Robert Givens

TV's most-watched history series brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.

Innovative "Claymation" adventures of Gumby and his horse Pokey.

Thomas Timber Wolf is a timber wolf who fancies himself a smoothly sophisticated predator. However, for all his smooth talking ways, Thomas has a great deal of trouble dealing with his wilder neighbors. The fact that he reflexively roars "TIMBER!" and causes a tree to fall on his head whenever he says his name does not help either.

If Bugs Bunny were to direct his signature inquiry--"What's up, doc?"--toward the modern-day Warner Bros. creative team, he wouldn't be far off. For 1001 Rabbit Tales, they've doctored up a batch of classic cartoons featuring the carrot muncher and his bumbling comrades and bundled them, near seamlessly, into a feature-length film. Here's the premise: Bugs and Daffy, both book salesmen, are competing to sell the most copies of a kids' book. Instead of burrowing a beeline to his sales territory (he should have made a left at Albuquerque), Bugs ends up in the castle of Yosemite Sam, here a harem-leading honcho. Sam's pain-in-the-spurs son, Prince Abalaba, needs somebody to read him stories; Bugs, who'd sooner take the job than suffer the alternative, that involving being boiled in oil, signs on.

This biography, shown on American television as part of the PBS "Great Performances" series, examines the life works of one of Hollywood's most celebrated animators, Chuck (Charles M.) Jones. He is best known for Warner Brothers cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote, and Pepe LePew. Included are plenty of behind-the-scenes descriptions of how an animated film is made, and (best of all) many clips from Chuck's cartoons.

The Pink Panther arrives at Nome instead of Rome, and meets a friendly seal, an unfriendly polar bear and a hunter trying to catch the seal.

Penthouse dwelling Elmer Fudd brings home a beautiful flowering desert plant and - unknowingly - Bugs Bunny.

Bugs Bunny is hunted by Hiawatha, a stereotyped Native American who fills roughly the same role as Elmer Fudd in other Bugs Bunny cartoons of this era.

Tom is wooing Toots; he presents her with a present - Jerry. But Toots would rather play mother to Jerry than eat him, much to Tom's annoyance.

Porky Pig balks at learning the Pledge of Allegiance until Uncle Sam appears to him in a dream and gives him a lesson in American history.

Sniffles the mouse and his friend the Bookworm decide to take up egg collecting, setting their eyes upon a big barn owl egg. But the big barn owl isn't so hot on the idea.

Biplane battles over France in World War I between Bugs and Baron (Yosemite) Sam Von Shamm.

Daffy Duck takes his girl to a beach, where a muscle-bound duck attracts the attentions of Daffy's fickle chick. She leaves Daffy and walks off with the hunky duck. A salesman sells Daffy a bogus strength-building tonic, and Daffy takes some, thinking it has made him into a virile power-house! He challenges the muscular duck to a series of contests involving bar-bending, chain-chewing, and weight-lifting.

Pete Puma is trying to raid the henhouse Foghorn Leghorn is guarding; Foggy decides to have some fun with Pete.

Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck (as Jack) find themselves at the top of a beanstalk where they get chased around by a giant Elmer Fudd.

Big Bad Wolf and his nephew create a club for rabbits, Club del Conejo, to try to catch Bugs Bunny.

Daffy Duck is an insurance peddler, who arrives uninvited at Porky Pig's door to persuade him to purchase an accident policy on the pretext that his home is loaded with hazards. When Porky rejects Daffy's claim that accidents in the home are "waiting" to happen, Daffy rigs some.

Maggie and Sam finally save enough money to pay off their home mortgage, and Maggie warns Sam to be careful on his trip to the bank. On the way, Sam meets a shady character who tempts him with schemes to part him from his cash. Sam refuses them all until he is offered a talking dog. Believing a talking dog will make them rich, Sam buys it. After many rejections, he finally lands the dog a theater booking. Before the dog can perform, a cat appears and ruins the act. Maggie and Sam lose their home, and Sam ends up literally in the doghouse, sharing it with the talking dog.

In the Alps, The Pink Panther's sleep is disturbed by a tuba player and his howling dog, and he decides to stop it.

Lazy Dodsworth the Cat wants to catch a woodpecker for his breakfast. The woodpecker has built its home inside the upper trunk of a very tall tree, and Dodsworth puts on a professor's cap, pretending to be a passive teacher of bird-catching and thereby deceive an eager-to-learn kitten into doing the perilous ascending of the tree to try to catch the woodpecker.