Tuesday, August 18, 2009

TVXOHOF, 08/2009-C: HUCKLEBERRY HOUND

Mickey Mouse serves as the "face" of Disney animation; the same is true for Bugs Bunny and Warner Bros., Tom and Jerry at MGM, Woody Woodpecker for Walter Lantz, and Rocky and Bullwinkle for Jay Ward.

But what about at Hanna-Barbera? They've created so many different types of styles - from funny animals to cartoonish humans ('Fintstones', 'Jetsons', 'Wacky Races') to "realistic" characters like 'Jonny Quest' - that no one character could probably sum up the studio's oeuvre.

If we focus only on the funny animals, even then who could be the official face among the many characters they created? Some might argue for Yogi Bear, but I'm throwing my support behind Huckleberry Hound.

Huckleberry Hound is the calm center in the maelstrom of Hanna-Barbera, and although he may not play as big a role anymore when it comes to their animation projects, the easy-going blue canine is still honored by other animators. And this is why Huckleberry Hound is the Tooniverse candidate for induction into the TV Crossover Hall of Fame during the dog days of August.



Here are a list of the major projects which qualify him for entry: Greg Berg
. . . "Yo Yogi!" (1991)

Daws Butler
. . . "Galaxy Goof-Ups" (1978)
. . . "Scooby's All Star Laff-A-Lympics" (1977) TV Series
. . . "The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie" (1972) {Yogi's Ark Lark}
. . . "The Huckleberry Hound Show" (1958)
. . . "Yogi's Gang" (1973)
. . . "Yogi's Space Race" (1978)
. . . Casper's First Christmas (1979)
. . . The Flintstones' 25th Anniversary Celebration (1986)
. . . The Good, the Bad, and Huckleberry Hound (1988)
. . . Yogi Bear and the Magical Flight of the Spruce Goose (1987)
. . . Yogi Bear's All-Star Comedy Christmas Caper (1982)
. . . Yogi's First Christmas (1980)

Tom Kenny
. . . "Evil Con Carne" (2004)
{Jealousy, Jealous Do/Hector, King of the Britons (#2.4)}

Mark Schiff
. . . "Wake, Rattle & Roll" (1990)

Karl Wiedergott
. . . "The Simpsons" (1989)
{Behind the Laughter (#11.22)}

Ol' Huck even appeared in TV commercials, mostly for Kellogg's cereals. The show and the commercials were blended together in the credit sequences with more of an accent on the sponsor, to the point where you hardly even saw that oh so merry chuckleberry......



Here's Huckleberry Hound as he appeared on 'The Simpsons', proving why he belongs in the TV Crossover Hall of Fame:


Welcome to the club, Huck!



BCnU!

No comments:

Post a Comment