Saturday-morning cartoon
In the 1950s, animation production shifted from theatrical shorts to television blocks following the Paramount Decree. Jason Mittel argues that by the end of the 1960s, this shift unintentionally changed how people understood animation. The genre transformed from a mass-market style with kidult appeal into a marginalized Saturday morning periphery for children only. Beginning in the mid-1960s, the time slot featured many series appropriate for kids. Most of these were reruns of animated series originally broadcast during prime time or adventure series made in the 1950s. Later in the decade, superhero and action cartoon series dominated the block. These shows drew heavy criticism from parents regarding their violence levels.
By 1972, most action programming had been removed from the Saturday-morning slot after pressure from parent lobbying groups like Action for Children's Television. These groups voiced concerns about commercialism, violence, anti-social attitudes, and stereotypes in cartoons. By the 1970s, these groups exercised enough influence over the U.S. Congress and the Federal Communications Commission. Networks felt compelled to impose more stringent content rules for animation houses. In 1978, the Federal Trade Commission considered banning all advertising during preschool-targeted programming. Severe restrictions on other children's program advertising followed but were ultimately dropped by the commission. The networks created educational spots using animation or live-action for enriching content. ABC produced the Schoolhouse Rock! series which became a fondly remembered television classic. CBS aired the long-running children's oriented news series called In the News.
By 1982, under President Ronald Reagan, the FCC had loosened programming and advertising regulations. This change led to the era of half-hour toy commercials starting with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. The format continued with series such as The Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. These shows were heavily criticized by ACT yet remained successful. Several lighthearted series appeared popularized by Hanna-Barbera's The Smurfs and Jim Henson's Muppet Babies. New series included those based on popular video games like Saturday Supercade. Beginning in the late 1980s, networks commissioned new series based on legacy properties. ABC revived the Scooby-Doo franchise with A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. They also commissioned The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh from The Walt Disney Company. Both series achieved major success driven by the adoption of people meters.
Despite increased competition from cable television networks like Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and Disney Channel, blocks remained popular in the 1990s. Examples included Disney's Disney Afternoon in syndication and Fox's Fox Kids. UPN launched UPN Kids while CBS aired CBS Saturday. The WB created Kids' WB and Amazin' Adventures later became Bohbot Kids Network. From 1992, the Big Three traditional major networks began replacing animated programming with weekend news editions. Live-action teen-oriented series replaced cartoons during this period. Multiple factors contributed to the change including a competitive market fueled by multi-channel transition. A boom in first-run syndicated content occurred alongside home video and video game introductions. Increasing restrictions on advertising and educational content mandates played a role. Broader cultural changes stemmed from an increase in no-fault divorces and the end of the post-World War II baby boom. Attempting to pair newscasts with remaining cartoons proved largely unsuccessful due to different audience draws.
By the mid 2010s, all major American networks had shifted to live-action documentary programming. This format ostensibly targeted teenagers to meet educational mandates but avoided clashing with newscasts. Programming was genericized as much as possible to resemble reality television for general audiences found on cable networks. Dr. Chris: Pet Vet served as an example of general reality programming from overseas re-edited to comply with American mandates. Documentary programming benefited from having less restrictive rules for advertising compared to children's programming. Saturday-morning and Sunday-morning cartoons were largely discontinued in Canada by 2002. In the United States, The CW continued airing non-E/I cartoons until the 27th of September 2014. Among the Big Three traditional major networks, the final non-E/I cartoon Kim Possible aired last in 2006.
This era continues to be satirized and paid homage to in popular culture. In the 1990s, many Generation Xers felt nostalgic for Saturday-morning cartoons of the 1970s and 1980s. One such example was the tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits released in 1995. Saturday-morning cartoon themes like Scooby-Doo and Fat Albert were covered by alternative rock artists. The Netflix animated series Saturday Morning All Star Hits! parodies the mid-1980s to early 1990s era. It references shows such as Thundercats, Care Bears, ProStars, and Denver the Last Dinosaur. The science fiction animated series Futurama spoofed 1970s and 1980s Saturday-morning cartoons in the episode Saturday Morning Fun Pit.
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Common questions
When did animation production shift from theatrical shorts to television blocks?
Animation production shifted from theatrical shorts to television blocks in the 1950s following the Paramount Decree. This transition changed how people understood animation by the end of the 1960s.
What caused action programming to be removed from Saturday-morning cartoons by 1972?
Action programming was removed from the Saturday-morning slot after pressure from parent lobbying groups like Action for Children's Television. These groups voiced concerns about commercialism, violence, anti-social attitudes, and stereotypes in cartoons.
Which series were produced under President Ronald Reagan when FCC regulations loosened in 1982?
The era of half-hour toy commercials began with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe in 1982. The format continued with series such as The Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Why did major American networks replace animated programming with weekend news editions starting in 1992?
Multiple factors contributed to the change including a competitive market fueled by multi-channel transition and a boom in first-run syndicated content. Increasing restrictions on advertising and educational content mandates also played a role alongside broader cultural changes.
When did Saturday-morning cartoons officially end on The CW network in the United States?
The CW continued airing non-E/I cartoons until the 27th of September 2014. Among the Big Three traditional major networks, the final non-E/I cartoon Kim Possible aired last in 2006.