'Grey's' Isn't Going Anywhere
'Red Widow' Gets The Axe
ren and stimpy
Happy Happy Joy Joy! 'Ren & Stimpy' is 20
This might make you feel supremely ancient, but Aug. 11, 2011 marks the 20th -- yes, as in two decades -- anniversary of the debut of 'The Ren & Stimpy Show' on Nickelodeon. The beloved animated series followed the tense friendship between chihuahua Ren Hoek and Stimpson J. Cat.It's hard to believe that the gross, black humor of 'Ren & Stimpy' was able to pass as a children's cartoon, alongside the other first Nicktoons, 'Rugrats' and 'Doug,' but five years on Nickelodeon doesn't lie.
Without 'Ren & Stimpy,' we wouldn't have 'Beavis and Butt-head' or 'South Park,' nor would the 'Log' song get stuck in our heads for days at a time.
Frequently straddling the line between disgusting and fun -- well, actually, make that crossing the line -- there are plenty memorable moments from the series, which was revived on Spike in 2003 to poor reviews and we're just going to pretend that didn't happen. Below, AOL TV relives some of the grossest scenes -- and a couple of just plain fun ones too.
Animation news: John K, Aqua Teen movie and a Dethklok tour - VIDEO
Here's some cool animation news from the past week or so:
First, if you dig the heavy metal sounds of Dethklok, the brutal (but rather stupid) band from the Adult Swim series Metalocalypse, you'll be happy to know the band is doing a tour of some college campuses, according to Toon Zone and Adult Swim HQ. I'll keep you posted as more information becomes available. Other yet-to-be-announced bands will also be touring to promote Adult Swim.
Listen to an interview with Billy West
If you didn't get your fill of voice actor Billy West when Joel interviewed him awhile ago, you can listen to an audio interview with the voice actor on the Paul Harris Show by clicking here. West, who, as many of you know, did the voices of a bunch of the characters on Futurama, plus the voice of both Ren and Stimpy during part of that show's run, not to mention a ton of other characters both classic and new. West talks about how he comes up with voices for the characters, and tells a funny story about watching The Diary of Anne Frank because one of the actors, Lou Jacobi, was part of his inspiration for the voice of Zoidberg on Futurama. He also talks about how voice actors often get treated like second class citizens in Hollywoodland. A very funny interview, definitely worth checking out.
[via Mark Evanier]
New TV on DVD releases today
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. - Complete Series- Amazing Stories - First season
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Book One: Water, Volume Four
- Carnivale - Second season
- Jack of All Trades - Complete Series
- The Pretender - Fourth season
- Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon - The Lost Episodes
- SpongeBob SquarePants - Karate Island
- Ultraman - Volume One
Clips from upcoming Ren and Stimpy DVD
Hey, animation fans, John Kricfalusi has posted some clips from the upcoming DVD release
of Ren and Stimpy: Adult Party Cartoon on his blog. The set is actually being called "The Lost
Episodes" and will contain cartoons from the short-lived SpikeTV series which brought Ren and Stimpy out of the
confines of children's animation and into a more ribald setting. Essentially, once the duo was re-imagined for SpikeTV
very little remained of their Nickelodeon days. This was either a welcome change or utter blasphemy, depending on
your stance as a fan. Personally, while I enjoyed the original Ren and Stimpy, I loved seeing them brought
back, even if it wasn't quite the same as before. Besides, I've never seen an animation studio push the boundaries
of TV cartoons the way Spumco does. See the clips here.John K selling art on his blog
I've been spending an insane amount of time over on John Kricfalusi's blog, and
the other day I saw this
post which I thought some of you might find interesting. It seems John has been hooked up with a gallery and plans
to sell some original pieces through his blog. My excitement over this was instantly dilluted by the notion that I'll
probably never be able to come up with the kind of money these drawings will most likely take in. John K, to get
the unenlightened up to speed, was the creator of Ren and Stimpy, and has worked alongside such animation
legends as Ralph Bakshi. The man is an icon in the world of animation (and a very opinionated one at that). Seeing him
embrace the whole blog concept and interact so freely with his fans is quite refreshing, and his genuine enthusiasm for
animation, style, and design, not to mention his expertise, makes his blog worth checking out.John K's new blog, and a new Ren and Stimpy DVD
John Kricfalusi, the creator of Ren and Stimpy, was one of the first
animators to take advantage of the freedom the Web allows with Flash-animated series such as The Goddamn George
Liquor Show and Weekend Pussy Hunt. John K has always been extremely opinionated when it comes to
animation and the myriad examples of bad animation that are out there, and his new blog is no different. If you're a
fan of John K and Spumco, you should check it out. The man has never been afraid to voice his opinion, which I might
find annoying if I didn't agree with most of what he says.
One awesome tidbit I found on his blog (and confirmed by TV Shows on DVD) is that the series Ren and Stimpy: Adult Party Cartoon will be released on DVD soon. The set is being called the "Lost Episodes." An unofficial release date of November 8 has been set, but that could change. Check out the awesome packaging here, designed by Annmarie Ashkar.
Billy Bastard coming to HDTV
Huh.
Wuh.
Who?
Pah?
Those were the four reactions I had upon seeing the trailer for the new HDTV program called Billy Bastard, which features the voice talents of Ren and Stimpy and Futurama voice actor Billy West. The show is apparently supposed to be a kind of "reality puppet show" about the titular character, a swearing, drug-using, beer guzzling jerk. You would think combining West with two directors from Ren and Stimpy (Bill Wrayand Jim Gomez) with puppeteers from Team America would result in a really great show, but so far I haven't been floored by what I've seen, though I have cracked up a few times. Maybe my humor switch is stuck today, so I won't pass judgment on the show just yet. Besides, there's too much awesome talent involved for me to dismiss it before actually seeing it for myself. You can learn more about Billy Bastard (and see clips)on his blog.
John K gets animated
I was a huge fan of Bob Clampett long before I even knew who Bob Clampett was. He was the
creator of many of Warner Brother's most popular characters, including Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. I found out who he
was later when my local video store had copies of his "Beany and Cecil" cartoon series from the late fifties
and early sixties. Clampett was with Warner Brothers in the early days, and if you watch his old Looney Tunes and
Merrie Melodies shorts, they have a frenzied style and distortion to them that later became a huge influence on the
likes of John Kricfalusi, creator of Ren and Stimpy. Amid Amidi found an interview with John K on the CBC
Television site, in which John K (a Flash-animated version anyway) talks about why the 70s and 80s were a horrible time
for cartoons, and why Bob Clampett was one of the best animators to ever work in the business. Amidi, rightly so,
points out that it's more than a little ironic to watch a poorly-drawn John K lamenting over the fact that no one can
draw anymore. I would add that this lack of "craft" has also spilled over into other mediums, like comic strips.Amid Amidi speaks to TV Squad
I'm a great admirer of Looney Tunes and animation from that era, so it's no
surprise that I found Amid Amidi's blog about style and design in
1950s animation to be quite interesting. He also has a new book, Cartoon Modern: Style and Design
in Fifties Animation which comes out this year. Amidi has written extensively on animation and design for
several publications, and in 2003 he worked on Ren and Stimpy: Adult Party Cartoon for Spike TV. Given the
opportunity to speak with someone who has worked in the industry and who has a knowledge far exceeding my own, I asked
Amid to sit down for a brief e-mail confab. Here's what we talked about:
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