The Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty
Encyclopedia
The Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty was a children's television show alternating animation
and live footage segments. It took the concept of James Thurber
's popular short story (and later movie) The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
, and parodied it with anthropomorphised
dogs and cats.
and Robin
, as was Catzan of the Apes, spoofing Tarzan
. Also spoofed was Robin Hood
, where the feline was that hero of English yore, Robin Cat. Also parodied were The Lone Ranger
("The Lone Kitty") and Star Trek
("Cat Trek", with Captain Herc of the starship "Second-Prise"). (As it happens, Filmation
had done or would eventually do straight adaptations of all of these properties except Robin Hood.) A running gag
of this series was the arch-villain's response to Waldo's character: "Seize him!" "We sees him, we sees him. What of it?"
In many respects, the current popular PBS
series Wishbone is reminiscent of Waldo Kitty, though it draws on classic literature rather than pop-culture spoofs as its inspiration.
Saturday morning
between September 6, 1975 and September 4, 1976. According to Animation by Filmation authors Michael Swanigan and Darryl McNeil, Filmation
did not secure the rights to use the title or characters from Thurber's estate, which sued, and forced a title change to The New Adventures of Waldo Kitty for syndication as part of The Groovie Goolies and Friends package. In this version, the title was not only changed, but the live-action wraparounds were removed as well.
had a pair of releases planned for this cartoon, pairing it with a similar Filmation series, Fraidy Cat
. However, chances of its release is unknown, as the company had since ceased operations.
Toonarific appears to have 4 DVDs from 16mm transfers of the show
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
and live footage segments. It took the concept of James Thurber
James Thurber
James Grover Thurber was an American author, cartoonist and celebrated wit. Thurber was best known for his cartoons and short stories published in The New Yorker magazine.-Life:...
's popular short story (and later movie) The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" is a short story by James Thurber. The most famous of Thurber's stories, it first appeared in The New Yorker on March 18, 1939, and was first collected in his book My World and Welcome to It...
, and parodied it with anthropomorphised
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
dogs and cats.
Plot
Waldo Kitty and his girlfriend Felecia were cats who were constantly bullied by the bulldog, Tyrone. Each episode featured wraparound live-action segments of two cats and a bulldog playing the parts, with voiceovers. Waldo would inevitably be bullied by Tyrone and begin wishing he was a famous character, and the scene would shift to a cartoon version of whichever character he wished to be, with Felecia appearing as the appropriate love-interest, and Tyrone appearing as the villain. At the conclusion of the animated segment, the show would return to the live-action, in which Waldo, now inspired with renewed courage and confidence thanks to the animated story, would then stand up to the bullying Tyrone. Not his physical equal in any way, Waldo would use his wiles to goad Tyrone into chasing him, leading Tyrone into a trap that would result in Tyrone getting in serious trouble with his owners (either a hot-tempered man or woman, whose faces were never seen), and Tyrone would suffer the consequences, (i.e., spanked, locked inside the house, tethered to a tree, etc.). Now safe from Tyrone, Waldo and Felecia could relax without worry and have a laugh or two at Tyrone's predicament.Pop culture references
These characters consisted of a variety of characters which spoofed various characters from pop-culture. Cat-Man and Sparrow were an obvious lampooning of BatmanBatman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
and Robin
Robin (comics)
Robin is the name of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero Batman...
, as was Catzan of the Apes, spoofing Tarzan
Tarzan
Tarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungles by the Mangani "great apes"; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...
. Also spoofed was Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
, where the feline was that hero of English yore, Robin Cat. Also parodied were The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked Texas Ranger who, with his Native American companion Tonto, fights injustice in the American Old West. The character has become an enduring icon of American culture....
("The Lone Kitty") and Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
("Cat Trek", with Captain Herc of the starship "Second-Prise"). (As it happens, Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
had done or would eventually do straight adaptations of all of these properties except Robin Hood.) A running gag
Running gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
of this series was the arch-villain's response to Waldo's character: "Seize him!" "We sees him, we sees him. What of it?"
In many respects, the current popular PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series Wishbone is reminiscent of Waldo Kitty, though it draws on classic literature rather than pop-culture spoofs as its inspiration.
Episodes
Thirteen animated 30-minute installments were produced for the series, which aired on NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
Saturday morning
Saturday Morning
-Album credits:*All tracks produced by Ralph Sall for Bulletproof Recording Company Inc.*Executive Producer/Concept: Ralph Sall for Bulletproof Recording Company Inc.*Engineered by Peter McCabe and Larry Fergusson....
between September 6, 1975 and September 4, 1976. According to Animation by Filmation authors Michael Swanigan and Darryl McNeil, Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
did not secure the rights to use the title or characters from Thurber's estate, which sued, and forced a title change to The New Adventures of Waldo Kitty for syndication as part of The Groovie Goolies and Friends package. In this version, the title was not only changed, but the live-action wraparounds were removed as well.
Episode list
| № | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Cat Man" | 1975 September 6 |
| 2 | "Catzan of the Apes" | 1975 September 13 |
| 3 | "The Lone Kitty" | 1975 September 20 |
| 4 | "Robin Cat" | 1975 September 27 |
| 5 | "Cat Trek" | 1975 October 4 |
| 6 | "Cat Man Meets the Poochquin" | 1975 October 11 |
| 7 | "Catzan or Not Catzan" | 1975 October 18 |
| 8 | "The Lone Kitty Rides Again" | 1975 October 25 |
| 9 | "Sheriff of Sherwood" | 1975 November 1 |
| 10 | "Cat Man Meets the Puzzler" | 1975 November 8 |
| 11 | "Dr. Livingstone, I Presume?" | 1975 November 15 |
| 12 | "Ping or Pongo" | 1975 November 22 |
| 13 | "Chaw the Bullet" | 1975 November 29 |
DVD
BCI EclipseNavarre Corporation
Navarre Corp. is a public distribution and publishing company founded in 1983 by Eric H. Paulson. The company is headquartered in New Hope, Minnesota...
had a pair of releases planned for this cartoon, pairing it with a similar Filmation series, Fraidy Cat
Fraidy Cat (TV series)
Fraidy Cat is a 1975 comical children's cartoon show that originally appeared as a segment on Filmation's short-lived ABC series Uncle Croc's Block.-Plot:...
. However, chances of its release is unknown, as the company had since ceased operations.
- The Cat Pack: Waldo Kitty & Fraidy Cat Volume One
- The Cat Pack: Waldo Kitty & Fraidy Cat Volume Two
Toonarific appears to have 4 DVDs from 16mm transfers of the show
- Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty vol. 1
- Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty vol. 2
- Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty vol. 3
- Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty vol. 4
Credits
- Produced by: Lou ScheimerLou ScheimerLouis Scheimer is an Emmy and Grammy Award–winning American producer, one of the original founders of Filmation, an animation company, and also an executive producer of many of its cartoons .-Career:Early in Filmation's history, Scheimer also contributed...
, Norm PrescottNorm PrescottNorman "Norm" Prescott was co-founder and executive producer at Filmation Studios. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, he began his radio career in the Hub, becoming program director at station WORL in the late 1940s. He went to work for Joseph E. Levine's Embassy Pictures Corp. in 1959, serving as... - Written by: Bill Danch, Jim Ryan
- Creative Director: Don Christensen
- Animation Directors: Rudy LarrivaRudy LarrivaRudolph "Rudy" Larriva was an American animator and director from the 1940s to the 1980s.Born in El Paso, Texas, Larriva worked at a number of animation studios, including Format Films, Filmation, Walt Disney Productions, but is best known for his work at Warner Bros...
, Bill Reed, Lou Zukor - The Secret Lives of Waldo Kitty Based on an Idea by: Lorna Smith
- Animation Storyboard Supervision: Kay Wright
- Animation Storyboard: Sherman LabbySherman LabbySherman Labby was an American storyboard artist and production illustrator....
, Paul Fennell, Mike O'Connor, Roy Wilson - Art Director: Alberto de Mello
- Key Assistant: Mike Hazy
- Layout: Wendall Washier, George Goode, Mario Piluso, Wes Herschensohn, Tom Knowles, David West, Jim Fletcher, Martin Miller, Clark Haas, John Perry, Bob Kleine, Lorna Smith, Ken Leonard, Jim Willoughby, Carol Lundenberg
- Director of Color: Ervin L. Kaplan
- Background Artists: Tom O'Loughlin, Curt Perkins, Patricia Keppler, Rolly Oliva, Barbara Bendetto, Douglas Stevenson
- Animators: Bob Carr, Karen Peterson, Jesse Cosio, Casey Onaitis, Zeon Davush, Jack Ozrak, Otto Feuer, Bill Pratt, Ed Friedman, Virgil Raddatz, John W. Garling, Len Rogers, Don Ruch, Dick Hall, Don Schloat, Marsh Lamore, Larry Silverman, Fred Myers, Hank Smith, Larry Miller, Irv Spector, Tony Pabian, Dardo Velez, Ron Westlund
- Checking Supervision: Marion Turk
- Xerography Supervision: John Remmel
- Paint Supervision: Betty Brooks
- Camera Supervision: Bob Pope
- Camera: Thane Berti, Joe Ponticelle, F.T. Ziegler
- Pre-Production and Editorial Supervision: Joe Simon
- Film Editing: Doreen Dixon, Jim Blodgett
- Film Coordinator: June Gilham
- Music and Sound Effects: Horta-Mahana Corporation
- Color by: TechnicolorTechnicolorTechnicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
- Waldo Kitty Theme Written by: Jackie Mills, Joyce Taylor
- Background Music by: Jeff Michael, Yvette Blais
- Music Publisher: Shermley Music Co. A.S.C.A.P.
- Live-Action Segments by: Filmart
- Animals Supplied by: Frank Inn, Inc.
- (c)1975 Filmation Associates, Inc.