Follow the ‘More’ link for information about a new animated series premiering tonight on Comedy Central called Shorties Watchin’ Shorties. Thanks to Kristin for the heads up.

{{link http://money.cnn.com/2004/04/28/news/fortune500/comcast/index.htm CNN}} is reporting that Comcast has officially dropped its bid to acquire Walt Disney Company. Comcast CEO Brian Roberts “put the reason for the dropped offer at the feet of Disney’s management, including embattled CEO Michael Eisner, who received the backing of Disney’s board of directors Tuesday”. Roberts said, “It has become clear […]

Two actors on PBS’ long running children’s show \\Sesame Street\\ are in the news this week. {{link http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,118125,00.html FOX News}} reports that Alison Bartlett, who has played Gina on the show for the past 18 years, is also playing a part in HBO’s \\The Sopranos\\. “Even in a profession with vertigo-inducing character switches, Bartlett’s feat […]

{{link http://www.milestonefilms.com/movie.php/winsor/ Milestone Films}} continues their great exploration of early animation with Winsor McCay: The Master Edition, an upgrade to the currently available collection of the pioneer’s works. {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/news/562 DVD Toons}} has the full specs for this new release, due on June 1st, with audio commentary from John Canemaker as well as his 20-minute […]

Springing from the Batman universe, Halle Berry is set to step into the Catwoman role in a film widely regarded as terrible even before it’s been released! Coming Soon presents the {{link http://www.comingsoon.net/news.php?id=4433 latest poster}} in the ever-changing campaign that Warner Brothers is desperately using to try and gain fan support, while the site also […]

The Internet Movie Database reveals that the Walt Disney Company moved its annual board meeting, which was held this past Monday, from Anaheim to its Burbank headquarters. This act shocked reporters who had been expecting the meeting to be held at an Anaheim hotel, near the Disneyland theme park. Today’s edition of the Los Angeles […]

Over at {{link http://www.cartoonbrew.com/ Cartoon Brew}}, Amid Amidi has posted a look at some upcoming animation books he’d love to own, including The Art Of The Incredibles, a 160 page tome set to retail at $40. Cartoon Brew says August for the book (cover on the right), but {{link http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0811844331/qid=1083075969/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/102-4687562-8010520?v=glance&s=books&n=507846 Amazon.com}} is listing a November […]

Following the Dark Horizons {{link http://www.animatedviews.com/wp-content/uploads/archives/00001356.html story}} that Universal’s adaptation of Mike Kunkel’s Herobear And The Kid comic books had been cancelled, we have had word from someone who was at last weekend’s Atlanta Comicon, where Kunkel was also present. “After I was done praising his artwork and imagination, I asked him about the Herobear […]

The characters of ABC’s George Lopez are going to Disneyland, in this Friday’s episode. The episode’s synopsis is, “George reluctantly agrees to reward Max with a trip to Disneyland for improving his grades, but makes up an excuse to get out of going to the park with his family. When guilt finally gets the best […]

The \\{{link http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/tourism/orl-asecdisney26042604apr26,0,542839.story?coll=orl-home-headlines Orlando Sentinel}}\\ reports that at Disney’s annual retreat for board members at Disneyland today, the directors are expected to discuss a succession plan for CEO Michael Eisner. “The question of who will succeed Eisner and when has long been a concern among investors. But the matter has gained added weight after last […]

Independent studio WhooHoo Pictures’ first film is out in selected theaters around the country, and coming to DVD “soon”. Rex Steele is a stereotypical war hero who fights Nazis around the world with the help of his sexy sidekick Penny Thimble. The movie is Alex Woo’s first film, after winning the Russell Hexter Filmmaker Award […]

\\{{link http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/25/movies/25MITC.html New York Times}}\\ film critic Elvis Mitchell looks at the trend toward computer animation and how it fits into the history of film making. “Every few decades an entire field of filmmaking ends because of a single technical innovation. \\The Jazz Singer\\ finished off silents by popularizing synchronized-sound movies. The introduction of Technicolor […]

In its continuing series highlighting short films, {{link http://mag.awn.com/index.php?ltype=pageone&article_no=2076 AWN}} reviews \\Annie & Boo\\ by Johannes Weiland, \\The God\\ by Konstantin Broinzit, \\Hike, Hike, Hike\\ by Anouck Iyer, \\Delivery\\ by Patrick Smith, and \\Pavlov’s Bell\\ by Evan Mather. The article also includes clips form each film.

{{link http://www.playbill.com/news/article/85599.html Playbill Online}} notes that the Broadway stage version of \\Beauty and the Beast\\ celebrated two milestones last week. On April 18th, the show celebrated its tenth year on Broadway. On April 21st, the show passed \\Miss Saigon\\ to become the sixth longest running musical in Broadway history.

According to {{link http://forum.bcdb.com/gforum.cgi?post=24434 The Big Cartoon Database}}, Australian animator Adam Elliot, who surprised a lot of people by winning the Animated Short Oscar for \\Harvie Krumpet\\, has had many offers from American companies who want him to come work for them – but he has turned them all down. “Winning an Oscar has reminded […]

The Graphic Arts Council of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, with the Consulate General of Spain, is proud to present an evening of celebration of surrealist artist Salvador Dali, on Tuesday, 11 May 2004, the anniversary of Dali’s 100th birthday. The evening will include a screening and discussion of Destino and Dali, moderated […]

In a round-up of dealings and developments at Universal, the {{link http://www.darkhorizons.com/news04/040423i.php Dark Horizons}} website is listing Herobear And The Kid, based on Mike Kunkel’s comic books, as being “dead”. The film was supposed to have had a 2005 release, though it appears that the studio is putting all of its energy behind its Curious […]

Floyd Bishop, who as we {{link http://www.animatedviews.com/wp-content/uploads/archives/00001280.html recently reported}} is creating his own animated film for kids after becoming dismayed with the “junk that passes for educational or entertainment nowadays”, is progressing with the film nicely. Check out {{link http://www.bishopanimation.com/images/Devon_beauty.jpg Devon The Magician}}, the first character from Paul And His Bananas to come through the […]

Don’t worry! The image on the right is not the new direction that Disney is taking their evergreen mascot, but as the {{link http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/18/movies/18GREE.html?ex=1083470400&en=f9729def6c7309a0&ei=5006&partner=ALTAVISTA1 New York Times}} (free subscription required) reports, the company is having trouble finding a vital role for Mickey to play in this day and age. The sketch here comes from Nick […]

{{link http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=17415 Ain’t It Cool News}} is back with its latest run-down on all things animated from Japan, including the status of Howl’s Moving Castle and news of the Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex TV series, which recently made its debut on Japanese television and will begin airing in the US on Cartoon […]

Box Office Report‘s early estimates show that Home on the Range fell 41% this weekend, remaining in 5th place with $3.2 million and giving the traditionally animated film a total box office gross of $42.2 million. Meanwhile, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed scared up around $3.0 million and landed in 7th place for the weekend, […]

{{link http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/news/local/8498375.htm Harry Holt}}, a Disney animator who began at the studio in 1936 as an apprentice and quickly worked his way to playing a role in the development of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs has died aged 93, in Casselberry. He left Disney’s after production of Lady And The Tramp (1955) and worked […]

As Miyazaki’s next, highly anticipated movie comes closer to release, more and more images are beginning to surface around the web. ‘WolfTooth’ in the {{link http://animation.skyblueproductions.net/showthread.php?s=&postid=2185#post2185 Animated News Forum}} links to one such page, which features first look pictures of Howl and old Sophie.

Special Ops Media, a promotional agency based in New York, have on behalf of DreamWorks let us know that Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence has been selected to compete for the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes International Film Festival. This is the first time ever that this honor has been extended to an […]

Getta load of the artwork, specs, extras and menu shots for the WB’s Batman The Animated Series: Volume One 4-disc set, and their 2-disc Challenge of the Superfriends: The First Season DVD collectors’ edition, both scheduled for release on July 6, over at {{link http://www.dvdtoons.com/news/560 DVD Toons}}. The site also has a look at {{link […]

\\Clifford’s Really Big Movie\\ opens in select cities today – on 471 screens according to {{link http://boxofficemojo.com/counts/chart/?yr=2004&wk=17&p=.ht Box Offcie Mojo}} (see the {{link http://www.scholastic.com/clifford/movie/ official website}} for a list and more info about the film). While many critics at {{link http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/CliffordsReallyBigMovie-1130818/ Rotten Tomatoes}} are panning the film, most are judging it from an adult point […]

{{link http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hp&cf=prev&id=1808405700&intl=us Greg’s Previews}} reports that Walt Disney Pictures has set November 4, 2005, as the release date of \\Cars\\, the last film in the Disney/Pixar partnership. Greg adds that the choice of that date could be “a direct challenge to Universal’s \\Curious George\\, which is old-fashioned ‘traditional’ 2-D animation instead of 3-D CGI. Will […]

The Orange County Register has a new article on legendary voice actor Paul Frees, who provided the vocal characterizations for the Haunted Mansion’s Ghost Host, the Pillsbury Doughboy, Boris Badenov, Ludwig von Drake, the Burgermeister from Santa Claus is Coming to Town, George of the Jungle’s ape friend, and many others. The article functions mainly […]

The {{link http://www.darkhorizons.com/news04/040421e.php Dark Horizons}} site states that “Fox is considering cancelling The Simpsons. The voice-cast has walked out in order to demand more money. Fox has enough episodes to bring it through January 2005. They’re also considering re-casting the show”. The site’s source is this article from {{link http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2004-04-18-simpsons-main_x.htm USA Today}} which explores some […]

{{link http://www.dvdanswers.com/index.php?r=0&s=1&c=3805&n=1&burl= DVD Answers}} features a first look at the cover and disc art for Spider-Man: The ’67 Classic Collection. No news on extras yet, but the set is due for release on 29th June and will set you back around $59.99.