Posts with tag hanna barbera
Posted Oct 2nd 2008 12:06PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, TV on the Bigscreen, Reality-Free

It looks like Yogi and Boo-Boo are going to be introduced to a new generation. They're
getting the big screen treatment in a combination of live-action and CGI, a la
Alvin and the Chipmunks or
The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle. Unlike the aforementioned, one can only hope that a decent script will be done before anything is committed to the screen. However, being that I have no faith in Hollywood, I doubt it.
As a matter of fact, when I think of Hanna Barbera properties on the big screen, I automatically think of the 1994 movie version of
The Flintstones. Then I shudder. The script will probably be cliché and have very little in common with the original cartoon, and the new generation will lap it up like milk. It's another pleasant childhood memory flushed down the toilet in the name of the almighty dollar.
Enough of my rant. My big question is: who will be playing Ranger Smith?
Posted Aug 18th 2008 11:06AM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Industry, Programming, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free

Nostalgia still reigns supreme on television (along with a lack of original material). The 60's/70's icons
The Banana Splits are
now getting their own show on Cartoon Network.
I'm old enough to remember when
The Banana Splits were on television (from reruns. I'm not THAT old) and I'm curious about how whomever now controls their fate will translate the show for newer audiences. The original show was very much a staple of the hippie culture from back then. It would be disappointing if the show went from hippie to hipster. The original show most notably launched the careers of Sid and Marty Krofft who went on to make such iconic 70's children's fare as
H.R. Pufnstuff and
The Bugaloos among others.
The most memorable part of
The Banana Splits was their theme song "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)". However they modernize that song, whether it becomes a rap or a
High School Musical-style pop song, I can only say right now that it will be inferior to the original.
Posted Jun 17th 2008 2:20PM by Brad Trechak
Filed under: Retro Squad, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, Super Friends
Do not adjust your web browser. You are now entering the Retro Squad, where we are reviewing past episodes of classic TV shows.Remember when you were watching
Pinky and the Brain and the Brain would think of these abstract, convoluted plots for taking over the world? Or when Scott Evil was pointing out to his father how easy it would be to shoot Austin Powers in the head rather than subject him to some sort of silly trap from which he could escape. I'm convinced they were parodying the Legion of Doom's methodology from the
Challenge of the Super Friends which ran from 1978 to 1979 on ABC. Their simple goal was stated in the opening credits: the conquest of the Universe, with a subordinate goal of the destruction of the Super Friends. They failed every time, and I think that's partially due to poor planning.
With that in mind, here are the top five silliest plans from the Legion of Doom to accomplish their goals:
Continue reading Super Friends: The five silliest plots by the Legion of Doom
Posted Feb 11th 2008 9:01AM by Keith McDuffee
Filed under: TV on DVD, Animation, Contests and Giveaways, Children

This time we've got three copies of
The Smurfs season one, volume one on DVD for three lucky, random commenters. The set is available in stores on February 26.
To enter, simply leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, February 15, simply telling us who your favorite Smurf is. As always, we'll randomly choose three winners amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:
- To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating who your favorite Smurf is.
- The comment must be left before February 15, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
- You may enter only once.
- Three winners will be selected in a random drawing.
- Three winners will receive a copy of The Smurfs season one, volume one on DVD (valued at $26.99).
Click
here for complete Official Rules.
Posted Aug 19th 2007 12:01PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: OpEd, Animation, Web, Adult Swim, Pickups and Renewals
Here's some animation news from the past week or so:
First, don't forget that Frisky Dingo's second season kicks off on August 26 on Adult Swim at midnight. That's next Sunday.
In a younger vein, kids can look forward to brand new episodes of Danny Phantom starting tomorrow, August 20. New episodes will premiere throughout the week at 4:00 p.m. each day, ending with the hour-long TV movie Phantom Planet at 8:00 p.m. on Friday.
Continue reading Animation news: Frisky Dingo, Danny Phantom, Mr. Men, and Joel Hodgson visits the Cartoon Dump
Posted Aug 8th 2007 8:01PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Industry, TV on the Bigscreen, Animation
My friend Wild Bill sent me news that Jonny Quest, the Hanna-Barbera series about the titular lad who accompanies his scientist father on wild adventures, is being made into a live-action movie. The series, much like The Flintstones, The Jetsons and Top Cat, aired during primetime when it first aired in the '60s. New versions of Jonny Quest also popped up in the '80s and '90s.
Like the upcoming Speed Racer flick from the Wachowski brothers, reports so far say the movie will be "family friendly." The movie will serve as an origin story explaining how Jonny's bodyguard Roger "Race" Bannon and Dr. Benton Quest's adopted son Hadji join the family.
Continue reading Jonny Quest live-action flick is a go
Posted Aug 4th 2007 2:01PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: TV on DVD, Video, Animation
Choke on hot blue nostalgia, Generation X.
The Smurfs, that popular animated program I and many of my friends watched religiously as children of the '80s, is finally coming out on DVD. The Smurfs: Season One, Volume One is a two-disc set including the first nineteen episodes of the first season, along with "The Smurfs Springtime Special" and "Smurfs: The Music Video." The set comes out December 4.
Continue reading The Smurfs coming to DVD - VIDEO
Posted Jul 14th 2007 2:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Video, Animation, Web, Adult Swim
Here's some cool animation stuff I found over the past week or so:
Cartoon Brew has a lot of cool stuff, so I'll start there first. First of all, Jerry Beck has a new book, The Hanna Barbera Treasury. The book will focus mostly on the Hanna Barbera series created in the '50s and '60s. It comes out in October.
Also via the Brew comes this documentary about the life and work of animator Tex Avery, the man who was arguably the one most responsible for putting the "looney" in "Looney Tunes," and later brought that same magic to MGM. The doc is from 1988 and is split into several parts.
Continue reading Animation news: A Hanna Barbera book, a new Looney Tunes DVD and more - VIDEO
Posted May 19th 2007 8:00AM by Adam Finley
Filed under: OpEd, Animation, Web, Adult Swim
Here's a couple bits of animation news:
Early this year I told you 12 Oz Mouse would be returning with new Web-only episodes. Well the first one is online over on Adult Swim, so check it out.
I was indifferent to 12 Oz Mouse at first, but after finally watching the episodes in order and becoming immersed in its odd little world, it quickly became one of my favorite Adult Swim series. It's nice to see it back in any form.
If the surreal post-modern weirdness of 12 Oz Mouse isn't your thing, you can always check out some new Hanna Barbera cartoons that were recently added to iTunes. The new store includes episodes of Scooby-Doo, The Jetsons, Huckleberry Hound, The Flintstones and Yogi Bear.
Posted May 10th 2007 4:20PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Industry, TV on the Bigscreen, Animation, Celebrities
Despite what Best Week Ever says, Grindhouse co-director Robert Rodriguez is not directing a live-action version of the popular Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Jetsons. He was, however, shown the script and says he might be interested in it. This is just one of many projects being offered to him, so it remains to be seen if we'll be seeing a Rodriguez-directed film with the likes of George, Jane, Judy, Elroy, Astro, Rosie, Mr. Spacely, Mr. Cogswell and Orbity, the Scrappy-Doo of the Jetson's universe (and I liked both characters, I'm just saying they were polarizing).
Continue reading A live-action Jetsons movie (maybe)
Posted Jan 9th 2007 12:30PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: OpEd, Animation, Celebrities, Obituaries
After losing co-founder Joseph Barbera and animator Ed Benedict, Hanna Barbera is again saying good-bye to yet another legend. Iwao Takamoto, who designed Scooby-Doo, Shaggy and the rest of the Mysteries Inc. gang, passed away yesterday at the age of 81.
While Ed Benedict is credited with designing the original Flintstones characters, Takamoto designed the Great Gazoo. He also created Muttley, the wheezing dog featured on such shows as Laff-A-Lympics, Dastardly & Muttley in Their Flying Machines and Wacky Races; and Astro, the Jetson's dog who, oddly enough, sounded not unlike Scooby-Doo (both were voiced by Don Messick). His other credits at Hanna Barbera include Josie and the Pussycats, Jabberjaw and many, many others.
Continue reading Scooby-Doo animator dead at 81
Posted Dec 9th 2006 12:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Animation, Web, Celebrities

Those of you who pay attention to my posts specifically know I'm somewhat of an animation-lovin' loser, so you'll understand why I found
this especially interesting. Art Lozzi, a background artists for Hanna-Barbera in the '50s and '60s for shows like
The Flintstones and
Yogi Bear, has contributed some of his wisdom to John "Ren and Stimpy" Kricfalusi's blog about the art and philosophy of background painting in animation. I understand many of you probably wouldn't even find this remotely interesting, so this post is really for those who are more like me and want to "look under the hood" as it were and see how all the little pieces that make up the whole product fit together. One of the great things about animation, in my opinion, is how so many pieces come together to create the finished product, and I would have to turn in my Cartoon Geek credentials if I didn't stop once in awhile to examine some of those pieces a little closer.
Posted Nov 19th 2006 6:10PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Video, Animation, Web, Children
HannaBarbera.com has an awesome new broadband site called Saturday Morning Forever where you can watch classic episodes of Huckleberry Hound, Pixie and Dixie, Wacky Races, Touche Turtle, Snagglepuss, Quick Draw McGraw, Yogi Bear and whatever new stuff they add each week. Right now I'm watching Huckleberry Hound try to slay a dragon. It's been ages since I've seen a Huckleberry Hound cartoon, and I had forgotten how much Daws Butler's slow, lingering drawl makes me crack up. It's one of those voices that makes everything sound funny, and the funny stuff sound even funnier. It looks like I've found yet another reason to sit at my computer all day.
I also recommend you check out the "Originals," which consist of classic clips with new dialogue dubbed in. Watch "Moby Dick Remixed," it's hysterical.
[via Pop Candy]
Posted Oct 22nd 2006 6:04PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: TV on DVD, Animation, Children
What's New Scooby-Doo? was an updated version of the classic Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? that stuck with the basic premise of the gang solving spooky mysteries, but with new gadgets and contemporary music to give everything a more modern feel. The only voice actors who remained from the original series were Casey Kasem as Shaggy and Frank Welker as Fred (who also took over the voice of Scooby-Doo after Don Messick passed away in 1997). All other characters were voiced by different people. The animation was done by Warner Bros, giving it a more fluid look than the Hanna-Barbera original. The first season of the cartoon, which ran for just under three years on the WB, will be released on DVD on February 20, 2007. Fans of the original series probably don't care too much about this modern version, but younger kids seem to like it. Besides, it's not like people my age aren't more familiar with the Ralph Bakshi version of Mighty Mouse than the original Terrytoons version. Things get updated for new generations, that's how this nutty industry works sometimes.
[via Toon Zone]
Posted Sep 27th 2006 8:01PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Cable, Animation
It's a fact: cartoon characters don't care for pants. Frankly, I don't trust any cartoon character that wears them. What exactly was the deal with Mickey's shorts and those big yellow buttons? Were they knobs that operated some secret radio he used to send messages to the enemy during World War II? And just look at the old Warner Brothers cartoons: the only folks who wore pants were all bad guys: Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Percy the Pants-Wearing Haberdasher -- okay, I made that last one up, but you get my point. Anyway, to honor those toons who choose not to cover their butts, Boomerang is launching "No Undies Mondays" starting on October 9th. Every Monday at 4 pm, an hour will be set aside to honor the Hanna-Barbera characters who let it all hang out. Yes, that pretty much describes every Hanna-Barbera character, but let's not overthink things, it's still a fun idea.
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