Bonanza Bunny
Encyclopedia
Bonanza Bunny is a 1959 Bugs Bunny
cartoon featuring French Canadian
claim jumper Blacque Jacque Shellacque.
, a snow-covered Bugs Bunny walks into the saloon with a bag full of gold nuggets. Bugs has no use for these yellow rocks, admitting that he confused "carats" with the vegetable
when he traveled to the area (having actually heard about the Klondike Gold Rush
). The men in the saloon look suspiciously at Bugs, who requests a glass of carrot juice
, to which an eager bartender give Bugs his best serving of carrot juice (90º proof, accompanied by How Dry I Am) then comments that Bugs' rock "is pretty", to which Bugs pays the man while naively saying "You like it?, keep it! I will save the rest for souvenirs." Nonetheless, Bugs is shot at by a man who identifies himself as Blacque Jacque Shellacque-"Wanted" for Claim-jumping, pogo-sticking, and Square-dance calling. The shot breaks Bugs' glass of carrot juice and Bugs confronts Jacque about how rude he is.
Jacque thinks that Bugs is out to get rich and demands the bag of gold. When Bugs refuses to cooperate, Jacque engages in a series of tricks to seize the gold. One of the gags is Bugs' and Jacque's blackjack
game, to which Bugs innocently says that he does not know the rules of blackjack and that "I only played Old Maid
a few times for fun". Bugs requests to stand on one card, to which an enraged Blacque Jacque shouts "ONE CARD?!" to which he then softens his tone and assertively says "Oh, sure, sure!" clearly thinking this will be to his advantage to allow the supposedly gullible Bugs this irregular hand. Regardless, Jacque cheats (by drawing from the top of the deck) and deals for himself two "10 of spades" cards for a total of 20. "Beat that, sucker!" Jacque laughs, so Bugs wins with a single "21 of hearts" card ("HAR HAR, HEARTY, HAR HAR!") Bugs, seemingly unaware of the danger he is in, recovers his wagered bag of gold and calmly says "Well, that's the way the ball bounces, sometimes you gotta win, sometimes you gotta lose", to which an enraged Jacque roars to himself "Arggh, no one beats Blacque Jacque Shellacque!"
Right after Jacque openly states how dangerous he is, Bugs convinces Jacque that there's a man in the rumpus room who claims to be twice as dangerous. As Jacque goes into confront this stranger, whom we see is Bugs in disguise, he sees Bugs pull out a popgun. Just as Jacque jokingly pulls out the cork, the gun blasts him in the face. In a classic Bugs Bunny trick, Bugs pretends to have a phone call for Jacque from "Fifi from Montreal"-actually a lighted dynamite stick. Jackque takes the bait and gets blown up-but not killed, swooning "Oh that Fifi, she is a blast."
In the final scene, Jacque corners Bugs in a back storeroom and in a form of armed robbery, holds a pistol to Bugs Bunny and demands the gold. Bugs then pretends to cower and "surrenders" the gold, actually handing him a bag filled with gunpowder
, but not before cutting a hole in the bag and causing it to leak. The powder leaves a trail behind Jacque, who gloats at his "victory", and proceeds to run off into the mountains shouting "I'm rich! I'm rich! 90% bracket!", without even bothering to check the contents of his ill-gotten bag. Bugs' lights the trail, which makes a gigantic and colorful explosion, aborting Jacque's celebration. "Gee, the Northern Lights
are pretty this time of year!" Bugs remarks as he witnesses the explosion. Furthermore as he departs, Bugs notes what people will do for a bunch of gold painted rocks which was the real nature of the "gold" he had. Bugs then hops onto a dogsled and calls out to the sled dog, named Oatmeal (a puppy), to mush and rides off into the horizon as Oatmeal lets a bark very similar to Dino
from the Flintstones one year later, as both were voiced by Mel Blanc.
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...
cartoon featuring French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
claim jumper Blacque Jacque Shellacque.
Plot
Set in 1896 Dawson City, YukonYukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
, a snow-covered Bugs Bunny walks into the saloon with a bag full of gold nuggets. Bugs has no use for these yellow rocks, admitting that he confused "carats" with the vegetable
Carrot
The carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange in colour, though purple, red, white, and yellow varieties exist. It has a crisp texture when fresh...
when he traveled to the area (having actually heard about the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
). The men in the saloon look suspiciously at Bugs, who requests a glass of carrot juice
Carrot juice
Carrot juice is juice produced from carrots, often consumed as a health drink. Carrot juice has a particularly high content of β-carotene, a source of vitamin A, but it is also high in B complex vitamins like folate, and many minerals including calcium, copper, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, and...
, to which an eager bartender give Bugs his best serving of carrot juice (90º proof, accompanied by How Dry I Am) then comments that Bugs' rock "is pretty", to which Bugs pays the man while naively saying "You like it?, keep it! I will save the rest for souvenirs." Nonetheless, Bugs is shot at by a man who identifies himself as Blacque Jacque Shellacque-"Wanted" for Claim-jumping, pogo-sticking, and Square-dance calling. The shot breaks Bugs' glass of carrot juice and Bugs confronts Jacque about how rude he is.
Jacque thinks that Bugs is out to get rich and demands the bag of gold. When Bugs refuses to cooperate, Jacque engages in a series of tricks to seize the gold. One of the gags is Bugs' and Jacque's blackjack
Blackjack
Blackjack, also known as Twenty-one or Vingt-et-un , is the most widely played casino banking game in the world...
game, to which Bugs innocently says that he does not know the rules of blackjack and that "I only played Old Maid
Old Maid
Old maid is a Victorian card game for two to eight players probably deriving from an ancient gambling game in which the loser pays for the drinks. It is known in Germany as Schwarzer Peter, in Sweden as Svarte Petter and in Finland as Musta Pekka and in France as le pouilleux or vieux garçon...
a few times for fun". Bugs requests to stand on one card, to which an enraged Blacque Jacque shouts "ONE CARD?!" to which he then softens his tone and assertively says "Oh, sure, sure!" clearly thinking this will be to his advantage to allow the supposedly gullible Bugs this irregular hand. Regardless, Jacque cheats (by drawing from the top of the deck) and deals for himself two "10 of spades" cards for a total of 20. "Beat that, sucker!" Jacque laughs, so Bugs wins with a single "21 of hearts" card ("HAR HAR, HEARTY, HAR HAR!") Bugs, seemingly unaware of the danger he is in, recovers his wagered bag of gold and calmly says "Well, that's the way the ball bounces, sometimes you gotta win, sometimes you gotta lose", to which an enraged Jacque roars to himself "Arggh, no one beats Blacque Jacque Shellacque!"
Right after Jacque openly states how dangerous he is, Bugs convinces Jacque that there's a man in the rumpus room who claims to be twice as dangerous. As Jacque goes into confront this stranger, whom we see is Bugs in disguise, he sees Bugs pull out a popgun. Just as Jacque jokingly pulls out the cork, the gun blasts him in the face. In a classic Bugs Bunny trick, Bugs pretends to have a phone call for Jacque from "Fifi from Montreal"-actually a lighted dynamite stick. Jackque takes the bait and gets blown up-but not killed, swooning "Oh that Fifi, she is a blast."
In the final scene, Jacque corners Bugs in a back storeroom and in a form of armed robbery, holds a pistol to Bugs Bunny and demands the gold. Bugs then pretends to cower and "surrenders" the gold, actually handing him a bag filled with gunpowder
Gunpowder
Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...
, but not before cutting a hole in the bag and causing it to leak. The powder leaves a trail behind Jacque, who gloats at his "victory", and proceeds to run off into the mountains shouting "I'm rich! I'm rich! 90% bracket!", without even bothering to check the contents of his ill-gotten bag. Bugs' lights the trail, which makes a gigantic and colorful explosion, aborting Jacque's celebration. "Gee, the Northern Lights
Aurora (astronomy)
An aurora is a natural light display in the sky particularly in the high latitude regions, caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the high altitude atmosphere...
are pretty this time of year!" Bugs remarks as he witnesses the explosion. Furthermore as he departs, Bugs notes what people will do for a bunch of gold painted rocks which was the real nature of the "gold" he had. Bugs then hops onto a dogsled and calls out to the sled dog, named Oatmeal (a puppy), to mush and rides off into the horizon as Oatmeal lets a bark very similar to Dino
Dino (The Flintstones)
Dino is a fictional character featured in the Hanna-Barbera animated television series The Flintstones, and its TV spinoffs and feature films. He is a pet dinosaur of the series' main characters, Fred and Wilma Flintstone. In the show, he is a metaphorical pet dog, and exhibits the characteristics...
from the Flintstones one year later, as both were voiced by Mel Blanc.