Woody Woodpecker

Woody Woodpecker is an animated cartoon character who appears in short films produced by the Walter Lantz animation studio and distributed by Universal Studios. Though not the first of the "screwball" characters that became popular in the 1940s, Woody is perhaps the most indicative of the type. Though less popular today, Woody Woodpecker cartoons are still seen frequently in television syndication. He has a motion picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 7000 Hollywood Blvd.

Woody on television

As Lantz was struggling financially, Woody's longevity was secured when he made the jump to television in The Woody Woodpecker Show on ABC. The half-hour program consisted of three theatrical Woody shorts followed by a brief look at cartoon creation hosted by Lantz. It ran from 1957 to 1958 then entered syndication until 1966, only to be revived by NBC in 1970. NBC forced Lantz to edit out much of the violence of the cartoons, which Lantz did reluctantly. Woody continued to appear in new theatrical shorts until 1972, when Lantz closed his studio's doors due to rising production costs. His cartoons returned to syndication in the late 1970s.

Related Topics:
ABC - 1957 - 1958 - 1966 - NBC - 1970 - 1972 - 1970s

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Lantz sold his library of Woody shorts to MCA/Universal in 1985. Universal repackaged the cartoons for another syndicated Woody Woodpecker show in 1988. Woody Woodpecker reappared in the Fox series, The New Woody Woodpecker Show which ran from 1999 to 2002. The series featured the first new Woody cartoons to be produced in over 20 years. Woody's voice is now provided by voice actor Billy West. The original Woody Woodpecker Show also continues to run in syndication.

Related Topics:
MCA/Universal - 1985 - 1988 - Fox - The New Woody Woodpecker Show - 1999 - 2002 - Voice actor - Billy West

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~