Cartoons Can Be Lucrative

I recently saw an article about the richest people in the comedy industry. Some were obvious, like Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, David Letterman, etc. But many of them were people who have made a fortune in animation. Matt Stone and Trey Parker (South Park creators) are worth a staggering $700 million and $600 million respectively. The Simpsons and Futurama creator, Matt Groening, is worth $600 million. Seth MacFarlane, creator of Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show is worth $300 million. Here is a list of a few full length animated shows.

The Flintsones (1960)

The Jetsons (1962)

The Simpsons (1989)

Doug (1991)

Rugrats (1991)

Ren and Stimpy (1991)

Rocko's Modern Life (1993)

Beavis and Butthead (1993)

The Critic (1994)

Dr. Katz (1995)

Hey Arnold! (1996)

Dexter's Laboratory (1996)

King of the Hill (1997)

Daria (1997)

South Park (1997)

Futurama (1999)

Home Movies (1999)

Family Guy (1999)

Mission Hill (1999)

Sponge Bob Square Pants (1999)

Baby Blues (2000)

Aqua Teen Hunger Foce (2000)

Drawn Together (2004)

American Dad (2005)

Bob's Burgers (2011)

Brickleberry (2012)

Rick and Morty (2013)

BoJack Horseman (2014)

The Letterman Podcast

If you're a fan of late night TV, and especially David Letterman, I'd highly recommend The Letterman Podcast. They just marked the release of their 100th episode, which consists of a 4-part compilation, looking back on the best moments of the podcast. This podcast is relaeased on Fridays, and sometimes bonus episodes will come out earlier in the week. The host is Mike Chisholm, who is from British Columbia, Canada. He has endless enthusiasm and passion for all things Letterman. I may be a bit biased toward this show, since I have been a guest on two occassions. I have always been a geek who is obsessed with television, especially the late night shows. I love finding people who are as passionate about these type of shows as I am. This show is special since it explores everything about Letterman's career, from the morning show, the NBC Late Night show and the CBS Late Show. Some impressive names have appeared on this show, such as bandleader Paul Shaffer, and comedians Jeff Altman, Dick Cavett and Tom Dreesen. Band members Will Lee, Felicia Collins and Tom "Bones" Malone have also appeared on the podcast. Some of the best guests have been the behind-the-scenes people who worked on Letterman's shows. Producers, writers, a camera operator, a costume designer, a CBS executive, a comedy booker, a promotions director, a technical director, a special effects worker and a graphic artist have been interviewed on the show. Hello Deli owner and frequest Letterman character Rupert Jee appeared on the show. This podcast is the best way to delve into the precise details of David Letterman and how his show operated on a daily basis. This show ran like a well-oiled machine. People who worked on the show were at the highest level of their careers.

The Critic

There are a few animated series that I enjoy, such as The Simpsons, Futurama, South Park, Beavis and Butthead, Daria, Family Guy, etc. I discovered that the Tubi streaming service has a program I had not watched in years, but used to enjoy, The Critic. The main character is a New York City film critic (Jay Sherman) with his own cable TV show, voiced by Jon Lovitz of SNL fame. His catchphrase was “It stinks!” The show lampooned actors and the film industry. Jay Sherman is a loveable loser who has challenges with his personal life. He has a tyrannical media mogul boss who was based on Ted Turner. In 1994-95, the show aired on ABC, then Fox, then Comedy Central for a total of 23 episodes. The final 10 episodes were put on a website called atomfilms.com in 2000-01. The Critic spoofed films such as Howard’s End, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, Apocalypse Now, The Lion King, The Godfather, Arthur and more. This show would be enjoyed by film fans, and Siskel and Ebert guest starred in an episode. The duo gave the show a lukewarm review. Film critics Rex Reed and Gene Shalit also played themselves. The show was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who were also the primary writers. These two have an impressive comedy resume. They wrote for Johnny Carson and The Simpsons. Like many successful comedy writers at the highest level, they went to Harvard. Some people from The Simpsons provided voices for The Critic (such as Nancy Cartwright, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Doris Grau etc). This show was the voice acting debut for Billy Crystal. Later, he did voice work for Pixar films Monsters Inc and Cars. Park Overall from the show Empty Nest provided the voice of Jay’s girlfriend Alice. The Critic was intended as a love letter to New York City. Ironically, it did better ratings-wise in the Midwest than New York or other major cities. The show was never a smash hit but achieved a cult status. *Some information from imdb and wikipedia.

Looking Back on Eight is Enough

Recently we "cut the cord" and got rid of cable stations other than local TV. I discovered the wide array of programming via Tubi, which is a free service with lots of programming, especially classic TV. I saw they had the show Eight is Enough (ABC, 1977-1981), which I only watched sparingly as a kid. It's a show I have rarely seen in syndication. I dicovered I liked it since it had good characters and storylines. It was a show with a mixture of comedy and drama. It starred Dick Van Patten as the family patriarch, Tom Bradford, who worked as a newspaper columnist in Sacramento, California. Van Patten passed in 2015. Diana Hyland was the original wife, but she only shot 4 episodes, and passed away. Betty Buckley as Abby Bradford replaced her and was in 102 episodes, all but the first 10. Abby was a tutor for son Tommy when he got injured in season 2. Betty has been a successful Broadway star, winning a Tony. The family had 8 kids, 5 girls and 3 boys. Most of the actors who played the 8 kids did not have memorable roles after leaving this show. The oldest was David Bradford, originally played by Mark Hammill, who was only in the first episode, he left since he did Star Wars. The night the pilot aired, Mark Hammill was involved in a serious auto accident where he sustained serious facial injuries. Therefore, he quit the show. The role of David Bradford was taken over by Grant Goodeve. His character had already moved out of the house from the beginning and had his own apartment. In the late seasons, the theme song was written and sung by Grant Goodeve. Lani O’Grady played Mary Bradford, (died in 2001 of a drug overdose). Susan Richardson played Susan Bradford, (she appeared in the film American Graffiti (1973). She has struggled with health and financial challenges. Laurie Walters played Joanie Bradford, Dianne Kay played Nancy Bradford, Connie Needham played Elizabeth Bradford, and Willie Aames played Tommy Bradford, (was in the sitcom Charles in Charge with Scott Baio, 1984-1990, 126 episodes). Adam Rich played the youngest in the family, Nicholas Bradford. (died in 2023 of a drug overdose). For the first four seasons, they tried to give the eight kids an equal amount of lines. But, certain kids became popular, such as Willie Aames in later seasons, so he got more lines. Grant Goodeve, Lani O’Grady and Susan Richardson saw their roles get smaller and smaller. The final season had Ralph Macchio (Karate Kid, The Outsiders and Cobra Kai) in 19 episodes. Two Eight is Enough reunion movies aired in 1987 and 1989. *Some information from imdb.com.