Hare Splitter

Hare Splitter is a 1948 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies animated short directed by Friz Freleng. The title is a play on "hair splitting", or focusing too much on fine details, reflecting how Bugs (a "hare") tries to "split up" Casbah and Daisy so Bugs can date her himself.

Plot

Bugs Bunny and his next door neighbor, Casbah, are preparing to go on a date with Daisy, but a fight for Daisy begins as soon as Casbah and Bugs exit their rabbit holes. Bugs and Casbah both leave their holes with flowers for Daisy. Seeing each other's gifts, they try to outdo each other with bigger and better gifts. Bugs finally throws an anvil on Casbah’s head to get rid of him.

When Bugs arrives at Daisy’s home, he finds a note on her door saying she went shopping and will be back shortly (The fact that Daisy lives in a house instead of a rabbit hole like Bugs or Casbah is an oddity that goes unremarked upon.). Bugs sees Casbah coming and dresses up as Daisy. He lures Casbah over to the porch swing and starts flirting with him. When Casbah isn’t looking, Bugs hits him over the head, puts a mouse trap down, and gives him an explosive carrot.

In addition to tricking Casbah on the swing, Bugs pretends to kiss Casbah by using a plunger and hitting him on the head. He continues tricking Casbah by painting a bomb to look like Daisy.

Casbah is so excited by explosion of the bomb, he accidentally runs into the house. Once again, Bugs tries to trick Casbah by pretending to be Mr. Daniel Cupid and shooting him with an arrow. Casbah becomes enraged and finally sees through Bugs' disguise ("You can't fool me no more! I KNOW who you are! You're that screwy rabbit!" he shouts, clearly not realizing this description applies just as well to himself). Bugs tries to get Casbah out of hitting him by donning a pair of glasses ("You wouldn't hit a guy with glasses, would ya?"), but Casbah still punches him in the face, breaking the glasses and making Bugs realize he's angered Casbah ("Ya know? I believe he would"). Casbah then chases Bugs as he is now on the warpath against Bugs, who manages to escape into Daisy's house and slam the door on Casbah's face.

Fortunately for Bugs, he sees Daisy coming home and runs around the side of the house. Casbah sees Daisy coming up the porch and thinks it is again Bugs dressed up as her. When Daisy enters the house, Casbah hits her upside the head with a vase. Off-screen, Daisy angrily proceeds to beat up Casbah, literally breaking vases over his head and throws them at Casbah, chasing him out of the house in the process.

The cartoon ends with Bugs showering Daisy with compliments and kissing Daisy after she has eaten an explosive carrot. Both Bugs and Daisy think the explosive effect the carrot lends to the kiss is due to the other's romantic capabilities ("What a man!"/ "What a woman"), and they hop wildly and enthusiastically kiss again.

External links

• Hare Splitter on the IMDB

References