Jay Ward created cartoon characters that talked back. Rocky and Bullwinkle and their kin were subversive and often addressed the viewer directly, following some outrageous animated stunt with quips like “We need the ratings.” Ward created absurdist characters; goofball takes on silent movies, as well as one of TV’s first cartoons, Crusader Rabbit.
In the 1960s he reached beyond cartoons to Saturday morning breakfast, and created the wacky sailor Cap’n Crunch the alien from Quisp and others.
More than sixty pieces of original art, and artifacts from his personal collection are on view at the Jay Ward Legacy Exhibit on view at the Paley Center in Beverly Hills through the end of the month. Go this weekend, it’s free and you can even go upstairs to the research library and view any Ward films in the collection.
Here are some of my favorite items from the show, including that amazing fiberglass Rocky and Bullwinkle statue that loomed over the Sunset Strip from 1961-2013, and is finally in a museum where it belongs.
