We all have our favorite cartoon characters, but mine are mostly old-school, pre-1970s, before everything became computer animation. Here’s my list.
They don’t make cartoons like they used to. When I was a kid, no Saturday morning was complete without The Bugs Bunny Road Runner Show and a few others. Today’s children’s programming is virtually unrecognizable.
But in the spirit of nostalgia, I decided to put together a list of my 10 favorite cartoon characters.
1. Bugs Bunny
You probably already figured this one, but the wisecracking rabbit played so well with numerous other cartoon characters and it was always fun watching to see how he’d outsmart them all.
2. Yosemite Sam
The angry little man with the pistols was himself quite the pistol. His fuse was as short as he was, and one of my all-time favorite Yosemite Sam cartoons had Bugs Bunny trying to make sure Sam was mild-mannered before he could receive an inheritance. Here are some highlights of Sam’s failure to maintain his composure:
3. Fred Flintstone
An obvious take on Jackie Gleason’s Ralph Kramden character in The Honeymooners, Flintstone’s fierce loyalty to his family and desire to get rich quick can lead him into no end of trouble. Fortunately, his wife, Wilma, is usually able to save him from himself!
4. Snoopy
How many Beagles do you know who can go from using the roof of its doghouse as a place to sleep to pretending its the cockpit of a Sopwith Camel from World War I? As personality goes, Charlie Brown’s dog is overflowing with it! And no one was better at getting under Lucy’s skin:
5. Sylvester
I’m more of a dog person, but this cat has always been a favorite, even though he never seems able to outsmart Tweety Bird. Oh, Sufferin’ Succotash!
6. Daffy Duck
I’ve always considered Sylvester and Daffy to be very similar characters. If it wasn’t for the fact that they are different species, they might be brothers. But where Sylvester’s best foil is Tweety Bird, Daffy’s best foil is Bugs Bunny himself.
7. Charlie Brown
Charlie’s “everykid” quality endeared him to generations of children who were always pulling for him to actually be able to kick the football Lucy would hold for him.
8. Marvin the Martian
He should be a sworn enemy since his main mission seems to be to destroy planet Earth with his famed Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator, but his ineptitude only makes him that more lovable.
9. Rocky and Bullwinkle
There’s no splitting up this famous, though oddly-matched duo. They took themselves seriously despite not taking themselves all that seriously and routinely broke the fourth wall, but that only added to the goofy charm.
10. Pink Panther
The Pink Panther’s exploits always were a delight to kids, but it was this particular cartoon, “Pink Posies,” in which he battles to replace “The Little Man’s” yellow Posies with pink ones,  that I liked the best:
That’s my list of favorite cartoon characters.