Earlier this month, our friends at Wonders in the Dark set out to honor one of their own–the dearly departed Allan Fish–with an online film festival, for which I was sincerely honored to be invited to participate. I did not know Allan, outside of his online presence, but I nonetheless was in awe of him–of…
In 1956, UPA released the final of four cartoons featuring Dr. Seuss’s adorably strange, noise-making little boy, Gerald McBoing-Boing. This last cartoon in the series deviates from the typical McBoing-Boing short in one important way: the creative, sometimes nonsensical rhyming meter of the previous Gerald entries is gone, replaced by a straightforward narrative. And while I find myself…
On June 9, 1934, the Walt Disney animation studios released The Wise Little Hen, a Silly Symphony adapted from a classic fairy tale. As with most of the Silly Symphonies, the cartoon did not feature any of Disney’s stock recurring characters, such as the already-legendary Mickey Mouse. But one member of Hen’s supporting cast–a petulant, musical, sailor suit-clad duck–would…
It’s a lovely moonlight night, and everyone who’s anyone is making the scene at the Coo-Coo Nut Grove, the hottest nightspot in town. Ben Birdie is leading the band, the rat fink gossip columnist Walter Windpipe is looking for a scoop, and the mood is just right for stargazing. Or, at the very least, for enjoying a…
Thanksgiving is almost here! For this week’s edition of Saturday Morning Cartoons, we animation lovers here at True Classics are giving thanks for all of the glorious classic cartoon bounty there is to enjoy this season by highlighting one of our favorite Turkey Day ‘toons, the 1949 Tom and Jerry short The Little Orphan. A…
Today, November 18th, marks the 85th anniversary of the debut of Mickey Mouse in the groundbreaking 1928 cartoon Steamboat Willie. We’re celebrating over at The Moviola today with a look back at the cartoon that started an animation empire. Happy birthday, Mickey, ol’ pal, and thanks for all the memories over the years.
It’s (finally) starting to get chilly down here in the South, and that turns our thoughts to … penguins. Okay, not really, but for the purposes of this week’s edition of Saturday Morning Cartoons, let’s just say that’s true as we present you with The Legend of Rockabye Point, featuring the cutest penguin ever. The…
Tomorrow evening on TCM, Robert Osborne and animation scholar/historian Jerry Beck will be co-hosting a six-hour block of classic, rare animation in prime-time. To say this is an extremely welcome night of entertainment is an understatement. Classic animation gets the short shrift nowadays. Sure, you can find hour-long blocks of Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry…
True Classics 