A Wild Hare

A Wild Hare (re-released as: The Wild Hare) is a 1940 animated cartoon with the fourth appearance of Elmer Fudd and the first appearance of official Bugs Bunny.

Plot
The basic plot of A Wild Hare which centers on Elmer Fudd's hapless pursuit of the much smarter Bugs would serve as a template for many subsequent cartoons.

Elmer first approaches one of Bugs' hole puts down a carrot and hides behind the tree. Bugs' arm reaches out of the hole feels around and snatches the carrot. He reaches out again and finds the business end of Elmer's shotgun. His arm quickly pops back into the hole before returning to drop the eaten stub of Elmer's carrot before apologetically caressing the end of the barrel. Elmer shoves his gun into Bugs' hole with a tug of war resulting in a barrel being bent into a pretzel.

Elmer frantically digs into the hole while Bugs emerges from a nearby hole with a carrot in his mouth. He lifts Fudd's hat and raps the top of his head until Elmer notices then chews his carrot a bit before delivering his definitive line What's up Doc.

Elmer explains that he's hunting wabbits and Bugs chews his carrot while asking a what a wabbit is. Bugs teases Elmer by displaying every aspect of Fudd's rabbit description until Elmer begins sucpecting that Bugs is a bunny.

Bugs approaches Elmer and confides Don't spread this around but uh confindentially... then yells I am a rabbit! before hiding behind a tree. Bugs sneaks up behind Elmer covers his eyes and asks Guess who.

Elmer guesses the names of several screen beauties whose names exploited his accent (such as Hedy Lamarr and Olivia de Havilland) before asking Say you wouldn't be that scwewy wabbit would you.

Bugs responds Hmm..... Could be! kisses Elmer and dives into a hole. Elmer sticks his head into a hole and gets another kiss from Bugs so wet that Elmer needs to wipe his mouth for a bit before deciding to set a trap. Bugs puts a skunk in the trap and Elmer assumes that he's caught the rabbit. Fudd blindly grabs the skunk and carries it over to the watching Bugs to brag to the bunny about how he outsmarted him. As Elmer comprehends the situation Bugs gives him a smooch on the nose.

Bugs then offers to let Elmer have a free shot for him. After Elmer fires Bugs fakes an elaborate death scene and plays dead leaving Elmer sobbing (despite the the fact that killing Bugs was presumably in his intention all along). Bugs then sneaks up behind the desparing Fudd kicks him in his rear shoves a cigar into his mouth and tiptoes away ballet-style.

Finally the frustrated Elmer driven to distraction by the rabbit's antics walks away sobbing about wabbits cawwots guns etc. Bugs asides to audience Can ya imagine anybody acting like that. Ya know I think the poor guy's screwy! Bugs then begins to play his carrot like a fife playing the tune The Girl I Left Behind Me and marches with one stiff leg towards his rabbit hole as with the fifer in the painting The Spirit of 76.