We've already mentioned the Tyson frozen "Looney Tunes Meals" from the early 90's in an earlier post. Now, we have uncovered some real pieces of Looney Tunes merchandising history: Some of the "prizes" that were given away in the boxes of these things!
The Looney Tunes Meals usually included trading cards, a trivia game, a sheet of character stickers, an activity booklet, or, in this case, a collectible comic book. I'm sure nobody ever collected them all, but these little comic stories supposedly fit together in a sequence. The overall plot involved Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck competing in a scavenger hunt, with each "episode" involving a different Looney Tunes character or characters. In this case, it's Bugs Bunny meeting up with Speedy Gonzales to take a photo of some Aztec ruins, but running into hot-tempered prospector Yosemite Sam. It's pretty lame, with its heavy-handed "PSA" style teachings on water safety, but it's surprisingly well drawn, especially the work on Sam. I have cut-and-pasted the panels into two full pages (the original booklet is about the size of an index card.) Enjoy, and stay tuned for images of the trading cards, stickers and other prizes, plus a similar story starring Daffy Duck and the Roadrunner.
The Great Scavenger Hunt, Part 1
The Great Scavenger Hunt, Part 2
Friday, March 27, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Turner Classic Movies - Chuck Jones Tribute
Just a reminder - be sure to tune into Turner Classic Movies tomorrow night (Tuesday, March 24) as they will be presenting an all-night salute to Chuck Jones. The tribute includes the premiere of the all-new half-hour documentary, Chuck Jones : Memories of Childhood by filmmakers Peggy Stern and John Canemaker. This will be followed by a festival of some of Jones' most famous cartoon shorts and a showing of the MGM animated feature, The Phantom Tollbooth (1970). TCM has set up a very detailed section over on their website. I have also started a discussion thread over on the GAC Forums.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Invasion of the Looney Tunes figures!
If you've read this blog long enough, you've seen the logos at the top with PVC toys of the Warner characters. But you probably have no idea just how many I HAVE. Thanks to Jon, I have added several more to my already ridiculous collection...and now have too many to count! It was time to dust them all off and clean the top of my fridge where I keep them anyway, so I lined them all up and took a picture.
You're probably wondering how I managed to amass so many of these little things. Well, it's amazing what can accumulate when you collect something for over 20 years. Some were gifts, some came from the now-defunct Warner Bros. stores, and many were souvenirs from my many travels over the years. (Not everyone can say they have a Daffy Duck figure from Paris or a Speedy Gonzales from Germany!) It all started with about 5 of them that came as a Christmas present when I was about 4 years old (I'm 25 now), and I was somehow addicted from then on. If it was at a flea market, at an antique mall, at a garage sale, on a box of candy, or at a theme park gift shop, you can bet I bought it.
They have HELP for drug addicts, alcoholics, and the mentally insane...but I'm afraid this is an addiction I have to live with!
Click the image to see 'em all!
You're probably wondering how I managed to amass so many of these little things. Well, it's amazing what can accumulate when you collect something for over 20 years. Some were gifts, some came from the now-defunct Warner Bros. stores, and many were souvenirs from my many travels over the years. (Not everyone can say they have a Daffy Duck figure from Paris or a Speedy Gonzales from Germany!) It all started with about 5 of them that came as a Christmas present when I was about 4 years old (I'm 25 now), and I was somehow addicted from then on. If it was at a flea market, at an antique mall, at a garage sale, on a box of candy, or at a theme park gift shop, you can bet I bought it.
They have HELP for drug addicts, alcoholics, and the mentally insane...but I'm afraid this is an addiction I have to live with!
Click the image to see 'em all!
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Hilariously Hideous Christmas Ornaments from 1978
A big thanks to our pal David Gerstein for sending along this flea market find... a set of horrible, yet amusing Looney Tunes Christmas ornaments from 1978. Made by "Liberty Bell Christmas", the ornaments include barely recognizable versions of Bugs, Elmer, Merlin the Magic Mouse, Petunia Pig, and Speedy Gonzales.
We also can't forget this pink-haired Honey Bunny (yikes!):
Thanks, David!
We also can't forget this pink-haired Honey Bunny (yikes!):
Thanks, David!
Friday, March 13, 2009
The Amazing Shelf o' Looney Tunes Crap!
It may be hard to believe, but I have amassed quite a bit Looney Tunes junk over the years (I know, shocking isn't it??). I recently finished setting up what I have appropriately dubbed "The Looney Tunes Shelf" in my new house. Let's take a closer look!
Not everything made the cut, though. Due to limited space, I had to thin things out a bit. I had more LT junk than I knew what to with!
Well, this box chock full of dusty Looney trinkets will soon be on its way to Matthew... so this stuff can clutter his place! Maybe he'll post about what exactly is inside the "Box Full o' Fun" here on Misce-Looney-ous someday?? Stay tuned!
PS... Matthew I apologize in advance for the disturbing amount of Tasmanian Devil and Space Jam figures I stuffed in there...
Not everything made the cut, though. Due to limited space, I had to thin things out a bit. I had more LT junk than I knew what to with!
Well, this box chock full of dusty Looney trinkets will soon be on its way to Matthew... so this stuff can clutter his place! Maybe he'll post about what exactly is inside the "Box Full o' Fun" here on Misce-Looney-ous someday?? Stay tuned!
PS... Matthew I apologize in advance for the disturbing amount of Tasmanian Devil and Space Jam figures I stuffed in there...
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Make Your Home Looney
Want to liven up your house a little? Have more money than you know what to do with?Well, now you can purchase the remains of a closed Australian Warner Bros. Studio Store! Among the items available from the seller include a huge Bugs Bunny Show-esque storefront mural, one of those Yosemite Sam taxis or even a Wile E. Coyote statue the size of your house.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Commentary on "Little Go Beep"
Our pal Brandon Pierce has created a video commentary on the 2000 Looney Tunes short "Little Go Beep" created by Earl Kress. I found it on Youtube and thought it was well worth a posting here. Also included is an audio clip from "Stu's Show" from Shokus Internet Radio, in which Earl Kress discusses a little of the short's history with Stu Shostack and Jerry Beck. essential viewing!
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Warner Bros. Sing-Along: Oh, the HORROR!
Back in the late 90's, Warner Bros. created a direct-to-video Looney Tunes special entitled "Looney Tunes Warner Bros. Sing-Along". The idea was an obvious attempt to cash in on the success of Disney's sing-along videos for kids, which compiled musical moments from classic Disney movies.
It seems innocent enough, in theory. Until you try to WATCH the thing. I'd never been brave enough to even try, let alone buy the video. Someone put it on Youtube recently, and I'm sorry I ever clicked on it! Basically, it's a "cheater" cartoon using "Show Biz Bugs" as the loose framework. What makes it so bad is the random redubbing of the voices. Billy West and Joe Alaskey are talented enough, but when they're used to redub classic footage of Mel Blanc, but not consistently (some of Blanc's original vocals remain and the difference is jarring)it's just grating. Then there's the chorus of kids who "sing along" to such original tunes as "Call Me Wacky Daffy Duck", which completely ruins any hope of enjoying what could have been the only enjoyable part of this "special".
Watch if you dare...there's a reason they only made one of these!
It seems innocent enough, in theory. Until you try to WATCH the thing. I'd never been brave enough to even try, let alone buy the video. Someone put it on Youtube recently, and I'm sorry I ever clicked on it! Basically, it's a "cheater" cartoon using "Show Biz Bugs" as the loose framework. What makes it so bad is the random redubbing of the voices. Billy West and Joe Alaskey are talented enough, but when they're used to redub classic footage of Mel Blanc, but not consistently (some of Blanc's original vocals remain and the difference is jarring)it's just grating. Then there's the chorus of kids who "sing along" to such original tunes as "Call Me Wacky Daffy Duck", which completely ruins any hope of enjoying what could have been the only enjoyable part of this "special".
Watch if you dare...there's a reason they only made one of these!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
A new commentary, and some other fun stuff
Jon seems to keep track of what you, the readers of Misce-Looney-Ous, want better than I do. He has gotten several requests for more of my commentaries, and one specifically asked for a Sylvester cartoon. I figured "what the heck",and I'll give the people what they want!
Here's a 1955 Sylvester cartoon entitled "Lighthouse Mouse", directed by Robert McKimson. This is probably my favorite Sylvester/Hippety Hopper cartoon, and it has some great gags and hilarious animation. So, as requested, here's me talking over a Sylvester cartoon!
But that's not all. Here are a couple of new music videos I created...one is a sort of takeoff on one that I posted earlier...the Sylvester Disneyland towel dance. Except this time, it's the same concept and looped animation set to the old internet classic, the "Hamster Dance".
WHAT? Is that STILL not enough for you people? Fine. Try "Always Where I Need To Be", a hit song by British rock band The Kooks, a song so dance-able it just had to be given the Looney Tunes treatment.
Here's a 1955 Sylvester cartoon entitled "Lighthouse Mouse", directed by Robert McKimson. This is probably my favorite Sylvester/Hippety Hopper cartoon, and it has some great gags and hilarious animation. So, as requested, here's me talking over a Sylvester cartoon!
But that's not all. Here are a couple of new music videos I created...one is a sort of takeoff on one that I posted earlier...the Sylvester Disneyland towel dance. Except this time, it's the same concept and looped animation set to the old internet classic, the "Hamster Dance".
WHAT? Is that STILL not enough for you people? Fine. Try "Always Where I Need To Be", a hit song by British rock band The Kooks, a song so dance-able it just had to be given the Looney Tunes treatment.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Looney Tunes kids' play area in Woodfield Mall, Schaumberg, IL
I came accross this interesting item while surfing the net. A company called Taubman Centers, Inc partnered with Warner Bros. before this past Christmas season to create a children's play area in the Woodfield Mall, Schaumberg, IL. It looks pretty cool...kids can play on and around statues of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Pepe Le Pew, Sylvester, Yosemite Sam, and more favorite characters. If I ever become an eccentric billionaire, I want one of these in my house!
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