Originally envisioned as an obscure one-shot villain slated to appear in a solitary episode, Harley Quinn’s trajectory shifted dramatically due to the rapid attachment people developed for her, largely propelled by Arlene Sorkin’s portrayal. This portrayal depicted a woman who succumbed to insanity through love, and many resonated with her, recognizing her as a character trapped in a toxic relationship yet striving to endure it.
IDW Games’ Adventures Universal Game System (AUGS) is getting a Bat-themed entry…with your support. Batman: The Animated Series Adventures – Shadow of the Bat is currently running its Kickstarter campaign, and it smashed its goal with 20 days to spare.
I had the great pleasure of meeting my newest interview subject, Loretta Swit, at the Chiller Theatre convention in October of 2018. She was a very kind woman to meet, and was even okay with taking multiple pictures to make sure we looked good. I mentioned to her that I knew her publicist Harlan Boll, who set up my interviews in 2017 with Rip Taylor and Judy Tenuta and my interview earlier this year with Dee Wallace. I knew that Loretta Swit would make for a fascinating interview subject, and we spoke on Monday, November 26th about not only her acting, but her artwork and animal activism as well. We covered a lot of ground, so let’s jump right in.
My newest interview subject, Tom Ruegger, is an animation legend. Whether at Warner Brothers, Hanna-Barbera or Disney, Tom Ruegger has worked on some of the most memorable cartoons of the last 4 decades. On August 28th, I had the chance to speak to Mr. Ruegger about some of his most noted work, including three series that are celebrating anniversaries this year. 2018 marks the 30th anniversary of “A Pup Named Scooby-Doo”, which was produced at Hanna-Barbera as shown in the cover photo of Tom, William and Joe, the 25th anniversary of “Animaniacs”, e, and the 20th anniversary of “Histeria”. We discussed all that and more, so get set to spend some time with an animation superstar.
When people talk about some of the greatest animated series ever to exist, one of the ones that’s always at the top of the conversation is Batman: The Animated Series. While this technically wasn’t the first Batman cartoon, and certainly not the last, it was most definitely the best, and still remains a staple of how to blend visuals, voice acting, and epic stories all into a 23-episode story. The impact of this show led to the creation of spinoffs like Superman TAS as well as two Justice League cartoons.
Batman: The Animated Series is considered one of (if not the) greatest animated adaptation of a comic book property ever. In fact, it was this cartoon that kickstarted the DC Animated universe, which would include Superman TAS, Batman Beyond, Static Shock, Teen Titans, and of course, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. And yet, even with all those other series, Batman TAS is still considered the bar.
Pretty much everything that you can print Batman on has been sold already, including several variations of a Batman card game…but wheover created THIS one, I have to tip my metaphorical hat to. They knew what they were doing.
My first exposure to Kimmy Robertson’s work came as a young Disney fan. In 1989, I saw Honey, I Shrunk The Kids, where Kimmy played Gloria Forrester, and that was followed by seeing The Little Mermaid and Beauty And The Beast in theaters. In the former, Kimmy voiced one of Ariel’s sisters, and in the latter, she voiced Fifi (often incorrectly called Babette in current merchandise), one of the many enchanted objects in The Beast’s castle. As I grew older, I saw her as Rose in The Last American Virgin, another movie I came to admire very much after having some initial worries about the picture. I first introduced myself to Kimmy on Facebook in 2013, and I had the great pleasure of interviewing her on March 1st, 2016. I hope you all enjoy getting to know her as well as I did.
On September 5 of this year, BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES will be celebrating its tenth anniversary of production. This ranges everywhere from the show itself to the comics based upon it to books, toys, video games, merchandising…everything started on this date.
On September 5 of this year, BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES will be celebrating its tenth anniversary of production. This ranges everywhere from the show itself to the comics based upon it to books, toys, video games, merchandising…everything started on this date.