I don't think an all-around culminating thread for Steven Spielberg-produced cartoon media have been made yet (even though several individual threads have been made before), so here we go. And for those who were wondering, yes, that famous director has even produced several animated movies and TV shows from An American Tail to Wakko's Wish and I'll describe them to you in chronological order.
This story starts in 1986, when Spielberg produced and released his very first animated film, An American Tail (directed by Don Bluth and released through Universal Studios), which centers around a fictional Jewish mouse named Fievel, who once lived in Russia, but is separated from his family while immigrating to the United States. This movie later spawned a television sequel, titled Fievel Goes West, which first aired in the mid 1990's.
Then, two years later, in 1988, Steven Spielberg collaborated with the Walt Disney studio to produce and release a live-action/animated hybrid film titled Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring one Bob Hoskins, who you may know for playing the video game plumber who's the subject of both this forum and the wiki this forum is part of in an infamous live-action movie adaption of the popular video game series he stars in; as well as Christopher Lloyd, which featured what is probably the largest cartoon crossover in history, as Disney-created characters, Looney Tunes characters and various other cartoon stars from the Golden Age of American Animation all appeared in this movie.
That same year, Spielberg, Bluth and Universal collaborated on another animated movie, The Land Before Time, which centers around five dinosaurs, who are all grieving from the loss of their respective families, all coming together to face the odds of survival as they travel through the ruins of their home world. Sadly, Ducky's voice actor, Judith Barsi, just 10 at the time, was murdered by her father just four months before this movie was released, consequently, Ducky was voiced by other voice actors in the sequels. This would also be the last Spielberg-produced cartoon movie that Don Bluth would direct.
Later, two additional years later, Steven Spielberg collaborated with ex-Hanna-Barbera employee Tom Ruegger and the Warner Bros. studio to produce an animated (and now well-remembered) television show, Tiny Toon Adventures, which ran from September 14, 1990 to May 28, 1995 (even though the series finale aired on December 6, 1992), with three seasons, exactly 100 episodes, a direct-to-video movie (How I Spent My Vacation, released on March 11, 1992 and available on DVD), two specials (Spring Break and Night Ghoulery) and a Christmas episode which was also this show's series finale. As of May 2013, the entire series is available on DVD.
Tiny Toon Adventures centers on a group of young cartoon characters (most of whom resemble younger versions of several of the Looney Tunes animal characters), also named the Tiny Toons, who attend a fictional school called Acme Looniversity in the fictional city of Acme Acres, as they attempt to become the next generation of Looney Tunes characters, who mostly serve as their mentors. Major members of that group include hosts Buster Bunny (a blue male rabbit) and Babs Bunny (a pink female rabbit), as well as Plucky Duck (a green male duck), Hamton J. Pig (a pink male pig), Fifi La Fume (a purple-and-white female skunk), Shirley the Loon (a white female loon), Dizzy Devil (a purple Tasmanian devil), Furrball (a blue cat), Sweetie Pie Bird (a pink canary), Calamity Coyote (a blueish-gray coyote), Little Beeper (a red-and-orange roadrunner) and Gogo Dodo (a zany green dodo), with the two major villains being human characters Elmyra Duff and Montana Max, both of whom are in this group as well.
Three years later, Spielberg, Ruegger and Warner Bros. collaborated on another well-remembered animated TV show, Animaniacs, which ran from September 13, 1993 to November 14, 1998, with five seasons, 99 episodes and a direct-to-video movie (Wakko's Wish, released on December 21, 1999, which was also Spielberg's final ever animated production). As of February 2013, the entire series is available on DVD.
Animaniacs centers on a group of various cartoon characters (who star in their own individual sub-episodes), most of whom live in Burbank, California. The main characters are the Warner siblings (Yakko, Wakko and Dot), three characters who were originally created in the 1930's, but were locked away inside the water tower on the Warner Bros. studio lot until they escaped in the 1990's, afterwards interacting with various Warner Bros. studio employees, including security guard Ralph, studio psychiatrist Dr. Otto Scratchansniff and his assistant Hello Nurse. Other main characters include Pinky and the Brain, two modified white male laboratory mice who continually attempt to take over the world, Slappy Squirrel (an old gray female squirrel) and her far younger nephew Skippy Squirrel (a brown male squirrel), as well as Rita (a gray female cat) and Runt (a brown male dog), Buttons (another brown male dog) and Mindy, Chicken Boo, the Hip Hippos (Flavio and Marita), Katie Ka-Boom, a trio of male pigeons known as the Goodfeathers and Minerva Mink (a white female mink).
Only two years later, Animaniacs characters Pinky and the Brain were spun off into their own self-titled show, which ran from September 1995 to April 10, 1999, with four seasons and 65 episodes. The final season also featured Tiny Toon Adventures character Elmyra Duff and as a result, the show was retitled Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain, but that move was so unsuccessful, only six episodes of that incarnation aired before it was incorporated into The Cat & Birdy Warneroonie PinkyBrainy Big Cartoonie Show for the rest of it's brief run. Also in 1995, Spielberg, Ruegger and Warner Bros. collaborated on yet another animated TV show, Freakazoid, which ran from September 9, 1995 to June 1, 1997, with two seasons. As of February 2014, the entirety of Pinky and the Brain, Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain and Freakazoid are all available on DVD.
Other animated productions by Steven Spielberg during the 1990's include We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story and Balto.
All in all, one Steven Spielberg has been responsible for producing several well-remembered animated television programs and films. Most of the titles mentioned are available on DVD, plus, reruns of both Animaniacs and Tiny Toon Adventures are now airing on The Hub, yes, the Hub that's home of a mega-popular animated adaption of a toy franchise. Plus, this is probably the longest post I've ever typed.
This story starts in 1986, when Spielberg produced and released his very first animated film, An American Tail (directed by Don Bluth and released through Universal Studios), which centers around a fictional Jewish mouse named Fievel, who once lived in Russia, but is separated from his family while immigrating to the United States. This movie later spawned a television sequel, titled Fievel Goes West, which first aired in the mid 1990's.
Then, two years later, in 1988, Steven Spielberg collaborated with the Walt Disney studio to produce and release a live-action/animated hybrid film titled Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring one Bob Hoskins, who you may know for playing the video game plumber who's the subject of both this forum and the wiki this forum is part of in an infamous live-action movie adaption of the popular video game series he stars in; as well as Christopher Lloyd, which featured what is probably the largest cartoon crossover in history, as Disney-created characters, Looney Tunes characters and various other cartoon stars from the Golden Age of American Animation all appeared in this movie.
That same year, Spielberg, Bluth and Universal collaborated on another animated movie, The Land Before Time, which centers around five dinosaurs, who are all grieving from the loss of their respective families, all coming together to face the odds of survival as they travel through the ruins of their home world. Sadly, Ducky's voice actor, Judith Barsi, just 10 at the time, was murdered by her father just four months before this movie was released, consequently, Ducky was voiced by other voice actors in the sequels. This would also be the last Spielberg-produced cartoon movie that Don Bluth would direct.
Later, two additional years later, Steven Spielberg collaborated with ex-Hanna-Barbera employee Tom Ruegger and the Warner Bros. studio to produce an animated (and now well-remembered) television show, Tiny Toon Adventures, which ran from September 14, 1990 to May 28, 1995 (even though the series finale aired on December 6, 1992), with three seasons, exactly 100 episodes, a direct-to-video movie (How I Spent My Vacation, released on March 11, 1992 and available on DVD), two specials (Spring Break and Night Ghoulery) and a Christmas episode which was also this show's series finale. As of May 2013, the entire series is available on DVD.
Tiny Toon Adventures centers on a group of young cartoon characters (most of whom resemble younger versions of several of the Looney Tunes animal characters), also named the Tiny Toons, who attend a fictional school called Acme Looniversity in the fictional city of Acme Acres, as they attempt to become the next generation of Looney Tunes characters, who mostly serve as their mentors. Major members of that group include hosts Buster Bunny (a blue male rabbit) and Babs Bunny (a pink female rabbit), as well as Plucky Duck (a green male duck), Hamton J. Pig (a pink male pig), Fifi La Fume (a purple-and-white female skunk), Shirley the Loon (a white female loon), Dizzy Devil (a purple Tasmanian devil), Furrball (a blue cat), Sweetie Pie Bird (a pink canary), Calamity Coyote (a blueish-gray coyote), Little Beeper (a red-and-orange roadrunner) and Gogo Dodo (a zany green dodo), with the two major villains being human characters Elmyra Duff and Montana Max, both of whom are in this group as well.
Three years later, Spielberg, Ruegger and Warner Bros. collaborated on another well-remembered animated TV show, Animaniacs, which ran from September 13, 1993 to November 14, 1998, with five seasons, 99 episodes and a direct-to-video movie (Wakko's Wish, released on December 21, 1999, which was also Spielberg's final ever animated production). As of February 2013, the entire series is available on DVD.
Animaniacs centers on a group of various cartoon characters (who star in their own individual sub-episodes), most of whom live in Burbank, California. The main characters are the Warner siblings (Yakko, Wakko and Dot), three characters who were originally created in the 1930's, but were locked away inside the water tower on the Warner Bros. studio lot until they escaped in the 1990's, afterwards interacting with various Warner Bros. studio employees, including security guard Ralph, studio psychiatrist Dr. Otto Scratchansniff and his assistant Hello Nurse. Other main characters include Pinky and the Brain, two modified white male laboratory mice who continually attempt to take over the world, Slappy Squirrel (an old gray female squirrel) and her far younger nephew Skippy Squirrel (a brown male squirrel), as well as Rita (a gray female cat) and Runt (a brown male dog), Buttons (another brown male dog) and Mindy, Chicken Boo, the Hip Hippos (Flavio and Marita), Katie Ka-Boom, a trio of male pigeons known as the Goodfeathers and Minerva Mink (a white female mink).
Only two years later, Animaniacs characters Pinky and the Brain were spun off into their own self-titled show, which ran from September 1995 to April 10, 1999, with four seasons and 65 episodes. The final season also featured Tiny Toon Adventures character Elmyra Duff and as a result, the show was retitled Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain, but that move was so unsuccessful, only six episodes of that incarnation aired before it was incorporated into The Cat & Birdy Warneroonie PinkyBrainy Big Cartoonie Show for the rest of it's brief run. Also in 1995, Spielberg, Ruegger and Warner Bros. collaborated on yet another animated TV show, Freakazoid, which ran from September 9, 1995 to June 1, 1997, with two seasons. As of February 2014, the entirety of Pinky and the Brain, Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain and Freakazoid are all available on DVD.
Other animated productions by Steven Spielberg during the 1990's include We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story and Balto.
All in all, one Steven Spielberg has been responsible for producing several well-remembered animated television programs and films. Most of the titles mentioned are available on DVD, plus, reruns of both Animaniacs and Tiny Toon Adventures are now airing on The Hub, yes, the Hub that's home of a mega-popular animated adaption of a toy franchise. Plus, this is probably the longest post I've ever typed.
