Here come ‘The Jetsons,’ ‘Jonny Quest’
Forty-two years after The Jetsons jetted onto TV screens, the durable ’60s animated series is now on DVD.
So is the Saturday-morning boomer favorite Jonny Quest. The Jetsons’ Stone Age cousins, The Flintstones, TV’s first prime-time animated series, came out in March.
Animation has always been popular on DVD, and just as the studios have mined their classic live-action TV archives for favorite series to package for hungry DVD collectors, now they are looking for animated shorts, TV series and other cartoon classics to sell.
Next week, four more in the Walt Disney Treasures series will be released, including Mickey Mouse In Living Color Vol. II, The Chronological Donald, Walt Disney on the Front Lines and Walt Disney’s Tomorrowland ($32.99 each)
Last year, the number of cartoon DVD collections released rose to 34 from 21 in 2002, says Ralph Tribbey, editor of the DVD Release Report. And so far this year, with 14 already released, cartoon collections are ahead of last year’s release rate.
With classic cartoons, “there are at least two generations of cartoon fans who can’t find any of this on the air anymore,” says movie historian Leonard Maltin, who serves as a host on the four new Disney releases. “And while (the studios) may have traditionally thought of these as kids’ entertainment, there is now a big following among adults and young adults.”
More classics on the way:
ïDC Comics Classic Collection, arriving July 6, includes the four-disc Batman: The Animated Series ó Volume One ($49.98) and Challenge of the Super Friends: The First Season ($29.98), featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman and others from 1978.
ïSpider-Man: The ’67 Collection (Buena Vista Home Entertainment, June 29, $60), a six-disc collection of 52 episodes.
Look for more DVD titles from the Hanna-Barbera library, which includes Huckleberry Hound, Tom & Jerry, Josie and the Pussycats and Yogi Bear. “Parents grew up with these great evergreen properties, and the story lines still resonate today,” says Warner’s Mike Saksa. “They are introducing their children to them because it’s such high-quality entertainment and not as edgy as much of what is on TV these days.”
The success of newer animated series has paved the way for the return of the classics. The Simpsons’ fourth-season collection is due on DVD June 15 ($49.98). And Comedy Central’s South Park and Fox’s Futurama and Family Guy have sold millions (but below The Simpsons’ level). Sales of Family Guy even led Fox to decide to resurrect the series next year after canceling it two years ago.
“We know that TV on DVD is highly collectible, and there’s no reason to believe that these cartoon TV releases won’t find sweet spots, too,” says Video Store magazine’s Judith McCourt.
Even Disney underestimated the success of classic animation. The studio released only 150,000 copies of its first Treasures collections, which included Mickey Mouse In Living Color (cartoons from 1935-38), and all sold out. This time around, as many as 500,000 copies will be made of some of the collections.
“We knew we would get the collectors, but we didn’t realize we would get as many families buying them,” says the studio’s Lori MacPherson. “The great thing about DVD is it has got people interested in owning programs they would not have considered before.”
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