Happy Birthday Bugs
(1989-1990)
Nickname: "Happy Birthday Bugs!"
Logo: On a dodger blue/denim gradient background, we see the Warner Bros. Cartoons concentric circles logo. A gold MGM-like ribbon is below it, with a golden-colored WB shield in the center. Bugs Bunny pops out of the circles and the ribbon "shines" with the "WB" transforming into "50". In script below it, "Happy Birthday Bugs" is written out in gold. Bugs then munches on his carrot.
Trivia: This logo was used during Bugs Bunny's 50th anniversary.
Variant: In Happy Birthday, Bugs!: 50 Looney Years, a still version is used, where in a black background, the texts have been modified to "Happy Birthday Bugs" and "50 Looney Years", both in a curved form, with a "gold" gradient.
FX/SFX: Bugs' animation, the shining ribbon, the scriptwriting, and the fading of "WB" to "50" in the shield.
Music/Sounds: Just the sound of Bugs munching his carrot. However, on The Bugs Bunny & Tweety Show, the end theme plays over it, with no carrot-munching sound.
Music/Sounds Variant: On 50 Years of Bugs Bunny in 3 1/2 Minutes, the famous Looney Tunes theme song was played over with no carrot-munching sound, but Porky Pig says "Happy F-F-Fiftieth Birthday, Bugs".
Availability: Rare.
- It appeared on many Warner Bros. theatrical releases from this time frame.
- However, it didn't appear on Disney films they theatrically distributed overseas.
- On television, it appeared on episodes of The Bugs Bunny & Tweety Show and fittingly on Happy Birthday, Bugs!: 50 Looney Years.
- It also appeared tacked onto WB specials from this time frame.
- It also appeared on several Warner Home Video releases from these years, including Second Sight and Joe Versus the Volcano.
- This logo was actually used on the Lethal Weapon 1990 VHS release in place of the standard WB shield logo! (some prints do have the standard shield logo).
- It also appears after the WHV logo on Young Einstein.
Legacy: As WB was in the midst of the Time Warner merger at this time, this may explain the LW/YE edits and why this logo has no Warner Communications or Time Warner byline. This is a simple yet effective way to celebrate Bugs' 50th birthday.
