About Cartoon Characters

One of the most popular film formats used throughout history is animation. To add life to animation, cartoon characters have been created throughout the years and become a huge part of pop culture. Whether it is a human, animal, inanimate object or something else, cartoon characters can come to life and entertain the masses.

History

Cartoon characters came to life as animation progressed and became a standard in the filmmaking world. Signature characters such as Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny gained stardom through cartoon shorts starring other famous characters such as Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daffy Duck, Goofy, Porky Pig and Pluto. On the big screen, Snow White was one of the first cartoon characters, along with her seven famous dwarfs.

Significance

Some of the most popular cartoon characters in history include Popeye, Betty Boop, Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Homer Simpson, SpongeBob Squarepants, Cartman, Shrek, Tinkerbell and many others from the Disney and Warner Brothers studios. All of these characters have been featured in multiple television shows, movies and merchandise. In 1988, the film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" made animation history when it combined some of the most popular cartoon characters with live actors and included a scene featuring both Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny.

Potential

The world of cartoon characters has expanded to a 3-D dominated format. With the success of early computer-generated films such as "Toy Story" and "A Bug's Life," the CG format took off, and now CG cartoon characters are popping up all over the place and include Shrek, Wall-E, Ratatouille, Jimmy Neutron, Handy Manny, Chicken Little and Lightning McQueen. Realistic human cartoon characters have been made in films such as "Polar Express," Monster House" and "Macbeth." Even classic cartoon characters such as Popeye, Winnie the Pooh and Goofy are now computer-generated.

Types

Cartoon characters come in many different formats. Traditionally cartoon characters were hand-drawn in black and white. The conversion to color quickly came with characters such as Snow White. Soon, other formats started gaining popularity. Stop-motion cartoon characters such as Jack Skellington and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer offered a new look at cartoon characters. CG characters allow for more detail and are completely created by computers.

Features

Cartoon characters are used in several ways. Nickelodeon relies heavily on cartoon characters such as Doug, Rugrats, and SpongeBob Squarepants for their content and even has a spin-off channel dedicated purely to cartoons. Disney Channel does the same thing and offers cartoons based on hit Disney movies and originals such as "Kim Possible." Adult-oriented cartoon characters are also popular. "The Simpsons" is the longest-running animated show of all time and other adult-themed animated shows include "Family Guy," "South Park" and "Drawn Together."

Resources

• Cartoon History