Let’s Watch: “The Gutsy Frog” (1972)
One of the landmark shows for the Tokyo Movie Shinsha company was Dokonjo Gaeru (aka The Gutsy Frog), which aired for two years in the early 1970s. Based on a…
One of the landmark shows for the Tokyo Movie Shinsha company was Dokonjo Gaeru (aka The Gutsy Frog), which aired for two years in the early 1970s. Based on a…
Who were the first people to play Charlie Brown and Lucy before the TV specials? Who played the singing Snoopy and Linus before the stage show? Charles M. Schulz was…
Alas, poor Bosko! I knew him well. The stretch-and-squash star of Warner Bros. Looney Tunes for three years, his rubber-hose antics became a victim of the “realism movement” in Hollywood…
This week we conclude our look at Tōei Dōga’s earliest anime features with a focus on “Dōbutsu Takarajima” aka Animal Treasure Island. The film was originally released on March 20th,…
As embarrassing as is to admit, I don’t actually know everything. Sometimes a fellow cartoon buff will ask me if I can tell them something about a particular spot, and…
The Animated Calloway. A rotoscoped version of scat singer Cab Calloway appeared in the Betty Boop cartoon shorts Minnie the Moocher (1932), Snow White (1933) and The Old Man of…
Today on Thunderbean Thursday: The Lure of “Noveltoons” (and the farmer that must not be named). I have to admit: I was never into the Paramount’s Noveltoons or Screen Songs…
John Frederick (Jack) Hannah was born in Nogales, Arizona on January 5, 1913. He passed away on June 11, 1994 at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, California. He was honored…
This week we pay tribute to the greatest child actress of all time, Shirley Temple, who passed away last week, February 10th 2014, at age 85. During her vast and…
Jerry Beck is a writer, animation producer, college professor and author of more than 15 books on animation history. He is a former studio exec with Nickelodeon Movies and Disney, and has written for The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. He has curated cartoons for DVD and Blu-ray compilations and has lent his expertise to dozens of bonus documentaries and audio commentaries on such. Beck is currently on the faculty of CalArts in Valencia, UCLA in Westwood and Woodbury University in Burbank – teaching animation history. More about Jerry Beck [Click Here]