Beep Prepared

Beep Prepared is a Warner Brothers Merrie Melodies theatrical cartoon short released in 1961. It features Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner. Chuck Jones directed from a story by John Dunn.

Plot
As in all other cartoons featuring the pair, Wile E. Coyote tries to catch the Road Runner. It begins with the Coyote (Hungrii flea-bagius) assuming the "on your mark" stance used in track and field events. As soon as he goes into "get set" mode, he hears the familiar beeping sound and gets shocked into a backward move, suspended in mid-air atop a ravine. The Road Runner (Tid-bittius velocitus) issues the gunshot that causes the Coyote to drop (one of three overhead shots shown in the short).

1.) First, Wile E. tries to trip the Road Runner with his own foot, only to have it flattened by a passing delivery truck.

2.) Taking higher ground, Wile E. uses a bow and arrow to skewer the Road Runner, only to backfire and cause a chain of reactions that leads to him getting sandwiched by boulders.

3.) Lifting a manhole cover off a manhole, Wile E. intends to trap the Road Runner in the manhole. But when the Road Runner approaches the manhole, the laws of physics break as the Road Runner picks up the manhole as a portable hole and runs off. Furiously, Wile E. gives chase after Road Runner towards the bridge. Road Runner stops half-way in the middle of the bridge as he drops the hole in Wile E.'s path. The result: Wile E. falls in through the bridge and plummets to the ground below.

4.) Hoping to have a better advantage in the air, Wile E. uses a Bat-Man Costume, but this time, to ensure he goes faster, he uses a small rocket to help him chase after Road Runner, only to have it explode. And since Wile E'.s bat costume was made of cloth, it also got burned up. And now, with nothing to help him fly, Wile E. submits to gravity once again.

5.) Wile E. obtains a box of ACME Iron Bird Seed for use as bait. This time, he's wearing roller blades. Wile E. sets up the bait with a "FREE LUNCH!" sign, skates over behind a rock, and straps on a big magnet. When Road Runner eats the seeds, the magnet that Wile E. had strapped on suddenly gets attracted to the bird. As the magnet follows potential prey, so does Wile E. as the skates provide transportation. Road Runner leads Wile E. up a hillside and then surprisingly, Road Runner turns onto railroad tracks. Just as Road Runner approaches a bridge, he suddenly runs off as Wile E.'s magnet becomes attracted to something else: A TRAIN!

6.) After that failure, and as dusk approaches, Wile E. sets up a spring-loaded block of pavement, which ends up crushing him just as the Road Runner stopped right in front of it.

7.) As the day comes to a close, Wile E. erects a pair of machine guns connected by a trip rope, and ends up getting reduced in size when the guns blast him in the midsection.

8.) Finally, at night, Wile E. gets two last things from ACME: a rocket sled and 30 miles of railroad tracks. However, just as Wile E. was about to pursue the Road Runner, one last time... The rocket sled blasts off from the ground and soars off, up in the sky, leaving Earth's atmosphere. It sends Wile E. past the moon and beyond the stars. After the rocket sled explodes in deep space, the night sky has a new Sagittarius-like constellation... in the form of Wile E. Coyote.

Like all Merrie Melodies cartoons, the closing scene said, "That's all Folks!".

Home Media
It is currently available on Blu-ray on The Looney Tunes Platinum Collection Vol. 3.

Reception
Beep Prepared received an Academy Award nomination as Best Animated Short for 1961. It was the only Oscar-nominated Road Runner / Coyote cartoon.