Thumper is a fictional

rabbit Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...

character from

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

's animated film ''

Bambi ''Bambi'' is a 1942 American Animated film, animated Coming of age, coming-of-age drama film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Loosely based on Felix Salten's 1923 novel ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'', the ...

'' (1942). He is known and named for his habit of thumping his left hind foot. The character was an important influence upon the development of the movie ''

'' which started production with an adult tone which seemed too serious and uncommercial. As voiced by the young actor, four-year-old Peter Behn, the vivacious character of Thumper was expanded from its original minor role and led to a focus upon the young animals in the story. Thumper is Disney's adaptation of Friend Hare from

Felix Salten Felix Salten (; 6 September 1869 – 8 October 1945) was an Austrian author and Literary criticism, literary critic. His most famous work is ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'', which was adapted into an animated feature film, ''Bambi'', by Walt Disne ...

's 1923 novel ''

Bambi, a Life in the Woods ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'' () is a 1923 Austrian coming-of-age novel written by Felix Salten, and originally published in Berlin by Ullstein Verlag. The novel traces the life of Bambi, a male roe deer, from his birth through childhood, t ...

''. The personality and visual appearance of the character was based upon

Beatrix Potter Helen Beatrix Heelis (; 28 July 186622 December 1943), usually known as Beatrix Potter ( ), was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' ...

's Benjamin Bunny. Unlike real rabbits, Thumper is drawn with paw pads, a feature that most rabbits lack.

Disney Consumer Products Disney Consumer Products, Inc. is the retailing and licensing subsidiary of the Disney Experiences segment of The Walt Disney Company. Previously, Consumer Products was a segment of Disney until 2016, then a unit of Disney Consumer Products and I ...

started a spin-off franchise, Disney Bunnies, with Thumper as the main character. The young adult version of Thumper also appears at the

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Disney Experiences, commonly known as Disney Parks, is one of the three major divisions of the Walt Disney Company. It was founded on April 1, 1971, exactly six months before the opening of the Walt Disney World Resort. Led by Josh D'Amaro, ...

alongside Miss Bunny as a

meetable character A costumed performer or suit performer wears a costume that usually (but not always) covers the performer's face, typically to represent a non-human character such as a mascot or cartoon character. These include theme park "walk-around" or "m ...

Fantasyland Fantasyland is one of the "themed lands" at all of the Disneyland-style parks run by The Walt Disney Company around the world. It is themed after List of Disney animated films based on fairy tales, Disney's animated fairy tale feature films. Ea ...

and at

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park is a zoological theme park at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. Owned and operated by the Walt Disney Company through its Experiences division, it is the largest theme park in the world, ...

Film appearances

''Bambi''

The character Thumper first appears in the film ''Bambi'', watching as

is first presented as the young prince to the creatures of the forest. He remarks that Bambi is "kinda wobbly" but is reproved by his mother, who makes him repeat what his father had impressed upon him that morning, "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all". This moral is now known by such names as the "Thumperian principle", "Thumper's rule" or "Thumper's law". Bambi 1942 trailer- 00 min 29 s

A few days later a still-wobbly Bambi was out with his mother when they re-encountered Thumper, who took it upon himself to teach the fawn various tricks, notably that of speech. He succeeded in teaching Bambi a few words, notably "bird" and "flower" which Bambi accidentally used to name a young

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or gi ...

. Thumper tried to correct Bambi but the skunk said, "That's alright. He can call me Flower if he wants to. I don't mind". The three animals go on to become friends and this encounter provides another moral lesson in the virtues of tolerance and an easy disposition. In the winter, Thumper tries to teach Bambi how to skate on the ice but Bambi is wobbly again.

''Bambi II''

In '' Bambi II'', Thumper again appears hiding from his sisters and trying to help Bambi learn to be brave in the hopes of impressing his dad. Thumper is the main protagonist in a video storybook, ''Thumper Goes Exploring'', which was released with the Platinum Edition of Bambi on March 1, 2005.

Other films

The young adult version of Thumper can be seen amongst the crowd of toons during the final scene of the 1988 film ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American fantasy comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay written by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman. It is loosely based on the 1981 novel ''Who Censored Roger Rabbit?'' by Gary K. Wol ...

''. The

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piëce. The title o ...

also mentions that his Uncle Thumper has problems with his "

probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

", for which he "had to take these big pills, and drink lots of water" (it's unknown if both Thumpers are the same character). Thumper is one of the several

Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that produces animated feature films and short films for the Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a s ...

characters that appears in the 2023 short film '' Once Upon a Studio''.

Metaphorical and military usage

''Thumper'' is used as a metaphor for a cuddly pet when referring to women. "'Bambi" and "Thumper" are the names of two female bodyguards in the 1971 James Bond film '' Diamonds Are Forever''. The name "Thumper" is given to a snake that Andy Pipkin gets Lou to buy instead of a rabbit in '' Little Britain''. The name "Thumper" was used by an American

B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, tail code A21, serial number 42-24623. Assigned to the

497th Bombardment Group The 497th Bombardment Group was a group of the United States Army Air Forces. The unit was inactivated on 31 March 1946. The unit was part of the United States Army Air Forces and Twentieth Air Force during World War II. The 497th BG engaged ...

's 870th Squadron, the aircraft featured a painting of the cartoon rabbit on its side, with Thumper shown thumping on a bomb similar to the way his foot is hitting the ground in the film. The "Thumper" B-29 Superfortress flew 44 missions during the

air raids on Japan During the Pacific War, Allies of World War II, Allied forces conducted air raids on Japan from 1942 to 1945, causing extensive destruction to the country's cities and killing between 241,000 and 900,000 people. During the first years of the Pa ...

, participating in the

bombing of Tokyo The was a series of air raids on Japan by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), primarily launched during the closing campaigns of the Pacific War, Pacific Theatre of World War II in 1944–1945, prior to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima ...

and

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...

. It survived the war.

References

Works cited

* {{Disney animated characters Rabbits and hares in literature Anthropomorphic rabbits and hares Fiction about talking animals Bambi characters Film sidekicks Male characters in animation Child characters in animated films Film characters introduced in 1942 Walt Disney Animation Studios characters Animated characters introduced in 1942