Paramount's History with Cartoons (Part 1)
Background
Paramount+, the upcoming streaming service from ViacomCBS, launches in 13 days as of the time of this article's release. So far, reception towards the new service — a rebrand of the 6-year-old CBS All Access — has been mixed.
A large issue with Paramount+ (according to many people) is that ViacomCBS's library isn't large enough or recognizable to constitute an entire service. Most promotion seems to focus on brands pulled from Nickelodeon, including several SpongeBob SquarePants projects, classic programming from the network's golden age, and the upcoming revival of iCarly.
With all of this discussion, I think it's time to talk about why the Paramount movie studio wasted the chance of gaining a niche audience for Paramount+. How so, you ask?
Well, Paramount Pictures was a prominent producer of theatrical animated shorts during the 1920s and through the 1960s, much like its competitors (Disney, Warner Bros., Columbia, etc.) Unfortunately, they've done everything in their power to erase their cartoon past. This two-part article aims to inform those about their Golden Age filmography, in addition to explaining why much of it isn't available in quality condition.
The History of Fleischer Studios
In 1926, Paramount Pictures struck a deal with Fleischer Studios — a company ran by brothers Max & Dave — to distribute their cartoons into theaters. Some of the Fleischers’ work included Song Car-Tunes (a series of sing-along shorts that served as a precursor to karaoke) an original character called Koko the Clown.
The format of Song Car-Tunes was carried over to a new series called Screen Songs. Premiering around the same time were Talkartoons, one-shot stories that served as starring vehicles for Max Fleischer's characters, such as Bimbo the Dog and Koko the Clown. However, it was a 1930 short titled Dizzy Dishes that gave birth to one of the biggest icons in animation: Betty Boop.
As Betty gained her own series and the Screen Songs grew more popular, the Fleischers expanded into color animation with Color Classics, a successor of sorts to Talkartoons.
In 1933, Paramount and Fleischer Studios gained licensing rights to E.C. Segar's comic strip character Popeye the Sailor. With a Betty Boop short serving as a backdoor pilot, the Popeye series quickly became Fleischer's champion, both in black-and-white and in color.
Unfortunately, this success came with a cost. By the late 30s and early 40s, the studio was falling apart for several reasons, including shaky attempts at making feature films, relocating its headquarters from New York City to Miami, unsuccessful new series (except for a comic-to-screen adaptation of Superman), and the relationship between Max and Dave beginning to deteriorate.
Eventually, Paramount gained total ownership of Fleischer Studios in 1941, and by the following year, had gotten rid of Max and Dave entirely. The company was renamed Famous Studios after the ordeal.
TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 2...
