Plot

A behind-the-scenes look at the making of "The Bugs Bunny 51st-and-a-Half Anniversary Spectacular," complete with shaky camera and a variety of outtakes from stars Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and Yosemite Sam.

Bugs Bunny is celebrating his 51 and 1/2 anniversary, and the studio has arranged for him to perform a dance routine with Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and Yosemite Sam. The filming requires several takes, because nothing seems to be working properly. Bugs complains about hazardous areas of the stage. Daffy is enraged with the lack of originality in the script, and worries that the studio will next create three nephews for him. Elmer has brought a real weapon and live ammunition on stage, instead of the prop weapon assigned to him. Daffy chews him out for his lack of professionalism. Yosemite lacks any enthusiasm for his role, and he has trouble with the live fireworks which he has been assigned to handle. The performers increasingly get on each other's nerves, but they make sure to give fake smiles for the camera.—Dimos I

The short begins with the "Bugs Bunny 51st-and-a-half Birthday Special". It shows Bugs Bunny tap dancing on-stage and catching a cane, followed by Daffy Duck joining him. Elmer Fudd tap dances in and pretends to shoot them with his rifle, but it contains confetti. As they dance, a birthday cake is lowered down, from which Yosemite Sam pops out and lights several candles, which turn out to be fireworks. After a brief speaking part, the show ends.

Then, come the bloopers.

First, an animated preamble put onto a 3-D background. Bugs is at a piano, practicing his line.

Yosemite Sam is being lowered into his cake, and is quite unhappy with the idea. When he's dropped into the cake, he throws a fit, and starts shooting around with his guns, sending the crew scrambling.

In his dressing room, Elmer Fudd is applying hair tonic, revealed to be monoxidil (see Rogaine), on his bald head.

In his dressing room, Daffy Duck is lamenting his role, complaining that Warner Bros. is unoriginal, making a backward crack at Disney by claiming he'll be put with three "snot-nosed nephews" next, like Donald Duck. The crew then calls the actors to the set.

In the first take, the record of the background music starts skipping. Bugs, unamused, says, "ehhhh, What's up, Doc?", sarcastically. Then walks off the stage, poking his head out to say "Monotonous, isn't it?" The record is fixed.

In the second take, Bugs stops the filming suddenly, having found a loose floorboard. He moves the action back a step, and adjusts the camera.

In the third take, he misses the cane as it is thrown at him.

In the fourth take, he misses the cane again, and grumbles to himself.

In the fifth take, the cane isn't even thrown. Daffy, who was originally scripted to throw the cane, cites his contract not saying he had to, so the crew gives in and assigns someone else to do it.

In the sixth take, Daffy dances on with Bugs. Daffy walks off, talking about how he thought it was an improvement before walking into wall.

In the seventh take, Daffy doesn't come out at all. He's heard off-stage, followed by the flushing of a toilet. Several seconds later, he runs out dancing long after the take is done.

In the eighth take, Bugs and Daffy's dancing go off without a hitch. Elmer Fudd dances in, and Bugs and Daffy duck (as they are supposed to) when he aims with his rifle. Instead of confetti, he fires real bullets, grazing Daffy's head, leaving a flame. Bugs shames Elmer for using live fire on a movie set. Elmer thought he could use this opportunity to finally "blast" Bugs after 51 1/2 years of trying. Daffy is irate at this, and gives "this two-bit nimrod a severe dressing-down" for not sticking with the script. He then claims that he will call his attorney for this, before blindly stepping on the aforementioned loose floorboard, making it fly up and slam into his face, getting his beak stuck in it. When Bugs finally asks for a cut, Daffy starts to say, "You smug son of a..." before the film is abruptly cut off.

In the ninth take, Daffy comes on-screen with the board still stuck to his beak. When he pulls it off, he takes his beak off his face with it, calling it a "slight mishap".

In the tenth take, Bugs, Daffy and Elmer's parts go smoothly. When Sam pops out of the cake, he looks unhappy. Before he lights the candles, the director calls for a cut and tries to motivate Sam into smiling. After complaining, Sam finally agrees to smile.

In the eleventh take, everything finally goes off as it should. But after their lines, Bugs asks why he only saw four candles on the cake, when there's supposed to be five. Sam claims to have lit five, only to find out the fifth was really a rocket stuck in his pants. It ignites, and he is thrown all around the studio, finally crashing into the camera. He starts cursing as the credits roll, calling Bugs, among other things, a "flop-eared son of a kangaroo" and the more classic "card-sarn idjit rabbit", wishing that Bugs' "inners turn to outers and yer ears go vicey-versey".

Bugs remarks that they can fix it in the editing before the film finishes with the appearance of bare film with "That's All Folks" written into it.