Creaky Jeep 06
New member
Ninety years ago today, a cartoon was released called Feline Follies, following the story of a black cat named Master Tom, who later came to be known as Felix the Cat.
Felix the Cat became the first real cartoon celebrity and the first with a real personality. Before this, there were few actual characters, and most shorts were just experimental stuff (such as Gertie the Dinosaur), but Felix broke the mold and put theatrical shorts on the map.
He was everywhere in the early 20's, appearing as the first licensed Macy's balloon character, getting his own comic strip...heck, he even appeared alongside Charlie Chaplin.
When the sound era rolled along, Felix's silly silent antics were quickly overshadowed by Mickey Mouse's noise and he faded into obscurity...
Then, in the era of 50's television, Felix was brought back with full force in arguably his most remembered incarnation, as a hero with a magic "bag of tricks" at his disposal. He was now up against the Professor, a mad scientist who was determined to get the bag of tricks no matter what.
Once more, Felix disappeared, and wouldn't be revived again until 1991, with a film version 30 years after the TV series ended. This was, as you can see, a continuation of that incarnation, setting Felix, alongside the Professor and his nephew Poindexter, up against an army of robots invading a kingdom.
Despite appearing in a mid-90's CBS cartoon and in an anime series as a baby, this movie was the last big Felix project. It's been apparent over the years that Felix isn't nearly as well respected as other theatrical cartoon characters, but he is still the original poster child for the short industry, the one who made animated cartoons popular to the public.
Thus, I'd like to wish a happy 90th birthday to Felix the Cat, with a wish that he may one day spring back into the spotlight as a star.
Felix the Cat became the first real cartoon celebrity and the first with a real personality. Before this, there were few actual characters, and most shorts were just experimental stuff (such as Gertie the Dinosaur), but Felix broke the mold and put theatrical shorts on the map.
He was everywhere in the early 20's, appearing as the first licensed Macy's balloon character, getting his own comic strip...heck, he even appeared alongside Charlie Chaplin.
When the sound era rolled along, Felix's silly silent antics were quickly overshadowed by Mickey Mouse's noise and he faded into obscurity...
Then, in the era of 50's television, Felix was brought back with full force in arguably his most remembered incarnation, as a hero with a magic "bag of tricks" at his disposal. He was now up against the Professor, a mad scientist who was determined to get the bag of tricks no matter what.
Once more, Felix disappeared, and wouldn't be revived again until 1991, with a film version 30 years after the TV series ended. This was, as you can see, a continuation of that incarnation, setting Felix, alongside the Professor and his nephew Poindexter, up against an army of robots invading a kingdom.
Despite appearing in a mid-90's CBS cartoon and in an anime series as a baby, this movie was the last big Felix project. It's been apparent over the years that Felix isn't nearly as well respected as other theatrical cartoon characters, but he is still the original poster child for the short industry, the one who made animated cartoons popular to the public.
Thus, I'd like to wish a happy 90th birthday to Felix the Cat, with a wish that he may one day spring back into the spotlight as a star.
