Hard Drinkin' Lincoln is a

Macromedia Flash Macromedia Flash may refer to: *Adobe Animate, a multimedia authoring and computer animation program formerly known as ''Macromedia Flash'' *Adobe Flash Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia software platform ...

Internet cartoon series produced in 2000 for the Internet animation company

Icebox.com icebox.tv was an animation company founded in 1999 by Jonathan Collier, Howard Gordon, Rob LaZebnik, Scott Rupp, and Tal Vigderson. The founders stated that the company was created to capitalize on the inherent "freedom of the medium" which th ...

. The series was created by

Mike Reiss Michael L. Reiss ( '; born ) is an American television comedy writer and author. He served as a show-runner, writer and producer for the animated series ''The Simpsons'' and co-created the animated series '' The Critic''. He created and wrote ...

and directed by Xeth Feinberg. Unlike Reiss and Feinberg's later series for Icebox, '' Queer Duck'', Hard Drinkin' Lincoln did not receive attention from other media outlets, but still received some coverage.

Synopsis

The series portrays

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

(voiced by Jim Ward) as a boorish alcoholic who enjoys pestering his wife

Mary Todd Lincoln Mary Ann Todd Lincoln (December 13, 1818July 16, 1882) served as First Lady of the United States from 1861 until the assassination of her husband, President Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Mary Lincoln was a member of a large and wealthy, slave-owning ...

(voiced by Jocelyn Blue, later

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire MacNeille (née Payne; born June 20, 1951) is an American voice actress, whose credits include voicing Dot Warner on the animated television series '' Animaniacs'', Babs Bunny on ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Chip and Gadget Hackwrenc ...

) and causing trouble during shows at

Ford's Theatre Ford's Theatre is a theater located in Washington, D.C., which opened in August 1863. The theater is infamous for being the site of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. On the night of April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth entered the theater bo ...

. Many episodes end with Hard Drinkin' Lincoln being shot by

John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838 – April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who assassinated United States President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the prominent 19th-century Booth ...

(the main antagonist, voiced by

Maurice LaMarche Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor, comedian, and impressionist. He has voiced the Brain in '' Animaniacs'' as well as its spin-off '' Pinky and the Brain'', Big Bob in ''Hey Arnold!'' (1996–2004), and a variety of ...

), often to the delight of bystanders. Other historical figures who appear in the episodes include Jenny Lind, Mohandas Gandhi,

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

, Robert E. Lee and

Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...

. Creator Reiss explained: "What makes me proud of 'Hard Drinkin' Lincoln' is that it's a totally undeserved attack. The comedy comes from the fact that this man did nothing to deserve this."

Credits

*Written & Created by: Mike Reiss *Directed & Produced by: Xeth Feinberg *Voices: Jim Ward, Jocelyn Blue, Maurice LaMarche,

Kath Soucie Kath or KATH may refer to: * Kath (city), the historical capital of Khwarezm * Kath (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * KATH-TV, the NBC TV station in Juneau, Alaska * KATH (AM), a radio station in ...

, Kevin Michael Richardson, Tress MacNeille *Animation Director & Designer: Xeth Feinberg *Music by: Xeth Feinberg and Sam Elwitt *Theme Music by: Sam Elwitt *Executive Producer:

Reception

Richard von Busack Richard Von Busack is an American film reviewer based in San Jose, California. He has been writing for the ''Metro Silicon Valley'' since 1985. He was also the co-host of ''CinemaScene'', with poet Morton Marcus Morton Marcus (1936–2009) wa ...

MetroActive ''Metro'' is a free weekly newspaper published by the San Jose, California, based Metro Newspapers. Also known as ''Metro Silicon Valley'', as well as ''Metroactive'' online, the paper serves the greater Silicon Valley area. In addition to prin ...

said that the series had witty "moments of humor" and praised the cartoons on

, adding that he never heard the theme song of the series "without a surge of patriotism," adding that the animated series is "a reminder of the sacredness of the First Amendment." Joshua Shenk of ''

The American Prospect ''The American Prospect'' is a daily online and bimonthly print American political and public policy magazine dedicated to American modern liberalism and progressivism. Based in Washington, D.C., ''The American Prospect'' says it "is devoted t ...

'' described the show as a "typical Lincoln image" and said that Lincoln, in the show, "is a blend of Homer Simpson and Kenny from South Park." Academic Barry Schwartz described the show as one of the recent Lincoln spoofs which are "cut from the same cloth as ongoing museum controversies involving "transgressive" art."

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San ...

described the series as "improbable" and one of the company's entrances into a "crowded world of online animation entertainment sites" and the '' Baltimore Sun'' said that critics and visitors have "raved over" the show. Scott Bass of ''Streaming Media'' described the comedy of '' Mr. Wong'' and ''Hard Drinkin' Lincoln'' as "so edgy" that he could not "imagine seeing it on TV."

References

External links

* American flash animated web series American adult animated web series Animation based on real people Cultural depictions of Abraham Lincoln Cultural depictions of John Wilkes Booth Cultural depictions of Robert E. Lee Cultural depictions of Mahatma Gandhi Cultural depictions of Ulysses S. Grant Cultural depictions of Jenny Lind Cultural depictions of Frederick Douglass {{animation-stub