Bugs Bunny Made His Debut

On July 27, 1940, Warner Bros. released the Merrie Melodies short “A Wild Hare” — the cartoon widely recognized as the first true appearance of Bugs Bunny. Earlier rabbit prototypes had popped up in studio shorts, but here the character finally looked and behaved like the Bugs the world would come to know: cool, cocky, and utterly unbothered by the shotgun pointed at him.

Directed by Tex Avery and voiced by Mel Blanc, the film also paired Bugs with the hapless hunter Elmer Fudd and introduced the rabbit’s signature greeting, “What’s up, Doc?” The nonchalant carrot-chewing delivery reportedly brought down the house, subverting every expectation of how a hunted rabbit should act.

The line worked because Bugs simply refused to be scared.

The short earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Cartoon Short Subject. Decades later it was honored among films deemed culturally and historically significant, cementing a debut that launched one of the most enduring characters in animation history.