Plotlines

Detailed Information about the show

Other names for the show: A!, Steve Speilberg presents Animaniacs

Genre: Animation, family, comedy

Original run: September 13, 1993 - November 14, 1998 (had reruns in the early 2000's)

Channels: Fox Kids, Kids WB, Nickeloden, NickToons Network, Cartoon Network

Spin-offs: Pinky and the Brain

Comedy Type: Parody, literal, physical, slapstick, occasional adult

Creator: Tom Ruegger

Senior producer: Steven Speilberg

Producers: Rich Aarons, Sherri Stoner

Main composer: Richard Stone

Voice casting director: Andrea Romano

Original voice actors: Rob Paulsen, Jess Harnell, Tress MacNeille, Frank Welker, Maurice LaMarche, Sherri Stoner, Nathan Ruegger, Bernadette Peters, John Mariano, Chick Vennera, Nancy Cartwright, Julie Brown

Story editors: Tom Ruegger, Paul Rugg, Sherri Stoner, Peter Hastings, Tom Minton

Series writers: Peter Hastings, Nicholas Hollander, John P. McCann, Tom Minton, Deanna Oliver, Randy Rogel, Tom Ruegger, Paul Rugg, Sherri Stoner

Storyboards: Kevin Frank, Carolyn Gair, Ken Harsha, Mike Milo, Brian Mitchell, Audu Paden, Ryan Roberts, Patricia Wong

Model Design: Dan McHugh, Maureen Trueblood

Painter: Eric Nordberg

Animation studios: Tokyo Movie Shinsha (TMS), StarToons, Wang

The Warners

On the 65th Animaniacs episode, The Warner's 65th anniversary (which was the finale of season 1) animator Len Borax created the Warner siblings to make a certain cartoon show in the 1930s more interesting. When Thaddeus Plotz, head of the animation department, saw the cartoons, he thought they were interesting. Soon, he gave the Warners their own cartoons. Plotz soon regretted the decision once the Warners were starting to cause havic in the Warner Brothers studios while filming their cartoons (example: Wakko eating the props and the siblings teasing and hitting on famous stars). When he saw their last episode that was filmed due to their contract (and he wasn't happy about it), Plotz immediately canceled their contract, which had the Warners run around the studio as they pleased, causing chaos.

Soon, they were locked away in the Warner Brothers studio water tower. Their episode tapes were also locked away, but in a vault so they'll never be seen again. In 1993, the Warners officially escaped from the water tower, causing chaos once again. Plotz, now CEO of the Warner Brothers studio, asked (more like demanding) Dr. Otto von Scratchansniff to de-zanitize the siblings and teach them to be polite, well-behaved children. Ralph, the studio security guard, was asked (I mean demanded) to capture the Warners whenever they escape from the tower and make sure they stay there.

The Warners eventually return to the tower whenever they felt like it, anyway. In Animaniacs, the main segments focused on the Warner siblings. Their shorts consist of them annoying people who are rude or randomely run into, or teaching some educational values such as the nations of the world, formal party manners, the bones in the body, the U.S. presidents, and multiplication tables.

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Pinky and the Brain

Taking place in a fictional building called Acme Labs in Burbank, two white lab mice live in a cage together. Every night, Brain sets a plot to take over the world, while Pinky, who's usually too dim-witted to know what's going on, goes along with it. The Pinky and the Brain segments became so popular, that it had its own spin-off series with 4 seasons and 65 episodes. The same actors, producers, writers, and artists, who have worked on Animaniacs, worked on Pinky and the Brain.

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Slappy the Squirrel

Mostly taking place at an acorn tree in a park in Burbank, a retired cartoon star from the Golden Age of Warner Brothers cartoons named Slappy gets revenge or protects herself from people who threaten her by using slapstick comedy and lots of explosives. Skippy, her cheerful nephew, usually tags along with her in her adventures.

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The Goodfeathers

Taking place in New York City, the Goodfeathers are pigeon parodies of the three main characters from the film, Godfellas, and other mafia films such as Taxi Driver, West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, Raging Bull, and Rocky. Living on top of a Martin Scorsese statue in Central Park, the Goodfeathers speak in New York accents while having a rivalry against the sparrows.

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Rita and Runt

Rita, a sassy, but street-smart cat, and Runt, a big, sweet, but dim-witted dog, travel around the world, trying to find a home. Not only was this segment the most musical of them all, but it only lasted for 1 season, due to lack of storylines. Eventually, Rita and Runt appeared as cameos in later episodes, but with no speaking roles. In Wakko's Wish, they finally got to speak and sing again.

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Buttons and Mindy

Minerva Mink