Felix der Kater

During the early days of television development it was necessary to monitor and adjust the quality of the transmitted picture in order to get the best definition. To do this, engineers required an 'actor' to constantly be under the burning studio lights as they tweaked and sharpened the image, and Felix fit the bill perfectly. He was the right colour (black and white), impervious to the heat from the lights and worked cheaply (in fact a one-off payment was all that was required). RCA's first experimental television transmissions began in 1928 by station W2XBS (New York-Channel #1) in Van Cortlandt Park and then moved to the New Amsterdam Theater Building, transmitting 60 line pictures. The 13" Felix the Cat figure made of paper mache was placed on a record player turntable and was broadcast using a mechanical scanning disk to an electronic kinescope receiver. The image received was only 2 inches tall, and the broadcasts lasted about 2 hours per day. By 1931 the station became part of NBC and began to transmit from 42nd St. These early broadcasts consisted of objects like Felix the Cat or early test patterns and photographs. Felix remained on his turntable for almost a decade as the early experimenters strove towards the goal of a high definition picture.

Out of all the cartoons I've watched in my life, none has ever gave me as much joy as the 1960's felix the cat. And now I hunt for these generations of cartoons that inspired my imagination. When I first got this movie I thought it was about the purple felix the cat which I also enjoyed, but it's not. So many bizarre twisted stories and how the world and all inanimate objects come to life is just amazing! I mean this can't even compare to garfield!

Felix the Cat was the Mickey Mouse before Mickey Mouse! I wish Felix the Cat would get more attention and support. Sometimes I see people compare Felix the Cat to Mickey Mouse, but the truth is, Felix the Cat is older than Mickey Mouse! After some research, I found out the first Felix the Cat cartoon was made in 1919! And I'm tired of people comparing Felix the Cat to awful characters like Bendy and Cartoon Cat. But this review isn't going to be some long, boring rant about ridiculous bootlegs like Bendy and Cartoon Cat. Obviously this review is going to be about Felix the Cat. I'm glad the Felix the Cat creators eventually ended up adding characters like the Professor, Poindexter and Kitty Kat. And Felix the Cat's nephews (Inky and Winky) are good comic exclusive characters.

Let me first express my emotional love of this show: I firmly believe that this cartoon is an absolute classic, primarily for its very unique episode plot lines, its intriguing-yet-somewhat blatantly stereotypical villains (the Professor and Rock Bottom, primarily), its fantastic sense of science-fiction fantasy adventure (several episodes have to do with space travel), its comedy and (of course) The Master Cylinder, quite possibly the greatest cartoon villain in the history of animated entertainment. I love this show.

The cartoon ran for a very limited time in the early 1960's; as such, it is subsequently enamored with many of the entertainment clichés of its time. For example, I do believe that the old grade-Z science fiction movies of the 40's and 50's did have a significant effect on many of the episodes; as mentioned earlier, several episodes have to do with space travel: in my personal favorite episode, Poindexter (the Professor's brainy nephew, with a voice pitched high enough to rival the Chipmunks') builds a flying saucer in his spare time (while Felix is babysitting him) and travels to Mars with Felix, where they meet (hooray!) The Master Cylinder, in one of his many physical incarnations (for some reason the producers of the show made him look rather different in each episode, I've never really realized why). Additionally, the design of many of the visuals can be compared very easily to the fashionable aesthetic of the time; if you observe Felix's house, you will find that it appears to be very similar to Mike Brady's architecture (although that show came a little later). Furthermore, Rock Bottom's zoot-suited, cigar-chomping demeanor seems to me that it came right out of that era. And even further-more, if you want to get still deeper into it: I also believe that the whole attitude of that particular time period is greatly embedded in the show's values. Some of the episodes are very suburban, very 9-to-5 oriented, very detailed in consumerism and that classic, somewhat post-Eisenhower mentality of the love of homebodiness, the love of being the "Modern American." Wow. To back myself up on this: a couple episodes have to deal with Felix's day-to-day 9-to-5 job (!), life at home listening to the radio and suddenly hearing a newsflash about invading Martians (a particularly awesome episode) and running outside to protect yourself from them with a rifle, and getting rid of a pesky mouse that is managing to somehow steal everything from your perfectly-stocked refrigerator. All in all, I feel that these factors give this show a very cute, very nostalgic personality; they greatly add to its charm.

If you are a fan of classic cartoons (namely any of the Chuck Jones-style productions [including Merry Melodies and Tom & Jerry], Tex Avery productions or other assorted serials) I urge you to check out FELIX THE CAT. I promise you that it will bring something new to the table. Each episode has a wonderfully unique story (with Looney Tunes you sort of get recycled formulas every time) filled with charm, intelligence and even a little suspense (one episode in particular used to scare the living crap out of me; if you watch the series, you'll know which one. It has to do with Felix getting locked in his own house). Even if you don't care for cartoons, check out the series anyway. I still promise you that it will bring something new to the table. Now, the show spawned a feature-length movie that was produced sometime in the 80's (I believe); if you have seen this movie but haven't seen the original cartoon, I advise you to not follow any pre-conceived thoughts about this cartoon just from the movie. The two are very, very different. Though I still like the movie, it shares hardly any values or aesthetics with the cartoon. Completely gone is the lovely 60's nostalgia that I described above. Completely gone is Rock Bottom, Felix's house, space missions and (sob) The Master Cylinder is reduced to a pitiful cameo appearance that has nothing to do at all with his majesty on the series. I mean, come on, this is the guy that would have almost launched a fleet of missiles against Earth, if Felix hadn't of stopped him!

This cartoon is utterly fantastic. Please go and find a DVD of it right now.

RIGHT-EE-OH!!

As I recall, the words to the theme went: "Felix the Cat, the wonderful, wonderful cat. You'll laugh so much your sides will ACHE. Your heart will go pitter-pat watching Felix, the wonderful cat."

I watched this TV cartoon series regularly as a child in the 60s. I enjoyed it a lot, but I believe I never suffered from aching sides. In fact, there were a few things about this show that were a little bit creepy, such as the sinister Master Cylinder, and that lantern-jawed kid Vavoom, who could blast through anything by just shouting "Vavoom!" That's the kind of stuff that creeps into the dreams of young kids and gives them nightmares!

The silent Felix cartoons were, for the most part, VERY good. Having no soundtrack, all they had to let you know what Felix was thinking or feeling was the artwork, at which the animators were extremely successful. You really can't compare the silents with the Trans-Lux TV Felix cartoons. However, in those TV cartoons, the producers were intelligent enough to hire Voice Actor extraordinaire Jack Mercer. He started at the Max Fleischer cartoon studio in New York City (that studio's original location was the reason for the urban settings of their cartoons.). Unlike the talented people at Warner Bros., Disney and many others, a large percentage of the settings of THEIR cartoons were rural. But watch a Betty Boop or a Popeye cartoon, and you'll fing they take place in urban locations. Jack Mercer was the voice of Popeye for FIFTY-plus years! Though many of the people who made the TV Felix cartoons made the rounds among the animation studios, each studio's product had a personality of its own, and that's where the talents of the artists and writers really shined. Sure, there are settings in, say, W-B cartoons varied and were definitely NOT urban, such as "The Awful Orphan" starring Porky Pig and Charlie Dog. It takes place on a farm, as do many others. But that's the beauty of any animated cartoon - you can make the setting ANY PLACE, on Earth or elsewhere in the known Multiverse. None of those locations are any more difficult to get to or any more expensive than any other. The reason, of course, is that everything you see and hear is the product of the Director's and animator's imaginations. Every cartoon by any studio was drawn at the same desks as any other.

I remember when I was a kid, and the Trans-Lux Felix cartoons were run every day. I watched them then and liked them! But if you told me then that all the characters were voiced by Jack Mercer, I'd never have believed you!