1970s Cartoons and Tunes

A common thread runs through Saturday morning cartoons of the 1970s. Music. Rankin-Bass produced Kid Power for ABC.  Think Peanuts and Our Gang go through diversity training as songs convey messages of peace, love, and harmony for children.  ABC aired original...

“Kid Power”

Kid Power aired on ABC during the 1972-73 television season — it was another product of the Rankin-Bass animation machine that relied heavily on transforming the creations of others.  Based on Morrie Turner’s Wee Kids comic strip, Kid Power centered on a...

“King Kong” and “Tom of T.H.U.M.B.”

King Kong is a New York City film icon.  He climbed to the top of the Empire State Building in the 1933 and 2005 King Kong films.  In 1976, he climbed to the top of the World Trade Center. But the 1966-67 Saturday morning cartoon series King Kong depicted the title...

Mad Comedians and Mad Monsters

Baby boomers and Generation Xers most likely recall Rankin-Bass as the studio responsible for the stop-motion animation television specials Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town. Rankin-Bass also produced two specials that were quite...