History ShoutOut / LooneyTunes

* Creator/FrankTashlin's shorts tend to be the heaviest on pop culture jokes, with special mention given to his "Things Come To Life In A Bookstore" Trilogy (respectively made up of ''Speaking of the Weather'', ''WesternAnimation/HaveYouGotAnyCastles?'' and ''You're An Education'' have references to not only celebrities, but also both vintage and then-contemporary literature of the time (i.e. novels and magazines).

* WesternAnimation/BugsBunny's own ThisMeansWar CatchPhrase is cribbed directly from [[Creator/TheMarxBrothers Groucho Marx's]] phrase from ''Duck Soup''.

* Creator/TexAvery's ''WesternAnimation/HollywoodStepsOut'' likewise is full of celebrity jokes, such as Music/BingCrosby being annoyed by a recurring jockey and a horse (a reference to his compulsive love of horse-racing, in spite of the fact that he had terrible luck on winning bets on them) and Creator/Cary Grant referencing three of his movies in a single line of syntax: "But if I ever told ''[[Film/MyFavoriteWife my favorite wife]]'' ''[[Film/TheAwfulTruth the awful truth]]'', I'd land right on ''[[Film/TheFrontPage the front page]]''."

* In ''WesternAnimation/PorkysHeroAgency'', Porky dreams that he's the Greek hero "Porkykarkus", the name being a reference to Parkyakarcas, the stage persona of comedian Harry Einstein. The Gorgon is a parody of the character Lizzie Tish from radio's ''Al Pearce and His Gang'', and among her victims are [[{{Expy}} expies]] of Film/TheThreeStooges. When going to confront the Gorgon, Porky comments "I hope she's t'home, I hope, I hope, I hope", which was the catchphrase of another Al Pearce character, Elmer Blurt. While using the anti-stone antidote on various statues, Porky fits the Venus de Milo statue with ComicStrip/{{Popeye}} arms, complete with a snippet of his theme playing; Porky also uses it on a temple, then on a smaller one labeled [[Creator/ShirleyTemple "Shirley"]].

* ''Goofy Groceries'', besides the obvious reference cavalcade (including Jack Benny as... Jack Bunny), features a spoof of {{Superman}}, ironically just before another studio made [[WesternAnimation/SupermanTheatricalCartoons their own animated adaptation of the character]].

** "Castles" takes this UpToEleven and may well have the most pop culture references out of all the shorts in the entire series; it features Alexander Woollcott (in character as "The Town Crier"), Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (dancing on ''The 39 Steps''), Creator/GretaGarbo (her feet are ''So Big''), Music/CabCalloway, Fats Waller, The Mills Brothers, Creator/WilliamPowell, Creator/ClarkGable (in ''The House of the Seven Gables''), Paul Muni, Charles Laughton (as Henry the Eighth), Victor [=McLaglen=], Creator/WCFields, and Ned Sparks (as Rip Van Winkle). The globe on the cover of Pearl Buck's book ''The Good Earth'' (1937) mentions "Papa Leon and Uncle Ray", referring to Leon Schlesinger, who was the executive producer of the Looney Tunes shorts then, and Raymond Katz, Schlesinger's brother-in-law, who also worked at the studio. The book and movie references include ''Literature/UncleTomsCabin'' (1927), ''Film/BulldogDrummond'' (1929), ''Literature/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'' (1930), ''So Big!'' (1932), Mr. ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe'' (1932), ''Literature/OliverTwist'' (1933), ''Film/{{Little Women|1933}}'' (1933), ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'' (1934), ''Little Men'' (1934), ''So Red the Rose'' (1935), The 39 Steps (1935), ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' (1935), ''Seven Keys to Baldpate'' (1935), ''Under Two Flags'' (1936), ''Literature/TheLastOfTheMohicans'' (1936), ''Film/{{The Charge of the Light Brigade|1936}}'' (1936), ''Three Men on a Horse'' (1936), ''Hi-De-Ho'' (1937), ''Seventh Heaven'' (1937), ''The Road Back'' (1937), ''Topper'' (1937), ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937), ''Bulldog Drummond Comes Back'' (1937), ''Varsity Show'' (1937) ''The Hurricane'' (1937), ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (1925), ''Rio Rita'' (1929), ''Literature/{{Frankenstein}}'' (1931), ''Film/DrJekyllAndMrHyde1931'' (1931), ''The Mask of Fu Manchu'' (1932), ''Film/ThePrivateLifeOfHenryVIII''. (1933), ''Literature/TheInvisibleMan'' (1933), ''Film/TheInformer'' (1935), ''Diamond Jim'' (1935), ''The Story of Louis Pasteur'' (1936), ''The Green Pastures'' (1936), ''Heidi'' (1937) and last, but not least, ''Literature/GoneWithTheWind''.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatPiggyBankRobbery'' has ''ComicStrip/DickTracy'' being Daffy's favorite comic, and while reading it, he gleefully quips "I Love that Man!", a reference to the ''Radio/FibberMcGeeAndMolly'' radio show. Among the villains he meets during the climax are the Wolf Man, Neon Noodle (an ersatz of Frankenstein's Monster) and Bat-Man (as in, a walking baseball bat, but it's an obvious nod to the [[Franchise/{{Batman}} DC comic character]]). A gag from Creator/TexAvery's [[WesternAnimation/TexAveryMGMCartoons MGM short]] ''WesternAnimation/WhoKilledWho'' is also referenced (which in turn was a reference to the ending of ''Film/ThePublicEnemy''), but put into a grimmer context, and the first part of Daffy's dream reuses the "Pin it on ya!" gag from an older Creator/TexAvery short ''WesternAnimation/ThugsWithDirtyMugs''. The scene where Duck Twacy announces to the criminals, "You're all under arrest!", was cribbed from a moment in RKO's ''Film/GungaDin'' when Sgt. Cutter (Cary Grant) does the same to a temple-full of Thugs. (As in, ''actual'' [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuggee Thugs]].)

* In "WesternAnimation/CaseOfTheStutteringPig" (1937), a pig portrait of [[Creator/LaurelAndHardy Oliver Hardy]] appears. The scene where Porky runs up and down the stairs is a shout to a similar scene from the Creator/BusterKeaton film ''Film/TheCameraMan''. Lawyer Goodwill's transformation is also a homage to "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde".

* "X is der cwaziest peoples!", a catchphrase of comedian Lew Lehr (known for narrating animal-related stories for te Movietone newsreels) also popped up, most notably in the ending of ''WesternAnimation/RussianRhapsody'' and ''Scaredy Cat''.

** References to Popeye also appear in ''The Major Lied Till Dawn'' (1938) and ''Scrap Happy Daffy'' (1943). One of the private live-action Christmas gag reels made by the studio also included a reference to Creator/FleischerStudios (in context, an animator is trying to "Escape to Fleischer", but ends up getting shot at by another employee).

** Stars of the era featured include Claudette Colbert, Creator/DonAmeche, Adolphe Menjou, Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo, Harpo Marx, Edward G. Robinson, Ann Sheridan; Johnny Weissmuller, James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, George Raft; Leopold Stokowski, Dorothy Lamour, James Stewart, Tyrone Power, Sonja Henje, The Three Stooges, Oliver Hardy, Cesar Romero, Rita Hayworth; Kay Kyser, William Powell, Spencer Tracy, Ronald Colman, Errol Flynn, Wallace Beery, C. Aubrey Smith, Peter Lorre, Henry Fonda, Ned Sparks, Boris Karloff, Arthur Treacher, Buster Keaton, Mischa Auer, Jerry Colonna, Clark Gable and Groucho Marx. Kate Smith and Bette Davis were name-checked but did not appear on-screen (Davis, Katharine Hepburn and Shirley Temple were caricatured, but were not used). Sally Rand refused permission to use her name or her dance act, so a character called "Sally Strand" was featured instead. J. Edgar Hoover has a brief appearance.

** "Castles" takes this UpToEleven and may well have the most pop culture references out of all the shorts in the entire series; it features Alexander Woollcott (in character as a "Town Crier"), Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (dancing on ''The 39 Steps''), Creator/GretaGarbo (her feet are ''So Big''), Music/CabCalloway, Fats Waller, The Mills Brothers, Creator/WilliamPowell, Creator/ClarkGable (in ''The House of the Seven Gables''), Paul Muni, Charles Laughton, Victor [=McLaglen=], Creator/WCFields, and Ned Sparks (as Rip Van Winkle). The globe on the cover of Pearl Buck's book ''The Good Earth'' (1937) mentions "Papa Leon and Uncle Ray", referring to Leon Schlesinger, who was the executive producer of the Looney Tunes shorts then, and Raymond Katz, Schlesinger's brother-in-law, who also worked at the studio. The book and movie references include ''Literature/UncleTomsCabin'' (1927), ''Film/BulldogDrummond'' (1929), ''Literature/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'' (1930), ''So Big!'' (1932), Mr. ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe'' (1932), ''Literature/OliverTwist'' (1933), ''Film/{{Little Women|1933}}'' (1933), ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'' (1934), ''Little Men'' (1934), ''So Red the Rose'' (1935), The 39 Steps (1935), ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' (1935), ''Seven Keys to Baldpate'' (1935), ''Under Two Flags'' (1936), ''Literature/TheLastOfTheMohicans'' (1936), ''Film/{{The Charge of the Light Brigade|1936}}'' (1936), ''Three Men on a Horse'' (1936), ''Hi-De-Ho'' (1937), ''Seventh Heaven'' (1937), ''The Road Back'' (1937), ''Topper'' (1937), ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937), ''Bulldog Drummond Comes Back'' (1937), ''Varsity Show'' (1937) ''The Hurricane'' (1937), ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (1925), ''Rio Rita'' (1929), ''Literature/{{Frankenstein}}'' (1931), ''Film/DrJekyllAndMrHyde1931'' (1931), ''The Mask of Fu Manchu'' (1932), ''Film/ThePrivateLifeOfHenryVIII''. (1933), ''Literature/TheInvisibleMan'' (1933), ''Film/TheInformer'' (1935), ''Diamond Jim'' (1935), ''The Story of Louis Pasteur'' (1936), ''The Green Pastures'' (1936), ''Heidi'' (1937) and last, but not least, ''Literature/GoneWithTheWind''.
* Tashlin's "The Woods Are Full Of Cuckoos" (1937) is another reference bonanza. The caricatured celebrities include Alexander Woolcott, bandleader Ben Bernie, gossip columnist Walter Winchell, Milton Berle (before becoming "Uncle Miltie"), Wendell Hall ("The Red-Headed Music-Maker", singing duo Billy Jones and Ernie Hare, comedian Fred Allen, Portland Hoffa, entertainer Eddie Cantor, singer Sophie Tucker, comedian Creator/WCFields, Creator/DickPowell, black musician Fats Waller, singer/actress Deanna Durbin, Irvin S. Cobb, singer/actor Creator/FredMacMurray, singer Music/BingCrosby, entertainer Creator/AlJolson, singer Ruby Keeler, Grace Moore, Lily Pons, Haven [=MacQuarrie=], comedian Joe Penner, Martha Raye, Tizzie Lish, gossip columnist Louella Parsons, comedian Creator/JackBenny, Mary Livingstone, Andy Devine. Unlike all the other caricatures which are of real people, "Tizzie Fish" is a parody of Tizzie Lish, a wacky old lady known for her crackpot recipes, who was a character played by Bill Comstock on the radio show ''Al Pearce and His Gang'', which in 1941 would do a radio version of ''A Wild Hare''.

* "Porky In The Northwoods" (1936); The general setting and plot is based on "Renfru of the Royal Mounted", a popular series of books that was the basis for a series of films and a serialized kids radio show. The name of the villain, Jean Baptiste, is a parody of explorer Jean Baptise Charbonneau, who was also known to be a fur trapper. The beaver, once its tail is freed from Jean Baptiste's trap, exclaims "I hope it won't be a permanent wave!", referring to then new "Permanent Wave" hair machines. Tashlin based the shadow shots in this (and other films of his) from UFA (Universum Film AG), a German film company responsible for films like ''Film/{{Nosferatu}}'', ''Film/TheCabinetOfDrCaligari'' and ''Film/{{Metropolis}}''. The turtles seen marching during the climax are caricatured after actor George Arliss. Just near the end, the villain also quotes Joe Penner's "You Nasty Man!"

* "Toytown Hall" (1936) references Eddie Cantor, Rudy Vallée, and Bing Crosby, while the title is a spoof on the radio show ''Town Hall Tonight''.

* In "Bosko's Picture Show", we get a newsreel called Out-of-Tone News (referencing Fox's ''Movietone News'', a series of newsreels from the time), and then caricatures of Creator/LaurelAndHardy (renamed Haurel and Lardy) and appearances of the Creator/TheMarxBrothers (in a 1890s melodrama spoof), and UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler chasing Jimmy Durante with an axe.

* The recurring phrase "Hm, could be!" Is cribbed from actor Artie Auerbach as Mr. Kitzel on the Al Pearce radio show.

* in ''Daffy Duck Slept Here'', when Daffy tricks a half asleep Porky into stepping out a window (thinking he's boarding a train), Daffy repeats the famous Creator/MelBlanc joke from the radio version of ''The Jack Benny Program'', with Daffy announcing "Train leaving on Track 5 for Anaheim, Azusa and Cuc—amonga!"

* In ''Acrobatty Bunny'', when Bugs looks inside a lion's mouth, he yells "WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}}!", referencing the scene where Pinocchio is inside the belly of the whale.

* ''Boston Quackie'' is a parody of ''[[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043182/ Boston Blackie]]''.

** Well, you might not have caught it if you saw this short on The WB or on Cartoon Network (since 2001) as both edited this sequence out and every mention of the word making the dialogue awkward and choppy (especially on The WB which didn't edit it out as well as Cartoon Network did.

* ''WesternAnimation/ACornyConcerto'', besides being a parody of ''Disney/{{Fantasia}}'', has Elmer Fudd make a reference to the 1935 song "The Music Goes Round and Round."
* ''WesternAnimation/CoalBlackAndDeSebbenDwarfs'' is a wartime parody of Creator/WaltDisney's ''Disney/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs'', notably the scene where So White stands over a well and says, "Some folks think I'm kinda dumb / but I know some day my prince will come."

* In ''Acrobatty Bunny'', when Bugs looks inside a lion's mouth, he yells "Disney/{{Pinocchio}}!", referencing the scene where Pinocchio is inside the belly of the whale.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheBashfulBuzzard'', one of the buzzards drags a parade of elephants through the air, and the runt at the end is holding a flag saying "I am NOT Disney/{{Dumbo}}!"

* In the short ''Daffy Duck Slept Here'', Daffy claims to be friends with a six-foot tall invisible kangaroo named [[Theatre/{{Harvey}} "Hymie"]].

* Creator/TexAvery's ''WesternAnimation/HollywoodStepsOut'' likewise is full of celebrity jokes, such as Music/BingCrosby being annoyed by a recurring jockey and a horse (a reference to his compulsive love of horse-racing, in spite of the fact that he had terrible luck on winning bets on them) and Creator/Cary Grant referencing three of his movies in a single line of syntax: "If ''[[Film/MyFavoriteWife my favorite wife]]'' ever knew ''[[Film/TheAwfulTruth the awful truth]]'', I'd make ''[[Film/TheFrontPage the front page]]''."