Framing the Hanna-Barbera Fellows

 Here is a pretty cool newspaper ad I came across a while back. Now, on the back of select Kellogg's cereal (and by now, I mean 1962), you can get a free "pin-me-up" of your favorite Hanna-Barbera characters.

The eight characters included here are Snagglepuss, Yogi, Mr. Jinks, Quick Draw McGraw, Doggie Daddy, Baba Looey, and Top Cat. If you'd like to know what these looked like, here's a photo I found of the Top Cat frame. Nothing too extreme, but they are charming nonetheless. Any of my readers collect these way back when?

From Jetson to O'Hanlon

Man, do I love George O'Hanlon. Whether he's Joe McDoakes or George Jetson, he was an amazing comedic talent who is criminally overlooked. Even during the height of his career, he seemed to be glossed over, as evidenced by the lack of interviews and pieces on him. Luckily, I found a pretty fantastic one that appeared in the Times Union on the 11th of August, 1954. At least these guys knew what was up!

As you can tell by that date, there are no mentions of The Jetsons here. Instead, the focus is on Joe McDoakes, but there's also some great insight into his life before he entered show business. There's two things I want to note regarding this article. For one, the paper mentions that O'Hanlon is married to a Nancy Clark. Many websites have mentioned him being married to a "Nancy Owens," but from my research, I found nothing to support that. There's also heavy refrences to a TV series titled Real George that O'Hanlon was working on. The show never came to be, but its pilot was featured in the NBC Sneak Preview series.

He Put the "Mc" in Joe McDoakes

    Talk five minutes with George O'Hanlon of Hollywood, U.S.A., and you know why the familiar Joe Doakes became "Joe McDoakes" in the title of Warner Bros. popular comedy series.
    The "Mc" would be a "must" for a picture starring THE O'Hanlon.
    You also discover why theatermen rate "Joe McDoakes" as the top live comedy one-reelers showing in movie houses today.
    This O'Hanlon is a really funny guy, one of those unfortunately rare fellows who, like Goldsmith's heroine, probably could "spread a horse-laugh through the pews of a tabernacle."
    The witty, good-humored Hollywood actor whose value to his studio is attested by a freshly-signed seven-year contract that allows him as much free time as a schoolboy on summer vacation, is presently hanging his hat (with the turned-up brim) in our town. At the Sheraton, to be exact, where he and his very glamorous wife, the former Nancy Clark, a Paramount Pictures player before their marriage two years ago, are staying during a two-week visit to Rochester. O'Hanlon is here for an acting stint before Easterman Kodak Company cameras.
    During his visit to Rochester he is renewing a friendship with Harold S. Rand, newly appointed manager of the War Memorial with whom he served in the Air Force during World War II.
    Born in showbusiness as the son of vaudeville performers, George grew up just late enough to find the demand for his own song and dance act fading with the closing of the nation's variety theaters. One swing around the last of the "big time" circuit (that by then was small time) proved to the New York-born young man that it might be smart to follow Horace Greeley's advice. He headed West.
    Hollywood, he admits, did not welcome him with open arms. But by the time Uncle Sam wiggled his finger at him for the Air Force in 1942, George had plated in several major features and many Columbia and Warner Bros. shorts.
    When the Air Force found it could carry on without George O'Hanlon in 1945 he came back to Glitterville in the new role of an actor with an idea. Together with his friend Dick Bare, a director-producer, he made a one-reel comedy (it was no comedy financing the production, the Irishman wryly admits) in which the major character was a brash young extrovert whose self assureance continually kept him in hot water.
    The Brothers Warner saw it, liked it, and bought it.
    They signed O'Hanlon, who wrote it and played the leading role, and friend Bare to make a series of one reelers. The title: "Joe McDoakes."
    This has been O'Hanlon's major occupation since then (1946) but he has found time to play in other Warner productions (the latest: "Cattle Town,") and to turn his comic talents to television.
    Now, under his new contract, O'Hanlon promises to deliver eight pictures a year (he still writes and plays the title role in the "McDoakes" series). The balance of his time he will devote to a comedy series for TV which he and Bare will produce. 

    Taking their title from a current teenage slang expression, O'Hanlon-Bare & Co. have named their new creation "Real George."
    George, of course, will play George, described by George O'Hanlon as a composite of Mr. Peepers and Charlie Chaplin without the baggy pants. The series goes before the cameras when the actor returns to Hollywood.
    There's another George figuring largely in the O'Hanlon's plans.
    He's George O'Hanlon III, their eight-months-old son waiting back home at Malibu Beach. Mrs. O'Hanlon, retired from professional life "so I can raise a family," is pressed into service only when hubby need her "real bad."
    Although he didn't say so, one suspects George already is planning on working Junior into the script of "Real George" or "Joe McDoakes." This funny guy from Hollywood knows that being funny is serious business. And there's no use wasting time getting down to business.

Video of the Week: Yogi the Easter Bear

 Easter's on Sunday, so this seemed like an appropriately timed post. Here's a promo that aired on Cartoon Network in 1995 for Yogi the Easter Bear, a direct-to-video movie that came out the previous year. I can't say I remembered this film too well, but I cannot imagine it being worse than some of the other Yogi Bear projects at that time.

This particular airing of the movie was part of a block called "Mr. Spim's Cartoon Theatre". It was essentially the prototype for the more famous "Cartoon Theatre," and only lasted one year. A shame, as the interstitials made for it are lovely to look at. 

The Exposure Sheet: Three Years In

 Three years. Somehow, it feels like both a lot of time and no time have passed, but it was on that day that this blog began. And thus far, I'm beyond happy with how it has come along. 

I could talk about my favorite posts and all that jazz, but really, the best part of this blog has been connecting with you guys. I know that may sound cliché, but it's the honest truth. I'm simply amazed that so many people not only still enjoy the classic Hanna-Barbera toons, but also enough to discuss them online with others. Every single one of your comments is greatly appreciated, and I thank all of you for the support over the years.

Over the last three years, it's been interesting to see a renewed interest in these shows. Warner Archive is giving us new releases left and right, there are Flintstones and Jetsons feature films in the works, and half of MeTV Toons' programming is their library. It's been extremely cool to see these things happen, and I'm praying that the WB-Paramount merger doesn't harm these. Man, you wanna talk about a sentence I'd never imagine saying...

This is where I'd discuss upcoming posts and plans, but just to be safe, I'm going to hold off on that this time. I don't want to say I'm doing something and then fail to deliver, so I'll hold off on big announcements until they're set in stone. But as a tease, I will say that you can look forward to two months focused on two Hanna-Barbera shows, should everything go to plan. I've also got a few other special posts in the works, and I can't wait to share them in the future. Believe me when I say I've got some good stuff coming!

From Paper to Plastic with Yogi and Huck

 Showing off old collectibles is one of my favorite things to do on this blog, and today I've got just that and more. Here's some concept art for Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound salt and pepper shakers commissioned in the 1960s.

And here's what the final product looked like. As you can see, the colors are pretty stripped down, especially in Yogi's case. The unique bases featured in the art are also gone, now replaced by a generic orange stand. That being said, they do remain mostly faithful to what is pictured in the concept art. They even managed to keep Huck's hat! It's pretty neat to see how the completed pieces stack up when compared to their initial designs, and I love when I get the chance to do that here. 

That's all I've got today, and for this month as well. I've managed to get this blog on a semi-regular shcedule this month, and I don't intend on slowing down anytime soon. Come back tomorrow, and I'll look back on the blog so far for its third anniversary. Who knows, I may even have a few hints of what the future could bring?

Yogi Bear's Shopko Sweepstakes

 Ever wanted a trip to Yellowstone Park? How about a fold-down camper? Back in 1995, you had the chance to win these prizes, and many more in this sweepstakes brought to us by Yogi Bear and Shopko.

During the summer of '95, the now-defunct retailer Shopko featured Yogi Bear in promotions for these sweepstakes. Every week, a new set of prizes was available. The vacation and camper, however, were featured every week and were the first and second prizes, respectively. Below is an ad for the promotion from May, complete with some interesting stock art that I don't recall ever seeing before.

Here's another one from the middle of June. If you ask me, these prizes are way weaker than those seen in the previous ad. A case of Pepsi, really? The atlas isn't a great prize either, but at least it's not Pepsi.

Video of the Week: A Joe Barbera Birthday Bash

 Joe Barbera's birthday was this Tuesday, so let us celebrate the occasion with a fantastic birthday tribute dedicated to the man himself! Special thanks to Kamden Spies for showing me this a couple of months ago.

This was put together in 2005 by Scott Jeralds, a longtime animator who has worked on many Hanna-Barbera and Scooby-Doo projects. It was screened for Joe's 94th birthday party, and features quite the cast. Janet Waldo voices Judy Jetson, Henry Corden portrays Fred Flintstone, and Greg Burson has dual roles with Yogi Bear and Snagglepuss. As far as I'm aware, it was the final time any of these actors portrayed these characters in an official capacity. You've also got some welcome appearances from Tom Kenny as Tom Cat, Casey Kasem as Shaggy, and Frank Welker as Scooby-Doo. What more could you ask for from a birthday present?