Tom Ruegger has been posting on his blog various cartoon shows that he pitched but were never followed through nor developed - mainly involving characters from Warner Bros or Hanna-Barbera. His latest few posts have really struck a chord with me - "Mixed Nutz" was an opportunity to bring both Warner Bros and Hanna-Barbera characters into the same multiverse, and the sad fact was everyone loved it.....until a new guy came in and killed the idea before it could even start.
And this was in 2008 - where the same company, Warner Bros, are planning several CGI movies involving Tom and Jerry, Pepe le Pew and Marvin the Martian just because of one person who had ideas of his own.
It's a sad, sad world right now where someone turns down a wonderfully hopeful idea such as this, that every other animation fan can only dream of accomplishing in mere fan fiction/comics, for other ideas of his own for these characters. And by "these characters", I mean the Warner Bros / Looney Tunes cast. Never mind that, aside from an uninteresting CGI feature-length movie, nothing new has EVER been attempted with the Hanna-Barbera characters for yoinks already - Hanna-Barbera characters who still have a wider fanbase outside of the US market, including the UK, Spain, Italy and every other European country that has digital television.
All I can truly hope for, Sam Register, is that if "The Looney Tunes Show" doesn't succeed, don't come crying to us...!
Now you may think I'm overreacting here, but I think that the camel's back truly has been broken. Speaking as someone who is permanently nostalgic, always respecting and learning from the past to make my own future, Tom Ruegger is a talented, fun chap who has been in the media biz since the late 1970's with as much knowledge and respect for all the iconic cartoon characters as he does with his own kids. And the fact that creativity and the chance to have fun with such classic characters, without resorting to unnecessary clinched movies or cut-and-paste show ideas, is despicable. In fact, it's making me wonder whether it's worth trying to get into the media myself if life's just going to be one big drop after another...
For now, at least, here's a LT comic story that preceded Tom's wonderful pitch by about eight years - Tazzy-Doo!
Them's my two cents - spend them wisely.
The sad thing is Chris, that a lot of company are like this. Not only in the animation business but other forms of media as well. It does make one cautious about entering the field though.
ReplyDeleteI've been to his blog too. I actually think that that would have been a good show! It makes me sad when I hear that great talents like Ruegger are rejected for a show that doesn't even deserve to be green-lighted.
ReplyDeleteRuegger has considerable gonads for naming names on his blog. Most people in his shoes go to their graves without saying a word about such personal injustices.
ReplyDelete