Jasper Goes Hunting

Jasper Goes Hunting (1944)

Jasper is hunting in the jungle with his friend the Scarecrow. Along the way, they run into Bugs Bunny, making a rare cameo in a non-Warner Bros. production.

Date of release
1944-07-27
TMDB
10.0 / 10 (1)
Runtime
7m
Genres
Animation
Director
George Pal

Casting

Interesting facts

Jasper Goes Hunting is a 1943 Puppetoons short directed and produced by George Pal and was released on November 19, 1943. The short was distributed by Paramount Pictures. The short features Jasper, his friend/nemesis Professor Scarecrow, and the Blackbird.

Background

The Jasper series of shorts relied on a small, consistent cast. The titular character was a playful pickaninny, his mother a protective mammy, Professor Scarecrow being a black scam artist, and the Blackbird serving as his fast-talking partner-in-crime. Pal described his protagonist as a Huckleberry Finn influenced by African-American folktales.

The series' use of stereotypes did not seem to attract much criticism at first, but in 1946, Ebony reported "Negro" groups protesting their depiction by Pal. In an apparent response to the criticism, Pal released John Henry and the Inky-Poo (1946), a short based on the folk hero John Henry. Ebony responded favorably at this more serious depiction of a "Negro" protagonist.

Jasper Goes Hunting is notable for including a cameo appearance of Bugs Bunny, courtesy of Leon Schlesinger Productions. Mel Blanc reprises his role as Bugs, while Robert McKimson served as the animator. It marks the first time a Looney Tunes character was publicly used outside of a Warner Bros. related production (if not counting Bugs’ cameos in the Private Snafu shorts for the US Army).

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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