Articles



The toy of the moment

The toy of the moment

Putting your finger on the pulse of the toy industry can be pretty tough. Buying presents for kids is usually pretty easy. Find out what the most popular toy of the moment is, and purchase it. Even easier, just have a glance at Santa’s mail before it goes out and...

Growing up outdoors with Frank and His Friend

Growing up outdoors with Frank and His Friend

Is it possible to offer kids today the kind of childhood seen in our favorite comics? These days, it seems like kids spend a lot of time indoors, and what little time they get outside is pretty structured. If the characters from Frank and His Friend were around now, would...

Bath time battles with Frank and His Friend

Bath time battles with Frank and His Friend

What is it about bath time that sends kids into a panic? Our favorite comic, Frank and His Friend, beautifully captured some of the best memories of being a child: endless days playing outside, make-believe games that just might be real, and stuffed friends so loyal and true. But artist...

Frank and His Friend – In trouble again

Frank and His Friend – In trouble again

No lamps were harmed in the making of this comic, exactly. Any comic about childhood imagination is also going to have to touch on the flip side of all that creative energy: getting in trouble. And Frank and His Friend were no strangers to the time out. What makes this...

Sundays with Frank and His Friend

Sundays with Frank and His Friend

One of the best parts of the weekend was being able to see all your friends from the funny pages in color. As a kid, Sundays were pretty bittersweet. You still had the day off and things were perhaps not quite as packed as they were on Saturdays, but it...

Why does Superman have a job?

Why does Superman have a job?

Faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound… but don’t quit your day job. One thing that’s never made sense about superheroes is why they have regular jobs.  If most of us mere mortals could fly, turn invisible, punch through a wall or incinerate...

Mickey Mouse - The gloved one

Mickey Mouse - The gloved one

Mickey Mouse seems like an easy-going guy: approachable, friendly, somewhat freewheeling.  So why the formal white gloves? Mickey Mouse has worn white gloves since 1929, when he appeared in Opry House.  Though he doesn't start out the short with them, by the time he gets to the end (having performed...

Prep & Landing, 2009

Prep & Landing, 2009

You think your job gets stressful around the holidays. It's not a surprise that one of the best animated holiday specials of the last few years was produced by John Lasseter.  Prep & Landing had "instant classic" written all over it, even before the title sequence faded. The idea was...

Emmet Otter's Jug-band Christmas, 1977

Emmet Otter's Jug-band Christmas, 1977

Muppets and Christmas - what could be better? Kermit and piggy may be the most famous Muppets, but little Emmet Otter has got to be the most adorable (just watch him play the washtub bass and try not to be charmed).  The story of Emmet Otter's Jug-band Christmas, based on...

Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, 1970

Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, 1970

You'd better watch out, you'd better not pout! Sometimes when people say "Christmas Special," they really mean a Rankin/Bass Christmas Special.  With their recognizable visual style and their "Animagic" stop-motion techniques using wooden models, Rankin/Bass specials are practically the end all, be all of holiday specials.  And with 18 specials...

How the Grinch Stole Christmas, 1966

How the Grinch Stole Christmas, 1966

In Whoville they say - that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day. You have to appreciate how much effort the Grinch puts into his plans. From the elaborate “Santy Suit” he makes for himself, to the excuse he gives little Cindy Lou Who, the Grinch really pulls...

A Charlie Brown Christmas, 1965

A Charlie Brown Christmas, 1965

“I NEVER THOUGHT IT WAS SUCH A BAD LITTLE TREE. IT'S NOT BAD AT ALL, REALLY. MAYBE IT JUST NEEDS A LITTLE LOVE.” The holiday season hasn’t really begun until the Christmas Specials start running.  And what better to kick it off with than A Charlie Brown Christmas? The first...