They were everywhere and yet invisible. We saw them and, at the same time, took them for granted. I think that's what they taught us, something about the precious inevitablity of life. Life is there, in the small place, happening just beneath our eyes and we might not even know it.
Loved the Smurfs growing up (and their illegitimate ‘cousins’ the Snorks). Remember trying to collect all the different wee Smurfs figures in all their roles/guises. Ahhh, fond memories. An inspiration for my own IP.
North Americans likely would not have known much about the Smurfs had the noted television executive Fred Silverman not discovered them in a toy shop in Aspen, Colorado. He was immediately intrigued. Through his role as the president of the NBC television show, he commissioned Hanna-Barbera, who he had previously worked closely on animated shows as an executive at CBS and ABC, to develop the show for the U.S, saying the show would be guaranteed air time if they did it. That was an offer the studio couldn't refuse...
Yet by the time the show debuted in the fall of 1981, Silverman had been fired by the network; his ambitious programming and scheduling plans had backfired badly. Consequently, it can be said that "The Smurfs" ended up being the most successful part of his time as NBC.
They were everywhere and yet invisible. We saw them and, at the same time, took them for granted. I think that's what they taught us, something about the precious inevitablity of life. Life is there, in the small place, happening just beneath our eyes and we might not even know it.
The Smurfs were the highlight of my Saturday mornings. Most of the other cartoons were just fillers.
Easily my favorite cartoon of all time. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
Loved the Smurfs growing up (and their illegitimate ‘cousins’ the Snorks). Remember trying to collect all the different wee Smurfs figures in all their roles/guises. Ahhh, fond memories. An inspiration for my own IP.
It feels like the Smurf's have been around forever! They have had so many incarnations. Thank you for sharing their history.
They really do feel like tat have been around forever. :)
North Americans likely would not have known much about the Smurfs had the noted television executive Fred Silverman not discovered them in a toy shop in Aspen, Colorado. He was immediately intrigued. Through his role as the president of the NBC television show, he commissioned Hanna-Barbera, who he had previously worked closely on animated shows as an executive at CBS and ABC, to develop the show for the U.S, saying the show would be guaranteed air time if they did it. That was an offer the studio couldn't refuse...
Yet by the time the show debuted in the fall of 1981, Silverman had been fired by the network; his ambitious programming and scheduling plans had backfired badly. Consequently, it can be said that "The Smurfs" ended up being the most successful part of his time as NBC.
That’s so interesting David. I knew that they had a real impact but that ripple through a network is incredible. Thanks for sharing.