I thought it best to talk about Ted Turner as it was down to him that Cartoon Network exists. His company acquired all of MGM's television and film library in 1986 and eventually launched Turner Network Television in 1988 which broadcast the acquired library of programs and films. In 1991 it bought Hanna-Barbera Productions and the huge library of cartoons. So in 1992 when Cartoon Network was established, it was used as to show the big collection of cartoons that were gained from buying the above companies.
This is a picture of the Cartoon Network Studios which is located in Burbank, California.
I've found out that Cartoon Network Developing Studio Europe is situated in Soho so it could be a good idea to go and visit them to see if I can collect any relevant information that will help towards my essay.
It felt right to have a look at one of the sister companies of Cartoon Network, Adult Swim which is an adult cable network which shares channel space with Cartoon Network.
I first came across Adult Swim when I was in America last summer and really enjoyed the animated shows that were shown as, like modern Cartoon Network cartoons, they were original and quirky which really appeals to me. It wasn't until researching for this essay that I learnt Adult Swim was a sister company of Cartoon Network. I've included 3 shows that I like from Adult Swim.
Aqua Teen Hunger Force
As you can see from the video the animation contains pretty surrealist humour. I like the clean style of the animation and the variance of each character.
Xavier: Renegade Angel
I actually came across this show when a friend told me about it. This is clearly a very original animation show and one that contains a lot of surreal and psychedelic imagery. The style of the animation is obviously 3-D and has computer game style graphics.
Robot Chicken
This show reminds me of a sketch from The Adam And Joe Show that used to be on Channel 4 of animated Star Wars figures. The results can be very funny and I like how they super impose mouths on to the faces. Robot Chicken is co-created by actor Seth Green and has been nominated for an emmy award.
The cartoons shown on Cartoon Network vary in animation style so I thought it would be interesting to look at the main animators responsible for creating the cartoons.
David Feiss
Created Cow And Chicken and I Am Weasel for Cartoon Network. Worked as an animator for The Jetsons (Post 1980) and co-animated The Ren And Stimpy Show on it's first series
Craig McCracken
Created The Powerpuff Girls as well as working in various roles for Dexter's Laboratory and What A Cartoon!
Genndy Tartakovsky
Created Dexter's Laboratory and was also the director on The Powerpuff Girls and Samurai Jack
I've been looking into the history of Carton Network to understand how the channel and studio was set up. I've included a brief timeline below to help me when I write about the history for my essay:
1986 - Ted Turner's TV company acquires most of MGM's TV and film library
1988 - Turner Network Television was set up
1991 - Hanna-Barbera Productions was bought by Turner Network Television
1992 - Cartoon Network was set up, broadcasting shows from Turner's library
1993 - The Moxy Show becomes Cartoon Network's first original show
1994 - Space Ghost Coast To Coast becomes the first series produced
1994 - Cartoon Network Studios is set up as a division to Hanna-Barbera Cartoons
1995 - What A Cartoon! show debuts
1996 - Dexter's Laboratory becomes the first spin off from What A Cartoon!
1997 - Johnny Bravo, Cow And Chicken and I Am Weasel debut
1998 - The Powerpuff Girls debuts
1999 - Courage The Cowardly Dog and Mike, Lu and Og debut
2004 - New Logo is debuted with new theme and slogan
2008 - Cartoonstitute is set up to showcase animation shorts
Cartoon Network continue to make interesting and original cartoons which is really good to see. I have seen several of the new cartoons and really enjoy them despite being older. I think that's what is really good about Cartoon Network's shows, they appeal to an older audience as well as children. The shows that i've been getting into recently are Adventure Time With Finn And Jake and The Regular Show. Also a cartoon called The Amazing World Of Gumball which mixes drawn animation, 3-D and live action - it looks brilliant.
These videos below show each cartoon mentioned:
Adventure Time 2010 - Present
This cartoon is very weird and psychadelic, you can really get lost in the animation. The bright colours and images used make the show really stand out and appeals to young children whereas the content and humour appeals to adults.
The Regular Show 2010 - Present
The Regular Show is a cartoon that I have recently got into a lot more and although clearly a children's cartoon, it pushes the boundaries at times with quite adult jokes and the odd swear word. Even in this clip, Tyler the Creator who is an american rapper known for swearing a lot and rapping about disturbing imagery, appears.
The Amazing World Of Gumball 2011 - Present
This is a really innovative and stand-out cartoon and I really enjoy watching it. Again there's a whole range of interesting and quirky characters. The fact that it mixes styles of animation really appeals to me and cements Cartoon Network as a leading channel for original and edgy cartoons.
Apart from the Hanna-Barbera animations, Cartoon Network have always shown original and quite edgy cartoon programs from when the channel was first established to present day. Among the first cartoons to be produced was Dexter's Laboratory. Looking back, it was pretty original, being about a boy who has a massive laboratory below his bedroom. Cow and Chicken was another cartoon that I used to really enjoy and was one that could be seen to be a bit less childish with the jokes being a bit more 'twisted' and weird.
For my essay I will look into the animation team responsible for creating these early cartoons and concentrate on the style that is similar between them.
Thanks to Cartoon Network I discovered a lot of the early animations of Hanna-Barbera. When Cartoon Network was first established it was built around showing re-runs of old Hanna-Barbera cartoons such as Top Cat and Scooby Doo (shown below). When it comes to writing my essay I will focus a lot on Hanna-Barbera and their influence on Cartoon Network.
William Hanna (right) 1910 - 2001 Joseph Barbera (left) 1911 - 2006
Original logo
Top Cat 1961-1962
I remember Top Cat used to be shown quite late on Cartoon Network, possibly the last cartoon before it handed over. I used to really enjoy it despite it being pretty old, not so much for the style of animation but the relationship between the characters, especially that of Top Cat and officer Dibble.
Scooby Doo 1969 - Present
Scooby Doo is one of my all time favourite cartoons and it was through Cartoon Network that i discovered it. At the time of watching them as a kid you don't realise how repetitive the episodes are with the same ending in each episode but it used to be fun guessing who the ghost/monster etc. would turn out to be. Something that really stands out to me about the original Scooby Doo cartoons is the 'grainy' style to the animation. Also the colours used weren't overly bright but more pastel shades.
The thing that stands out to me about Cartoon Network is the logo. It's very recognisable and unique and makes it more memorable. The fact that it's a logo for a children's TV channel but doesn't have any bright colours or 'wacky' lettering makes it so. There is a logo used for the Channel and one for the actual studio. As Cartoon Network has gone through quite a transition they have changed the logo over time. I've included an image of the original and current logo of both the studio and the channel.
Studio logos:
Original 2001 logo
2010 - present logo
There is a big difference between the two logos with the original one having a different, arty take on the normal channel logo. The current studio logo is much more graphic design orientated which makes it look more serious.
Channel logos:
Original 1992-2004 logo
Current logo
The main difference between these two is the use of colour in the second one and also the 3 dimensional effect. I still think I prefer the original just because it is more recognisable.
This is the ident that was shown when it got to 9pm and Cartoon Network stopped broadcasting. They would show this before 'handing over' to the next scheduled program which at this time was TNT. I have strong memories of this ident as it was basically a sign for my bed time! I like that it shows a bits and pieces from some of the shows on show and also how they've animated the 'r' and the 't' of Cartoon to be a hand and a pin.
For my essay I have decided to look into the formation and history of the Cartoon Network studio. I grew up watching shows shown on the Cartoon Network channel so I hold a strong interest and understanding of the cartoons. I will begin by exploring how the studio got set up and the early cartoons that were shown that lead up to the shows that are being shown now.
