The Slap-Hoppy Mouse

The Slap-Hoppy Mouse is a 1956 Merrie Melodies short directed by Robert McKimson. 
== Plot ==
Junior asks his father a question about if their soft-living inside their lavish mansion has ruined their "once-straight mouser" for hunting mice. Sylvester tells his son that they have everything, but is proven otherwise when Junior tells him that the other cats are calling him a softie. In order to prove to his son that he is still just as confident in hunting mice, Sylvester takes his son out for a mouse hunting trip to the abandoned Explorer's Club, which is infested with mice.
Nearby, a train passes by the abandoned mansion, in which a crate carrying Hippety Hopper which was intended to be sent to the circus is accidentally dropped off to the basement of the mansion. Meanwhile, Sylvester spots a mouse hole and tries to show his son that he can catch the mouse. However, he misses when he dives and crashes into the basement. He spots Hippety, and now scared out of his mind, runs out of the basement to tell his son about the "giant mouse". Junior believes him when he sees Hippety right next to him. Sylvester tries to run home, but Junior tells him that cats aren't supposed to be afraid of mice, and Sylvester thinks Junior is right.
Sylvester attempts to catch Hippety, but the playful kangaroo repeatedly kicks the cat with his feet. Sylvester tries to use a shield to protect himself, but he is kicked through a wall. Sylvester then resorts to loading a rifle, which prematurely fires every time when he tries to pack down the contents. On his third try, Sylvester finds the small mouse he tried to catch earlier attempting to pull the trigger, but Sylvester is distracted to point out the mouse, causing him to get blasted to the top of the mansion. Sylvester then tries to trap Hippety with iron glue, but the kangaroo kicks him onto his trap, leaving him stuck. Junior is ashamed and saws off the wooden floor with his father and carries him back home.
== Availability ==
LTCE VOL 1 ALL-STARS.jpg|(1999) VHS Looney Tunes: The Collectors Edition Volume 1, All Stars
LooneyTunesSuperStars SylvesterAndHippetyHopper.jpg|(2013) DVD Looney Tunes Super Stars' Sylvester & Hippety Hopper: Marsupial Mayhem
=== Streaming ===
lt hbo max.jpg|HBO Max (2020 - 2022)
== Censorship ==
* On ABC, the sequence in which Sylvester repeatedly attempts to load a rifle "frontier-style" (and gets blasted) was cut. The cheater cartoon "Freudy Cat" also cut the same scene on the same channel.
== Notes ==
* This is the first Merrie Melodies short to feature the 1956-1957 orange Color Rings with green background at the beginning, even though it still uses the 1955-1956 green rings with red background at the end. The orange rings with green background can also be seen in the openings on numerous Blue Ribbon re-releases of shorts from 1949, but either with the 1946-1955 version of the Looney Tunes theme, or the 1945-1955 version of the Merrie Melodies theme. Starting with these new reissues, the original credits and original ending cards are always kept, regardless of which series the cartoon is originally in, until the 1959–64 season, when only select cartoons had their ending cards kept.
* The working title was "Of Mice and Menace".
== Gallery ==
TheSlapHoppyMouseCredits1.png
TheSlapHoppyMouseCredits2.png
TheSlapHoppyMouseLeadSheet1.jpg|Animator draft
TheSlapHoppyMouseLeadSheet2.jpg|Animator draft
TheSlapHoppyMouseLeadSheet3.jpg|Animator draft
TheSlapHoppyMouseProductionBackground&CelsSetUp1.jpg|Production background & cels
TheSlapHoppyMouseProductionBackground&CelsSetUp2.jpg|Production background & cels
TheSlapHoppyMouseProductionBackground&CelsSetUp3.jpg|Production background & cels
TheSlapHoppyMouseProductionCels.jpg|Production cels
TheSlapHoppyMouseProductionCel.jpg|Production cel
SlapHoppyMouseColorGuide.jpg|Color guide
Category:Cartoons directed by Robert McKimson
Category:Shorts
Category:Sylvester Cartoons
Category:Sylvester Junior Cartoons
Category:Hippety Hopper Cartoons
Category:Merrie Melodies Shorts
Category:1956
Category:Cartoons written by Tedd Pierce
Category:Cartoons animated by Ted Bonnicksen
Category:Cartoons animated by George Grandpré
Category:Cartoons animated by Keith Darling
Category:Cartoons with layouts by Robert Gribbroek
Category:Cartoons with backgrounds by Richard H. Thomas
Category:Cartoons with music by Carl W. Stalling
Category:Cartoons with film editing by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with sound effects edited by Treg Brown
Category:Cartoons with orchestrations by Milt Franklyn
Category:Cartoons with characters voiced by Mel Blanc
Category:Cartoons produced by Eddie Selzer