Mel Blanc gave Bugs Bunny his voice and attitude, but it was animator Bob Givens who created the wily wascal's wiseacre mug and rubber-limbed physique.
Givens got that job in 1940, shortly after coming over to Warner Bros. studios from Walt Disney. Bugs had already appeared in a couple of cartoons, but no one was really happy with the character line. They wanted less cute and more con-man, which Givens supplied for the 1940 short A Wild Hare. He had also brought Elmer Fudd to a look much more familiar to us today.
Givens passed away this week at the age of 99. Bugs is still with us and may indeed wind up being immortal -- which means that in a way, Bob Givens will be too.
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