Noveltoons

Noveltoons was an anthology series of animated cartoons produced by Paramount Pictures' Famous Studios from 1943 to the end of the studio during 1967.[1] The series was known for bringing to life characters from Harvey Comics, such as Casper the Friendly Ghost, Wendy the Good Little Witch, Herman and Katnip, Little Audrey, and Baby Huey. All shorts from Baby Huey and Little Audrey are included. It was the successor to the series Color Classics produced by Fleischer Studios. Several Noveltoons feature characters which originated in Color Classics. This series was also similar to the two series from Warner Bros., Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, in that it features several recurring characters with one general title.

Noveltoons
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
November 26, 1943 – June 1, 1967
Running time
6–10 minutes (one reel)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish (usually)

In 1956, Paramount sold all of the pre-October 1950 Noveltoons (ending with Saved by the Bell) to television distributor U.M. & M. TV Corporation. Shortly afterward UM&M's assets were acquired by National Telefilm Associates. In the 1980s NTA changed its name to Republic Pictures, and after a brief period of ownership by Spelling Entertainment in 1994, was acquired by Paramount's parent company Viacom, which placed the cartoons back in Paramount's control (Republic Pictures has been renamed Melange Pictures since 2013).

Later in 1962, Paramount sold the Post-Oct 1950 to pre-March 1962 Noveltoons (beginning with Mice Meeting You and ending with T.V. or No T.V.) to Harvey Comics, which was in turn purchased by Classic Media in 2001. Classic Media was purchased by DreamWorks Animation in 2012 (and briefly renamed it DreamWorks Classics), who in 2016 was purchased by Comcast's NBCUniversal and currently distributed by Universal Pictures.

Paramount Pictures continues to own the post-March 1962 Noveltoons.

List of Noveltoons

In total, 170 animated shorts in the series were produced.

Home media

On January 23, 2012, Thunderbean Animation released a restored collection of public domain Noveltoons on DVD entitled Noveltoons Original Classics with the following cartoons:

  1. Cilly Goose
  2. Suddenly It's Spring
  3. Yankee Doodle Donkey
  4. Scrappily Married
  5. A Lamb in a Jam
  6. Cheese Burglar
  7. Sudden Fried Chicken
  8. The Stupidstitious Cat
  9. The Enchanted Square
  10. Much Ado About Mutton
  11. The Wee Men
  12. Naughty But Mice
  13. Flip Flap
  14. The Bored Cuckoo
  15. Leprechauns Gold
  16. Quack-a-Doodle Doo
  17. Teacher's Pest
  18. Ups an' Downs Derby
  19. Pleased to Eat You
  20. Saved by the Bell.


On October 1, 2019, Thunderbean Animation released a restored collection of public domain Noveltoons on Blu-ray entitled Noveltoons Original Classics. It included the following cartoons:

  1. Cilly Goose
  2. Suddenly It's Spring
  3. Yankee Doodle Donkey
  4. Scrappily Married
  5. A Lamb in a Jam
  6. Cheese Burglar
  7. Old MacDonald Had A Farm
  8. The Stupidstitious Cat
  9. The Enchanted Square
  10. Much Ado About Mutton
  11. Quack-a-Doodle Doo
  12. The Wee Men
  13. Naughty But Mice
  14. Flip Flap
  15. The Bored Cuckoo
  16. The Old Shell Game
  17. Teacher's Pest
  18. Ups an' Downs Derby
  19. Pleased to Eat You
  20. Saved by the Bell.

See also

Notes
  1. First Noveltoon cartoon, and first appearances of Blackie the Lamb and Wolfie Wolf. Only cartoon directed by Dan Gordon.
  2. First appearances of Herman, Henry, and Bertha. First cartoon directed by Seymour Kneitel, and this is the first Noveltoon cartoon with the directorial credit. First cartoon featuring Harvey characters.
  3. First Noveltoon series short where the solo character speaks.
  4. First sequel to the 1941 Max Fleischer Color Classic cartoon, Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy (1941).
  5. Featuring Spunky, an alumus from the Color Classics series produced by Fleischer Studios. First cartoon directed by Izzy Sparber.
  6. Based on three books by Margot Austin.
  7. First appearance of Dog Face. First cartoon directed by Dave Tendlar.
  8. First appearance of Casper the Friendly Ghost, and also his first short in the Noveltoons series, and the only short based on the 1939 book of the same name.
  9. Clips of the episode were featured on the 2013 Brooklyn Puppet Conspiracy reboot of The Fuzz
  10. Featuring Snuffy Smith from the comic strip Barney Google and Snuffy Smith; served as the bridge between the 1934-1936 Charles Mintz/Screen Gems Barney Google cartoon series and the 1963 Snuffy Smith cartoons produced specifically for the animated television series King Features Trilogy. Previously considered a lost cartoon, and currently only exists in black and white format with French subtitles. This is the only cartoon produced in Cinecolor.
  11. This cartoon appeared in Smart House. First cartoon directed by Bill Tytla.
  12. First appearance of Buzzy the Crow
  13. Second and final sequel to the 1941 Max Fleischer Color Classic cartoon, Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy (1941).
  14. First cartoon without animation credits.
  15. Last appearance of Blackie the Lamb in the Noveltoon series, before he moved to the first Screen Songs color cartoon, The Circus Comes to Clown.
  16. First appearance of Little Audrey and also her first short in the Noveltoon series.
  17. This cartoon was narrated by Ken Roberts. This is the only cartoon produced in Polacolor.
  18. Second appearance of Casper in the Noveltoon series.
  19. First of three animated shorts based on the then-popular children's fantasy adventure radio series of the same name.
  20. Last appearance of Casper in the Noveltoons series, before the character was given his own series.
  21. A dog is at his wits' end when his mistress adopts a stray kitten, but a nightmare about Dog Heaven and Dog Hell makes Dogface change his ways. DVD 100 Cartoon Classics, Treeline Films, 2004.
  22. Sequel to The Wee Men (1947).
  23. Short is a semi-remake/reused plot of the 1934 Max Fleischer Color Classic cartoon, The Song of the Birds (1934); featuring Little Audrey.
  24. First appearance of Baby Huey.
  25. Second of three animated shorts based on the then-popular children's fantasy adventure radio series, Land of the Lost.
  26. Last Noveltoon in the UM&M Package.
  27. First Noveltoon in the Harveytoon package.
  28. First appearances of Timothy the Turkey and the farmer. Final cartoon directed by Bill Tytla.
  29. Third and final animated short based on the then-popular children's fantasy adventure radio series, Land of the Lost.
  30. Final appearance of Herman the Mouse in the Noveltoon series, before he and Katnip moved on to their own series.
  31. First appearances of Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare.
  32. Final appearance of Katnip in the Noveltoon series.
  33. Banned from being aired on television, due to its exploitations and exhibitings of smoking habits, and only appearance of Katsy in the Noveltoon series.
  34. The 100th Noveltoon cartoon.
  35. Final appearances of Tommy Tortoise and Moe Hare. The only cartoon directed by Al Eugster.
  36. Only short featuring a day in the limelight character, Possum Pearl, from the Olive-Oyl-themed Popeye the Sailor short, Hill-billing and Cooing (1956), in the Noveltoon series.
  37. First cartoon with music sections from Famous Studios cartoons by Winston Sharples, and first cartoon with additional direction by Izzy Sparber (uncredited).
  38. Final cartoon directed by Dave Tendlar.
  39. Featuring Spunky, from the Hunky and Spunky cartoon sub-series of Max Fleischer's Color Classics.
  40. Final cartoon directed by Izzy Sparber. Final cartoon released in Izzy Sparber's lifetime. Only cartoon with additional direction by Seymour Kneitel (uncredited).
  41. Last appearance of Little Audrey.
  42. Second and final cartoon with additional direction by Izzy Sparber (uncredited) due to his death the previous year.
  43. Last appearance of Baby Huey.
  44. Prototype of the two shorts, Kozmo Goes to School (1961) and its direct sequel Space Kid (1965).
  45. Featuring Scat the Cat, a sequel to this short was produced and was entitled The Planet Mouseola (1960).
  46. Featuring Mortimer Tortoise and the hare.
  47. Featuring Scat the Cat, a sequel to Counter Attack (1960).
  48. Featuring Sir Reginald Tweedledum IV.
  49. Featuring Harry Hound.
  50. One of the only two post-1948 cartoons featuring the belated return of Little Audrey after the end of her own cartoon series, the other being the 1962 Comic Kings cartoon Frog's Legs.
  51. First appearance of Goodie the Gremlin.
  52. Last appearances of Mortimer Tortoise and the hare.
  53. Featuring Kozmo the Space Kid, a short sequel followed just five years later under the title Space Kid (1965).
  54. Featuring Ralph and Percy, a sequel short followed this cartoon and was called T.V. or No T.V. (1962).
  55. Second appearance of Goodie the Gremlin.
  56. Final Harveytoon short in the Noveltoon series. Featuring Ralph and Percy, a sequel to Without Time or Reason (1962).
  57. Third appearance of Goodie the Gremlin, Santa Claus' second Noveltoon appearance following from Santa's Surprise (1947).
  58. Self Defense ... for Cowards (1963) was a co-production with Rembrandt Films. Final cartoon directed by Gene Deitch. Also final cartoon without animation credits. Only cartoon to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
  59. The second and final of the two Screen Songs homages in the Noveltoons series.
  60. Last appearance of Goodie the Gremlin.
  61. Final cartoon released in Seymour Kneitel's lifetime.
  62. Featuring Laddy and the Genie, a sequel later followed titled A Tiger's Tail (1964).
  63. Featuring Laddy and the Genie, a sequel to Laddy and His Lamp (1964).
  64. First cartoon directed by Howard Post.
  65. Featuring King Artie.
  66. Featuring Jacky, a sequel short followed entitled A Leak in the Dike (1965). First of two cartoons directed by Jack Mendelsohn.
  67. Featuring Jacky, a sequel to The Story of George Washington (1965). Second and final of two cartoons directed by Jack Mendelsohn.
  68. Final cartoon directed by Howard Post.
  69. Featuring Kozmo the Space Kid, a sequel to Kozmo Goes to School (1961). Final cartoon directed by Seymour Kneitel due to his death in 1964. Final cartoon featuring Harvey characters.
  70. First cartoon directed by Shamus Culhane.
  71. An animated short caper in the same vein as the stylized UPA limited animation cartoons of the 1950s and '60s, and final cartoon without dialogue.
  72. Featuring Sir Blur, the very last Noveltoon ever produced after the studio closed down. Final cartoon directed by Shamus Culhane.

References
  1. Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. pp. 113–114. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
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