After a protracted absence, my favorite pop culture blog has returned with a brand new look! Go check out Pop Culture Junk Mail when you get a chance. Gael Cooper is such a clever writer and I marvel at how familar I am with the obscure nostalgia she manages to drum up. She is a way cool chick; you will not be disappointed.
While I was getting my pop culture fix, I was reminded of a little Web odyssey I took a few weeks ago when Captain Kangaroo (Bob Keeshan) died. As a tot, I was a big fan of the Cap's shenanigans and dug his loony, but tame cast of characters. I was especially enthralled by a cartoon character that was presented in very strange animation, only appeared a few times and no one ever seemed to remember. Well, when the good ol' Captain kicked, I made it my business to find out who this fine fellow was.
He was not Tom Terrific. Oh, I remember Tom and Tom was, well, terrific. But though Tom was drawn in distinctive, hand-drawn animation, this guy was drawn in an even stranger way. After hitting the Web hard, I ascertained that he was Fred (scroll down on the page), an Aniforms character that only appeared on the show a few times. Aniforms was an early TV animation process that was really very cool, enjoyed a brief popularity and then blew out of fashion as quickly as Joyce DeWitt. If the Web was worth anything, I'd be able to see a picture or video of dear Fred, wouldn't I? But this was not meant to be. There is a dearth of information out there on Aniforms, Fred and all his weird and defunct Aniform pals.
Anyhoo, go check out Pop Culture Junk Mail. Or find out more about Fred for me. It's a poppy pop pop pop world tonight, I've decided.