Before the fantastic Football Special (which I may also blog about for the
New Year!), Mike Pearse began treading his toes in the Beano by
reintroducing the Three Bears. But on a few occasions he appeared to have stepped in for David Sutherland, long-standing artist for the Bash Street Kids. When I first read these, while the characters remained semi-faithful to Sutherland's designs, I knew straight off the bat that the familiar style of humour was vastly different. It felt.....fresh =)
Not sure even most Pearse fans would remember these, but in case you've forgotten, here's a little reminder. I'll tell you this, though: scanning / editing / restoring double-paged comics is not easy!
If you've already familiarised yourself with Mike Pearse's Halloween story, "A Nightmare on Bash Street", then here's some other selections in the run-up to October 31st - all drawn, once again, by the hilarious chap himself.
The 3 Bears, Ma, Pa and Ted, get more than they bargained for - from Issue No.3004, February 2000 - with Pa's new hobby...
...and then again in Issue No.3020, June 2000 whilst hiding out from Hank.
And just for kicks, here's a Bash St. "Singled Out" strip from Issue No.3319, March 2006.
There's no denying at all that Johnny Hart is, was and still is one of the greatest comic strip artists that lived. His surreal comedy and fun drawing style for his comic strip, B.C, just seem to beg to be animated - in particular his Sunday strips, which feel like you're observing the storyboards for a cartoon short. Anyone who could get so much mileage from a prehistoric setting for nearly 50 years must obviously have a very strong gift for humour. From cavemen to various animals, every character in the strip just seem to leap off the page while you're helpless with giggles.
That is why I feel, out of all the comic strips and comic books brought to animation, Johnny Hart'sB.C just had it too short. Surviving today from ageing VHS cassettes by two sole specials and a series of commercials, including those for Action Corps. Personally speaking, while they're all fantastic each in their own way, I think The First Thanksgiving truly nailed it in terms of bringing Johnny's characters and wild humour to the small screen - all thanks to, among others, Abe Levitow's streamlined direction and vocal talents from Daws Butler, Don Messick, Bob Holt and Joanie Sommers. A Special Christmas, which focused a tad more on the religious / seasonal aspect, didn't have as much energy as the former but still maintained many of Hart's wit and wisdom.
All the same, going by the care and quality of the above, it was evident that there was still steam in the old stone wheel yet. Rather a shame because I felt there might have been so much more that B.C could have brought to the animation table.
And unlike the endless list of Peanuts Specials and TV Seasons (Sorry Schultz, Sorry Melendez!), Hart - and co-writer Jack Caprio - at least created wholly original material than reusing the same gags strip-from-strip. Just sayin'...
Johnny Hart passed away in 2007, but his characters and legacy live on thanks to grandsons Mason and Mick Mastroianni and Hart's daughter Perri, who also draw Hart's other famous strip "Wizard of Id". Say what you like about their handling of both strips, but they still make me laugh as hard as Johnny ever did. Besides, it still pays to have family or friends who know what to do with someone else's creation than those who don't...
Well, the London 2012 Olympics may have long since finished, but for this animated movie the Olympics keep going on forever ;-)
Animalympics, created by Lisberger Studios, was originally broadcast for NBC's summer Olympics coverage, released as two separate specials (Summer and Winter respectively). Although intended for a theatrical release, it never really found widespread fame until Warner Bros released it for home video, and in later years it saw sparing repeats on Disney Channel USA.
I haven't seen this movie since I was at least 12, but having viewed it again with fresh eyes I've come to fully appreciate every moment of this. Every carefully-timed scene, every tone in each character voice, even the psychedelic music sequences of the 80's. A fantastic parody / homage to the Olympic games, it features a variety of talent and future big-name stars;
For voice-acting we have Billy Crystal (Monsters Inc), Harry Shearer (The Simpsons), Gilda Radner and Michael Fremer.
Animation by, amongst many others, Brad Bird, Dan Haskett, Roger Allers, Chuck Harvey and John Norton.
It's still laugh-out-loud hilarious as ever to me, and it's little wonder why many still recall it fondly today. With great animation, fun characters and their engaging storylines, who wouldn't?
