Of Rice and Hen

A crime wave in Paris results in the hot-tempered Surete Commissioner becoming so stressed-out that he requires bed rest at home. Inspector Clouseau is assigned to see that the Commissioner is not disturbed. But it's Bastille Day, and between the day's ceremonies and a pesky cat- and Clouseau's violent and failed attempts to silence the feline- the Commissioner receives little peace!

Series of comedy short films from 1929 to 1969 during the golden age of American animation, alongside its sister series Merrie Melodies.

Wile E. Coyote chases the Road Runner, and his ploys such as glue on the road, a huge magnifying glass, an exploding piano, a cannon disguised as a camera, and an anvil dropped from a helicopter, all backfire on him, as usual.

Bugs Bunny first hopped onto the screen in 1940 and he’s been a pop-culture icon ever since. More than eight generations have enjoyed the timeless antics of the carrot-munching wise guy who always outsmarts his rivals. Cartoons, movies, TV, comics, music, sports and more – this wascally wabbit has done it all. Clever pranks and one-liners are here, along with interviews with today’s most renowned animators, historians and superstars. Enjoy the full range of his silly and smart-alecky personality with 60 theatrical shorts restored and remastered to their original 4x3 aspect ratio on Blu-ray for the first time. It's just what the doctor – er, doc – ordered.

If Bugs Bunny were to direct his signature inquiry--"What's up, doc?"--toward the modern-day Warner Bros. creative team, he wouldn't be far off. For 1001 Rabbit Tales, they've doctored up a batch of classic cartoons featuring the carrot muncher and his bumbling comrades and bundled them, near seamlessly, into a feature-length film. Here's the premise: Bugs and Daffy, both book salesmen, are competing to sell the most copies of a kids' book. Instead of burrowing a beeline to his sales territory (he should have made a left at Albuquerque), Bugs ends up in the castle of Yosemite Sam, here a harem-leading honcho. Sam's pain-in-the-spurs son, Prince Abalaba, needs somebody to read him stories; Bugs, who'd sooner take the job than suffer the alternative, that involving being boiled in oil, signs on.

Young Henery Hawk's father regretfully admits their family's shame: they hunt and eat chickens. Henery set off to find one, and comes across Foghorn Leghorn, where the loudmouth rooster is engaged in his favorite pastime, playing tricks on grumpy Barnyard Dog.

A confident but inept French inspector tracks down a series of surreal villains with the help of the reluctant Sergeant Deux-Deux.

Failed hunter Elmer Fudd laments that he's never able to catch the rabbit (Bugs Bunny); just then a bolt of lightning strikes, and the voice of God takes him through a flash-forward to the year 2000. Elmer and Bugs, now both elderly, look back to when they first met as babies.

A shaggy dog is the guard at a farm's chicken coop when a lip-smacking weasel comes along, intending to gain access to the chickens.

Bugs Bunny finds and rubs Aladdin's lamp and decides to follow the genie to Baghdad, where they battle Mad Man Hassan.

In this feature-length film combining footage from classic Warner Brothers cartoon shorts with newly animated bridging sequences, Daffy Duck, after having induced laughter in an ailing millionaire and forestalled the millionaire's death for a time (as chronicled in Daffy Dilly (1948), is the beneficiary for the deceased millionaire's assets. But the millionaire's will clearly stipulates that Daffy must use the money for the common good, by providing a service, and should Daffy think of pursuing selfish aims, the millionaire's ghost will "repossess" his millions by making them disappear from Earthly existence. Under the pretense of community service, Daffy opens an exorcism agency and employs Porky Pig, Sylvester Cat, and Bugs Bunny to track and eliminate ghosts, ghouls, and other monsters, while Daffy secretly schemes to use his learned "ghost-busting" talents to rid himself of the millionaire's nagging spirit.

Two alley cats, Babbitt and Catsello, decide to make a meal out of Orson as he sleeps in his nest atop a telephone pole. The gullible (and loud) Catsello is repeatedly gulled into trying to "get the bird," earning a variety of thrashings from the casually murderous little canary. Catsello finally resorts to an air strike (with a pair of wooden boards for wings), but it's wartime, and Orson has the cat blasted out of the sky by anti-aircraft guns.

Daffy Duck and Speedy Gonzales find a treasure map that leads them to a wishing well, which for a penny will grant any wish (through old cartoon footage). Daffy sets up a resort around the well and various Looney Tunes characters have their dreams come true. Meanwhile, Yosemite Sam and the Tasmanian Devil hunt for the varmints who stole their treasure map!

Bugs has to defend the Earth's right to exist in an intergalactic court.

Hidden in a box of carrots, Bugs lands in Tasmania, where he matches wits with the Tasmanian Devil.

How Bugs Bunny Won the West is a Looney Tunes special that was released in 1978. This special was narrated by Denver Pyle. The special is available as a bonus feature on The Essential Bugs Bunny DVD set. It had a running time of 30 min.