Development of Bugs Bunny Development of Bugs Bunny A prototypical version of Bugs Bunny appeared in four cartoon shorts before making his first official appearance in Tex Avery's "A Wild Hare". While this prototype version is commonly referred to as "Happy Rabbit", animation historian David Gerstein disputes this, saying that the only usage of the term was from Mel Blanc himself; the name "Bugs Bunny" was used as early as August 1939, in the Motion Picture Herald, in a review for the short "Hare-um Scare-um". Several published first person accounts, encyclopedic references, and Warner Bros.' own published material describe the inception of the name
Bugs Bunny in both the 855th Bomb Squadron of the 491st Bombardment Group (Heavy) and later in the 786th BS of the 466th BG(H), both being part of the 8th Air Force operating out of England. In 1944, Bugs Bunny made a cameo appearance in "Jasper Goes Hunting", a Puppetoons film produced by rival studio Paramount Pictures. In this cameo (animated by McKimson, with Blanc providing the usual voice), Bugs (after being threatened at gunpoint) pops out of a rabbit hole, saying his usual catchphrase; after hearing the orchestra play the wrong theme song, he realizes "Hey, I'm in the wrong picture!"