Gerald McBoing-Boing: Best Cartoon Ever or just totally classic?

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I hadn't seen Gerald McBoing-Boing for ages, but stumbled on three of them last night tucked away in the recesses of the special features on the Hellboy DVD. (Guillermo Del Toro is apparently a big fan.) They're so great. The 3 included the first one (written by Dr. Seuss!) and my favorite, where Gerald goes to the planet Moo. Maybe the best of the UPA stable? All that great jazzy modernist style, so cool.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 19:56 (twenty years ago)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v335/gypsyfrocksbedlam/gerald1.jpg

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 19:57 (twenty years ago)

(the Hellboy DVD also includes UPA's rendition of "The Tell-Tale Heart," narrated by James Mason. Totally creepy and great. Better than Hellboy itself, even though I liked the movie OK.)

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 19:58 (twenty years ago)

The guy who writes for the Power Puff Girls comic book DJ's under the name Gerald McBoing Boing...

― PappaWheelie (PappaWheelie), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 20:05 (twenty years ago)

― Arafura Sea, Tuesday, 2 August 2005 20:06 (twenty years ago)

Oh joy, thread spam.

But yeah it makes sense that a PPG guy would be into McBoing-Boing.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 20:32 (twenty years ago)

classic entirely for giving one of my favorite musicians a day job; film/sound editor by day, concrète composer by night Tod Dockstader

thanks for the tip about the Hellboy DVD, I will rent that tonight entirely for these cartoons (have only seen one of these, and not the planet Moo one)

― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 23:28 (twenty years ago)

Yeah, I found them totally by accident, they're on page 2 of the special features. It looks like this is maybe their first appearance on DVD. Someone should collect all that great UPA stuff.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Tuesday, 2 August 2005 23:40 (twenty years ago)

classic entirely for giving one of my favorite musicians a day job; film/sound editor by day, concrète composer by night Tod Dockstader

Oh that's why I know the name Gerald McBoing-Boing! It must be mentioned in some of the Dockstader liner notes. I've never seen the show but just from that still posted above it looks amazing.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Wednesday, 3 August 2005 00:01 (twenty years ago)

yeah i love that economy-of-the-squiggly-line cartoon style.

― ghetty green (eman), Wednesday, 3 August 2005 00:05 (twenty years ago)

one year passes...

i posted this on jbr's illustration thread, but seemed like it belongs here too: an online mcboing boing treasure trove.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Friday, 6 October 2006 14:58 (nineteen years ago)

i once read in a history of animation that this series was as innovative and influential on animators as felix the cat or mickey mouse.

― Squirrel_Police (Squirrel_Police), Friday, 6 October 2006 19:44 (nineteen years ago)

Speaking of Felix the Cat, the theme song explicitly promised: "you'll laugh so hard your sides will ache, your heart will go pit-a-pat, watching Felix the wonderful cat." This was a crock, as I never, ever found Felix to be funny. Not once did I laugh out loud, let alone hard enough to disturb my sides or enliven my heart. I felt (and still feel) robbed!

― Aimless (Aimless), Friday, 6 October 2006 19:52 (nineteen years ago)

Well, "pit-a-pat" sounds within the realm of normal heart function, so they were probably OTM with that.

― nickn (nickn), Friday, 6 October 2006 21:02 (nineteen years ago)

that theme is for the '60s cartoon felix tho, the original felix predates mickey mouse (indeed MM is something of a ripoff: same design, different ears!) and was prob much funnier.

that said the felix theme is amazing, as are all theme songs of cartoons about cats. it's not as good as the heathcliff theme tho.

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Saturday, 7 October 2006 11:27 (nineteen years ago)

Oh god, the Heathcliff theme.

― Euai Kapaui (tracerhand), Saturday, 7 October 2006 11:32 (nineteen years ago)

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