Chuck Jones & The Rules

Chuck Jones

1. The Road Runner cannot harm the Coyote except by going "beep, beep."
2. No outside force can harm the Coyote — only his own ineptitude or the failure of Acme products.
3. The Coyote could stop anytime — if he were not a fanatic.
4. No dialogue ever, except "beep, beep" and yowling in pain.
5. The Road Runner must stay on the road — for no other reason than that he's a roadrunner. This rule was broken in Beep, Beep, in a sequence where Wile E. chased the Road Runner into a cactus mine. And also in "Fastest with the Mostest" when Coyote lures Road Runner to the edge of a cliff.
6. All action must be confined to the natural environment of the two characters — the southwest American desert.
7. All tools, weapons, or mechanical conveniences must be obtained from the Acme Corporation. There were sometimes exceptions when the Coyote obtained other items from the desert such as boulders to use in his attempts.
8. Whenever possible, make gravity the Coyote's greatest enemy (e.g., falling off a cliff).
9. The Coyote is always more humiliated than harmed by his failures.