What happens when you mix pop culture and homeschool? PopSchool!

It’s that time of year again when everyone’s talking about the Easter Bunny. The kiddo decided she wanted to talk Bugs Bunny instead. So that’s what’s been up over here. Get it?

I was a kiddo in the 70’s, a time when retro reruns of Bugs Bunny played on the TV before school, after school and weekends. These days many kids don’t know the difference between the Nestle Quik Rabbit and the Warner Bros. icon.

Of course knowing about Bugs Bunny isn’t a crucial skill and might not help with test scores but like most parents I try to use my kiddo’s interest as a way to learn more about the world. In this case we took a look at the history of Bugs Bunny. We found out Bugs started out as a prototype bunny in 1938. He was dubbed “The Unknown Rabbit” in some of the early Looney Tunes shorts.

In 1940, Tex Avery, officially created Bugs Bunny. Throughout the years, Bugs went through an evolution with various directors & animators adding to his appearance and behavior.

Mel Blanc was well known as the voice of Bugs Bunny. He also voiced other beloved characters like Daffy Duck, Foghorn Leghorn, Yosemite Sam, Speedy Gonzales and many more.

The kiddo liked learning that Bugs Bunny is skillful at the art of arguing. Seeing Bugs trick Elmer Fudd & Daffy Duck with his old “Duck season! Fire!” routine cracks most people up every time.

Bugs Bunny has a handful of famous quotes that many use in conversation today. Especially those inflicted with PCS (Pop Culture Syndrome).

“What’s up doc?”

“Of course you realize… this means WAR.”

“And remember MUD spelled backwards is DUM.”

After we learned a thing or two about Bugs Bunny we looked at the time period when he was created. We asked questions like: Who was the president of the United States in 1940? What was happening in the world in the late 30’s & early 40’s?

We learned that during war time Bugs starred in many cartoons armed against the enemy. There’s a lot of controversy surrounding some of these but like much in pop culture it’s a reflection of society at the time. One thing the kiddo noticed right away is that vintage cartoons are not always politically correct.

The best thing about PopSchool at our house is we have fun while we learn new things. Stay tooned for my next PopSchool post. Get it?

Visit the official Looney Tunes page http://www.kidswb.com/video/Looney-Tunes to see Bugs Bunny in action.

What songs are you singing this Springa? I mean Spring.

With the San Diego Comic Con coming up next week I’ve been thinking about favorite comic books again. Since I posted about this before I’d like to take a step over to cartoons. I’m not talking about full length animated features like Snow White or The Last Unicorn. I’m talking about cartoons, the kind I watched on a Saturday morning back in the day. You know, best watched with a bowl full of Frosted Flakes?

Much of my cartoon watching in the 70’s consisted of shows created decades before like Bugs Bunny (1940), Tom & Jerry (1940), The Jetsons (1962) and The Flintstones (1960). The 70’s wasn’t a great time for animation. There was a lot of skimping going on with productions but some of the characters and ideas were a lot of fun.

This 5 on Friday list contains cartoons created in the 70’s. Even though Rocky & Bullwinkle, George of the Jungle and early Tom & Jerry episodes were uber cool I won’t be listing them here. Only cartoons created in the 1970’s. It’s tougher than you think.

So here they are… 5 Favorite 70′s Toons:

Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972)

Hey Hey Hey! Check this out thanks to the Minisode Network, “You may learn something before it’s done”:

Schoolhouse Rock (1973)

This series of mini edutainment episodes made learning fun. All that stuff in my textbooks seemed to make more sense after singing along with Schoolhouse Rock.

“Conjunction Junction what’s your function… Interjection!!” I love singing along to these fun learning songs. To view “I’m Just a Bill”, click here. Click here to watch “3 is a Magic Number”.

Cover of 30th Anniversary Edition DVD

Disney presents Schoolhouse Rock these days. I purchased the 30th Anniversary Edition via Amazon a couple years ago.

The Great Grape Ape Show (1975)

“Grape Ape, Grape Ape”

Not sure why I liked this show so much. I know lots of other 70’s kids that felt the same way. Might have been the bright purple color that kept us zoned in, or maybe the idea of a 40 foot tall gorilla was all we needed.

Titlecard for The Great Grape Ape Show, featuring Beegle Beagle and Grape Ape

For video clips of Grape Ape & his pal Beegle Beagle visit Retro Junk by clicking here.

Hong Kong Phooey (1974)

It seemed like everyone was into martial arts back in the 70’s. Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Black Belt Theater… this dog janitor turned Kung Fu hero was just what Saturday morning needed.

Sublime takes on the Hong Kong Phooey theme song. What do you think?

Own Hong Kong Phooey on DVD August 15th!

Super Friends (1973)

So here we are talking about comics again. Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Superman, Batman, The Wonder Twins, just a handful of the characters from Super Friends. This animated series was produced by Hanna-Barbera and based on the Justice League of America characters published by DC Comics.

Check out this Super Friends site for a grown up look at a Saturday Morning classic.