The Vile One's Dungeon: San Diego Comic Con 2008 - Freakazoid/Tiny Toons Interviews
Posted by Jeffrey Harris on 08.16.2008
Con coverage rolls on with new interviews featuring the talent behind some of the best animated shows in the history of cartoons.
On the first day of the San Diego Comic Con, the creators and writers of the Warner Brothers animated shows, Tiny Toons and Freakazoid, were in attendance to help promote the new season 1 DVD releases for both of those shows. And being that Freakazoid is one of the best animated shows of all time, the panel of animation legends was a pretty exciting event. Interview with Paul Rugg.
Paul Rugg, the voice of Freakazoid.
Paul Rugg most amazingly played the voice of Freakazoid in that animated show besides also being one of Freakazoid's lead writers. Rugg's also done work on Animaniacs, Dave, The Barbarian, and American Dragon: Jake Long.
The Vile One: It's great to finally have this show on DVD. A while back you could only watch the show on Cartoon Network at 4AM or YouTube. I know there is some debate, discussion, and controversy about YouTube, but I'm so glad this show is finally coming out on DVD.
Paul Rugg: Me too, me too.
TVO: Are you excited?
PR: Oh, you know it's funny. John McCann (another one of the lead writers for Freakazoid as well as the voice of Hero Boy and Mr. Douglas in the series) and I, we always wondered whether anything would ever happen. Then we were like, well that's done and stuff. But I think at times with the internet with stuff like YouTube is what sort of brought it into a new consciousness and introduce it to a new group of people, so I think without that I dunno if we'd ever have this release.
TVO: I'm very curious how you started writing cartoons and then voicing them?
PR: My story is that I was in a group called the Acme Comedy Theatre with Adam Carolla and John McCann, and we were all founding members of it. And Sherri Stoner (one of the writers for Tiny Toons and Animaniacs, also the voice of Slappy Squirrel) was working on Tiny Toons at the time. And when they were developing Animaniacs, the one thing they knew was they wanted it to be really frenetic and move really silly, and I think they just gave me a script, they gave John McCann a script, and--I think my first one was where they meet Beethoven and his [McCann's] was perhaps--I think when they meet Dracula. And we turned it in that morning. Tom Ruegger called and said you guys have jobs, and it was great because it took that same sort of sketch comedy thing we were doing at the Acme's--perfect sort of thing to do. So that's how I got started.
TVO: Freakazoid was really ahead of its time, and I still think it is. Even though you see the influences in today's shows like Family Guy. But since Freakazoid aired on such an early time slot, do you think that had a negative affect on attracting an audience?
PR: Yeah, well . . . also too I think that because we were so under the gun to sort of write this, the first thing that you do if you don't know what to write is you write what you like. And there was no time, so John and I and Tom Ruegger were just writing stuff that we liked, and I don't think we ever gave any thought to the fact that oh wow, kids are going to watch this. Well, we always made it safe. I mean my daughter watches it now, but we never even thought about kids. Let's just get it done, and it's funny, we're having a good time! But I do think its funny when we were at the panel today, a lot of the people asking about Freakazoid must have been 8 or 9 at the time.
TVO: I was probably like 11 or 12.
PR: So see, I think that we never thought about kids, but I think if you look at the old Warner Brothers stuff, they weren't thinking about kids. They were thinking about . . .
TVO: Comedy.
PR: Comedy, that's right.
TVO: So looking at cartoons in general today, what do you think of today's cartoons compared to animated cartoons in the 1990's which you were heavy into?
PR: You know, that's such a tough question because hired after Freakazoid, I was hired on different projects and you think that they want that show, they really want that stuff, and then you get there and you find that they don't want that much, they want to tell you what to do. And they want to tell you the way comedy is, and when you write a script, 14 people read it. So, I look at a lot of stuff today. I think that a lot of it is managed material, and same old, same old, same old. Can't speak a lot of the prime time cartoon stuff, but kids' television, it makes me sad because--
TVO: It talks down to you a little bit.
PR: Yeah. We're not entertaining kids anymore. We're trying to teach them a lesson. Well, as a parent, I'll do that. You entertain my kid. And that's what I think--I think kids are being under served right now, they need to be entertained. Have some fun.
TVO: In one episode of Freakazoid, the story depicts executive producer, Steven Spielberg, in a writer's meeting with you [Paul Rugg] playing yourself, and Spielberg giving notes and having you re-write the episode on the fly.
PR: The E.T. parody.
TVO: Did anything like that ever happen with Spielberg?
PR: No, not really. Steven was great. He was just a great producer because you sort of knew what he wanted, and most of the time those two things matched. Like what I wanted was pretty much what Steven would want in this cartoon. A lot of times, the only time, Steven would say anything is, "You know what . . . why don't you play more like that?" So he really wouldn't actually re-write it, he would just say add more of that crazy character. And that's how Jack Valenti--we ended up doing this whole riff with Jack Valenti.
TVO: Jack Valenti and his cheeks!
PR: I had written this episode, and we were under the gun. And I saw Jack Valenti's going to open the piece and talk about it, and Steven read it and said, "Oh, more Jack Valenti."
TVO: There was nothing better than Jack Valenti and his cheeks explaining the MPAA rating system.
PR: Yeah, so Steven had actually got him to come in. So Jack Valenti came in and--
TVO: That was actually Jack Valenti?
PR: That was Jack Valenti. That was actually Jack Valenti. In fact, I had written the whole thing, Jack Valenti came in, Andrea [Romano, the voice director] brought him in, he sat, and he did it. And it never occurred to me that I had written the lines, "Hello, I'm Jack Valenti and these are my cheeks." And just as he's about to say it, I'm, "Oh no! He's gonna that and his cheeks! Oh no, I'm dead!" And he goes, "OK. I'm Jack Valenti and these are my cheeks." And, he had a great time doing it.
TVO: This had to be one of the great ensemble voice casts of all time. All the great relationships like Cosgrove (Ed Asner) and Freakazoid, and Freakazoid and the Lobe (David Warner). But was it hard to get the actual people to play themselves in cameos?
PR: No. John [McCann] wrote Dance of Doom which was the first script. And there was just a guy named Cosgrove, a cop named Cosgrove. So Andrea Romano, voice director and casting director, said, "You know, I'm going to bring Ed Asner in. He likes to do this stuff." So he came in, and he started doing it, and he almost started acting it. And John said, "You know what? Just play it real down. Just go, 'Hi, Freakazoid.'" Oh yeah, that's great. He did it, we loved it, so when it came time to re-write something, I wrote Cosgrove in. So next thing you know, we're all writing Cosgrove in, and that was never planned and stuff. Because we had such a fun cast, and they were so much fun to play with, they brought so much, we just loved them all.
TVO: Do you have a favorite line as Freakazoid?
PR: "I'm not going down there with all types of poo-gas." Probably "poo-gas" I would say.
TVO: Any favorite episode of animation that you've worked on that you feel exceptionally proud of?
PR: Well as far as Freakazoid, I like Hero Boy and one of my favorites is Normadeus because I knew writing that one that we were already canceled, so it meant a lot to me.
TVO: Nothing beats Hero Boy running up and saying--
PR: "I must succeed!" That was John McCann by the way.
TVO: Thank you so much, Mr. Rugg.
PR: Hey, no problem.
TVO and PR: "Low bridge everybody down. Low bridge, Caveman's underwear is brown! He's probably got the cooties ooties!"
Old Freakazoid gag. The first season of Freakazoid is now out on DVD.
Interview with Andrea Romano.
Andrea Romano, voice-over and casting director.
Andrea Romano is probably the #1 animation voice-over director here in the US. For many years she's handled everything from virtually the entire DC Animated Universe to Avatar: The Last Airbender. Her experience is absolutely impeccable. She's one of the few people to actually direct the legendary director, the beard himself, Steven Spielberg. She's worked for Disney, Warner Bros., Hanna-Barbera, you name it. Ms. Romano was nice enough to take the time to speak with me about her career.
The Vile One: I just watched Sozin's Comet for Avatar, and it was unbelievable.
Andrea Romano: I watched it myself, this weekend. And because when I finish my work, it's still weeks and weeks and weeks of work that happens afterward. And so, I don't get to see the finished product myself until I saw it as you did, almost as an audience member. And I was so impressed with the whole piece. The animation was stunning. Those fire scenes--amazing. The voice work was wonderful by those actors.
TVO: So how did you first start going into directing cartoons?
AR: I started as an actress first. And then I was an agent's assistant. I moved to Los Angeles, and I got the job from a friend. Someone needed an assistant for a part-time gig. And I came in, and I was an agent's assistant, an agent who represents the people for voice-over. And then I became an agent, and then after a few years of that . . . first I started casting for Hanna-Barbera. I was the casting director of Hanna-Barbera for about five years. And then I started working for Disney, I did Duck Tales, Winnie The Pooh, and Rescue Rangers, and a bunch of other series for them. And then when a bunch of the major players broke off from Hanna-Barbera and formed Warner Bros. TV animation -- Jean MacCurdy, Tom Ruegger -- I went over with them and became their major and only casting and voice-over director. And so it was kind of a natural segway into all those things. What all that background gave me is that I really understand what an actor goes through in order to perform a role, what agents go through trying to get their actors in, and what a casting director goes through. And in animation, unlike any other part of the entertainment industry, as a director, I also cast for myself. I cast most of the shows I direct, not typical for most of the industry.
TVO: As a director, doing so many shows dealing with so many classic characters and characters with years and years of history, do you try to do research on the established properties and characters?
AR: Absolutely. Absolutely. You know, I didn't read comic books when I was a kid. Girls didn't read Batman comics or Superman comics, it just wasn't the thing. And so I had to really educate myself into the world of the DC Universe. And Bruce Timm was instrumental -- and all the writers who were really good. And I would walk in ignorant and admitting that I was ignorant, would you please explain to me who is Harvey Dent? And how did he come to be Two-Face? You know, what is this about. We all knew who Batman was and Bruce Wayne. We all knew who the Joker was. But it was all those other characters, I just didn't have any idea where they came from. And that was really interesting because I believe that we are more interesting people the more we continue to educate ourselves throughout our lives. Once you stop getting new information you start getting boring. So I've been educated over the years of all these DC characters. And then when we got into Justice League Unlimited which opened up the *whole* DC Universe, there was only so much time where I could find out who Red Tornado was or what his origin story was--
TVO: He's a robot.
AR: *Laughs* But I had to find out all these characters and what they were . . . so I got as much information as I could to help me make a decision, and then have to rely on people like Bruce Timm and the animation directors to tell me what they knew, that we needed to know to get the right cast in.
TVO: How did you like working on Avatar for Nickelodeon?
AR: For me, despite that SpongeBob SquarePants is their #1 show, Avatar for me was their prestige show. It was gorgeous animation. The story lines were stunning and the acting was great. The casting, I did not cast that show, Sarah Noonan and Maryanne Dacey did the casting on that series, and they were brilliant. They were such Asian oriented shows, so we used an Asian actor that was good at voice-over that would have a good time. It was the joy of my life to work with Mako. I was so incredibly sad when he died. And I was very glad he got to work very close up to the end. And he did bring a remarkable amount of pathos to that character, and his readings were so odd and different and unusual, and Greg Baldwin was a fan of Mako's work for years and years which is why he was able to do such a convincing work of vocal performance and impression.
TVO: Since you are a lady, and working with the Dante Brasco character and Zuko, do you ever think, "Oh my God! He's so dreamy,"?
AR: I always try to hire dreamy actors myself. I love to get dreamy. The thing is, we want the fans to feel that same feeling. So, if I can bring that out in them, and find that in the room with me, I am fanning myself because they are so dreamy, that it's all a beautiful thing.
TVO: Do you have a favorite character that you've worked on the voice-over with any actor?
AR: In all the series I've worked on?
TVO: Yes.
AR: Oh my goodness. What a hard question, that's a great question. You know, I like the Dark Knight. I like Batman. I like Batman because he's human. Because he has human problems. You've got Superman, whose an alien, and his sense of right and wrong is very clear. Batman crosses the line, and Batman can actually--there's always the fear that Batman might go too far in his vengeance. And so that's very stimulating to me. I also find Batman a very sexy character. I do, I think he's a very sexy character.
TVO: When you work on a long-running series, and you get near the end, is it a very emotional experience in maybe not wanting to leave these characters or performers? Or do you feel its time to move on and go to the next show?
AR: Interesting. I've had both those emotions. I've had times where I don't want this series to ever end. I want to keep making Pinky And The Brain until I'm too old to press a talk back button . . . and there's also a point where you have to say, I don't know if I have any more good ideas. And so maybe it is time to move on. I do get sad. I love working on a script or a project where the script and the performance makes me cry. If I'm doing a good job, and I'm working with the actor, and the actor has to cry -- We spoke of Avatar, Mae Whitman's character, Katara, cries a lot in that series. And there's one wonderful episode where she talks about her father abandoning her, and she really lets him have it and she falls apart. And I wept through the entire performance. I cried through her entire performance with her. I cried with her. I would direct her and say, "*Sniff* OK Mae, *cries* do one more take . . ." Now I've known Mae since she was born. I literally knew her mother years before Mae was born, so I've known Mae since she was born. And I watched her wonderful career. She's a wonderful actress. But I like showing an emotional connection to an animated project. And if I feel that when I'm directing it and when I'm working on it, hopefully the audience is feeling that when they view it.
TVO: Is there any one talent or performer whom you are continually amazed by their work ethic and what they bring to a role?
AR: Yeah. Frank Welker I think is one of the unsung heroes of the animation world. Frank deserves an Emmy just for all the remarkable work that he's done year, after year, after year. He's a stunning voice talent. He can do anything.
TVO: He still does a great Fred.
AR: Excellent. He's been doing it since he was 18 or 19 years old. He's doing Garfield now I believe. You say Frank, can you make this sound of this bottle of water? And he does a sound just like that bottle of water if it were to speak. So he is someone that I am constantly--his integrity and his talent astound me. Rob Paulsen, another remarkable talent, just brilliant. He can do so much. Tress MacNeille, on The Simpsons she's every female character except Marge and the few that Pamela Hayden do. And Nancy Cartwright. Nancy's strong suit is really the boys. I mean, I admire voice actors -- their talent, their ability. If they don't have integrity, I don't work with them much longer and move on.
TVO: When you were working on Freakazoid were you ever just like, "What is this?" while you were doing the show?
AR: Yes, there was. And when we first started, we didn't know what it is, but we were sure having a good time, aren't we? And if we're having a good time, and everybody along the line has a good time, then ultimately it's going to work. And even if it doesn't work, we all had a good time. And so, it did work, I think. And there are fans, and I'm so glad it's coming out, and I hope everybody enjoys it and we make more fifteen years after that series went out of production.
TVO: Thanks so much.
AR: My pleasure. Thanks for watching everything. Keep watching!
Interview with all-around BA, Paul Dini.
If you don't know who Paul Dini is, you shouldn't be reading any comics or watching cartoons period. Dini helped kick start the new golden age of animation in the 1990's with his work on such countless shows as Tiny Toons and then Batman: The Animated Series followed by Freakazoid, Superman: The Animated Series, and Batman Beyond. Dini's latest animated show is Super Rica & Rashy.
Paul Dini, co-creator of the DC Animated Universe.
TheVileOne: Mr. Dini, who did the character designs of yourself on Freakazoid?
Paul Dini: At the comic convention . . . that was my look for about 10 minutes. I'm in the studio. My hair was a like an oily--streaky down, in a short haircut, and I had a beard because I grew a beard for about 10 minutes while working on Freakazoid. And Bruce Timm did the caricatures, so he drew me like that. And then I showed up in another one, in the Fanboy cartoon, as Freakazoid's sidekick, Expendable Lad, and I think that was done by maybe Scott Gerald. I think Scottie did that one. And I think that's one of the few I did a voice in, and all I did was grunt and scream as I got knocked over.
TVO: Freakazoid was very heavy with sort of pop-culture references in a style that's very commonplace to today's prime time animated cartoons. Any thoughts on that?
PD: I think that I echo what was said earlier, that we weren't really answering to anybody other than Steven at that point. And if Steven thought it was funny, or in some cases if he believed we thought it was funny, he'd just say, "I dunno but go ahead with it." Early on in Tiny Toons, he was very much supportive of writers, and he would say, "You know this is not my sensibility, but feel free to make your contributions to it." And I thought that was a very nice thing for him to say, and I think that worked out a lot in the scripts.
TVO: The Samurai Jack episode of Duck Dodgers is a favorite of mine, how did that come about?
PD: Well, we all kind of liked Samurai Jack, and we liked Genndy [Tartakovsky, the creator of the series], and we thought it would be a fun thing to do. And the other thing was, we came up with this character called Happy Cat which showed up in the show. And we wanted Happy Cat to be a little bit more than what it was, and I wasn't really involved in the third season so maybe it became that, but we wanted Happy Cat to be kind of like the Mickey Mouse of the future so that it was everywhere, and that it was this symbol that was highly merchandised and everything. And, so once we came up with this kind of threatening Cheshire cat image, and Mako had done the voice for, we thought let's get him back in -- We loved him doing the, "Ahahaha, I am Happy Cat." It sounded very sinister and corporate driven.
TVO: You made him the Aku Happy Cat.
PD: It just seemed to fit. And I think it grew out of that. Like after we got Happy Cat in more of the stories, and Mako was doing the voice of Aku in Samurai Jack, and one thing led to another.
TVO: Who's playing the guy that looked like Genndy?
PD: Genndy.
TVO: That was Genndy Tartakovsky playing himself?
PD: We asked his permission, and he recorded his own voice.
TVO: That was great.
PD: That was a fun show, and we brought in weird celebrities from here and there to be in Duck Dodgers.
TVO: Kevin Smith as Hal Jordan/Green Lantern.
PD: Kevin Smith as Green Lantern.
TVO: I don't think we'd ever seen a Green Lantern Ch'p animated before, so thank you for that.
PD: Yeah and that maybe the only chance, so there he was.
TVO: Are you ever amazed by how far you and everyone else who worked on them with this entire DC Animated Universe that went well beyond over 10 years?
PD: Well yeah, we had an amazing amount of cooperation from DC and an amazing amount of encouragement. Occasionally, we would butt heads with them when a certain character was not available because of a movie or somebody bought it at some place else. But we were always able to work out some sort of a compromise with them. And the other thing is, in most of the cases where it was Bruce and myself, or Bruce and Dwayne McDuffie or Stan Berkowitz or Alan Burnett or whoever, we had a tremendous affection for the DC characters. And even if we're not able to do them exactly the way they were done in the comics, we tried to figure out how we can do it in a way that it does respect them.
TVO: Thank you.
PD: Thank you very much.
Dini's current pet project is his new animated series, Super Rica & Rashy, a cartoon short series he created with his gorgeous, magician wife, Misty Lee. In the show Paul and Misty try to raise to mischievous sock monkeys, Super Rica and Rashy. Dini was nice enough to give me a pitch bible for the series when I visited his booth, and his wife gave me a whole set of buttons for the show. You can currently view the first episode of the series on Go Animate.com. Paul Dini and Misty Lee do double-duty on the series as they both also voice the characters based on themselves.
UP NEXT: The SDCC '08 wrap-up! And that's it for this year's 411mania 2008 Comic Con coverage.
