Psychedelic Saturdays: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of “The Banana Splits”

By Michael Lyons

Saturday morning television doesn’t get more off-the-wall, more bonkers, more “huh?,” more ‘60’s than “The Banana Splits”...and there’s a whole generation that’s just fine with that.

From the reigning kings of Saturday morning, Hanna-Barbera, came this hour long show (a rarity for Saturday morning television at the time) combining live-action and cartoons with psychedelic sets and original rock music.  Yep, you read that right.

“The Banana Splits” has gained a following that ranges from rose-colored memories from the generation that grew up with the show to cult status from later generations who would discover this addictive TV oddity years after.

September 7th marked the 50th anniversary of “The Banana Splits” debut on NBC, which makes this the perfect opportunity to hop in our “Banana Buggies” and take a trip back in time to celebrate this unique Saturday morning offering. 

The official title was “The Banana Splits Adventure Hour’ and was hosted the by the title characters, a fictional rock band, which was comprised of Fleegle (a dog), Bingo (an orangutan), Drooper (a lion) and Snorky (an elephant).  They were actors in costumes (which were actually designed by puppeteers Sid and Marty Krofft, who would go on to contribute their own off-beat brand of Saturday morning shows like “HR Pufnstuf” and “Land of the Lost”).

The design of the costumes were very well done and came across as Hanna Barbera characters come to life.  They had unique touches, like odd, Spartan-like helmets and shaggy fur on Snorky the elephant.

The Banana Splits would hang out in their candy-colored clubhouse acting as hosts for the show, taking part in quick comedy skits (most of the slapstick kind) and performing their original songs (in VERY ‘60’s versions of what could be called some of TV’s first music videos).

During some of the other segments, The Banana Splits would go head-to-head with their arch enemies, The Sour Grapes (who were a group of adolescent girls) or race around in their “Banana Buggies” (large, all-terrain vehicles).

Throughout the hour, The Banana Splits would also introduce cartoons, which had been produced especially for the show.  There were the two adventure cartoons, “The Three Musketeers” and “Arabian Knights,” as well as the contemporary, “Fantastic Voyage”-like “Micro Ventures.”  Additionally, there was the comedic “Hillbilly Bears” and the live-action serial episodes of “Danger Island” (which were directed by Richard Donner, who would later go on to helm such Hollywood blockbusters as 1985’s “The Goonies” and the “Lethal Weapon” franchise).

“The Banana Splits Adventure Hour” was sponsored by Kellogg’s cereal.  In fact, the show would open each week with the four titular characters holding giant spoons, standing in front of signs of different Kellogg’s cereals and essentially delivering a commercial message, as they introduced the show.  Television sponsorship has truly changed throughout the years

In another act of synergy, the opening and closing credits of the show featured The Banana Splits cavorting at Kings Island Theme Park.  At the time, the Park was owned by Taft Broadcasting Company, who just also happened to own Hanna-Barbera.  It was a very canny way to cross-promote.

In 1972, there was a return of the characters in the one time, hour-long “movie,” “The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park.”   Produced for the “ABC Saturday Superstar Movie,” the four stars find themselves transported into an offbeat, cartoon world.

Years later, the “Adventure Hour” was edited down to half-hour shows simply called “The Banana Splits” and placed into syndication.  In addition to the original segments, cartoons such as “Atom Ant,” “Secret Squirrel,” “The Adventures of Gulliver” and the live-action/animated “The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” were added.  Because the show was paired down like this, the original “Adventure Hour” is difficult to find today.

Another reason why “The Banana Splits” has faded in popularity, outside certain circles.

Yes, it’s off the wall, yes, it’s bonkers, yes, it is SO ‘60’s, but “The Banana Splits” is also the type of daring and original (albeit strange) children’s TV show that rarely gets made.

It’s also a prime example of Saturday Morning memories that have sadly become extinct.

They just don’t make ‘em like this any more.  To which, some would say, “Good!”...while fans of “The Banana Splits” would ask “Why Not?!?”

Sources:

IMDb 

Wikipedia

Toon In Tonight: Remembering Saturday Morning Preview Specials

By Michael Lyons

Gather ‘round everyone and listen to a tale of a time when Saturday morning TV wasn’t just news shows and infomercials.  Instead, these mornings were jam packed with shows that were geared toward kids who had toiled away the weekdays in the rough and tumble world of elementary school.

These Saturday morning shows were everything from cartoons that centered on characters from crime solving dogs and strange super heroes to live-action shows that starred strange, costumed creatures.  

It no longer exists today, but Saturday morning television isn’t an urban myth, it actually happened, it was a “thing.”  In fact, Saturday morning programming was such an important part of each network’s line-up, that when the new fall TV season started, there were actually prime time shows that became known as the Saturday Morning Preview Special.

These would usually air the Friday night after Labor Day, as the following day, Saturday, would be the debut of the new morning line-up of shows.  For an entire generation, these specials were an oasis in the “back-to-school” world.  They created an eagerness for what was to come in the a.m. and almost served as a “Saturday Morning Eve” of sorts.

As Saturday Morning Television becomes a faded memory with each passing autumn, the one time Saturday Morning Preview Special has become an overlooked moment in TV history that’s become seemingly buried like a lost relic...

...until now.

What follows are just some examples of this one time annual tradition of kids TV that got everybody psyched for Saturday Mornings:

“The ABC Saturday Morning Sneak Peek” (ABC, 1973)

The comedy team of Jack Burns and Avery Schreiber (who just happened to have their own variety show at ABC at the time) were the hosts for this special.

The plot centered on a surprise party for Avery’s nephew and all of the stars of ABC’s new Saturday morning line-up were guests.   These included Batman and Superman from “Super Friends,” Lassie from “Lassie’s Rescue Rangers,” Singer Rick Springfield (later of “Jessie’s Girl” fame) from “Mission: Magic,” Goober the invisible dog from “Goober and the Ghost Chasers” and none other than Bugs Bunny himself (who was starring in his self-titled show).

Throughout the show, clips from the new series were shown, to peak the interest of kids at home.  This was a standard of the Saturday Morning Preview Shows.  

What’s unique about this show is that because technology to blend live-action and animation wasn’t advanced (and was costly), all of the characters appear in live-action.

The sight of a actors dressed as Batman and Superman, along with Rick Springfield, Lassie and a giant Bugs Bunny hiding in a living room for a surprise party is something that only ‘70’s TV could have brought us!

“The Bay City Rollers Meet the Saturday Superstars” (NBC, 1978)

From the file of “something that only ‘70’s TV could have brought us” comes this Saturday Morning Preview Show, featuring the Scottish, one hit wonder band The Bay City Rollers.

The Rollers were about to embark on their own Saturday morning variety show, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft (the masterminds behind the terrifically Trippy live-action shows “HR Pufnstuff” and “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters”).

Not only does the show preview the next day’s Saturday morning offerings, but familiar Krofft characters such as Witchiepoo appear alongside Erik Estrada and Joe Namath (who had prime time shows on NBC) in a weird display of network synergy.

“The Saturday Morning Preview Special” (CBS, 1983)

Host Scott Baio, alongside actor Sorrell Booke (in full character as Boss Hogg from “The Dukes of Hazzard”) preview shows like “Donkey Kong,” “Q-Bert” and “Dungeons and Dragons.”

Looking for a thirty minute ‘80’s time capsule?  Here it is!

“The ABC Saturday Morning Preview Special (ABC, 1992)

Twenty-six years ago, as the animation renaissance was about to kick into full gear at Disney, the studio also entered the TV animation race with several series.  One that debuted this year, “Goof Troop,” about Goofy and his son Max, would go on to be one if their most popular.

It was previewed by the cast of the ABC sitcom, “Step by Step,” along with a new, animated version of “The Addams Family,” (produced after the popularity of the 1991 live-action film).

The special and shows previewed are evidence that the ‘90’s were filled with unique and original Saturday morning offerings that also came out of that decade’s animation resurgence.  And with it, sadly, the ‘90’s became Saturday morning TV’s last hurrah.

These specials represent an excitement for Saturday Morning TV Shows that sadly no longer exists.  Many of the shows were offbeat, bizarre offerings filled with limited animation and sparse budgets.  They weren’t the best that TV had to offer...but the memories they provide are as sweet as the cereal consumed while watching them.

Sources:

Wikipedia

Stylishly Late: Late Summer Movie Season Entries that Helped Make the Dog Days Just a Little Cooler

By Michael Lyons

As store shelves become crowded with notebooks, schools re-open and the words “Pumpkin Spice” resurface, there’s no denying the fact that another summer is coming to a close.

As the sun sets on the season filled with the endless promise of vacation, crowded beaches and nice weather, we also bid farewell to the Sumer Movie Season, Hollywood’s popcorn fueled months of sequels, super heroes, dinosaurs, animation, explosions and a large amount of guaranteed box-office.

Don’t mark the Summer Movie Season out for the count just yet, with still a few weeks to go, the movie industry could pull out one more “win” before we head into Labor Day.  In fact, some Summer Movie Seasons past have included movies that were critically acclaimed and/or box-office successes during the waning days of August.

As we hurtle headlong to Summer’s end like the last wave crashing on a beach, it’s the perfect time to look at these late season entries from Summers past.

“Married to the Mob” (1988)

From the always unique vision of Director Jonathan Demme, this original comedy snuck into theaters in late summer thirty years ago.  In it, Michelle Pfeiffer plays Angela DeMarco, a mafia wife, who tries to escape “the life,” after her husband is murdered.  In the process, she finds herself falling in love with an FBI Agent and pursued by the mafia kingpin who put the hit on her husband.

As he did with all of his films, the late, great Demme jam-packs “Married to the Mob” with colorful characters, who generate the film’s laughs.  Pfieffer does a spot-on “New Yawk” accent and the always solid Matthew Modine is charming as the squeaky-clean FBI agent she falls for.

Stealing the show is Dean Stockwell, as mob boss Tony “the Tiger,” a ruthlessly funny performance that earned the actor a Best Supporting Actor Oscar Nomination.  A close second to walking away with the film is Mercedes Ruehl, in her first major role, as Tony’s hot tempered wife, Connie.

They all come together in a movie about murder and infidelity, that’s somehow uniquely it’s own thing.  “Married to the Mob” is a light, breezy, screwball comedy...that packs heat.

“Needful Things” (1993)

This adaptation of Stephen King’s wickedly devilish novel is a horror movie with a smirk on its face.

Set in King’s often used fictional small town of Castle Rock, Maine, “Needful Things” tells the story of a mysterious shop owner (the always amazing Max Von Sydow), who opens up an antique store, that just happens to have what each resident of the town desires.  He agrees to sell to them, if they grant him certain “favors,” which wind up turning the residents against each other.

Directed by Fraser Heston (Charlton’s son) with a cast that includes Ed Harris, Bonnie Bedelia, J.T. Walsh and Amanda Plummer, “Needful Things” captures all of the horrific tension from King’s novel, along with a theme about how our desire for material things can drive us to madness...which, ironically, seems even more relevant twenty-five years after this movie’s late summer debut.

“Blade” (1998)

Two decades ago, before comic book movies became a staple of early summer, this adaptation of a Marvel comic bowed in late August.  In it, Wesley Snipes is a half-vampire/half-human, who has sworn to rid the world of vampire evil and avenge his mother’s death.

Developing quite the following that generated two sequels, “Blade” served as the title character’s origin story.  Directed in stylish extremes by Steven Norrington, this film has found itself lost in the avalanche of super hero films that have followed two decdaes later.

But while there are many others, “Blade” still finds itself surfacing during fan discussions of favorite comic book movies,

“Tropic Thunder” (2008)

One of the most original comedies in recent years, with an ingenious, satirical story seemed like a height of summer blockbuster, but bowed in late August.

In the film, three vain actors: an action star (Ben Stiller) looking to change his image, an almost washed up comedian (Jack Black) yearning to be taken seriously and an over-the-top method actor (Robert Downey, Jr.) find themselves lost in a hostile, third-world jungle while filming a movie about the Vietnam War.

The entire Cast of “Tropic Thunder” is, literally firing on all cylinders in a smartly crafted film (directed by Stiller) that delivers crowd-pleasing laughs throughout, while gleefully not caring that it’s biting the film industry hand that’s feeding it.

In one of film’s most daring performances, Robert Downey Jr’s is hysterically jaw dropping, as he plays Kirk Lazarus, an Australian actor who undergoes a procedure to darken his skin so he can play a black character.  He completely disappears into the character and rightfully earned himself a Best Supporting Actor Oscar Nomination.

Rounding out the Cast is Nick Nolte, Matthew McConaughey, Jay Baruchel, Steve Coogan, Bill Hader, Danny McBride and Tom Cruise (yup, Tom Cruise!) in a gonzo comedic performance as a brutal, mean-spirited studio executive.

From the film’s opening “trailers” to its end credit rap dancing, “Tropic Thunder” is the rare comedy that earns more appreciation and laughs even a decade after its debut.

These films, like a surprise, perfect weather day, helped make summer last just a little longer.

Sources:
IMDb
Wikipedia

Caught up the “Wake” of “Jaws”: Pre-“Meg” Movies that were inspired by Spielberg’s Seminal Summer Blockbuster

By Michael Lyons

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  If that’s the case, then Hollywood is a VERY flattering place.

This was especially true in the mid-to-late ‘70’s, when every Studio was trying to replicate the success of the world’s first Summer Blockbuster, “Jaws.”  What followed was a series of not-as-thrilling movies in which an animal/force of nature launches an attack.

One of the decendants of this trend, “The Meg,” hits theaters this weekend.  The film, based on the best selling book by Steve Alten, is about a giant, prehistoric shark seemingly swimming out of the past and into our world.

There’s no better way to commemorate this latest Hollywood “attack,” by looking back at the “Jaws clones” that rampaged through theaters, after Steven Spielberg’s landmark film debuted in 1975.

“Grizzly” (1976)

This movie may seem like a low-budget B movie that was made quickly and released one year after “Jaws,” to cash in on that movie’s success...actually...it doesn’t seem that way...that’s exactly what it is.

Substituting a grizzly bear for a shark and a national park for Amity Island, this film unabashedly carbon copies the “Jaws” model.  However, this tale of a killer grizzly attacking campers lacks the suspense and ingenuity that made Spielberg’s film an unforgettable masterpiece.

What “Grizzly” does have is a parade of recognizable character actors of the time, such as Christopher George and Richard Jaeckel and also boasts one of the most Drive-In Movie worthy posters of the decade!

“The Deep” (1977)

Another movie that rode the “coatfins” of “Jaws,” this one at least did so with an original plot.  In “The Deep,” a young couple (Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset) uncover artifacts while diving through a shipwreck, off the coast of Bermuda and wind up getting caught up with local, drug dealing criminals.

With an underwater setting, based on a book by “Jaws” author Peter Benchley and co-starring Quint himself, Robert Shaw,“The Deep” is definitely doing all it can to reach audiences who were eager for a “Jaws fix.”

However, today the movie is more remembered for Jacqueline Bisset’s now famous wet T-shirt scene and less for its action sequences involving a giant eel. 

“Piranha” (1978)

This movie should be next to the definition of the phrase “Cult Movie.”  Produced by B-Movie maestro Roger Corman and directed by Joe Dante (who would go on to helm blockbusters like “Gremlins”), “Piranha” unabashedly copied “Jaws,” but has also emerged as something all it’s own, with a following that has grown through the years.

“Piranha” is about the nasty-looking, flesh eating titular fish, who are accidentally dumped into the water at a resort...and it’s meal time!

With a surprisingly clever script penned by John Sayles (who would go on to have a very distinguished, Oscar nominated film career) and a cast of veteran actors, including Keenan Wynn and Kevin McCarthy, “Piranha” is an unabashed, all-out horror gorefest.  In fact, “Piranha” has such a devoted following that it was re-made (loosely) in 2010...in 3D, no less.

“The Swarm” (1978)

“Jaws” meets a disaster movie.  That’s probably how this movie was pitched.  This makes sense seeing that “The Swarm” is from director Irwin Allen, the disaster movie maestro behind such films as “The Poseidon Adventure” and “The Towering inferno.”

In this outing, the country is under attack by a massive swarm of killer bees, which includes the usual large scale mayhem, including scenes in which the bees cause helicopters to crash and a train to derail.

While the nature on attack angle owes a lot to “Jaws,” the rest of the film looks and feels like a full on disaster movie, from it’s all-star cast (Michael Caine, Katherine Ross, Olivia de Havilland, Richard Chamberlain, Fred MacMurray and Henry Fonda) to its conclusion in which an entire city is torched in order to kill the bees.

Made at the tail end of the disaster movie craze, “The Swarm” almost seems like a parody of itself at times, but movie fans of a time gone by will no doubt find it still has some...sting.

So, as “The Meg” splashes across screens this weekend, it may feel overwhelmed by the shadow of the Great White Shark that first captivated audiences 43 summers ago.  However, the film can take comfort in the fact that there have been plenty of other movies who have also wanted to take a bite out of the “Jaws” box office.

Sources:

IMDb

Wikipedia

“A Long Time Ago...”: The 45th Anniversary of “American Graffiti”

By Michael Lyons

All of the nostalgia, the “retro,” the “throwbacks,” the “looking back,” the “fondly remembering” that goes on today can actually be traced back 45 summers ago, when “American Graffiti” debuted.

George Lucas’ love letter to a simpler time: the late ‘50’s and early ‘60’s, during the era of drag racing, cruising, ducktailed “hoods,” malt shops and the early years of rock and roll, connected with the generation who (in the ‘70’s) had come of age during that time.

“American Graffiti” had an almost immediate response from audiences when it was released and helped launch the career of one of Hollywood’s most influential directors.

With the film that asked the poetic question “Where Were You in ‘62?” Celebrating its 45th anniversary, it’s the perfect time to take trip back in time to revisit the film.

With a very simple plot that involves weaving a number of stories together, “American Graffiti” takes place on the last night of summer vacation and follows several friends through a number of misadventures.

There’s Curt (Richard Dreyfuss), a straight laced high school graduate, about to head off to college, who becomes obsessed with finding a beautiful blonde girl (Suzanne Somers) he spotted in a car and winds up getting mixed up with a group of “greasers;” High school sweethearts Steve and Laurie (Ron Howard and Cindy Williams) who argue and make-up throughout the evening; John (Paul LeMat) an avid drag racer who winds up squaring off in a race with a loud mouth named Bob (Harrison Ford) and Terry “Toad” (Charles Martin Smith) the “nerd’ who is thrilled to have date with Debbie (Candy Clark).

The Cast of “American Graffiti” now plays like a “Who’s Who” directory of Hollywood, but at the time, the Cast (with the exception of Howard) were relative unknowns and this turned out to be their big break.  This was also a big break for director Lucas.  After the success of this film (produced by his friend Francis Ford Coppola), Lucas gained some clout, which allowed him to begin work on his true passion project about a “Galaxy Far, Far Away.”

Part of the success of “American Graffiti” was its ability to create such a believable “time and place,” bringing a past era alive as never before.  This happens immediately in the opening credits, in which “Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley and the Comets bounces across the soundtrack.  In fact, the film has a wall-to-wall pop and rock music soundtrack that set the standard for films to come. 

Then, there’s the iconic image of “Mel’s Drive-in” malt shop, the sweeping fins of the cars of the time and even the language itself (“You want a knuckle sandwich?”), “American Graffiti” became the first film to use pieces of our past pop culture as a setting for a film.

Released on August 11, 1973, “American Graffiti” was not only a hit, but it sparked a wave of obsessive nostalgia around the late ‘50’s and early ’60’s..  Movies like “The Lords of Flatbush”  and “Grease” followed; ‘50’s tribute bands like “Sha-Na-Na” become immensely popular and, of course, on TV, “Happy Days” and “Laverne and Shirley “(which continued the soaring trajectory of Ron Howard’s and Cindy Williams’ careers) became two of the most popular shows of the decade.

The generation that had come of age during the time of “American Graffiti” were hungry to re-live that time, with a film and story that not only re-captures it, but also, in a melancholy way, shows audiences a time of innocence, before everything was turned upside down by the tumultuous late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s.

And now 45 years later, we can all be nostalgic for one of the world’s most nostalgic films, “American Graffiti.”

Sources:

IMDb

Wikipedia

Summer “Cel”-ebration!: Classic Cartoons on Summer Vacation

By Michael Lyons

It’s the Dog Days of Summer.  It’s also the Cat Days, Mouse Days, Duck Days and even Popeye Days of summer!

As we find ourselves in the midst of this hot, hazy and humid season of bar-b-ques, summer camps, beaches and vacations, a great way to mark all that summer has to offer is to turn back the clock to a time when cartoon short subjects were part of a night at the movie theater.

In the Golden Age of Hollywood Studio animation, cartoon characters who were stars of these shorts, found themselves in a variety of seasons and settings, including summer.

Watching these summer-themed cartoons, in all of their 2-D, traditional animation glory, there’s not just a sense of innocence for a time gone by, but of all the glory that the season of summer holds.

Hawaiian Holiday (Disney, 1937)

A very iconic cartoon short from Disney that stars the Studio’s “Fab Five:”  Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy & Pluto, all together on vacation in Hawaii.

Directed by Studio veteran Ben Sharpsteen, the short has lush background design, as well as great animation of the characters at their most classically iconic.  It also features brilliant sight gags, such as Goofy battling a wave while surfing and getting “flung” to shore and Pluto fighting with a crab, with some painful results.

All of “Hawaiian Holiday” is SO classically Disney, from look to design to music that the short is as warm, comfortable and welcoming as vacation itself.

  

Vacation with Play (Famous Studios, 1951)

Popeye the Sailor and his girlfriend Olive Oyl embark on a resort vacation.  Popeye wants to relax and sleep, while Olive wants to take part in some of the resort’s activities.

Soon, Olive finds herself pursued by the Resort’s Activity Director, played by, you guessed it, Bluto.  Popeye is soon iterally battling Bluto for Olive’s affections.  After downing a can of Spinach and fighting to “the finach,” Popeye defeats Bluto and wins Olive back.

Not as strong as many short subjects of the time, “Vacation with Play” features some amped up “cartoon violence,” when Popeye and Bluto go at it (Popeye is literally knocked out and sent flying back into his hammock).

Still all the now iconic trademarks of a Popeye short are there, coupled with a cartoon glimpse of what resort vacationing looked like about 60 years ago.  It’s a quaint, nostalgic look at summers past.

Muscle Tussle (Warner Bros., 1953)

Daffy Duck takes his girlfriend to the beach, only to have words with a musclebound duck.  Daffy wises off to the mammoth mallard, who tells Daffy that he will knock his “head so far down between your little old shoulders, you’ll have to unbutton your vest to eat!”

Daffy proceeds to get pummeled and his girl leaves with the muscular duck.  Daffy then attempts to win his girlfriend back by purchasing a questionable muscle tonic...which has disastrous and funny results.

Warner Bros. Animation legend Robert McKimson brings his ingenious, quiet comedic style to this short.  When Daffy’s girlfriend calls him a 9-lb weakling, Daffy retorts, “How do you like that?  Calling me a scrawny little 9-lb weakling, when it’s perfectly obvious I’m a scrawny little 10-lb weakling!”

There’s also fun character design, particularly in the ridiculous looking bodybuilding bully of a duck.

As with many Warner Bros. Shorts, this one also skewers popular culture, as it seems to be poking fun at ads at the time promoting “Charles Atlas body building books,” which included a comic strip featuring a skinny “wimp,” at the beach getting sand kicked in his face.  Obviously, one of the many summer dangers of the time! 

Barbeque Brawl (MGM, 1956)

One of MGM’s Studio’s wide screen Cinemascope cartoons, this Tom and Jerry offering centers on the bulldog father and son Spike and Tyke, who are settling in for a backyard barbecue, when they are interrupted by the cat and mouse chasing antics of Tom & Jerry.

What follows is what one would expect with Jerry outsmarting Tom and Tom getting in the way of Spike and Tyke’s barbecue (to Spike’s fury).

What sets this cartoon apart is how stylized the backgrounds are, obviously influenced by both the UPA Studio and television animation, that was on the rise in the ‘50’s.  The imperfect, crooked lines and colors, so prevalent in animation at the time, adds a note of nostalgia to the proceedings.

Also, it’s nice to reflect back on a time when charcoal briquettes were a part of barbecuing and an army of ants was a mainstay of any cartoon picnic.

All of these cartoon shorts are a nice reminder of a time when animation was a prevalent part of major Hollywood Studios and the regular moviegoing experience.

That silver screen era has faded like the last days of summer itself.  However, thanks to the filmmakers who brought us these shorts, we can celebrate summer with our favorite cartoon stars and enjoy all that the sunshine season brings our way.

Sources:

Boomerang

IMDb

Wikipedia