Editing Acme Corporation

{{Short description|Fictional company featured in Warner Bros. cartoons}}
{{About|the fictional company in Warner Bros. cartoons|3=Acme (disambiguation){{!}}Acme}}
[[File:Box of "ACME EXPLOSIVE TENNIS BALLS" (screencap).jpg|thumb|Acme explosive tennis balls, an Acme product as seen in the [[Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner]] cartoon ''[[Soup or Sonic]]'']]

The '''Acme Corporation''' is a [[fictional company|fictional corporation]] that features prominently in the ''[[Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner|Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote]]'' animated shorts  as a [[running gag]]. The company manufactures outlandish products that fail or backfire catastrophically at the worst possible times. The name is also used as a generic title in many [[cartoon]]s, especially those made by [[Warner Bros. Cartoons#1933–1944: Leon Schlesinger Productions|Warner Bros.]], as well as [[film]]s, [[Television show#Seasons/series|TV series]], [[Television advertisement|commercials]] and [[comic strip]]s.

==Origin==
The word Acme comes from the [[Ancient Greek]] {{lang|grc|ἀκμή}} ({{Transliteration|grc|akmē}}) meaning {{gloss|summit}}, {{gloss|highest point}}, {{gloss|extremity}}, or {{gloss|peak}}.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=Acme |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acme |access-date=28 July 2017 |website=Merriam-Webster, Inc.}}</ref> It has been claimed to be an acronym, either for "A Company Making Everything", "American Companies Make Everything", or "American Company that Manufactures Everything".<ref>[https://acme.com/what_is_acme/ Acme.com: "What is ACME"?]</ref><ref>[http://mentalfloss.com/article/32268/where-did-looney-tunes-%E2%80%9Cacme-corporation%E2%80%9D-come Mental Floss: "Where did ACME corporation come from?"]</ref> During the 1920s, the word was commonly used in the names of businesses in order to be listed toward the beginning of [[alphabetical order|alphabetized]] telephone directories like the [[Yellow pages|Yellow Pages]], and implied being the best. It is used in an [[irony|ironic]] sense in cartoons, because the products are often failure-prone or explosive.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/03/the-origin-of-the-looney-tunes-acme-name/|title = The Origin of the Looney Tune's "ACME" Corporation Name|date = 25 March 2013}}</ref>

The name Acme began being depicted in film starting in the silent era, such as the 1920 ''[[Neighbors (1920 film)|Neighbors]]'' with [[Buster Keaton]] and the 1922 ''[[Grandma's Boy (1922 film)|Grandma's Boy]]'' with [[Harold Lloyd]], continuing with [[Television show#Seasons/series|TV series]], such as in early episodes of ''[[I Love Lucy]]'' and ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'', [[comic strip]]s and [[cartoon]]s, especially those made by [[Warner Bros. Cartoons#1933–1944: Leon Schlesinger Productions|Warner Bros.]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.i-foo.com/~eocostello/wbcc/eowbcc-a.html|title=ACME|work=The Warner Brothers Cartoon Companion|author=E.O. Costello|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110712234115/http://www.i-foo.com/~eocostello/wbcc/eowbcc-a.html|archive-date=2011-07-12}}</ref> and [[Television advertisement|commercials]]. It briefly appeared in the [[Walt Disney]] Donald Duck episodes ''[[Cured Duck]]'' released in 1945 and ''[[Three for Breakfast]]'' released in 1948. It also appears as the ACME Mining company owned by the villain Rod Lacy in the 1952 [[Western (genre)|Western]] ''[[The Duel at Silver Creek]]'' and in a 1938 short ''[[Violent Is the Word for Curly]]'' where [[The Three Stooges]] appear as gas station attendants at an ''Acme'' Service Station. It was also used in ''[[The Pink Panther Show]]'', where the name Acme was used on several episodes of the show's first installment in 1969, one of them being "Pink Pest Control".

Warner Brothers animator [[Chuck Jones]] described the reason 'Acme' was used in cartoons at the time:

{{Blockquote|style=font-size:100%|Since we had to search out our own entertainment, we devised our own fairy stories. If you wanted a bow and arrow you got a stick. If you wanted to conduct an orchestra you got a stick. If you wanted a duel you used a stick. You couldn't go and buy one; that's where the terms Acme came from. Whenever we played a game where we had a grocery store or something we called it the ACME corporation. Why? Because in the yellow pages if you looked, say, under drugstores, you'd find the first one would be Acme Drugs. Why? Because "AC" was about as high as you could go; it means the best; the superlative.<ref>{{Cite AV media|url=http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/218723%7c0/Chuck-Jones-Memories-of-Childhood.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116044332/http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/218723%7C0/Chuck-Jones-Memories-of-Childhood.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 16, 2013|title=Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood|people=Peggy Stern and John Canemaker (filmmakers)|medium=Documentary|publisher=Turner Classic Movies and Warner Bros.|date=March 24, 2009|access-date=April 29, 2009|time=12 min.}}</ref>}}

===Whistles and traffic lights===
[[File:Acme anvil.gif|thumb|A real-world advertisement for ACME anvils]]
A whistle named 'Acme City', made from mid-1870s onwards by [[J Hudson & Co]], followed by the "Acme Thunderer", and "[[Acme siren]]" in 1895, were the early brand names bearing the names with the word 'Acme'. At the time the Acme Traffic Signal Company produced the [[traffic light]]s in Los Angeles, the city where [[Warner Bros.]] was making its cartoons. Instead of today's amber/yellow traffic light, bells rang as the small red and green lights with "Stop" and "Go" semaphore arms changed — a process that took five seconds.<ref>[http://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/citydig-should-i-stop-or-should-i-go-early-traffic-signals-in-los-angeles/ CityDig: Should I Stop or Should I Go? Early Traffic Signals in Los Angeles]. ''Los Angeles Magazine''. Retrieved 2015-01-01.</ref>

==Depictions==
===In film and TV===
[[File:Wile E. Coyote's ACME Instant Tunnel at MIT.jpg|thumb|A mural of [[Wile E. Coyote]] smashed into an ''ACME Instant Tunnel'' on the wall of the Rotch Library at [[MIT]]]]

Examples which specifically reference the Wile E. Coyote cartoon character include:
<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: Don't add examples merely because they have something labeled Acme in them. Only use examples that specifically reference the Wile E. Coyote cartoon character, please -->
* Films, shows and cartoons based on Looney Tunes characters often deal with Acme Corporation.
** The 1988 film ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]'' attempted to explain Acme's inner workings in detail. The plot is centered on the murder of the corporation's owner, Marvin Acme ([[Stubby Kaye]]). Many of the film's scenes involve Acme products and its final scenes are set in an Acme warehouse.
** The ''[[Tiny Toon Adventures]]'' series expanded on Acme's influence, with the entire setting of the show taking place in a city called "Acme Acres". The show's young [[protagonists]] attended "Acme Looniversity". In one episode, Calamity Coyote sues Acme, accusing it of making products that are unsafe.<ref>{{Cite episode|title = K-Acme TV|series = Tiny Toon Adventures|series-link = Tiny Toon Adventures|number = 64|airdate = 26 February 1991|season = 1}}</ref> 
** The corporation appears as the antagonistic force of ''[[Looney Tunes: Back in Action]]''. The head offices of Acme are depicted, revealing it to be a [[multinational corporation]] whose executive officers are led by the film's main [[antagonist]], Mr. Chairman, portrayed by [[Steve Martin]].
** The 2015 [[direct-to-video]] animated film ''[[Looney Tunes: Rabbits Run]]'' portrays Acme as a [[department store]].
** ''[[Coyote vs. Acme]]'' revolves around Wile E. Coyote suing Acme for their faulty products; it is set to be released in 2026.
** The cartoon series ''[[Loonatics Unleashed]]'' is set in Acmetropolis.
* The corporation is mentioned/referenced in ''[[Animaniacs]]'' numerous times, one of the most prominent examples being the episode "Cookies for Einstein", which features product ads for the "Acme Pocket Fisherman" and "Acme Hair Magnet", as well as the "Acme Song".
**In the recurring segment ''[[Pinky and the Brain]]'', which would later receive its own spin-off series, the titular protagonists reside in a cage at Acme Labs.
**In ''[[Wakko's Wish]]'', the ''Animaniacs'' feature film, characters live in the village of Acme Falls.
* ''External World'', a short film by [[David OReilly (artist)|David OReilly]], features Acme Retirement Castle, a dystopian retirement facility for disabled cartoon characters.
* In the 1998 Spanish film ''[[The Miracle of P. Tinto]]'', Acme is referenced along a equally fictional competing Spanish business, Mikasa, a pun on ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]''. When a Mikasa product appears on screen, it is announced in the same tone as Acme products are in the Spanish dubbing of ''Looney Tunes''.
* In the 1978 animated special ''[[Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Great Santa Claus Caper]]'' (written, directed, and co-produced by Chuck Jones), Acme is credited as making Gloopstick, touted as a clear indestructible compound to perfectly preserve toys. Gloopstick is brought to [[Santa Claus]]' workshop by "inefficiency expert" Alexander Graham Wolf, who strongly resembles Wile E. Coyote in appearance and voice.
<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: Don't add examples merely because they have something labeled Acme in them. Only use examples that specifically reference the Wile E. Coyote cartoon character, please -->

===Music===
<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: Only examples that specifically reference the Wile E. Coyote cartoon character, please -->
* [[Bell X1 (band)|Bell X1]]'s song "One Stringed Harp" includes the lyric ''"Like Wile E. Coyote/As if the fall wasn't enough/Those bastards from Acme/They got more nasty stuff"''.
* The [[Brazilian thrash metal]] band [[Chakal]] has a song titled "Acme Dead End Road" from its 1990 album, ''The Man Is His Own Jackal''. The song begins with the [[Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner|Road Runner]] signature sound "[[Beep, beep (sound)|beep, beep]]".<ref>{{Cite book|title = Catálogo Cogumelo 30 anos|year = 2012|publisher = Cogumelo Records|page = 83}}</ref>

===Legal humor===
*Joey Green wrote "Cliff-hanger Justice", a fictional account of a [[product liability]] lawsuit by Wile E. Coyote against Acme, which appeared in three parts in the August, September, and October 1982 issues of ''[[National Lampoon (magazine)|National Lampoon]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gordon III |first1=James D. |date=May 1992 |title=A Bibliography of Humor and the Law |url=https://digitalcommons.law.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1758&context=lawreview |journal=BYU Law Review |volume=1992 |issue=2 |page=451 |format=PDF}}</ref>
*[[Ian Frazier]] wrote a fictional legal complaint "''Coyote v. Acme''", which was published in ''[[The New Yorker]]'' in 1990<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Frazier |first=Ian |date=26 February 1990 |title=Coyote v. Acme |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1990/02/26/coyote-v-acme |magazine=The New Yorker |location= |publisher= |access-date=}}</ref> and later became the title piece of a short fiction collection.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frazier |first=Ian |author-link= |date=1996 |title=Coyote v. Acme |location= |publisher=Farrar Straus & Giroux |page= |isbn=978-0-3741-3033-6}}</ref> The story was the inspiration for the film ''[[Coyote vs. Acme]]'', which is scheduled to be released in 2026.<ref name="GunnScreenRant">{{cite news |last=Hussain |first=Humza |date=2020-12-24 |title=James Gunn Confirmed as a Writer on Looney Tunes Movie Coyote vs. Acme |url=https://screenrant.com/wile-e-coyote-acme-movie-james-gunn-writer/ |accessdate=2021-04-12 |work=ScreenRant}}</ref><ref name="GunnVariety">{{cite web |last1=Rubin |first1=Rebecca |date=23 December 2020 |title=Warner Bros. to Release 'Mad Max: Fury Road' Prequel and 'The Color Purple' Musical in Theaters in 2023 |url=https://variety.com/2020/film/news/warner-bros-mad-max-fury-road-color-purple-1234874609/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224022908/https://variety.com/2020/film/news/warner-bros-mad-max-fury-road-color-purple-1234874609/ |archive-date=24 December 2020 |access-date=28 December 2020 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref><ref name="Delay">{{cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=April 26, 2022 |title=''Barbie'' Heads To Summer 2023 – CinemaCon |url=https://deadline.com/2022/04/barbie-coyote-vs-acme-release-date-1235010330/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426234202/https://deadline.com/2022/04/barbie-coyote-vs-acme-release-date-1235010330/ |archive-date=April 26, 2022 |access-date=8 June 2023 |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]}}</ref><ref name="Cancellation">{{Cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=2023-11-09 |title='Coyote Vs. Acme': Warner Bros Shelves Finished Live-Action/Animated Pic Completely As Studio Takes $30M Tax Write-off |url=https://deadline.com/2023/11/coyote-vs-acme-shelved-warner-bros-discovery-writeoff-david-zaslav-1235598676/ |access-date=2023-11-10 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="deal">{{cite web|title=Warner Bros Completes Worldwide Sale Of 'Coyote Vs Acme'|website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|first=Andreas|last=Wiseman|date=31 March 2025|access-date=31 March 2025|url=https://deadline.com/2025/03/coyote-vs-acme-warner-bros-sale-complete-ketchup-1236354552/}}</ref>

===Other===
<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: Don't add examples merely because they have something labeled Acme in them. Only use examples that specifically reference the Wile E. Coyote cartoon character, please -->
* The [[Comprehensive Perl Archive Network]] provides an "Acme::" namespace which contains many humorous, useless and abstract modules for the [[Perl]] programming language. It was named "in homage to that greatest of all absurd system creators: Wile E. Coyote."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://use.perl.org/~acme/journal/200|title=Journal of acme (189)|publisher=use Perl|date=May 23, 2001|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511130405/http://use.perl.org/~acme/journal/200|archive-date=May 11, 2011}}</ref>
* [[ACME Communications]] was a former U.S. broadcasting company established by former [[Fox Broadcasting Company]] executive [[Jamie Kellner]]. The stations were affiliated with Warner Bros' broadcast television network [[The WB]], for which he was also a founding executive, and the Acme name was a reference to the cartoon.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/92756/downturn-kellners-acme-communications-delisted.html|title=Downturn: Kellner's Acme Communications Delisted|website=Mediapost.com|language=en|access-date=2019-12-07}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-aug-03-fi-62267-story.html|title=Acme Ready to Be Prime-Time Player|date=1999-08-03|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=2019-12-07}}</ref>
* [[ACME Night]] is a [[Cartoon Network]] block.
* [[Acme Tools]] is an online and in store retailer.

==Cultural impact==
*In 2011, ''[[Forbes]]'' ranked ACME as the second largest fictional corporation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelnoer/2011/03/11/the-25-largest-fictional-companies/#4c1f295838b0|title=The 25 Largest Fictional Companies|first=Michael|last=Noer|date=March 11, 2011|work=[[Forbes]]|access-date=May 18, 2018|archive-date=September 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140901025630/http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelnoer/2011/03/11/the-25-largest-fictional-companies/#4c1f295838b0|url-status=live}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Mickey Mouse universe#Ajax name brand|Ajax name brand]] of the Mickey Mouse universe
* [[List of filmmakers' signatures]]
* [[Placeholder name]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{wiktionary|Acme}}
* {{cite web|title=Coyote vs. Acme, Plaintiff's Opening Statement|url=http://www.jamesfuqua.com/lawyers/jokes/coyote-acme.shtml|website=James Fuqua's Law Jokes|access-date=28 July 2017}} From {{cite book|last1=Frazier|first1=Ian|title=Coyote v. Acme|date=June 1996|publisher=Farrar Straus Giroux|isbn=0374130337|edition=1|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/coyotevacme00fraz}} - Mock legal opening statement.
* {{cite web|url=http://www.animationschooldaily.com/evolution-of-a-peg/|title=Evolution of a Peg|date=16 February 2012 |publisher=Animation School Daily}}

{{Roger Rabbit}}

[[Category:Fictional companies]]
[[Category:In-jokes]]
[[Category:Looney Tunes]]
[[Category:Running gags]]
[[Category:Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]