Cartoon a Day: Hare Trigger

Hare Trigger
1945
Directed by Friz Freleng (as I. Freleng)
Available on: Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 6

Yesterday we took a look at the first of the Superman series of cartoons, so I decided to continue on that course this week and look at other first appearances of famous characters. Let's start with one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters, Yosemite Sam in his first appearance, "Hare Trigger."

In this short, Sam is a train robber who chooses to rob a train that happens to have Bugs Bunny hanging out in the mail car. Of course, that turns out to be the worst choice he could've made.

It's always a little strange to see the debut of a famous character because they are never quite the characters we've come to know and love when they first appear. It takes times for characters to develop. One of the things that is so great about Yosemite Sam is that he is a character of pure rage, but he's not quite there yet in this cartoon.

There are plenty of great moments in this short, the scene where Bugs fills in for Sam's hat is one great scene in particular, but Sam's reactions just aren't quite what we think they should be yet. This is a great cartoon and a wonderful introduction for Sam, but I love it when Sam is just so angry that his little body shakes so much he levitates, I love how he gets so steamed that he creates his own vocabulary...the animators and writers hadn't quite hit on those things yet in "Hare Trigger."