Matthew Hunter
Super Genius
"Toonheads: The Wartime Cartoons" Airs Again On Memorial Day
Update! The following press release has been issued to promote the "Wartime Cartoons" rebroadcast:
While soldiers were fighting overseas, cartoon characters kept Americans laughing on the home front, finding humor in such wartime realities as energy conservation, rationing, recycling scrap iron for munitions, and the widespread fear of enemy bombing raids on American cities. They also served in an official capacity when Warner Bros. created a special character, Private Snafu, to appear in more than 26 shorts that served as light-hearted training films for U.S. troops. Interestingly, many of the Private Snafu shorts, which show a well-intentioned soldier making very poor decisions, were written by Theodore Geisel, who later became famous as Dr. Seuss.
After the U.S. entered World War II, cartoon characters volunteered for duty in the war effort, literally battling with enemies like Hitler, Hirohito and Mussolini. Many of these cartoons show America's favorite animated stars such as Porky Pig, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tom and Jerry, Superman and Popeye heading into battle against the nation's enemies. Often, these cartoons utilized outrageous caricatures and exaggerated stereotypes of its enemies.
"ToonHeads: The Wartime Cartoons" contains clips from more than 100 cartoons. In one segment, Popeye plants a Victory Garden for his supply of spinach and other vegetables. In another, Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig and Elmer Fudd sing and dance to sell war bonds. The special presentation also shows four rarely-seen classic examples of wartime cartoons in their entirety:
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., an AOL Time Warner company, is a major producer of news and entertainment product around the world and the leading provider of programming for the basic cable industry.
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Original Article
From Cartoon Research :
Any fan of Warner Bros. World war II cartoons needs to watch this special. It's great.
-Matthew Hunter
Update! The following press release has been issued to promote the "Wartime Cartoons" rebroadcast:
ToonHeads Enlists Bugs, Daffy, Popeye for Memorial Day Look at "The Wartime Cartoons"
<a href="https://www.toonzone.net/shows/images/cartoon-network/looneytunes-wartime.jpg" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://www.toonzone.net/shows/images/cartoon-network/t-looneytunes-wartime.jpg" alt="Any Bonds Today?" align="right" hspace="5" vspace="3" width="175" height="144"></a> In honor of 2002 Memorial Day weekend festivities, Cartoon Network's acclaimed series ToonHeads will offer a look at what happened when favorite cartoon characters like Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Popeye were enlisted by the war effort in "ToonHeads: The Wartime Cartoons," (TV-PG) which will air Sunday, May 26, from 9-10 p.m. (ET, PT). While soldiers were fighting overseas, cartoon characters kept Americans laughing on the home front, finding humor in such wartime realities as energy conservation, rationing, recycling scrap iron for munitions, and the widespread fear of enemy bombing raids on American cities. They also served in an official capacity when Warner Bros. created a special character, Private Snafu, to appear in more than 26 shorts that served as light-hearted training films for U.S. troops. Interestingly, many of the Private Snafu shorts, which show a well-intentioned soldier making very poor decisions, were written by Theodore Geisel, who later became famous as Dr. Seuss.
After the U.S. entered World War II, cartoon characters volunteered for duty in the war effort, literally battling with enemies like Hitler, Hirohito and Mussolini. Many of these cartoons show America's favorite animated stars such as Porky Pig, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tom and Jerry, Superman and Popeye heading into battle against the nation's enemies. Often, these cartoons utilized outrageous caricatures and exaggerated stereotypes of its enemies.
"ToonHeads: The Wartime Cartoons" contains clips from more than 100 cartoons. In one segment, Popeye plants a Victory Garden for his supply of spinach and other vegetables. In another, Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig and Elmer Fudd sing and dance to sell war bonds. The special presentation also shows four rarely-seen classic examples of wartime cartoons in their entirety:
- "Blitz Wolf" - Directed by Tex Avery, this cartoon shows three little pigs facing off against a treaty-breaking, German-speaking wolf. The pigs have a massive arsenal hidden in their brick bunker, and they use it to blast their belligerent tormentor to bits.
- "Scrap Happy Daffy" - In 1943's black-and-white "Scrap Happy Daffy," the wacky waterfowl delivers a rousing hymn to recycling scrap metal, then faces off against a goat that bears a striking resemblance to Adolf Hitler. Daffy gets inspiration in his junkyard romp from his duck ancestors, who remind him of the sacrifices they endured in building America.
- "Herr Meets Hare" - Bugs Bunny gets into the mix after taking a wrong turn in Friz Freleng's "Herr Meets Hare." The wascally wabbit tangles with Nazi minister Hermann Goring in the Black Forest, duping him at one point by imitating der Fuhrer and at another by appearing as a Wagnerian beauty, only to smash a shield in his enemy's face.
- "Russian Rhapsody" - The special's final short, "Russian Rhapsody" is a masterpiece directed by Bob Clampett in which a plane full of "gremlins from the Kremlin" attack a bomber piloted by the Nazi leader himself. Featuring haunting music, loads of sight gags and beautiful artistry, the tiny saboteurs eventually bring down both the airplane and Hitler.
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., an AOL Time Warner company, is a major producer of news and entertainment product around the world and the leading provider of programming for the basic cable industry.
[line]2[/line]
Original Article
From Cartoon Research :
Any fan of Warner Bros. World war II cartoons needs to watch this special. It's great.
-Matthew Hunter
