Another channel bites the dust, as Universal Kids gets ready to say goodbye

 Chalk it up to the law of diminishing returns.

Universal Kids, which began life as Sprout, a children's network that was launched by PBS, will say goodbye in March.

Currently, Universal Kids doesn't have a lot of original programming (sound familiar?), with only a handful of shows on the roster. Relaunches of Woody Woodpecker and Inspector Gadget, for example, didn't get very far.

This all began with Spectrum Cable's decision to drop the fading channel March 6. NBC-Universal-Comcast decided that there was no use in fighting that, and capitulated.

Some of the shows will resurface on streaming sites, and it's unlikely that any of them will turn up on cable anywhere else.

Of course, I could be wrong.

Tooniversary: Mighty Mouse meets Bad Bill Bunion (1945)

 As Heckle & Jeckle postulated, you could do anything in a cartoon. Terrytoons really believed in that axiom, such that while Mighty Mouse maintained an office in a big city high rise, there were still Old West-style outlaws for him to catch, such as "Bad Bill Bunion". Might as well say Terrytoons had a nexus of realities before Marvel Comics came up with the phrase.

Rating: B.

Daytime Heroes: The series premiere of BraveStarr (1987)

 BraveStarr was Filmation's final series, and one of their best. Unfortunately, it lasted 1 season.

In the opener, Thirty-Thirty (Edmund Gilbert, ex-The Hardy Boys-Nancy Drew Mysteries) has a dispute with Marshal BraveStarr (Pat Fraley, fresh from Ghostbusters), and goes back in time.

Rating: A-.

You Know The Voice: Paul Lynde (1973)

 I've been waiting for this one for a looooooooooooong time.

In 1973, Paul Lynde, fresh off his self-titled sitcom, and Temperatures Rising, and soon to be heard in "Charlotte's Web", made this commercial for Manufacturers Hanover bank.

Paul would stick around on Hollywood Squares for another few years before leaving due to a dispute, then returning when the series went into syndication on location in Las Vegas in 1980.

Looney TV: One Froggy Evening (1955)

 On New Year's Eve, 1955, Chuck Jones' "One Froggy Evening" was released to theatres, introducing viewers to Michigan J. Frog.

"Froggy" got a sequel, 40 years later (previously discussed), and, in 1996, Michigan became the mascot of the nascent WB network. Here, though, is where it all began.....

Rating: A-.

Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits: You Can Do Magic (1982)

 70's hitmakers America, now a duo, made a modest comeback on the charts in 1982 with "You Can Do Magic", off "View From The Ground", their 3rd album for Capitol.

Let's go back to December 1982 and American Bandstand:

Tooniversary: Fraidy Cat in A Semi-Star is Born (1975)

 "A Semi-Star is Born" was the series finale of Fraidy Cat, after production was discontinued due to ABC cancelling Uncle Croc's Block.

Fraidy (Alan Oppenheimer) ends up in a home for retired animal stars. Sounds like Oppenheimer & Len Weinrib did all the voices.

Per Wikipedia, there were 5 unproduced episodes.

No rating. Just a public service.