bugs with a cannon, Bugs chases Elmer with a larger cannon resembling a pickle, Elmer chases Bugs with an incredibly long cannon. Finally, Bugs ends the chase by offering flowers, box of chocolates and a engagement ring to Elmer, who quickly ducks offstage and returns as the blushing bride, happily wanting Bugs to marry him. The tune then briefly switches to the "Wedding March" by Mendelssohn as the couple marries, before finishing with Bugs carrying his 'beautiful bride' up a long flight of stairs, through a false doorway opening up onto thin air, and drops Fudd down into a wedding cake labeled "The Marriage of Figaro". Bugs then smirks, munches on a carrot and says, "Eh... NEXT!"
== Availability ==
Lt vs8 uk.jpg|(1984) VHS The Looney Tunes Video Show Volume 8
Lt salute mb.jpg|(1985) VHS A Salute to Mel Blanc
Golden Jubilee 24 Karat Collection Elmer.JPG|(1985) VHS Elmer Fudd's Comedy Capers
Bugs Bunny (1990) (UK VHS).jpeg|(1990) VHS Bugs Bunny (1990)
LOONEY TUNES CURTAIN CALLS.jpg|(1993) LaserDisc - Looney Tunes: Curtain Calls: Classic Music and Show Business Cartoons
Bumper01.jpg|(1994) VHS Special Bumper Collection (Vol. 1)
LTSPB Vol. 2.jpg|(1995) VHS Special Bumper Collection (Vol. 2)
Lt collection bugs bunny.jpg|(1996) VHS Bugs Bunny
Lt collection elmer fudd.jpg|(1996) VHS Elmer Fudd
LTCE VOL 5 MUSICAL MASTERPIECES.jpg|(2000) VHS Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 5: Musical Masterpieces
LT Golden Collection 1.jpg|(2003) DVD Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1, Disc One (low pitch; remastered with minor DVNR)
Lt cbobb.jpg|(2003) DVD Looney Tunes Collection Best of Bugs Bunny
The Essential Bugs Bunny.jpg|(2010) DVD The Essential Bugs Bunny, Disc 1
Lt 3sdt.jpg|(2010) DVD 3 Spooky DVD Treats
Bugs Bunny - Wasically Wabbit Front Cover.jpg|(2011) DVD Looney Tunes Super Stars' Bugs Bunny: Wascally Wabbit (Region 4 only)
51LA0AzTVqL. SL500 AA300 .jpg|(2011) Blu-ray Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1, Disc One (low pitch; remastered with DVNR and HD)
Lt bbot bb.jpg|(2011) DVD Bugs Bunny
LTPC VOL 1 DVD.jpg|(2012) DVD Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1, Disc One (low pitch; remastered with DVNR)
Looney Tunes Showcase - Volume 1.jpg|(2012) Blu-ray Looney Tunes Showcase: Volume 1
Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection- Looney Tunes.jpg|(2013) DVD Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Looney Tunes (low pitch)
Lt musical masterpieces.jpg|(2015) DVD Looney Tunes Musical Masterpieces (low pitch)
Lt mtf.jpg|(2016) DVD Music Triple Feature
Looney Tunes Parodies Collection.jpeg|(2020) DVD Looney Tunes: Parodies Collection
Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny Golden Carrot Collection.png|(2020) DVD Looney Tunes Bugs Bunny Golden Carrot Collection, Disc 1
Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection.jpg|(2020) Blu-ray Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection, Disc 2 (remastered with DVNR and HD)
=== Streaming ===
Lt boomerang.jpg|Boomerang App (2017 - ) (low pitch)
lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max (2020 - 2023) (low pitch)
lt max.jpg|Max (2023 - ) (low pitch)
File:Lt itunes.jpg|iTunes ( - ) (restored)
== Censorship ==
* The ABC airing mutes out some of the sound effects of Elmer shooting in the beginning. The shot of Bugs slashing Elmer's face with a razor was also cut by replacing it with a cropped shot of Bugs holding a mirror (which appeared after Elmer got slashed) and grimacing in disgust while the sound of the slashing played as normal. Also cut was the segment where Bugs ties Elmer's gun into a knot. It skips from the shot of Bugs doing a provocative thrust backwards towards the camera to the shot of Elmer being flung back into the barber chair, attempting to suggest some continuity between the two.http://www.intanibase.com/gac/looneytunes/censored-q-r.aspx
== Notes ==
* The Barber of Seville poster that appears at the start of the film features three names: Eduardo Selzeri, Michele Maltese and Carlo Jonzi, which are Italianized versions of the names of the producer (Eddie Selzer), writer (Michael Maltese) and director (Chuck Jones) of the film."Rabbit Of Seville Production Information". bcdb.com, 27 March 2010
* In one shot of the scene where Bugs massages Elmer's head in time to the piano melody, his hands are drawn with five digits instead of the usual four to match the hand of a piano player.
* Despite playing such a major role, Elmer only has one line of dialogue.
* The short was re-released 18 January 1969 as a Blue Ribbon short, but the credits and original target rings were never altered or cut off. Only the production code was changed.
* This short was used in the TV Special Bugs Bunny's Overtures to Disaster.
* George Daugherty made use of the short for his special concerts Bugs Bunny on Broadway and Bugs Bunny at the Symphony.
* This short was briefly shown on the TV sets in the penthouse of Gotham Royal Hotel in the video game Batman: Arkham Origins, specifically during Joker's confrontation with Batman when about to detonate the Woolworth building's top. Music from the episode and the opera it was largely based on was also playing in the background during this scene.
* The chase is punctuated with gags and accompanied by musical arrangements by Carl W. Stalling, focusing on Rossini's overture to The Barber of Seville.
* In 1994 it was voted #12 of the 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field.https://mubi.com/lists/the-50-greatest-cartoons-as-selected-by-1000-animation-professionals
* Initially, this short played in PAL audio when shown on Cartoon Network and Boomerang. Newer airings (which now include MeTV) came from the Golden Collection release (see below).
* The audio on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 1 DVD incorrectly has the soundtrack at a lower pitch than usual. This is fixed on The Essential Bugs Bunny, Looney Tunes Showcase: Volume 1, and Looney Tunes Parodies Collection, but not on the Platinum Collection or Bugs Bunny 80th Anniversary Collection, presumably due to the latter two home media releases reusing the same low-pitched audio commentary as for Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 1 DVD release, something which The Essential Bugs Bunny and Looney Tunes Parodies Collection DVD releases did not have. Other home video releases, including Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Looney Tunes and Looney Tunes Musical Masterpieces, did not have audio commentaries either, but still use the low-pitched version.
* The writing on the wedding cake that Elmer fell into was a shoutout to the opera created by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart called The Marriage of Figaro.
== Gallery ==
RabbitofSevilleCredits1.png
RabbitofSevilleCredits2.png
Bugsbunny barber.png
RabbitOfSeville.jpg
File:Rabbit of Seville (1950) - Summer Opera.jpg
File:Rabbit of Seville (1950) - Summer Hunting.jpg
44606559 570887156676338 1051390436234493952 n.jpg|Lobby card
=== TV Title Cards ===
Screenshot 2020-12-27 at 7.22.22 PM.png|The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Show (Final Season)
== References ==
== Further reading ==
* Lawrence Van Gelder, With That Wascally Wabbit, That's Not All, Folks, NY Times, October 22, 1999
* Richard Freedman, What's Opera, Doc?, Adante Magazine, March 2002
== External links ==
* Rabbit of Seville on the SFX Resource Wiki
ru:Севильский кролик
Category:1950
Category:Cartoons directed by Chuck Jones
Category:Bugs Bunny Cartoons
Category:Elmer Fudd Cartoons
Category:Hollywood in Cartoons
Category:Shorts
Category:Blue Ribbon reissues
Category:Looney Tunes Shorts
Category:Bugs Bunny Chuck Jones
Category:Cartoons written by Michael Maltese
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Robert Gribbroek
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 characters voiced by Arthur Q. Bryan
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons animated by Emery Hawkins
Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer
Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn
Category:Re-released cartoons whose original titles are known to exist