Diving Into Adult Swim

 It was 25 years ago this week that Adult Swim debuted on Cartoon Network. In the years since, it has been the go-to place for edgy, off-kilter slices of adult animation, but in its early years, it gave aging Hanna-Barbera properties a whole new life.

Of the six shows that run on the block's first night, all but two of them were based in some part on older Hanna-Barbera titles. Everyone knows all about Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, but you can't forget its spin-off, The Brak Show, or other series like Sealab 2021 and Harvey Birdman. Much like Space Ghost, these shows brought back often forgotten Hanna-Barbera characters, and spun them into wildly diverging directions. Even in the years since, Hanna-Barbera has remained a core part of Adult Swim's identity. Several of the previously mentioned shows got spin-offs of their own, and newer series like Mike Tyson Mysteries were clear homages to the Hanna-Barbera cartoons of yesteryear. 

Adult Swim has changed a lot over the years, but it's (in my opinion at least) stayed far more true to its roots than Cartoon Network has as of late. To celebrate its 25th and the impact it has had on animation, let's go back to the beginning with this piece from the Chicago Tribune, dated September 1st, 2001. It's a good preview for the block and several of its programs, which premiered the following evening. Also included in this post is a collection of several early Adult Swim promos, which I'm sure will be more than familiar for a lot of you.

'Adult Swim' hopes to make a splash

By Allan Johnson

    Fox's "The Simpsons" paved the way for animated series that attract older teens and adults. But few cartoons since have matched that level of sophisticated, subversive humor without crossing into comedy that many find unsuitable, or worse, not funny.
    Cartoon Network has had some success in this area with its witty and hip "Space Ghost Coast to Coast." The channel has wisely inserted the half-hour spinoff, "The Brak Show," starring the ghost host's dumbfounded talk show crewmate, into a three-hour block of animation for viewers age 18 to 34.
    The umbrella block, called "Adult Swim," premieres Sunday from 9 p.m. to midnight (it encores the same time Thursdays). The shows have ratings ranging from TV-PG to TV-14. They also show why doing funny, adult animated comedy is so tricky.
    There are several offerings besides the delightful "Space Ghost" and "Brak" (a sendup of those unreal 1960s family sitcoms):
    "Home Movies" is an amusing but failed 1999 UPN series in which a cast of voice actors improvise scenes, and the animation is derived from what they make up.
    "Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law" is a lawyer who looks like the DC Comics character Hawkman and takes on quirky criminal cases involving various Hanna-Barbera characters. The opener is a nasty custody battle between Dr. Benton Quest and his "longtime partner" Race Bannon for Quest's son Jonny and Jonny's friend Hadji. The semiserious, semi comical voice of Birdman is from Steppenwolf's Gary Cole of "Midnight Caller."
    "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" is a detective unit made up of a talking milkshake, hamburger meat and an order of fries. How it sounds is just how it is—simple and flat.
    "Sealab 2021," a really, really updated version of the 1970s Hanna-Barbera cartoon featuring an underwater city. How updated? A female crewmate seeks one of the males of the crew to father her child. The premise reaches, but rarely scores. Japanese "anime" series "Cowboy Bebop," another "Adult Swim" show, wasn't available. 

Coming to The Exposure Sheet This Fall

 It's the end of August, and summer is almost over, but I've got a lot in store for this blog as we head into fall. So today, I'm going to go through the major projects I've got in the pipeline for this blog through November. I'm quite excited about all of these, and I hope you'll feel the same, too.

Starting tomorrow through Friday, look forward to a set of posts dedicated to Adult Swim. The programming block turns 25 on September 2nd, and seeing how much their earlier shows leaned on the Hanna-Barbera library, it seemed like a no-brainer to celebrate this milestone. I haven't discussed Adult Swim much here yet, so I can't wait to start.

The following week (Sept. 7-11) will see posts all about Hanna-Barbera legend Don Messick. The voice-over titan would have turned 100 years old on September 7th, and I can't think of a better way to honor someone who was so instrumental to classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons.

October will be all about Space Ghost, as the original series celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. Look forward to posts all about the show, its characters, the people who brought it to life, and its ongoing legacy. While Space Ghost is far from the studios greatest show, it has an undeniable cool factor with its world and characters. It's also one I haven't discussed a whole lot, so this was an opportunity I couldn't let pass.

Finally, in November, I've got another week of Daws Butler posts in the works. I've done this every November since this blog started, and I don't intend on stopping anytime soon. It's one of my favorite things to prep every year, and this one will be no different.

Those are all the major developments that you'll see come to the blog in the next few months, but that's not all. There's plenty else I plan on talking about, like the Quick Draw McGraw Blu-Ray release, for example, so between both special features and usual posts, this fall will be a big one. That's all for now, but come back tomorrow, as Adult Swim week begins!

Video of the Week: Flintstones Remco Hobby Kits Commercial

 In the 1960s, few toy companies were as prolific as Remco, so it should come as no surprise that they got their hands on the Hanna-Barbera characters at that time. Today's video highlights a line of Flintstones kits the company produced in 1961. Three are shown in this commercial, including a sports car, a yacht, and a paddy wagon. The clip does a good job presenting each kit and how they function, even showing that the yacht does indeed work in water. It's also funny to see the mention of these being five dollars, as nowadays, a set new in box is worth at least a hundred. Overall, not a bad commercial for a neat trio of Flintstones collectibles.

Gosling Goes Gaga for Bamm-Bamm

Separated at birth?

 I have no clue as to why, but it seems like Warner Brothers has become really interested in mining the Hanna-Barbera library for feature film adaptations as of late. Last year, it was reported that the studio was working on a live-action take on The Jetsons starring Jim Carrey, which they have since confirmed for their post 2027 slate. Now, Deadline has broken the news that Ryan Gosling, currently in the middle of quite a hot streak, will be developing a live-action movie about Bamm-Bamm from The Flintstones. No, I am not kidding.

The project is the brainchild of Gosling and his producing partner, Jessie Henderson. In terms of story details, all we know at this moment is it will follow an adult Bamm-Bamm.  I'm assuming Gosling will play him, but that's merely speculation. A script hasn't even been written yet, though the pair are actively looking for a writer.

So, what do I have to say about this project? Honestly, for how little we know about it (and it's totally up in the air whether this actually happens or not), my reaction to the news is a resounding "...What"? Gosling is a good actor, a great one even, but a live-action film based on a single character from The Flintstones is a pretty weird career choice. Beyond that, I don't have much to say. It could be quite good, it could be quite bad, and it could not even happen at all. 

If this does move forward, however, it does make me wonder what that means for the animated Flintstones feature WB has been developing for sometime. For those unaware, WB's also been working on a film titled Meet the Flintstones, an animated flick that would be an origin story for the characters. Footage of that film was shown at last year's CinemaCon, but there's been little heard from it since. Would WB want two wildly different Flintstones films coming out within a few years of each other, or would one satiate their appetite? 

That's more or less all I have to say about this strange piece of news. Check back here this time next year when I share the news that Ryan Reynolds will star in a Dick Dastardly origin movie. 

The HB Storyboard

 I think most of you following this blog are more than aware of the fact that Hanna-Barbera had its own employee newsletter. What you may not know is that its name changed several times over the years. In the sixties, it was referred to as "The Exposure Sheet," while in the late nineties, it was called the "Gazoo Gazette" (see this post for more info on the latter). But in the eighties, it was rechristened as the "HB Storyboard". 

Here are a couple of screencaps of different editions of the newsletter, the first of which comes from June 1982. Headlines include a celebration of the studio's 25th anniversary, new series coming that season, and an employee picnic scheduled for later in the month.

This next one comes from June of the following year. Once again, a company picnic makes the headlines, as does the news that Jean McCurdy has become VP of programming. McCurdy stayed with the company through most of the eighties until 1989, when she became president of WB Animation. Another headline of note focuses on Friz Freleng joining the studio. Freleng had previously directed several Yogi Bear cartoons in the sixties, and was brought back here specifically to develop new animated specials, according to the newsletter. Despite this, Freleng's only HB credit during this time was as an executive producer on Pink Panther and Sons. Pretty interesting, wouldn't you agree?

Hanna-Barbera Toys Print Ads

 I've shared a couple of commercials for Hanna-Barbera toys here and there, but what about their paper counterparts? Here's the first in what I hope to be a series of sorts, chronicling the many print advertisements for Hanna-Barbera collectibles. 

To start us off, here's an ad for Huckleberry Hound squeeze toys. Huckleberry himself gets two toys in this set, but Yogi and Pixie and Dixie are also included. These guys were made by Dell, who also made comics based on the Hanna-Barbera shows for several years. You also gotta love that they managed to put their name on this one ad three whole times.

Second, we have this 1966 ad for Rushton's Hanna-Barbera Smasheroos. The roster shown here is very much of that era, featuring Atom Ant, Precious Pup, Paw Rugg, and Secret Squirrel. The ad declares that millions will adore these toys, which seems a tad bit presumptuous on their part.

Jumping from plush toys to bath toys, this final ad is for Purex's Hanna-Barbera line of bubble bath figures. Yogi, Huck, Quick Draw, and Baba Looey are all shown off, as well as a quick rundown of what how to use them. I also love the word bubble with them saying "Take me to your bathtub" in unison. A pretty fun advertisement for an otherwise uneventful everyday activity.

Hanna-Barbera Store Concept Art

 Many times on this blog have I talked about the short-lived Hanna-Barbera stores that popped up in the nineties, but would you believe me if I told you it wasn't the first time the company attempted to enter the retail market? Much to my surprise, there were plans as far back as the 1970's to launch a Hanna-Barbera store. Here's some concept pieces for what the store could've looked like, which come from a Heritage Auctions listing. Check out their page about the auction for more info. 

One of the pieces that really caught my eye was this one, featuring Squiddly Diddly using his tentacles as a clothing rack. A very neat use of the character, though I couldn't for the life of me imagine Squiddly Diddly of all characters getting the spotlight at a store. 

Another interesting idea shown in this collection is an area based around Charlotte's Web, which Hanna-Barbera brought to life as a feature film in 1973. Judging by its presence here, I'm assuming all this art was made within a few years of that. The area is called "Charlotte's Yardage," and is themed to look like it came straight out of the movie. As much as I like the idea of every area being themed to a specific character, I feel like it would've made the store lack cohesion had it become a reality. I'd say that that was a reason this take on a Hanna-Barbera store never went anywhere, but that's just a guess on my part.

Here's a Scooby-Doo section, featuring a giant Scooby statue, and a background that feels straight out of the series. It seems like the idea here was that this area in the store would've been for footwear, which is a little random to theme around Scooby, to say the least.

Last but not least, is this totem pole of sorts, which I'd bet money on would've been the centerpiece of the store. It's got a nice selection of characters, but the statue itself is kind of odd in all honesty. Maybe it would've looked better had it actually been made, but it just looks awkward more than anything here.

And that's a quick look at Hanna-Barbera's first (as far as we know) attempt to get into retail. The artwork is pretty stunning, but as I mentioned before, the lack of cohesion I feel held it back. While it only lasted two years, I believe the actual Hanna-Barbera stores were much better thought out in terms of both representing the brand and feeling like one cohesive store, rather than a bunch of themed areas mashed together. But what do you all think? Should they have brought this version of the store to life, or is it best left as a couple of concept sketches?