To open the pages of THE HANNA-BARBERA TREASURY is to revisit a source of joy in your childhood: the cartoons created and produced by Bill Hanna and Joseph Barbera, which include decades-thriving favorites as THE FLINTSTONES, SCOOBY-DOO, TOM & JERRY and many, many more.
Written by animation historian Jerry Beck, this coffee-table book from Insight Editions is a visual feast and a must for anyone who grew up taking in these shows on Saturday mornings and weekday afternoons.
After a brief introduction — the first eight paragraphs of which are mistakenly printed twice — that covers the Hanna-Barbera Studios’ history and a look at the various voice talents, Beck proceeds chronologically through the H-B oeuvre, granting a chapter to a select show, moving from the early days of HUCKLEBERRY HOUND and YOGI BEAR to latter-day faves like JONNY QUEST and WACKY RACES. He covers many, but not all, so completists need not go thumbing through for the likes of RUBIK, THE AMAZING CUBE.
These chapters are just heavy enough on text to give the particulars on how the show came to be, what it was like and how it was received. Beck offers bits of trivia throughout; for instance, did you know THE JETSONS only lasted 24 episodes? But the real appeal in each chapter aren’t the words at all, but the pictures; each chapter is filled with rare art that bleeds off every page. There are storyboards, sketches, animation tests, painted cels and pieces of merchandising, from coloring books and comic books to games, toys and more.
While that would be all fine and good, Insight makes the TREASURY even more special by packing it with actual treasures stuffed inside glued-in envelopes or adhering directly to the page. Among other treats, there’s a cel from THE RUFF AND REDDY SHOW, sample game pages from activity books, a mini reprint Yogi Bear coloring book from 1962, 18 perforated gum cards with the likes of Quick Draw McGraw and Augie Doggie, sample Flintstones playing cards, paper masks of Snagglepuss and friends, two Gold Key comic book reprints of Magilla Gorilla and Lippy the Lion, a storyboard flip-book from FRANKENSTEIN JR. and trading cards of Space Ghost.
Your kids would be thrilled mining all these goodies, but with a book this nice, why risk them ripping it? Have them save their allowance to buy their own damn copy. —Rod Lott
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
(Assuming extremely annoying Pedantic Geek Asshole voice)
“Uh, Rod, Rubik was produced by Ruby-Spears, so there’s no reason why it would be mentioned in a book about Hanna-Barbara…. I mean, sheesh, who doesn’t know that?”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik,_the_Amazing_Cube
At one point, H-B’s PAC-MAN was paired with RUBIK in a one-hour show co-produced by R-S. Separately, the RUBIK show is mentioned in a timeline at the back of the book, but that’s it. No color spread kneeling at the altar of short-lived cartoons based on toys for nerds. Like me.
You win this round, Lott, but we shall meet again!