This Blog's A Load Of CARTOONS!

TV Comic - Six Of The Best: Christmas Cartoons.

2010-12-21T21:11:00.001Z

The British Droopy comic strips will appear shortly in the New Year, but in the meantime, here's six festive comic strips featuring Tom & Jerry, Bugs Bunny, and Barney Bear. Happy holidays, everybody!

Tom & Jerry #1098 30th December 1972. Artist: Bill Titcombe

Barney Bear #1254 29th December 1978. Artist: Bill Mevin

Bugs Bunny #1254 25th December 1981. Artist: Bill Titcombe

Tom & Jerry #1669 16th December 1983. Artist: Bill Titcombe

Barney Bear #1254 27th December 1975. Artist: Bill Titcombe

Bugs Bunny #1254 27th December 1975. Artist: Bill Mevin

TV Comic's Six Of The Best - Barney Bear

2010-09-10T22:10:00.005+01:00

MGM's Barney Bear was popular enough to have his own comic-strip adventures in the US, and via their licensing deal with Western Publishing Company, TV Comic created their own Barney stories in 1973, starting with issue #1101 on 20th January, and would grace the comic for a total of seven years (followed by reprints which lasted until the comic's demise in 84). Although only limited to one page a week, Barney would appear in colour during the first three years. His printed cartoons were first drawn by Tom & Jerry artist Bill Titcombe, and shortly after the strips switched to B&W in 1976, Bill Mevin took over cartooning duties (who surprisingly proved adept at maintaining Titcombe's design of the lumbering bruin). Most (if not all) of the stories were written by fellow cartoonist and TV Comic editor Dick Millington.

TV Comic maintained the Walter Beery-type personality of Barney, as favoured by MGM director Dick Lundy. However, they decided not to include his comic-strip nephews Wuzzy and Fuzzy. Instead, another character was introduced to the UK readers as a comic foil, a moose by the name of...erm...Moose! This character would have a more downbeat personality to counteract Barney's "know-it-all" demeanour, but would more often than not get the last laugh.

Presenting six of his best cartoons, published between 1973-9. Enjoy!

#1101 20th January 1973 (first appearance!). Artist: Bill Titcombe.

#1112 7th April 1973. Artist: Bill Titcombe.

#1179 20th July 1974. Artist: Bill Titcombe.

#1196 16th November 1974. Artist: Bill Titcombe.

#1126 1st November 1975. Artist: Bill Titcombe.

#1432 25th May 1979. Artist: Bill Mevin.

Coming up next: Droopy.

TV Comic - Six Of The Best: The Bugs Bunny Show

2010-07-05T20:30:00.001+01:00

Bugs Bunny was the first classic cartoon star to have his own one-page comic strip in the UK's TV Comic, appearing in issue #896 on 15th February 1969 (and here's the front cover announcing the news):

The strip was published every week until mid-76, but reprints were published a couple of years later. A new set of comic strips were commissioned in early 1980, and would last until the comic's demise in mid-84. Throughout both runs, Bugs would share the limelight with a limited cast of Looney Tunes characters: Daffy Duck, Sylvester, Tweety, Granny, and Yosemite Sam (the TV Comic staff must have preferred the Friz Freleng cartoons). Sadly, other characters such as Elmer Fudd and Porky Pig never appeared in the British strips, but Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner would have their own adventures in the comic (they will appear on this blog shortly). Differences between the American strip, apart from the one-page format, was that Yosemite Sam was a lot more trigger-happy in the British version, and Tweety (more often than not) was referred to as a SHE!
This post will feature six cartoon strips from the first run (69-76). As you will see, the strips were drawn by five different artists within the six years, all with varying degrees of cartooning styles. This, unfortunately, made the cartoons suffer from not having a consistent look, as while some did have the capability of maintaining the classic look of the characters, others obviously struggled (especially when it comes to drawing Daffy Duck). Also, all of the strips were published only in black & white.
Below is the very first strip to be published. Unfortunately I'm not able to identify the artist, but most often would leave his initials on the strip as RM (could it be Robert McKimson? Well, it was a long shot, anyway). Nevertheless, judging by the artwork below, he certainly hit the ground running. Not only are the character designs more-or-less spot-on, but the layout and backgrounds were top-notch. Sadly, his tenure only lasted just over a year and a half, and would make way for another artist in November 1970:

Fortunately, Tom & Jerry artist Bill Titcombe would be the one to take over. Although his artistic style was more loose than the previous cartoonist, nevertheless he didn't do a bad job, being able to maintain the classic character designs whilst still retaining his individual style. His advantage is that he was able to add a bit more weight to the visual gags than his predecessor, and his backgrounds were a little-less cluttered. His tenure would only until January 1972, but he did return to spearhead the strip's 80's revival for a further two years. Below is from issue #1003 (6th March 1971):

The next artist to try his luck with this strip was Barry Glennard, who, apart from a couple short gaps in 1973, would have the longest tenure lasting until mid-75. As evident on the next strip (from issue #1073, 8th July 1972), his character designs are a little off, but would constantly refine the look of his strips during those few years (he would come up with three different Bugs designs):

During those short breaks in 1973, Pink Panther artist John McNulty would fill in for Glennard. Although his style suited the groovy cat, sadly it never suited the look of the LT characters. Bugs and Sylvester would both look a little "lanky" for my liking, and the less said about his Daffy Duck the better. However, he did come up with some great poses as shown below, from issue #1119 (26th May 1973). Also notice the title panel, which features Glennard's Bugs Mark 2:

Another Glennard cartoon, featuring his Bugs Mark 3. Notice the more loose artwork, which may indicate that tighter deadlines had to be met. Scanned from issue #1225 (7th June 1975), and was one of his last few strips:

TV Comic stalwart Bill Mevin took over drawing duties during the strip's last year. His previous work include comic strip versions of Doctor Who and Fireball XL5 (the latter of which he was recently interviewed on the latest R2 DVD set from Network), and throughout the 70's did the Popeye strips for TV Comic. Although he was more suited at adaptations of live-action shows, his drawing style made his Bugs strips appear to have the most freakiest artwork of them all! Having said that, with the addition of his love for exaggeration (especially the characters' poses), it actually gave the cartoons some zest! Below was published in issue #1250 on 29th November 1975:

Coming up next: Barney Bear.

TV Comic - Six Of The Best: Tom & Jerry

2010-03-23T21:00:00.000Z

Tom & Jerry first made their debut in the weekly TV Comic on 17th May 1969, issue 909. However, they were not the first classic cartoon characters who appeared in the comic, that honour belonged to Bugs Bunny (with Sylvester) 14 editions earlier. Unfortunately, I don't have that very first strip (it will be posted here as soon as I obtain that elusive edition), but here's the advert that announced their forthcoming arrival in the preceding issue:

The feuding cat-&-mouse duo not only replaced Ken Dodd's Diddymen on the front cover, but also occupied the second page too (oddly, only in B&W, while the first page was in full colour). A rare luxury for a comic strip to occupy two pages, but considering they were the best-loved classic cartoon characters in Britain (they just missed out of the #1 spot on Channel 4's recent 100 top cartoons list, beaten only by The Simpsons), this was not surprising. They would occupy both pages until mid-1975, when they were given both front and back pages, both in colour. When TV Comic made their ill-fated move to a larger tabloid format in September 1976, they would mostly occupy one very large colour page (but the number of panels did not increase, only blown-up a bit bigger), with the occasional additional grace of the front cover. This arrangement continued when the comic reverted to its original size shortly afterwards, but was now printed on cheaper paper and a limited colour palette (sometimes the strip was even devoid of the latter). The strip also became a victim of the publication's new policy of reprinting old material towards the end of the decade, so hardly any fresh adventures were published. New two-page colour stories were commissioned around 1982, but the damage was already done. It was already losing readers, and the comic eventually ceased to be in mid-1984. Despite the turmoil, Tom & Jerry still remained one of TV Comic's most popular strips, alongside Doctor Who and The Avengers.

Differences between the American comic strips, apart from the limited 2-page format, was that Tom was much more of a bully, dishing out physical violence towards Jerry to the point where it even becomes Deitch-esque, but Jerry still gave as good as he got. Also, after the first few years, the strip would also be littered with puns, but thankfully not as painful as you would expect. The Maid makes regular appearances throughout this run, but became more of a white English suburban housewife. Spike also gained regular exposure, but not only without his son Tyke, but he is also referred to by his original name Butch (presumably because it sounded more appealing to British readers). Tuffy would only make a handful of appearances.

Throughout the 15-year run, the T&J comic strip was drawn by virtually the same artist: Bill Titcombe. A prolific and talented cartoonist, Titcombe drew countless number of comic strip between the 60's and 90's not only for TV Comic, but also for sister publication Pipkin and its closest rival Look-In. His work includes such cartoon adaptations as Bugs Bunny, Barney Bear, The Inspector, and Scooby-Doo. He also drew strips based on live-action shows, such as Dad's Army, Benny Hill, Man About The House, and Charlie's Angels. Out of all his work, he always regards Tom & Jerry as his all-time favourite strip. A further mini-bio and examples of his work can be found here and here.

Below are six of Titcombe's T&J comic strips, drawn during its golden period (1969-76). It is somewhat difficult to pick out of hundreds of strips not only to present some of the funniest, but also to show how Titcombe's drawing style would evolve during that time. But I hope you enjoy reading these nonetheless:

#930, 11th October 1969

#999, 6th February 1971

#1032, 25th September 1971

#1126, 14th July 1973

#1210, 22nd February 1975.

#1239, 13th September 1975

Coming-up next: TV Comic's The Bugs Bunny Show.

An Introduction To TV Comic's Classic Cartoon Strips

2009-10-21T20:05:00.002+01:00

I always loved reading UK classic cartoon annuals (full of reprinted American cartoon strips), but during the last few years I have developed a special fondness for the UK comic strips versions of our fave cartoons, which were a feature of a long-defunct weekly publication:

TV Comic first started publishng in November 9th 1951 until June 22nd 1984, resulting in a total of 1696 issues. It focused mainly on comic strips adapted from television shows broadcast at the time of publication (including Doctor Who, The Avengers, and Basil Brush), alongside original creations (such as TV Terrors, Mighty Moth, and Texas Ted - big hat, big head!). Cartoon adaptations were also included, but the first comic strips based on the Golden Age Cartoons were not published until issue #896 on 15th February 1969, when Bugs Bunny made his debut, followed by Tom & Jerry some 14 editions later. Its publisher, Polystyle Publications, gained licenses to use the classic cartoon characters from Warner Brothers and MGM via the Western Publishing Company. But rather than reprint the Western-drawn comic strips (like the UK annuals did at the time), TV Comic opted to draw their own using their own talented team, who adapted the format and humour of the strips to more British tastes.

One reason was the amount of pages allowed for each cartoon strip. While the American comic strips ran generally between 4-8 pages (even longer), British comics would only allow one page per show/character (only a few were given the luxury of having two pages!) and the content would be very much situation-based rather than in story. The extra pages afforded for the American strips did allow for an actual story to develop, but the humour and slapstick were somewhat more restrained when compared to the British adaptations, where our fondness for (violent) slapstick is more apparent.

The artwork is also different:: the American comic strips were down by artists (and even animators) and certainly has more beautiful (and on-model) art, while the British versions were done by cartoonists, and while the artwork is more "loose" (which did not necessarily suit the look of the character), it is that cartoonist's approach that makes the visuals gags more funny.

This series will feature "six of the best" comic strips from each classic cartoon characters featured below (not necessarily in the following order), including (where possible) the first-ever strips and the cartoonists who drew them (which includes Bill Titcombe, Barry Glennard, and Bill Mevin):

To kick-start this new series, we will take a look at the Tom & Jerry comic strips, featuring Tom's attempts to be a glam-rock superstar, Jerry being an unwilling participant in polo, and the tatty cat being blown-up by torpedoes!

A Change Of Plan...

2009-10-11T20:50:00.002+01:00

It's been a very busy few months, especially in getting a new job and relocating to a different town, that I haven't been posting here during that time. Also, due to relocating, my classic cartoon annuals are now in storage and are currently unaccessible, so my UK annuals series will now be delayed (hopefully it will return in the near future). I really do apologise for these setbacks.

However, I still have access to my TV Comics, which features UK comic strip adaptations of classic American cartoon characters, and very shortly I will be presenting a new series dedicated to these overlooked gems.

Stay tooned!

Retro UK Annuals: Bugs Bunny 1983

2009-06-28T20:17:00.001+01:00

Along with the Tom & Jerry version, this was my very first annual I received on Xmas Day 1982. What I didn't know is that this would be the last Bugs Bunny annual to be published by World Distributors, who would finally give up producing classic cartoon annuals a year later, ending a golden era.

World published its first Bugs Bunny annual in the early 50's, but it was from its 1964 annual that it would publish a new book every year. Every book included reprints of American comic strip (licensed from Western Publishing), and most (including this one) also had short stories, jokes and even puzzles.

I'm proud to present the best bits of this fine annual. Unfortunately, my copy is long lost, and the one I later obtained has some bizarre tick marks (why?), which I'm only able to conceal on a few scans. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy reading them.

Front cover:

Back cover:

In this annual, there were three illustrated short stories, and the following is the first one, which I present in full:

This annual has plenty of puzzles, activities, and jokes. The former two were completed or had a few scribbles on, so I decided not to upload these. And most of the jokes are very painful (I like to know who wrote these), so here are the more bearable ones:

And, of course, I shouldn't forget to include examples of the American comic reprints included in this book. Here are the first pages of the first few:

And here's my favourite comic strip (in full), Power of Pizazz. I don't mind admitting that when I first read this, I had enormous sympathy for the alien "Bugs" when he exclaimed "This is food?" - I thought he was eating cauliflower!

More Bugs Bunny annuals will appear soon. Coming up next - Pink Panther!

Retro UK Annuals: Tom & Jerry 1967

2009-04-08T18:17:00.000+01:00

The year was 1966: America was gripped by Beatlemania, the England football team won the World Cup, and the first Tom & Jerry annual was launched a few months before Xmas. Ah, it was a good year to be English (or so I imagine, being born 11 years too late!).
This was published by World Distributors, who were already publishing annuals based on classic American cartoons years before, with Bugs Bunny in the 50's and the Flintstones, Huckleberry Hound, and Top Cat annuals during the early 60's. Before then, publishers Dean launched the first Mickey Mouse annual in 1930, and Felix annuals popped up a decade before. It's a wonder why Tom & Jerry annuals arrived much later than their fellow animated stars.
World would only publish one T&J annual in the 60's, before embarking on a regular yearly run during 1970-83. Throughout the series (and indeed like the vast majority of these annuals), these books consisted mostly of reprints of American comic strips (published by Western Publishing), with some original illustrated stories and jokes/puzzles/activity pages.
To kick-start this new series, let's take a peek at some of the select pages from this annual, starting with the front cover:

Back cover:

Title page:

Four T&J comic strips appeared in this annual, the following are the first pages from each strip:

To complement the T&J strips, Barney Bears appears (with his nephews Fuzzy & Wuzzy) in a couple of his own:

Not to be outdone, T&J stalwarts Spike & Tyke get their own couple of adventures:

Another twin set of strips feature a character who is relatively unknown in Blighty: Wuff the Prairie Dog, specially created for the T&J comics in the US:

But there is more T&J stuff to come: Four illustrated stories are featured, and here are the openings from three of them:

However, here is a complete story, in which even Tom & Jerry themselves were influenced by the British music invasion (check out their moptops!):

There will be more selected Tom & Jerry annuals appearing in the future, alongside others (watch out for Looney Tunes, Pink Panther, Top Cat, and more). Unfortunately, due to a HUGE collection, I'm unable to show them all, but I do hope you enjoy viewing my selections and inspire you to collect these gems, whether they are British annuals or classic American comics.
And if you can identify the artists and/or original publishing dates, feel free to post a comment. Share it to the world!

This blog isn't dead yet!

2009-03-31T22:16:00.000+01:00

Hi Guys!

Just to let you know that I haven't abandoned my blog. Been busy doing other, more important things, so I apologise for the lack of posts.

However, my new series of UK Cartoon Annuals will DEFINITELY make its debut in the next few days (I already made some select scans from one of them).

Stay tooned!

A little experiment...

2009-01-11T23:20:00.000Z

During the festive period, I've been experimenting on cleaning up the audio on a couple of cartoons using the open-source program Audacity (I know there are better, more sophisticated programs out there, but due to this credit crunch, I decided to restrict myself to free software). The first cartoon to get this treatment is the 1929 Aesop's Fable Wood Choppers, where my copy has a rather crackly audio. I managed to clean it up using a minimum amount of noise reduction, and in my opinion, the end result is adequate, if not great:

Aesop's Fables - Wood Choppers
Uploaded by ldglover

Krazy Kat's Alaskan Knights proved to be more troublesome. Bootleg-print aside, this one not only has a crackly audio, but it's also very faint and has a lot of background hiss. Minimum noise-reduction and low-pass filtering made it more audiable, but despite boosting the audio as well, it still comes out as quite faint, See what you think of it:

Krazy Kat - Alaskan Knights
Uploaded by ldglover

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T21:12:00.000Z

For all you new-year bargain-hunters out there, here's a Pink Panther comic strip (from TV Comic #1099, 6th January 1973) for you to enjoy:

Merry Xmas!

2008-12-22T21:02:00.001Z

A very merry christmas to all!

And here's my present to you good folks: A Looney Tunes comic strip featuring Sylvester (TV Comic #1045, 25th December 1971). Artwork by Bill Titcombe.

Enjoy! Ho, ho, ho!

Coming Soon in 2009

2008-12-08T16:52:00.000Z

This blog will largely focus on comic strips throughout the next year, but I will still throw in the occasional classic/unusual cartoon clip.
Due to other commitments, I decided to delay my new series of UK Annuals posts until January. Sorry for not posting anything on this recently, but I reckon the New Year will be the ideal time to launch it. Nevertheless, I will reveal that the first post will be dedicated to the very first Tom & Jerry annual, published in 1966.
Also, I plan to post another topic very shortly, to run alongside the Annuals: Six of the Best, a selection of comic strips from TV Comic, combining the classic American cartoon characters with the British comic strip style. Watch out for Bugs Bunny, Droopy, Road Runner, and even Deputy Dawg!
But there will be previews during the run-up to Xmas and New Year, all of which will be Yuletide-related. To kick-off with, enjoy some mistletoe fun with Tom & Jerry (from TV Comic #940, 20th December 1969). Artwork by Bill Titcombe:

Count Catula & The Were-Mouse (a.k.a. Tom & Jerry)

2008-10-30T20:29:00.000Z

As Halloween is now upon us, enjoy this creepy Tom & Jerry comic strip, published by the UK's TV Comic (#1036, week ending 23rd October 1971). Artwork by Bill Titcombe:

Watch out for more British T&J comic strips on this blog soon!

R&TVP Redrawns - Off To The Races (Ups 'N' Downs)

2008-10-21T00:23:00.000+01:00

Firstly, apologies for the recent lack of posts, as I've been quite busy recently.

These series of R&TVP posts will come to an end today, partly because of problems with my Windows Movie Maker software, and also because I'm more keen on starting a series of posts about UK cartoon annuals and British versions of Tom & Jerry, Bugs Bunny, and Barney Bear comic strips. But I will end this series with a true WTF redrawn! I intended to post this as a big, surprising finale. but my uploaded copy was already discovered by a GAC Forum member ( click here! ). That'll teach me to upload it a day early!

Nevertheless, I'll present the most bizarre redrawn ever - Off To The Races.

This is based on Ups 'N' Downs, a 1931 Looney Tune starring Bosko. At first glance, it looks as if it is a better-looking effort compared to some of the others featured on my blog. That is, until the bad guy throws a grenade at Bosko and his mechanical horse, which then explodes. At that point, it gets really, REALLY bizarre - the ending is completely different to the original, with extremely crappy-looking original Korean animation, off-model characters, and, to add insult to injury, the original soundtrack is replaced by terribly-corny music (thankfully, it's quite brief). One may assume that the source material came without its ending, hence the entirely-new one!

For those of you who haven't seen either or both versions, I recommend seeing the original first:

Ups N Downs - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

And if you're brave enough to see this redrawn, here it is:

Ups N Downs - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

That's the end of my R&TVP posts. I hope some of you enjoyed watching them, and to those who are now virtually blind after overdosing on these redrawns, I beg you to accept my sincere apologies (hee! hee! hee!).

Now, on to the annuals...

Tweety is a GIRL...

2008-09-02T20:27:00.000+01:00

...well, according to Britain's TV Comic.

From the late-60's to the comic's demise in 1984, potentially thousands of young British readers were led to believe that Tweety was a girl (this was in the days before Warner Brothers started to market Tweety merchandise to girls, hence the current confusion), while children on the other side of the pond were reading the Dell Comics versions where the canary is clearly referenced as male.

Hard to believe, ain't it? But alas, I provide the proof.

Below are five examples of where Tweety is often referred to as a she. Enjoy or weep, it's up to you.

11/11/72
16/12/72

17/02/73

14/04/73

27/02/81

BTW, I will be posting more of these British LT strips in the future, along with the TV Comic versions of the Tom & Jerry, Pink Panther, Barney Bear, and Droopy comic strips.

R&TVP Redrawns - Jack Frost

2008-08-25T23:11:00.000+01:00

Jack Frost is a redrawn version of a ComiColor cartoon of the same title (the original was released on Christmas Eve 1934) . It is sourced from a B&W silent print, hence the corny music score added by Radio & Television Packagers.

One bizzare thing about this redrawn is that Jack Frost is coloured Pink/Red, which gives the impression that he is rather hot in the cold winter conditions (either that, or the retracers really believed that the bear is being chased by an elderly nudist!).

Anyway, here's the redrawn. See how it grabs you (and, most importantly, where?):

Jack Frost - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And the far-more-impressive original:

Jack Frost - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

Coming Soon - Retro UK Annuals!

2008-08-12T00:16:00.000+01:00

Starting next month, there will be a new series of posts about classic British annuals, featuring your favourite classic cartoon characters.

The British annual has been a long-standing Christmas tradition that dates back to the early 20th century, to tie in with a comic or magazine, a film, a TV series, toys, and yes, even classic animation. These are usually dated by next year's date, to ensure that the last remaining copies remain saleable after the new year,.

The first cartoon character to get his own annual was Felix the Cat in 1923 (dated 1924), and Mickey Mouse first got his in 193o (same again, dated the next year). However, its heyday was in the 1970s, when even a Terrytoons character got his own annual! Classic cartoon annuals are still being published today, although not on a big scale as it was then.

The vast majority of the annuals during the 60's-mid 80's (most of the featured annuals will be from this period) consisted of vintage American comic strips, mostly from Dell comics. It may be viewed as a "cheat" during that time, but it was (and still is, if you buy them on eBay) an economical and longer-lasting way of viewing these classic strips. However, there is one exception: TV Comic, a weekly magazine featuring British-drawn strips based on cartoons and other TV shows, published their own annuals, which consists of our very own Tom & Jerry, Bugs Bunny, Barney Bear, and Pink Panther cartoon strips. Examples of these will be shown in due course.

In this series, I will be posting a selection of pages from each annual featured, which will include first pages of comic strips and illustrated stories, but I will include a complete comic strip in each post. I will also include some of the activity pages and cover illustrations.

Below are some scans of what to expect very shortly.

There will be a few more R&TVP Redrawns posts before this new series starts, but I hope the above images are enough to whet you appetite!

R&TVP Redrawns - On Duty (One More Time)

2008-07-21T17:05:00.000+01:00

On Duty is Radio & Television Packagers' redrawn version of One More Time, the third Merrie Melodie ever made (released 3rd October 1931), and the last to feature Harman-Ising's short-lived character Foxy. This redrawn was sourced from a silent print, so you don't get to hear Frank Marsales' music score performed by Abe Lyman's Brunswick Recording Orchestra to ease the pain of watching it!

However, if you like to watch this version with stock music and sound effects, here it is for your viewing (dis)pleasure (apologies for the sound being out-of-synch):

One More Time - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And here's the original in all its glory:

One More Time - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

Feline Follies - My Very First Commentary

2008-06-17T22:44:00.000+01:00

Inspired by Matthew Hunter's wonderful commentary vids on his Misce-Looney-Ous blog, I decided to try my hand on this commentary lark, and I'm (almost) proud to present my debut - a fan's opinion of Felix's debut cartoon Feline Follies. As this is my very first time doing this, I can only apologise if I sounded rather nervous (you won't believe how many takes I did!). I must also stress that this is a fan commentary, so I could be talking utter crap.

And yep, it really is my voice! And no, I can't believe it, too!

Enjoy!

Feline Follies (With Commentary)
Uploaded by ldglover

R&TVP Redrawns - The Inventor (Felix Turns The Tide)

2008-06-16T22:39:00.000+01:00

Today's post features another redrawn Felix short - Felix Turns The Tide, re-named by famed bootleggers Astra TV as The Inventor (in which Radio & Television Packagers used their version as the source print).

This is one of the most bizarre (and badly executed) redrawns I had the (mis)fortune to witness. Felix is redrawn ORANGE, for starters! And alas, they forgot to include Felix's closing remark.

But anyway, for you redrawns fans out there, here it is:

Felix Turns The Tide - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

Normally I would post a complete original, but would you like to see the Astra TV print instead? Fortunately, Tom Stathes owns a copy, and he specially transferred and uploaded it onto his blog. Click here to read his wonderful article (and watch the vid, of course), and be sure to check out his other Astra TV posts too.

R&TVP Redrawns - The Steadfast Tin Soldier (The Brave Tin Soldier)

2008-06-09T20:33:00.000+01:00

Today's post features the R&TVP redrawn The Steadfast Tin Soldier, which is based on the Ub Iwerk's ComiColor short The Brave Tin Soldier (released 7th April 1934). The source material is a B&W silent version, but unlike some of the others already featured on this blog, this one has a fairly decent music score:

The Brave Tin Soldier - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

Of course, the original and best:

The Brave Tin Soldier - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

Still plenty more redrawns to watch out for (if you're brave enough, that is)!

R&TVP Redrawns - Cinderella (Once Upon A Time)

2008-05-17T21:17:00.000+01:00

Today's redrawn, Cinderella, was originally a 1936 Techicolor cartoon called Once Upon A Time, produced by Audio Productions for Metropolitan Life Insurance. This cartoon features a charming original song, with music by Edwin E. Ludwig and words by Frank W. Speidell.

This R&TVP cartoon is, IMHO, one of the worst-looking redrawns I've ever seen. Have fun spotting the mistakes when comparing it to the original:

Once Upon A Time - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

Once Upon A Time - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

R&TVP Redrawns - Ain't Nature Grand

2008-05-12T17:13:00.000+01:00

And just when you thought I abandoned the redrawns topic for good...

(cue evil laugh): MWAHAAHAAAHAAAAAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

Today's post is the Bosko short "Ain't Nature Grand". It's one of the earliest Bosko cartoons (can't pinpoint the release date, but it was released sometime in 1930-31), and is typical Harman-Ising fare.

Here's the redrawn version (in which the main body is complete and, with the exception of the end music, comes with its original soundtrack):

Ain't Nature Grand - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And if you don't want to watch the redrawn, or if you're looking for a comparison, here's the original (albeit a Sunset/Guild Films print):

Ain't Nature Grand - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

R&TVP Redrawns - The Dancing Bear

2008-04-08T01:12:00.000+01:00

Another redrawn for you to enjoy (or retch)!

The Dancing Bear is a redrawn version of the Farmer Al Falfa Terrytoon of the same name, released 15th Ocrober 1937. As per usual, the technical quality of the redrawn is utter crap. Mind you, the majority of the 1930's Terrytoons were not fantastically animated in the first place.

Voila la redrawn:

The Dancing Bear - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

You will notice that the opening title card (redrawn from a 1950's Astra TV print, the source material used for the above version) on my copy has been partially-obscured (not by me, but by a UK home video company), to avoid showing a trademarked cartoon character. But I've managed to locate a screenshot of the whole "offending" title:

And here's the original (albeit a bootleg TV) version for comparision:

The Dancing Bear - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

Thanks to Tom Stathes for the valuable info!

R&TVP Redrawns - Barnyard Frolics (Moonlight For Two)

2008-04-04T18:33:00.000+01:00

Barnyard Frolics is a redrawn version of the WB Merrie Melodie Moonlight For Two, released in 11th June 1932. It is a typical early Harman-Ising cartoon, full of posing, dancing, and singing.

The print used as the basis of this redrawn is a silent version, so expect the corny music and sound effects added on by Radio & Television Packagers (which makes this version so awful it's strangely entertaining). Unfortunately, my copy has the audio a little out of synch. Enjoy (if you dare):

Moonlight For Two - Redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And of course, here's the original for comparison:

Moonlight For Two - Original
Uploaded by ldglover

R&TVP Redrawns - Country Boy Rabbit

2008-03-21T23:17:00.000Z

As it's now Easter, what's better fitting than posting a cartoon starring some Easter bunnies? Well.....not Easter bunnies to be exact, but this redrawn does star a lot of rabbits!
Country Boy Rabbit is a redrawn version of the two-strip technicolor Merrie Melodie short "Country Boy". The source print used is an edited, possibly damaged B&W print - the charming opening song is incomplete, and it's missing the final end gag!
For your enjoyment (or disgust), I now present the redrawn:

Country Boy - redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And here's the complete original for comparison:

Country Boy - original
Uploaded by ldglover

R&TVP Redrawns - Puss in Boots

2008-03-09T00:04:00.000Z

Today's post will focus on the R&TVP redrawn cartoon Puss in Boots, which was originally a Ub Iwerk's ComiColor (that's right, the original is in COLOUR - albeit two-strip) cartoon (released 17th May 1934). The source material was obviously a B&W print with piss-poor audio, and the resulting technical quality of this redrawn is really, really crap.
So, if you've done something really naughty today, punish yourself by watching this abomination (or laugh-fest, if you love watching these redrawns):

Puss in Boots - redrawn
Uploaded by ldglover

And to make yourself feel better again, here's the original for comparison:

Puss in Boots - original
Uploaded by ldglover

The Radio & Television Packagers redrawns

2008-02-25T12:17:00.000Z

During the 1960's, when B&W cartoons were beginning to have little or no commercial value (or so they think), Warner Brothers and NTA decided to commission Fred Ladd's company Color Systems to redraw their respective B&W cartoons (Porky Pig and Betty Boop) in colour. The results may have been impressive at that time, but nowadays (especially in the computer-colourising age which can give much better results in colourising cartoons) one can be appalled by the poor technical quality in the redrawn animation (not every frame is traced, momentary missing limbs etc.), psychedelic colour scheme, and poor film stock.
Of course, we all moan about these redrawns, and we hardcore animation fans prefer to see these cartoons as originally intended. But the sad truth is, these redrawns still kept the spirit of the originals in the public consciousness, and has enabled many fans to seek out the originals, resulting in a big demand to see them on DVD and other media. You could say that the redrawing process was a necessary evil at that time.
There were other companies that commissioned redrawns later on. Turner, in 1986, invited Entecolor Technologies (formerly Color Systems) to redraw their B&W Popeye and Merrie Melodies cartoons, which was a rather strange decision as they were starting to colourise their feature films using a computer process. While the technical quality and colour palette was somewhat better than the redrawn Porky's and Betty's, plenty of mistakes were still made.
But perhaps the worst-looking redrawns of them all were commissioned by Radio & Television Packagers (who I shall refer to as R&TVP). They gave Color Systems a batch of (presumably) home-movie prints of (mostly) public-domain cartoons during the early 70's. Unfortunately, what R&TVP didn't know is that many of the cartoons do exist in their original colour! Also, they failed to realise that some of them were silent versions of sound cartoons (they will later add corny music to those redrawns). On one cartoon, they had the ending redrawn to something completely different!!! The result is a series of redrawns that are sooooooooo bad, they are actually quite entertaining in their own unique way.
Here is a complete list of the 43 R&TVP cartoons, as compiled by Richard Jebe and Pietro Shakarian:

"Toy Shop" – "We're in the Money" (1933), WB
"Ain't Nature Grand?" – 1931 WB of the same name
"Barnyard Frolic" – "Moonlight for Two" (1931), WB
"Bosko's Woodland Daze" – 1932 WB of the same name
"Country Boy Rabbit" – "The Country Boy" (1935), WB (originally color)
"Magazine Rack" – "I Like Mountain Music" (1933), WB
"Off To The Races" – "Ups 'N Downs" (1931), WB
"On Duty" – "One More Time" (1931), WB
"Accidents Won't Happen" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"The Invisible Revenge" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"Where Am I?" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"Mixing In Mexico" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"Oceans Of Trouble" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"Soda Jerks" – 1925 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"When Hell Froze Over" – 1926 Mutt and Jeff of the same name
"The Adventures Of Mutt And Jeff And Bugoff" – "Slick Sleuths" (1926), Mutt and Jeff
"Dog Missing" – "Dog Gone" (1926), Mutt and Jeff
"Egyptian Daze" – "Mummy O' Mine" (1926), Mutt and Jeff
"The Mail Pilot" – 1927 Aesop's Film Fable of the same name
"The Under Dog" – 1929 Aesop's Film Fable of the same name
"Tuning In" – 1929 Van Beuren of the same name
"Love Bugs" – "Fly Hi" (1931), Van Beuren
"Art For Art's Sake" – 1934 Van Beuren of the same name
"The Villian Pursues Her" – "Sinister Stuff" (1934), Van Beuren
"Chinese Lanterns" – "Japanese Lanterns" (1935), Van Beuren (originally color)
"Batter Up" – "Play Ball" (1932), Terrytoons
"Spring Cleaning" – "Kiko's Cleaning Day" (1937), Terrytoons
"The Dancing Bear" – 1937 Terrytoon on the same name
"Lumberjack" - "The Saw Mill Mystery" (1937), Terrytoons
"Music And Charm" - "The Villain Still Pursued Her" (1937), Terrytoons
"The Inventor" – "Felix Turns the Tide" (1922), Sullivan
"Sunken Treasure" – "Felix Braves the Briny" (1926), Sullivan
"Misses His Swiss" – "Felix Misses His Swiss" (1926), Sullivan
"Scoots Through Scotland" – "Felix Scoots Through Scotland" (1926), Sullivan
"Mr. Do–All" – "Jack From All Trades" (1927), Sullivan
"Jack Frost" – 1934 Iwerks of the same name (originally color)
"Puss in Boots" – 1934 Iwerks of the same name (originally color)
"The Steadfast Tin Soldier" – "The Brave Tin Soldier" (1934), Iwerks (originally color)
"Cinderella" - "Once Upon a Time" (circa 1937), Audio Productions
"Big City" – 1947 UK Bubbles and Squeek cartoon of the same name
“Grampus & Scrappy” - The Big Game (1928), Aesop's Fable

Unidentified:
"They Shall Not Pass" – Mutt and Jeff
"Double Performance" - Unknown

In these series of posts (yes, I'll be posting these, so be warned - lol),I shall be posting specially-selected redrawns, along (where possible) with their originals for comparison.
And to start off with, here's a redrawn version of Felix Misses His Swiss, starring the title character as a burgundy-coloured cat!. Unfortunately, I don't have the original to upload, but according to David Gerstein, the final scenes were missing from the original source print, so you will see a fake (clover-shaped???) iris-out before it reaches a satisfying conclusion.

Felix Misses His Swiss
Uploaded by ldglover

Did the re-tracers really believe that Felix was grabbing his gonads at the beginning of the cartoon (lol)?
For this series, as these will mostly be public-domain cartoons, I've decided to abandon imposing a time-limit on their availability.

Cartoon Lookalikes

2008-02-17T16:30:00.000Z

A couple of cartoon lookalikes for you today.

Recently, I caught a glimpse of a DVD cover of Are You Being Served?, and the picture of a scowling Mrs Slocombe (Mollie Sugden)...

...instantly reminded me of Chicken Pie in the Herman cartoon Scrappily Married.
And why does the map of my native West Country...
...always remind me of the head of a certain aardvark?

Rare Felix Cards

2008-02-16T15:44:00.000Z

Below are scans taken from a set of very rare Felix the Cat cards that I managed to obtain a few years ago. Little is known about about the origins of these, but it is beleved that these came as a gift from either confectionary or tobacco products that were sold in Britain during the late 20's or early 30's. If any of you guys know more about these, please let me know.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Kitty Caddy

2008-02-07T15:56:00.001Z

Kitty Caddy (which only survives in soundtrack form in the Columbia archives) is one of the last Screen Gems cartoons to be made, produced in the Harry Binder - Ray Katz era. It features a cat & dog's attempts to play a peaceful game of golf, but it turns out anything but peaceful, especially when Bob Hope and Bing Crosby keep stealing the scenes (and something else besides). One note: you see the cat & dog holding hands when they arrive in the park - are they more than just friends (tee-hee!)?

Out of all the lost toons, this is one of the better shorts, and I'm proud to present this in its entirety. Enjoy!

Kitty Caddy
Uploaded by ldglover
Available to view for 1 month.

And that's all, folks (I know. Wrong tagline for these cartoons)! It took a long time (for reasons I won't go into), but this series of lost Columbia cartoons has finally drawn to a close. I hope that you enjoyed viewing these clips, and I also hope that those of you who haven't or have little of these cartoons in your collection will seek out for more, and not just these lost toons. Many of these are by no means classics, but are certainly underappreciated.

Watch out for my new series of posts about the crappiest-looking redrawns ever, and I will be posting more Columbia cartoons in the future.

Thanks for reading the Lost Columbia Cartoons series!

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Major Google

2008-02-06T17:10:00.000Z

Major Google was the last of the Barney Google cartoon quartet, and, like the previous three, this is a lacklustre effort. Even with the absence of sound on the surviving home movie prints, you can still visually see why the transfer from printed to animated cartoon was not successful.

The cartoon apparantly survives in the Columbia archives as a B&W print (don't know if it is with or without sound) and a redrawn (but silent) version. I've managed to obtain copies of two silent, truncated home movie versions. Sadly, there's not enough material to make a almost-complete reconstruction as each one is 2-and-a-half minutes long and only a few differences in each print. However, I've uploaded the best-looking of the two prints for your viewing pleasure.

Major Google
Uploaded by ldglover

As always, the video will be available to view for a month.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Dreams on Ice

2008-02-05T19:40:00.000Z

This 1939 cartoon, directed by Sid Marcus, is apparantly non-existant in the Columbia archives, but does survive in the collectors'/traders' circuits as a 16mm B&W print. This is one of a handful of "Sparky" cartoons, where he attempts to do ice-skating by flooding his bedroom with water and opening his window to let the freezing wind through.

IMHO it's a drab, Disney-esque cartoon, but nevertheless, here's the complete short for you to enjoy:

Dreams On Ice
Uploaded by ldglover

Available to view for 1 month.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - The Herring Murder Mystery / Hollywood Sweepstales

2008-02-05T01:03:00.000Z

A double-bill of short clips for you, today.

The Herring Murder Mystery (a 1943 cartoon which apparantly only exists in the Columbia archives as a segment of the first two minutes) features the story of a herring pickler, who, after being arrested - and thrown into the sea - by the fish police, is on trial for murder (well, he did pickle them to death!).

Presenting here is a short segment from a complete print. Personally, it's shad roe, shad roe, shad roe to me!

Herring Murder Mystery exerpt
Uploaded by ldglover

Another short clip below is taken from Hollywood Sweepstakes, a 1939 cartoon (directed by Ben Harrison) that is officially missing in the Columbia archives (but survives among us collectors as a 16mm colour print). It does feature a host of celebrity characitures, but they're mostly token - it's really about a pony's attempt to win a derby. Here's the second half of this cartoon for you to enjoy:

Hollywood Sweepstakes exerpt
Uploaded by ldglover

Clips are available to view for a month.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Kickapoo Juice

2008-01-20T13:51:00.000Z

Hi gang! At long last, I'm able to start posting the remaining "lost" cartoons.

Kickapoo Juice (which currently exists in the Columbia archives as a B&W print) was the fifth and last Li'l Abner cartoon to be released (in 1944). Producer Dave Fleischer bought the animation rights to this famous cartoon strip, hoping to turn this character into a movie success in a similar way as Popeye was. However, this was not to be.

I've seen all five cartoons, but can't really comment on how bad (or indeed, how good) these adaptations were, as I've never read the strips. What I can say is that these cartoons, although not truly awful, are not particularly memorable or funny.

Nevertheless, I'm proud to present this cartoon complete and uncut, and is available to view on this blog for 1 month. Enjoy!

Kickapoo Juice
Uploaded by ldglover

A New Year, And A New Look!

2008-01-01T21:14:00.001Z

Hi, guys! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

And I decided that this is the perfect time to relaunch my blog, not only with a new template, but also with a brand new (and dangerously-titled) name. The inspiration for this comes from the title of a series of cartoon strips I drew for my University magazine, before the new millenium (an example can be seen by clicking on the image below):

Throughout January, I will be finishing off my series of posts about the "lost" Columbia cartoons. The remaining cartoons to be posted here include:

Major Google
Hollywood Sweepstakes
Dreams on Ice
The Herring Murder Mystery
Kickapoo Juice
Kitty Caddy.

And starting this February, I will be making a series of posts regarding the worst-looking redrawn cartoons ever: The Radio & Television Packagers cartoons. These will include specially-selected video clips, with (where possible) the originals. Just to whet your apppetite (or to warn you), here are some hilarious-looking frames taking from the beginning of the redrawn version of Felix Misses His Swiss:

I didn't know Felix had a weak bladder!

Also, I've decided to change the links section to include only those that contains info about the classic cartoons. But if you have a blog (which can be almost-anything) and is interested in becoming one of my "blogger buddies" (where we promote each other's blogs), let me know in the comments section. Cheers!

Merry Christmas Everybody!

2007-12-24T20:03:00.000Z

Hi everyone! I'm back!

Apologies for the delay, as my relocation to Norwich took longer than I thought, and a few difficulties were encountered during my stay (I won't bore you with the details). However, everything is more or less settled, and I'm able to resume posting again! But in the meantime, my PC is still in Plymouth, where I'll be staying during the Christmas and New Year period.

And for the next two weeks, I intend to finish my series of Lost Columbia Cartoons posts before I relaunch my blog, which will focus on rare and unusual classic cartoons.

As a special Christmas present, I've reloaded the festive Famous Studios cartoon "Santa's Surprise", for you to enjoy during the festive season!

Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!

Santa's Surprise
Uploaded by ldglover

Arrivederci, for the time being...

2007-09-29T23:29:00.000+01:00

Hi guys!

Most of you have notice my recent lack of posts on my blog. This was due to me working nights for the past three months, meaning that I didn't have as much time to post here as I would have liked. For this, I apologise.

Also, I'm going to move to Norwich and start my new job there, but due to the huge distance between Norwich and Plymouth (where I'm currently staying), it's going to take a month moving all of my stuff there, and I decided that my PC will be the last thing I'm taking, so I will not be online for the whole of October (I should imagine the cold turkey will be unbearable)!

But I will start posting here again in November, in which I will post more clips of the remaining "Lost Columbia Cartoons". I've also decided to focus solely on classic theatrical cartoons, with a slant towards the rare and the unusual. Talking about the latter, watch out for a new series of posts showcasing some wacky-looking redrawn cartoons!

To anyone I'm making trades with, it's alright to post them to my old address. As it is in fact my parents' address, I know that they will arrive safe and sound. If you want to post them to my new address, please wait until November when I will be able to contact you.

Please note that an automated message will be sent to you if you e-mail me, but I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Oh, I almost forgot! The video clips on my blog will still be available throughout October.

See you guys in November!

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Spark Plug

2007-08-27T22:27:00.000+01:00

It's been a very busy couple of months for yours truly, hence the irregular posting, for which I apologise. But over here in Blighty, we had a bank holiday weekend, which allowed me the time to do something special - another cartoon reconstruction!

This "lost" Columbia cartoon (released 12th April 1936) features Barney Google's attempt to win a derby with his horse, Spark Plug (ain't that a great name?). It is the third of the four Barney Google cartoons that Charles Mintz produced, and is IMHO the best one the Screen Gems studio did.

This apparantly survives in the Columbia archives as a 16mm B&W print, but I was able to do a virtual reconstruction using three silent home-movie prints, using the redrawn version as a template. A few brief missing scenes here and there, but nothing greatly vital to the story. In fact, the redrawn version also has a few missing scenes that are present in my version.

This version will be available on this blog for two months. Yep, you read that right (lol!). Enjoy!

Spark Plug
Uploaded by ldglover

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Mysto Fox

2007-08-13T22:24:00.000+01:00

Apologies for the long delay in posting.

Mysto Fox (released 29th August 1947) is the only Fox & Crow cartoon not currently existing in its original form. The soundtrack of this cartoon is what apparantly survives in the Columbia archives, but it does exist among collectors as a 16mm B&W television print without any opening & closing titles.

I'm proud to present the complete surviving print, available to view on this blog for four weeks:

Mysto Fox
Uploaded by ldglover

Naughty But Mice - My Own Restoration

2007-07-09T18:05:00.000+01:00

I seem to be posting nothing but lost Columbia cartoons during the past couple of months, so just to break the monotomy a little, here's my own restoration of the well-known PD cartoon Naughty But Mice, with one missing scene reinstated from an old NTA print (hence the lower quality). Please excuse the DVD "play" graphic at the start of the cartoon (I was unable to remove it):

Naughty But Mice (restored version)
Uploaded by ldglover

As always, this video will be available for four weeks only.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Patch Mah Britches

2007-07-08T23:56:00.000+01:00

Patch Mah Britches (released 19th December 1935) is the second of the four Barney Google cartoons made by Screen Gems, and was directed by Sid Marcus.

This apparantly survives in the Columbia archive as a 16mm B&W print (whether this is a sound or silent print I'm unable to find out), but during my years of trading and collecting, I can only obtain a copy of a shortened home-movie silent print. A redrawn, colourised silent version (full-length) is also available in the collectors'/traders' circuit, which I also have in my collection.

It is from this sole home-movie print that I've made available to view on my blog. Like the first short, it's not particurly funny, but due to its rarity (King Features, at the time, insisted to movie studios that all films starring their characters - with the exception of the Popeye, Blondie, and Flash Gordon films - be destroyed after ten years), it's still an essential watch. Hope you enjoy this as much as the first one:

Barney Google - Patch Mah Britches
Uploaded by ldglover

The cartoon will be available for four weeks only.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - River Ribber

2007-07-07T20:46:00.000+01:00

This cartoon (released 4th October 1945) is a sequel to an earlier cartoon Professor Small & Mister Tall (26th March 1943), which does survive in its original (albeit re-released) condition. For those of you who haven't seen the first film, here's a very funny exerpt:

Professor Small and Mr. Tall
Uploaded by thadk

This sequel, however, is missing from the Columbia archives, but it does survive in the collectors'/traders' circuits as a 16mm B&W version, without any front and end titles.

Unlike the first film (which sport angular designs and stylistic backgrounds that would later be associated with Screen Gems's successor, UPA), this cartoon features more conventional animation and design, with the two principal characters being redesigned quite significantly (Prof. Small is now almost-bald and clean shaven). The cartoon was directed by Paul Sommer, who also co-directed the original with John Hubley.

The films features the main characters in charge of a steamboat on the Mississippi river, and is challenged by a familiar face to a boat race. This film is not as good as the original, but it does have some amusing moments.

This exerpt is taken from the start of the film.

River Ribber exerpt
Uploaded by ldglover

This video will be available for four weeks only.

Watch out for my next post, which will feature more Barney Google!

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - Tetched In The Head

2007-06-11T21:33:00.000+01:00

Tetched in the Head (released October 24th 1935) marked the debut of comic-strip character Barney Google, created by Billy DeBeck. Charles Mintz had high hopes that his transfer to the animated screen would be a big success, but that did not happen. The character did not have the qualities to be an animated cartoon star, and was quickly retired after just four cartoons. Watching this and his later cartoons, it's not hard to see why. They're just not funny.

This cartoon apparantly only survives in the Columbia archives as a 16mm B&W copy, but it also exists in the collectors'/traders' circuits as an experimental redrawn colourised short (without any sound) and several truncated B&W silent prints.

Using the redrawn version as a template, I've managed to reconstruct the cartoon using three different silent prints. It's almost complete (at least one very-brief scene is missing, during the introduction of Barney). I've decided not to add a music sound track, as I don't think it's really necessary.

Hope you like this version. Enjoy!

Barney Google - Tetched in the Head
Uploaded by ldglover

This video will be available for the next four weeks.

I'll be making posts of the other three Barney cartoons in the near future.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - King Midas Jr.

2007-05-20T21:27:00.000+01:00

Firstly, apologies for the recent lack of posts. Been a busy few weeks for yours truly.

And secondly, for this series, I decided not to make screenshots of whole cartoons, and instead I will post short video extracts of the remaining Columbia cartoons (but watch out for the occasional complete cartoon). The reason for this is because my computer just can not cope with DVD playback (I mainly get frozen pictures), which results in making the process of obtaining screenshots time-consuming, tedious, and just damn annoying! Nevertheless, I do hope that these video extracts will prove fascinating to you good folks.

Ok, I'll stop moaning about my computer now!

Today's post will be...

This cartoon, King Midas Jr., was directed by John Hubley and Paul Sommer, and was released on 18th December 1942. This apparantly no longer exists in the Columbia archive, but does survive in the collectors'/traders' circuits as a complete 16mm colour print.

The short focuses on King Midas Jr, who is given the power of touch by his infamous father. Unfortunately, a mix-up by the angels/telegram boys results in him turning everything he touches into...rubber!

This 1m 30s extract is taken from the ending where, after his futile attempt to eat a banquet without turning everything rubbery, he attempts suicide, but it's not that easy! However, there is some hope for the little king (which relates to a conservation effort during WW2)...

King Midas Jr exerpt
Uploaded by ldglover

This video will be available for the next four weeks.

DVD Review: The Goodies - The Complete LWT Series (Network - Region 2)

2007-05-07T20:57:00.000+01:00

“C’mon everybody, it’s gibbon time!”
Despite the BBC’s reluctance to repeat any episodes of The Goodies (bar the miraculous showing of the “Winter Olympics” episode last year – the first repeat for 20 years!), Network’s “Best Of” DVD compilations has proved to be best-sellers. And now, Network is releasing the entire last series featuring the antics of the inventive-yet-idiotic do-gooders who will do “anything, anytime”, with Tim Brooke-Taylor as the patriotic coward, Bill Oddie as the scruffy rebel, and Graeme Garden as the corduroy-wearing scientist. The main difference, other than this is not a compilation, is that this set comprises their entire output for ITV!
Frustrated with waiting for the BBC to give them the go-ahead for another series, and due to the need of money by Graeme and Bill, the trio decided to accept an offer from LWT. After the 1981 Christmas special, the ITV series started on January 1982. Despite a poorly-suited 6:30pm showing on Saturdays (the BBC broadcasted their shows after the 9pm watershed), it did receive a respectable amount of viewers, but according to LWT (who just had a change of management), not enough to justify the high cost of making the series. Locked in a three-year contact but not required to make any new shows, the trio had no choice but to pursue separate projects (however, they were allowed to reunite to provide voices for the BBC cartoon Bananaman). Even though they never officially split up, it was the end of the madcap trio.
However, we are treated to some great episodes, including their enrolment as oversized dwarves, battling the spread of football hooliganism into ballet, their search of the missing Arthur C. Clarke (and having an encounter with Bigfoot at the same time), Bill disguising as a Swedish au-pair to look after (and get rid of) his replacement – a baby robot, and Graeme selling a new line in pets – people dressed as dogs!
As many fans also know, the series was very heavily influenced by the American theatrical cartoons, mainly Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry. This series contains such references as the Roadrunner and Disney’s Snow White. Also, there are animation references in the use of props, such as the one featured below (no prizes for guessing who the character is).

Although the series can not match up with the earlier BBC shows, there are still uproaringly funny after 25 years. Funny moments include the return of Kitten Kong, Bill on a destructive rampage on his birthday, and a punk rendition of “I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside” (containing possibly the only bleeped-out swearword in the entire series). I don’t mind admitting that I had the fit of the giggles during the beginning of Bigfoot, where “Arthur C. Clarke” (who is really Graeme in disguise) tries to prove his crackpot theory that the Loch Ness monster…
…is in fact “a common garden rhinoceros, floating upside-down underwater, holding a French loaf in his mouth, balancing a tortoise” (it sounds more plausible).
Sadly, despite initial news that the seven episodes will be digitally-restored, the episodes are in fact straight-transfers from the archive tapes (perhaps they blew the budget on the bountiful extras). For 1980’s videotape, the picture and sound quality is very acceptable with little damage. As we come to expect from Network, all episodes retain the opening LWT logo, adcaps, and endcaps.
Unlike the previous sets, all the episodes are on disc 1, which includes commentaries by Tim, Graeme & Bill on two episodes. Like the previous sets, Bill leads the way with Graeme being the most-quiet participant.
However, disc 2 contains a mouth-watering selection of extras, even more than their previous sets. The set includes two loosely-related sitcoms: Doctor in the House and From the Top.

Doctor in the House, loosely based on the Richard Gordon books, centres around the antics of the good-natured medical student Michael Upton and his laddish mates. Most of the first, and the entire second series were written by Graeme and Bill, just before The Goodies first started. The episode featured on this set, Doctor in the Box, is about the goings-on during a filming of their medical college, with Graeme making a cameo appearance as a TV chairman. The first two series are already available from Network (DD Home Entertainment has also released the first series as a mail-order release).
From the Top is a children’s sitcom starring Bill (who co-wrote the series with his wife, Laura Beaumont), and is about a forty-something bank manager who quits his job and enrols on an acting school with a bunch of teenagers. Made soon after the unofficial break-up of the Goodies, it further showcases Bill’s song-writing talents. In this episode, Growing Up…& Out (the opening episode of the second series), Bill discovers that this fellow students were growing out of their uniforms, and appeals to the headmistress that they should be allowed to wear what they choose. Unfortunately, he didn’t account for their extreme tastes (one girl turns up in a squeaky rubber dress). It is interesting to note that Bill co-wrote the theme tune with ex-Monkee Michael Dolenz, who was also the director-producer of the first series.
Also featured are five songs performed by the Goodies on two 1970’s ITV music shows: Shang-A-Lang and Look Alive. The selection features most of their chart hits, including Black Pudding Bertha and the infamous Funky Gibbon (sadly, Graeme’s microphone didn’t work properly during the performance).
Also included are individual and group interviews taken from the ITV archive. Sadly, Network was supplied with “cropped-widescreen” versions of a couple of This Morning interviews (which were broadcast in the early 90’s, before the days of widescreen broadcasts). The interview footage was edited to remove any clips of other TV shows, but as this would be a clearance nightmare, it is perfectly understandable.

The remaining extras include a stills gallery and a couple of news footage, including Tim being a judge in a 1981 turkey competition.
To round off the package, a very-informative booklet is provided, giving extensive details of all the programmes and the extras.
Despite the lack of restoration, this is still a hilarious and essential DVD set. The humour has not aged at all, and the extras are plentiful and pleasing. If Paramount Comedy saw fit in repeating the ITV episodes, we can hope that they (or any other satellite/cable station, but preferably the BBC themselves) will broadcast the long-neglected BBC shows. Highly recommended.
DD Home Entertainment currently has no plans to release their own (mail-order) DVD set.

Images (C) ITV Productions & Network
Text (C) Lee Glover. Not to be copied without permission.

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - The Greyhound & The Rabbit

2007-04-15T20:06:00.000+01:00

This lost cartoon (released 19th April 1940), which exists in the collectors'/traders' circuit as a 16mm B&W print, focuses on the wacky goings-on during a greyhound race.

The Columbia cartoons during the end of the 30's (and the beginning of the 40's) were becoming routine and uninspired, but there were a few good gems, especially this one directed by Sid Marcus. When viewing this cartoon, it does indicate that he was becoming influenced by the Warner Bros. cartoons around that time (he later wrote some darn good stories during his two brief spells with the WB cartoon studio). When he returned to Screen Gems during its final few years, he directed some classic cartoons with full-blown LT humour, such as "Up & Atom" and "Boston Beanie". IMHO he was certainly the best Screen Gems director during the late 30's-early 40's, and would have been adaptable to the Tashlin cartoons had the producer not let him go.

This cartoon is so full of wacky moments, I felt it is best to present it for your viewing pleasure rather than make screenshots from it. Anyway, enough of the lecture. Enjoy this cartoon:

The Greyhound & The Rabbit
Uploaded by ldglover

The cartoon will be available for four weeks only.

More lost Columbia cartoons shortly. Stay tooned!

The Lost Columbia Cartoons - He Can't Make It Stick

2007-04-08T23:27:00.000+01:00

He Can't Make It Stick, a cracking anti-Hitler cartoon, currently survives with a complete soundtrack, but the first-half of the picture is missing (the picture eventually starts after 3 min 40 sec). It was released on 11th June 1943, and was directed by Paul Sommer and John Hubley. But it was the brainchild of storywriter Milt Gross, the cartoonist who directed the zany Count Screwloose cartoons during his brief stay with MGM.

The cartoon starts off with two women talking about a mysterious paperhanger (voiced by John McGleish) who is about to court a largely-built widow (representing Germany). The widow has three children, two follow the crazed stranger's every word, while the other is very suspicious (and gets treated badly whenever he speaks up against him). The widow and the paperhanger instantly fall in love (this is where the surviving picture starts)...

And soon, they were married.

Later, we return to the widow's home.

The paperhanger shows off his new wallpaper design.

The whole family applauds...

Except for one person...

He claims his wallpaper is so "wunderbar", soon the whole world will be using it.

"And now, we mix the paste."

He seems to be in trouble...

And no matter how much he tries...

He can't make it stick!

"It won't stick!"

And sure enough...

There's no paste left.

But he comes up with an idea: He'll get some from his neighbours, in exchange for his wallpaper.

But no matter where he goes...

He can't make it stick!

The Lost Columbia Cartoons

2007-04-02T23:51:00.000+01:00

Regular visitors of Jerry Beck's Cartoon Research website will be aware that, on the Columbia webpage, there is a list of cartoons that Columbia are missing from their archive. You can go direct to this page by clicking here.

However, there are a handful of lost cartoons that do survive (in various forms) in circulation among private collectors and traders, and yours truly has managed to obtain copies of these very rare shorts. In the next few days, I will be presenting screenshots of these lost gems, and at least of couple of these will be made available to view on video (for a limited time only, I must add).

I will make posts on the following cartoons:

Tetched In The Head
Patch Mah Britches
Spark Plug
Major Google
Hollywood Sweepstakes
Dreams On Ice
The Greyhound & The Rabbit
King Midas Jr.
He Can't Make It Stick
The Herring Murder Mystery
Kickapoo Juice
River Ribber
Mysto Fox
Kitty Caddy

There are also two cartoons making the rounds: The Novelty Shop & Ye Old Swap Shoppe. However, these were featured on Columbia's Totally Tooned In, so I do not plan on making screenshots of these as they are no longer lost in their archive (however, if you do like to see them, please let me know).

There is another lost cartoon circulating among collectors and traders: Cockatoos For Two. I do have this cartoon, but Thad Komorowski has already made an excellent post about this short on his blog. Click here (it is on the top of the page) and enjoy!

Watch out for screenshots of the surviving colour footage of He Can't Make It Stick on this blog very shortly!

Rare Columbia Cartoon Titles - Restored Titles

2007-04-02T23:41:00.000+01:00

Andrea Ippoliti, aka "Duck Dodgers", has made a post featuring a selection of Columbia cartoon titles taken from restored prints.

Many of my screenshots were also taken from restored versions, but his post features some that I have not included (such as the Fox & Crow end titles).

Click below, and enjoy:

http://classiccartoons.blogspot.com/2007/04/columbia-titles.html

DVD Review - The Little King (R0 US - Thunderbean)

2007-03-25T22:36:00.000+01:00

ADDITIONAL (2nd April 2006): Please bear in mind that this review is of a pre-release DVD. Thunderbean's Steve Stanchfield has informed me that there will be a revised version with a "ton of extras" ready for general release. I'll post an updated version of this review in the future, but I've already found some really good things about this preview DVD that may tempt you to consider getting this when it's released. Enjoy!

The Little King was first created by newspaper cartoonist Otto Soglow, which appeared on a New York newspaper in 1931. The comic strip proved to be popular, and it did caught the eye of the Van Beuren studio, who were keen to upgrade their cartoons to compete with other studios. But in order to test out if Soglow’s characters can be transferred smoothly onto the big screen, they made two cartoons using Soglow’s other creation, Sentinel Louey. The cartoons did prove moderately successful, and so the Little King series started with "The Fatal Note" (released 1933). Unfortunately, the series only lasted one year until Burt Gillet arrived, and discarded the series along with the other cartoons/characters in one fell swoop. However, the child-like monarch did reappear in one Betty Boop cartoon, and the comic strip itself lasted right until Soglow’s death in 1975.

I’ve never read any of the Little King comic strips, so I can’t really comment on how successful the Van Beuren studio transferred the characterisations and humour of the comic strip onto the big screen. All I know is that the strips consists of dialogue-free gags, and the cartoons are mostly performed without speech (the main character did speak in two cartoons in this collection). However, the cartoons didn’t leave much of an impression to the viewing public, but they still have the Van Beuren brand of humour, with surrealism aplenty and loads of bizarre gags (watch out for a couple of 'dog-wetting' scenes in "The Fatal Note", like the screenshot below). Also, the animation did start to improve by this point (Jim Tyer’s animation worked well with Soglow’s character design), and a few layouts (including the spiral staircase scenes) are particularly impressive.

If you watched any of the Thunderbean DVD releases, you know that they strive to present these cartoons in the best possible condition, and this release is no exception. According to the on-screen liner notes, they used up to four different source materials per cartoon, and when you take the superior digital transfers of the material into account, you will have a very hard time finding these cartoons in a more superior version than what you will find on this DVD! Thunderbean may not have the luxury of having the same restoration budget as the Disney or Looney Tunes shorts, but the end result is still very impressive – the cartoons look (and sound) sharper and cleaner than what you might expect them to be. However, the Betty Boop cartoon included in this collection has been DVNRed, but I have seen this version on other collections and may be the only best-quality copy available. As always, if any cartoon is only available as a re-titled home-movie version, the original titles are re-created as close as is possible. Oddly enough, the soundtracks of the two Sentinel Louey cartoons and "Sultan Pepper" are presented in a PCM format, while the others are in Dolby Digital, but I can't tell the difference in quality.

What is fascinating to know is that many of the cartoons have been reassembled using the British prints (in which some were edited to remove any gags that may prove tasteless to the British viewers), and in fact one of them had an original Radio Pictures opening ident (it is not known if this was included on domestic prints). This ident appears on the first two Little King cartoons, and a handful of the shorts have their original British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) boards intact (these are more famous worldwide than I thought).

As the cartoons will not be well known to the general public, it will be understandable if this DVD contains hardly any extras. However, we do get fascinating on-screen notes of the recovery & restoration of all the Little King and Sentinel Louey cartoons, and an absorbing essay of Jim Tyer’s animation in these shorts. Excellent stuff!

All in all, Thunderbean has yet again come up with a DVD that will be very hard to beat, and one that is truly essential to any classic animation buff. It is reassuring to know that they (and other similar companies, like Inkwell Images) can produce DVDs of public-domain cartoons with a lot of time & love, rather than treating it as a quick-buck, shoddy product. With every DVD Thunderbean produces, the future of these cruelly-neglected cartoons looks a lot brighter. Recommended.
At the time of writing, no general release date has been confirmed. If you like to find out where or when you can purchase this DVD, I suggest contacting Thunderbean via their website (www.thunderbeananimation.com).

On a side note, I been researching the BBFC classifications of these cartoons on their website. Although they don't offer much information, I have discovered that "The Fatal Note" & "A Royal Good Time" had some scenes cut in order to get a U classification (it's easy to spot the cut scenes on the former), while "Sultan Pepper" was rejected (the shooting and bedroom scenes must have been considered too much a strong brew)! The cartoons I couldn't find may have been either submitted under alternative titles, lost records, or were never submitted at all. Below are links to each cartoon on the BBFC website:

A.M. to P.M.
A Dizzy Day
The Fatal Note
On The Pan
Pals
Sultan Pepper
A Royal Good Time
Cactus King
Betty Boop & The Little King

Images (C) Thunderbean Animation, LLC
Text (C) Lee Glover. Not to be copied without permission.

Rare Columbia Cartoon Titles - Phantasies/Fables

2007-03-19T21:01:00.000Z

Hi everyone, and welcome to my last Columbia Cartoon Titles post.

When the Krazy Kat and Scrappy cartoons were becoming out of favour with cinemagoers in 1939, the Screen Gems studio decided to bring in two B&W series, the Phantasies and Fables (there weren't much difference between the two), which were initially a mix of one-shot and Krazy/Scrappy cartoons (who both had star billing on the opening titles).

The first Phantasy to be released was Scrappy's The Charm Bracelet (released 1st September 1939), but the following opening title was taken from the one-shot (hence no character billing) The Wallflower (3rd July 1941), the last cartoon to have this title:

The following endcap was used from the The Charm Bracelet, right up until As The Fly Flies (17th November 1944):

The first Fable was Krazy Kat's Little Lost Sheep (6th October 1939), but the following screenshot were taken from Mouse Meets Lion (25th October 1940):

The closing title was used throughout the Fables series, right until its swansong cartoon The Bulldog & The Baby (3rd July 1942):

At the start of 1941, the Proud Lady also appears at the start, and the Phantasies/Fables title cards were slightly amended to reflect this. These series of titles were used right until the end of Frank Tashlin's reign in 1942 (towards the end, the credits were moved to the cartoon title):

When Dave Fleischer took over as producer in 1942, the Fables series was dropped, and a new set of Phantasies opening titles appeared in The Gullible Canary (18th September 1942). The titles, although in B&W, are in the same style as the Color Rhapsodies:

The first handful of shorts have their story titles incorporated into the opening titles, while later ones will have their own individual style:

Later, in 1943, another new set of Phantasies titles was introduced, starting with Dizzy Newsreel (27th August 1943). It is assumed that the Color Rhapsodies had similar-looking titles (no original copies exists to confirm this):

Like the previous set, several of the earlier cartoons have their story titles incorporated into the opening titles:
In 1945, sometime after Dave Fleischer left, the Screen Gems studio decided to scrap the Proud Lady in its opening and closing titles. The first Proud Lady-free Phantasy is Goofy News Views (27th April 1945), in which the cartoon starts immediately with the 1943 Phantasies title, and finishes with a plain-looking endcap below:

Later that year, the last set of new B&W Phantasy titles were introduced. The first to introduce this new opening title is Simple Siren (20th September 1945):

A new end title was introduced a year later, first used on Snap Happy Traps (6th June 1946). It featured the WB-inspired rings (which, I have to admit, are a bit hard to see). This was used until 1947:

In 1947, Screen Gems was the last cartoon studio to fully-switch to colour, but to keep their costs low, they decided to make all their Phantasies in the cheaper two-colour Cinecolor process. A new set of opening titles was introduced, in which the style was the same as the Color Rhapsodies. The screenshots were taken from Leave Us Chase It (15th May 1947):

The endcap:
That's it! Hope you enjoyed seeing these rare Columbia Cartoon titles. If you would like to see some more, be sure to check out Jerry Beck's Columbia page on his Cartoon Research website (click here to go directly onto that page).

And there will be more Columbia cartoon-themed posts very shortly. Stay tooned!

Rare Columbia Cartoon Titles - Color Rhapsodies

2007-03-14T21:09:00.000Z

Hi, everyone! Apologies for the delay in posting, but my wireless broadband had been acting weird lately - although I could log on onto the internet, I was prevented from uploading or downloading anything! Fortunately, it's all sorted now.

I thought you might like to see some original Color Rhapsodies titles, all taken from my own personal collection. Sadly, many of these cartoons have re-issue titles, but most still retain their original endcap. Also, a substantial amount of cartoons I have are taken from the recent Columbia programme "Totally Tuned In", where many of the Mintz-era cartoons were given the incorrect endcap (presumably to obscure any reference to Charles Mintz). To make matters worse, a handful of cartoons are missing from the Columbia archives! So, I have decided to show these titles in the order where they appear the earliest in my collection, except for one special set of titles which I will save for last.

The first set of opening titles were taken from the very first Color Rhapsody, the Scrappy cartoon Holiday Land (released 9th November 1934). Bizzarely, these set of titles were only used once:

And the end titles appear as so (again, only used once):

The next cartoon, Babes At Sea (30th November 1934) uses the following set of titles. These titles were used until the studio switched from two-strip Technicolor to the three-strip version, in 1935:

The endcap:

Below is an endcap taken from Little Rover (June 1935), with the title superimposed on a city backdrop (where the story takes place):

These titles were first used in 1936. The earliest cartoon in my collection that features these titles (in full) is Merry Mutineers (2nd October 1936):

The endcap:

Later in 1937, the endcap was amended to feature an updated Columbia logo. The earliest to feature this endcap is Spring Festival (6th August 1937):

A new endcap was introduced, and this time it is the colour version of the Proud Lady logo used on the Columbia feature films. This version was only used at the end of Window Shopping (3rd June 1938), and was the last time it mentioned that it was "A Charles Mintz Production" - on the endcap, at least (apologies for the grotty-looking image):

The next Color Rhapsody, Poor Little Butterfly (4th July 1938), has this endcap, which no longer mentions Mintz. This version lasted until towards the end of the Tashlin era - in 1942:

In 1938, a new set of opening titles (with the "castles in the sky" motif) was introduced. The following are taken from Nell's Yells (30th June 1939):

When Scappy's popularity declined badly (thanks to Allen Rose), his name was removed from the titles, and was replaced by a Columbia tagline. The earliest cartoon in my archives to feature this is Blackboard Revue (15th March 1940), and was also used throughout the Tashlin era:

The Frank Tashlin cartoon, Cinderella Goes To A Party (3rd May 1942), features this closing title. It's the same as the previous endcap, except for the additional "The End" tag. This was only used on this cartoon:

The following Rhapsody, the Fox & Crow's Woodsman Spare That Tree (2nd July 1942) features this closing title. This time, the Proud Lady now sports a light-blue shroud. Like the previous version, this endcap was only used on one cartoon:

The next Rhapsody, Song Of Victory (4th September 1942), features an updated version of the previous title, with an additional "The End" tag. This was used until mid-1945:

When Dave Fleischer took over as producer in 1942, the following set of titles were introduced. The Proud Lady now features in the opening titles as well as the closing titles. The follwing are taken from the only-known surviving Color Rhapsody that features these original titles, the Fox & Crow's Slay It With Flowers (8th January 1943). It is believed that these titles lasted until towards the end of 1943:

In 1945, the Proud Lady endcap was replaced by the following version, which I find rather boring. The earliest cartoon I have which features this is Hot Footlights (2nd August 1945):

The endcap was later replaced by this version, featured on Loco Lobo (9th January 1947). You will notice that this title is obviously influenced by the Warner Bros cartoon titles, which is hardly surprising as around this time, ex-Schlesinger associates Henry Binder and Raymond Katz both took over as producers:

This set of opening titles are taken from Cockatoos For Two (13th February 1947). Sadly, this only exists in the collectors'/traders' circuit in B&W, and is the only-known cartoon to feature this title version:

Later in 1947 (until the final cartoon in 1949), the following set of opening/closing titles were introduced. Again, the Warner Bros influence is clear, with the Color Rhapsody title zooming towards the viewer. The earliest cartoon I have to feature this full-set of titles is The Coo-Coo Bird Dog (3rd February 1949), but for reasons of picture quality, these screenshots are taken from the Fox & Crow's Grape Nutty (14th April 1949) instead:

The endcap:

And I will finish this post with a special set of titles. The following are taken from Song Of Victory (4th September 1942), which was made during Frank Tashlin's exit and Dave Fleischer's arrival:

The credits were shown at the end of this cartoon, rather than at the beginning:

Phew, that was a long post (and a lot of images, too)! Hope you enjoyed them. If you do, watch out for my next post very shortly, which will feature the Phantasies/Fables titles.

Rare Columbia Cartoon Titles - Scrappy

2007-03-01T19:57:00.000Z

Now presenting - the original Scrappy titles!

Like the Krazy Kats, getting a copy of a Scrappy cartoon with its original titles is very rare among the collectors' and traders' circuits, so I can only come up with four examples of original titles taken from my own collection.

The first set comes from the earliest Scrappy cartoon I have in its original condition - The Beer Parade (released 4th March 1933). Apologies for the silhouettes partly-obscuring the bottom-edge, as these shots were taken from a screening:

And, of course, the endcap:

Many of you who have read Leonard Maltin's book "Of Mice & Magic" will recognise the opening title below. This one is taken from I Want To Be An Actress (18th July 1937):

The closing title card:

Towards the end of 1939, the Scrappy (and Krazy Kat) cartoons were becoming out-of-favour with the cinema-going public (when you consider that the majority of these cartoons were directed by Allen Rose, can you really blame them?), and so were replaced by B&W one-shot series Phantasies (that title always make me thinks of "phantoms", for some reason) and Fables. But Scrappy wasn't going without a fight, and so did star in a handful of Phantasies/Fables up until his swan-song cartoon The Little Theatre in 1941. The opening title below is taken from Man of Tin (23rd February 1940), where it indicates that this Phantasy features Scrappy:

As I've mentioned before, I don't have many of these cartoons with their original titles, but I do have this particular gem: the screenshots below are taken from Scrappy's Boy Scouts (2nd January 1936), where a special set of titles were made. You can just make out silhouettes of Scrappy and his gang marching on the background (apologies if these aren't in good-enough quality):

And below is the endcap, which is initially superimposed on the animation:

The Color Rhapsody titles will follow very shortly. Stay Tooned!

Rare Columbia Cartoon Titles - Krazy Kat

2007-02-26T19:53:00.000Z

All this week, I will present some rare cartoon titles from the Screen gems library, with seperate postings relating to Krazy Kat, Scrappy, Color Rhapsodies, and the Phantasies/Fables cartoons.

To start off, let's take a look at some of the rare Krazy Kat titles. Many of you who are lucky enough to see these very-rare cartoons have seen most of them with Samba Pictures re-issue titles (the majority of Krazy shorts I have are these versions). Thankfully, Columbia Pictures have been restoring these shorts, with some (if not most) of them with their original titles intact. It is from these restored cartoons that most of the following screenshots were made.

Below are the wonderfully-animated 1929-30 title cards, first used on the very first sound cartoon Ratskin (the screenshots are taken from Honolulu Wiles, released on 17th July 1930).

All the cartoons from 1929 (and the first handful of 1930 shorts, too) end with this title card:

Later in 1930, the Winkler brand was added to the closing title card (this was also taken from Honolulu Wiles, the earliest cartoon in my collection to have this endcap):

Towards the end of 1930, a new, static set of title cards were introduced, which featured the title character and his girlfriend Kitty (I personally prefer the previous titles). The earliest cartoon in my collection to have these new titles was The Apache Kid (released October 9th 1930), but the following are taken from The Stork Market (July 11th 1931) as I feel these offer the best-quality images:

And here's the endcap:

The next year, another new set of opening titles were introduced. These were taken from The Restless Sax (December 1st 1931):

The endcap:

These titles were altered in 1932, with a different background and a different style of lettering on the credits and endcap. The following are taken from Russian Dressing (1st May 1933), although the earliest cartoon I have that featured these new titles is The Medicine Show (7th February 1933):

Voila, the endcap:

In 1933, Kitty was dropped from the new set of titles. These have the same background as before, but the credits were incorporated into the opening title, as seen below. These are from Southern Exposure (9th February 1934):

The endcap is the same as the previous version.

Krazy was redesigned later in 1934, from a Mickey Mouse-type design into a more-realistic feline form. To reflect this new design, new titles were issued the same year. However, the following were taken from a 1938 cartoon (there may have been different versions between these years, but I only have the Samba versions covering this period). The earliest cartoon I have that features the following titles is The Masque Raid (June 25th 1937), but for reasons of picture quality, I decided to make screenshots from Hot Dogs On Ice (21st October 1938):

Closing title:

Watch out for the Scrappy titles, which will follow very shortly.

If you're interested in finding out more about the Krazy Kat shorts (and other Screen Gems cartoons), take a look at Pietro Shakarian's website:

http://columbia.goldenagecartoons.com/

Also, my good friend Tom Stathes has made a couple of recent posts about the silent Krazy Kat cartoons. Check them out on http://cartoonsonfilm.blogspot.com/ , and also check out his other posts relating to the world of silent cartoons. These cartoons are more interesting (and entertaining) than you think!

Hold Your Plums

2007-02-19T20:19:00.000Z

Sometime in the early 90's, I was given a copy of a tape brought down by my Liverpudlian relatives, which was called "Hold Your Plums - volume 4". This was a hugely -popular radio quiz show in the BBC Radio Merseyside area. Of course, being a West Country person myself, I never even heard of the programme, but I was told that the idea of the game is to answer one question before the hosts (Billy Butler & Wally Scott) activate a speaking fruit machine, which determines which prize the contestants would get (if the contestant gets all three plums, they win the top prize). However, what made this show such a hilarious success is the endless clues being given to the clueless participants, who came up with such bizarre answers as these:

If a footballer passes the ball to another player, it's a pass. If he shoots the ball, it's a shot. If he heads the ball, it's a...?
Goal.

Have you ever had a "rarebit"?
What? I've got three kids!

Her first name is "Hedda". Her second name is "Hopper". So what is her full name?
Mary Hopkin.

Man, I had a fit of the giggles when I listened to this tape (ain't real-life humour the best). These brainless contestants have probably given Merseyside a bad name.

Since I first listened to this magnificant show (it puzzled me why it was never networked, as this would have had massive UK-wide appeal), I managed to seek out two specially-produced videotapes of this hilarious show. And very recently, to my sheer delight, I discovered a BBC webpage containing some Hold Your Plums audio clips (link below), most of which I have never heard before. Some of my favourites on the webpage includes a guy struggling to come up with Batman's nickname, a batty old lady who thinks that there is a soup called "Mull of Kintyre", and one bizarre clip where the presenters, who asked one woman contestant to name the only European country that drives on the left (actually, there is two!), organised a taxi trip for her as a clue.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/fun/2002/07/hold_your_plums/plums_index.shtml

Enjoy!

Mississippi Mud

2007-02-11T20:25:00.000Z

Here is an excerpt taken from the Toby the Pup cartoon Down South (1931) - a great foot-stomping rendition of "Mississippi Mud".

Down South - Mississippi Mud
Uploaded by ldglover

This video will be available throughout the rest of this month.

Goody Goody Yum Yum!

2007-02-06T20:55:00.000Z

Here's some exciting news for all you Goodies fans!

Network is to release its third Goodies DVD set - The Complete LWT series - on March 26th with a RRP of £24.99. This set will include the entire 9th (and last) series, plus the "Snow White 2" special, that were broadcasted on the ITV network on 27/12/81 - 13/02/82. There has been no news on the number of discs or any extras, but like the previous two sets these episodes will be digitally restored by BBC Resources. I will keep you updated, but do check out the Network site ( www.networkdvd.co.uk ) in the next few weeks. In the meantime, here is the preliminary cover (subject to change):
Also, the LWT series will get an airing on Paramount Comedy 2 this Friday, with the first weekly double-bill showing at 9:00pm. The schedules can be found on www.paramountcomedy.com .

Merry Christmas!

2006-12-16T16:44:00.000Z

A Merry Christmas to everyone visiting my blog!

As a special present from me to you, here is a complete cartoon that will be available throughout the holiday season - the Little Audrey short Santa's Surprise, complete with original Paramount titles!

Santa's Surprise
Uploaded by ldglover

DVD Review: The Caesars (Network - UK Region 2)

2006-12-11T20:14:00.000Z

An everyday story of sex, madness, and regicide.

Augustus Caesar, Emperor of the Roman Empire, has ruled for over 40 years, bringing peace after years of civil war, but the price the empire paid for this was the absolute rule of one man – a dictator. Although brutal, he was nevertheless a popular leader. And now he is dying, and he has to nominate a replacement. He decides that Tiberius should replace him, with the loyal-but-foolish Germanicus the next in line.

Tiberius initially rejects the offer, as he feels he is nowhere near as brutal as Augustus and doesn’t wish to become an absolute ruler. Eventually, he reluctantly agrees, and takes command with the aid of the scheming Sejanus. But throughout his reign, he faces the turmoil that affected his family, including murder, in which many people label him as a tyrant. He does on occasion have to be ruthless, but the end result would normally follow a sense of guilt.

His great-nephew, Caligula, succeeds Tiberius, but early on he does show signs of his unpleasant side. Then a serious illness drives him further into insanity. Believing that he is a God and an immortal, he becomes an irrational murderer and rapist. As he becomes more and more deranged, no-one it seems can appease him in any way without fear of being executed.

Surviving throughout all this turmoil is Claudius, who was born with a stutter and club foot. Because of his disability, many dismiss him as a fool, but he uses this to his advantage. He is ignored by Tiberius and humiliated by Caligula, but it is Claudius himself who would get the last laugh.

This series was produced by Granada Television, and was broadcast on ITV in 1968 to critical acclaim. It has been compared in recent times to I Claudius and even the BBC/HBO’s Rome, but this is still an immensely enjoyable drama in its own right. The sets, although studio bound, are very impressive. A fine repertoire of actors grace the small screen, but there are three actors who really stands out: Andre Morrell (Quatermass & The Pit) gives a dependable performance as the weary Tiberius, Ralph Bates (Dear John) is frightfully chilling as the cold-blooded Caligula, and Freddie Jones (The Ghosts of Motley Hall) fully merited his Golden Nymph award (Monte Carlo Television Festival, 1969) as the rather-intelligent Claudius.

The series was shot originally on video, but it now exists as 16mm telerecordings made for the international market (the original Granada front and endcaps have been replaced by a Granada International equivalent), and Network has been supplied with a mix of old and recent transfers. The quality of the material does show that making telerecordings was not one of Granada’s main strengths. Generally, they zoomed in too close to the video monitor, which results in a cropped picture and a grainy look. There is also burnt-in video damage evident on the recordings. The first episode is the worst affected, as shown on the screenshot below. Because of the over-zooming, you can only just make out the title (Augustus).

It would have been nice to see the series get some digital clean-up, but this would be expensive and would make the DVD release commercially unviable. Of course, Network is renowned for releasing long-forgotten TV shows that most other DVD companies wouldn’t even touch with a barge pole, so we really must commend Network for having the guts to release this.

There is one extra that Network has somehow forgot to mention on its cover – a five-minute photo gallery, showing some behind-the-scenes images and those taken on the set. I was really amazed to see what the sets actually looked like in colour, it is just a shame that they never filmed it this way. If only they waited one more year until ITV colour transmissions became a reality. Because of the rarity of this series, it is unrealistic to expect commentaries or interviews, so the photo gallery is an unexpected bonus. Pity about the lack of subtitles, though.

Despite the quality of the film material, this is an excellent watch, and huge thanks to Network for allowing this series to get a deserved DVD release. However, the RRP of £19:99 is maybe on a high side for people who aren’t too familiar with this series and/or are rather unsure of 1960’s drama, so my advice is to wait until the sales. But whenever you buy this now or later, is it well worth what you paid for it. Recommended.

NOTE: DD Home Entertainment has released their own version of The Caesars (only available through their mail-order service, while Network's version is a general release) with the same RRP. However, given DDHE's track record, it is likely that these episodes will have their adcaps removed (Network has left these alone), and there is no mention of any subtitles or other extras on their catalogue and website.

Images (C) Granada

Text (C) Lee Glover. Not to be copied without permission.

Apologies again!

2006-11-25T14:41:00.000Z

I like to apologise again for another lack of posts. Unfortunately, I have lost my job in Bath, and I have temporarily moved to my home town (Plymouth) until I can find another one.

In the meantime, I will attempt to make some new posts, including more rare cartoon titles and DVD reviews.

Talking about DVDs, I did plan to post a review of At Last The 1948 Show and Do Not Adjust Your Set a few months back, but due to recent problems and the passing of time, I have decided to abandon it. But look out for a DVD review of an award-winning 1968 ITV drama that looks at the lives of an imperial Roman family.

Rare B&W Terrytoon Titles - Part 2

2006-10-08T20:29:00.000+01:00

As promised, here are more rare original opening and closing titles from two B&W Terrytoons.

Below are the opening and closing titles from the cartoon Football (released October 18th 1935), made towards the end of the Frank Moser era.

Opening titles:

Closing title:

And finally, here are the title cards from When Knights Were Bold (released March 21st 1941).

Opening titles:

Closing title:

Coming soon: rare original Screen Gems titles.

Rare B&W Terrytoons Titles - Part 1

2006-10-03T19:56:00.000+01:00

If you're a big fan of Terrytoons, chances are you have seen most of the Paul Terry-era colour cartoons with 1950's television titles, but you would have seen a fair number of Terrytoons with their original opening and closing titles intact.

But it is very rare to come across a B&W Terrytoon with its original titles. If you're fortunate enough to watch at least a few of them, you're more likely to see this 1950's opening title:

Or, you might have seen a Terrytoon with Castle Films titles, or even one with a Barker Bill title, but trying to find one with its original opening and closing titles is like trying to find an iron in a male student's house!

I do have a huge number of B&W Terrytoons in my collection (mainly thanks to Jerry Beck's DVDs), but I only have five cartoons with their original titles intact. But as they're such good finds, I feel they are worthy of display. So, I am proud to present the title cards of four cartoons, two cartoons in each post. I would have included all four, but for some strange reason, Blogger wouldn't allow me to upload more than nine images, so I'm splitting this post into two.

The first set of title cards is from the earliest complete cartoon in my collection, Salt Water Taffy (released November 30th 1930).

Opening titles:

Closing title:

I do have another cartoon with the same style title cards, The Lorelei (released November 29th 1931). But as the only difference is the cartoon's title, I decided it's not necessary to make any screenshots from this cartoon.

Below are the opening and closing titles from Farmer Al Falfa's Ape Girl (released August 7th 1932).

Opening titles:

Closing title:
I will be posting rare title cards from Football (1935) and When Knights Were Bold (1941) in the next few days!

An Apology

2006-09-17T19:41:00.000+01:00

To anyone who has recently visited my blog only to find that I haven't posted for well over a month, I'm sorry. During that time, I've moved to a different city, and I just set up a new internet connection a few days ago. But the good news is that I've settled in my new place very well, and I've finally got some time to start posting again!
But the time-off has given me a chance to think about changing aspects of my blog. Not only have I decided to give it a new look, but I decided to change the name too (IMHO "Classic Toons & UK TV" was too bland a title). But I bet you guys are wondering why I came up with the strange new title "Mice Laugh Softly Charlotte"? To answer your question, it is taken from an hilarious sketch from the pre-Monty Python shetch show "At Last The 1948 Show". "Mice Laugh Softly Charlotte" is a badly-staged thriller with some Ed Wood-style acting and naff, cliche-ridden dialogue. Below are some images taken from this near-forgotten gem.
Watch out for a review of the "1948" DVD very soon, along with its sister show "Do Not Adjust Your Set".

DVD Review: Dempsey & Makepeace - Series 1 (Network - UK Region 2)

2006-08-04T19:39:00.000+01:00

I remember watching the first episode of Dempsey & Makepeace when it was first broadcast on the ITV network in January 1985. I was only 7 years old, but I was immediately hooked onto this series, and I subsequently watched the entire three series and had both the tie-in annuals. Now, over 21 years later since the “pilot” was shown, Network has released the entire first series on DVD earlier this year. I was a bit worried that this might not be as good as I remembered it. Having been re-acquainted with this series, yes it is a bit silly and far-fetched, and yes it has dated quite badly (Makepeace’s hairstyle is a big factor), but these only adds to the charm, and it has a lot of good humour throughout. In fact, I find the series to be even more enjoyable than what I thought earlier. Jim Dempsey (Michael Brandon) is a NYPD cop who gets caught up in a corruption scandal within the police force. As a result, he is sent to England until things cool down. Working in a police division, he is partnered with graduate (and daughter of an English lord) Harriet “Harry” Makepeace (played by South-African Glynis Barber). Makepeace’s conscientious, strictly-by-the-book methods clashes with Dempsey’s brash, chauvinistic, gun-happy approach, but together they seem to click.
Their boss is the irascible Gordon Spikings (Ray Smith), who takes an almost-instant dislike of Dempsey. He needn’t have to shout his head off (or even speak) to show how angry he can get, as was demonstrated in the third part of the opening film. In this scene, Dempsey (along with Makepeace) is released from a military prison, only to be met by Spikings who, having learned that he shot five policemen, gives him an absolutely mad stare before giving the mis-matched pair a completely-calm explanation of the apparent operation that they were trying to foil.
This was made with the American market in mind, as it was a co-production between London Weekend Television (LWT) and US company Tribune (the latter company was not credited in the UK). But it is also true to say that LWT made this as a logical replacement of a similar (but more memorable) action show, The Professionals (Glynis Barber has suggested that some episodes were derived from rejected Professionals –and even The Sweeney – scripts). For what I heard, the show wasn’t a success in the US, but it was a ratings smash for the UK’s ITV network, and it ensured that a further two series were made.
There was an obvious chemistry between Brandon and Barber, so much so, that they eventually got married together soon after the last series! Brandon enjoyed working on this series, and was so fond of England, that he has now obtained dual-citizenship, and has appeared in numerous UK shows, most recently in a regular role in the abysmal ITV comedy Dead Man Weds. However, he still appears on US television, including providing the US narration of Thomas the Tank Engine.
But it has to be said, the late Ray Smith is a very underrated actor. His portrayal of Spikings is a joy to watch, portraying his grumpy demeanour without going over the top and without too much effort. Both Brandon and Barber have nothing but huge praise for his acting ability.

The picture quality is very grainy and washed-out, but considering this was shot on 16mm film it is understandable. However, it is disappointing that there was no digital clean-up, but I suppose that luxury can only be afforded on Network’s more-popular titles. Surprisingly (for a Network release), none of these programmes have the opening LWT idents and endcaps (it could be that these are new transfers from the original prints, and that the old transfers have the LWT idents added on, but that’s only my theory). There is some good news though: the adcaps are present and correct.
Bonuses include a new interview with the duo (now happily married together and living in the UK), in which they gave an insight of its production (including an account of their time being almost-crushed inside a car-crushing machine in the second episode). Further info can be found on the two commentaries featured. Brandon certainly has a lot to say in the first commentary, but both had run out of the steam by the second, with some pauses throughout. Nevertheless, a fine effort by Network on the extras front.
Overall, this is a fine DVD set that will satisfy nearly every D&M fan, and is an essential purchase. Here’s hoping that the second set is just as good, if not better (available now, but I’m going to wait until it hits the sales – I’m such a tight-wad!).
Images (C) Granada and Network
Text (C) Lee Glover. Not to be copied without permission.

Terrytoons - Pretzels

2006-07-31T21:32:00.000+01:00

Every month, I'll be posting a complete rare cartoon. Not the well-known shorts you see on television and DVDs, but some of the rarest theatrical cartoons around. Like my previous video, this one will only be available for two weeks.

This month's cartoon is the second Terrytoon that was made (in 1930): Pretzels. Largely animated by Frank Moser, this was one of the "boy meets girl, boy loses girl to villian, boy battles against villian, boy wins, boy gets girl back again" cartoons that were so typical of the early Terrytoons.

Here, I am proud to present a complete print. However, this is a French edition with German subtiles (it was shown on the German channel Arte). This print featured two scenes that were absent on the 1950's US television prints: the opening scene with Phil Scheib and his orchestra in silhouette; and another where the two mice, in the beer garden, orders for "two hot milks".

Enjoy!

Dailymotion blogged video

Mighty Mouse Playhouse

2006-07-11T19:58:00.000+01:00

Here is the first of (hopefully) several video clips that will feature on my blog.
This one contains the rare opening titles and break bumpers from the 1950's Terrytoons series Mighty Mouse Playhouse - in colour! These were taken from a couple of British 1980's Mighty Mouse tapes released by Channel 5 (not to be confused with the UK TV channel). It's a shame these tapes don't contain the closing titles (which I have in B&W, but are not included in this clip).
Enjoy!

Dailymotion blogged video

PLEASE NOTE: Clips featured on this blog will be online for a limited time only. They will be available for two weeks before I permanently delete them (if it happens before the two weeks are up, it's likely that Dailymotion has deleted them themselves).

Ugly PD cartoon video covers in the UK

2006-07-04T20:33:00.000+01:00

Many of you guys would have seen quite a lot of American Public Domain cartoon covers, and like me, you view most of them are pretty darn ugly. But over here in the UK, we do seem to get our share of ugly PD covers too. In this post, I will show you a selection of what I consider downlight ugly covers. I apologise in advance if some of you become temporarily blind after seeing these.
The first two are covers from a trio of 4-hour cartoon compilation videos released by Braveworld (later released by Polygram/Universial) in the early 90's. Some of you Brits may remember seeing some of the other "artist"'s covers on NTV's and Virgin Vision's own PD videos:

Ugly cartoon artwork has started to creep in on our DVD covers too. Here are two that are released by a German company called Planet Media Entertainment (under the name Planet Song):

Going back to VHS, perhaps the most famous PD cartoon video company here in Blighty was "Screen Originals". Each title had two different covers, one released by both Movie Makers and Diamond Films, and one by an unknown company (probably Screen Originals themseves). The latter had quite tasteful covers, but the MM/DF editions had some fairly awful artwork. Here is one example:
And if you think that one was quite bad, wait till you see the next one. In my view, this is the most scariest cartoon video cover ever (in the UK, at least)! No wonder I never see this title fly off the shelves:

Screen Originals also had the ugliest-looking UK PD video logo ever (no prizes for guessing who that character is supposed to be):

Arthur Shakespeare?

2006-06-27T20:25:00.000+01:00

Following on from my earlier post, you can now HEAR clips of some of the silly answers (including the infamous "turkey" moment) from Family Fortunes by clicking on the following link:

http://sgsa.gameshowvideos.com/fortunes.php

Also, check out the daft answers from the US original Family Feud on the same website. The first one's an absolute classic!

Our survey says...

2006-06-25T15:23:00.000+01:00

As you may or may not know, after 4 years of being off-the-air, the quiz show Family Fortunes (the UK version of Family Feud) is returning to ITV1 later this year, with Vernon Kay as presenter. The show will be produced by UK format owner talkbackTHAMES. If it is true that it is been brought back "by public demand", then this is a very rare case of the ITV network listening to its viewers.

This is, without a shadow of a doubt, the best game show ever, and it's mainly because of the ridiculous answers that the contestants sometimes gives out, many of which became true gems.

To celebrate the return of this great game-show, here are some of the best silly answers:

We ask 100 people to name:

A famous cowboy
Buck Rogers

A song with "Moon" in the title
Blue Suede Moon

A reason to dig a hole in the road
Gravedigger

A famous bridge
The Bridge over Troubled Waters

A fast method of communicating
24-hour parcel post

A well-known TV soap
Dove

A famous Royal
Mail

A bird with a long neck
Naomi Campbell

A number you have to memorise
Seven

Something you put on walls
Roofs

Something that makes you scream
Squirrel

A domestic animal
Leopard

A famous 'Arthur'
Shakespeare

Something a Frenchman would say
En Garde

Something that uses micro chips
Fish fryer

Something that the bride should know before they get married
His name

Something a blind man might use
A sword

Something you wouldn't try even once
Sex in a train

Something you open other than a door
Your bowels

A way to toast somebody
Over a fire (it was the 6th most popular answer!)

And I'll finish off with my all-time favourite:

Something that will frighten Dracula
Bob Monkhouse

More of these funny answers can be found here:
http://www.businessballs.com/familyfortunesanswers.htm

Welcome one and all!

2006-06-24T23:04:00.000+01:00

Hello.

I'm Lee Glover. I'm a 29-year-old Englishman (well, I'm actually 75% English and 25% Italian), and I am a HUGE fan of classic American theatrical cartoons and classic UK television.

In this blog, I will be posting my views of cartoons and television programmes (hardly any of the recent crap will feature in my blog, especially "Big Brother" - yuck!) with screenshots, clips, and DVD reviews. It won't be daily posts, just the occasional post here and there. I might add some unrelated posts, such as silent comedy.

I hope you will enjoy reading my little blog.