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Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 12)
All our action this week is centered upon four characters, all installments containing self-winks to the illustrated media.
New York Animator: Orestes Calpini
A true animation industry veteran, Calpini is perhaps less known than many of his contemporaries.
The Thad Review: “Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice” Vol. 4
Collector’s really do have more choice than ever for where to get their classic animation fix.
A Watershed Moment: The 35th Anniversary of “The Little Mermaid”
A celebration of Disney’s 1989 hit that kicked off their unprecedented Renaissance era of animated films.
“Mighty Mouse and the Kilkenny Cats” (1945)
It’s a Terrytoons sort of day here - so prepare yourself for that clanging and water bucket sound effects!
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 11)
Another batch of animated eccentricities, all featuring characters that are well aware they are in a cartoon.
A Musical Up-Roar 1949-51
The early 50s saw Scott Bradley increasingly writing his own scores, and not incorporating MGM's own published songs.
Animator Breakdown: “Flies Ain’t Human” (1941)
A surprise for today - an animator breakdown of a B&W Fleischer Popeye cartoon!
A Royal Fowl: The 30th Anniversary of “The Swan Princess”
After a so-so box office performance, the film had renewed life on home video - inspiring no less than eleven direct-to-video sequels.
Cubby Bear returns: “Bubbles and Troubles” (1933)
I really enjoy the freewheeling nature of the Cubbys in this little period.
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 10)
1943 continued to abound in self-conscious cartoons, ever aware of their theatrical venue, and eager to draw the audience into the storylines through direct reference. Characters also continue…
Animator Breakdown: “Porky’s Party” (1938)
Today, you’re all invited to Porky’s birthday party in this Bob Clampett classic!
Tex Avery, Master of Horror
I have attached the most representative images of Avery's output to some of Poe's best-remembered sentences. The results speak for itself.
It’s A Wonderful Afterlife: The 35th Anniversary of “All Dogs Go to Heaven”
Though it had the misfortune of opening the same day as Disney’s The Little Mermaid, its finally found its own audience.
HOLIDAY ENCORE: Toby the Pup in “Hallowe’en” (1931)
An annual tradition here -- finally ON Halloween! (You don’t ever have to be properly dressed to enjoy a Toby cartoon!)
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 9)
1942 and ‘43 (with one stray included here from ‘44) continued to bring us self-referential cartoons, plating at breaking the fourth wall, and immersing characters into the movie-going…
A Musical Up-Roar 1947-49
MGM’s cartoon unit was humming during this period - including continuing to use tunes from various MGM musicals.
Every Day Can Be Pete Renaday
Today, a special Spin tribute to the legendary Disney icon and prolific face and voice of film, television, and theme parks.
“With A Hip-Hip And A Clippity-Clop”: The 75th Anniversary of “The Adventures Of Ichabod And Mr. Toad”
A “double feature” of a film using one half of the film to tell each story.
Some Sixties Spots, including “Melvin and the Nabisco Seal” in 35mm
These are all from 35mm prints, and we’ve cleaned them up for a new Blu-ray set.
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 8)
1942 is our subject year. Many films from this period keep their self-referential elements on the brief side, so some of the discussions below are a little briefer…
A Look Back At Disney’s “Atlantis: The Lost Empire”
Disney’s 41st animated feature, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, was born at a Mexican restaurant. During lunch in 1996, it was there that producer Don Hahn and directors Kirk…
Bizarre Comic Book Adaptations
The first film with a fictional plot was nothing more than a comic page adaptation.
Hidden Haunts #3: More Seldom Seen Halloween Specials
Continuing our annual tradition of looking back at some overlooked or forgotten Halloween specials.
Dr. Suess UPA spots (1949)
Sometimes a commercials can be a bright spot - and four them can be bright spots!
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 7)
Some behind the scenes at Disney, a new franchise for Goofy, and the debut of Walter Lantz’s most durable personality.
A Musical Up-Roar: 1945-47
During the period covered by these cartoons, the Second World War came to an end.
Filmation’s “Wacky and Packy”
Wacky and Packy are undercut by shoddy and reused animation - but are far more endearing than many other Filmation cartoons.
Bookmarked: The 30th Anniversary of “The Pagemaster”
This fall marks the 30th anniversary of the film that encourages reading.
Thunderbean Thursday is Yours This Week
What are your top two picks from these cartoon genres/eras!
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 6)
More interactive screen madness from Tex Avery, Friz Freleng, and efforts to keep up from Terrytoons and Screen Gems.
The Endlessly Finicky Job of Revising “Cartoon Voices Of The Golden Age”
What?? A REVISED edition? Yes indeed, it will be a reality. I know not when - but you can help.
The Guest Stars of “The New Scooby-Doo Movies”
This cartoon series served as "product-placement" for some of the network's other offerings between 1972 and 1974.
Number One Super Guy: The 50th Anniversary of “Hong Kong Phooey”
“Who is this superhero? Sarge? No. Rosemary, the telephone operator? No. Penry, the mild-mannered janitor? Could be!” So began the opening narration for each episode of Hanna-Barbera’s Hong…
Van Beuren’s “The Nut Factory” (1933)
The story work, the gags, the funny designs and animation are all so much fun.
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 5)
All action today takes place in 1938, and all from two studios: Warner Bros and Paramount.
A Musical Up-Roar 1944-46
If an exhibitor who had been running MGM cartoons in 1935 did a Rip Van Winkle and awakened in 1945, he would have seen quire a difference in…
An Interview With Ralph Bakshi
I interviewed Ralph Bakshi in late 2023 about queer representation in his films.
One Giant Step: Looking Back at the Anime “Jack and the Beanstalk”
This anime feature celebrates the 50th anniversary of its release in Japan - on July 20th, 1974.
Scrappy in “Yelp Wanted” (1931)
Anyone that reads the weekly Thunderbean Thursdays with any regularity knows that I especially love Scrappy. The first released of the series, Yelp Wanted, really is essential viewing…
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 4)
The 1930's continued to progress, as animated characters became more and more knowledgeable about their own world.
What’s the Score? The Unheard Music Cues of Carl Stalling
We can determine precisely what music cues Carl Stalling incorporated in the credits of several Warners cartoons in their original release.
Barnyard Bluster: A Celebration of Foghorn Leghorn
The basic information on our favorite barnyard fowl.
Plenty of Horseplay: The 60th Anniversary of “Quick Draw McGraw”
It’s no surprise that the humor in Quick Draw McGraw is spot on, as writer Michael Maltese was behind it.
“Hunting in 1950” (1926)
There’s a lot of fun gags here to make an enjoyable but somewhat thin-plot-ed cartoon.
Cartoons About Cartoons (Part 3)
Part three in our series highlighting the medium and savvy characters with knowledge of their pen-and-paper world.
A Musical Up-Roar 1943-44
At MGM - Tex Avery settled into place, Tom and Jerry’s were rounding out nicely, and Barney Bar provided gentler laughs.
“Goofy’s Glider” or the day Goofy met Stanislavski
The prototype of the ‘How to’ series, in which Goofy winds up teaching the (wrong) way to practice various sports.
The Color of Funny: The 55th Anniversary of “The Pink Panther Show”
Fifty-five years ago this month, The Pink Panther Show made its debut.
“Jack’s Shack” (1935)
A Terrytoon, based on the children’s nursery rhyme “The House that Jack Built”, is both charming and really, really strange.