Top Ten Looney Tunes from the Late 1950s

…………………………………………………

Top Ten Looney Tunes from the Late 1950s

The second half of the 1950s was a strong period for Merry Melodies, but also Looney Tunes. There were so many instantly iconic Looney Tunes shorts released this year that incorporated many different classic Warner Bros. characters. Here are ten best cartoons from this era with some honorable mentions.

10. Rabbit Rampage

Although not as iconic as ‘Duck Amuck’, a movie that this flick acts as a sequel to, Rabbit Rampage is still pretty great and deserving of the tenth spot on this list. Bugs Bunny is this time in the role that previously belonged to Daffy Duck while Elmer Fudd is the painter himself. That character choice really worked and the result is a very fun, but also funny movie with the highlights being all the amusing references to Warner Bros.

9. Pre-Hysterical Hare

This short is a rare Looney Tunes entry that was set in prehistoric times. That led to a lot of colorful animation and interesting gags. Elmer Fudd is great here. The rifle gag was the most memorable part of this very entertaining movie that benefits from a mostly excellent use of its location and time period. Also, Bugs as a saber-toothed rabbit was absolutely hilarious to witness.

8. Greedy for Tweety

Tweety, Hector and Sylvester chase each other on the streets and end up having an accident. While in the hospital and cared for by Granny, the dog and the cat start their never-ending fight, which mostly involves kicking and detonating their hurt leg. Although Tweety did not have enough agency in this story, Hector was a great foil for Sylvester, who was himself terrific. The hospital setting did wonders to differentiate this short from many others.

7. Guided Muscle

This cartoon is one of the best Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote films as most of the gags in it worked effortlessly. The Latin lettering was here done in the best, funniest way while the ending was just fantastic. The highlight, though, is the grease sequence that saw the coyote at his most desperate and futile. So many gags here were incredibly well executed, making this short’s inclusion on the list very much warranted.

6. Red Riding Hoodwinked

While there have been many Little Red Riding Hood parodies within the Warner Bros. animated oeuvre, Red Riding Hoodwinked is different for managing to fuse so effortlessly these beloved characters with the classic fairy tale elements. The wolf is great and Sylvester is so much fun, but the actual MVP here proved to be Granny herself in a changed design and personality, but done for the better. She was hilarious throughout this short.

5. Gonzales’ Tamales

The mice in the village are angered that Speedy Gonzales takes all the girls for himself, so they bring Sylvester the cat to get rid of him. Of course, he fails spectacularly through a series of amusing gags. The pepper gag was great while the Superman references were instantly memorable and so funny. The use of the word gringo was also hysterical. Consequently, Gonzales Tamales’ is one of the best Speedy Gonzales shorts undoubtedly.

4. Baton Bunny

In Baton Bunny, Bugs tries to conduct an orchestra, but one annoying fly frustrates him to no end. This is one of those concerto Bugs Bunny movies in the vein of ‘A Corny Concerto’ and ‘Rhapsody Rabbit’. I don’t know why it received less attention than the aforementioned flicks when in actuality it is much stronger than both. The movie is elegantly executed in the classical music accompanying gorgeous animation. Seeing Bugs in silent mode was also very interesting.

3. All Fowled Up

The third place goes to a personal favorite of mine. All Fowled Up is a very nostalgic cartoon that I remember watching countless time as a kid. And the good news is that it still holds up! It is a fantastic Foghorn Leghorn short that features his iconic rivalry with Barnyard Dawg. The two are terrific here. The standout is Henery Hawk himself. Just listening to his many hilarious lines of dialogue spoken with so much determination makes me laugh every single time.

2. Knighty Knight Bugs

Bugs is the court jester of King Arthur and he must recover a singing sword from Yosemite Sam and his fire-breathing, sneezing dragon. Bugs is superb here, Sam is very funny in his exceeding incompetence and the dragon is another interesting addition. Knighty Knight Bugs is a fantastic period piece with so much energy in its execution and vibrancy in its animation and score. It’s the only Oscar-winning cartoon on this list and the second best.

1. Show Biz Bugs

There have been films about the rivalry between Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny before, but this one is among the best of this bunch. They are theater stars in this cartoon, but Bugs receives much more attention, so it is up to Daffy to resort to drastic measures in order to impress the crowd. The animation is gorgeous, the movie is very well paced and structured, and the final moment was both brutal and a great case of black comedy for the series. This was the beginning of Daffy’s switched personality from just loony to greedy and obsessed. The incredibly witty dialogue alone makes Show Biz Bug’s number one placement highly deserved.

Honorable Mentions:

Broom-Stick Bunny – Although Bugs himself is disposable here, it is Witch Hazel who steals the show with so many great lines. The parodying of Snow White also worked out great here.

Steal Wool – Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog have rarely been better in this dynamic, well executed and all-around hilarious cartoon.

A Witch’s Tangled Hare – The mixing of Shakespeare and Witch Hazel made this particular entry quite authentic. It is also very funny at times due to excellent dialogue.

Roman Legion-Hare – Yosemite Sam steals the show from Bugs Bunny in this superbly crafted, well animated and wonderful period piece.

Ready, Set, Zoom! – Although uneven, this Road Runner short is still very strong due to an excellent rocket gag and an outstanding dynamite sequence that was pure cartoon perfection.