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,
Honey Bunny Honey Bunny Honey Bunny is a female rabbit cartoon character and the ex-girlfriend of Bugs Bunny. The character, designed by Robert McKimson, was used for merchandising purposes beginning in the late 1960s. An early version of Honey Bunny first appeared in the "Bugs Bunny's Album" comic book from 1953. Instead of being portrayed as his love interest, this version of Honey Bunny is a small white rabbit (and famous African explorer) who is his cousin. The better-known version of Honey Bunny debuted in "Bugs Bunny Comic Book" #108 (November 1966) and was a semi-regular fixture in the series of "Looney