I admit that I got Jay Ward's full name (today would have been his 92nd birthday) from Wikipedia. As I wrote yesterday, the site has its uses. For instance, this paragraph, lifted in its entirety:
An eccentric and proud of it, Ward was known for pulling an unusual publicity stunt that happened to coincide with a major national crisis. Jay Ward bought an island in Minnesota near his home and dubbed it "Moosylvania," based upon the home of his most famous TV character Bullwinkle. He and publicist Howard Brandy crossed the country in a van, gathering signatures on a petition for statehood for Moosylvania. They then visited Washington, D.C. and attempted to gain an audience with President John F. Kennedy. Unfortunately, they arrived at the White House just at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis and were escorted off the grounds at gunpoint.
So, a sampling of Ward's work. There's lots of other people involved, of course, but there's something about his shows that is just him. We've got to start with Moose and Squirrel. Mr. Know-It-All was a regular feature.
This is pretty much the origin story of Mr. Peabody and Sherman and, of course, the Wayback Machine.
After Rocky and Bullwinkle went off the air, Ward returned with this character. Short-lived, but beloved by all.
And the advice in the George cartoons still applies today: Watch out for the tree.
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