In April of 1990, writer Sharon Bernstein noted in The Los Angeles Times: “The next network simulcast isn’t going to be a presidential conference or a space shot. It’s not going to bring news about an earthquake or coverage of an invasion. And it’s not going to be in prime time.
The next network simulcast is going to be a cartoon.”
Bernstein was referring to Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue, which debuted 35 years ago this week, simultaneously on ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, USA Network, and syndicated stations. Broadcast on a Saturday morning, the half-hour TV special brought together a number of animated characters from different studios, networks, and TV series in a thoughtful show that educated children about the dangers of drug and alcohol use.
The combination and co-starring of these all-stars were, and is, unprecedented, as the studios behind them, usually rivals, worked together here to stress the importance of the subject matter.
The show was financed by Ronald McDonald’s Children’s Charities, produced by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and Silver Star Productions. and executive produced by Roy E. Disney. Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue sprang from anti-drug campaigns, such as the 1980’s message of “Just Say No,” which gained prominence thanks to First Lady Nancy Reagan’s efforts.
Many TV shows devoted episodes (some of them “very special” episodes) that highlighted the dangers of drug use, and there were also a number of Public Service Announcements.
The ambitious Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue would bring together major animated TV characters in a half-hour special that would provide no-holds-barred insight into the threats of drugs and alcohol.
Originally airing on April 21, 1990, Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue centers on a young boy named Michael. As the special opens, he is stealing the piggy bank of his sister, Corey. In a nearby comic book, Papa Smurf and the other Smurfs witness this and alert others as to what is happening.
Alf jumps out of a picture, the Chipmunks emerge from a record album, a Garfield lamp turns into Garfield, a Muppet Baby Kermit alarm clock changes into Kermit, a Winnie the Pooh stuffed toy comes to life, and Slimer from Ghostbusters comes through the wall.
The cartoon characters uncover a box of drugs hidden in Michael’s room and realize that this is why he has stolen the money. Michael lashes out at his innocent sister, Corey, and storms out of the house.
A number of the characters follow to see if they can help Michael, who meets up with some friends and they smoke marijuana. Here, a character called Smoke, the villain and the personification of drug addiction, floats in the air and appears to Michael throughout the special, discounting the good advice that the Cartoon All-Stars are imparting.
Shortly after, Michael and his friends are chased into an alley by what they think is a police officer, but who turns out to be Bugs Bunny. He takes Michael in a time machine to show him how Michael got hooked on drugs.
Back in the present, Michael is tempted to try crack until he falls into a sewer, where he meets Michaelangelo from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, who tries to convince Michael that Smoke’s constant temptations have put him in danger.
Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Gonzo from Muppet Babies appear to take Michael on a roller-coaster-like tour of his brain so that he can see what damage has occurred.
Michael then finds himself in a park where Tigger, along with Huey, Dewy, and Louie, join the other characters in the song “Wonderful Ways to Say No,” which provides thoughts on how to refuse drugs.
Michael wakes in his room, thinking that this was all a dream, and he argues again with Corey. Michael is then pulled into a mirror by Alf, who lets Michael know that Smoke is in charge. This is seen back in Michael’s room, as Smoke looks to tempt Corey, while Michael finds himself trapped in a surreal, psychedelic carnival, where he encounters Daffy Duck as a fortune teller. Daffy peers into his crystal ball, revealing a zombie-like future Michael.
Michael returns to his bedroom just in time to save Corey from Smoke and realize how wrong he has been. Smoke is tossed out a window and lands in a nearby garbage truck. Michael knows that Smoke will be back someday as he reconciles with Corey, and they both decide to talk with their parents. The special ends with a poster of all of the Cartoon All-Stars hanging on the bedroom wall.
Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue appropriately featured an all-star cast of voice actors: Jim Cummings as Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, Townsend Coleman as Michelangelo, Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. as Alvin and Simon, Janice Karman as Theodore, Paul Fusco as Alf, Don Messick as Papa Smurf, Danny Goldman as Brainy Smurf, Lorenzo Music as Garfield, Laurie O’Brien as Baby Miss Piggy, with Russi Taylor as Baby Gonzo, Huey, Dewey, and Louie and Frank Welker as Slimer, Hefty Smurf and Baby Kermit.
Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue marked the first time someone other than Mel Blanc had provided the voices for Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, as Blanc had passed away the year before. Here, they are voiced by Jeff Bergman.
Additionally, Jason Marsden provided the voice of Michael, Lindsay Parker as Corey, and George C. Scott as Smoke.
The song “Wonderful Ways to Say No” was written by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who had just won Oscars for their work on The Little Mermaid.
Animation for the special was completed overseas at Wang Film Productions. Thanks to directors Milton Gray, Marsh Lamore, Bob Shellhorn, and Mike Svayko, along with writers Duane Poole and Tom Swale, Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue brings the characters into the story in very creative ways. Even though they are from different animation houses, each character is brought to the screen in their own style and still look quite at home together.
Cartoon All-Stars also manages some good “pair ups” (Alf and Garfield go well together), and despite the subject matter, uses humor to enhance the message. When first spotting a box of drugs, Alf declares, “Toto, something tells me that we are not in cartoon territory anymore.”
Additionally, and probably most importantly, the special doesn’t shy away from its subject matter, including scenes of Michael and his friends doing drugs and the compelling flashback scenes revealing how Michael first “got hooked.”
And, like any good, animated story, Cartoon All-Stars creates an ominous villain with Smoke. With his skeletal-like head, Scott’s raspy voice, and wispy body, he’s the perfect embodiment of the dangers that Michael faces.
In addition to airing on multiple networks, commercial-free, Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue was later released on home video, where it could be rented free of charge from stores. And President George H. W. Bush and First Lady Barabara Bush provided an introductory message for the special.
The warnings in Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue are very forthright and impactful; they are done touchingly as Michael reconnects with the innocence of his past and the importance of his family.
This makes the combination of so many coming together and the message behind Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue still significant thirty-five years later.
Michael Lyons is a freelance writer, specializing in film, television, and pop culture. He is the author of the book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney’s Animation Renaissance, which chronicles the amazing growth at the Disney animation studio in the 1990s. In addition to Animation Scoop and Cartoon Research, he has contributed to Remind Magazine, Cinefantastique, Animation World Network and Disney Magazine. He also writes a blog, Screen Saver: A Retro Review of TV Shows and Movies of Yesteryear and his interviews with a number of animation legends have been featured in several volumes of the books, Walt’s People. You can visit Michael’s web site Words From Lyons at: 
All right, I’ll come clean: I watched “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue” upon both of its airings in 1990, and I was as high as a kite on pot both times. How I laughed! Looking back on it now, however, is a much more “sobering” experience, if you’ll pardon the expression.
I used to have an anti-drug pamphlet from 1965 titled “Sniffing Glue: Trouble in a Tube”. The illustrations showed a giant tube of glue with arms, legs and a leering face who took a boy by the hand, dragged him away from his family and friends, coerced him into stealing and committing other crimes, and ultimately turned him into a withered husk of his former self. When I first saw “Cartoon All-Stars”, I noted that the relationship between “Smoke” and Michael was exactly the same as the one between the monstrous glue tube and the boy in the 1965 pamphlet. Anti-drug propaganda had not progressed one bit in twenty-five years; the message, then and always, was: “If you use drugs, they will control your life. They only way you can take control of your own life is to listen to us and do exactly as we say.”
Like a lot of people of my generation, I smoked cannabis every single day for many years. During that time I did well in school, worked at a number of different jobs, paid taxes, dated girls, maintained enduring friendships and got along well with my family. I never stole to support my habit, never committed acts of violence and have never been arrested. I admit to having dabbled in most of the harder drugs (i.e., the truly addictive ones), but I wasn’t irresistibly compelled to take them. And when the opportunity presented itself for me to move to another country where I wouldn’t have access to a dealer, I took that opportunity without a second thought or a single regret. I could not have lived the life I’ve led if some perfidious “Smoke” had been controlling it from my teen years onward.
The repeal of cannabis restrictions in jurisdictions across the United States in recent decades shows what a futile and misguided enterprise the whole War on Drugs was, a monumental waste of resources and a misuse of the criminal justice system. Like the Very Special Episode of “Diff’rent Strokes” guest starring Nancy Reagan, “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue” is worth examining as an historical relic of that era. But this fatuous piece of propaganda is nothing to celebrate.
I totally respect where you’re coming from on this. I can empathize and understand your point of view.
Ironically, however, I came at this from a different perspective. I was on the other side of that coin. At the time I was working as a teacher in a drug rehab program for teens and I saw firsthand the devastation that could be wrought by drug addiction. I recall in particular one young man who was permanently brain damaged, could barely write his own name or add two and two, yet had been a straight A student before. There were many others I worked with as well. One thing I learned was that most of them appreciated my teaching style, because adults hadn’t been real with them before, and by treating them with honesty and compassion, I found they were open to developing and in some cases re-learning their academic skills. Some of my best teaching moments came from that period in my life.
Of course, I could not indulge in illegal drugs even had I been so inclined, or it would have cost me my job. So, I was naturally more in the camp of those who would value and appreciate a message like the one delivered in this special. Fascinating how we all have different perspectives on life issues such as this one!
Given your way experience, I can’t believe you find this Reagan era propaganda informative. I have first hand experience when it comes to addiction and this special appears to be it of touch with reality. Not once does this special address the root causes of addiction which is often a genetic predisposition to addiction. Also, the tendency to use recreational drugs as a form of self-medication in order to manage some form of mental illness. The critics were right, this story was simplistic and the only value it has is providing incidental entertainment.
Thank you for sharing your perspective, Frederick. Of course I did not mean to dismiss or minify the very real issue of drug addiction. All of us have known people whose lives have been affected by addiction to drugs, whether legal or illegal, or to other substances like alcohol or tobacco, or to compulsive behaviours like gambling. (I’m a bit of a wowser when it comes to the last one; I’ve never even bought a lottery ticket.) But your experience bears out my view that the problem is best addressed by medical professionals or pastoral counsellors like yourself, not by law enforcement and the courts. Unfortunately, perspectives like mine were simply not part of the public discourse in 1990. I never would have made such an admission in a public forum at the time for fear of the consequences. Instead, the discourse was dominated by inane slogans like “Users are losers,” ridiculous public service messages about eggs frying in butter, and TV specials like “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue”. History has proven the War on Drugs to have been a costly failure that accomplished more harm than good, so there is no need to debate it at this late date.
The irony here is this TV Special is ideal entertainment to watch while you’re blazed.
This special followed in the wake of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” in its bringing together of classic and modern toon characters to join forces in one adventure. For the second time, characters from various separately-owned franchises occupied the same universe and interacted with one another. Before these landmark productions, the combining of different properties was practically unheard of. Especially for characters such as Disney and Looney Tunes to mingle in the same story.
The script was smart, savvy, and at the same time sensitive in its handling of serious matter in ways that young minds could grasp. There is always a danger in using figures of fun to deliver a serious message, because of the association of these characters with frivolity, humor, and irresponsibility. Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Winnie-the-Pooh, etc. are not automatically looked upon as exemplars of sober living. So there was risk involved in this undertaking.
When I viewed this special, I was impressed that the fine line was walked as deftly as it was. One of the characters–I think it’s one of the Chipmunks– even comments that they are out of their usual milieu. This is not a particularly comfortable story, but clearly it is not meant to be.
Unfortunately, at the time there were critics who shot it down as either being overly simplistic or as just one more instance of anti-drug propaganda–both of which counts are somewhat true, and yet both of which evaluations dismiss how effectively this special does what it sets out to do.
Can cartoon characters really “save” kids from embarking on a life of drug abuse? That point is very arguable, with pros and cons on both sides. In the 70’s, Bugs Bunny had a radio message (voiced by Mel Blanc) that urged kids to stay away from drugs. And in the late 60’s/early 70’s, Yogi Bear was featured in an anti-tobacco smoking commercial. Thus, toon characters had been employed for PSA purposes before “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue” and will doubtless be used to similar effect in the future.
I’m sorry but I’ll always find it funny that Michael’s “Animation Cel-ebration” articles are half the time writing positively about stuff that probably fits the “Cel-ebration” banner well – and the other half consists of him writing positive articles about bizarre WTF stuff – like this!
Heck at this rate, I won’t be surprised if he writes one about Yo Yogi!
(No offense, Michael BTW. Just found that funny.)
Michael certainly has a knack for that; I’ll give him that. That post on “Elmer’s Candid Camera” will always feel a little bit odd to me , but he’s certainly good at picking up on positive aspects on even the most lackluster cartoons.
To be fair, he takes request. I actually sent him a request for a show that has an anniversary this year (which I won’t say what it is, as I’m a bit cagey about it). It something you probably wouldn’t care for either (it even had an anti-drug episode too which felt slightly unusual show-wise).
Flintstone Kids, right? It’s got to be the Flintstone Kids!
No, it’s definitely not it. That didn’t come out until 1986.
Didn’t know about that; that’s neat!
Obligatory mention of The Nostalgia Critic’s review of it which is still one of his best.
Should be noted that Wang had a much tighter time frame to animate this than usual. This was also the period when they were already animating every other show so they were super busy as it was. I imagine they scrambled to find more staff to help with this project, or just overworked the staff they had.
Yeah, and I find that guy funny as me stubbing my toe. That guy is so long in the tooth and running out of ideas that he’s down to picking on spectacular modern classic that are in The National Film Registry (nothing is scared to him).
I do understand that this was final straw with Hanna-Barbera’s relationship with Peyo. Apparently, they used the Smurfs without his permission and, being a smoker himself, Peyo was pretty upset with his character being used for an anti-drug Public Service Special and thus terminated H-B’s contract with him. The sad irony is that smoking finally took his toll on the beloved comic creator two years later.
There’s also a rumour that Jim Davis was not informed about the usage of Garfield and prevented future airings. The former sounds untrue; but for all Davis’ flaws as a creator, he is very protective of his (famously apolitical) character, so he’d probably not want Garfield associated with maturer, social commentary.
Davis has confirmed that was not true. As for Peyo I believe it is true that he/his company asked that The Smurfs appearance be restricted to the opening sequence, but no more. For one thing the TV show was already over by this point.
Cartoon All Stars hosted by George and Barbara? Maybe Judge Doom had a point…
I don’t get what you’re saying.
Smoke resembles to Beetlejuice from the animated series with his sneaky face
Although I was too young to have seen this when it originally aired, I remember watching it in school around 1999 or so and being confused who the weird aardvark-looking creature was supposed to be. Most of the other characters I recognized from seeing reruns of their shows on Nick and CN, but I was totally unfamiliar with Alf. (Interestingly, Alf and Slimer would later crossover once again for RadioShack’s 2014 Super Bowl commercial “The 80s Called”.)
I always found it strange how Smurfette appears on the cover but not the actual special, while Michelangelo appears in the special but is absent from the cover.
On the subject of anti-drug PSAs, I remember seeing this one as a kid and thinking the rolled-up joints were some kind of fish or something: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLGX4uaqpus. From what I recall, most of these PSAs didn’t do a very good job of explaining what drugs actually were, so for a long time I assumed they must have been something you ate. (Also, apparently jumping out of a plane without a parachute is less dangerous than doing drugs. Thanks, PDFA!)