Any thoughts on.......

[Nelson]

Well we're about a little over a month and a week until Christmas Eve, and is there still any hope from what our good friend from CN, said, about the possible historical special of "Silent night, Silent Cartoon Night"?

This is a (in my very own opinion) "MAJOR" special that Cartoon Network SHOULD AIR...This program would get huge ratings among the die-hard cartoon fans, such as myself.Enough of those crappy, annoying, Christmas specials that CN shoves down our throats non stop, at least 60 trillion times during a three period.

It would be an excellent Christmas present if CN will showcase these silent cartoons on the night of Dec, 25 2001 at either 12am or 1am.

Do you guys want to see such a special like this ????
I know I certainly do..

Readin this Mr Gak? Please put a smile on all of our faces :D

[Pietro]

I really have high hopes for this special.
I hope this is what is shown:
"Humorous Phases of Funny Faces" (?)
"Gertie the Dinosaur" (Winsor McCay)
A Krazy Kat cartoon
"Comicalamites" (Felix)
A full, existing Dinky Doodle cartoon
"Trolley Troubles" (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit)

-Pietro:D

[Gossamer]

Originally posted by Pietro
I really have high hopes for this special.
I hope this is what is shown:
"Humorous Phases of Funny Faces" (?)
"Gertie the Dinosaur" (Winsor McCay)
A Krazy Kat cartoon
"Comicalamites" (Felix)
A full, existing Dinky Doodle cartoon
"Trolley Troubles" (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit)

-Pietro:D

BTW, over at eBay, there is an auction ending in 2-3 days for a tape of silents that includes Humorous Phases... and Gertie, among others. My budget, sadly, does not lend itself at present to placing a bid, else I would. Someone here might be inclined though. Dearch VHS for Animation Shorts.

[Nelson]

GAK, I TRULY HOPE YOU READ THIS...

A special like this could make the Cartoon Network the "TRUE" leaders in animation PERIOD....

This the kind of showcase that cartoon fans would want to see, and after just hearing about the history of silent cartoons, this would be a great way to present these classic masterpieces on true animation art, and how it all got started.Several years ago CN would run commericals for "ASFA" about saving and preserving theatrical cartoons for future generations to see, from the silents to the sound era.

If you are reading this, then you certainly love all types of cartoons.And as of this writing, cartoons are dying...Especially silent cartoons, and there is about 50% of silent cartoons that survive in some form whether it's 35mm, 16mm, and 8mm.Today, silent animation has taken a back seat to the "Talkies" and straight through today's animation market.It seems that no one would want to sit and watch a 6 minute silent cartoon.I truly love silent cartoons, and they are a big part of my life.The very first cartoon I ever saw was a silent "Aesop's Fables" cartoon from 1924, and I became a die-hard fan of the magical art ever since.

I mean, who wouldn't wan't to watch such famous silent cartoon stars like:FELIX THE CAT, MUTT AND JEFF, KOKO THE CLOWN, OSWALD THE LUKY RABBIT, AESOP'S FABLES, KRAZY KAT, DINKY DOODLES, COL. HEEZA LIAR, BOBBY BUMPS, THE INKWELL IMPS, UNNATURAL HISTORY, HAPPY HOOLIGIAN and the great cartoon work of the WINSOR McKAY cartroons?

I hope that Cartoon Network will give the cartoon fan a wonderful Christmas present, and that's to present this silent cartoon showcase on Christmas Eve.

Mr. GAK, we are all hoping you go through with this historical special, and I'll gurantee you this , that your network will get huge and amazing ratings.Even "BIGGER" than the overplayed Christmas specials that we see over a dozen times in a three week period on CN.:D

Don't dispoint the cartoon fans, Mr GAK...There are a lot of fans that want to see this showcase of famous silent cartoons.

Thank You !

[Joe Tully]

I think that we are all behind this idea. It would be really great if they packaged together some of the best silents so that there would be a great demand for more. I would really love to see many of my favorite silent cartoon stars on my own TV, even if it was just for one special, though hopefully it would turn into a series.

I just hope that CN approves this show for GAK. I think that if they were going to work on this show it would need to be approved soon, depending on how much info would be added if any.

[Cartman]

Yeah, I'd love to see that silent cartoon special, especially the Disney-produced Oswald cartoons. All I have are GREAT GUNS and THE MECHANICAL COW. I still need to add the rest of those shorts to my collection. I saw GERTIE THE DINOSAUR on a "Walt Disney Presents: the Story of the Animated Drawing." It was originally released in a vaudeville house. Also on that episode they showed a clip of the "Humorous Faces" chalk drawings (produced c. 1906).

CN should also air the Laugh-O-Grams and the Alice Comedies on their Silent cartoon night. Heck, they can show 48 hours of Silent cartoons on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

[Nelson]

That's what I call great support on this topic, Mr. Gak needs to see this, since he said that there was a possible plan to present a silent cartoon special on Christmas Eve.I certainly hope that someway Mr. Gak will read this and hopefully tell us if this special is a go.

[Geezil]

Originally posted by Cartman
CN should also air the Laugh-O-Grams and the Alice Comedies on their Silent cartoon night.

Just a reminder ... here, we cross into an area that would be better served by hammering away at the (sorry, folks) Disney Channel with diplomatic e-mails and irradiated snail mail. If memory serves, the Alice Comedies at least have surfaced there on recent occasions.

And, as many of us have realized since day one, the Magic Kingdom never (knowingly) lets go of anything. Witness the timeliness of Unca Walt's original pact with ABC, which saved him the indignity of seeing even one single Mickey/Donald/Goofy short introduced by Deputy Dan at 3:30 p.m. on Channel 84 ...

But anyway, why not ask CN instead to focus its own energies on preparing an obtainable package starring Felix, Koko, and Gertie? Such a request would at least spare them a few headaches while others are (rightly) clamoring for justice to be done with the Animaniacs package and such.

Just one more slightly O/T rant, if I may: Would any amount of energy be sufficient to get Viacom/CBS/whomever's paralyzed corporate hands away from the entire Terrytoons library, B&W sound and silent shorts included, long enough for some dedicated cell (no pun intended) of true animation lovers to get it onto home video in generous doses?

Believe it or don't, that's it (whew).

[GAK]

Hi Folks,

I've read everyone's post on this topic and thanks for your input. It really is appreciated.

I'm working like a madman to finish all 13 new ToonHeads episodes.
The "silent cartoon" idea is not dead, but it won't happen this holiday season, maybe next Christmas.
Sorry, but putting a special like this together is a lot harder than you might think.
Please feel free to post your suggestions, because eventually I would like to write and produce a "Silent Cartoon" special.

GAK