Monday, March 17, 2008

Hanna-Barbera toons

The first season of the Flintstones was sponsored by Winston Cigarettes (1961). This 4 minute video is longer than the one usually found on the net, it includes Fred purchasing a pack before they all smoke together.

In 1967 and again in '78, The Fantastic Four was made into a TV cartoon. The former, which was produced by Hanna-Barbera and appeared on ABC, had such limited animation, it was virtually nothing but a series of televised comic books.

In the latter, only three members were present. Given the way 1970s pressure groups campaigned against dangerous behavior in kids' cartoons that can supposedly be imitated by real kids, it's not surprising that The Human Torch was replaced by a cute little robot named Herbie (no relation). But no, the reason for leaving the Torch out was, rights to the character were optioned elsewhere. To tie in with the show, the comic book version of Reed made a "Herbie the Robot" of his own, just like the one on TV — but didn't kick the Torch out to make room. This animated version was produced by DePatie-Freleng, best known for The Pink Panther, but which also had superhero experience of sorts with Super President. The studio was later bought by Marvel.

Push-Button Kitty is a 1952 Tom and Jerry cartoon directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera and produced by Fred Quimby.

This is the last Tom and Jerry cartoon to feature Mammy Two Shoes, the African American housemaid. The character was later replaced by a white, Yuppie-style couple, which was deemed a less offensive stereotype. Mammy Two Shoes would later return in Tom and Jerry Tales as a white woman named "Mrs. Two Shoes."

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