The Concerto Controversy | Plagiarism Accusations Between Tom & Jerry and Looney Tunes

[@leeburgers5718]

Personally, the storyline makes more sense for Tom&Jerry!

[@MMDMizuki]

Agree

[@eaglejones856]

True

[@nathanielgftfdewsaaasssxyh9452]

Yes as Thomas cat I'm better

[@CartoonCommotion]

Sure. But since when does Bugs deal with a mouse? From memory he wasn't usually dealing with a mouse.

[@gilition]

Well that might be the case and Joe Barbera even asked what is a rabbit doing with a mouse, but the same can be said with the fact that what is an established house cat doing at Carnegie Hall.

[@Matt10670]

Given Bugs' attitude in his short, if it were made later Daffy would have been a more suitable choice.

[@toonraider123]

I agree, great point 🙏🔥

[@TBaker-xu5is]

Well they kind of did that in the movie "Who framed Roger Rabbit" with the piano duel against Donald Duck. They didn't do the mouse in the piano gag, but guess what song they were playing... If you guessed Hungarian Rhapsody, you win a cookie.

[@Chaos89P]

@@TBaker-xu5is "Anybody have any idea what this duck is saying?"

[@seanewing204]

Honestly, Sylvester and Tweety would have been perfect.

[@darrenheideman2546]

With Speedy as the mouse?

[@fusionvevo6251]

The fact that bugs bunny lost his cool by getting angry and didn’t stay sarcastically ahead of the conflict is very out of character

[@Ihitthings3]

Remember bugs gets his butt kicked by the Gremlin in another short. It might be the only other time Bugs get taken for a ride.

[@annieskywalker9290]

@@Ihitthings3 and the other shorts where cecil appears

[@novatic1rd]

But that's not the only cartoon wherein he did that. "Bugs Bunny Cecil the Turtle Tortoise Beats Hare 1941", "Bugs Bunny - Tortoise Wins By a Hare (Black And White Version) (1943)", "Falling Hare 1943" "Rabbit Transit 1947" and "Rabbit Rampage 1955".

[@stubbornpotatogaming6220]

i always remember that Bugs Bunny is never a chill character. He has some tendencies of being annoyed.

[@IronicHavoc]

Bugs is kinda 50/50 on whether he's the aggressor or agressee

[@kadajsnightqueen]

Not only does the pianist vs. mouse storyline make more sense for Tom and Jerry, but the MGM short just looks more polished than that its rival. Looney Tunes cartoons of the time usually looked really nice, but for some reason Rhapsody Rabbit looks simpler and less shaded than its in-house contemporaries. It looks cheaper, and ironically more like a rushed product. The Cat Concerto has a richer color palette, more shading and dimension, and fuller drawings. For a rushed project, it looks as if more time was devoted to it, which is a nice contrast to the other cartoons associated with Hanna and Barbera! Aside from these points, though, both shorts are funny and succeed at telling a succinct story with no verbal cues whatsoever. More impressively, neither of them share any gags between them. They are similar, but not identical. All the same, however, I think the The Cat Concerto was deserving of its win. Rhapsody Rabbit is a great Bugs Bunny short, but not really his best depiction. The Cat Concerto, meanwhile, proved that the Tom and Jerry concept could work outside the house, which gave them far greater range for their shorts. It was refreshing to see them outside of Mammy Two-Shoes’ home, and I firmly believe this short is one of the reasons why T&J are still beloved icons in the animation scene all these years later. It opened the door for more ambitious shorts for them, and the influence of an Oscar cannot be overstated.

[@toonraider123]

Great insights, and thanks for watching! 🙏

[@beatlecristian]

Wait, The Cat Concerto was their first short outside of Mammy Two Shoes home? Wasn’t that the Bowling Alley Cat?

[@darkspike7543]

Not to mention that Tom is ACTUALLY playing the correct keys during the entire performance while Bugs doesn't come close It is typical for animated musical instruments to be played a bit off of how they'd actually look being played properly, but the fact that MGM took the time to make sure Tom played the correct keys, while looking sharper/more colorful, and being RUSHED was astounding.

[@TheMasterBlaze]

What's crazy is apparently they had the same devolpmemt period. Only being released a couple months apart.

[@mellamojeff458]

@@beatlecristian I think he meant outside the domestic areas like the house, the farm house etc.

[@Steam_Attack]

It's ironic that the cat concerto was rushed yet it looks 10 times better than the bugs bunny short, not only from an quality standpoint but also in animation, Tom is actually playing the piano, the keys he plays are accurate. Also what i love about cat concerto is that it doesn't interrupts the play for gags, they're an integral part of it, even the sounds effects. While in bugs bunny case, interrupting the music or talk while playing it's kinda annoying and to some degree cheap

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

I think it's the reverse of what this video said with Rabbit Rhapsody being the rushed project.

[@Iliekchoocolatye]

@@Eidolon1andOnly You are correct. Hence @Steam_attack's choice to begin their comment with "it's ironic that"

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

@@Iliekchoocolatye They said "It's ironic that cat concerto was rushed yet looks ten times better..." because they actually believe it was the one that was rushed, hence my comment.

[@GRtogetaBIC]

@@Eidolon1andOnly Cat Concerto was the one that was rushed, it was said multiple times during the video, even if it may not look like it. So the irony of the original comment was well placed

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

@@GRtogetaBIC I'm not taking the video presenter's word for it. Far more likely he got that detail wrong. A rushed labor intensive product doesn't come out more polished and detailed than a product that took more time to produce and refine.

[@vicdelta31415]

If the cat concerto was indeed rushed then it more than deserved the Oscar as even the piano playing animation is accurate in most parts of the cartoon except when it is animated for gags.

[@claudiu7909]

If I recall correctly, the key presses in the cat concerto are accurate to the song. Maybe someone in the comments who does piano can confirm this.

[@keyaunna.]

that is correct!!

[@beatlecristian]

You are correct. The piano at the beginning is animated correctly.

[@Gamemaster-64]

Just search piano are never animated correctly.

[@sofi4495]

Can confirm. I was surprised as a kid and i still am

[@FenceThis]

Considering grand pianos have 7+ octaves and the keyboard in the cat concerto displays about 4, as well as Tom having but 4 ‘fingers’, a lot must be quite off

[@stardogbillionaire]

The Cat Concerto is without a doubt a better cartoon and kudos to the Oscars for being able to recognize it. Compare the fluidity in Tom's movements as he plays the piano. It's beautiful and makes the Bugs Bunny cartoon look cheaper.

[@solandri69]

Tom is actually animated playing the correct notes in the opening of the piece. Nice attention to detail by the animators. Bugs not only plays the wrong notes in the opening, but some of them are backwards (lower note animated as him pressing a higher key).

[@fictionalmediabully9830]

MGM cartoons, on average, had higher budgets than Warner Bros. cartoons, even in the 1950s. As such, animation tended to be more fluid and less reliant on deliberate posing. That's not a knock against Looney Tunes. They still had high budgets, and the more deliberate direction led to some of the sharpest storyboarding and comedy to grace media. Chuck Jones, especially, was a master at this.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@solandri69 Tom would have been rotoscoped though from someone actually playing the correct notes more than likely. (Especially as Tom is basically a human body in a suit but with Toms head stuck on the top) So it would be correct anyway just on that basis rather than they actually taking time to animate him playing the exact same notes out of choice.

[@juanausensi499]

@@obiwankenobi687 Actually, rotoscoping takes more time and effort that just animation.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@juanausensi499 I’ve done a ton of rotoscoping I agree it’s loads of effort. But I’m just saying that’s how Tom ends up playing the right notes. When I say ‘take the time to animate him’ I mean it as in people thinking the animators have sat there and really made sure that Tom is playing the exact same notes for realism and that extra detail for people and deliberately made sure all the right notes are being played when really they wouldn’t be thinking about that, it’s just a natural consequence of rotoscoping. A bit like all the realistic expressions the old Disney princesses used to make but again, that was just a lucky consequence of rotoscoping

[@ukrainiansturgeon8561]

Tom and Jerry did the short better. It only makes more sense for Tom to be annoyed by Jerry rather than Bugs being annoyed by a random mouse.

[@bbcringegaming]

Exactly!

[@toyohimeyeswatatsuki6917]

Tom definitely know who Jerry is and know that He would ruin his show (Bugs doesn't even know that Mouse)

[@kootunesscrewy]

Even then, I think both shorts are a bit weak compared to their other best shorts.

[@theULTIMATElife50]

My guess is that someone who worked for both of the animation teams pitched the idea for the short to both companies separately before production began and both companies shelved the idea for later with everybody forgetting who first came up with the idea first.

[@braydengraves4655]

That's actually what happened with A Bug's Life and Antz, so that might be possible, especially given that neither company accused the other.

[@juanausensi499]

I also think that's the most plausible explanation.

[@captainnoob4]

Possible. If I remember correctly Tex Avery went from WB to Hannah Barbara. Not saying it was him, but how many animators and writers bounced between companies?

[@gabzy3264]

@@braydengraves4655 must also be the reason why 2023 is the year of the pinocchio movies. i thinks it's studios spying/having insiders

[@freezasama5802]

@@braydengraves4655 no Jeffery PURPOSELY copied a bug's life and Emperor's new groove and created his own spinoffs by stealing the ideas and the artwork and he made sure their movies came out FIRST before Disney which where road to el dorado which stole direct artwork cells from emperors new groove and Antz so Katzenburg stole everything on purpose

[@El_Bellota]

I had no idea the cat concerto won an Oscar. Tbh it's more than deserved, I watch it a couple of times a year when I'm reminded of it's existence. It uses Hungarian Rhapsody N°2 in a really creative way that actually progresses the narrative coherently. Just like the actual piece it starts slow building up till it gets to "friska" with the most chaos happening on screen, then all culminating in a grand finale, that's exactly how I imagine any pianist would end up playing the piece. Thanks for the video man, I love learning about beloved cartoons I watched as a kid ♥️

[@Marbles471]

The really remarkable thing about this whole story is that even though the two cartoons have the exact same premise, they don't have a single gag in common. Not one. Apart from the premise, they're both completely different from each other. That's one of the reasons both cartoons are so great on their own.

[@dannydaniel1904]

Youre joking right? They have multiple gags that are the same. The mouse trap? The little mice rolling up and down the inside of the piano? One of the studios without a doubt ripped off the other, or they both had to have ripped off from one source.

[@Marbles471]

@@dannydaniel1904 The mouse trap gag is just about the only case of overlap, and even that doesn't really cut it as the trap isn't even used the same way. In one, it's the pianst using it against the mouse, in the other it's reversed.

[@wrath4452]

@@dannydaniel1904 ah yes. TWO FUCKING GAGS. THAT is TOTALLY something to be mad about -_-

[@conndor2753]

Don't forget the tongue in cheek jokes about the player's fidgeting of clothing. For example, Tom's tux flaps, and Bugs Bunny's gloves, and that's the beginning of the cartoon.

[@aikamatsunaga1678]

The thing is.... They are both Warner Bros. Productions.

[@Midknyte182]

Fun fact, in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Daffy and Donald Duck piano battle in a parody of these piano cartoon wars. Being that Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a crossover event for eternity, it’s still a nice little nod to the competitiveness of studios back then!

[@KadenzJade6447]

I remember when I was younger I saw these two simultaneously-almost-in-sync play on TV, with the Looney Tunes being in the MGM channel, and the Tom and Jerry being in Cartoon Network. This was the most mind boggling thing I ever witnessed on TV

[@jonathanadair6847]

It is also believed that the cartoon “A Feather In His Hare” was delayed so that “Rhapsody Rabbit” could be completed first.

[@toonraider123]

The plot thickens... thanks for sharing that 🙏

[@larrymovies]

I do know this, according to my good friend Ray Patterson (long time Tom and Jerry animator now passed away), the animators from the different studios, would sneak their reels into a theater and together and screen each other's cartoons together before release. After this Bugs, and Tom and Jerry fiasco, the execs, including Bill Hanna and Joe Barbara (whom I worked for) put a stop to the before release screenings from that point on.

[@BBWahoo]

RIP Ray

[@qpSubZeroqp]

RIP Ray

[@qpSubZeroqp]

Thank you for sharing

[@gilition]

Great video. I'm glad to see a more researched video has been brought to light on the situation. Even The Merrie history of Looney Tunes documentary just said "The court ruled it was a pure coincidence". One thing I think Eric Goldberg pointed out that I think should have been mentioned here is how different the cartoons are in terms of their gags to the music and animation. Tom's piano playing is very realistic whereas Bugs Bunny's is more cartoony.

[@conndor2753]

That's also a good point. I will give Tom and Jerry credit for actually giving a damn about accuracy.... to a certain point.

[@gilition]

@@conndor2753 what do you mean by accuracy?

[@AlyssaNguyen]

It's explained in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p3yYfoqBhaihbtE

[@finchcarvingadiamond]

Maybe it was easier to animate directly off of live footage since the Tom & Jerry one had less production time? Why the rush is my question...

[@gilition]

@@finchcarvingadiamond nothing was rotoscoped. It would have taken more time to rotoscope something than just a hand animate it. It was rushed so it could be out in time to compete with the academy awards.

[@apotato3263]

I always thought that it was just a joke but the fact that it is a coincidence makes it funnier

[@sun1goldn]

What's more funny is believing it is a coincidence.

[@pickle93]

​@@sun1goldn yes this was not a coincidence i personally think looney toones plagirised cat concerto as why only in This episode a random mouse appeared i would understand on tom and jerry but on bugs bunny really? It seems to similar to tom and jerry it was also the "rushed" one this is kinda looking like plagirism

[@loopydooby]

I'm so happy that the Nostalgia Critic recommended this channel. Your content is a goldmine. Keep it up!

[@toonraider123]

Thank you so much, great to have you here! 😊 🙏

[@GroverKent]

Since when does Nostalgia Critic recommend other channels that aren't Channel Awesome? (And not himself)?

[@acoolcat.]

I'm so glad this video reached the algorithm! Your stuff seems really promising, excited for what's next. Glad to have someone else to listen to while I work

[@toonraider123]

It's really kind of you to say so, I'm so glad you're enjoying the videos and thank you for your support! 🙃 Next video will be out in time for Christmas, stay tooned! 🥳

[@porculizador]

Bugs Bunny was one of my favorite cartoons, but those Tom & Jerry cartoons were at their peak: best animators, best jokes, and best deliveries... Nothing was as good as the golden age of Tom & Jerry

[@YoursTrulyThe1Pony]

I still say The Cat Concerto did it better.

[@SvenElven]

MGM cartoons always had a higher budget, and it shows. Even though this piece was supposedly «rushed»..

[@qxillanote9952]

Who’s here from Nostalgia Critic?

[@tristanjohns5288]

Ive read the inverse that the Bugs toon was rushed when T&J was screened at Warner by mistake due to the technicolor mishandling of the prints. I didnt know that the song was featured in all those previous toons nor the Woody cartoon also came out that same year. Likely we will never learn the truth given how long its been. However T&J is the better toon even though I prefer some of the gags in Bugs'. I would like to see a mash up of the best bits. I would say out of the choices here, Cat Concerto is the best choice for the academy winner but I can think of at least 4 cartoons (Donald's Double Trouble, A Knight for a Knight, The Big Snooze, The Great Piggy Bank Robbery) as being just as not being just more enjoyable IMO but arguably just as qualified for a nomination. Makes one wonder what some of the people making the submissions were thinking.

[@toonraider123]

Those are some truly great cartoons you mentioned there. 🔥🏆 Thanks for watching! 🙏😊

[@stoogefest16]

The Great Piggy Bank Robbery in particular. That was a tour-de-force for Bob Clampett. I was floored by its ingenuity when I saw it as a kid.

[@kennetheaton1728]

On the mashup idea, perhaps it could be like the Daffy Duck versus Donald Duck bit in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" with both characters and both mice sharing a stage?

[@cyberwood2004]

Hollywood has liked gypsy music for years. Rhapsody #2 is also the tune to Danny Kaye's singing in The Inspector General. Brahms' Hungarian Dance #5 occurs through the 40s and 50s in cartoons, movies and television

[@vitor900000]

One thing that people never mention is that Woody Woodpecker did a full short around the Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in 1954 named "Convict Concerto". They probable did it to both mock the originals and ride on their success.

[@shawntahopkins1529]

Surprised there was no lawsuit.

[@JasonMitchellofcompsci]

The fact that plagiarism had to have occurred and both were willing to chalk it up to cohencidence in the end tells you the likely story was that corporate espionage was prevalent and neither side wanted to dig into all the accusations that could spread there. Everyone wanted to stay ahead of the curve technically and they were both doing what was the forefront of technology at the time. That's like asking Facebook or Google to not catch wind of their latest AI techniques. Of course that's going to filter over to them considering people in a profession talk and change jobs, but each would love it to filter over to them quicker. That or they were both outsourcing concept generation and drafting and someone double dipped selling their concepts. Maybe that's why they didn't want the public to dig too much into it. What happened to that guy?

[@cessnaace]

My personal belief is that The Cat Concerto is a better made cartoon over Rhapsody Rabbit. The animation flows better and there are no short cuts to make the animation match the music as with Rhapsody Rabbit. Rhapsody Rabbit hit theaters 5 months ahead of The Cat Concerto. I've seen both countless times and to me The Cat Concerto is obviously the more polished cartoon.

[@ErichoTTA]

Chuck Jones didn't actually like Tom and Jerry and wasn't on good terms with MGM. Now, it wasn't him, but Friz Freleng who made this short, but I think this is still worth mentioning.

[@Julayla]

Another ironic thing is...when I look at the piano playing in both Cat Concerto and Rhapsody Rabbit, the former shows that somehow in some way, they drew Tom actually playing the correct keys in details.

[@vincentfranklin17]

I will say this.. Rhapsody Rabbit is one of Friz Freleng's best musical cartoons, and definitely one of his best Bugs Bunny shorts!

[@bazdaniels7420]

Wow, this immediately solved a long-time mystery for me! I've always been wondering why I seem to remember Jerry running around under the keys while Bugs plays that Hungarian Rhapsody tune?! Bugs playing the piano with a mouse in the keys is probably the most memorable single cartoon episode for me as I've never seen it since childhood and still remember it quite often. But now I know it must be partly thanks to having a Tom & Jerry version as well! It doubles down in my memory.

[@toonraider123]

Glad to hear it! Thanks for watching 🙏

[@eddache]

Super interesting! Great work!

[@toonraider123]

Thank you very much! 😊🙏

[@RayfieldA]

As a child, I saw both of these shorts dozens of times. Personally, I love Tom and Jerry's take the most but both are partly why I grew up playing piano by ear.

[@ivorytoast9171]

Great video. I've read up on this controversy but from what I can tell you are the first to actually make a video about it. Please keep these coming!

[@claudiu7909]

Actually, I've seen a video about this about a year or two ago so it's not the first, but it's still good.

[@lycanthis9963]

So the T&J one was rushed but still had accurate piano animation?

[@mr.incognitoyt2235]

Bugs` was more likely rushed. T&J wasn't.

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

Yeah, sounds like he got that mixed up. Looks like the Bugs cartoon was rushed.

[@lycanthis9963]

@@Eidolon1andOnly Yeah, that's probably more likely.

[@Chaos89P]

Bugs has three lines in Rabbit Rhapsody: At one point he sings "Figaro, Figaro, Figaro," another time a phone rings in the piano with somebody unheard asking for a Franz Liszt with Bugs saying that he never heard of such a person, and the last voiced gag had Bugs playing with one hand and then no hands.

[@WrestlingUniversesOTC]

I think that once WB got their hands on MGM’s pre-1986 library, along with Tom and Jerry’s animated shorts, that controversy was finally put to rest. The reason I say this is because both shorts are owned by Warner Bros Entertainment.

[@saturdaymorningfan3123]

Toon heads did a full 30min episode on this and also says the sent the wrong tape thing happened also. They think both were in the works at the same time happened also by the end. In the end it doesn't matter as wb now owns both of them! How ironic.

[@Lars-ze2xf]

I have to say... Tom and Jerry are better then Bugs. Because they can play it without Music sheet.

[@Aramyx]

Maybe it was a dare from the directors, who could do this storyline better.

[@tovarischkrasnyjeshi]

Rhapsody Rabbit being the first thing to air on Cartoon Network is also noteworthy because Cartoon Network was basically the Hanna Barbara reruns Network at first, with that company having been founded by the directors of the Cat Concerto.

[@-JohnDoe-]

The Tom and Jerry one was generally more enjoyable, so it deserved its medal. The slapstick was more natural to a T&J cartoon and the ending with Tom completely deflating was hilarious.

[@sergiolobato1798]

Also, remember that after the big animators strike of 1941, many animators switched studios and shared their knowledge and techniques more freely than in previous years!

[@djUsurper]

Do you think if the Bugs version had been shown to the audience first they would have won with the audience thinking T&J was the imitation? Or is the T&J one clearly better?

[@toonraider123]

Personally, I think T&J was the better short. But I'm sure it would've made a difference if Rhapsody Rabbit was shown first, at the very least it would've been nominated. Great question though, sadly we'll never know the answer...

[@RayPointerChannel]

No because the introduction of the mouse with Bugs Bunny "appears" to be an imitation of the Tom and Jerry premise, which is natural in THE CAT CONCERTO no matter which cartoon came first.

[@RayPointerChannel]

It's hard to say since RHAPSODY RABBIT is a Tom and Jerry situation. Regardless of which cartoon would have been shown first, the decision would have to be made based on which was the better execution of the same premise. The question is exactly how the MGM cartoon got first showing. Chances are studio politics since L.B. Mayer was one of the founders of The Academy.

[@lukepurser3432]

Anyone lelse here because of nostalgia critic?

[@playGEMJI]

00:00 - Introduction 01:26 - Golden Age of Animation 02:21 - 1947 Academy Awards 04:05 - Plagiarism or coincidence? 05:48 - Theories and explanations 08:30 - Hungarian Rhapsody in cartoons 10:15 - Conclusion

[@sim.frischh9781]

Given that nobody accused the other of stealing, we have to assume both works were genuine originals. I for my part like to consider this as a case of "convergent evolution" in animation art, possibly triggered by the music piece as it lends itself perfectly to what they made with it. After al in this case, the video follows the sound, not vice versa. Of course i can be completely off.

[@tsntana]

In Roger Rabbit, it should have been Bugs Bunny and Tom.

[@Bingo_the_Pug]

“Animation is built off of plagiarism.” - The Simpsons

[@OrangeHand]

"Huckleberry Hound, Chief Wiggum, Yogi Bear..." (Wiggum turns his head)

[@kc4cvh]

I've seen all three and I believe Convict Concerto (1954, Universal) has the best performance of Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody #2 by an animated pianist. In fact, it is among the very few Walter Lantz animated short subjects I like and I think the fantasy backdrop elevates it above the others.

[@SkiKoala]

The Looney Tunes version would have been better with Porky and Daffy.

[@gamemasteranthony2756]

"Hungarian Rhapsody #2 by Hanz Liszt" I always forget what that song is called. Thank you for reminding me! Of course, let's be honest...it will always be known as "that song they play in cartoons" and not much else.

[@maciekur]

Who is here afrer Nostalgia's Critics video? :)

[@JaredGriffiths2000]

Me

[@draconusfrigidus]

Here's a related subject: "Barber of Seville" recitals. Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes both did the premise of a singer performing the "Largo al factotum" (aka "Figaro's Aria") piece while being constantly interrupted by someone they've ticked off. The two versions were slightly more varied in that the T&J one was just their usual hijinks, while the Looney Tunes one focused on a stage magician who got turned down for a gig due to the theatre being reserved for the opera singer, and got their own back by 'adding' to the singer's performance with magic tricks. I'm curious if both originated in a similar manner to the Hungarian Rhapsody shorts.

[@mralabbad7]

Playing piano, same song, mouse lives inside, same plot and ending, same production time. Someone copied someone 100% and the one that's not doing their usual thing is looking way more sus.

[@vincentfranklin17]

I love both shorts, but The Cat Concerto makes a bit more sense.

[@Damien.D]

Wonder if this story inspired the piano duel in "who framed Roger Rabbit?"

[@keyaunna.]

i personally love the tom and jerry cartoon lore, since almost every single note was animated to pure perfection and similarity to the music sheet for the piece. its one of my favourite cartoons of all time for that dedication.

[@goddessdeedeebubblesofimag7789]

Lore? I mean, yes, T&J has some lore, but is that a typo in this context?

[@VampireA1056]

I liked the Bugs Bunny version better because it had Bugs shoot a guy just for coughing.

[@briannawallace4085]

It reminded me of Pink Plunk Plink when Big Nose shot a guy in the audience for coughing too

[@VampireA1056]

@@briannawallace4085 yeah but for some reason, I didn't find that one very funny compared to this one. Probably because Bugs looked much more annoyed, the coughing was more obnoxious and because it was so out of character for Bugs to an extent.

[@briannawallace4085]

@@VampireA1056 that makes sense

[@Stu-UgrzExtras1921]

Honestly, I actually prefer "Rapsody Rabbit" to "the Cat Concerto", this is because Bugs, while a bit out of character, was clearly antagonistic and was very unprofessional with his performance, so it felt like he deserved comeuppance. While in " The Cat Concerto", I felt that Jerry was too antagonistic, and Tom just wanted to take his performance seriously, which wasn't super enjoyable for me to watch. I still like both cartoons though.

[@MoKassama]

Who is here from Channel Awesome?

[@fictionalmediabully9830]

Cat Concerto was a favourite of mine as a kid. That was the point Tom & Jerry became my favourite cartoon duo.

[@martinmcneal2778]

At least they animated Tom properly on the piano, Bugs didn't even hit the right keys

[@gadget00]

I do believe there was plagiarism from MGM copying WB and doing it better, but WB decided to let it slide because suing each other would have uncovered all the years of corporate espionage and effectively ruin their industry. It was a smart move to just let it slide for the common good. Also it is quite interesting that the following year WB immediately won the Oscar in the same category; feels like a payback for the mess, mafia style

[@JakeSFriedman]

Hungarian Rhapsody is also used in at least 2 more animated films - MGM's "An Optical Poem" (1938) and Fleischer's "Bimbo's Initiation" (1931)

[@pauIo1179]

Dont forget Woody Woodpecker! kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIOViZJ3i51lqrs

[@briansammond7801]

Hungarian rhapsody is used in dozens if not hundreds more animated films. Here is a brief compilation of some of them kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5_YmodmaL-Aq8k here is another with more kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5isamarft2chbs

[@Dhips.]

@@briansammond7801 It really is a case of "everyone loves this song" and won't care if they hear it to a few dozen cartoons or movies.

[@ritaandrunt5767]

I can't believe I'm just now noticing and realizing that there was an controversy between these two cartoons

[@sparking023]

Wow, didn't know there was such a beef between the animation studios. It's impressive how esteemed animations were back then. Also, Tom did the superior performance, they animated the piano accurately

[@lumi_project]

there wasnt beef between them, they never accused each other of plagiarism its the fans that does (just like any other form of entertainment)

[@Rhythmicons]

Even more interesting is the role of minstrelsy in the development of American animation.

[@scitails]

Ah yes, Bugs' recurring enemy: a random mouse.

[@mikelightley5275]

Thank you once again for a well-researched piece of unknown animation history. I suppose a mouse could be living in a piano - but - did Buggs Bunny ever interact with other mice or other "co-stars" apart from Elmer Fudd on a regular basis? I wonder also if Buggs Bunny wasn't their attempt in a doing a T&J-wannabe animation in the hope of winning the Oscar? It's also interesting that the two directors never had a slanging match - were they confident in their own honesty and that there was no skulduggery? I would like to think so.

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

Or ... did the two directors privately agree to each make a cartoon based on the same premise and see what would happen?

[@goldenage]

Either way, theyre both great cartoons. I Think Bug's has better humor, while Tom&Jerry's is very clever. I think the scene with Donald and Daffy in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" is refrencing this drama.

[@rickrodstrom6903]

I read an interview once with Friz Freleng who named Rhapsody Rabbit as his favorite short that he ever directed. He didn't say anything about the controversy with Tom and Jerry. Friz was legendary for the timing of his gags, and I believe would use something akin to sheet music to help him, and so musical shorts were a natural for him, and he did several over the years.

[@Lilitha11]

I don't think anyone plagiarized anything, but I do suspect people from each company gossiped or talked to each other. The idea was probably pitched around and more than one person thought it was a good idea and took it to their company.

[@orangeapples]

I’m glad that towards the end you touched on how random cartoon characters playing piano was just a thing.

[@AllanElMelon1043]

Jerry is a Toms adversary that already existed before the Cat Concerto. The mouse in Rhapsody Rabbit is a one of new character made for that specific animation. Coupled with the fact Bugs is out of character. If someone copied someone else its clear who did.

[@danielharris9403]

Two pianists performing variations on a theme, as presented by rival animation teams. Genius idea.

[@bigdoubleu117]

It should be made apparent where I love both Tom and Jerry and Bugs Bunny... But I'm only familiar with the Tom and Jerry version.

[@superluigiac]

Excellent video! By looking at the thumbnail, i suddenly realized "wait, yeah! They are similar". Never knew they competed with each other.

[@MrXziper]

Great video! The two cartoons being super similar was something that always kind of blew past me as a kid. I didn't think about it until much later on, and was super confused by it. I agree that Tom and Jerry is a much better fit for the concept though. Like, where did that mouse from Loony Tunes comes from? I can absolutely see why it was believed Merry Melodies plagiarized. It's still a little hard to believe it's just a coincidence though.

[@wingedhand2525]

Finally! This has been a question that had been bugging me for years. Both are masterpieces but I have more fond memories of the T&J one and I saw the Bugs Bunny one significantly less for some reason. So basically it was an accident that evolved into a coincidence lol what a crazy world.

[@XDRosenheim]

> [Tom and Jerry] was rushed, whilst [Bugs Bunny] was not. And it really shows in the animation. In Tom and Jerry, you will almost never see a single limb moving around, but the whole body is animated. A lot of the animations in the Bugs Bunny cartoon, you will see just the arms/legs moving, whilst the rest of the body is completely still.

[@gregwilliams4926]

Wow this is an interesting discussion randomly recommended me. Personally the cat and mouse duo is way more fitting. Bugs randomly having the same plot with a mouse is weird, its not even someone we know like Tweety. I know he did the same with a turtle but its way off. It has a hilariously dark opening but I'd say the cat concerto is way more fitting.

[@toonraider123]

I'm glad you found it (or it found you) and thanks for the feedback! 🙏

[@atdynax]

It is kinda obvious why Tom and Jerry won. Tom is not cocky and evil he just wants to play the song, while Bugs has a sassy evil attitude. Also the voice acting was not neccessary. Additionally the fact that Tom already had Jerry made it more familiar while the mose had to be introduced to bugs.

[@cibby6155]

Good to see many in agreement that the win deserved to go to Cat Concerto.

[@airtioteclint]

There's a third person the public is unaware of. He approached and sold his story to both sides. He doubled his cash and knew neither MGM nor WB would admit that it wasn't their creation after all. it was the perfect scam.

[@bryede]

Gotta wonder if two animators from the studios might have spoken to each other beforehand and inadvertently sparked the same idea.

[@criticaldrive97]

I think this is most likely what happened -Rhapsody Rabbit is written first which is why it was further in production -Details are sent to Barbera accidentally -Barbara were coincidentally working on a similar project and begin rushing to get theirs out first -The Bugs Bunny short is rushed as well as they know their rivals are doing the same -Unfitting elements are placed into the bugs project to rush it out -The Tom and Jerry short may have taken the same song as Rhapsody also out of the rush -Both premier their short hoping their rival either weren't finished or were being aired after them -Neither accuses the other of plagiarism as they both know neither directly stole from the other

[@jeezuhskriste5759]

My theory is someone else entirely came up with the idea for the short, and brought it to both studios, maybe through an employee who wanted to make it seem like it was their idea and didn’t mention they got it from someone else. Both studios greenlit it, and so we end up with two episodes that have the exact same idea behind them.

[@laurababyyy1]

By the way,I hate how Bugs is a dickhead in rhapsody rabbit,he shoots a man for coughing,eats a carrot in performance,answers a distracting phone call,and even a mouse manages to best him,meanwhile,Tom is respectful,doesn’t annoy any people,and even gets applauded for his superb performance,which Jerry took credit for.It’s such a awful portrayal of Bugs,and makes him out to be this arrogant bully,instead of a calm,witty trickster.

[@michaeldemers2716]

Something similar happened to me in middle school. I was a grade ahead of a kid that won and I was accused of cheating after it was over but nothing was done. The funny thing was mine was a package of dental floss saying "We make a great couple don't we." With the string making a heart hugging a tooth. The younger kid on my bus did the same wording but with two dental floss's making a heart with their string. Another funny thing was my class had to have their work in a whole week before that kid even was given the assignment.

[@UnholyWrath3277]

The most important thing is we remember bugs is always strapped

[@MrSHURIKENCHO]

The fact of the matter is - Tom and Jerry was always about a cat and a mouse and one fucking with the other. I fail to think of another instance of a mouse fucking with Bugs Bunny in a similar way. It is out of character for Bugs to be the but of the joke.

[@bigoldinosaur]

The Nostalgia Critic brought me here.

[@dominichazell7862]

Rhapsody number 2 seems to have the type of tempo that is perfect for any crazy cartoon so no wonder it’s been used so much. It would be a much different cartoon if it was Boccherini String Quintet.

[@sdseals2076]

Why would Bugs be fighting a mouse? It doesn't make sense.

[@DrawciaGleam02]

I remember this debacle being mentioned on a featurette from a Tom and Jerry collection!!! 😆😆

[@awesomereviews1561]

From conception it makes a lot more sense that Tom and Jerry is the original one.

[@Grim2]

Production may have started at same time, but that doesn't mean pre-production did as well (that's the stage at which the story is conceived).

[@TheDealMaster]

What an absolutely interesting topic for a video (of which I wasn't aware of). Thanks a lot for making this!

[@Hippienolic2]

My theory is 2 rouge employees, one from each studio, had a contest to see which one could create a better cartoon when given the same story board