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!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
A little experiment...
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:
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'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:
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Happy New Year!
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:
Monday, December 22, 2008
Merry Xmas!
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!
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!
Monday, December 08, 2008
Coming Soon in 2009
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:
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:
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Count Catula & The Were-Mouse (a.k.a. Tom & Jerry)
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!
Watch out for more British T&J comic strips on this blog soon!Tuesday, October 21, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Off To The Races (Ups 'N' Downs)
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:
And if you're brave enough to see this redrawn, here it is:
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...
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:
And if you're brave enough to see this redrawn, here it is:
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...
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Tweety is a GIRL...
...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
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.
Monday, August 25, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Jack Frost
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?):
And the far-more-impressive original:
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?):
And the far-more-impressive original:
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Coming Soon - Retro UK Annuals!
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!
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!
Monday, July 21, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - On Duty (One More Time)
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):
And here's the original in all its glory:
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):
And here's the original in all its glory:
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Feline Follies - My Very First Commentary
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!
And yep, it really is my voice! And no, I can't believe it, too!
Enjoy!
Monday, June 16, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - The Inventor (Felix Turns The Tide)
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:
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.
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:
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.
Monday, June 09, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - The Steadfast Tin Soldier (The Brave Tin Soldier)
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:
Still plenty more redrawns to watch out for (if you're brave enough, that is)!
Saturday, May 17, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Cinderella (Once Upon A Time)
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
Monday, May 12, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Ain't Nature Grand
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):
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):
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - The Dancing Bear
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!
Friday, April 04, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Barnyard Frolics (Moonlight For Two)
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
Friday, March 21, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Country Boy Rabbit
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:
And here's the complete original for comparison:
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:
And here's the complete original for comparison:
Sunday, March 09, 2008
R&TVP Redrawns - Puss in Boots
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
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
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