Samantha J Hill - Research Portfolio

Friday 20 January 2012

Annotated reference list/ Bibliography

For a lot of my primary research, I watched several Looney Tunes cartoons as well as behind the scenes features on the 'Looney Tunes: Golden Collection volumes 1-6'. These DVD's were an invaluable source of research information as all the information was straight from the mouths of those who worked closely on the production of the films including the great Friz Freleng. There was also a lot of information from those who were closely related to the production team - including Mel Blanc (voice artists) son and Bob Clampett's daughter. Not only did they provide an insight into the production values but were also able to give their opinions on the animated content as fans of the show. I was able to learn about the back story behind certain characters like Porky Pig as well as the ideas behind the narrative. It was fascinating to watch and an incredible research source.

Many of my on line sources came from Wikipedia. Although Wikipedia has a huge breadth of interesting knowledge, it isn't the most reliable of sources. As Wikipedia is user generated (information is uploaded by the users), not all the information can be treated as fact. However I used the website to source information (on the history of Warner Bros as well as the early Bosko Looney Tunes cartoons) as a starting off point for further research. In doing this, I was able to get a huge amount of background information whilst checking my sources compared to other Internet sources making it a very helpful source.

One of the best sources of information I used was http://toonopedia.com/warner.htm. This website has an extensive piece of research on all things animated created by Donald D. Markstien. Markstien is a Disney comic creator and is someone with a real passion for animation. He has been collecting research for more than half a century which makes him a very reliable source of information. The source wasn't only reliable but also very useful. It told me everything I needed to know about the Looney Tunes past. From the creation of new characters to their comparison with rival Disney, this source was very helpful in filling in the blanks from sources such as Wikipedia.

Another great source was http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17874931, an on line article written by award winning journalist JJ Sutherland. Looking at his past experience (covering events such as the conflict in Iraq), it makes him a good source of information despite it being quite opinionated. Sometimes it is better to have some opinionated sources rather than all straight facts. It helped me understand just how popular Looney Tunes was with its viewers and how adored the characters were with various generations of fans.

The most unreliable of my Internet sources were websites including http://artbyblas.com/writing/abriefhistoryofwarnerbroscartoons.html and http://www.imagesjournal.com/issue09/reviews/bosko/text.htm. Although these featured useful and interesting information on Warner's history and Early characters, it is basically a fan written blog therefore making it quite an unreliable source. Although it may be the most unreliable, it was one of the most useful sources I used throughout my research; http://artbyblas.com/writing/abriefhistoryofwarnerbroscartoons.html in particular had the most in-depth knowledge into the history of Warner Bros development. http://www.imagesjournal.com/issue09/reviews/bosko/text.htm was also the best source of information on that rare Looney Tune Bosko. Without these 2 sources, my research would not have been the same and I would not have been as knowledgeable as I now am.

Although not all my sources are 100% reliable, they were all useful. Fan made websites and personal blogs gave me a more personal insight into Warner Bros fan whereas the fact based websites provided me with hard facts to evidence my research points. YouTube was an invaluable source for on line content - allowing me to provide visual evidence to the points I raised.

Thursday 19 January 2012

Source List

List of my sources:

Pinky and the Brain

'Pinky and the Brain' was the cartoon spin-off to 'Animaniacs' and ran from 1995-1998. "Pinky and the Brain were a duo of lab rats, one goofy (Pinky), one bent on taking over the world (Brain). The Brain's best-laid plans always went astray, but he kept trying with Wile E. Coyote-like persistence" [http://www.tv.com/shows/animaniacs/].

Like Animaniacs, 'Pinky and the Brain' also parodied popular culture including a mock of Disney's 'Winnit the Pooh' in 'Brainy the Pooh'. They could also be placed in any time ear; whether it be modern times )appearing in an episode of 'The Real World', the wild west fighting for hippy freedom or in the French renascence meeting (and impersonating) Napoleon.

Much like the Roadrunner Looney Tunes cartoons, 'Pinky and the Brain' followed 2 lab mice (living in ACME labs) who were determined to take over the world every episode despite failing in every attempt thus far. Every episode, the Brain would think of another hair-brained scheme to try and take possession of the Earth - my favourite being building another Earth out of Papier-Mache and luring everyone from the real planet Earth to it using free t-shirts in "It's only a paper world".

"It's only a paper world" - screen shot

Sources:
http://www.tv.com/shows/animaniacs/

Animaniacs

'Animaniacs' is the collaborative effort of both Warner Bros Animation and Steven Spielberg and was the company's 2nd animated series since the release of the Looney Tunes franchise. The series followed the exploits of the Warner siblings Yakko, Wakko and Dot who are deemed 'too zany' for studio use. As a result, the 3 were looked in the studios water tower until they escaped in the early 1990's only to run wild around the lot, being pursued by the studio CEO and several security guards. The show was "even nuttier than its predecessor 'Tiny Toon Adventures'" [http://www.tv.com/shows/animaniacs/], as they themselves say in the opening theme, "We're Animaniacs, And we're zany to the max"

Animaniacs Title Sequence

The show often featured random short skits from other regular characters in a sort of animated anthology (Animated series featuring a collection of short subjects. Often uses recycled material that was originally intended for an adult, movie-going audience and can result in controversy and censorship) - the best example of this was the shows later spin-off 'Pinky and the Brain' [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AnimatedAnthology].

Another thing the show did very well was insert the characters into popular Saturday morning cartoons throughout the 60's-80's; parodies of shows such as 'Yogi bear' and 'Scooby-Doo' [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AnimatedAnthology] (See Art Shift [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ArtShift]). They also parodied key scenes from their rivals Disney including the opening scene of 'The Lion King'.

Sources:
http://www.answers.com/topic/animaniacs
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105941/
http://www.tv.com/shows/animaniacs/
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AnimatedAnthology
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ArtShift

Other Warner Bros Animations

Although Looney Tunes is by far the most well-known and popular of the Warner Bros animations, they have created several others. There first being 'Tiny Toon Adventures' (1990-1995) - a series produced by Amblin Entertainment. Amblin Entertainment is a film and television company founded by Steven Spielberg. Warner Bros worked closely with Amblin in the production of all its television animation series'. All the animation made post-Looney Tunes all continued with the theme of slapstick humour - including 'Animaniacs', it's spin-off 'PInky and the Brain' and 'Freakazoid!'.

Some more of Warner Bros. Animations Success's

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warner_Bros._Animation#Television_shows
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warner_Bros._Animation#1989_-_1997:_Moving_into_television_animation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amblin_Entertainment

Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner

Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner were created as a parody of traditional "cat and mouse" cartoons (such as Tom and Jerry) which were increasingly popular at the time [http://www.cartoonspot.net/looney-tunes/wile-coyote.php]. The concept follows a coyote as he goes through plan after plan trying to catch a roadrunner to eat. The cartoons are full of slapstick humour and is a great example of how animation can use repetition to increase comic effect; "all of his elaborate schemes end up injuring himself in humorous instances of highly exaggerated cartoon slapstick violence"[http://www.cartoonspot.net/looney-tunes/wile-coyote.php]. The coyotes ludicrous plans and his love of ACME products despite their constant failures create silliness which is popular with audiences both them and now. We love to see the coyote's failing attempts to catch his foe - even though its predicable, we cant seem to get enough. The 1949 cartoon 'Fast and Furry-ous' is an excellent example of this.

Sources:
http://www.cartoonspot.net/looney-tunes/wile-coyote.php
http://www.i-foo.com/~eocostello/wbcc/eowbcc-w.html#wile_e_coyote

Bugs Bunny

One of the most recognisable and iconic characters in film is the character of Bugs Bunny - Warner Bros next big star. Bugs first appeared in the 1940 cartoon 'A Wild Hare'. In this cartoon, the 'trickster' [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17874931] bugs fools his foe Elmer Fudd as he tries to hunt him. This is a recurring theme in many of the Bugs Bunny cartoons; where Bugs constantly outsmarts his opponents by tricking them into believing the opposite to the way they genuinely feel. In 'A Wild Hare', Bugs installs guilt into Elmer Fudd by playing dead, therefore making Elmer regret all his hunting tendencies.

Bugs still remains today one of the biggest stars in animation. His huge success and staying power is mainly down to the fact that he "is nice, but a bit of a bully, appealing and scary, high culture and low; he morphs from one to the other seamlessly." [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17874931]. He is able to embody the personality of anything and anyone and can get into the heads of his rivals. In the "Hunter's Trilogy": Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning,
and Duck! Rabbit! Duck! (1951–1953), Daffy's eagerness to become top tune makes it easy for Bugs to manipulate and outsmart him. "He defies authority. He goes against the rules. But he does it in a way that's often lovable, and that often results in good things for the culture at large." - Robert Thompson [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17874931].

Bugs also has a great survival instinct. "You're smarter than the person who's tormenting you even though he's got more power than you. He's got the big rifle, but you are living by your wits and your own creativity. What did Bugs do? He switches genders, he sasses authority. Bugs does everything that we would tell our kids not to do." - John Leland, Hip: The History, Harper Perennial, 2005

Although Bugs is cynical, wisecracking, and often violent [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/25806/animation/215384/Termite-Terrace?anchor=ref722159], he is still a favourite with audiences."His Brooklyn-Bronx accent, voiced by actor Mel Blanc, combined with his quick wit, brash resourcefulness, and boisterous independence, gave him the street credentials that have delighted three generations of devoted audiences." [http://looneytunes.warnerbros.co.uk/stars_of_the_show/bugs_bunny/bugs_story.html#].

Sources:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17874931
http://looneytunes.warnerbros.co.uk/stars_of_the_show/bugs_bunny/bugs_story.html#
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/25806/animation/215384/Termite-Terrace?anchor=ref722159