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Got a question about classic cartoons? Maybe I can answer it. Or maybe not. I don't know everything, but if I don't know it, I probably know someone who does. Got a question about classic cartoons? Maybe I can answer it. Or maybe not. I don't know everything, but if I don't know it, I probably know someone who does. This page is for "simple questions" What's a simple question? If I can answer it off the top of my head, or checking a quick reference, it's a simple question. If you are looking for heavy duty research, that can be arranged for a fee. This is FAQ-1 This is FAQ-1 For more Q & A go to FAQ-2 FAQ-2

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SPOTLIGHT QUESTION:

Earl D. Roe, Jr. asks: Do you recall the name of a cartoon that featured a dog, when given a treat, would float up into the air making happy, contented sounds, then slowly drift back down? "Snuffles" was the name of the hound who went wild for dog biscuits. He was featured on Hanna-Barbera's Quick Draw McGraw Show, as Quick Draw's pet hound. Daws Butler voiced his "yummy sounds".

Snuffles snack-loving trait was later incorporated into the personality of Scooby Doo. Very Frequently Asked Questions: WHAT IS THE NAME OF MIGHTY MOUSE'S GIRLFRIEND? This is the most frequently asked question coming into this website! The girlfriend in the operetta Terrytoons, Filmation TV cartoons or the Bakshi series was Pearl Pureheart . In the comic books her name was Mitzi . IS TWEETY A BOY OR A GIRL? A Boy. Tweety is a male canary. DO YOU KNOW IF THE 1936 WARNER BROS. CARTOON "I LOVE TO SINGA" (by Tex Avery), FEATURING OWL JOLSON SINGING THE TITLE SONG, IS AVAILABLE ON ANY VIDEO COLLECTION? Yes! It has been released on dvd on the LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION, Vol. 2. It is also a bonus feature on the DVD of the Oscar winning animated feature, HAPPY FEET. Al Jolson introduced the song,I Love To Singa, in the feature film THE SINGING KID (1936). Tommy Bond ("Butch" from the OUR GANG shorts, "Jimmy Olsen" in the SUPERMAN serials) was the voice of "Owl Jolson". WHAT WERE THE NAMES OF THE TWO MALE GOPHER CHARACTERS IN LOONEY TUNES WHO WERE ALWAYS POLITE TO EACH OTHER? They were usually billed as "The Goofy Gophers". Later, on The Bugs Bunny Show (ABC, 1960) they were named "Mac & Tosh". WHO OWNS THE RIGHTS TO OUR FAVORITE CLASSIC CARTOONS? WALT DISNEY cartoons (Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, et al) are owned by The Walt Disney Co.

TERRYTOONS (Mighty Mouse, Heckle & Jeckle, et al) are owned by Viacom (Paramount). (video rights currently sub-licensed to Universal Home Video who have not released any tapes)

WALTER LANTZ CARTUNES (Woody Woodpecker, Chilly Willy, et al.) are owned by Universal Pictures

SCREEN GEMS / COLUMBIA cartoons (Scrappy, Fox & Crow, et al) are owned by Columbia Pictures

WARNER BROS. CARTOONS (Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety, et al) are owned by Warner Bros.

UPA cartoons (theatrical 1950s Mr. Magoo, Gerald McBoing Boing, et al) are owned by Columbia Pictures.

UPA TV productions (Dick Tracy cartoons, Magoo Specials & TV cartoons, etc.) are owned by CLASSIC MEDIA LLP

MGM CARTOONS (Tom & Jerry, Tex Avery) are owned by Warner Bros.

DePATIE-FRELENG CARTOONS (Pink Panther, Ant & Aardvark, et al) are now owned by MGM.

MAX FLEISCHER / FAMOUS STUDIOS / PARAMOUNT cartoons are divided all over the place. Here's the breakdown:

 POPEYE CARTOONS are owned by Warner Bros. (Character owned by King Features/Hearst Entertainment)

 SUPERMAN CARTOONS are owned by Warner Bros. (Although all are in public Domain).

 FLEISCHER CARTOONS (includes Betty Boop, Screen Songs, KoKo The Clown (1927-1929), Animated Antics, Stone-Age and Color Classics) are owned by Republic Entertainment (a subsidiary of Viacom). Artisan Entertainment have sub-licensed the video rights.

 FAMOUS STUDIOS (1942-1950) (including Noveltoons and Little Lulu) are owned by Republic Entertainment (a subsidiary of Viacom). Artisan Entertainment have sub-licensed the video rights.

 FAMOUS STUDIOS (1950-1962) (includes Casper, Herman & Katnip, Noveltoons retitled as Harveytoons, etc) are owned by a company called CLASSIC MEDIA LLP.

 PARAMOUNT CARTOONS (1962-1967) (includes Honey Halfwitch, Swifty & Shorty, Noveltoons, etc) are still owned by Paramount Pictures. WHY AREN'T THE CLASSIC POPEYE CARTOONS RELEASED ON VIDEO? Good News! Warner Bros. (they own the films) and King Features (they own the character) have finally reached an agreement to release these classic cartoons on DVD. Restoration is taking place now. The first boxed set should be released in July 2007! WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A "LOONEY TUNES" AND A "MERRIE MELODIES" CARTOON? After the 1944 releases: nothing. Before that, there was a difference.

First Looney Tunes were established to be the showcase of Warner Bros. latest "star" character - at various times "Bosko" (1930-1933), "Buddy" (1933-1935), "Beans" (1936) and finally "Porky Pig" or "Daffy Duck" (1936-1943). One-shot no-star Looney Tunes were made, but they are rare. The Merrie Melodies were established to feature one-shot characters and miscellaneous stories and settings, particularly themed around a Warner Bros. owned song. In 1934 the studio began producing Merrie Melodies in color while the Looney Tunes remained in black & white. By 1940, stars Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Sniffles and Daffy Duck were regularly appearing in Merrie Melodies. In 1944 the Looney Tunes switched to color and the distinctions between the two series officially ended. More Urgent Questions from the E-Mail bag: Claudio Duckardt writes: I enjoy seeing the photos of Fleischer's Miami Studio. I was hoping you could tell me more or less where the studio was actually located. I live in Miami, and would love to see if the building is still there. As a matter of fact, the building is still there.

Paramount built the Fleischer Studio in Miami in 1938 (photos above from Leslie Cabarga's THE FLEISCHER STORY).

It was there that GULLIVER'S TRAVELS, MR. BUG GOES TO TOWN and the SUPERMAN cartoons were born. POPEYE, ANIMATED ANTICS, STONE AGE CARTOONS, RAGGEDY ANN and GABBY cartoons were also made there.

Paramount moved Famous Studios from Miami, back to New York in 1943.

The Miami building was sold to TWA as a flight training school for pilots and stewardesses. It was later acquired by Dade County as a Family Planning & Youth Center.

The building is still there at 1701 NW 30th Avenue (near the corner of NW 17th Street and 29th Ave.).

Cartoon Researcher Ken Layton says, "There is an excellent article (with photos!) detailing both interior and exterior of the Fleischer Miami studios in the January 1939 issue of "Architectural Record" magazine (pages 33, 34, 35, 36, and 37). The article is entitled, "Light, Sound, and Atmosphere Controlled In Studio Design" by C. Sheldon Tucker and John M. Lyell.

"If you don't have access to a copy of that publication, your local public library may be able to obtain photocopies from: Washington State Library (phone: 360-753-5590) here in Olympia, Wash (catalog info: NA1.A65). They have actual paper originals in their storage dept."

I visited the location myself in 1986 (see photos below). The original front entrance, now sealed off (compare with photo above). At left, the center courtyard where Hal Seegar would play tricks on Joe Oriolo (I would imagine); At right, back of the building, outside the former scoring stage and screening room (now a gymasium). Me, inside the gymasium which was the scoring stage and screening room. Notice the projection booth windows above the basketball hoop. I went up the staircase to the projection booth in hopes of finding some 35mm nitrate workprint materials or original Superman animation art - but alas, the room was completely empty. The friendly staff there had no idea that this building was originally a cartoon studio - and was grateful that I explained what this little empty room was above the gym. For even more recent pix of the Fleischer Studio in Miami, see Harvey Deneroff's page. Andrew L. asks: I know that Bugs Bunny makes a cameo appearence in the Paramount George Pal Puppetoon, JASPER GOES HUNTING (1944). Were there any other crossovers of one character from one studio in another studios cartoons back in the 1930s or 40s? A scene from George Pal's

JASPER GOES HUNTING (1944) As far as I know, the Leon Schlesinger-George Pal crossover was the only "official" one. There were a few "gag" references to other characters that occasionally pop-up.

For example, Cecil the Sea-Sick Sea Serpent imitates Bugs Bunny in THE WILD MAN OF WILDSVILLE (1962). In PORKY'S GARDEN (1937) a little spinach-eating chick turns into Popeye the Sailor! (Which reminds me that Homer Simpson did too - and that THE SIMPSONS has had dozens of cartoon character crossover reference gags).

MYSTO FOX (1946) The Crow imitatating Bugs Bunny in Columbia's Fox & Crow comedy MYSTO FOX (1946) is a strange unauthorized crossover. In that film the Fox is a circus magician who is looking for a rabbit to assist him. The Crow pretends to be a rabbit - particularly Bugs Bunny himself - when he knocks on the Fox's door and greets him by asking "What's Up, Doc?". At the climax of MYSTO FOX, the Fox uses magic to turn the Crow into a real rabbit - one with an eerie resemblance to Bugs Bunny!

In MYSTO FOX (1946)

the Crow becomes Bugs! Voice expert Keith Scott sends in this example: "In an edition of Paramount's Speaking of Animals, AIN'T NATURE GRAND? (1947), voice actor Harry Lang not only does a rabbit saying, "Eeeeehhh, what's up, Doc?," but he closely imitates Mel when doing the line!"

Matthew Hunter notes the appearence of "Superman" in GOOFY GROCERIES (1941), pre-dating the Fleischer cartoons.

Matthew and Pietro have come up with a few others that are a bit marginal (in my opinion): SCRAP HAPPY DAFFY (1943/WB) - Daffy asks for an can of Spinach (like Popeye)

GUMSHOE MAGOO (1958/UPA) - A slow-witted characters watches a show called RABBIT (which very closely resembles THE MICKEY MOUSE SHOW)

PORKY'S POOR FISH (1940/WB) - The "Muscle" has muscles like Popeye

PORKY'S HERO AGENCY (1937/WB) - Porky gives Venus De Milo arms like Popeyes. Lissa asks: I'm writing a booklet for the sociology class that I teach regarding racism and WWII propaganda. I've had trouble finding images from cartoons of the era that depict Japanese people. I've found references to cartoons such as "You're a Sap, Mr. Jap," "Tokio Jokio," and "Bugs Bunny Nips the Nips" but so far have found few images from them.

If you could help me out in any way, with images or links, I'd really appreciate it. Just think: you'll be furthering higher education! Happy to do my part. For you, here's a little gallery of images from World War 2 Hollywood cartoons featuring Japanese characters: Top row: three from TOKIO JOKIO (WB 1943)  Middle row: Two from YOU'RE A SAP, MR. JAP (Paramount 1942) right from SCRAP THE JAPS (Paramount 1942)  Bottom row: BUGS BUNNY NIPS THE NIPS (WB 1944), TOKYO WOES (Hook 1945), THE DUCKTATORS (WB 1942). Matthew Hunter asks: Jerry, maybe you can answer this. Why is it that Warner Bros./7 Arts' Cool Cat cartoon "Injun Trouble" (1969) is almost nonexistant? I have seen it listed in books, but I have never seen so much as a still, animation drawing, clip, or anything. Given the political correctness of Warner these days, I'm not surprised about the Indian references being frowned upon. But what about during the 70's, 80's, and 90's, when they could have shown it on TV? If it's been on TV, chances are someone, somewhere, taped it...but I have done a lot of trading for the Warner cartoons, and this is one that nobody has a copy of, in any form. Did someone just burn the film or something? As far as I know, the last theatrical Warner Bros. cartoons of the 1960s, produced by Bill Hendricks, did not appear on U.S. TV until Nickelodeon picked up the Looney Tunes package in 1990. Warner Bros. at that time did supply Nick with that cartoon (as well as such titles as HORSE HARE, DAFFY DUCKAROO and HOCUS POCUS POW-WOW). I believe Nickelodeon made the choice not to air it due to politically correct concerns over native Americans.

The title itself is a red flag (no pun intended). The term "Injun" is as offensive to a native American as the term "Nip" would be to a Japanese American.

Cartoon Network never received a print of this title from Warner Bros., so don't expect to see it turn up there. It's a shame, because its my favorite of the Cool Cat cartoons - its a bunch of blackout gags set in the west - and it has a great "surreal" end gag of Cool Cat "cutting out" of the last scene - he cuts himself out of the cartoon using a pair of sissors! Here are a few frames from the film - just to prove the film does indeed exist. Matthew Hunter also recently asked: I recently acquired copies of several vintage Bugs Bunny shows, each featuring the original ads and in black and white. However, I have seen some footage from this series in color, and even a color chart in an animation book. Obviously, the prints available now are old TV prints from station that didn't feature color at the time, I guess...because wasn't the "Bugs Bunny Show" produced in color? Do you know a good source for digging up some more of these, color or B/W? No.

THE BUGS BUNNY SHOW (1960-62), the original 52 episodes, are the rarest of all the things listed in my book LOONEY TUNES & MERRIE MELODIES: A COMPLETE ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO THE WARNER BROS. CARTOONS (co-written with Will Friedwald).

Like THE ADVENTURES OF THE ROAD RUNNER (which was dug up & patched together for my TOONHEADS: THE LOST CARTOONS special), Warner Bros. Animation chopped up the original negatives for the later Saturday morning BUGS BUNNY ROAD RUNNER SHOW broadcasts and subsequent Saturday Morning incarnations (of over 35 years!).

Since the show never went off network broadcast, and never sold in syndication,16mm prints of complete episodes, in color, were never struck. The complete prints that are around (in film collectors circles) are mainly black & white, created, as you point out, for distribution to local stations broadcasting in black & white in 1960-62.

Yes, THE BUGS BUNNY SHOW was produced in color. The few color prints I've ever seen are from the later 1960s reruns.

For years Warner Bros. has claimed that the complete original shows do not exist. I know two things, in all my years of research: that Warner Bros. does have black & white negatives of the complete shows - and that color negs may exist in Europe. Until Warner Bros. (or Cartoon Network) decide to revive these classic shows (with fresh bridging animation by Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng and Robert McKimson, voices by Mel Blanc, and additional classic animation footage of their famous characters including the Tasmanian Devil), we will be deprived of these historic episodes.

That the black & white negs exist, it would be a simple (but costly) matter to computer colorize the bridging material and completely restore them.

Recently, due to my involvement with the LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION DVD, I was able to dig out one episode - A STAR IS BORED - and cobble together the existing original materials (black & white & color) to recreate a sample of the bridging material. I hope to convince Warner Bros. to someday restore the entire series.

Researching those shows for my LOONEY TUNES book was the hardest thing I ever had to do! Sorry Matthew, I don't know a source for viewing THE BUGS BUNNY SHOW. I've been trying to convince anyone who'd listen for the last 15 years, that these shows are an endangered spieces! Update: I've begun working with Warner Home Video to restore the bridging material for the BUGS BUNNY SHOW for their dvd series THE LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION. One set of bridges appear on each volume. Otterworks (aka Chris G.) asks: It seems like, several times over the years, when someone calls SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS the first animated feature, I've heard someone else say, "Actually, that's not true." Was there really an animated feature before Snow White? What was it?

I've always pictured some obscure, black and white, hour long, animated film from Germany or England or something. If anyone knows the answer to this, it ought to be you. Before Disney's SNOW WHITE there were indeed several animated feature length releases.

My answer is not meant to be a complete listing. Best known is Lotte Reiniger's THE ADVENTURES OF PRINCE ACHMED (1926), produced in Germany, the earliest surviving narrative animated feature film. It was a silent "silhouette film" done with animated cut-outs.

Also of note, Max Fleischer created animation for a one hour educational feature of THE EINSTEIN THEORY OF RELATIVITY in 1923. Argentine animator Quirino Cristiani created the first (black & white) sound feature film, PELUDOPOLIS (1931) which was a satire of Argentine president Hipolito Yrigoyen.

Back in the U.S. - Did you know Disney put out a feature length release before SNOW WHITE?

THE ACADEMY AWARD REVIEW OF WALT DISNEY CARTOONS was a compilation feature, with new bridging title cards and narrator, released May 19, 1937. Dewey McGuire asks: Graham Heid seems to have directed only one film, and it's a good 'un: Disney's WYNKEN, BLINKEN & NOD. But he assistant-directed a number of my favorite Disney films under Wilfred Jackson, including MUSIC LAND and MOTHER GOOSE GOES HOLLYWOOD. After his work on FANTASIA, he suddenly turns up missing and is apparently out of the industry altogether. Any idea what happened? The strike? The war? This seems like a brilliant career that ended before it began. Good question! WYNKEN, BLINKEN & NOD is one of my favorite Silly Symphonies. Heid is rarely mentioned in any animation histories. So I asked Mike Barrier if he knew what happened to Heid - and of course he knew the answer.

Says Barrier, "Graham Heid was at Disney's for about ten years, until 1945; the last few years, after Bambi, he was involved with live-action military training films. He continued to work in live action after he left Disney, concluding his career as a producer-director of medical teaching films for the U.S. Public Health Service in Atlanta. He retired in 1971 and died in 1976. He told me in a 1975 letter, "I am neither an artist nor a cartoonist, so animation was really not very interesting to me." Ben Varkentine asks: I figure this question is going to be maddening either because you've answered it a lot or because I don't have enough information. So I'm sorry in advance. But a couple of friends and I have been trying to find a cartoon we all remember from when we were kids and saw it on television. It's the story of a man who has a parade pass by the front of his house every day. This wouldn't be so bad, but the last part of the parade is the sanitation department truck, which always hits a pothole outside his house causing a load of garbage to be dumped outside his house. He goes to see several people to try to get this fixed, explaining the problem in a cod-French accented song. Any ideas? Thank you so much." That cartoon is called LA PETITE PARADE and it's a Paramount Modern Madcap cartoon from 1959. I get asked about this one a lot. It's a real cult favorite.

It was part of the "Harveytoon" package, shown with Casper, Baby Huey, Herman & Katnip, Little Audrey back in the day, on TV. Hard to see these days. Renoir the Matchmaker is the main character in this film and he appeared in a few more Modern Madcap cartoons during 1960-61. Good news, La Petite Parade is available on DVD. It is contained in episode #41 on HARVEYTOONS: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION. LISLE BARTMAN asks: Why is Cartoon Network running the Bugs Bunny cartoon "Prince Violent" as "Prince Varmint," the title made for network-TV broadcast. Some of us would like to see the original opening titles for this 'toon. Any idea if it will ever be released on video with original opening titles? Indeed the title change was made for CBS back in the 1970s and you're right, the correct title should be restored. Cartoon Network accepts what Warner Bros. hands them off the shelf. Jon Cooke adds "Warners made a NEW set of titles for this short (along with most of the made-for-TV shorts, like "Soup or Sonic", etc.) for Fox's MERRIE MELODIES STARRING BUGS BUNNY & FRIENDS in 1992. The syndicated MERRIE MELODIES STARRING BUGS BUNNY & FRIENDS (1990) did use the CBS-titled version, though. I have provided (below) the modern title card as seen on CN (note the "1961" copyright on a title card itself!)".

Original title (left), 1992 re-title (right), courtesy of Jon Cooke. Carmen Margiatto writes: I've stumbled onto your site while trying to find the name of a piece of music used in several Warner Brother's classic cartoons and hope you can shed some light my way.

Since it's been used in several shorts, I'll describe what I believe is the most likely one you will recall hearing it in. The cartoon is the 1944 Buckaroo Bugs, and the piece is a gallop (in two distinctive parts) that is played while Red Hot Ryder is jumping over larger and larger crevasses until he attempts a jump over the Grand Canyon. Once he realizes that he isn't going to make the jump and will now fall, the gallop goes into its second theme; I'm assuming it's the same piece, because the two parts are always heard together whenever played.

I have no clue if this is a classical piece, or one dreamed up by Carl Stalling himself (I'm pretty sure it's not Raymond Scott). Thanks for any information you can pass my way. Great question! I directed your query to cartoon music historian extrordainaré Daniel Goldmark, and here is his reply:

"That piece of music is called "IN THE STIRRUPS" by J.S. Zamecnik, who was a prolific composer of music for silent movie theatres.

A former music accompanist such as Stalling would be quite familiar with Zamecnik's work and IN THE STIRRUPS can be heard in a total of 14 Warner Bros. cartoons including Clampett's DRAFTEE DAFFY, TORTOISE WINS BY A HARE and THE OLD GREY HARE - as well as the race & chase epics BUDDY'S PONY EXPRESS, PORKY & TEABISCUIT and THE GREY HOUNDED HARE." [Go to FAQ-2 for more questions & answers] Copyright © 2004 Jerry Beck

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