To Beep or Not to Beep (1963) User Reviews

Very good

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 22 November 2013]

Very good and thoroughly enjoyable Roadrunner-Wile E.Coyote cartoon, one of their better ones of the 60s in my view. It is not all that surprising as to how it ends(the story is also a fairly formulaic one in the first place), then again the Roadrunner-Coyote series are not about the stories strictly speaking but about the quality of the gags. You do miss Coyote's looks to the camera, which were kind of breaking-the-fourth-wall-without-a-word, and despite the clever overhead shot and with the cactus the falling down the cliff gag has been done to death. The animation has been more detailed before, budget constraints perhaps, but the colours are still really lovely and the drawings and backgrounds are well-rendered. In short, well-done animation considering any potential constraints but not great animation. Bill Lava's music is rousingly orchestrated and has a lot of life and isn't repetitive, his work hasn't always worked in the Speedy cartoons but it works wonderfully here and couldn't be more evident in the final gag. The gags are consistent in how funny they are, the wrecking ball and noose gags do provoke a lot of laughs but the highlight is absolutely Coyote's attempts with a boulder and catapult, as has been noted previously instead of moving on to different methods of catching the Roadrunner it was nice to see Coyote making numerous attempts doing the same thing. And even more importantly, the gag isn't just funny, it's hilarious, the last part of it especially. Roadrunner is good, but Coyote has always been the more interesting and funniest of the two and as always he is sly and amusing, but we also feel pangs of sympathy too. To conclude, a very good Roadrunner-Wile E.Coyote cartoon and one of their better outings of the 60s. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox

An original-sounding cheater

[fayremead · 8/10 · 1 March 2007]

Here is one of three Road Runner shorts whose footage was first used in the two-reel "Adventures of the Road Runner" (1962). The other two, "Roadrunner a Go-Go" and "Zip Zip Hooray," were released in 1965. They feature a verbose Wile E. Coyote and music by Milt Franklyn. "To Beep or Not to Beep" plays more like a typical RR short in which the Coyote utters no sentence. His only vocalization is a long yell of agony which happens after a spiny cactus tree lands on him.

The "Adventures" gags have a whole new soundtrack here, courtesy of musician Bill Lava and editor Treg Brown (who handled the sound effects). Lava's mechanical style works especially well in the wrecking ball and catapult gags, and no other cartoon score from him sounds as robust. The strong director's hand of Chuck Jones is so evident aurally and visually that the film comes across as one of Warner's best post-1960 cartoon shorts.

-Tony

Fantastic

[utgard14 · 8/10 · 29 September 2015]

A classic Road Runner & Wile E. Coyote short directed by Chuck Jones and Maurice Noble. Most of the material from this short was originally made as part of a Road Runner TV pilot. It's a very funny cartoon with some memorable layered gags that play off one another more than the usual Road Runner & Coyote cartoon that goes from one gag to another with little or no connection. The highlight of these gags is the final one involving Wile E. using different types of catapults with each one failing in hilariously different ways. The animation is excellent with nice, bright colors and great action. The energetic score from Bill Lava is quite possibly his best work on this series, for which he is known for producing some truly awful music. It's a fantastic short that, like another reviewer says, is probably the best Road Runner & Coyote short from the '60s.

Longer Gags Help Make This Fabulous

[ccthemovieman-1 · 10/10 · 19 May 2007]

First of all, I agree with others here: this is an outstanding Road Runner cartoon, maybe the best I've ever seen. It combines great color, great "camera" angles, clever stunts and a very funny Wile (at least his "yeeeeeowwwws!)

It begins peacefully with Wile reading a book. No wonder our favorite coyote is always after the Road-Runner. According to the "Western Cookery" book, "possibly the most delicious of all western game bird is the road-runner." The rest of it is the normal chase.

What's above normal are the two long gags. I've often said the best ones are those that are drawn out a bit longer. There is a super one in here involving a big metal spring and a boulder. It's one of the best and inventive sight gags I've ever witness on a RR cartoon. The other one, with the catapult is a bunch of little jokes all rolled into one with a surprise ending (regarding the company which built the device.)

Possibly the best Road Runner cartoon of the 1960s

[Antzy88 · 3 June 2002]

This entry into the Roadrunner series of cartoons which began in 1949 with 'Fast And Furry-ous' is one of my favourites. It runs along at a frenetic pace after the initial decision by Wile E Coyote to catch Roadrunner and eat him for lunch. As usual Wile never succeeds, but the ways he tries to do it are genius.

I mean, just how many times can you think of where using a giant catapult to hurl a boulder (in an attempt to squash the fleet little bird) has gone so hilariously wrong in so many different ways?

This cartoon rocks!

One of my all-time favorite cartoons.

[Greatlife675 · 10/10 · 5 October 2008]

"To Beep or Not to Beep" is one of my all-time favorite cartoon shorts, and possible my favorite of all the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote cartoons.

There is only one reason why I say so: the music. Now, people would say that Bill Lava's music keeps this far from perfect. I strongly disagree to those who think so. I think it is most wonderful, especially, and I mean, ESPECIALLY all of the music of the final catapult gag. (It gets better when it nears the end.) It's my favorite moment of one of my all-time favorite cartoons.

I first saw this on the Warner Home Video VHS release of "Warner Bros. Cartoons Golden Jubilee 24-Karat Collection: Road Runner vs. Wile E. Coyote: The Classic Chase" (Anyone else have this tape?) And while all the cartoons on it stuck inside my head for my entire life, this is the one that is probably the best of the pack, and probably the perfect way to end a video.

Warner's at it once again . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 12 June 2016]

. . . with its trademark eponymous warning to we Normal, Middle-Class, Blue-Collar Americans, epitomized by Wile E. Coyote in this 1960s animated short, TO BEEP OR NOT TO BEEP. (This cartoon was perhaps the deciding factor behind our U.S. Congress passing the "Lemon Law," which is occasionally nicknamed the "3 Strikes Statute:" It states, of course, that if three things break on your car during your first three months of ownership, your dealer MUST provide you with YOUR choice of a full refund OR a replacement vehicle of equal or greater value.) When Wile buys a catapult from Road Runner Manufacturing Co., it malfunctions SEVEN times, seriously injuring Mr. Coyote on each occasion. It turns out that RMC is importing defective foreign parts, with no regard for Consumer Safety. When Trump whines his way into the White House, he intends to squeeze the juice out of the Lemon Law, which a diverse judge has extended to Bogus "Universities." (That's why Donald always looks like he just bit into a lemon.)

If at first you don't succeed...

[griffin84 · 10/10 · 10 July 2008]

"To Beep or Not to Beep" is, without a doubt, my favorite Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner short, mostly because it's so different than any shorts proceeding or following it. As any geek will note, this is the only WEC/RR short that does not include a freeze-frame of the characters with their "latin" names, instead opening on our favorite coyote reading a cook book. In a way, the set-up could almost be used as the first WEC/RR short, because it gives the viewer a great visual start to the chase. Whether it's for the recipe for Road Runner Surprise in the cookbook, or revenge on the bird for startling him, Wile E. has found his prey.

The second thing that I love about this episode is the infamous catapult sequence. This is great because in most other WEC/RR shorts, Wile E. tries a tactic to catch the Road Runner, and when it fails, he moves on to the next one. Not so in this short: he keeps trying again and again with the catapult, hoping that the next time will work. If at first you don't succeed, try and try again. Of course, for the poor coyote, it doesn't matter how many times he tries. Fate has spelled it out nice and clean for him: NOT GONNA HAPPEN!

Be sure to pick up 'Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 3" and check out this short. You won't be disappointed.

Oh, and remember, when you buy a giant catapult, be sure to double-check who manufactured it... it could save your life.

catapults and stuff

[lee_eisenberg · 10/10 · 3 June 2007]

I remember that I first saw the catapult gags in the compilation movie "The Great American Chase" (more commonly known as "The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Chase Movie"). Now, I've finally gotten to see "To Beep or Not to Beep" in its entirety. The catapult scenes are the best, but there are other treats here too. Clearly, Wile Ethelbert* Coyote is a fanatic according to George Santayana's definition (redoubling your efforts after you've forgotten your aim), but he always comes just close enough to catching Road Runner so that he thinks that he'll succeed next time. One of the many classics, even if it doesn't give them fake scientific names.

*Yes, the E stands for Ethelbert.

Ugly and not funny. One of my least favourite Road Runner cartoons

[phantom_tollbooth · 3/10 · 9 January 2009]

Chuck Jones's 'To Beep or Not to Beep' is one of my least favourite Road Runner cartoons. My favourite thing about the Road Runner series isn't the gags (although they are frequently great) but the way in which they are so beautifully animated. The reactions of the Coyote and his fourth-wall-breaking relationship with the audience turn standard gags into great ones. 'To Beep or Not to Beep' is extraordinarily minimal in its animation and look and, frankly, its ugly. The few genuinely funny gags are underworked, grabbing their quick laughs and moving on. There's no hopeful or sly looks to camera from the Coyote, he simply gets on with the job in a workmanlike fashion, refusing to acknowledge our existence. The cartoon ends with an extended set of gags all based around the same catapult. These longer sequences would often make the Road Runner cartoons more interesting but, like everything else in 'To Beep or Not to Beep', the gags are just knocked out with no energy or flair. The final catapult gag experiments with prolonging the inevitable but, without the usual sense of Jones timing, when the inevitable arrives it's not funny. 'To Beep or Not to Beep' appeared late on in the Road Runner series and it almost feels like Jones is tired and can't be bothered to meet anything but the most minimal requirements. Financial constraints or a failed experiment are more likely reasons for the cartoon's atrocious visuals and pacing but, whichever way you look at it, 'To Beep or Not to Beep' is feeble.

"Yeeeeeooooowww!!!"

[slymusic · 20 September 2006]

"To Beep or Not to Beep" is one of the later Road Runner/Coyote cartoons from the early sixties, released shortly before the top brass at Warner Bros. decided to shut down its cartoon department. This particular cartoon is quite fun to watch, as we see the Coyote once again fouling up in every attempt to capture the ubiquitous Road Runner.

My favorite gags from "To Beep or Not to Beep" include the following (if you haven't yet seen this cartoon, don't read any further). One of the classic running gags of all the Road Runner/Coyote cartoons involves the Coyote's various catapult mishaps. On another occasion, the Coyote falls off a cliff in a typically hilarious overhead shot, followed by a falling saguaro cactus, after which the Coyote soars back in the air with a lengthy scream that increases in volume as he gets closer to the camera. And in another classic moment, the Coyote pulls a rope, misses the Road Runner, falls backward off a cliff, ties the rope around his waist, lands flat on his back, gets knocked out by a huge rock (attached to the other end of the rope), and folds up like an accordion.

Under the direction of Chuck Jones, "To Beep or Not to Beep" is, without question, a great cartoon. It is on Disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 3, where you will find a wonderful restoration of this cartoon with bright colors and sharp, crisp images!

Poor Cartoon

[amlanc-15345 · 1/10 · 22 December 2022]

This cartoon was very poorly made. The gags are not funny. The repeated one sided contest becomes a boring painful watch after a point. It feels like a rape. The agony of the coyote just not remains with the coyote but reaches the audience and the net result is a lot of pain. These are not meant for kids and the exaggerated slapstick violence is too much to bear. Chuck Jones asked audience to watch these by keeping the brain away. But he failed in that attempt. These do not appeal the funny bone and the gags are not at all hilarious but gives a feeling of being molested. Very poor concept overall. Poor execution, poor editing, poor background music, poor concept, poor story, poor gags, poor everything from the start to the end.

The best Road Runner cartoon ever.

[crusefamily · 4 March 2002]

TO BEEP OR NOT TO BEEP (1963) is my favorite Roadrunner cartoon ever made. The best gag is when the coyote tries to catch the roadrunner in a noose. The catapult gag, originally from ZOOM AND BORED, is even better here. This only made it to one tape, The Classic Chase. Too bad, because this is a gem. The end of this one was surprising. There's more great gags in between, such as the wrecking ball. There's never a bad moment in this cartoon. The best Looney Tunes were made in the sixties, but this tops them off. Watch this and laugh out loud.

Grade: A+