Yosemite Sam

Yosemite Sam
Say your prayers, rabbit!
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Member of	Tune Squad
Occupation	Outlaw, cowboy, and many others
First appearance	MM: Hare Trigger (1945)
Played by	Mel Blanc (1945-1983; 1989) Joe Alaskey (1988-1992; 1995-1997; 2010-2011) Jeff Bergman (1990-1992, 2014, 2021) Charlie Adler (1990) Greg Burson (1991-1997) Maurice LaMarche (1992-2016) Jim Cummings (1996-2000, 2014) Bill Farmer (1996) Frank Gorshin (1997) Jeff Bennett (2003-2004) Fred Tatasciore (since 2017) Eric Bauza (2018)

Yosemite Sam is a recurring antagonist in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies theatrical shorts. He is one of Bugs Bunny's most agressive antagonists, and an archenemy of his alongside Elmer Fudd. His voice was orignated by Mel Blanc.

Sam first appeared as Bugs' antagonist in the 1945 short, Hare Trigger, and has been subsequently shown many times in both the theatrical cartoons and the Looney Tunes franchise, sometimes in different roles and other aliases. He appeared in 33 animated shorts made between 1945 and 1964, during the original run of the Warner Bros. cartoons.

His protégé in Tiny Toon Adventures is Montana Max.

Character Description

“

Why, everybody knows me. I'm Yosemite Sam! The meanest, toughest, rip-roaring-est, Edward Everett Horton-est hombre what ever packed a six-shooter! That's who I am! ― Yosemite Sam, Hare Trigger

”

Yosemite Sam is often depicted as a cowboy or an outlaw with a short, firery temper. In comparison to Elmer Fudd—who is often potrayed as a passive, yet bumbling antagonist—Sam is a much tougher foe to Bugs, and is potrayed as being mean-spirited, reckless, egotistical, and extremely violent. As such, he also has a tougher accent, and a higher, fiercer voice. Sam is a highly assertive person, proudly calling himself as "the roughest, toughest he-man stuffest hombre that's ever crossed the Rio Grande", among many other boastful titles. He is also quicker to learn from his mistakes and never falls for the same ploy twice.

In spite of his tough, formidable personality, Sam doesn't prove himself to be any brighter than Fudd when encountering with Bugs. His cantankerous noise contrasts the rabbit's calm demeanor. Sam's cockiness tends to get the best of him, portraying him as a bumbling idiot, with Bugs seeing that he is incapable of turning down a challenge. Sam is incredibly short-tempered and hates it when he is wrong; so much that he would either use his revolvers at random targets (which seem to comically not hit at anyone), or get himself into trouble through his stubbornness.

In some cartoons, (such as in From Hare to Heir, Honey's Money, and Dumb Patrol), he also has a foul mouth; cursing unintelligibly when angry and saying phrases like "rackin' frackin' varmint," either loudly or when mumbling to himself.

Sam is very much a short fellow in comparison to other people; His size was lampooned in the debut short Hare Trigger, where a train he tries to hold up passes right over him without harm. While Sam's basic character is that of a cowboy, he wears a black Domino mask to show that he is an outlaw. This is so associated with his persona that he even wears the mask in other roles such as a pirate, a riff, or a Viking. As a cowboy or in any other Western-type role, he wears a large cowboy hat, bandana and cowboy boots.

Appearances

TV series

• The Bugs Bunny Show
• Merrie Melodies Starring Bugs Bunny & Friends
• Tiny Toon Adventures
• Animaniacs (1993)
• Duck Dodgers
• Baby Looney Tunes
• The Looney Tunes Show
• New Looney Tunes
• Looney Tunes Cartoons
• Animaniacs (2020)
• Tiny Toons Looniversity

Movies

• Daffy Duck and Porky Pig Meet the Groovie Goolies
• The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie (cameo)
• The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie
• Bugs Bunny's 3rd Movie: 1001 Rabbit Tales
• Daffy Duck's Fantastic Island (Pirate Sam and Duke of Yosemite)
• Space Jam
• Tweety's High Flying Adventure
• Looney Tunes: Back in Action
• Bah Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas
• Looney Tunes: Rabbit's Run
• Space Jam: A New Legacy

Shorts

• Looney Tunes
• Merrie Melodies
  • Hare Trigger
  • Buccaneer Bunny
  • Bugs Bunny Rides Again
  • Along Came Daffy
  • High Diving Hare
  • Mutiny on the Bunny
  • Big House Bunny
  • Bunker Hill Bunny
  • Rabbit Every Monday
  • The Fair Haired Hare
  • Ballot Box Bunny
  • 14 Carrot Rabbit
  • Hare Lift
  • Southern Fried Rabbit
  • Hare Trimmed
  • Captain Hareblower
  • Sahara Hare
  • This Is A Life?
  • Roman Legion-Hare
  • Rabbitson Crusoe
  • A Star Is Bored (cameo)
  • Piker's Peak
  • Dog Tales
  • Knighty Knight Bugs
  • Hare-abian Nights
  • Wild and Woolly Hare
  • Horse Hare
  • From Hare to Heir
  • Lighter Than Hare
  • Prince Violent
  • Honey's Money
  • ShishkaBugs
  • Devil's Feud Cake
  • Dumb Patrol
  • Pancho's Hideaway
  • Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol
  • Invasion of the Carrot Snatchers
  • Carrotblanca
  • From Hare to Eternity
  • (Blooper) Bunny!
  • Hare and Loathing in Las Vegas

Theme parks

• Six Flags
• Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi
• Warner Bros Movie World

Gallery

Main article: Yosemite Sam/Gallery

Behind the scenes

• His name is taken from Yosemite National Park in California.
• Without his cowboy hat (or any kind of headwear), Yosemite's head varies from being a full set of hair or completely bald.

In popular culture

WARNING: The following section contains content that may be seen as mature or offensive to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.

• In the Family Guy episode "Tale of a Third Grade Nothing", Sam is trying on pants when he suddenly shouts about how it's the most "tightest, penis-compressingest, sperm-killingest, testicle-grippingest" jeans he's ever tried on.
• In the Drawn Together episode "Charlotte's Web of Lies", Sam can be seen in Ling Ling's support group next to Marvin the Martian.
• In "Wooper", the Robot Chicken skit of the episode "Snarfer Image", Sam makes an short appearance after Elmer kills his future self, pleading him to "have what he's having" before being shot.