Rugrats. Recess. The Lion King. Dexter’s Laboratory.
It’s not hard to recognize these names, considering that most everyone at this school grew up with them.
We nineties kids have a reputation for our fun television and film choices. Nickelodeon created and put “Nicktoons” on its channel for the first time in 1991, and Cartoon Network, launched in 1992, was a harbor for both new and nostalgic cartoons. Disney unloaded a galaxy of fun on us with the availability of our favorite animated movies on VHS tapes and video and computer games, and started making deals with Pixar to bring on Toy Story and other computer-animated films.
Let’s face it: cartoons are a major component of our generation, and we are the first group where it is okay for us to still love our little scribbled friends.
When animated cartoons were first created – credit for the first successful animated film projection goes to Émile Cohl, a French director, on his piece “Fantasmagorie” in 1908 – everyone was blown away. The idea that what was in one’s mind could be brought to life exactly as seen in one’s head was revolutionary – as Walt Disney said: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
Soon, cartoons gained a new public perspective. Other than the animations used in commercials, most cartoons were becoming more and more constrained to a younger audience. The 1950’s brought with it the creation of television shows like Jay Ward’s Crusader Rabbit and Hanna Barbara’s The Flintstones, as well as rebroadcasting of big screen bits from Disney, MGM, and the Warner Brothers.
Between the 50’s and 80’s, cartoons continued mostly as Saturday morning treats, where kids would rise early to watch their favorites like Scooby Doo and The Jetsons. Never before was there an entire channel devoted to an animated agenda.
Then the 1990’s rolled around. A new revolution emerged.
Now, cartoons are commonplace for several age groups, from the younger children to the college kids. Back in the day, people would stop watching the animated greats because they were scorned as “kids’ shows.” These days, there are even cartoons made specifically for adults, like Family Guy and Futurama. Many teenagers treasure their Disney VHS tapes like the Dead Sea Scrolls, search YouTube for old classics like Doug and The Peanuts Gang, and even enjoy watching new shows like Phineas and Ferb or Adventure Time. Boomerang brings us back to old school Cartoon Network with Tom and Jerry and Johnny Bravo, and Toon Disney makes Goof Troop and Gargoyles available. There is also a skepticism of new cartoons and how they’ll never be as good as they were before, and some of us could even be diagnosed with “Back in my day…” syndrome (even yours truly).
So the next time you sit down to enjoy Aladdin with your friends or excitedly come across Jackie Chan Adventures in your TV guide, remember that you aren’t just watching what you’ve loved since you were young: you’re participating in a generational tradition.
(Most information in this article received from Wikipedia)
It’s not hard to recognize these names, considering that most everyone at this school grew up with them.
We nineties kids have a reputation for our fun television and film choices. Nickelodeon created and put “Nicktoons” on its channel for the first time in 1991, and Cartoon Network, launched in 1992, was a harbor for both new and nostalgic cartoons. Disney unloaded a galaxy of fun on us with the availability of our favorite animated movies on VHS tapes and video and computer games, and started making deals with Pixar to bring on Toy Story and other computer-animated films.
Let’s face it: cartoons are a major component of our generation, and we are the first group where it is okay for us to still love our little scribbled friends.
When animated cartoons were first created – credit for the first successful animated film projection goes to Émile Cohl, a French director, on his piece “Fantasmagorie” in 1908 – everyone was blown away. The idea that what was in one’s mind could be brought to life exactly as seen in one’s head was revolutionary – as Walt Disney said: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
Soon, cartoons gained a new public perspective. Other than the animations used in commercials, most cartoons were becoming more and more constrained to a younger audience. The 1950’s brought with it the creation of television shows like Jay Ward’s Crusader Rabbit and Hanna Barbara’s The Flintstones, as well as rebroadcasting of big screen bits from Disney, MGM, and the Warner Brothers.
Between the 50’s and 80’s, cartoons continued mostly as Saturday morning treats, where kids would rise early to watch their favorites like Scooby Doo and The Jetsons. Never before was there an entire channel devoted to an animated agenda.
Then the 1990’s rolled around. A new revolution emerged.
Now, cartoons are commonplace for several age groups, from the younger children to the college kids. Back in the day, people would stop watching the animated greats because they were scorned as “kids’ shows.” These days, there are even cartoons made specifically for adults, like Family Guy and Futurama. Many teenagers treasure their Disney VHS tapes like the Dead Sea Scrolls, search YouTube for old classics like Doug and The Peanuts Gang, and even enjoy watching new shows like Phineas and Ferb or Adventure Time. Boomerang brings us back to old school Cartoon Network with Tom and Jerry and Johnny Bravo, and Toon Disney makes Goof Troop and Gargoyles available. There is also a skepticism of new cartoons and how they’ll never be as good as they were before, and some of us could even be diagnosed with “Back in my day…” syndrome (even yours truly).
So the next time you sit down to enjoy Aladdin with your friends or excitedly come across Jackie Chan Adventures in your TV guide, remember that you aren’t just watching what you’ve loved since you were young: you’re participating in a generational tradition.
(Most information in this article received from Wikipedia)
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