Tons You Might've Missed: Cobs & Robbers (1953)

 Barney Bear just didn't get enough love from MGM.

In effect, he was the antithesis of other stars of his era. He was always made to look like a fool, even as a protagonist, such as in 1953's "Cobs & Robbers", a remake of Dick Lundy's 1945 Andy Panda entry, "Crow Crazy".

Luckily, when Spire Christian Comics obtained a license to use Barney in the 70's & 80's in a series of 1-shots, he finally was a winner.

Here's "Cobs & Robbers":

This has aired recently on Me-TV, but I can't recall when it's aired on Cartoon Network/Boomerang.

Rating: B.

Toon Legends: The Wacky Wabbit (1942)

 Bugs Bunny & Elmer Fudd are out west in 1942's "The Wacky Wabbit". Elmer (Arthur Q. Bryan) is looking for gold out in the desert. Bugs? Welllllll......

Rating: A-.

Coming Attractions: A Family Guy spinoff of evil proportions

 Deadline is reporting that Fox has greenlit a spinoff from Family Guy that will feature the youngest of the Griffins' three children.

Stewie has already received a two season order from Fox, adding to series creator Seth MacFarlane's already sizeable workload.

As fans of Family Guy know, Stewie is always plotting against his mother, Lois (Alex Borstein), for whatever reason. I'd guess that MacFarlane saw Stewie as his answer to WB's Pinky & The Brain, the latter of whom was always looking to achieve world domination.

Time will tell if this will be another hit, or if the Family Guy franchise has jumped the shark.

Stay tooned.

Literary Toons: The Bear That Wasn't (1967)

 Filmmaker Frank Tashlin released a picture book in 1946, The Bear That Wasn't. If you're like me, and you'd never heard of this tale before today, I don't blame you.

In 1967, Chuck Jones adapted Tashlin's story into an animated short for MGM, with Paul Frees doing all the voices.

No rating. Just a public service.

From Primetime to Daytime: Look who meets the Lone Ranger! (1950)

5 years before he became an icon as Marshal Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke, James Arness guest stars in this season 1 episode of The Lone Ranger, appearing as Deputy Bud Titus, who gives up his badge to go bounty hunting for a couple of outlaws, who are also being tracked by the Ranger (Clayton Moore).......

Rating: A.

(Sunday) School: The Gospel Bill Show (1981)

 For 12 years, Willie George brought viewers a Western with a twist with The Gospel Bill Show, which has aired on CBN & TBN during the course of its history. The series originally aired from 1981-93. Substituting the Bible for common frontier justice, Gospel Bill (George) was the chief lawman in the fictional town of Dry Gulch, with Nicodemus (Ken Blount) as his sidekick, Festus to Bill's Matt Dillon, if you will.

Anyway, evangelist Kenneth Copeland guest stars in this offering as reformed outlaw Wichita Slim.

There was a time when CBN was on local cable systems, and loaded their weekend fare with classic Westerns. Gospel Bill, then, fit right in.

No rating. Just a public service.

Toons You Might've Missed: Barnacle Bill (1930)

 From the Fleischers' Talkartoon series comes "Barnacle Bill", with Bimbo in the title role. During this period, Betty Boop (Margie Hines) has more of a canine appearance, before her evolution into the icon we would know.

Anyway, Bimbo gives himself a shore leave so he can see "Nancy Lee" (Betty).

Five years later, Fleischer & Paramount referenced Barnacle Bill again, this time with Bluto in the role as a villain (as per normal) in a Popeye short. The character of Barnacle Bill was introduced in a song recorded by Hoagy Carmichael in 1928.

Rating: B-. There's a reason Bimbo was reduced to a supporting player when Betty was given her own series.......