Video of the Week: Entertainment Tonight Celebrates 30 Years of The Flintstones

 Hey, everyone. I apologize for the lack of posts this past week, as work has been kind of hectic lately. However, I'm back for now, and with an all-new video to showcase. For this week, I bring you a segment from a 1991 airing of Entertainment Tonight all about The Flintstones and its 30th anniversary. Included in this video are interviews with Joe Barbera, Bill Hanna, original Wilma voice Jean Vander Pyl, and Henry Corden, Fred's voice actor following the passing of Alan Reed. A pretty fun segment, and it's great to see how quickly Corden and Vander Pyl get into character as Fred and Wilma respectively. And before anyone points it out, yes, The Flintstones debuted in 1960, so technically 1990 would've been the 30th anniversary. I have no idea why the decision was made to celebrate it in '91 instead, but maybe one of my readers does!

Hanna-Barbera Macy's Thanksgiving Floats

 Yesterday, I looked at the several Hanna-Barbera Thanksgiving balloons we've seen over the years. Now, it's time to do the same for the floats focused on Hanna-Barbera properties. Hanna-Barbera and the Macy's Thanksgiving parade go way back, with characters like The Flintstones and The Banana Splits appearing as characters during several events, but it was in 1982 that Hanna-Barbera got not just their first float, but a second one as well. The first one was made to help promote the film Heidi's Song, a pretty obscure film from their history, and one of the few not based on existing Hanna-Barbera characters. The float, which appeared mere days after the film was released in theaters, featured some of the various characters that made up its cast. Below is an image of the float, although it's unfortunately a bit on the grainy side. After its 1982 debut, the float never appeared in any future parades.

The other float that debuted that year was based on The Flintstones, or to be more exact, The Flintmobile, Fred's mode of transportation. This float saw the Flintstones and the Rubbles driving in the vehicle, adorned with Santa hats and other Christmas decorations. This one was reprised for the 1983 parade, and then appeared a decade later in 1993, I'm guessing to help promote that year's Flintstones Christmas film. Below is a picture of it, but I do warn you: if you thought the Heidi's Song float photo was grainy, you ain't seen nothin' yet! And no, I don't know why Barney's driving Fred's van.

In 1984, the Flintstones float was retired for a time, and in its place came a Scooby-Doo float, made in commemoration of the franchise's 15th anniversary. And, if I'm being honest, I think this one falls a bit short. If it weren't for the Hanna-Barbera characters on it and the logo at the bottom, you'd have no idea it had anything to do with Scooby-Doo. That being said, it is genuinely cool to see characters like Hong Kong Phooey and The Snorks get some time to shine. And is that Captain Caveman I see in the back?

After the Flintstones float short comeback in '93, it would be nearly three decades until a Hanna-Barbera-themed float would appear in another parade. It was in 2020 when none other than Tom and Jerry got a float of their own, and it's easily the greatest one of them all. That's not too shocking suggesting the advancements in technology over the years, but they really did knock this one out of the park. This float featured great animatronics that brought the characters to life as perfectly as something like this could. It's a real shame this one was retired after only one appearance, but considering it was likely commissioned to tie into the 2021 feature film, I guess it's not too surprising. If you have the chance though, I highly recommend watching YouTube videos of this one in action. It sure is a sight to behold!

Hanna-Barbera Thanksgiving Balloons Over the Years

 Wanna know a good sign a character or property has been firmly etched into pop culture history? Them being immortalized in a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon. Over the years, many famous cartoon characters have roamed the streets of New York, from Spongebob to Snoopy, and so on. That includes the characters of Hanna-Barbera. In the last four decades, four different franchises have been made into parade balloons, and to celebrate the holiday, I'll be looking back at the history of each and every single one.

The very first HB character to get the Macy's Thanksgiving balloon treatment was none other than Yogi Bear, all the way back in 1983. This balloon was designed by the folks at Kemp Balloons, Inc, and was featured at the succeeding two parades as well. Interestingly, the balloon was actually introduced by an animated segment starring both Yogi and Boo Boo, which you can check out down below. After the 1985 parade, the balloon was retired. Below is the balloon as it appeared during the 1984 Thanksgiving parade.

The second character to be turned into a Thanksgiving balloon was, strangely enough, Dexter of Dexter's Laboratory. You'd have thought somebody like Fred Flintstone would've gotten one before him, but nope! Dexter was introduced to the parade in 1998, and saw continued use until the year 2000. This one was manufactured by Raven Aerostar and designed by Chris Battle, who worked on the series. Apparently, this balloon of Dexter sporting a jetpack actually held the title for the most helium used for a Thanksgiving balloon until it was dethroned by a Thomas the Tank Engine one in 2014. Not a bad accomplishment for the boy genius if I do say so myself!

Next up is a character I'm sure you all knew would appear during this retrospective, Scooby-Doo, although it's interesting that it took so long for him to get a balloon. Scooby first appeared during the 2005 parade, in celebration of the release of that year's direct-to-video Scooby movie. He appeared again in both 2006 and 2007, but hasn't been seen since. Kind of strange the studio's most famous character hasn't shined more in these parades, but three years of appearances isn't anything to shrug off either!

While Scooby may not have been around in the parades for long, he was soon replaced by another classic Hanna-Barbera property, The Smurfs! Yes, Smurfs wasn't created by the studio, but I imagine someone would've mentioned them if I left them out, so here they are. 2008 saw the debut of the balloon, capitalizing on the franchise's fiftieth anniversary. Clumsy Smurf was used consistently during the parade until 2011. That following year, he was replaced by Papa Smurf, who was used in 2013 and 2014. The Papa Smurf balloon was later reintroduced for both the 2021 and 2022 parades, both times done to promote a new Smurfs series on Nickelodeon. And yes, in case you forgot, Nickelodeon now owns The Smurfs. Check out both Clumsy and Papa Smurf right below.

That concludes this short little retrospective, but I'm not quite done talking about Hanna-Barbera's association with the Macy's Thanksgiving parades just yet. Come back tomorrow, and I'll look at the various floats involving their characters that have appeared throughout the years. Until then, I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Daws Butler Bonuses

 My week-long celebration of the life and times of Daws Butler might be over, but I still have some quick items I thought you'd all like to see. First off, here's a cool postcard showing off arguably Daws' most famous non-HB character, Cap'n Crunch! Alongside him is the man himself, at work in the recording booth.

Second up is a lovely promotional still of Butler (apologies about the watermark). From my understanding, this was a press image sent to newspapers and other outlets to help promote a Yogi Bear special back in the 80s. Gotta love Daws mimicking the pose of his most celebrated character!

Daws Butler Tributes

 On the 18th of May, 1988, Daws Butler passed away following a heart attack. His passing left a huge impact on Hanna-Barbera. I think Walker Edmiston, another fellow voice actor, put it best when he said that Daws' death forced the studio to hire around a dozen new actors to fill his most famous roles. 

Beyond continuing the legacy of characters he helped create, Hanna-Barbera also put out several tributes celebrating Daws Butler and his many contributions to the studio. This first one is a trade magazine ad, and features a great illustration of Daws. The second one I am not quite sure about in regards to its origins, but it focuses on the dozens of characters Butler voiced for the studio, as they mourn the loss of the man who gave them their voices.

And so ends this short celebration of one of voice-actings most unsung heroes, Daws Butler. But, of course, I've barely scratched the surface when it comes to Daws and his accomplishments. Perhaps I'll do this again come this time next year, but until then, I have to recommend you check out the book Daws Butler, Characters Actor if you want to learn even more about his life. I've mentioned this book several times here in the past, and I cannot recommend it enough. Whether your interest is in classic cartoons, Hanna-Barbera cartoons, or voice actors, this book is a must-read, and more than worth your time! With all that being said, I'll be signing off until next week, and thank you Daws Butler for everything. Animation in general wouldn't be the same without him, but Hanna-Barbera is especially indebted to him. To quote William Hanna, "Without Daws, there might not have even been a Hanna-Barbera!"

Inside the Workshop of Daws Butler

Whenever people who knew Daws Butler talk about him, there's a tendency to describe him as a teacher or mentor. Daws loved to teach, and would often guide those who were somewhat new to the world of voice acting. That's exactly what he did after encountering Janet Waldo early on in the recording sessions of The Jetsons, and soon enough, Waldo had become one of HB's most reliable actors. Teaching appears to have come naturally to Butler, so it shouldn't be a surprise to learn that, in the later years of his career, he hosted a workshop that helped voice actors find...well, their voices!

Corey Burton, Nancy Cartwright, Greg Burson, Bob Bergen, and Bill Farmer: These are just a few of the actors who worked alongside Daws in these sessions, so even on the off-chance that you've never watched a cartoon featuring Daws Butler's voice, you've likely seen something one of his students appeared in. Which finally brings us to today's video.

Recorded in the spring of 1986 by William Simpson and uploaded to YouTube by Joe Bevilacqua (another student of Daws, and the author of his biography), this video gives you a tour of Daws Butler's workshop, guided by none other than Daws himself. It's fantastic to see Daws in a more personal setting, and you really get a feel for his personality from the video. Watch it below, I'm sure you'll come away satisfied.

And, before I leave for the day, I wish Daws a happy and heavenly birthday! It was on this day in 1916 that Mr. Butler was born. A legend of animation, voice acting, and comedy, Daws Butler was an original, and I give my best wishes to his surviving family and friends.

Daws Butler: Voice Magician

 With this week being a celebration of Daws Butler, I just had to share the below video. Titled Daws Butler: Voice Magician, this was a PBS documentary produced by Arnold Kunert and aired in 1987 focused on the man himself. It's a great hour-long dive into his life, his career, and the many characters he helped give life to. Also appearing in the documentary are Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera, and fellow voice actors Don Messick, Stan Freberg, and Penny Singleton. It's an all-around amazing documentary detailing the life of an equally amazing person, and it would be foolish of me not to feature it here during this week!