Toon News (partially found Toon Disney CGI animated interstitial series; 2004/2005)
Toon News Is a 2004/2005 CGI series of promotional interstitial shorts that aired on Toon Disney for the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa. It starred a cowboy robot newsreader called Smokey Silvers (who wears boxer shorts and cowboy boots) ably piloting the Toon News blimp that patrolled the skies over Toontown and giving news to the audience following a short, comical, introductory segment. They’d put in clips of airing Toon Disney shows and try to make some kind of “news story” out of it (such as with Hercules: The Animated Series’ maze episode). Also, some way through the series, Smokey’s nephew Spike would come to join him, which he would at first be quite disquieted and scared about (with there being a shock chord as the episode ended) only to later confess in the next episode that he had actually warmed up to the idea, before receiving him through air mail in the introductory segment of another episode. There may have also been a scene with the two hopping through a TV screen only to have Smokey get trapped. It ran for 26 5-minute-long episodes (two series) and was screened around the world minus the Pacific. It also appeared as a section of Toon Disney UK’s website.
Reception
It helped Cathy McDonald (writer/director) win both the Best Newcomer Award at Promax Europe 2005 and Young Creative in Europe Award at Promax Athens. She initially researched for it before becoming the director, going on to write and direct all 26 episodes.[1] She also co-created the two characters, to which she created Spike and developed the character of Smokey. Animators who worked on it include Jonny Grew (animation and prop modelling), Nathan Laud and Han Park (at LIME during his 2005-2007 span there, who refers to it as just “Smokey Silvers”), Mark Harrison was the producer, and Stewart Pearson was the executive producer. Smokey was voiced by Lewis Macleod.
Status
Footage from this series online is existent but scarce and in no way completing all 26 five-minute episodes. The opening segment of Smokey Silvers receiving Spike through air mail was uploaded by MacDonald and Harrison as an excerpt from the series. A number of small clips can be seen in a 2004 showreel of Grew’s, while MacDonald’s 2014 showreel contains an opening segment with Smokey and Spike receiving jetpack items. And a Portuguese clip promoting Cars has also been uploaded.
When asked about uploading any footage of it, Han Park said to possibly contact the two people who ran LIME (“James” and “Nick”) about it. He then said he possibly couldn't go about doing that himself because it's been such a while.
Cathy Macdonald uploaded the first 3 episodes of Toon News to YouTube and plans to upload more episodes in the future. Soon after, another channel named Cathy Macdonald (possibly the same person with a second channel or an entirely different person posing as the show's director) uploaded three more episodes being the fourth and fifth episode of Season One and the seventh episode of Season 2. This means that, with six complete episodes available at the moment, we still need to find 13 episodes.
Episode List
Season 1
# | Episode Title | Status |
---|---|---|
1 | Episode 1 | Found |
2 | Episode 2 | Found |
3 | Episode 3 | Found |
4 | Episode 4 | Found |
5 | Episode 5 | Found |
6 | Episode 6 | Found |
7 | Episode 7 | Lost |
8 | Episode 8 | Found |
9 | Episode 9 | Found |
10 | Episode 10 | Found |
11 | Episode 11 | Found |
12 | Episode 12 | Found |
13 | Episode 13 | Found |
Season 2
# | Episode Title | Status |
---|---|---|
1 | Episode 1 | Lost |
2 | Episode 2 | Lost |
3 | Episode 3 | Lost |
4 | Episode 4 | Lost |
5 | Episode 5 | Lost |
6 | Episode 6 | Lost |
7 | Episode 7 | Found |
8 | Episode 8 | Lost |
9 | Episode 9 | Lost |
10 | Episode 10 | Lost |
11 | Episode 11 | Lost |
12 | Episode 12 | Lost |
13 | Episode 13 | Lost |
Gallery
Videos
See Also
Disney Channel
- 101 Dalmatians: The Series (partially found unaired pilot episode of Disney animated TV series; 1996)
- Amazing Animals (found Disney Channel animated educational series; 1996-1999)
- Arwin! (partially found pilot of cancelled spin-off of "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" Disney Channel sitcom; 2007)
- Bonkers "Fall Apart Bomb Squad" (found episode of Disney Channel animated series; 1993)
- Country Club (partially found test pilot of "Big City Greens" Disney Channel adventure-comedy animated series; 2015)
- Disney Channel Interactive (lost Dish Network game channel; late 2000s)
- Disney Channel "Disney's One Too" (partially lost "Recess" gags of TV channel block; 1999-2003)
- Disney's Coyote Tales (found Disney Channel extended version of "The Coyote's Lament" animated short; 1991)
- Disney's Doug (found episodes of animated TV series; 1996-1999)
- Dreamfinders (unproduced Disney Channel series based on "Journey Into Imagination" Epcot ride; 1983)
- Dumbo's Circus (partially found Disney Channel live action puppet series; 1985-1986)
- Fish Hooks (partially found unreleased pilot of Disney Channel animated series; 2009)
- Going Wild with Jeff Corwin (partially found Disney Channel documentary series; 1997-1999)
- Gravity Falls (found Comic Con 2012 promo of Disney Channel animated mystery comedy series; 2012)
- Gravity Falls (found pitch pilot of Disney Channel animated mystery comedy series; 2010)
- Hannah Montana (lost production material of cancelled anime adaptation of Disney Channel teen sitcom; 2009-2010)
- Herbie the Lovebug (lost Disney Channel animated pilot; late 1990s-2000s)
- J.O.N.A.S. (lost unaired pilot of "Jonas" Disney Channel comedy series; 2007)
- Katbot (partially found unreleased Disney Channel animated series; 2005)
- Lizzie McGuire "Season 3" (lost production material of unfinished season of Disney Channel comedy series; 2020)
- Minnie Takes Care of Pluto (found original English audio of Mickey Mouse Works animated short; 2000)
- Mousercise (partially found Disney Channel exercise series; 1983-1996)
- Mouseterpiece Theater (partially found Disney Channel cartoon compilation series; 1983-1990)
- Pepper Ann (partially found unaired Nickelodeon pilot of Disney animated series; 1996)
- Phineas and Ferb (lost script of cancelled theatrical film based on animated series; 2010s)
- Phineas and Ferb: Shooting Star Milkshake Bar (partially found full version of song; late 2000s)
- Phineas and Ferb: Spot the Diff (found Disney Channel animated special; 2008)
- Recess "The Break In" (partially found pilot of Disney animated TV series; 1996)
- Star and the Forces of Evil (partially found unaired pitch pilot of Disney Channel animated series; 2011)
- Talespin (lost Phil Harris audio recordings from Disney Channel animated series; 1990)
- Teen Angel (partially found Disney Channel serial drama; 1989)
- The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (partially found revival of Disney variety TV series; 1989-1994)
- The Jersey (partially lost Disney Channel sports themed comedy series; 1999-2004)
- The Owl House (partially found unaired pilot of Disney Channel animated series; 2017)
- The Proud Family (partially lost unaired Nickelodeon pilot of Disney Channel animated sitcom; 1999)
- Welcome to Pooh Corner (partially found Disney Channel live-action puppet series; 1983-1986)
- What's Stevie Thinking? (lost unaired pilot of cancelled spin-off of "Lizzie McGuire" Disney Channel comedy series; 2003)
Playhouse Disney
- Adventures in Nutrition with Captain Carlos (partially found Playhouse Disney animated short series; 2004-2007)
- Bear in the Big Blue House "Water, Water Everywhere" (lost unaired pilot of Disney Channel puppet series; 1997)
- Bear in the Big Blue House (found original English audio of Playhouse Disney puppet series; 1997-2006)
- Breakfast with Bear (partially found episodes of Playhouse Disney spin-off series; 2005-2006)
- Handy Manny (partially found unaired pilot of Playhouse Disney CGI animated series; 2005)
- Little Einsteins (lost second pitch pilot of Playhouse Disney animated series; existence unconfirmed; 2004)
- Out of the Box (partially lost Playhouse Disney children's series; 1998-2004)
- PB&J Otter (partially found original credits sequences of Playhouse Disney animated series; 1998-2000)
- Playhouse Disney UK (partially lost interstitial material of children's TV channel; 1999-2006)
- Stanley (found unaired pilot episode of Playhouse Disney animated series; 1999)
- The Book of Pooh (found Playhouse Disney puppet series; 2001-2004)
Disney Junior
- Beverly Hills Chihuahuas (found pilot of cancelled Disney Junior animated adaptation of film series; 2012)
- Jungle Junction (lost pilots of Disney Junior CGI animated series; 2003; 2005; 2008)
Toon Disney
Disney XD
- Billion Dollar Freshmen (lost unaired pilot episode of "Lab Rats" Disney XD live-action comedy TV series; 2010)
- DXP (partially found Disney XD video game block; 2017)
- Power Rangers Animated Series (lost Disney XD pilot of animated adaptation of live-action superhero series; existence unconfirmed; 2007-2009)
Other
- Green Monkeys (lost Disney pilot; 1999)
- La Chambre Folle (lost French Disney children's TV block; 1998)
- Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers (found English dub of anime series; 2015)
- Robodz (partially found Disney Toei animated TV series; 2008)
- The Mouse Factory (partially found Disney live-action/animated TV series; 1972-1973)
- The Shnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show (found episodes of Disney animated TV series; 1995)
- X-Heart (partially found unreleased English dub of "X-Coração" Brazilian animated TV series; 2014)