Starring the Warner siblings, Yakko, Wakko,
and Dot, Animaniacs lives on as a reminder
of how a cartoon could appeal to children
without talking down to them.
With that in mind, here are some things you
probably didn't notice while watching Animaniacs
as a kid.
Perhaps the most well-known aspect of Animaniacs
that is clearly meant for adult amusement
is the show's proliferation of suggestive
innuendo.
For example, Yakko and Wakko are constantly
howling at an array of busty female characters
with their catchphrase.
"Hellooo, Nurse!"
Dot is usually critical of her brothers' overenthusiastic
libidos, though she commits her fair share
of ogling as well.
And these shenanigans go beyond mere catcalls
and whistles.
In one episode, Yakko asks Dot to "dust for
prints."
She dutifully does so, and when she calls
for her brother's attention with legendary
musician Prince in her arms, he admonishes
her:
"No, no, no.
Fingerprints!"
"I don't think so."
And that's not the only time the show implied
something a little less innocent than a literal
definition.
In the episode "Wakko's America," the Warners
are playing Jeopardy! when Wakko finds the
Daily Double.
When asked how much of his winnings he'd like
to wager, he fearlessly proclaims:
"I'll blow the wad!"
Yakko and Dot look understandably shellshocked
in response to that proclamation, though Wakko
doesn't say anything else too suggestive before
singing about the state capitals.
Celebrity cameos are often a surefire way
to give TV viewers the thrill of recognizing
some of their favorite entertainers, but there
were a few cameos on Animaniacs that probably
went unrecognized by its pint-sized fans.
One regular was the show's executive producer,
Steven Spielberg.
As someone who usually works behind the camera,
Spielberg probably wouldn't be a face that
little kids would immediately recognize.
But since the show took place on the Warner
Brothers lot, it made sense for such a major
filmmaking figure to occasionally appear.
In the episode "Chairman of the Bored," a
scene depicting Hollywood luminaries like
Cher and Jack Nicholson seems to take its
cue from the Looney Tunes short "Hollywood
Steps Out" from way back in 1941.
The chances that kids would know these celebrities
are middling at best, and they surely wouldn't
have picked up on the reference to old Hollywood,
either.
Although, to be fair, that would probably
be a stretch for many adults, as well, unless
they grew up in the 1940s themselves.
Something that really sets Animaniacs apart
from other cartoons is how it's completely
beholden to its Hollywood setting.
The Warners were created as studio mascots
of a sort, and then locked in the studio lot's
water tower when they became uncontrollable.
Their entire existence revolves around Hollywood.
However, it's a version of Hollywood that's
now barely recognizable, back when Tinseltown
was still subject to the studio system of
contracts and churning out films in just a
few months.
And the Warners weren't afraid of mocking
Hollywood, the studio executives, and especially
critics and journalists.
"In Hollywood, they have a different language
that they speak.
It's spoken by those folks who went to school
for just one week."
With the glut of celebrity cameos and a penchant
for referencing older material, Animaniacs
is a cinephile's dream.
And it's unlikely that any kid watching it,
back in the 90s or today, would know enough
about the business of Hollywood to really
get these jokes.
Animaniacs was filled with references to beloved
classic films, including the likes of Casablanca
and Star Wars.
And there was one recurring segment that drew
from a popular film genre that's not exactly
age-appropriate for youngsters.
Impressionable kids probably shouldn't be
subjected to violent mobster movies like Goodfellas
or The Godfather.
So while those young viewers might not appreciate
how the pigeon trio known as "the Goodfeathers"
parody these classic films, they can at least
appreciate that the birds act and sound funny.
But parents are likely to understand the birds'
references to the classic films of Martin
Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola, especially
the raspy mumbling of the Godpigeon, which
spoofs Marlon Brando's whispery tones as Don
Corleone.
While the violence exhibited by the Goodfeathers
never goes as far as stuffing a horse's head
in someone's bed, they still portray the territorial
tendencies typical of organized crime gangs
everywhere.
Albeit, it's in a constant hunt for food instead
of making the rounds to collect "insurance."
Classic cinema is not Animaniacs' only go-to
reference point, as the show's writers were
also clearly excited to instill a love of
literature in their young audience.
It's unlikely that any pre-high school viewer
would be familiar with the works of Shakespeare,
outside of perhaps Romeo & Juliet.
But that didn't stop Animaniacs from parodying
the Scotland-set tragedy Macbeth.
In this rendition, the three witches are played
by Slappy Squirrel, Dot, and Hello Nurse,
with their Shakespearean dialogue "translated"
by Yakko.
"Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn
and cauldron bubble."
"Loosely translated, that means, 'Abracadabra.'"
While it's doubtful that this translation
helps kids really understand the true essence
of Macbeth, it does make for some silly gags.
And when those kids grow up, they'll hopefully
be more well-equipped to understand the source
material and appreciate the off-color interpretation.
In a slightly more heartfelt tribute, "Mighty
Wakko at the Bat" takes the classic poem "Casey
at the Bat" and reforms it to narrate the
tribulations of the Warner baseball team.
"Little Wakko Warner dragged his bat up to
the plate.
He stood there like a tiny fixture, only three
feet tall."
For kids, this is just a fun rhyming short,
but for poetry-loving grown-ups, it's a nice
little gem with a deeper meaning under the
surface.
That's a quality that's true of most of Animaniacs,
and why it remains beloved by both the young
and the young at heart.
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