Celebrating the Year of the Rabbit: Disney Style!
January 22 marked the Lunar New Year, ushering us into the Year of the Rabbit. The fourth of the 12 zodiac animals, the Year of the Rabbit symbolizes, “longevity, positivity, auspiciousness, wittiness, cautiousness, cleverness, deftness and self-protection” according to Dottie Li, cross-cultural expert and the voice of Rosetta Stone’s Mandarin products.
To celebrate this new year, let’s take a look at some classic Disney rabbits!
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit
Before the Mouse, there was a Rabbit. Oswald the Lucky Rabbit to be specific. After the success of the “Alice Comedies,” Disney was looking for a new character. With a plethora of famous cats already in existence (such as Felix the Cat, and Krazy Kat), the studio was looking for a different type of animal to set them apart.
Created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks, Oswald starred in 27 short films for Disney before the rights were lost to Charles Mintz and Universal. In the shorts, Walt described him as, “peppy, alert, saucy and venturesome.” An everyman type character who constantly found himself in some sort of trouble, he was a bit like Charlie Chaplin’s “Tramp” character.
Lucky for Disney fans everywhere, the company regained proprietary rights to Oswald in 2006.
The March Hare (Alice in Wonderland)
Okay. We could quibble about the difference between a rabbit and a hare but look…they’re in the same family. So, I’m counting the March Hare.
Originally voiced by the legendary comedian Jerry Colonna (perhaps best known for his work with Bob Hope) the March Hare made his first Disney appearance in 1951’s Alice in Wonderland. His madcap antics at the tea party (alongside the Mad Hatter) cemented his place in Disney history. Since then, he’s appeared in numerous Disney projects, including a recurring role in the Disney Afternoon series Bonkers.
The White Rabbit (Alice in Wonderland)
Alice in Wonderland garners two entries on our list, because it just wouldn’t be right to leave the White Rabbit out. After all, if he hadn’t been “late for a very important date” Alice may never have ended up in Wonderland.
Actor Bill Thompson provided his voice. In addition to a number of Disney roles (like Mr. Smee from Peter Pan and J. Audubon Woodlore in the Humphrey the Bear shorts), Thompson was the voice of Droopy in MGM’s theatrical shorts.
Rabbit (The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh)
While he may not have been the most imaginatively named of A.A. Milne’s beloved characters, the plain, sensible name is a perfect match for his character. As one of the residents of the Hundred Acre Wood, Rabbit is perpetually exasperated by Pooh’s voracious appetite and Tigger’s perpetual bouncing.
Junius Matthews provided Rabbit’s voice from 1966 through 1977. Prior to the role, Matthews performed the role of the owl Archimedes in Disney’s 1963 animated feature The Sword in the Stone.
Fans of the long running British sci-fi series “Doctor Who” may be interested to know that Peter Capaldi (the 12th incarnation of the Doctor) provided the voice of Rabbit in the 2018 live-action film Christopher Robin.
Roger Rabbit (Who Framed Roger Rabbit?)
While most fans immediately think of Disney’s 1988 hit Who Framed Roger Rabbit? when this lovable toon is discussed, he actually emerged on the scene seven years earlier as part of Gary K. Wolf’s novel “Who Censored Roger Rabbit?” Sadly, that version of Roger is murdered in the story.
Disney’s changed the story upon making it a film, and critics and audiences fell in love with the results. The movie won four Academy Awards and a slew of other honors. It also generated an attraction (Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin) at Disneyland’s Toontown.
Thumper (Bambi)
Bambi’s best friend, Thumper is an adorable little rabbit who DOES NOT care for eating his greens. One of the central characters in Disney’s 1942 masterpiece Bambi, Thumper was originally envisioned as a fairly minor role. Luckily, animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston recognized his potential and pushed for him to play a bigger part in the story.
Alas, a planned cartoon, known as Thumper’s Thicket, never came to fruition, but was originally conceived as part of the Disney Afternoon (the greatest block of programming in television history).
Judy Hopps (Zootopia)
When Zootopia was in production, Officer Judy Hopps was not envisioned as the primary protagonist. That honor was meant to fall on Nick Wilde, the smooth talking, con-man fox voiced by Jason Bateman. But it seems test audiences preferred Hopps, and she was made the star.
Ginnifer Goodwin, who portrayed Snow White in the ABC television series “Once Upon a Time,” played the part of Hopps, the country rabbit who dreams of becoming an officer in the big city of Zootopia. Other Disney work for Goodwin includes playing Fawn in Tinkerbell and the Legend of the Neverbeast, and Gwen in the Sofia the First series.
Max Hare (Silly Symphonies)
We’re offering up a deep cut here. Max Hare is the primary antagonist in the 1935 Silly Symphony The Tortoise and the Hare (which won an Academy Award), as well as the 1936 short Toby Tortoise Returns. An arrogant, preening heel, Max came to life thanks to a spot-on performance by Ned Norton.
There is some speculation that Max served as inspiration for the character of Bugs Bunny, who made his first official appearance in the 1940 short A Wild Hare.
The Rabbit Family (Robin Hood)
Mother Rabbit. Skippy. Tagalong. Sis. The family of rabbits in Disney’s 1973 film Robin Hood have got to be some of the most endearing characters on our list. How can you not love Tagalong and her adorable stuffed animal? Or the boyish charm of Skippy?
As a matter of interest, the voices of Tagalong and Skippy were provided by real life brother and sister Dori and Billy Whitaker.
Bean Bunny
It is a truth universally accepted that, when presented with the opportunity, I will shoehorn a Muppet into a list. This is no exception.
Bean Bunny made his first appearance in the 1986 special The Tale of the Bunny Picnic before joining the cast of The Jim Henson hour. He also featured in The Muppets at Walt Disney World (an episode of The Magical World of Disney) and plays a major role in the Muppet*Vision 3D attraction (where he appears in Animatronic form).
Oh, and despite what the other Muppets may say, ‘cute’ is not his middle name. It’s Norman.
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