WARNER BROS STUDIO STORES AND THEIR CARTOON CHARACTER BEAN PLUSHES BASED ON HANNA BARBERA CARTOON CHARACTERS

WARNER BROS STUDIO STORES AND THEIR CARTOON CHARACTER BEAN PLUSHES BASED ON HANNA BARBERA CARTOON CHARACTERS

WARNER Bros Studio Stores opened in 1991 and sadly was closed in 2001 AOL had a merger with Time Warner and liquidated the stores and inventory-as a good business move or just for AOL profiting from the sale is a toss-up. Disney has some too but that’s another blog. You also find some DC Comics characters too.

I seem to either have arrested development or the kid in me (is larger than I believe) but have always enjoyed cartoons, there we always an escape and let your imagination loose and let you suspend your disbelief. So I have always collected a cartoon character item, be it a figure, toy, decal anything resembling any of my favorite characters.

In 1998 and 1999 Warner Bros Studio Stores produced both superhero, looney tunes and Hanna Barbera bean plushes (Turner merged with Time-Warner hence Turner owning Hanna-Barbera explains why those cartoon character ware created) surprising well done and abundantly detailed and larger than life colors.

Many cool and somewhat obscure cartoon character were now available, such as Top Cat, Space Ghost and Hong Kong Phoney among others from Hanna-Barbera.

Top Cat was introduced in 1961 and had a run of about 30 shows, or rather episodes. Interestingly enough, Top Cat was a clever and quite Manhatten streetwise hustler, with a little cabal of loyal followers who were given the honor of calling him TC being in the inner circle. Truly peppered with the streetwise felines with a myriad of get-rich-quick scams and oddball schemes. Office Dribble being the beat cop who was always a fly in the ointment when the TOP Hat gang was pulling off some oddball shenanigans.

TC’s crew was Benny the Ball, Brain, Spook, Fancy-Fancy, and Choo-Choo.

And the cool line from the theme-song “pro-vi-ding it’s with dignity” and you will notice the roots of Top Cat came from “The Phil Silvers Show”.

Chopper the Bulldog, the hero of Yakky Doodle from Fibber Fox. Introduced with Yakky Doodles own segment on Yogi Bear in 1961. His famous line is “Now, ain’t that cute”! Yakky is a duckling with green wings who lives with his best friend Chopper. Now Chopper protects Yakky from the various great danger the duckling get into and Chopper never criticizes Yakky, one could glean from the fondness of Yakky's protective role.

Wally Gator wearing his pork pie hat and collar introduced in 1962 with 52 episodes.  is stuck in the zoo and he has many outrageous and sadly unsuccessful tries at trying to escape, free for a little time but always back in the zoo. Mr. Twiddle as zookeeper always keeps Wally Gator in his sights to stop and retrieve Wally Gator when Wally’s escapes become a reality and wally checks out thing in the outside world. Oddly either someone returns Wally or Wally comes back himself with seems to be a quiet commentary on keeping the status quo.

The famous theme song was always highlighted by the line “swingin’ alligator of the swamp”.

Hong Kong Phooey is a crime fighter, first introduced in 1974, with 16 episodes. Working at a police station using the secret identity of Penrod “Penry” Pooch as a zany somewhat clumsy timid janitor Sergeant Flint always keeping an eye on Phooey. Done during the era as a parody of the movies and kung fu shows. His famous disguise is Hong Kong Phooey. Equipped with his Phooeymobile which he jumps into when he first gets into a cabinet to change into his outfit, and there a cat, Spot who always plays with keeping Hong Kong stuck in the cabinet at times. The Phooeymoble can metamorphize itself into a boat, plane telephone booth, whatever is needed. And uses the Hong Kong Book of Kung FU.

While his heart is in the right place he has a tendency to mess up his plans to help and is saved by Spot the cat many times.

Squiddly Diddly was introduced in 1965 on the Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show. An octopus, rather than a squid with six tentacles as opposed to eight but always with a cool sailor hat. An aquatic park called Bubbleland and in captivity in a pool with his namesake. An aspiring musician his attempts (and successful at times)  at making his way out of Bubbleland and to follow his quest to become a musical star. His nemesis Chief Winchley the Bubbleland administrator. It seems for Squiddly the outside world seems far too rough, even when people truly enjoy his musical talents, there are too many who believe that octopuses are hostile and are more frightened and panic-stricken. There are times also where Squiddly and Chief Winchley work in tandem to resolve difficulties in Bubbleland.

Huckleberry Hound who was always a shade of blue, with a slight southern drawl. Huck was first aired in 1958, with a voice reminiscent of Andy Griffith (Hanna-Barbera loved using parodies voices of known celebrities), but this was years before Andy Griffith became famous. always calm and kind with a considerate heart. And too won an Emmy award. Generally Huck was in each episode trying to carry out various jobs in different areas of work, however in each field, Huck endeavored in, there was always a snafu and yet through utter luck of mere persistence, Huck would come out of it well. Imagine virtually every field Huck tried, cook, cowboy, lion tamer, farmer and in Hucks words “stuff like that there!”. Huck faced an array of villains or more antagonists such as Powerful Pierre a big dude with a French accent,, Dinky Dalton a rock em sock em western outlaw and Crazy Coyote, a Native American who was his match. There were two crows with mafia-mob accents who annoyed farmer Huck. A running joke was actually one of Hucks trademarks, being tone deaf and with a quite questionable version of ‘Oh My Darling Clementine. Interestingly enough a new character who had a supporting part became even a larger cartoon legend, your smarter than average Yogi Bear