Tom & JerryThe Flintstones
The Jetsons
Scooby Doo
Yogi Bear
Huckleberry Hound
Quick Draw McGraw
Ever heard of any of these? They and many more classic characters were brought to our televisions by Joseph Barbera and William Hanna. The Flintstones was the first animated series to air in prime time and Scooby Doo, Where Are You? was the longest running cartoon in television history (17 seasons, and new incarnations are still on the air today). Hanna died in 2001 and now we have lost Joe Barbera too. He died at home Monday of natural causes. He was 95.
Add Barbera to the list of the architects of my childhood who are no longer with us. I had already lost Ted Geisel (Dr. Seuss), Charles Schulz, Chuck Jones (cartoon artist, writer, and director), Fred "Tex" Avery (same as Chuck as well as creator of Bugs, Daffy, and Droopy), Mel Blanc, Fred "Mr." Rogers, and the most painful to me personally, Jim Henson. I was inclined to be discouraged over yet another loss. Sure, well-written and funny programs still exist, but the number is apallingly small and dwindling. In the 90s Tiny Toons and Animaniacs gave me great hope, but alas they too are no more.
What will my children grow up watching? Well, "as for me and my house..." my four year-old loves the old Hanna/Barbera shows that he's seen on Boomerang. In fact, he likes The Flintstones and Scooby Doo FAR more than say, The Fairly Oddparents or Lilo & Stitch. So I guess many children will grow up watching the same shows I did. After all, most of the ones mentioned above were made long before I was born and I joyfully marinated in them...and still do.
On another happy note, we still have June Foray. You may not know the name, but I can almost guarantee you know her voice. June was the voice of the original Chatty Cathy doll, Rocky the flying Squirrell, Granny (Tweety's owner), Jokey Smurf, scores of female characters in Hanna/Barbera and Jay Ward cartoons, every female and child voice in Frosty the Snowman, and more others than I could name.
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