The first time I saw any of this cartoon was in "The Bugs Bunny Mystery Special" in 1980, which uses the bank robbery scene as its opening. I didn't realize it was reused animation until sometime later when I saw the rest of the cartoon on TV.
What's not to love about this short? Finster is frickin' hilarious--and violent. The scene where poor Bugs keeps trying to turn off the light only to get beaten up by Finster is a riot. Of course, my favorite part is Bugs realizing that he's dealing with a very short and youthful looking bank robber when he comes across "Finster, shaving at his age? And tattooed? And smoking a cigar?" 🤣Bugs' facial expressions and Blanc's delivery of that line kills me every time. I love how Bugs gets to turn the tables on Finster once he's figured that out. The bit of Bugs calmly spanking Finster while all those weapons come out of him is gold!
It's an alright bugs short, I did like the character of finster and the gags with him trying to get away from bugs, and bugs gets revenge on him were pretty good, animation and music are good as well, 7.9/10.
I’m glad everyone remembers seeing this short as a kid, because this was one of those Saturday morning staples that my family could quote endlessly if given the chance. It’s no masterpiece, but it is a memorable piece of work…and, as mentioned before, it was the inspiration for that Wayans brothers movie “Little Man,” which did so badly that it won a Razzie Award. Maybe “Little Man” has fans and is getting reappraised like that other Wayans brothers movie, “White Chicks,” but probably not. A lot of Razzie Award movies do have fans despite the mainstream not liking it. “Showgirls” is a famous (or infamous) example of that. And now it’s come to this: the last Censorship Report of 1954 (and maybe 2024, if Anthony is going to take a break and not release anything new until 2025. That’s what I’m doing with my Censored Cartoons Blog, since working at UPS does get busy this time of year). A lot of people in other comment threads have mentioned that they’ve seen versions of this short with parts cut. I have too (it was the ABC “Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show” version and the version shown on Cartoon Network. The “Looney Tunes on Nickelodeon” version may have been cut, too, but I distinctly remember seeing a version that was uncut or, at least, was so lightly edited that no one could tell and left in the gun part). For ease of reference, I will separate the edits by channel, just like the old Censored Cartoons Page did: If you remember seeing the ABC version, then you remember a more heavily edited version that cut Bugs trying to play with Finster, Finster drawing a gun on Bugs, Bugs thinking it’s a toy and Bugs getting shot (the edited version goes from Bugs putting the satchel of money on the shelf to Finster trying to get it before Bugs stops him. It’s a very seamless cut, barring a jump in the audio, which is why when I saw it on Nickelodeon, I was like, “What a minute? That scene wasn’t there before.”); Bugs catching Baby Finster going for the money again (after discovering that Baby Finster is a wanted bank robber), shaking him, putting him in the washing machine, then tossing him into the ceiling and not catching him (that cut wasn’t as seamless. It went from “Oh, there you are, you naughty baby…” to “Oh, dear. I do believe I’ve forgotten my fudge!” and Finster hitting the floor. If their intention was to make it look like Finster fell off the bookshelf, then they didn’t succeed as well as they hoped). Those edits, much like the ones for “Hare Trimmed,” stuck with me until I learned about American TV censorship and how the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons were affected. If you remember seeing this on “Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny and Friends” (syndicated version only. I doubt FOX actually aired this one when MMSBBaF switched over to a then-major TV network), Tooncast, Cartoon Network, or Boomerang, then all that was cut was the gun part, probably because it was too violent and because, since Finster is posing as a kid, it might lead impressionable kids to play with guns. The kid ruse is also why ABC cut the shaking, the washing machine, and the tossing into the ceiling parts. Can’t make fun of child abuse, even if the victim isn’t one. Coincidentally, the “Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers” episode “Dirty Rotten Diapers,” where Gadget [that blonde mouse that a lot of kids who grew up watching the show had a major crush on or found her to be an interesting character because she was into science and inventions] urges Chip, Dale, Monterey Jack (that was my favorite character, especially when Jim Cummings voiced him. There’s a lot about his life and past that would have made a great prequel series), and Monty’s fly buddy, Zipper, to be less violent in capturing criminals, had a lot of lines changed because the censors thought it would encourage child abuse. Some of which include: “Trash the brat!” (changed to “Trash the bum!”), “Let’s shake that baby until he rattles!” (changed to “Let’s shake that bum ‘til he rattles!”), and “Gandhi would want to take a swing at this kid” (changed to “Ghandi would want to take a swing at this guy”). Of course, that was on the Disney Channel version. Toon Disney had it uncut and it is available uncut with the original lines on home media and digital download. If you remember seeing the short in syndication (your local station may vary), then all that was cut was Bugs shaking Finster after finding him going for the money again. If you remember seeing it on Nickelodeon, then you either watched an uncut version or a version that had most, if not all, of the cuts described here. If you think I’m going over them again, then you’re as loony as the Looney Tunes. And despite all of that, Bugs getting walloped with the satchel of money after tickling Finster wasn’t cut on any channel I've listed here, nor was Bugs getting beaten with a bat when he turns the lights off, Finster smoking a cigar as he shaves, Finster stabbing himself in the butt with a knife, and Bugs spanking Finster, which causes a lot of weapons and explosives to fall out. Well, we made it. We completed another year of cartoons. Onward to 1955 and the first ten cartoons of that year. Today’s gimmick: separated by director. In the first ten cartoons of 1955, Chuck Jones only had one cartoon, and that’s “Beanstalk Bunny,” where Daffy (as the titular Jack in the fairy tale, “Jack and the Beanstalk”) goes after Giant Elmer’s riches and thinks Bugs is standing in the way of that, even though he was asleep and not bothering anyone. Freleng has five cartoons in the first batch of ten shorts: “Pizzicato Pussycat” (where a human couple become famous for having a piano-playing cat, not knowing that the mouse the cat was chasing is the talented one), “Pests for Guests” (a Goofy Gophers cartoon where Mac and Tosh have their acorn storage facility [what we humans would call “a dresser drawer”] taken from them by Elmer Fudd), “Stork Naked” (where Daffy becomes the brash, angry jerk that everyone hates about him after his wife, Daphne, announces that she wants to have a baby and The Drunken Stork [who started out sober in this one] comes by with an egg for the reluctant new father), “Sahara Hare” (where Bugs ends up in the Sahara Desert and an Arab sheik Yosemite Sam tries to kill Bugs…if only he can get his idiot camel to obey him), and “Sandy Claws” (an Oscar-nominated Sylvester and Tweety short where Tweety ends up stranded on a rock in the middle of the ocean and Sylvester teams up with Granny to save him). That leaves us with Robert McKimson, who only has four cartoons: two Foghorn Leghorns (“Feather Dusted,” where Foghorn once again tries to make Egghead Jr. Into a normal, fun-loving boy; and “All Fowled Up,” which brings back the old formula of Foghorn trolling both Barnyard Dawg and Henery Hawk), a Sylvester vs. Hippety Hopper cartoon (“Lighthouse Mouse”), and a one-shot short that’s considered Robert McKimson’s masterpiece (since he animated nearly all of the short himself) called “The Hole Idea,” where a scientist named Dr. Cal Q. Lator (groan!) invents portable holes, which, like nearly everything ever made, is both a boon to society, and a menace when it falls into the wrong hands.
I liked the way the alarm faded out when Baby Finster was running down the hill from the bank. Yes, the toy pistol scene was cut from Nickelodeon in the late 80s. At least on Nick, it was edited perfectly IMHO. On Cartoon Network, they cut a LOT out in more recent years and it shows. I digress, I digress. This cartoon gets a 9/10 from me... It's not What's Opera Doc but still highly enjoyable.
Oddly enough, every time I saw this short on TV the only scene that was censored was the part where Finster shoots Bugs in the face with the gun, and everything else, even Finster's attempt to stab Bugs, was left intact probably because it was harder to edit without looking obvious. Regardless, this is one of Bugs' most memorable cartoons not only in terms of brutality but also in how effective Babyface Finster is for a one-shot antagonist, who appeals to Bugs' more sentimental and naive side to his advantage, besides Cecil, the Gremlin and a few other minor exceptions, few of the rabbit's enemies managed to take advantage of his momentary emotional state to trick him. The moment Finster's true nature is revealed to Bugs and the lights on/off scene are hilarious and also, let's be honest, you can't help but love Bugs counting his newly acquired money while happily humming "We're in the Money". I'll give this one an 8.5, I wouldn't firmly say it's one of my personal favorites but it comes pretty close.
they also edit the part on Nickelodeon where Bugs shakes Finster. they fear that it would encourages kids to shake their baby. also putting him in the washer too. what is odd on that is it went from the ''baby'' on the bookshelf to him falling to the ground.
Well, let's just say that Tooncast has a different censorship system than the old Nickelodeon. On the one hand, many scenes of gun violence like this short, the Russian roulette game between Bugs and Sam in Ballot Box Bunny, Slowpoke Rodriguez shooting Jose at the end of Mexicali Shmoes, Yosemite Sam almost shooting himself after being corrected by Bugs that "dead men tell no tales" in Buccaneer Bunny are cut entirely, while on the other hand, occasions where armed characters like Elmer try to shoot Bugs or Daffy are left intact. Despite all this, what surprises me to this day is that they continue to broadcast Bacall To Arms without having the ending censored, even with the scene involving blackface.
I've definitely seen Finster shoot Bugs in the face with his "toy pistol" once as a kid on Nickelodeon as a child--probably the first time I saw it. Usually afterwards, that scene was always cut, and I knew because I clearly remembered it.
If the version of this you saw only cut Finster shooting Bugs in the face, then it was the Cartoon Network/Boomerang version (or, if you want to go back earlier, the version from "Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny and Friends"). I've seen the heavily edited ABC version, a surprisingly uncut version on Nickelodeon, and the Cartoon Network/Boomerang version where Bugs getting shot in the face was the only censored scene. That's just a preview of my Censorship Report. When I get to a proper computer (rather than my cell phone), I'll elaborate.
@@marcomacias3960I don't remember Nickelodeon cutting the shaking and the washing machine part. That was ABC. Maybe Nickelodeon edited it later. I know I saw a Nickelodeon version where the gun part was left in.
Released just as the layoff was coming to an end. Jones was heading back after his stint at Disney. Also the layouts had the limited quality due to new trend that was made popular by UPA. Once Jones returned he took high advantage of that style leading to his best work.
“Finster, shaving at his age? And tattooed? And smokin’ a cigar?”
A classic and very memorable line. Gets me every time.
This one’s a classic!! My dad and I quote this short a bunch of times. Baby Finster also reminds me of Stewie from Family Guy!
The first time I saw any of this cartoon was in "The Bugs Bunny Mystery Special" in 1980, which uses the bank robbery scene as its opening. I didn't realize it was reused animation until sometime later when I saw the rest of the cartoon on TV.
The real Baby Face Nelson did have a youthful appearance.
What's not to love about this short? Finster is frickin' hilarious--and violent. The scene where poor Bugs keeps trying to turn off the light only to get beaten up by Finster is a riot. Of course, my favorite part is Bugs realizing that he's dealing with a very short and youthful looking bank robber when he comes across "Finster, shaving at his age? And tattooed? And smoking a cigar?" 🤣Bugs' facial expressions and Blanc's delivery of that line kills me every time. I love how Bugs gets to turn the tables on Finster once he's figured that out. The bit of Bugs calmly spanking Finster while all those weapons come out of him is gold!
@@glowworm2 As is Ben Washam’s animation of the latter scene.
It's an alright bugs short, I did like the character of finster and the gags with him trying to get away from bugs, and bugs gets revenge on him were pretty good, animation and music are good as well, 7.9/10.
I’m glad everyone remembers seeing this short as a kid, because this was one of those Saturday morning staples that my family could quote endlessly if given the chance. It’s no masterpiece, but it is a memorable piece of work…and, as mentioned before, it was the inspiration for that Wayans brothers movie “Little Man,” which did so badly that it won a Razzie Award. Maybe “Little Man” has fans and is getting reappraised like that other Wayans brothers movie, “White Chicks,” but probably not. A lot of Razzie Award movies do have fans despite the mainstream not liking it. “Showgirls” is a famous (or infamous) example of that.
And now it’s come to this: the last Censorship Report of 1954 (and maybe 2024, if Anthony is going to take a break and not release anything new until 2025. That’s what I’m doing with my Censored Cartoons Blog, since working at UPS does get busy this time of year). A lot of people in other comment threads have mentioned that they’ve seen versions of this short with parts cut. I have too (it was the ABC “Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show” version and the version shown on Cartoon Network. The “Looney Tunes on Nickelodeon” version may have been cut, too, but I distinctly remember seeing a version that was uncut or, at least, was so lightly edited that no one could tell and left in the gun part). For ease of reference, I will separate the edits by channel, just like the old Censored Cartoons Page did:
If you remember seeing the ABC version, then you remember a more heavily edited version that cut Bugs trying to play with Finster, Finster drawing a gun on Bugs, Bugs thinking it’s a toy and Bugs getting shot (the edited version goes from Bugs putting the satchel of money on the shelf to Finster trying to get it before Bugs stops him. It’s a very seamless cut, barring a jump in the audio, which is why when I saw it on Nickelodeon, I was like, “What a minute? That scene wasn’t there before.”); Bugs catching Baby Finster going for the money again (after discovering that Baby Finster is a wanted bank robber), shaking him, putting him in the washing machine, then tossing him into the ceiling and not catching him (that cut wasn’t as seamless. It went from “Oh, there you are, you naughty baby…” to “Oh, dear. I do believe I’ve forgotten my fudge!” and Finster hitting the floor. If their intention was to make it look like Finster fell off the bookshelf, then they didn’t succeed as well as they hoped). Those edits, much like the ones for “Hare Trimmed,” stuck with me until I learned about American TV censorship and how the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons were affected.
If you remember seeing this on “Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny and Friends” (syndicated version only. I doubt FOX actually aired this one when MMSBBaF switched over to a then-major TV network), Tooncast, Cartoon Network, or Boomerang, then all that was cut was the gun part, probably because it was too violent and because, since Finster is posing as a kid, it might lead impressionable kids to play with guns. The kid ruse is also why ABC cut the shaking, the washing machine, and the tossing into the ceiling parts. Can’t make fun of child abuse, even if the victim isn’t one. Coincidentally, the “Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers” episode “Dirty Rotten Diapers,” where Gadget [that blonde mouse that a lot of kids who grew up watching the show had a major crush on or found her to be an interesting character because she was into science and inventions] urges Chip, Dale, Monterey Jack (that was my favorite character, especially when Jim Cummings voiced him. There’s a lot about his life and past that would have made a great prequel series), and Monty’s fly buddy, Zipper, to be less violent in capturing criminals, had a lot of lines changed because the censors thought it would encourage child abuse. Some of which include: “Trash the brat!” (changed to “Trash the bum!”), “Let’s shake that baby until he rattles!” (changed to “Let’s shake that bum ‘til he rattles!”), and “Gandhi would want to take a swing at this kid” (changed to “Ghandi would want to take a swing at this guy”). Of course, that was on the Disney Channel version. Toon Disney had it uncut and it is available uncut with the original lines on home media and digital download.
If you remember seeing the short in syndication (your local station may vary), then all that was cut was Bugs shaking Finster after finding him going for the money again.
If you remember seeing it on Nickelodeon, then you either watched an uncut version or a version that had most, if not all, of the cuts described here. If you think I’m going over them again, then you’re as loony as the Looney Tunes.
And despite all of that, Bugs getting walloped with the satchel of money after tickling Finster wasn’t cut on any channel I've listed here, nor was Bugs getting beaten with a bat when he turns the lights off, Finster smoking a cigar as he shaves, Finster stabbing himself in the butt with a knife, and Bugs spanking Finster, which causes a lot of weapons and explosives to fall out.
Well, we made it. We completed another year of cartoons. Onward to 1955 and the first ten cartoons of that year. Today’s gimmick: separated by director.
In the first ten cartoons of 1955, Chuck Jones only had one cartoon, and that’s “Beanstalk Bunny,” where Daffy (as the titular Jack in the fairy tale, “Jack and the Beanstalk”) goes after Giant Elmer’s riches and thinks Bugs is standing in the way of that, even though he was asleep and not bothering anyone.
Freleng has five cartoons in the first batch of ten shorts: “Pizzicato Pussycat” (where a human couple become famous for having a piano-playing cat, not knowing that the mouse the cat was chasing is the talented one), “Pests for Guests” (a Goofy Gophers cartoon where Mac and Tosh have their acorn storage facility [what we humans would call “a dresser drawer”] taken from them by Elmer Fudd), “Stork Naked” (where Daffy becomes the brash, angry jerk that everyone hates about him after his wife, Daphne, announces that she wants to have a baby and The Drunken Stork [who started out sober in this one] comes by with an egg for the reluctant new father), “Sahara Hare” (where Bugs ends up in the Sahara Desert and an Arab sheik Yosemite Sam tries to kill Bugs…if only he can get his idiot camel to obey him), and “Sandy Claws” (an Oscar-nominated Sylvester and Tweety short where Tweety ends up stranded on a rock in the middle of the ocean and Sylvester teams up with Granny to save him).
That leaves us with Robert McKimson, who only has four cartoons: two Foghorn Leghorns (“Feather Dusted,” where Foghorn once again tries to make Egghead Jr. Into a normal, fun-loving boy; and “All Fowled Up,” which brings back the old formula of Foghorn trolling both Barnyard Dawg and Henery Hawk), a Sylvester vs. Hippety Hopper cartoon (“Lighthouse Mouse”), and a one-shot short that’s considered Robert McKimson’s masterpiece (since he animated nearly all of the short himself) called “The Hole Idea,” where a scientist named Dr. Cal Q. Lator (groan!) invents portable holes, which, like nearly everything ever made, is both a boon to society, and a menace when it falls into the wrong hands.
@canaisyoung3601 great
Keenan Ivory Wayans remade this as a live action film called, Little Man staring his brother Damon.
It *wanted* to be "Baby Buggy Bunny"- but wasn't.
Yeah, and it sucked so bad, it won a Razzie Award.
5:01 Mr. Dark branching out, i see.
Are we really supposed believe that Bugs wanted to live in a rabbit hutch.
Nice job, Anthony.
“There, nice enough to be kissed.”
I liked the way the alarm faded out when Baby Finster was running down the hill from the bank.
Yes, the toy pistol scene was cut from Nickelodeon in the late 80s. At least on Nick, it was edited perfectly IMHO. On Cartoon Network, they cut a LOT out in more recent years and it shows. I digress, I digress.
This cartoon gets a 9/10 from me... It's not What's Opera Doc but still highly enjoyable.
I remember ABC editing that gun part. Nickelodeon had it uncut when they aired Looney Tunes on Nick as a daytime show.
Oddly enough, every time I saw this short on TV the only scene that was censored was the part where Finster shoots Bugs in the face with the gun, and everything else, even Finster's attempt to stab Bugs, was left intact probably because it was harder to edit without looking obvious. Regardless, this is one of Bugs' most memorable cartoons not only in terms of brutality but also in how effective Babyface Finster is for a one-shot antagonist, who appeals to Bugs' more sentimental and naive side to his advantage, besides Cecil, the Gremlin and a few other minor exceptions, few of the rabbit's enemies managed to take advantage of his momentary emotional state to trick him. The moment Finster's true nature is revealed to Bugs and the lights on/off scene are hilarious and also, let's be honest, you can't help but love Bugs counting his newly acquired money while happily humming "We're in the Money".
I'll give this one an 8.5, I wouldn't firmly say it's one of my personal favorites but it comes pretty close.
they also edit the part on Nickelodeon where Bugs shakes Finster. they fear that it would encourages kids to shake their baby. also putting him in the washer too. what is odd on that is it went from the ''baby'' on the bookshelf to him falling to the ground.
Well, let's just say that Tooncast has a different censorship system than the old Nickelodeon. On the one hand, many scenes of gun violence like this short, the Russian roulette game between Bugs and Sam in Ballot Box Bunny, Slowpoke Rodriguez shooting Jose at the end of Mexicali Shmoes, Yosemite Sam almost shooting himself after being corrected by Bugs that "dead men tell no tales" in Buccaneer Bunny are cut entirely, while on the other hand, occasions where armed characters like Elmer try to shoot Bugs or Daffy are left intact. Despite all this, what surprises me to this day is that they continue to broadcast Bacall To Arms without having the ending censored, even with the scene involving blackface.
I've definitely seen Finster shoot Bugs in the face with his "toy pistol" once as a kid on Nickelodeon as a child--probably the first time I saw it. Usually afterwards, that scene was always cut, and I knew because I clearly remembered it.
If the version of this you saw only cut Finster shooting Bugs in the face, then it was the Cartoon Network/Boomerang version (or, if you want to go back earlier, the version from "Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny and Friends"). I've seen the heavily edited ABC version, a surprisingly uncut version on Nickelodeon, and the Cartoon Network/Boomerang version where Bugs getting shot in the face was the only censored scene.
That's just a preview of my Censorship Report. When I get to a proper computer (rather than my cell phone), I'll elaborate.
@@marcomacias3960I don't remember Nickelodeon cutting the shaking and the washing machine part. That was ABC. Maybe Nickelodeon edited it later. I know I saw a Nickelodeon version where the gun part was left in.
I watched this when it aired on tv in the 70’s before they edited the short. But I think they just stopped airing it.
WNEW-TV in New York aired this intact on "BUGS BUNNY & FRIENDS" and "WOODY & BUGS" (or "BUGS & WOODY") during the 1970's through the mid-'80s.
@@fromthesidelinesI was seeing this uncut on stations in my area during the 80's.
Is that why we got Chuckie?
That's how we got Baby Herman.
Released just as the layoff was coming to an end. Jones was heading back after his stint at Disney. Also the layouts had the limited quality due to new trend that was made popular by UPA. Once Jones returned he took high advantage of that style leading to his best work.