Trivia / The Heckling Hare

• Executive Meddling: A particularly noteworthy example. Originally, the cartoon was going to end with Bugs and Willoughby falling off two more cliffs after their first plunge, with the cartoon ending during the two's third fall. Leon Schlesinger was not fond of the way the cartoon concluded though^note Either he assumed the "Hold onto your hats" line that was to be said by Bugs during the third fall was a risque expression, he feared the audience might be devastated that Bugs died, or he thought the original ending was too long and repetitive, and got into a big fight with Tex Avery, demanding that he shorten the ending. He later suspended Avery for four weeks, after which the latter left to be hired by Paramount and later MGM.
• What Could Have Been: The cartoon's ending was originally going to have Bugs and Willoughby fall through, not one, but three cliffs, and the cartoon would end during the third fall. Thanks to Leon Schlesinger for the reasons detailed above, that never happened, and the ending we were exposed to is now simply Bugs and Willoughby going through their first fall and surviving, and that's it.