Yogi, The Easter Bear

Premiered April 3, 1994.

"Easter is a celebration.  It celebrates Springtime, with life starting anew.  It also happens to be the start of Camping Season. 
-Yogi Bear

It's Easter morning in Jellystone State Park and Ranger Smith (Don Messick), the park's chief ranger, is busy preparing for the annual Easter Jamboree.  In addition to celebrating the holiday, this event also marks the beginning of camping season.

Ranger Smith has prepared Easter baskets and ordered a truckload of candy for the buses for of children that are attending the jamboree.  Smith himself plans to dress up as the Easter Bunny.  

The ranger is under a lot of pressure, because the Supreme Commissioner (Ed Gilbert) of state parks will be arriving any minute with his grandchildren.  The commissioner doesn't suffer fools and has a history of shutting down state parks he doesn't like.  Smith believes his career will end if anything goes wrong.

The ranger tells Yogi Bear (Greg Burson), Jellystone's most notorious food thief, to stay away from the Easter Jamboree.  Smith threatens to send Yogi to a circus in Siberia if he causes any trouble. 

Yogi ignores Smith's threats, steals his Easter Bunny costume and eats all of the Easter candy.  

The ranger then chases Yogi all over Jellystone and the bunny suit is wrecked in the process.  It looks like Yogi has ruined everything.  The children will have no Easter candy and Ranger Smith has reached the end of his rope and decides to send Yogi to Siberia.

Yogi's friend Boo-Boo (Messick) feels bad for Ranger Smith says he and Yogi will make things right by bringing the real Easter Bunny to the jamboree.  They visit the Grand Grizzly (Gilbert)...

...who tells them to look for "the big ears in the sky" if they want to locate the Easter Bunny.

When Yogi and Boo-Boo arrive at the Easter Bunny's HQ, they find it ransacked and empty.  Boo-Boo sees "Help Me" spelled out in jelly beans, which makes them believe the Easter Bunny is in danger.  Fortunately, they find a trail of jelly beans and hope it will lead them to the Easter Bunny. 

The Easter Bunny (Rob Paulsen) has been captured by gangsters named Paulie (Charlie Adler) and Earnest (Jeff Doucette).  Paulie owns a factory that makes fake plastic Easter Eggs.  The gangsters plan to steal the Easter Bunny's eggs so that the world will be forced to buy Paulie's fake eggs.

Boo-Boo and Yogi free the Easter Bunny and pay a visit to the Easter Henhouse, home of the Magical Chicken, who lays eggs for the Easter Bunny.  

She is capable of laying chocolate, cream, candy and regular eggs.  They plan to bring these eggs to the Easter Jamboree and save the day.  However, they'll have to get away from Paulie and Ernest, who are in hot on their tails!

Will Yogi, Boo-Boo and the Easter Bunny reach Jellystone in time to save Easter?  Will Ranger Smith get fired?  

J.A. Morris says:

This is a generally enjoyable special.  Yogi Bear cartoons were a staple of my childhood and I've always enjoyed the Hanna-Barbera characters.  It was fun to watch these familiar characters interact with the Easter Bunny and (SPOILER ALERT) save Easter.  

This version of the Easter Bunny is a likeable character.  He's accidentally injured by Yogi several times, but never loses his optimistic outlook.  However, there's a bit too much going on in Yogi, The Easter Bear.

For starters, it's 46 minutes long, or an hour long with commercials.  I felt that a lot of the dialogue was there to fill time rather than move the story along.  For instance, when Paulie tells the Easter Bunny about his plans for plastic eggs, he rants for several minutes about it.  This could've taken one sentence to cover.  There are other scenes that feel dragged out to pad the running time.

There are also a bit too many subplots that don't add a lot.  Ranger Smith says he doesn't believe in the Easter Bunny because he never got what he wanted on Easter.  Later, the Easter Bunny recognizes Smith's name when it's mentioned and says "he never believed in me."  What came first?  The disbelief or the lack of the desired Easter candy?

On a more positive note, the voice actors in Yogi, The Easter Bear all deliver solid performances.  Don Messick was the original voice for both Boo-Boo and Ranger Smith and he does a great job.  This special turned out to be the last time Messick voiced the characters.  Greg Burson is good as Yogi Bear and Charlie Alder provides a great, manically evil voice for Paulie.  Legendary comic actor Jonathan Winters has a small role as Ranger Mortimer.  

Yogi easily fools Ranger Mortimer (Jonathan Winters) into letting him have Easter candy.

The animation also looks great.  The script has some good lines that are (probably) aimed at adults.  

Yogi, The Easter Bear is recommended to all Yogi Bear fans.  As we've mentioned here before, there aren't a lot of Easter specials (compared to other holidays) so it's nice to find something else to watch this time of year.  I think there's a great 25-30 minute special here buried in the over-long scenes and distracting sub-plots.  

J.A. Morris' rating:

2 and a half Easter eggs.

RigbyMel says:  

Yogi The Easter Bear is an agreeably goofy Easter special.  Even though Yogi is his own worst enemy in the story, he does work hard to try to make up for his mistakes.  (Even if sometimes the hard work is reluctant.) 

As J.A. Morris says above, there is way too much going on in this special and the multiple subplots weigh it down a bit, preventing it from being a true classic.   

That being said, it's always fun to see Yogi in action antagonizing Ranger Smith and the Easter Bunny and Easter Chicken are cute. The voice work is great too! 

I also find it interesting that the special is set on Easter itself rather than the days leading up to Easter as is more typical for this sort of holiday entertainment.  I guess the Easter Bunny being snatched by the gangsters held up his delivery schedule? 

While this is not a holiday special for the ages, it's certainly festive and worth sharing with new Yogi fans or fans of long standing.

RigbyMel's rating: 

2 Easter eggs

The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't

Premiered November 21, 1972.

On Thanksgiving Day, a squirrel tells his son the story of Jeremy Squirrel and the first Thanksgiving.

British settlers arrive in Plymouth, MA in 1620.  The first year is a difficult one, many settlers die. But with help from the resident Native Americans, the colony manages to make it through that first year and the settlers and the natives plan a big harvest feast.

On the morning of the first Thanksgiving, a boy named Johnny Cooke goes out to play "hunter" in the forest.

He's hunting for a turkey when he encounters an Indian boy named Little Bear.  They quarrel over which one is the better hunter.  Jeremy Squirrel arrives and tells the boys they should be friends rather than rivals.  Johnny and Little Bear agree and shake hands.

Peacemaking squirrel. 

The day of the Thanksgiving feast arrives and everyone is working hard to prepare the food.  Little Bear and Johnny go to play in the woods.  Jeremy realizes they'll get lost and he chases after them.

Their parents grow worried.  A search party of pilgrims and Indians sets out to find the boys.  Johnny and Little Bear try to find their way home in the dark, but go in the wrong direction. Luckily, Jeremy finds them and leads them on the correct path.  He gets some of his animal friends to accompany the boys on their journey homeward.

Everything seems to be okay until the boys encounter a wolf!  It chases Johnny and Little Bear with deadly intentions.

Will the boys be saved?  Or will the wolf turn the boys into his Thanksgiving Dinner?

J.A. Morris says:

This is special aired in syndication in the 1970s and 1980s.  But I only recall seeing it once, so I don't bring a lot of nostalgia to this review.   

The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't isn't a great special, but it's okay if you're seeking light holiday entertainment aimed at kids.

The voice acting credits don't really tell you who voiced which character, but this special features some of the greatest voice actors of all time.  It's always nice to hear the voice work of June Foray, Don Messick and Hal Smith.  I'm pretty sure we hear the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft (most famous for singing "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" and Tony the Tiger). Some of the background music here is easily recognizable from other Hanna-Barbera productions.  The "chase music"  heard near the end was used in countless episodes of Scooby Doo and it's used well here.

Goofy wolf.

But The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't has problems.  Jeremy and the other animals are cute and likeable, but the human characters aren't particularly interesting.  The wolf that threatens the boys is more goofy looking than scary.

The special also relies too much on recycled animation.  I expect to see some of that in old cartoons, but it's ridiculous in this case.  Sometimes we see the exact same scene a few seconds after we've just seen it.  The special's theme song is catchy, but  it's overused.  We get to hear it three times during the special's 25-minute running time.

The Settlers and the Indians search for the boys.

On a positive note, American Indians aren't portrayed in an ugly stereotypical manner, which is often the case in depictions of the first Thanksgiving.  It's also worth noting that the character Johnny Cooke is based on a real person and his father Francis was among those who signed the Mayflower Compact.

This special is available on dvd.  You can find it as a supplement on Casper's Halloween Special.  In recent years, it's been shown on Cartoon Network and it's sister channel Boomerang, so check your local listings.

The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't is okay, worth watching at least once.  Fans of the aforementioned voice actors will want to check out this special. 

J.A. Morris's rating:

2 and a half pumpkin pies.


RigbyMel says:

This animated special has its heart in the right place, but just doesn't gel for me. As J.A. Morris says above, there is a lot of recycled animation used.  A LOT!  This wouldn't be as big of a deal if the story was better.    There is plenty of drama in the real interactions between early British settlers and the Native Americans -- even if some of it wouldn't make for warm and fuzzy family viewing.

The talking squirrel angle, which is intended to be cute and appeal to the child audience this special is aimed at, feels tacked on instead.  It's also inconsistent.   Why can Jeremy the squirrel be understood by the two boys, but not by the adults looking for them?

Why aren't Johnny and Little Bear more surprised by the talking squirrel?    Why on earth should we care about the silly framing device with modern squirrel and human families that have no interaction to speak of?   It just doesn't quite work for me!  I have no problem with talking animals in cartoons generally, but this just feels unnecessary.

Then there is the song ... which is grating in the extreme,  yet the lyrics are oddly unmemorable.  It's mildly annoying the first time they use it in this special, but the annoyance factor ratchets up as it is repeated.  I think we hear it 3 or maybe even 4 times!

I don't remember ever seeing this special before and I wouldn't recommend seeing it unless you are a huge fan of the voice actors.

RigbyMel's rating:

1 and a half pumpkin pies

The First Easter Rabbit

 Premiered April 6, 1976.
"We came within a hair's breadth, if you'll excuse the pun, of never having an Easter rabbit at all."
-G.B.

A bunny named G.B. (Burl Ives) narrates the story of how the Easter Bunny began his career.

Exuberant narrator G.B.

A little girl named Glinda (Dina Lynn) gets a stuffed animal bunny for Christmas. She names the bunny Stuffy.

Stuffy in Glinda's stocking with a sprig of holly between his paws

Stuffy becomes Glinda's favorite toy.

Glinda later contracts scarlet fever. The doctor tells Glinda's mother Elizabeth (Joan Gardner)  that all of Glinda's possessions must be burned to prevent a relapse of the disease.  Stuffy is among the items that will be destroyed.

While waiting on the rubbish pile, Stuffy is visited by a fairy named Calliope (Gardner again). She turns him into a real bunny and tells him he will become "the First Easter Rabbit."

Calliope sends Stuffy to Easter Valley, where it's always Spring, despite its location near the North Pole. She says Stuffy must "beware of Zero" as she flies away.

On the way to Easter Valley, Stuffy encounters three rabbits of questionable morals (the narrator calls them "con-rabbits").  They're names are Spats (Paul Frees), Flops (Stan Freberg) and Whiskers (Don Messick).   They're skeptical of Stuffy's story, but they offer to help him find Easter Valley, thinking there might be some way for them to profit from the adventure.

Stuffy meets Flops, Spats & Whiskers.

Meanwhile, Zero (Frees again) is also trying to get to the valley.  He is responsible for keeping the North Pole cold, but he can't access Easter Valley.  He asks his toady, a snowball named Bruce (Messick) to find a route to the valley.  Zero plans to make Easter Valley as icy as the rest of the Pole.

Zero, with his flunky Bruce.

Stuffy and the other rabbits meet a bird who directs them to the secret entrance to Easter Valley, which happens to be under a tree. When they arrive, Santa Claus (Frees again) stops by to welcome his new neighbor.

Santa Claus welcomes Stuffy

Stuffy worries that they don't have enough time to prepare for Easter. The other rabbits ask "What's in it for us?" Santa says that if they give presents to children, they'll feel good by doing good.

A little bird tells Stuffy how to access Easter Valley.

Zero observes the rabbits from afar. He conspires to capture the Golden Lily, which enables Easter Valley to stay Spring-like year round.  Once in possession of the lily, Zero causes winter to descend upon Easter Valley. Stuffy and company are snowed in.

Will stuffy be able to deliver eggs, candy and presents to children on Easter?  Will he get to see Glinda again?

Zero captures the Golden Lily, Bruce regrets helping him obtain the lily.

J.A. Morris says:
I had not seen The First Easter Rabbit in more than 30 years and found it was better than I remembered.  I've always felt that Rankin-Bass' "traditionally" animated specials were inferior to their Stop-Motion "Animagic" offerings.

Stuffy puts on a Santa suit while performing "There's That Rabbit".

But the music is nice, the special is full of beautiful Spring colors and the voice actors do a great job.  Paul Frees, Don Messick and Stan Freberg are among the best voice actors of all time and they bring their A-game to this special   Burl Ives also does a good job as narrator here.

Jonathan & Elizabeth (Glinda's doctor & mother, respectively) enjoy the Easter Parade.

 Additionally, his character GB's outfit  bears a strong resemblance to the clothes worn by Snowman Sam in Rudolph, The Red Nosed Reindeer.  Fans of the series Mad Men may be surprised to learn that Robert Morse (yes, Bert Cooper himself) voices Stuffy the Easter Rabbit.

Robert Morse, who plays Bert Cooper in Mad Men...

...also voices Stuffy, the First Easter Rabbit!

 I always enjoyed the supporting role Santa Claus plays in this special.  As a kid, seeing Santa here was a nice reminder that Christmas was not as far away as it seemed.  And I also thinks it's cool that Santa helps Stuffy & friends deliver their Easter goodies.  Wouldn't it be nice if we could call up Santa for help if we were stuck in a snowdrift?

Santa & his reindeer (yep, led by Rudolph) arrive in Easter Valley to help Stuffy.

The introductory song "There's That Rabbit" isn't the best thing Maury Laws wrote, but it's catchy and memorable. Which is good, because the song pops up throughout the special.  The inclusion of Irving Berlin's classic song "Easter Parade" gives this special a real "major league" feeling.  And the "Easter Parade" scene is a nice finale, the reunion of Glinda and Stuffy is touching.

Stuffy & Glinda reunite at the Easter Parade.

All in all, The First Easter Rabbit is a very good Easter special and is recommended.  And if you're a fan of Mad Men, you may find it particularly amusing to hear the voice of "Bert Cooper" coming out of a cartoon rabbit.

Stuffy dances & charms the crowd at the parade.

J.A. Morris' rating:

3 Easter Eggs

RigbyMel says:

This special is relatively new to me - the first time I saw it was last year.  The story is an interesting mixture of elements, including similarities to the 1964 Rankin-Bass classic Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer with plot  from Margery Williams' 1922 tale The Velveteen Rabbit  and a bit of Irving Berlin thrown in for good measure.   The polyglot nature of the special works better than one might expect.

Stuffy and friends working on Easter goodies to share

On a side note, I am amused at how often Santa Claus seems to show up in various Easter related specials.  (It makes sense considering the origins of both holidays.)    That being said,  Santa's message to the sidekick bunnies about making others happy being more rewarding than personal gain is one that bears repeating year-round.

Off-Season Santa is around for help and advice!

 I do find the villain in this special to be a bit lacking in motivation compared to some other Rankin-Bass bad guys.   Bruce the anthropomorphic snowball is a creative addition, though.

The Macguffin Golden Easter Lily

As J.A. Morris says,  the voice acting is very appealing, the songs are fun and the bright spring colors are delightful. 

This might not be required viewing every year, but it is certainly an enjoyable way spend a half an hour.

RigbyMel's rating:

2 and a half Easter Eggs