The Bugs Bunny Show (cartoons, including other WB characters)

     (ABC Primetime,     1960 - 1962 as "The Bugs Bunny Show";
      ABC Sat. Mornings, 1962 - 1968 as "The Bugs Bunny Show";
      CBS Sat. Mornings, 1968 - 1971 as "The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Hour";
      CBS Sat. Mornings, 1971 - 1973 as "The Bugs Bunny Show";
      ABC Sat. Mornings, 1973 - 1975 as "The Bugs Bunny Show";
      CBS Sat. Mornings, 1975 - 1978 as "The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Hour";
      CBS Primetime,     1976 - 1978 as "The Bugs Bunny Show";
      CBS Sat. Mornings, 1978 -      as "The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Show")

     [An unusual debut for a cartoon show -- a two-year PrimeTime 
      series which became a fixture of Saturday mornings from the 
      1960s forward; it even had a second two-year PrimeTime revival 
      during the 1970s on CBS -- not bad for a cartoon empire that
      began in the 1930s from the Leon Schlesinger animation studio
     (which was later absorbed into Warner Brothers);

      Some students of animation have traced the origin of the Bugs
      Bunny character to the tales of African legend which had a
      couple of characters known as "Zomo" and "Bro Rabbit", which
      may in turn have evolved into the 1930s Uncle Remus' stories
      of a bunny who outwitted farmers, known as "Br'er Rabbit";

      Visually, Bugs was a character first drawn by animator named
      Ben ("Bugs") Hardaway who worked at Warner Brothers' studio;
      The first theatrical cartoon featuring Bugs's "Bunny" appeared
      in 1938; But in the earliest cartoons, Bugs was a variation of
      Daffy Duck -- he hadn't found a consistent character -- he
      had not yet acquired the sassy Brooklyn-esque Mel Blanc voice
      which so captured the fascination of the public during
      World War II; His attitude crystalized in the immortal phrase
      first heard in the cartoon "A Wild Hare" (1940) when Bugs was
      confronted with Elmer Fudd's shotgun, and casually continued
      to chew on a carrot pausing to drawl, "Eh...What's Up, Doc?"

      The sassy yank attitude in the face of a wartime threat was
      one with which soldiers and their families identified; they
      embraced this rascally wiseguy, and his popularity skyrocketed
      during the wartime 1940's.

      Bugs Bunny was already a star by the time television arrived;
      In the 1950's, packages of Warner Brothers theatrical cartoons 
      were sold to TV; By 1960, the audience had developed renewed
      interest in animated characters, due to several PrimeTime
      contemporary cartoon series from Hanna-Barbera -- including 
      "The Flintstones"; To meet this demand the networks wanted to
      find other animated product in a hurry; And they already could
      tap into a backlog of classic cartoons from which to choose;

      Nearly 900 cartoons had come from the Warner Brothers studios
      by this time, including the Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes
      cartoons; So there was a good library of cartoons from which
      to draw when Warners put together a show for ABC in 1960;

      The series not only included the Bugs Bunny character around
      which the series hung its hat, but many other classic Warner
      Brothers' favorites: Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Daffy Duck,
      Tweety and Sylvester, Yosemite Sam, The Road Runner, Henery
      Hawk, Foghorn Leghorn, Ollie Owl and Hippity Hopper; the 
      amazing Mel Blanc voiced most of these cartoon characters;

      Many of the orchestrations of various Signature THEMES and
      interior cues were created by Warner Bros. venerable arrangers 
      Carl W. Stalling and Milt J. Franklyn, plus the ubiquitous
      Hollywood handyman -- composer/arranger William ("Bill") Lava;

      For the title THEME of this Warner Brothers' showcase, a 
      fast-paced overture song was commissioned from the songwriting
      duo of Jerry Livingston and Mack David who had written several
      youthful-flavored THEME songs for other Warner Brothers films
      and TV series during the 1950s -- including "77 Sunset Strip", 
      "Hawaiian Eye", "Surfside 6" and "Bourbon Street Beat."]


Main Theme: "This Is It! (The Bugs Bunny Overture)"

    [ASCAP title variations...
     aka: "This Is It (Main & End)"; 
     aka: "Bugs Bunny Theme"; 
     aka: "Bugs Bunny Overture"]

     Composers: Jerry Livingston (ASCAP) and
                Mack David (ASCAP)

     Original Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP) 

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publishers: Hallmark Music Company, Inc. (ASCAP)
                         of Brookline, MA; and
                      Universal/Polygram International Publishing, Inc. (ASCAP)
                         c/o Universal Music Publishing Group
                         of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: July 6, 1961; Eu 677 583.
     Renewal   Date: Jan. 9, 1989; RE-416-773.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Bugs Bunny): "Bugs Bunny TV Show"

    [ASCAP title variations aka: "Bugs Bunny Cues"
     aka: "Bugs Bunny FM" (format music)]

     Composer: Milton J. ("Milt") Franklyn (ASCAP)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA
     Copyright Date:
     Renewal   Date:

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Merrie Melodies): "Merrily We Roll Along"

    [ASCAP title variations include... 
     aka: "Merrie Melodies (Open/Closing Theme)"
     aka: "That's All Folks"]

     Composers: Charles Tobias (ASCAP),
                Murray Mencher (ASCAP) and
                Eddie Cantor (ASCAP), with
     Arranger: Carl W. Stalling (ASCAP)

     1978 Publisher: T. B. Harms, Inc. (ASCAP)

     2001 Publishers: Ched Music Corp. (ASCAP)
                         of Naples, FL;
                      Eddie Cantor Music (ASCAP)
                         of New York, NY; and
                      Harms, Inc. (ASCAP)
                         c/o Warner Bros., Inc. 
                         of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date:  Feb. 14, 1935; EP  46 607.
     Revised Version: Nov. 19, 1956; Eu 457 377.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Looney Tunes): "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down"

    [ASCAP title variations include...
     aka: "Looney Tunes Open"; and
     aka: "Looney Tunes Close"]

     Composers: Cliff Friend (ASCAP)
               [professional name of John Clifford Friend], and
               Dave Franklin (ASCAP), with
     Arranger: Carl W. Stalling (ASCAP)

     1978 Publisher: T. B. Harms, Inc. (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: Harms, Inc. (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner Bros., Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: 1937; E pub. [Ep] 62 263.
     Renewal   Date:

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Porky Pig): "Porky Sig"

    [ASCAP title variations aka: "Porky Pig"]

     Composer: M. K. Jerome (ASCAP)
              [professional name of Maurice K. Jerome]

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA
     Copyright Date:
     Renewal   Date:

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Tweety Bird): "Tweety Bird"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date:
     Renewal   Date:

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Sylvester): "Sylvester The Cat"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Jan. 19, 1955; Eu 383 361.
     Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-146-218.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Daffy Duck): "Daffy Duck"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Unpublished Copyright Date: Jan. 19, 1955; EU 383 356.
     Unpublished Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-151-698.

     Published Copyright Date: Mar. 15, 1955; EP  88 140.
     Published Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-151-674.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Foghorn Leghorn): "Foghorn Leghorn"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Jan. 19, 1955; EU 383 358.
     Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-151-699.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Henery Hawk): "Henerry <sic> Hawk"

    [aka: "Henry Hawk" ]

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Jan. 19, 1955; EU 383 359.
     Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-151-700.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Yosemite Sam): "Yosemite Sam"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Jan. 19, 1955; EU 383 363.
     Renewal   Date: Jan.  3, 1983; RE-151-702.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Ollie Owl): "April--Ollie Owl"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Dec.  3, 1956; Eu 459 810.
     Renewal   Date: Aug. 28, 1984; RE-249-007.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for Hippity Hopper): "October--Hippety Hopper"

     Composers: Warren Foster (ASCAP) and
                Tedd Pierce (Not Affil.)

     1978 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: M. Witmark & Sons (ASCAP)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Copyright Date: Dec.  3, 1956; Eu 459 809.
     Renewal   Date: Aug. 28, 1984; RE-249-008.

     Recordings:


Signature Theme (for The Road Runner): "The Road Runner Theme (from the TV series)"

    [above is title as filed for copyright;
     ASCAP title variations aka: "Road Runner (Main and End)"]

     Composer: Barbara Cameron (ASCAP)

     1978 Publisher: Warner Bros., Inc. (ASCAP)

     2001 Publisher: Warner Bros., Inc. (ASCAP)
                        (Warner Bros. Music Div.)
                        c/o Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. 
                        of Los Angeles, CA

     Unpublished Copyright Date: Aug. 7, 1972; Eu 349 069.
     Unpublished Renewal   Date: Jan. 5, 2000; RE-820-433.

     Published Copyright Date: Aug. 4, 1972; EP 304 190.
     Published Renewal   Date: Jan. 5, 2000; RE-820-292.

     Recordings:


Return to the 1950s TV Series Title Page


Copyright 1960 - 2018 by The Media Management Group. All Rights Reserved