"Broom-Stick Bunny" opens with Witch Hazel (June Foray) making a potion. She goes to her magical mirror and asks the mirror who is the ugliest of them all. The mirror (Mel Blanc) informs her that she is the ugliest of them all. This is a point of pride for Witch Hazel, as she worries that she will grow prettier as she gets older. This being Halloween, Bugs Bunny (Mel Blanc) is going trick or treating dressed in a witch costume, complete with a ugly green mask. Bugs goes to Witch Hazel's house and when she answers the door she remarks that "she"is the "...ugliest little thing." This causes concern to Witch Hazel, who rushes to her mirror and asks again who is the ugliest of them all. The mirror informs her that she was the ugliest of them all, but adds that Bugs is far uglier. Witch Hazel then invites Bugs inside for tea, which she spikes with "pretty pills" so that she might regain her status as the ugliest one of them all. Bugs switches the teacups and then removes his mask to drink the tea. Unfortunately for Bugs, Witch Hazel realizes that the last ingredient she needs for her potion is a rabbit's clavicle. She then proceeds to chase Bugs before finally capturing him and tying him up. She is about to kill him with a meat cleaver when Bug's sad look reminds her of her late, lamented pet tarantula, Paul. She breaks down crying. Taking pity on Witch Hazel, Bugs gets free and then brings her one of the cups of tea to cheer her up. Unfortunately for Witch Hazel, it happens to be the tea spiked with pretty pills. Witch Hazel's worst fears then come true, as she is transformed into a beautiful, shapely redhead.
Although she is the most famous character by that name, Warner Bros.' Witch Hazel was not the first animated character named "Witch Hazel." A character named Witch Hazel also appeared in the 1952 Walt Disney animated short "Trick or Treat." In fact, Disney's Witch Hazel was also voiced by June Foray. She was a very different character from Warner Bros.' Witch Hazel, even helping Huey, Dewey, and Louie get treats from their uncle Donald Duck. And while June Foray provided Warner Bros.' Witch Hazel with an American accent, she gave the Disney version a British accent. As to why Warner Bros. did not get into legal trouble with Disney over the name, the phrase"witch hazel" was already being used in commercial products well before "Trick or Treat" (1952), not to mention a character also called Witch Hazel was a recurring character the pages of Little Lulu before Disney's animated short.. Disney then had no real claim on the name.
As mentioned above Warner Bros.' Witch Hazel originated in "Bewitched Bunny" (1954). It was directed by Chuck Jones, with a story by Michael Maltese. Long time Warner Bros. voice actor Bea Benaderet voiced Witch Hazel in that cartoon. As to June Foray, she had previously worked for Warner Bros., voicing Granny in the Sylvester and Tweety short "Red Riding Hoodwinked" (1955) and the Bugs Bunny short "This is the Life?" (1955). She would go onto voice Granny for nearly sixty years.
Both "Red Riding Hoodwinked" and "This is the Life?" were directed by Friz Freleng, so when June Foray's agent contacted her about working on another Warner Bros. short, she had no idea who Chuck Jones was. "Broom-Stick Bunny" was then the first time that Chuck Jones and June Foray ever worked together. While Mel Blanc was in the studio with June Foray when she recorded her part, she actually recorded her voice first as sometimes they would speed Mel Blanc's voice up. For most of the cartoon June Foray used her Witch Hazel voice, but when the tea spiked with pretty pills made Witch Hazel beautiful, she switched to her natural voice. In her commentary on "Broom-Stick Bunny," June Foray stated her belief that Chuck Jones patterned the look of the now beautiful Witch Hazel on her, as the character wore her hair the same way and dressed as June Foray did at the time. Given June Foray was always attractive, it seems quite possible that Chuck Jones did use her as inspiration for the now beautiful Witch Hazel. Like Granny, June Foray voiced Witch Hazel for nearly sixty years.
"Broom-Stick Bunny" was written by Tedd Pierce, who had already written several Warner Bros. animated shorts, as well as Fleischer Studios' feature film Gulliver's Travels (1939). Tedd Pierce not only served as a writer on animated cartoons, but also as a voice actor. He provided voices for various Fleischer shorts, as well as their feature films Gulliver's Travels and Mr. Bug Goes to Town (1941), and several Warner Bros. cartoons as well.
As mentioned above, "Broom-Stick Bunny" marked the first time June Foray and Chuck Jones worked together. They would work together many more times. Beyond the Warner Bros. animated shorts, they also worked on the Tom and Jerry shorts that Chuck Jones made for MGM. She would work on several animated specials directed by Chuck Jones, including the voice of Cindy Lou Who in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas!, as well as voices for such specials as The Pogo Special Birthday Special, Horton Hears a Who!, The Cricket in Times Square, and The White Seal. They also worked together on the TV series Off to See the Wizard and the feature film The Phantom Tollbooth (1970).
"Broom-Stick Bunny" was included in the 1977 television special Bugs Bunny's Howl-oween Special. It was released on VHS in 1984 collection The Looney Tunes Video Show and several more times on various Bugs Bunny collections. It was released on DVD in 2004 as part of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2. It has been since included on several DVD collections, as well as on the Blu-Ray collection Looney Tunes Platinum Collection: Volume 1. Currently it does not appear to be available on streaming (one would think it would be on Max).
"Broom-Stick Bunny" was in many ways a historic animated cartoon. It marked the first time June Foray voiced Witch Hazel, and the first time she and Chuck Jones ever worked together. It marked the second appearance of Witch Hazel, thus further establishing her as one of the cast of Warner Bros. cartoon characters. It also remains a favourite of fans of Warner Bros. cartoons, particularly at Halloween.
2 comments:
There was a Witch Hazel character in the "Little Lulu" comic book series long before any animated versions.
Also, it's Tedd Pierce, not Ted Pearce.
Thanks! I got that corrected.
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