On October 11, 1960, ABC debuted the prime-time television program The Bugs Bunny Show. The show was developed for television after ABC President Ollie Treyz learned that WGN Chicago enjoyed ratings success by airing Bugs Bunny cartoons in prime-time. ABC promptly purchased all Warner Brothers theatrical cartoons that had not yet been released for TV and packaged them into a half-hour program with new introductions and transitions by the Warner Brothers characters. While still airing in primetime, an A.M. version began airing on ABC on April 7, 1962 - the program generations of children would come to equate with Saturday mornings.
The shorts within the show were never intended to solely appeal to kids, though. The Warner Brothers cartoons were created for theatrical release as entertainment before the main film began, not as sketches for a children's television program. Kids and adults have been loving them for decades now.
The Bugs Bunny Show changed format and exact title frequently, but remained on network television for 40 years. It ran in primetime through September 25, 1962 on ABC Tuesday nights from 7:30-8:00pm. The Saturday morning show, known as The Bugs Bunny Show, The Bugs Bunny-Roadrunner Show, The Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes Comedy Hour, and The Bugs Bunny & Tweety Show, ran on ABC from 1962-68 (on Sunday mornings during the final year), on CBS from 1968-73, back on ABC from 1973-75, again on CBS from 1975-85, and once more on ABC from 1985-2000. Mel Blanc did all of the original voices, and Chuck Jones animated and created several of the legendary Warner Brothers characters.
Bugs got an afternoon show on the WB from 1996-98 (Bugs 'n' Daffy), but is no longer a part of the Saturday morning cartoon block on network television. Cartoon Network now owns the rights to the Looney Toons/Merrie Melodies library and Bugs and friends can still be seen there.
That's all, Folks!
