Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by

William Hanna William Denby Hanna (July 14, 1910 – March 22, 2001) was an American animator and cartoonist who was the creator of ''Tom and Jerry'' as well as the voice actor for the two title characters. Alongside Joseph Barbera, he also founded the ani ...

and

Joseph Barbera Joseph Roland Barbera ( ; ; March 24, 1911 – December 18, 2006) was an American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist who co-founded the animation studio and production company Hanna-Barbera. Born to Italian im ...

following the decision of

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

to close its in-house cartoon studio. Headquartered in Cahuenga Blvd. until 1998 and then Sherman Oaks, both in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, until going defunct, it created many television shows, theatrical films, televised movies and specials, including '' Huckleberry Hound'', '' Quick Draw McGraw'', '' The Flintstones'', '' Yogi Bear'', '' The Jetsons'', '' Jonny Quest'', ''

Wacky Races Eccentricity (also called quirkiness) is an unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive. Eccentricity is contrasted with norm ...

'', '' Scooby-Doo'' and ''

The Smurfs ''The Smurfs'' (french: Les Schtroumpfs; nl, De Smurfen) is a Belgian comic franchise centered on a fictional colony of small, blue, humanoid creatures who live in mushroom-shaped houses in the forest. ''The Smurfs'' was first created and in ...

''. Its productions have won a record-breaking 8

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

. Its fortunes declined by the 1980s as the profitability of Saturday-morning cartoons was eclipsed by weekday afternoon syndication.

Taft Broadcasting The Taft Broadcasting Company (also known as Taft Television and Radio Company, Incorporated) was an American media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company was rooted in the Taft family, family of William Howard Taft, the 27th Presid ...

acquired Hanna-Barbera in 1966 and retained ownership until 1991 when

Turner Broadcasting System Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (alternatively known as Turner Entertainment Networks from 2019 until 2022) was an American television and media conglomerate. Founded by Ted Turner and based in Atlanta, Georgia, it merged with Time Warner (lat ...

took over and used its back catalog as programming for its then-newly-created

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

which launched the following year. Turner later merged in 1996 with Time Warner, which rebranded as

WarnerMedia Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

in 2018 and is now part of

Warner Bros. Discovery Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at 230 Park Avenue South in New York City. It was formed after the spin-off of WarnerMedia by AT&T, and its merger with D ...

since April 8, 2022. After Hanna died on March 22, 2001, Hanna-Barbera as a standalone company was dissolved and merged into Warner Bros. Animation and later Cartoon Network Studios. Although defunct, Warner Bros. continues to produce new programming and material based on the studio's classic properties and using with their logo occasionally in select projects.

History

''Tom and Jerry'' and birth of a studio (1937–1957)

William Denby Hanna (Bill), native of

Melrose, New Mexico Melrose is a village in Curry County, New Mexico, Curry County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 651 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The town is losing population due to Rural flight, rural exodus. Melrose is served by M ...

and Joseph Roland Barbera (Joe), born of Italian heritage in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, first met at the

(MGM) studio in 1937, while working at its animation division. Having worked at other studios since the early 1930s, they solidified an "eight-decade" partnership. ''

Puss Gets the Boot ''Puss Gets the Boot'' is a 1940 American animated short film and is the first short in what would become the ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon series, though neither were yet referred to by these names. It was directed by William Hanna, Joseph Barbera, ...

'', released in 1940, served as the first entry in the theatrical film series ''

Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series c ...

''. Hanna supervised the animation, while Barbera did the stories and pre-production. Seven of the cartoons won 7 Oscars for Best Short Subject (Cartoons) between 1943 and 1953, and five additional shorts were nominated for 12 awards during this period. However, they were awarded to producer Fred Quimby, who was not involved in the development of the shorts. Sequences were done for '' Anchors Aweigh'', ''

Dangerous When Wet ''Dangerous When Wet'' is a 1953 American live-action/animated musical comedy film starring Esther Williams, Fernando Lamas and Jack Carson, directed by Charles Walters and featuring an animated swimming sequence starring Williams with the cat-a ...

'' and '' Invitation to the Dance'', one-shot shorts ''

Gallopin' Gals ''Gallopin' Gals'' is a 1940 American one-reel Technicolor animated film directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera and produced by Fred Quimby. It belonged to the screwball comedy genre. It was released by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer in October 26 ...

'', ''The Goose Goes South'', ''

Officer Pooch ''Officer Pooch'' is a 1941 animated short film produced by Fred Quimby, directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The cartoon is mostly done in pantomime. Plot A canine officer (modeled after the Keys ...

'', ''

War Dogs Dogs in warfare have a very long history starting in ancient times. From being trained in combat, to their use as scouts, sentries, messengers, mercy dogs, and trackers, their uses have been varied and some continue to exist in modern military ...

'' and ''

Good Will to Men ''Peace on Earth'' is a one-reel 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer animation, cartoon short subject, short directed by Hugh Harman, about a post-apocalyptic world populated only by animals, as it is claimed in the short that human beings have gone extinc ...

'' made and supervised ''The Bear and the Bean''. With Quimby's retirement in May 1955, Hanna and Barbera became the producers in charge of the MGM animation studio's output. In addition to continuing to write and direct new ''Tom & Jerry'' shorts, now in

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

, Hanna and Barbera supervised the last seven shorts of

Tex Avery Frederick Bean "Tex" Avery (February 26, 1908 – August 26, 1980) was an American animator, cartoonist, animation director, director, and voice actor. He was known for directing and producing animated cartoons during the golden age of American a ...

's '' Droopy'' series and produced and directed the short-lived ''

Spike and Tyke ''Spike and Tyke'' is a short-lived theatrical animated short subject series, based upon the American bulldog father-and-son team from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoons. The characters first appeared in the ''Tom and Jerry'' seri ...

'', which ran for two entries. In addition to their work on the cartoons, the two men moonlighted on outside projects, including the original title sequences and commercials for ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...

''. MGM decided in mid-1957 to close its cartoon studio, as it felt it had acquired a reasonable backlog of shorts for re-release. While contemplating their future, Hanna and Barbera began producing additional animated television commercials. During their last year at MGM, they had developed a concept for a new animated TV program about a dog and cat duo in various misadventures. After they failed to convince the studio to back their venture, live-action director George Sidney, who had worked with Hanna and Barbera on several of his theatrical features for MGM, offered to serve as their business partner and convinced

Screen Gems Screen Gems is an American brand name used by Sony Pictures' Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, a subsidiary of Japanese multinational conglomerate, Sony Group Corporation. It has served several different purposes for its parent ...

to make a deal with the producers. A coin toss gave Hanna precedence in naming the new studio.

Harry Cohn Harry Cohn (July 23, 1891 – February 27, 1958) was a co-founder, president, and production director of Columbia Pictures Corporation. Life and career Cohn was born to a working-class Jewish family in New York City. His father, Joseph Cohn, wa ...

, president and head of Columbia Pictures, took an 18% ownership in their new company, H-B Enterprises, and provided working capital. Screen Gems became the new distributor and its licensing agent, handling merchandizing of the characters from the animated programs as the cartoon firm officially opened for business in rented offices on the lot of Kling Studios (formerly Charlie Chaplin Studios) on July 7, 1957, one year after the MGM animation studio closed. Sidney and several Screen Gems alumni became members of the studio's board of directors and much of the former MGM animation staff—including animators Carlo Vinci,

Kenneth Muse Kenneth Muse (July 26, 1910 – July 26, 1987) was an American animator best known for his work on the ''Tom and Jerry'' series at MGM. Biography Muse worked briefly at Walt Disney Productions, where he was Preston Blair's assistant on '' Fa ...

Lewis Marshall Lewis Marshall (born 29 August 1988) is a New Zealand rugby union player who currently plays for in the Mitre 10 Cup. His preferred position is fullback, though he is a versatile backline player. Although from Wainuiomata, Marshall attended ...

, Michael Lah and

Ed Barge Edward John Barge (August 29, 1910 – September 29, 1991) was an American animator. Barge was born to Alfred Edward and Margaret G. Barge in San Jose, California. In 1916, the family moved to Bakersfield, where his father was employed by t ...

and layout artists Ed Benedict and

Richard Bickenbach Richard Frederick Bickenbach (August 9, 1907 – June 28, 1994) was an American animator who worked for Warner Bros. Cartoons and as a layout artist and character designer for MGM and Hanna-Barbera Productions. He worked on animation for many ...

—became the new production staff. Hoyt Curtin was in charge of providing the music while voice performers, such as Penny Singleton,

Paul Winchell Paul Winchell (''né'' Wilchinsky; December 21, 1922 – June 24, 2005) was an American actor, comedian, humanitarian, inventor and ventriloquist whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s. From 1950 to 1954, he hosted ''The Paul Winchell S ...

Janet Waldo Janet Waldo (born Jeanette Marie Waldo; February 4, 1919 – June 12, 2016) was an American radio and voice actress. In animation, she voiced Judy Jetson in various Hanna-Barbera media, Nancy in ''Shazzan'', Penelope Pitstop, Princess from ''Batt ...

, Alan Reed, Henry Corden,

Jean Vander Pyl Jean Thurston Vander Pyl (October 11, 1919 – April 10, 1999) was an American voice actress. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best known as the voice of Wilma Flintstone for the Hanna-Barbera cartoon ''The Flintstones''. In a ...

Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...

, Arnold Stang,

Marvin Kaplan Marvin Wilbur Kaplan (January 24, 1927 – August 25, 2016) was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter. Best known as Henry Beesmeyer in '' Alice'' (1978–1985). Early years Kaplan was born on January 24, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York, t ...

Allen Melvin Allan John Melvin (February 18, 1923 – January 17, 2008) was an American actor and impressionist, who was cast in hundreds of television episodes from the 1950s to the early 1990s, often appearing in recurring roles on various series. Some of th ...

Bea Benaderet Beatrice Benaderet ( ; April 4, 1906 – October 13, 1968) was an American actress and comedienne. Born in New York City and raised in San Francisco, she began performing in Bay Area theatre and radio before embarking on a Hollywood career that ...

, June Foray,

Gerry Johnson Gerry Johnson (April 4, 1918 - January 24, 1990) was an American actress and television host, best known as the voice of Betty Rubble during seasons five and six of the animated television series ''The Flintstones''. Early life Geraldine Adela ...

Lucille Bliss Lucille Theresa Bliss (March 31, 1916 – November 8, 2012) was an American actress, known in the Bay Area and in Hollywood as the "Girl With a Thousand Voices". A New York City native, Bliss lent her voice to numerous television characters, in ...

, Casey Kasem, Gary Owens, Scatman Crothers,

George O' Hanlon George O'Hanlon (November 23, 1912 – February 11, 1989) was an American actor and writer. He was best known for his role as Joe McDoakes in the Warner Bros.' live-action '' Joe McDoakes'' short subjects from 1942 to 1956 and as the voice of Geor ...

, Daws Butler,

Don Messick Donald Earle Messick (September 7, 1926 – October 24, 1997) was an American voice actor. He was best known for his performances in Hanna-Barbera cartoons. His best-remembered vocal creations include Scooby-Doo, Bamm-Bamm Rubble and Hoppy in ...

Julie Bennett Julie Bennett (January 24, 1932 – March 31, 2020) was an American actress and later talent agent and realtor. Early years Bennett was born in Manhattan, New York, on January 24, 1932. Acting career A native of Hollywood, Bennett worked as a ...

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...

, Howard Morris, John Stephenson, Hal Smith, Tim Matheson, Doug Young and

Danny Goldman Daniel Goldman (October 30, 1939 – April 12, 2020) was an American actor and casting director. He was most widely recognized as the voice of Brainy Smurf in Hanna-Barbera's ''The Smurfs'' (1981–1989). Early life Goldman graduated from Far R ...

came on board.

Success with animated sitcoms (1957–1969)

'' The Ruff and Reddy Show'', its very first televised cartoon, premiered on NBC on December 14, 1957. '' The Huckleberry Hound Show'', which came on September 29, 1958, and aired in most markets just before prime time, was the first animated series to win an

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

. Beginning to expand rapidly following its initial success, several animation industry alumni – in particular former

Warner Bros. Cartoons Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc. was an American animation studio, serving as the in-house animation division of Warner Bros. during the Golden Age of American animation. One of the most successful animation studios in American media history, it was ...

storymen

Michael Maltese Michael Maltese (February 6, 1908 – February 22, 1981) was an American story man for classic animated cartoon shorts. He is best known for working in the 1950s on a series of ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoons with director Chuck Jones, notably "Wha ...

and

Warren Foster Warren Foster (October 24, 1904 – December 13, 1971) was an American writer, cartoonist and composer for the animation division of Warner Brothers and later with Hanna-Barbera. Early life He was born in Brooklyn, New York to Marion B. Fos ...

, became new head writers and joined the staff at this time, along with Joe Ruby and Ken Spears as film editors and

Iwao Takamoto Iwao Takamoto (April 29, 1925 – January 8, 2007) was a Japanese-American animator, television producer, and film director. He began his career as a production and character designer for Walt Disney Animation Studios films such as ''Cinderella ...

as character designer. H-B Enterprises was reincorporated as Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. by 1959, and slowly became a leader in TV animation production from then on. ''

The Quick Draw McGraw Show ''The Quick Draw McGraw Show'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and their third television series overall after ''The Ruff and Reddy Show'' and ''The Huckleberry Hound Show''. Voice actor Daws But ...

'' and '' Loopy De Loop'', its only theatrical short film series, followed that same year. In August 1960, the company moved into a window-less, cinder block building at 3501 Cahuenga Boulevard West, though the building was too small to house the growing staff and some of its employees worked from home. '' The Flintstones'' premiered in prime time on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

in 1960, loosely based on ''

The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fol ...

'' and set in a fictionalized Stone Age of cavemen and dinosaurs.

Jackie Gleason John Herbert Gleason (February 26, 1916June 24, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, writer, composer, and conductor known affectionately as "The Great One." Developing a style and characters from growing up in Brooklyn, New York, he was know ...

considered suing Hanna-Barbera for

copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, s ...

, but decided not to because he did not want to be known as "the man who yanked Fred Flintstone off the air". The series ran for six seasons, becoming the longest-running animated show in American prime time at the time (until ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...

'' beat it in 1997), a ratings and merchandising success and the top-ranking animated program in syndication history. It initially received mixed reviews from critics, but its reputation eventually improved and it is now considered a classic. '' The Yogi Bear Show'', '' Top Cat'', ''

Wally Gator Wally may refer to: Music * Wally (band), British prog rock band ** ''Wally'' (album), a 1974 album by Wally * ''La Wally'', an opera by Alfredo Catalani Other uses *Wally (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *WALLY, a propose ...

'', ''

Touché Turtle and Dum Dum ''Touché Turtle and Dum Dum'' is a television cartoon series that aired as one of the segments from the anthology show '' The New Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Series'', produced by Hanna-Barbera. The show also included segments starring ''Wally Gator'' ...

'', '' Lippy the Lion & Hardy Har Har'' and '' The Jetsons'' soon followed in 1961 and 1962. Several animated TV commercials were produced as well, often starring their own characters (probably the best known is a series of

Pebbles cereal Pebbles is a brand of breakfast cereal introduced in the United States by Post Consumer Brands on October 20, 1971 featuring characters from the animated series ''The Flintstones'' as spokestoons. The product line includes Cocoa Pebbles and Fruit ...

commercials for Post featuring

Barney Barney may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barney (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Barney (surname), a list of people Film and television * the title character of ''Barney & Friends'', an American live actio ...

tricking Fred into giving him his Pebbles cereal) and H-B also produced the opening credits for ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

'', in which animated caricatures of Samantha and Darrin appeared. These characterizations were reused in the sixth season ''Flintstones'' episode "Samantha". HannaBarbera

In 1963, Hanna-Barbera's operations moved to 3400 Cahuenga Boulevard West in

Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills are a residential neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Geography The Hollywood Hills straddle the Cahuenga Pass within the Santa Monica Mountains. The neighborhood touches Studio City, Univer ...

/ Studio City. This contemporary office building was designed by architect Arthur Froehlich. Its ultra-modern design included a sculpted latticework exterior, moat, fountains, and a ''Jetsons''-like tower. In 1964 and 1965, ''

The Magilla Gorilla Show ''The Magilla Gorilla Show'' is an American animated television series starring Magilla Gorilla. The series was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for Screen Gems, and was originally sponsored in syndication by Ideal Toys from 1964 through 19 ...

'', ''

The Peter Potamus Show Peter Potamus is a purple animated hippopotamus that first appeared in the 1964–1966 animated television series ''The Peter Potamus Show'', produced by Hanna-Barbera and first broadcast on September 16, 1964. ''The Peter Potamus Show'' was di ...

'', '' Jonny Quest'', '' Atom Ant, Secret Squirrel'' and '' Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt'' came on air. Screen Gems and Hanna-Barbera's partnership lasted until 1965 when Hanna and Barbera announced the sale of their studio to

.Rogers, Lawrence H. (2000).
History of U. S. Television: A Personal Reminiscence
'. Bloomington. IN. USA: AuthorHouse. pg. 444-447 Taft's acquisition of Hanna-Barbera was delayed for a year by a lawsuit from Joan Perry, John Cohn, and Harrison Cohn – the wife and sons of former Columbia Pictures president Harry Cohn, who felt that the studio undervalued the Cohns' 18% share in the company when it was sold a few years previously.Shostak, Stu (November 3, 2011).
Interview with Jerry Eisenberg, Scott Shaw!, and Earl Kress
. ''Stu's Show''. Retrieved March 18, 2013.

Jerry Eisenberg Jerry Eisenberg (born December 14, 1937) is an American television producer, animator, storyboard artist, and character designer, primarily known for his work at Hanna-Barbera Productions and Ruby-Spears Productions.Shostak, Stu (03-11-2011).wit ...

Scott Shaw! Scott Joseph Shaw (born September 4, 1951), often spelled Scott Shaw! and Scott Shaw? in ''Rick and Steve'', is an American cartoonist, animator, and historian of comics. Among Shaw's comic-book work is Hanna-Barbera's ''The Flintstones'' (for M ...

, and

Earl Kress Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

were all former employees of Hanna-Barbera over the years, and relate the history of the studio to host Stu Shostak In 1966, ''

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American Double act, comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–19 ...

'', ''

Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles ''Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera, Hanna-Barbera Productions. It premiered on September 10, 1966 on CBS, and ran for two seasons on Saturday mornings. Overview The progra ...

'' and '' Space Ghost'' first aired and by December 1966, the litigation had been settled and the studio was finally acquired by Taft for $12 million. Taft folded the studio into its corporate structure in 1967 and 1968, becoming its distributor. Hanna and Barbera stayed on with the studio while Screen Gems retained licensing and distribution rights to the previous Hanna-Barbera-produced cartoons, along with trademarks to the characters into the 1970s and 1980s. A number of new comedy and action cartoons followed in 1967, among them are ''

The Space Kidettes ''The Space Kidettes'' is an American Saturday morning animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, originally airing on NBC during the 1966–67 season. In the show, junior rangers Snoopy, Jenny, Countdown and Scooter patrol ...

'', ''

The Abbott and Costello Cartoon Show ''The Abbott and Costello Cartoon Show'' is an American half-hour animated series of the famous comedy duo that aired in syndication from September 9, 1967 to June 1, 1968. Each of the 39 individual episodes consisted of four five-minute cartoon ...

'', '' Birdman and the Galaxy Trio'', ''

The Herculoids ''The Herculoids'' is an American Saturday-morning animated-cartoon television series, created and designed by Alex Toth, that was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show debuted on September 9, 1967, on CBS. Hanna-Barbera produced one sea ...

'', ''

Shazzan ''Shazzan'' is an American animated television series created by Alex Toth and produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that aired on Saturday mornings on CBS from September 9, 1967 to January 20, 1968, and continued in reruns until September 6, 1969 ...

'', ''

Fantastic Four The Fantastic Four is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team debuted in ''The Fantastic Four'' #1 ( cover dated Nov. 1961), helping usher in a new level of realism in the medium. It was the first ...

'', ''

Moby Dick and Mighty Mightor ''Moby Dick and Mighty Mightor'' is an American Saturday morning animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that ran on CBS from September 9, 1967 to January 6, 1968, airing in reruns until September 6, 1969. Despite Moby's n ...

'' and ''

Samson & Goliath ''Samson & Goliath'', also known as ''Young Samson'', is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for NBC, where it debuted on September 9, 1967.McNeil, Alex (1996). ''Total Television'' (4th ed.), pg. 721. New ...

''. ''

The Banana Splits Adventure Hour ''The Banana Splits'' is an American television variety show produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featuring the Banana Splits, a fictional rock band composed of four costumed animal characters in red marching band hats with yellow plumes. ...

'', ''

The Adventures of Gulliver ''The Adventures of Gulliver'' is a 1968 television cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show is loosely based on the 1726 satirical novel ''Gulliver's Travels'' by Jonathan Swift. The show aired Saturday mornings on ABC-TV and las ...

'', and ''

The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ''The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' is an American live-action and animated fantasy television series that originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1968, through February 23, 1969. Produced by Hanna-Barbera and based on the classic Mark ...

'' arose in 1968, while the successful ''

'' and its spinoffs ''

The Perils of Penelope Pitstop ''The Perils of Penelope Pitstop'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that premiered on CBS on September 13, 1969. The show ran for one season with a total of 17 half-hour episodes, the last first-run e ...

'' and '' Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines'' aired on CBS, followed by ''

Cattanooga Cats ''Cattanooga Cats'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired on ABC from September 6, 1969, to September 4, 1971. The show was a package program similar to the Hanna-Barbera/NBC show ''The Banana Splits'', ...

'' for ABC. The studio had a record label, Hanna-Barbera Records, headed by Danny Hutton and distributed by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. Previously, children's records featuring Hanna-Barbera characters were released by

Colpix Records Colpix Records was the first recording company for Columbia Pictures–Screen Gems. Colpix got its name from combining Columbia (Col) and Pictures (Pix). CBS, which owned Columbia Records, then sued Columbia Pictures for trademark infringement ov ...

Mysteries, spinoffs, and more (1969–1979)

Ruby and Spears created '' Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!'' for CBS Saturday mornings in 1969, a mystery-based program which blended comedy, action, and elements from ''

I Love a Mystery ''I Love a Mystery'' is an American radio drama series that aired 1939–44, about three friends who ran a detective agency and traveled the world in search of adventure. Written by Carlton E. Morse, the program was the polar opposite of Morse's ...

'' and '' The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis''.Shostak, Stu (February 5, 2012).
Interview with Joe Ruby and Ken Spears
. ''Stu's Show.'' Retrieved March 18, 2013. Running for two seasons, it centered on four teenagers and a dog solving supernatural mysteries, and became one of Hanna-Barbera's most successful creations and has spawned several new spin-offs, such as ''

The New Scooby-Doo Movies ''The New Scooby-Doo Movies'' is an American animated mystery comedy television series produced by Hanna-Barbera for CBS. It is the second animated television series in the studio's ''Scooby-Doo'' franchise, and follows the first incarnation, ''Sc ...

'', '' The Scooby-Doo Show'', '' Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo'' and many others, which were regularly in production at Hanna-Barbera into the 1990s. Referred to as "The

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

of animation", Hanna-Barbera eventually went even further by producing nearly two-thirds of all Saturday-morning cartoons in a single year. Several Hanna-Barbera series from the 1970s, such as ''

Josie and the Pussycats Josie and the Pussycats (sometimes simply known as The Pussycats) are a fictional girl group rock band created by Dan DeCarlo. Appearances They have been featured in a number of different media since the 1960s: * ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (comic ...

'', '' The Funky Phantom'', ''

The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan ''The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''The Amazing Chan Clan'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, animated by Eric Porter Studios in Australia and broadcast on CBS from S ...

'', ''

Speed Buggy ''Speed Buggy'' is an American animated television series, produced by Hanna-Barbera, which originally aired for one season on CBS from September 8, 1973, to December 22, 1973. With the voices of Mel Blanc, Michael Bell, Arlene Golonka, and Ph ...

'', ''

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids'' is a 30-minute Saturday morning animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 8, 1973, to December 1, 1973. The series title is a play on the name of the unrela ...

'', '' Goober and the Ghost Chasers'', ''

Inch High, Private Eye ''Inch High, Private Eye'' is a short-lived American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 8, to December 1, 1973. The character was modeled after Maxwell Smart, the main character o ...

'', ''

Clue Club ''Clue Club'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on CBS from September 4 to December 11, 1976. Overview The series follows a group of four teenage detectives, the Clue Club – Larry, Pep ...

'', '' Jabberjaw'', ''

Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels ''Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels'' is an American animated mystery comedy series created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for ABC. The series aired during the network's Saturday morning schedule from Sep ...

'' and ''

The New Shmoo ''The New Shmoo'' is an American animated television series based on the character from the ''Li'l Abner'' comic strip created by Al Capp, produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1979 to November 15, 1980. ' ...

'' built upon the mystery-solving template set by ''Scooby-Doo'', with further series built around teenagers solving mysteries with a comic relief pet of some sort. ''

The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show ''The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that originally aired for one season on CBS Saturday morning from September 11, 1971, to January 1, 1972. With an ensemble voice ...

'' returned ''The Flintstones'' characters to television in 1971 with a new spin-off series based on their now teenaged children while ''

The Flintstone Comedy Hour ''The Flintstone Comedy Hour'' is an American animated television series and a spin-off of ''The Flintstones'' and ''The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show'', produced by Hanna-Barbera, which aired on CBS from September 9, 1972, to September 1, 1973. It w ...

'' and '' The New Fred and Barney Show'' remained in production through the early 1980s. Meanwhile, ''Josie'' received her own spinoff ''

Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (formatted as ''Josie and the Pussy Cats'' in the opening titles) is an American animated television series based upon the Archie Comics comic book series of the same name created by Dan DeCarlo. Produced for Saturday ...

''. Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound and others returned in 1972 for brand new shows, such as ''

Yogi's Gang ''Yogi's Gang'' is an American animated television series and the second incarnation of the ''Yogi Bear'' franchise, which aired 16 half-hour episodes on ABC from , to . The show began as ''Yogi's Ark Lark'', a special TV movie on ''The ABC Saturd ...

'', ''

Laff-a-Lympics ''Laff-A-Lympics'' is an American animated comedy television series produced by Hanna-Barbera. The series premiered as part of the Saturday-morning cartoon program block ''Scooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics'', on ABC in 1977. The show is a spoof of ...

'', ''

Yogi's Space Race ''Yogi's Space Race'' is a 90-minute American animated television series and the third entry in the ''Yogi Bear'' franchise. Thirteen episodes were broadcast on NBC from September 9, 1978, to December 2, 1978, and featured the following four segm ...

'', and '' Galaxy Goof-Ups'', while ''Tom and Jerry'' were also given a new series of televised cartoons in 1975. ''

The Great Grape Ape Show ''The Great Grape Ape Show'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on ABC from September 6 to December 13, 1975. ABC continued to air it in reruns until 1978. Premise The title character is ...

'' and '' The Mumbly Cartoon Show'' followed soon after. In 1972, Hanna-Barbera opened an animation studio in Australia, with the Hamlyn Group acquiring a 50% stake in 1974. Hamlyn was acquired by

James Hardie Industries James Hardie Industries plc is a global building materials company and the largest global manufacturer of fibre cement products. Headquartered in Ireland, it is a dual-listed company, being listed on the Australian and New York Stock Exchanges. ...

. In 1988,

Hanna-Barbera Australia Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

bought itself out from Hardie and Taft Broadcasting, with the studio changing its name to Southern Star Group. The studio has since become

Endemol Shine Australia Endemol Shine Australia is an Australian production company and is a division of Banijay led by Rory Callaghan. Following an acquisition of shares, production company Endemol Australia merged with Shine Australia on July 26, 2015. They produce ...

, a division of Banijay. In 1973, Hanna-Barbera produced the first of several iterations of '' Super Friends'', an action-adventure series adapted from

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

' ''

Justice League of America The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...

'' superhero characters. Following 1973's ''Super Friends'' on ABC, the show returned to production in 1976, remaining on ABC through 1986 with ''

The All-New Super Friends Hour ''The All-New Super Friends Hour'' is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from September 10, 1977, to September 2, 1978, on ABC. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and is based on the Justice Leag ...

'', '' Challenge of the Super Friends'' and ''

The World's Greatest Super Friends ''The World's Greatest SuperFriends'' is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from September 22, 1979, to September 27, 1980, on ABC. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and is based on the Justice ...

''. Other 1970s Hanna-Barbera series included ''

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters are an American exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, and comedy in their style of play. Created in 1926 by Tommy Brookins in Chicago, Illinois, the team adopted the name ''Harlem'' because of i ...

'', '' Wait Till Your Father Gets Home'', '' Help!... It's the Hair Bear Bunch!'', ''

The Roman Holidays ''The Roman Holidays'' is a half-hour Saturday morning animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 9 to December 2, 1972. It ran for 13 episodes before being cancelled, and reruns were later shown on t ...

'', ''

Sealab 2020 ''Sealab 2020'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 9 to December 2, 1972, on Saturday mornings. The series was created by Alex Toth, who also created such other Ha ...

'', '' Jeannie'', '' The Addams Family'', ''

Partridge Family 2200 A.D. ''Partridge Family 2200 A.D.'' is an American science fiction Saturday-morning animated series and a spin-off of the 1970–1974 ABC live-action sitcom ''The Partridge Family'' produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Columbia Pictures Televis ...

'', '' These Are The Days'', ''

Valley of the Dinosaurs ''Valley of the Dinosaurs'' is an American animated television series produced by the Australian studios of Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on CBS from September 7 to December 21, 1974, and in syndication from 1977 to 1983. The series, ab ...

'', ''

Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch ''Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch'' is an American animated television series, produced by Hanna-Barbera, which originally aired for one season on NBC from September 7 to November 30, 1974. The show aired for 13 half-hour episodes. With an ensem ...

'', ''

Dynomutt, Dog Wonder ''Dynomutt, Dog Wonder'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that aired on ABC from 1976 to 1977. The show centers on a Batman-esque superhero, the Blue Falcon, and his assistant, Dynomutt, a bumbling, y ...

'', '' CB Bears'', ''

The Robonic Stooges ''The Robonic Stooges'' is a Saturday morning animated series featuring the characters of The Three Stooges in new roles as clumsy crime-fighting cyborg superheroes. It was developed by Norman Maurer and produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions fro ...

'', ''

The All New Popeye Hour ''The All New Popeye Hour'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and King Features Entertainment. Starring the comic strip character Popeye, the series aired from 1978 to 1983 Saturday mornings on CBS. De ...

'', ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...

'', ''

Buford and the Galloping Ghost ''Buford and the Galloping Ghost'' is an American animated television series and a spin-off of ''Yogi's Space Race'' produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that was broadcast on NBC from September 9 to December 2, 1978. The half-hour series was co ...

'' and '' Jana of the Jungle''. ''

Charlotte's Web ''Charlotte's Web'' is a book of children's literature by American author E. B. White and illustrated by Garth Williams; it was published on October 15, 1952, by Harper & Brothers. The novel tells the story of a livestock pig named Wilbur and his ...

'', an adaptation of E. B. White's children's novel and Hanna-Barbera's first feature film not based on one of their TV shows, was released in 1973 by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

. While the majority of American television animation during the second half of the 20th century was made by Hanna-Barbera, with major competition coming from

Filmation Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live-action programming for television from 1963 until 1989. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1962. Filmation's founders and pr ...

and DePatie–Freleng, then-ABC president Fred Silverman gave its Saturday-morning cartoon time to them after dropping Filmation for its failure of ''

Uncle Croc's Block ''Uncle Croc's Block'' is an hour-long live-action/animated television series. It was produced by Filmation, and broadcast on ABC in 1975–76. The show was a spoof of live kids' shows but with (as MeTV would later describe it) a "bitter edge". Ch ...

''. Along with the rest of the American animation industry, it began moving away from producing all its cartoons in-house in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Ruby and Spears worked with Hanna-Barbera in 1976 and 1977 as ABC network executives to create and develop new cartoons before leaving in 1977 to start their company, Ruby-Spears Enterprises, with

Filmways Filmways, Inc. (also known as Filmways Pictures and Filmways Television) was a television and film production company founded by American film executive Martin Ransohoff and Edwin Kasper in 1952. It is probably best remembered as the production c ...

as its parent division. In 1979, Taft bought

Worldvision Enterprises Worldvision Enterprises, Inc. was an American television program and home video distributor established in 1954 as ABC Film Syndication, the domestic and overseas program distribution arm of the ABC Television Network. They primarily licensed p ...

, which became Hanna-Barbera's distributor. New live-action material was produced in the 1970s and early 1980s, as well as new live-action/animated projects since the mid-1960s. Their live-action unit spun off and became Solow Production Company in 1976.Shostak, Stu (12-20-2006).
Interview with Mark Evanier
. ''Stu's Show.'' Retrieved June 17, 2014.

Control decrease and ''Smurfs''-era (1980–1991)

'' Super Friends'', '' Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo'', ''

The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang ''The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang'' is an American animated science fiction comedy series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Paramount Television and originally broadcast during the Saturday morning schedule on ABC from November 8, 1980 ...

'', '' Richie Rich'', '' The Flintstone Comedy Show'', ''

Laverne and Shirley in the Army ''Laverne & Shirley'', also known as ''Laverne & Shirley in the Army'', is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Paramount Television broadcast on ABC from October 10, 1981, to November 13, 1982. It is a ...

'', ''

Space Stars ''Space Stars'' is a 60-minute Saturday morning animated program block produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and broadcast on NBC from September 12, 1981, to January 8, 1982. ''Space Stars'' was narrated by Keene Curtis and featured five carto ...

'', ''

The Kwicky Koala Show ''The Kwicky Koala Show'' is a 30-minute Saturday-morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Hanna Barbera Pty, Ltd. that aired on CBS from September 12 to December 26, 1981. This series is notable for being among cartoon director ...

'' and ''

Trollkins ''Trollkins'' is a 1981 animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that aired for one season on CBS. Essentially a cross between ''The Smurfs'' (which incidentally premiered the same day, September 12, 1981, in the same time slot at 8: ...

'' debuted in 1980 and 1981. Taft purchased Ruby-Spears from Filmways (which was eventually absorbed into Orion the following year), making it a sister studio to Hanna-Barbera. As a result, several early-1980s series were shared between both studios, the animated version of ''Mork & Mindy'' and ''

The Scooby & Scrappy-Doo/Puppy Hour ''The Scooby & Scrappy-Doo/Puppy Hour'' is a 60-minute Saturday morning animated package show co-produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Ruby-Spears Enterprises and broadcast on ABC from September 25, 1982 to December 18, 1982. The show contain ...

'' among them.Shostak, Stu (01-16-2013).
''Program 305'' (TV animation producers JOE RUBY and KEN SPEARS return to discuss the formation of their own company and creating such series as "Fangface", "Rickety Rocket", "Goldie Gold" and many others. Also - animation writer MARK EVANIER talks about working on "Thundarr" and "Plastic Man" for the team.)
. ''Stu's Show''. Retrieved March 18, 2013. Other of Hollywood's animation factories such as Filmation,

Sunbow Entertainment Sunbow Entertainment (known as Sunbow Productions until 1995) was an American animation studio and distributor, founded on June 23, 1980, and owned until May 4, 1998, by Griffin-Bacal Advertising in New York City and in the United States. Griffin ...

Marvel Productions New World Animation Ltd., formerly known as Marvel Productions, was the television and film studio subsidiary of the Marvel Entertainment Group, based in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. It later became a subsidiary of ...

, Rankin/Bass, DIC and Saban Entertainment introduced successful syndicated shows based on licensed properties. While Hanna-Barbera continued to produce for Saturday mornings and weekday afternoons, it no longer dominated the TV animation market and its control over children's programming went down from 80% to 20%. ''

'', adapted from the Belgian comic of the same name by Pierre Culliford (known as Peyo) and centering on a group of tiny blue creatures led by

Papa Smurf Papa Smurf is one of the protagonists from the comic strip the Smurfs. Most Smurfs are said to be about 100 years old, but at the advanced age of 546 (553 in the 1980s series episode "The Littlest Giant"), Papa is the oldest Smurf and the leader ...

, premiered on NBC and aired for nine seasons, becoming the longest-running Saturday-morning cartoon series in broadcast history, a significant ratings success, the top-rated program in eight years and the highest for an NBC show since 1970. ''

Jokebook ''Jokebook'' is an American adult animated comedy series produced by Hanna-Barbera. It aired on NBC for three episodes from April 23 to May 7, 1982. Format The series' theme song was sung by Scatman Crothers. ''Jokebook'' was an anthology of seg ...

'', ''

The Gary Coleman Show ''The Gary Coleman Show'' is a 30-minute Saturday morning animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that originally aired on NBC during the 1982–1983 season. The series featured Gary Coleman as the voice of Andy LeBeau, an apprenti ...

'', ''

Shirt Tales ''Shirt Tales'' are characters that were created in 1980 by greeting card designer Janet Elizabeth Manco and were featured on Hallmark Cards greeting cards. The characters were adapted into a 1982-1985 animated series for television, by Hanna-Bar ...

'', ''

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

'', ''

The Little Rascals ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', '' The Dukes'', '' Monchhichis'', '' The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show'' and ''

The Biskitts ''The Biskitts'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1983 to 1984 and aired on CBS. The series lasted for only one season; only 13 episodes were produced. ''Shirt Tales'' replaced the show in its t ...

'' were aired in 1982 and 1983. Following an animation strike in 1982, more of Hanna and Barbera's shows were outsourced to studios outside of the United States.

Cuckoo's Nest Studios Wang Film Productions Co., Ltd. (also known as Hong Guang Animation (宏廣) and Cuckoos' Nest Studio) is one of the oldest and most prolific Taiwanese-American animation studios since 1978. The company, based in Xindian, Taipei and Los Angeles, ...

Mr. Big Cartoons ''Mr. Big Cartoons'' was an animation studio that was located in Australia. Its first work was for Hanna-Barbera in the late 1980s and during the 1990s, along with animating a few episodes of ''The Ren & Stimpy Show'' for Games Animation in 199 ...

Toei Animation () is a Japanese animation studio primarily controlled by its namesake Toei Company. It has produced numerous series, including ''Sally the Witch,'' ''GeGeGe no Kitarō,'' ''Mazinger Z'', ''Galaxy Express 999'', ''Cutie Honey'', ''Dr. Slump'', ' ...

and Fil-Cartoons in Australia and Asia provided production services to Hanna-Barbera from 1982 through to the end of its existence. ''The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries'', '' Snorks'', ''

Challenge of the GoBots ''Challenge of the GoBots'' (or ''GoBots'' for short) is an American animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera, based on the GoBots toyline released from Tonka. The show was first broadcast in syndication on September 8, 1984, then the show joine ...

'', ''

Pink Panther and Sons ''Pink Panther and Sons'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and Mirisch-Geoffrey-DePatie-Freleng. The series was originally broadcast on NBC from 1984 to 1985 and moved to ABC in 1986. Friz Freleng (a ...

'', '' Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show'', '' The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians'', '' The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo'', '' Yogi's Treasure Hunt'', ''

Galtar and the Golden Lance ''Galtar and the Golden Lance'' is a 30-minute animated sword and sorcery television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, which aired in syndication in 1985–86 as part of ''The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera''. The show ran for 21 e ...

'', ''

Paw Paws ''Paw Paws'' (also known as ''Paw Paw Bears'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions that first aired in 1985 and 1986. It debuted as part of the weekday/weekend morning programming block ''The Funtastic ...

'' and new episodes of ''The Jetsons'' premiered in 1984 and 1985. '' The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible'' debuted while in 1986 and 1987, new episodes of ''Jonny Quest'', '' Pound Puppies'', ''

The Flintstone Kids ''The Flintstone Kids'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera. It is an alternative incarnation of the studio's original animated series ''The Flintstones''. The series depicts juvenile versions of the main characte ...

'', '' Foofur'', ''

Wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

'', '' Sky Commanders'' and ''

Popeye and Son ''Popeye and Son'' is an American animated comedy series based on the ''Popeye'' comic strip created by E.C. Segar and published by King Features Syndicate. Jointly produced by Hanna-Barbera and King Features subsidiary King Features Entertainment, ...

'' premiered. Taft's financial troubles were affecting Hanna-Barbera, leading to its acquirement by the American Financial Corporation in 1987 and renamed Taft to Great American Broadcasting the next year. '' A Pup Named Scooby-Doo'', ''

The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley ''The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and featuring Martin Short's fictional character Ed Grimley (with Short reprising his role as Grimley). The show ...

'', new episodes of ''Yogi Bear'', ''

Fantastic Max ''Fantastic Max'' is an animated cartoon series, originally aired from 1988 to 1990 created by Hanna-Barbera Productions, Kalisto Ltd., Booker PLC and Tanaka Promotion Co. and in association with S4C. It centers on a boy named Maxwell "Fantasti ...

'', ''

The Further Adventures of SuperTed ''The Further Adventures of SuperTed'' is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera and Siriol Animation in association with S4C, and continues the adventures of SuperTed. Only 13 episodes were produced and originally broadcast on ...

'' and '' Paddington Bear'' followed in 1988 and 1989. Great American sold Worldvision to

Aaron Spelling Productions Spelling Television Inc. was an American television production company that went through several name changes. It was originally called Aaron Spelling Productions, then Spelling Entertainment Inc. and eventually part of Spelling Entertainment Gro ...

, while Hanna-Barbera and its library remained with them. In January 1989, while working on ''A Pup Named Scooby-Doo'', Tom Ruegger got a call from

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Di ...

to resurrect its animation department. Ruegger, along with several of his colleagues, left Hanna-Barbera at that time to develop new programs such as ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...

'' and '' Animaniacs'' at Warner Bros.

David Kirschner David Maxwell Kirschner (born May 29, 1955) is an American film & television producer and screenwriter. His producing credits include the animated feature ''An American Tail'' (also wrote) and '' Child's Play'' horror film series. Career Afte ...

, known for '' An American Tail'' and '' Child's Play'', was later appointed as the new CEO of Hanna-Barbera. In 1990, while Kirschner and the studio formed Bedrock Productions, Great American put Hanna-Barbera and Ruby-Spears, up for sale after being less successful and burdened in debt. New shows '' Midnight Patrol: Adventures in the Dream Zone'', '' Rick Moranis in Gravedale High'', '' Tom & Jerry Kids'', '' Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventures'', ''

The Adventures of Don Coyote and Sancho Panda ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' and ''

Wake, Rattle, and Roll ''Wake, Rattle, and Roll'' (retitled ''Jump, Rattle, and Roll'' when it aired on The Disney Channel on weekday afternoons in 1991''The Disney Channel Magazine'', Vol. 9, no. 5, September/October 1991: pp. 20, 36, 45.) is an American live-action/an ...

'' first aired that year. ''

Young Robin Hood ''Young Robin Hood'' is an animated series produced for television by Hanna-Barbera, CINAR and France Animation and aired in syndication from 1991 to 1992. It ran for two seasons as part of the Sunday-morning programming block, ''The Funtastic W ...

'', '' The Pirates of Dark Water'' and ''

Yo Yogi! ''Yo Yogi!'' is an American animated television series and the seventh entry in the ''Yogi Bear'' franchise produced by Hanna-Barbera that aired from September 14 to December 7, 1991 on NBC for 13 episodes. This would be one of the last Yogi Bear ...

'' would follow in 1991.

Acquisition by Turner and absorption into Warner Bros. Animation (1991–2001)

outbid

MCA MCA may refer to: Astronomy * Mars-crossing asteroid, an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars Aviation * Minimum crossing altitude, a minimum obstacle crossing altitude for fixes on published airways * Medium Combat Aircraft, a 5th gene ...

(then-parent company of

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

), Hallmark Cards and other major companies in acquiring Hanna-Barbera while also purchasing Ruby-Spears as well. The two studios were acquired in a 50-50 joint venture between Turner Broadcasting System and Apollo Investment Fund for $320 million. Turner purchased these assets to launch a then-new all-animation network aimed at children and younger audiences which would be called

Scott Sassa Scott M. Sassa is an American entertainment executive who has held a number of high-level executive positions in large entertainment companies. Sassa is currently chairman of MILK Makeup. Biography Early career Early in his career, Sassa was vic ...

hired

Fred Seibert Frederick (Fred) Seibert (born September 15, 1951) is an American television producer, co-founder of MTV and the CEO of FredFilms, an animation production company based in Burbank, California. His official biography states he has led five (working ...

to head Hanna-Barbera, who filled the gap left by Great American's production crew with new animators, directors, producers and writers, including Craig McCracken,

Donovan Cook Donovan Ryan Cook III (born January 30, 1968) is an American film director, cartoon creator and producer, best known for creating, directing and producing the animated series ''2 Stupid Dogs'' and directing the Disney animated features ''Return ...

, Genndy Tartakovsky, David Feiss,

Seth MacFarlane Seth Woodbury MacFarlane (; born October 26, 1973) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, comedian, and singer. He is the creator and star of the television series ''Family Guy'' (since 1999) and ''The Orville'' (since 2017), and co-creator ...

, Van Partible and Butch Hartman. Following its new name H-B Production Company and ''

Fish Police ''Fish Police'' is a comic book series by American cartoonist Steve Moncuse. The plot centers on law and crime in a fictional underwater metropolis with the protagonist, Inspector Gill, trying to solve various crimes, often Mafia-related, while a ...

'', '' Capitol Critters'' and new episodes of ''The Addams Family'' for broadcast, Cartoon Network launched in 1992 and became the first 24-hour all-animation channel, to air its library of cartoon classics, of which Hanna-Barbera was the core contributor. In 1993, the studio again renamed itself to Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. (though the Hanna-Barbera Productions name was still used in regards to the pre-1992 properties) and while Turner acquired its remaining interests from Apollo Investment Fund for $255 million, '' Droopy, Master Detective'', ''

The New Adventures of Captain Planet ''Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' is an American animated environmentalist superhero television series created by Barbara Pyle and Ted Turner and developed by Pyle, Nicholas Boxer, Thom Beers, Andy Heyward, Robby London, Bob Forward and Cas ...

'', '' SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron'' and ''

2 Stupid Dogs ''2 Stupid Dogs'' is an American animated television series created and designed by Donovan Cook and produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons. It originally ran from September 5, 1993, to May 15, 1995, on TBS as a part of their ''Sunday Morning in Fr ...

'' emerged that year. Turner refocused the studio to produce new shows exclusively for its networks. In 1995, while Bruce Johnson left Hanna-Barbera as executive vice president to start out

PorchLight Entertainment PorchLight Entertainment, Inc. was an American animation and live-action studio founded in 1995 by Bruce D. Johnson and William T. Baumann. It is focused on development & production of television series in both live action and animation. It spec ...

, ABC aired '' Dumb and Dumber'' while Seibert launched ''

What a Cartoon! ''What a Cartoon!'' (later known as ''The What a Cartoon! Show'' and ''The Cartoon Cartoon Show'') is an American animated anthology series created by Fred Seibert for Cartoon Network. The shorts were produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions; by the ...

'' for Cartoon Network. During 1996, ''

Dexter's Laboratory ''Dexter's Laboratory'' is an American animated television series created by Genndy Tartakovsky for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. It follows Dexter, a short, enthusiastic boy-genius with a hid ...

'', '' The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest'' and ''

Cave Kids ''Cave Kids'' (also known as ''Cave Kids Adventures'' or ''Cave Kids: Pebbles & Bamm-Bamm'') is an American animated children's television series produced by Hanna-Barbera, and a spin-off of ''The Flintstones''. The show aired in syndication on ...

'' premiered while Turner merged with

Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

(then WarnerMedia, now

). '' Johnny Bravo'', '' Cow and Chicken'' and '' The Powerpuff Girls'' made their debuts in 1997 and 1998. After 35 years of being headquartered at Cahuenga Boulevard since 1963, Hanna-Barbera moved to Sherman Oaks Galleria in

Sherman Oaks, California Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...

where Warner Bros. Animation was located and operated alongside it until its absorption in 2001.

Cartoon Network Studios Cartoon Network Studios is an American animation studio owned by the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. The studio is the production arm of Cartoon Network, and started operating on ...

, led by former DiC and

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

production executives

Brian A. Miller Brian A. Miller is an American television producer and the former Senior Vice President and General Manager of Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, California, having assumed the title from 2000 to 2021. He was formerly Vice President of Production ...

and Jennifer Pelphrey, was revived and took over production of programming, after moving to an abandoned telephone exchange in Burbank. Hanna died on March 22, 2001, at the age of 90 years old. The Cahuenga Blvd. studio faced demolition after many of the Hanna-Barbera staff and performers vacated the facilities in 1997, despite the efforts of Barbera and the others to preserve it. In May 2004, the

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the legislative body of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles in California. The council is composed of 15 members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The President of the Los Angeles City Counc ...

approved a plan to preserve the headquarters, while allowing retail and residential development on the site.

Succession and legacy-based properties (2001–present)

Barbera continued to be involved in the production of new Hanna-Barbera material until his death on December 18, 2006 at the age of 95 years old. Warner Bros. Animation continues to produce new productions based on the legacy properties of Hanna-Barbera since then. Warner Bros. has released several theatrical films based on Hanna-Barbera properties since 2002. Most recently, '' Scoob!'' came out on May 15, 2020, which is intended to be the first installment of a Hanna-Barbera cinematic universe.

Warner Animation Group The Warner Animation Group (WAG) is an American animation studio serving as the computer-animated feature film label of Warner Bros.' theatrical film production and distribution division, Warner Bros. Pictures. Established on January 7, 2013, th ...

also has an animated ''The Jetsons'' film, an animated ''The Flintstones'' film and an animated ''Wacky Races'' film in development, along with more new content. On April 7, 2021, Cartoon Network Studios Europe rebranded as Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe to revive the name. After

was established through the

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gove ...

AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...

and merge with

Discovery, Inc. Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate (company), conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1985, the company operated a group of factual television, factual and lifestyle television bra ...

, Cartoon Network Studios and Warner Bros. Animation consolidated their development and production teams as part of a restructuring by Warner Bros. Television, with Audrey Diehl overseeing kids and family, Peter Girardi overseeing adult animation and Sammy Perlmutter overseeing animated long-form productions. Among the legacy Hanna-Barbera properties, the merger does not impact their output as labels, with Cartoon Network Studios continuing to focus on original content and Warner Bros. Animation used for classic franchises.

Production

Production process changes

The small budgets that television animation producers had to work within prevented Hanna-Barbera from working with the full theatrical-quality animation that Hanna and Barbera had been known for at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. While the budget for MGM's seven-minute ''Tom and Jerry'' shorts was about $35,000, the Hanna-Barbera studios were required to produce five-minute ''Ruff and Reddy'' episodes for no more than $3,000 apiece.Hanna, William and Ito, Tom (1999). ''A Cast of Friends''. New York: Da Capo Press. 0306-80917-6. Pg. 81–83 To keep within these tighter budgets, Hanna-Barbera furthered the concept of

limited animation Limited animation is a process in the overall technique of traditional animation that reuses frames of character animation. Early history The use of budget-cutting and time-saving animation measures in animation dates back to the earliest commerci ...

(also called "planned animation") practiced and popularized by the United Productions of America (UPA) studio, which also once had a partnership with Columbia Pictures. Character designs were simplified, and backgrounds and animation cycles (walks, runs, etc.) were regularly re-purposed. Characters were often broken up into a handful of levels so that only the parts of the body that needed to be moved at a given time (i.e. a mouth, an arm, a head) were animated. The rest of the figure remained on a held animation cel. This allowed a typical seven-minute short to be done with only nearly 2,000 drawings instead of the usual 14,000. Dialogue, music, and sound effects were emphasized over action, leading

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...

—a contemporary who worked for

and whose short '' The Dover Boys'' practically invented many of the concepts in limited animation—to disparagingly refer to the limited television cartoons produced by Hanna-Barbera and others as "illustrated radio". In a story published by ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...

'' in 1961, critics stated that Hanna-Barbera was taking on more work than it could handle and was resorting to shortcuts only a television audience would tolerate. An executive who worked for

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

said, "We don't even consider hemcompetition".(December 2, 1961)
TV'S Most Unexpected Hit – ''The Flintstones''
" ''The Saturday Evening Post'' Animation historian Christopher P. Lehman argues that Hanna-Barbera attempted to maximize their

bottom line In business and accounting, net income (also total comprehensive income, net earnings, net profit, bottom line, sales profit, or credit sales) is an entity's income minus cost of goods sold, expenses, depreciation and amortization, interest, a ...

by recycling story formulas and characterization instead of introducing new ones. Once a formula for an original series was deemed successful, the studio reused it in subsequent series. Besides copying their own works, Hanna-Barbera drew inspiration from the works of other people and studios. Lehman considers that the studio served as the main example of how animation studios that focused on TV animation differed from those that focused on theatrical animation. Theatrical animation studios tried to maintain full and fluid animation and consequently struggled with the rising expenses associated with producing it. Limited animation as practiced by Hanna-Barbera kept production costs at a minimum. The cost in quality of using this technique was that Hanna-Barbera's characters only moved when necessary. Its solution to the criticism over its quality was to go into films. It produced six theatrical feature films, among them are higher-quality versions of its television cartoons and adaptations of other material. It was also one of the first animation studios to have their work produced overseas. One of these companies was a subsidiary began by Hanna-Barbera in November 1987 called Fil-Cartoons in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, with Jerry Smith as a consultant for the subsidiary.

Wang Film Productions Wang Film Productions Co., Ltd. (also known as Hong Guang Animation (宏廣) and Cuckoos' Nest Studio) is one of the oldest and most prolific Taiwanese-American animation studios since 1978. The company, based in Xindian, Taipei and Los Angeles, ...

got its start as an overseas facility for the studio in 1978.

Digital innovation

Hanna-Barbera was among the first animation studios to incorporate digital tools into their pipeline. As early as the 1970s, they experimented with using

Scanimate {{about, the computer animation system, the animation effect, Barrier grid animation and stereography Scanimate is an analog computer animation (video synthesizer) system developed from the late 1960s to the 1980s by Computer Image Corporation of D ...

, a

video synthesizer A video synthesizer is a device that electronically creates a video signal. A video synthesizer is able to generate a variety of visual material without camera input through the use of internal video pattern generators. It can also accept and " ...

, to create an early form of digital cutout style or

Flash animation Adobe Flash animation or Adobe Flash cartoon (formerly Macromedia Flash animation, Macromedia Flash cartoon, FutureSplash animation, and FutureSplash cartoon) is an animation that is created with the Adobe Animate (formerly Flash Professional) p ...

. A clip of artists using the machine to manipulate scanned images of ''Scooby-Doo'' characters, scaling and warping the artwork to simulate animation, is available at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

. Likewise, Hanna-Barbera was perhaps the first proponent of digital ink and paint, a process wherein animators' drawings were scanned into computers and colored using software. Led by

Marc Levoy Marc Levoy is a computer graphics researcher and Professor Emeritus of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at Stanford University, a vice president and Fellow at Adobe Inc., and (until 2020) a Distinguished Engineer at Google. He is noted ...

, Hanna-Barbera began developing a computerized digital ink and paint system in 1979 to help bypass much of the time-consuming labor of painting and photographing cels. The process was implemented on a third of Hanna-Barbera's animated programs, televised feature films and specials from 1984 through 1996.

Sound effects

Hanna-Barbera was known for its large library of sound effects, which have been featured in exhibitions at the Norman Rockwell Museum.

Ownership

After Hanna-Barbera's partnership with Screen Gems ended in 1966, it was sold to Taft Broadcasting where it remained its owner until 1991 when Turner Broadcasting System acquired the studio and its library for its flagship network, Cartoon Network. In 1996, Turner merged with Time Warner, then WarnerMedia, now Warner Bros. Discovery. The studio was separated from Cartoon Network Studios and absorbed into Warner Bros. Animation in 2001. Since its closure, Warner Bros. has continued to produce new material and programming based on its classic intellectual property and the classic Hanna-Barbera logo occasionally appears.

Filmography

References

Notes Bibliography * * * * * Lawrence, Guy (2006)
Yogi Bear's Nuggets: A Hanna-Barbera 45 Guide
Spectropop.com. *

External links

*
The Big Cartoon Database: Hanna-Barbera Studios Directory
* {{authority control Hanna-Barbera 1957 establishments in California 2001 disestablishments in California 1966 mergers and acquisitions 1987 mergers and acquisitions 1991 mergers and acquisitions 1996 mergers and acquisitions American animation studios American companies disestablished in 2001 American companies established in 1957 Annie Award winners Companies based in Los Angeles Entertainment companies based in California Entertainment companies disestablished in 2001 Entertainment companies established in 1957 Film production companies of the United States Filmmaking duos Mass media companies disestablished in 2001 Mass media companies established in 1957 Taft Broadcasting Turner Broadcasting System Television production companies of the United States Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Discovery

History

''Tom and Jerry'' and birth of a studio (1937–1957)

Success with animated sitcoms (1957–1969)

Mysteries, spinoffs, and more (1969–1979)

Control decrease and ''Smurfs''-era (1980–1991)

Acquisition by Turner and absorption into Warner Bros. Animation (1991–2001)

Succession and legacy-based properties (2001–present)

Production

Production process changes

Digital innovation

Sound effects

Ownership

Filmography

See also

References

External links