This Is the First Weekend in America With No Saturday Morning Cartoons

[BOZ Profit]

Saturday morning American broadcast TV was once animation's home field. Filling a cereal bowl with artificially colored sugar pebbles and staring at the tube was every kid's weekend plan. Not any more: For the first time in 50-plus years, you won't find a block of animation on broadcast this morning. It's the end of an era.

http://gizmodo.com/this-is-the-first-weekend-in-america-with-no-saturday-m-1642441646

What cartoons did you grow up watching?

I loved Bugs Bunny, Scooby Doo, and Super Friends just to name a few...

 

[RyanHoward]

Goodbye, Bugs and Tweety. Hello, Wen Hair Care and Ab Master Machines.

 

[anotherguyTN]

NBC still has some kid's shows that have some animation, although they're geared to fit the E/I guidelines to be for preschoolers, so most older kids won't care about watching them. Even with that, all the Big 4 networks and CW have basically given up regular Saturday kid's programming to Disney, Nick and Cartoon Network.

I've said before though in other threads that if the E/I regulations weren't in place though that stations would go to news and sports at best and infomercials at worst. What happened to most Fox stations is a perfect example. Even though Fox has gone back to having some E/I programming, some stations like WJKT in Jackson, TN are still running infomercials.

 

[stilldustyvinyl]

You sound like Dr Suess, you do.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Cartoon Network still had cartoons, are you still using a rotary phone?

 

[TheBigA]

Most PBS stations still run children's shows on Saturday and Sunday morning. Curious George, Sesame Street, etc. Although those shows really are for kids.

 

[bpatrick]

I have to tell a story you probably won't believe. I never missed Bugs Bunny, even when I was into my 20s and 30s; back in the '70s and '80s I had a Chihuahua named Mikey, and all I had to do to get his attention would be to say, "Hey Mike, you want to watch Bugs?" and he'd be over at the set waiting for me to get "that Oscar-winning rabbit." One Saturday, I remember leaving the room for some reason; when I came back there was a Road Runner cartoon on and Mikey was right in front of the set, staring at the cartoon as if he understood what was going on. Maybe you had similar experiences with your human siblings, be it with Bugs or some other cartoon show. And I have to admit I still wish Bugs was on on Saturday mornings; I think ABC dropped him because his was the only non-Disney show in the block, and Cartoon Network wanted the exclusive rights to the Warner Brothers' library.

I expect to hear from Avid Listener that this is a business decision and, face it, demographics decree that Saturday-morning kids' shows have gone the way of late-afternoon cartoons and kid-oriented sitcoms like "Gilligan's Island." And I agree that without the E/I rules, Saturday morning would be nothing but local news and infomercials on the affiliates. I'm not even sure the 2-11-year-old demographic is even there anymore; I remember when I lived in Plano, Texas, it seemed like every kid old enough to go to school was out playing soccer on Saturday mornings, and I suspect that's still true there and in many other suburbs.

But with PBS, the Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, and Nickelodeon I would say that kids' shows, both live-action and animated, are not dead. And if you're an adult you still have Animation Domination on Fox on Sunday nights.

 

[Carmine5]

Our station is still running cartoons both on weekend mornings and weekday afternoons. The kids love them. Two girls wrote the station and said that they love watching "Betty Boop" and a boy wrote to say he never misses "Clutch Cargo" and "Space Angel." I'm sure the parents are watching too. I think you'll find that Saturday morning cartoons are alive and well on the small independent stations. The networks don't get to define what is the end of something for television just because they stop doing it.

And the kids don't care if it's black and white either. What's old is new to a new generation. The thing that I find interesting is that our station is the only one in the market running cartoons in the afternoons--and we have an audience. We basically have this segment of children and their parents all to ourselves. It's great!

One critic referred to all these E/I programs as "broccoli television"--watch it because it's good for you. And, of course, kids are staying away in droves. They actually get this kind of video programming at school and they're sure as heck not going to watch it on their time off.

The whole Children's Television Act is a sick and expensive joke on broadcasters. It should have been repealed ages ago.

 

[Avid Listener]

Cartoon Network still had cartoons, are you still using a rotary phone?

Amen to that! The fact that some types of programming have shifted to cable doesn't mean that they're gone.

I expect to hear from Avid Listener that this is a business decision and, face it, demographics decree that Saturday-morning kids' shows have gone the way of late-afternoon cartoons and kid-oriented sitcoms like "Gilligan's Island." And I agree that without the E/I rules, Saturday morning would be nothing but local news and infomercials on the affiliates. I'm not even sure the 2-11-year-old demographic is even there anymore; I remember when I lived in Plano, Texas, it seemed like every kid old enough to go to school was out playing soccer on Saturday mornings, and I suspect that's still true there and in many other suburbs.

But with PBS, the Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, and Nickelodeon I would say that kids' shows, both live-action and animated, are not dead. And if you're an adult you still have Animation Domination on Fox on Sunday nights.

Nope. I wouldn't say that. TheBigA or David Eduardo are the main defenders of the suits making all decisions based on money and demographics. I'm much more likely to agree with you about such programming merely shifting from OTA to cable, which is the normal course of things.

 

[mississippi fan]

For Carmine5, what is the station you watch that airs those cartoons? Very curious to know. Thanks.

 

[FredLeonard]

While, I love the classic Warner Brothers cartoons, those were made to be shown in theaters, many of them before the advent of TV. Sames for the Max Fleischer - Paramount cartoons, including Popeye and Superman (with voices of the cast of the radio series). But here are my favorite made-for-TV cartoons....

Beany and Cecil.
Rocky and Bullwinkle (under various titles)
- Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties
- Peabody's Improbable History
- Aesop & Son
- Fractured Fairy Tales
Superman: The Animated Series
Batman: The Animated Series
Star Trek: The Animated Series (with voices of the original cast)
Underdog
King Leonardo and his Short Subjects

 

[mississippi fan]

FredLeonard, you have great taste. I am too a fan of those as well. I remember, at the age or 8 or 9, the wonderful Japanese toon Astro Boy.

 

[FredLeonard]

FredLeonard, you have great taste. I am too a fan of those as well. I remember, at the age or 8 or 9, the wonderful Japanese toon Astro Boy.

Ah, Astro Boy! Brings back memories. I had a professor in grad school. He was a brilliant anthropologist. Came up with the concept later popularized as "body language." He'd rush out every afternoon to catch Astro Boy on a local UHF indie station's kids' block. Some of the students used to tease him about Astro Boy. His reply: "You must flush the mind!"

You know, some people here may decide the end of Saturday morning cartoons on network television (at least) is political correctness. Maybe in part but it's also the result of highly effective lobbying by e/i kids' TV producers who have now gotten rid of a competitive source of kids' programming. These include CTW and Linda Ellerbee. They pushed for a Saturday morning e/i block and now they've gotten this. It's not just somebody with an ax to grind (like those who want to stop any on-air mention of a certain DC football team); it's the profit motive being hypocritically passed off as serving the public interest.

That said, a lot of cartoons produced for TV were limited animation KRP. When TV came along, some producers of the classical theatrical cartoons rushed into limited animation for TV. Uncle Walt adamantly refused.

And while we are talking about the fondly-remembered or the "greats," let's also hold out the barf bag for (IMHO) the worst TV cartoon ever: Clutch Cargo. If you never saw it, be grateful.

 

[ixnay]

Ah, Astro Boy! Brings back memories. I had a professor in grad school. He was a brilliant anthropologist. Came up with the concept later popularized as "body language." He'd rush out every afternoon to catch Astro Boy on a local UHF indie station's kids' block. Some of the students used to tease him about Astro Boy. His reply: "You must flush the mind!"

You know, some people here may decide the end of Saturday morning cartoons on network television (at least) is political correctness. Maybe in part but it's also the result of highly effective lobbying by e/i kids' TV producers who have now gotten rid of a competitive source of kids' programming. These include CTW and Linda Ellerbee. They pushed for a Saturday morning e/i block and now they've gotten this. It's not just somebody with an ax to grind (like those who want to stop any on-air mention of a certain DC football team); it's the profit motive being hypocritically passed off as serving the public interest.

That said, a lot of cartoons produced for TV were limited animation KRP. When TV came along, some producers of the classical theatrical cartoons rushed into limited animation for TV. Uncle Walt adamantly refused.

And while we are talking about the fondly-remembered or the "greats," let's also hold out the barf bag for (IMHO) the worst TV cartoon ever: Clutch Cargo. If you never saw it, be grateful.

If Astro Boy weren't so truthful, he'd be a high tech Pinocchio. Iywkim. But Pinoke didn't have a sister.

Imagine Bart and Lisa Simpson as Astro Boy and Girl...

ixnay

 

[FredLeonard]

If Astro Boy weren't so truthful, he'd be a high tech Pinocchio. Iywkim. But Pinoke didn't have a sister.

Imagine Bart and Lisa Simpson as Astro Boy and Girl...

ixnay

We learned last season that Emma Swan was (sort of) his foster sister.

And Stan has a sister but she keeps beating him up.

 

[anotherguyTN]

I've run into Clutch Cargo cartoons on my Roku box. They even have a separate channel for it. It's unbelievable how terrible that show is between animation that is so limited it's really just still shots that are moved on the camera and using actual human mouths instead of animation for the dialogue. That's definitely the worst cartoon I've ever seen.

 

[crainbebo]

I'm sure Clutch Cargo, the crappy show it is, was probably better than half of Cookie Jar's E/I animated shows (think Liberty's Kids and Danger Rangers).
Most of the audience has switched to cable by now and it's pretty sad to see broadcast TV cartoons go this way. I wonder how many kids tuned into CW's block of cartoons last season. Maybe I could get some statistics from someone here.
Litton's Weekend Adventure surprisingly is always getting #2, or #3 in syndicated ratings. It shocks me that many people are actually watching E/I shows. Some of them are interesting to watch, like Sea Rescue. I can only stand enough 1995 Jack Hanna reruns, and a lot of the syndicated E/I stuff is low-budget.
I hardly know any families that watch PBS stations in early mornings either, when they have Sesame Street, Super Why, Clifford, etc. Kids are getting their Elmo fix from the family iPad.
Probably fewer pre-teens watching the PBS Kids Go block either in the afternoons (Arthur, Ruff Ruffman, etc) due to after-school activities and SPORTS!! Who can not forget kids playing sports and doing sports practice.
There are pee-wee football games, about 3 or 4 of them, every Saturday at my local community park. Always packed with cars. Those kids, if they were around 30-40 years ago, would have probably been watching cartoons on Saturday mornings instead of playing football. Sad to see the tradition go away on broadcast TV!

-crainbebo

 

[TheBigA]

How about Tennessee Tuxedo & His Tales? A show about a talking penguin voiced by Don Adams and his walrus friend.

 

[Charles35080]

My favorites growing up, in no particular order after my first listing:

* Bugs Bunny/Road Runner
* Underdog
* Bullwinkle
* Pink Panther
* Flintstones
* George of the Jungle
* Scooby Doo, Where Are You?

And of course, the morning was finished off by watching American Bandstand.

 

[Carmine5]

For Carmine5, what is the station you watch that airs those cartoons? Very curious to know. Thanks.

It's the station of which I'm GM.