View Full Version : The most underrated classic cartoon character ever
Timber Wolf
09-07-2005, 11:24 AM
What do you think is the most underrated classic cartoon character ever? I think it's Woody Woodpecker! :woody: They should have Woody cartoons on TV!
Bartman
09-07-2005, 01:13 PM
My vote goes for Columbia's FOX & CROW series - I should have been exposed to these 2 funny characters when I was young! It's a shame they have been kept under wraps for sooooo long....!:fox: :crow:
corey3rd
09-07-2005, 07:08 PM
Egghead:slow:
mbaker
09-07-2005, 07:21 PM
The Fox & The Crow
Woody Woodpecker
The Pink Panther
Scrooge McDuck
Mr. Magoo
Martin Juneau
09-07-2005, 07:28 PM
Buzz the Crow
Woody Woodpecker
Andy Panda
The Ant and the Aardvark
BloodyChamp
09-07-2005, 07:36 PM
I agree about Woody Woodpecker. His cartoons were genuinely funny and wild. He could be the power house that Bugs is to WB if just dusted off and stuck out there because he has much more to offer imo besides his theatrical cartoons, much like Bugs and Mickey had. It is insanely criminal that Woody Woodpecker is only seen in B level PS2 video gamwes :(
Philo & Gunge
09-07-2005, 08:01 PM
Let's see here:
All the Walter Lantz characters
All the DP-Freleng characters (yes, even :thinkpink)
All the Terrytoons
All the Screen Gems/UPA characters except :magoo: (who I find overrated, I mostly find him annoying, save "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol")
All Paramount characters but :sailor: and :betty:
Wow, only WB and Disney seem to be interested in the fact that they do have classic cartoon characters! :p
Simple, as others have stated already: Woody Woodpecker. It's a crime that the character that EVERYONE remembers the laugh of can't be seen on television. I guess he's underrated by Universal's marketing standards... :(
-Thad
Bugs Bunny
09-07-2005, 09:41 PM
Simple, as others have stated already: Woody Woodpecker. It's a crime that the character that EVERYONE remembers the laugh of can't be seen on television. I guess he's underrated by Universal's marketing standards... :(
-Thad
Why can't Universal air some Woody Woodpecker,Chilly Willy and Andy Panda on T.V other than The New Crappy Woody Woodpecker Show.Come on I hadn't had much exsposure to Woody other than the tapes I would :woody: rent.
A couple of underated characters
UNCLE SCROOGE
PINK PANTHER
INSPECTOR
MR. MAGOO
FOX & CROW
ANT AND THE AARDVARK
I'll go with Woody and the other Lantz characters too. They appeared in a slew a very good cartoons, and could be so easily revived today if Universal produced a well-thought-out daily or weekly show that featured the original Lantz Cartunes. Woody hasn't drifted into complete obscurity just yet, and it seems so bizarre that there are no television shows or off-the-shelf DVD releases.
jsrstereo
09-07-2005, 10:08 PM
A giant of the genre
frogboxer
09-07-2005, 11:45 PM
I know some may disagree, but I've always thought that Sylvester was very underrated. I've often been annoyed that he seemed to play second fiddle to characters like Tweety and Speedy. I think that Sylvester was a much more interesting, funny, and overall enjoyable character than just about any of his co-stars (who seem to get most of the attention).
Geezil
09-08-2005, 02:10 AM
Horace Horsecollar
A giant of the genre
Yea! Hats (or whatever) off, everybody, and sing it loud: "Hooray for Horace / Hooray at last / Hooray for Horace, he's a horse's a--!" ;)
:woody: But I'll throw my vote in with all the Woody-ites anyway. :woody:
SatStorm
09-08-2005, 05:13 AM
Woody Woodpecker (It is still possible to watch the Woody Woodpecker show on various local channels of Europe and Middle East. But not on the big European Markets)
Fox and Crow (virtually unknown in Europe)
Pink Panther (in USA, in Europe his popularity remains huge)
La Linea (Lagostina Man)
Ant and the Aarvark (only known through Pink Panther Show)
Bugsmer
09-08-2005, 07:43 AM
Rosebud has never been raved about by audiences or historians. It's amazing that someone would merchandize him. You never hear anyone talking about the beast from "Beauty and the Beast", and yet he was in at least two cartoons. Andy Panda's dad has faded into obscurity, and was never as popular as Elmer Fudd's wife in "Don't Axe Me".
Bandini
09-08-2005, 08:32 AM
I agree with the Walter Lantz characters. However, I'm glad they are underrated; if they were as popular as the WB characters I'm sure I wouldn't like them as much.
mbaker
09-08-2005, 10:28 AM
I agree with Horace Horsecaller being underrated, as well as Clarabell Cow. They were handled pretty well on 'House Of Mouse' for the most part. Especially since they didn't make much of a transission from 'black & white' to 'color' durring the early 40's.
Ray Pointer
09-08-2005, 12:59 PM
Woody Woodpecker was a major asset for Lantz and Universal, and he continued on the screen for four decades. His name value alone added to the film package. Woody was featured on television, first on ABC on Thursday afternoons in 1958, and then in syndication from 1959 to 1961 and returned in 1963 to 1965. Then back to network television on NBC Saturdays in the early 70s and back into syndication in the late 70s into the 90s.
Over the years, there was a great deal of Woody Woodpecker merchandising, children's books, comics, records, published music, home movie prints, and later video cassettes on a limited scale. Woody has had a presence on the Universal Studio Tour. In recent years there was even a attempt at making a "new" Woody series. With all of this exposure, it would be difficult to imagine that Woody was "underated." Perhaps it is how the executives at Universal currently value the property. They could be merchanding the character much like BETTY BOOP, but they aren't for some reason. Maybe they feel Woody is an old fashioned concept. But wouldn't you agree that Woody is more visually appealing than something like DORA THE EXPLORER?
Chow Hound
09-08-2005, 01:02 PM
Butwouldn't you agree that Woody is more visually appealing than something like DORA THE EXPLORER?
Definitely!
Larry T
09-08-2005, 02:57 PM
The real, most underrated cartoon character....
.....the one who embodies everything cartoon antics is, and ever shall be....
......the one whose laugh and unusual characteristics made him known in his time....
......the one who was urgently dropped from the cartoon release roster, never to be seen again....
Screwy Squirrel!!!
But I'll second the motion that Woody Woodpecker is second.... poor guy is used for marketing and Universal's theme branding, but can't even get his classic cartoons to be shown publicly in any measure.
Third goes to the Fox and the Crow..... again, great cartoons rarely even seen by anyone except animation buffs and rare film collectors.
guy incognito
09-08-2005, 05:20 PM
I agree with the Walter Lantz characters. However, I'm glad they are underrated; if they were as popular as the WB characters I'm sure I wouldn't like them as much.
No offense, but this mindset has never made a lick of sense to me. Why should your enjoyment of something be contingent on its popularity, or lack thereof? :confused:
frogboxer
09-08-2005, 06:08 PM
No offense, but this mindset has never made a lick of sense to me. Why should your enjoyment of something be contingent on its popularity, or lack thereof? :confused:
I whole-heartedly agree with you, g.i. Case in point: I feel like Chuck Jones is, unfortunately, hated by many cartoon fans simply because he gets so much credit and attention. While I agree that he may get more attention than he deserves, I still think he is the best director of animated shorts who ever lived.
Chow Hound
09-08-2005, 06:26 PM
I whole-heartedly agree with you, g.i. Case in point: I feel like Chuck Jones is, unfortunately, hated by many cartoon fans simply because he gets so much credit and attention. While I agree that he may get more attention than he deserves, I still think he is the best director of animated shorts who ever lived.
As do I. I may be wrong (and please feel free to correct me if I am), but I also suspect that this is what accounts for the popularity on many cartoon forums of the black and white cartoons over the later ones (late 40's, 50's, and early 60's).
Duck Dodgers
09-09-2005, 12:37 PM
my personal list:
1) Screwy Squirrel
2) Woody Woodpecker
3) Egghead
4) The Fox and the Crow
5) George and Junior
As do I. I may be wrong (and please feel free to correct me if I am), but I also suspect that this is what accounts for the popularity on many cartoon forums of the black and white cartoons over the later ones (late 40's, 50's, and early 60's).
I myself liked a number of black and white cartoons well before I got interested in cartoon history and animation message boards. I didn't like them more than the later cartoons - I liked some black and white cartoons more than some later cartoons, and and some later cartoons more than some black and white cartoons. Granted, I usually saw the WB cartoons in redrawn form, but still... I enjoyed "Porky Pig's Feat" more than, say, "Rocket Squad" or "My Little Duckaroo." I would agree that not liking something because it is overrated is a bad idea.
Getting back on topic, I'll also add that I think the Fox and Crow are underrated. It would have been nifty to have grown up with them.
mmtper
09-09-2005, 10:58 PM
By underrated classic I take it someone who's well known but has been taken for granted. I too agree with Mr frogboxer that Sylvester hasn't been given his full due (someone once called him "the Spencer Tracy of cartoons," it may have been me). But I'll certainly agree that Woody Woodpecker has not been fully appeciated, nor has Mr Magoo or Heckle & Jeckle.
Lee Glover
09-11-2005, 12:30 PM
My list:
Fox & Crow
Woody Woodpecker
Screwy Squirrel
Heckle & Jeckle
Pink Panther
Barb Herholzer
09-11-2005, 12:36 PM
I'll go with Woody and the other Lantz characters too. They appeared in a slew a very good cartoons, and could be so easily revived today if Universal produced a well-thought-out daily or weekly show that featured the original Lantz Cartunes. Woody hasn't drifted into complete obscurity just yet, and it seems so bizarre that there are no television shows or off-the-shelf DVD releases.
I agree with Jack. Woody needs to make a comeback, though he's never COMPLETELY gone away. I'm also a little surprised that there's not more support for Heckle and Jeckle, and for Terrytoons in general.
Nelson
09-11-2005, 02:58 PM
This is how my list goes.....Mutt And Jeff
Flip The Frog
Oswald The Lucky Rabbit
Krazy Kat
Andy Panda
The Three Bears
Gandy Goose And Sourpuss
Cool Cat
Duck Dodgers
09-11-2005, 03:58 PM
We forgot about Mighty Mouse and probably the most underrated classic cartoon character of them all: Buddy !
BloodyChamp
09-11-2005, 04:04 PM
Speaking of Woody...anybody who wants to make some $$$ should PM me. I'll then explain. :woody:
David Gates
09-11-2005, 05:15 PM
The Willie Whopper series might've been successful if Iwerk's studio wasn't in such bad health when he debuted in 1933.
travis t
09-11-2005, 10:29 PM
Anyone think Deput Dawg is underrated? I know I do
The real, most underrated cartoon character....
.....the one who embodies everything cartoon antics is, and ever shall be....
......the one whose laugh and unusual characteristics made him known in his time....
......the one who was urgently dropped from the cartoon release roster, never to be seen again....
Screwy Squirrel!!!
But I'll second the motion that Woody Woodpecker is second.... poor guy is used for marketing and Universal's theme branding, but can't even get his classic cartoons to be shown publicly in any measure.
Third goes to the Fox and the Crow..... again, great cartoons rarely even seen by anyone except animation buffs and rare film collectors.
Ah, you are a man after my own heart, regarding Screwy Squirrel.
Would you believe that I have never (much to my own chagrin) seen a Fox & Crow short?:eek: Columbia cartoons just never turned up on TV over here, excepting the UPA shorts.
I've always been quite partial to Henery Hawk, and he never seems to be on anyone's A-list...
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