Bugs Bunny that another proposed name for the character was "Happy Rabbit." In the actual cartoons and publicity, however, the name "Happy" only seems to have been used in reference to Bugs Hardaway. In "Hare-um Scare-um", a newspaper headline reads, "Happy Hardaway." Animation historian David Gerstein disputes that "Happy Rabbit" was ever used as an official name, believing that the only usage of the term was from Mel Blanc himself in humorous and fanciful tales he told about the character's development in the 1970s and 1980s; the name "Bugs Bunny" was used as early as August 1939, in the Motion Picture Herald,
The Adventures of Brer Rabbit The Adventures of Brer Rabbit The Adventures of Brer Rabbit is a book, a play, and a film inspired by the Uncle Remus stories. The central character's actual name is Br'er Rabbit (short for Brother Rabbit), but in the title "Br'er" is simplified as "Brer". The book's full title is "" and was written by Julius Lester, and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Lester received the Coretta Scott King Award in 1988 for this work. A one-act play entitled "The Adventures of Brer Rabbit" was written by Gayle Cornelison. The play was first performed in 1977 at the California Theatre Center