Golden age of American animation

The golden age of American animation was a period in the history of U.S. animation that began with the popularization of sound synchronized cartoons in 1928 and gradually ended in the 1960s when theatrical animated shorts started to lose popularity to the newer medium of television. Animated media from after the golden age, especially on television, were produced on cheaper budgets and with more limited techniques between the late 1950s and 1980s.^[1]

Many popular and famous animated cartoon characters emerged from this period, including:

• Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy and Pluto
• Fleischer Studios' Popeye, Betty Boop and Superman
• Warner Bros.' Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner, Tweety, Sylvester and the Tasmanian Devil
• Van Beuren Studios' Felix the Cat
• Walter Lantz's Woody Woodpecker and Chilly Willy
• MGM's Tom and Jerry and Droopy
• Famous Studios' Casper and Little Lulu
• Screen Gems' the Fox and the Crow
• Terrytoons' Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle
• UPA's Mr. Magoo
• DePatie-Freleng's Pink Panther, The Inspector and The Ant and the Aardvark

Over the course of these four decades, the quality of the media released throughout the golden age has often been debated. The peak of this era is usually cited as during the 1930s and 1940s, attributed to the theatrical run of studios including Walt Disney Animation Studios, Warner Bros. Cartoons, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Cartoons, Paramount Cartoon Studios, Walter Lantz Productions, Terrytoons, and Fleischer Studios. In later decades, namely between the 1950s and 1960s, the era is sometimes divided into a "silver age" due to the emergence of studios such as UPA, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, and Jay Ward Productions; these companies' presence in the industry would grow significantly with the rise of television following the golden age's conclusion.^[2][3] Furthermore, the history of animation became very important artistically in the United States.^[4]

Feature-length animation began during this period, most notably with Disney's "Walt-era" films,^[5][6] spanning from 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and 1940's Pinocchio to 1967's The Jungle Book and 1970's The Aristocats (last animated films produced before his death in 1966).^[7][2] During this period, several live-action films that included animation were made, such as Saludos Amigos (1942), Anchors Aweigh (1945), Song of the South (1946), Dangerous When Wet (1953), Mary Poppins (1964) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), the last one being the last theatrical film to receive an Academy Award for their animated special effects.^[8][9] In addition, stop motion animation and special effects were also developed, with films such as King Kong (1933), The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), The War of the Worlds (1953), Hansel and Gretel: An Opera Fantasy (1954), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), Forbidden Planet (1956), The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), Jason and the Argonauts (1963) and 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).^[10]

Animation also began on television during this period with Crusader Rabbit (the first animated series broadcast in 1948) and early versions of Rocky and Bullwinkle (1959), both from Jay Ward Productions.^[11] The rise of television animation is often considered to be a factor that hastened the golden age's end.^[1] However, various authors include Hanna-Barbera's earliest animated series through 1962 as part of the golden age, with shows like Ruff and Reddy (1957), Huckleberry Hound (1958), Quick Draw McGraw (1959), The Flintstones (1960), Yogi Bear (1961), Top Cat (1961), Wally Gator (1962) and The Jetsons (1962).^[12][13][14] Several of these animated series were the first to win Emmy Awards for their contribution to American television.^[15] Other Hanna-Barbera productions related to the golden age were the theatrical animations with Columbia Pictures, such as Loopy De Loop (1959) and the feature films released between 1964 and 1966.^[16]