Ant and Aardvark shorts on DVD?! (kind of)

[grim_tales]

Hi everyone,
Sorry I havent posted here in a while

At Play.com (UK) I found this:

http://www.play.com/play247.asp?page...=57&g=72&pa=sr

This paragraph caught my eye:

The New Pink Panther Show also includes vintage The Ant and the Aardvark cartoons plus new characters voiced by such comic favourites as Ruth Buzzi, John Byner, Dan Castellaneta, Joe Piscopo, Charles Nelson Reilly, Wallace Shawn, and Jo Anne Worley.

If this really is the 1971 Saturday morning show I'll pick this up in a flash for the Aardvark shorts - or could it be the travesty from 1993? This isnt made clear. I find it hard to belive its' really 8 hours long - if this is just the first Volume of the first Season.
Hmm.. it mentions Dan Castellanetta (voice of Homer) - sounds like 1993 to me... On the other hand John Byner did the principal Ant/Aardvark voices in 1969.

[A. Leal]

It's the 1993 version. Byner was in both, and all the other voices were from that version. You're better off buying the boxed set of the Pink Panther movies with the bonus disc including the first Ant and the Aardvark. Of course, they may have tossed some genuine articles in to pad the time, but it's up to you. And eight hours makes sense for a syndicated daily manifest. That's 16 episodes or so out of at least 30 or whatnot.

[Timber Wolf]

Well-written and artistically animated, The New Pink Panther Show also includes vintage The Ant and the Aardvark cartoons plus new characters voiced by such comic favourites as Ruth Buzzi, John Byner, Dan Castellaneta, Joe Piscopo, Charles Nelson Reilly, Wallace Shawn, and Jo Anne Worley.

That's a little weird. I'm almost sure they are the Ant and the Aardvark cartoons from the 1993-95 series. However, if they don't actually have the classics, they should have said:

The Ant and the Aardvark cartoons with the vintage characters

[grim_tales]

Thanks. I may see if I can rent it to check it out then, I was getting really excited there

[grim_tales]

I didnt know the 1993 version was "The New Pink Panther Show" as well my bad! - to me the pattern has gone like this:

1969: The Pink Panther Show (2 PP shorts and The Inspector)
1971: The New Pink Panther Show (2 PP shorts and Ant and Aardvark)
1978: The All New Pink Panther Show (2 PP shorts and Crazylegs Crane)

..right?

[A. Leal]

While the 93 version was officially titled "The Pink Panther," "The New Pink Panther" was widely used in ads and some magazines. And in this case, it makes sense since let's face it, almost no video or DVD releases of *any* cartoons have bothered with the temporary umbrella title. The cartoon selection varied only slightly, it was just the opening, closing, and new animated interstitials that varied. In this case, despite the ambiguity of the description, I think they are trying to make a distinction between the DePatie-Freleng theatrical/television shown Pink Panthers and the revival series, which I thought was an interesting idea, but suffered in execution. Though the rare episodes with the Ant and the Aardvark or the Inspector were generally highlights and seemed to bring out the best in the writing staff, and usually pushed the talky Frewer Panther to the side. An episode in which the Inspector repeatedly mispronounced clowns as "cloons" seemed like an inventive and logical extension of the live action Clouseau's unique mode of speaking.

[sumnernor]

This is now the third thread about this. I have the german box.

Also see my thread and the other:

http://forums.goldenagecartoons.com/...ead.php?t=5694
http://forums.goldenagecartoons.com/...ead.php?t=5746

The German box with 4 DVDs and 40 episods, the UK having 2 DVDs and 20 episodes. I proofed the DVDs by skipped through all 40 episodes. The Pink Panther is in all 40. Some have Inspector with the PP . The very first has the PP and the Ant/Arrdvark. I have forgotten exactly but there is at least one with the PP and ANT/Aardvark and perhaps 1 or 2 more. I estimate that there are circa 6 with the PP and inspector. There are none with only the Inspector or only the ANT. I have given some details in the above 2 threads.

See the other 2 threads, this IS the 1993 program and the episodes are listed in Jerry Beck's Pink Panther book.

[grim_tales]

Thanks The reason why I wasnt a fan of the 1993 version was because it tarnished my memory of the classic Panther toons - having a talky Panther just didnt seem right IMO. I may still check it out though as the price is quite reasonable.
BTW, interesting the Play synopsis said the Panther "gets a speaking voice for the first time" - maybe they meant a principal speaking voice - because he has "spoken" in a couple of cartoons before I'm sure - even if its just 1 line ("Why can't men be more like animals?" springs to mind)