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97-471: Camp Lazlo is an American animated television series created by Joe Murray for Cartoon Network . The series follows Lazlo, an anthropomorphic spider monkey who goes to a camp called "Camp Kidney", a Boy Scout –like summer camp in the Pimpleback Mountains. Lazlo resides in the "Jelly Bean" cabin with his fellow Bean Scouts; Raj, an Indian elephant, and Clam, a pygmy rhinoceros. Lazlo

194-569: A "marathon with my pants around my ankles". Murray initially believed that he would create one season, move back to the San Francisco Bay Area , and "clean up the loose ends I had left hanging". Murray said that he felt surprised when Nickelodeon approved new seasons; Nickelodeon renewed the series for its second season in December 1993. After season 3, he decided to hand the project to Stephen Hillenburg , who performed most of

291-593: A character designer, appeared in the commercials instead. On November 14, 2007, Cartoon Network Enterprises announced a deal with KellyToyUSA to create toys based on the series that would be distributed to amusement parks in North America beginning in 2008. Lazlo, Clam and Raj made cameo appearances during the end credits of the Codename: Kids Next Door and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy crossover episode "The Grim Adventures of

388-518: A child-friendly show, shifted its target group to ages 12 and up, resulting in a darker and more mature storyline. Animated film theatrical series include all early animated series: Animated Weekly (1913), The Newlyweds (1913 — 1915), Travelaughs (1913, 1915 — 1918, 1921 — 1923), Doc Yak (1913 — 1915), Colonel Heeza Liar (1913 — 1917, 1922 — 1924), Kapten Grogg  [ sv ] (1916 — 1922), Les Aventures des Pieds Nickelés (1917 — 1918),

485-561: A cult following, similar to The Ren & Stimpy Show . Murray created the title character for an unpublished comic book series in the late 1980s, and later reluctantly pitched the series to Nickelodeon, which was looking for edgier cartoonists for its then-new Nicktoons . The network gave the staff a large amount of creative freedom, with the writers targeting both children and adults. The show premiered on September 18, 1993, and ended on November 24, 1996, totaling four seasons and 52 episodes. A special , Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling ,

582-471: A fat and enthusiastic steer; Filburt , a neurotic turtle who often feels awkward or disturbed and his faithful dog Spunky . Living next door to Rocko is a middle-aged couple, Ed Bighead , a cynical and cantankerous toad who despises Rocko, and his compassionate and more friendly wife Bev Bighead. All of the characters in Rocko's Modern Life are anthropomorphic animals of varying species and varying in size,

679-598: A local station of a television network broadcasts an animated series as a part of its own programming, the time-slot will vary by region. All early animated television series, the first being Crusader Rabbit (1950 — 1959), are comic cartoon series. However, later series include sports ( Speed Racer , Captain Tsubasa , Slam Dunk ), action ( Hajime no Ippo , G.I. Joe ), science fiction ( Mobile Suit Gundam , Tenchi Muyo ), drama ( Neon Genesis Evangelion ), adventure ( Dragon Ball ), martial arts ( Baki

776-452: A lot done independently. Murray has likened the independence to that of "Termite Terrace" ( Warner Bros. Cartoons ) from the 1930s. As Nickelodeon began to have more success with its animation cartoons, Murray said the "Termite Terrace" mentality was not working as much. Producer Mary Harrington made the move from New York City to Los Angeles to set up Games Animation, in order to produce Rocko's Modern Life . The crew first began production on

873-459: A low-quality clip was made available online as early as late December 1997, and two higher quality clips have been available as late as 2021. The first airing of the season two episode "Hut Sut Raw" included a scene in which Rocko is picking berries; upon picking one lower on the bush, a bear rushes out whimpering and grasping his crotch. This scene is left intact in the Canadian broadcasts of

970-468: A nice, safe way for a child viewer to spend a half-hour". Richmond said that the show has too much "self-consciously precious" humor; the reviewer said that the trait may not factor for children and described children as "demanding and non-discriminating at the same time." Ginia Bellafante of The New York Times said that if she became "socio-analytical about the Lazlo enterprise," Camp Kidney appears to be

1067-435: A parody of KFC and a favorite place/hang-out for Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt; Conglom-O Corporation, a megacorporation with the slogan "We own you" that owns everything in town; Heck , a place of eternal torment run by Peaches where bad people go when they die; Holl-o-Wood, a town that resembles Hollywood ; and Kind of a Lot O' Comics, a comic book store owned by a cruel toad named Mr. Smitty, where Rocko works. Many of

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1164-766: A restaurant formerly located on Lankershim in the North Hollywood section of the San Fernando Valley. He took his team members on "writing trips" to places such as Rocky's, the La Brea Tar Pits , and the wilderness. If he liked the story premises, the writers produced full outlines from the premises. Outlines approved by both him and Nickelodeon became Rocko's Modern Life episodes. Maestri describes some stories as originating from "real life" and some originating from "thin air". Murray stated that each episode of Rocko's Modern Life stemmed from

1261-521: A row" and that he "couldn't really get the scouting thing down". He also described cartoons with pastoral settings, such as the Bugs Bunny cartoons of the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series and Yogi Bear , as having a "calming" effect due to the tree-filled backgrounds. At the time he believed that too many futuristic themes appeared in media and literature, so he wished to create

1358-418: A series about a group of children without "high tech stimulus" and "in nature". Linda Simensky , who had previously worked with Murray on Rocko's Modern Life , had since moved to Cartoon Network and called Murray to solicit a new series. After an initial hesitation, Murray sent Simensky the idea for a show with a working title of 3 Beans . Simensky "thought it sounded too much like a salad", so Murray changed

1455-461: A series that would "get back to nature". Murray was also inspired by John Candy ’s own summer camp-themed cartoon series Camp Candy . Camp Lazlo originated from a camp-related children's book series concept by Murray that, according to him, "outgrew its medium". As Murray developed the concept, he felt that his "lunatic characters wanted to live" and decided that a simple story could not sufficiently house his characters. Murray desired to create

1552-460: A set time period in "segments", including several such shorts. When advertising is taken into account, the cartoon itself may be only 15 — 20 minutes of the half hour, although Netflix and many other streaming companies do not show commercials. There are also series with a very short episodes lasting approximately five minutes; they have recently become more common in Japanese animation . If

1649-420: A similar manner to the operation of his Saratoga , California studio, which he describes as "very relaxed". His cadre included many veterans who, according to him, described the experience as "the most fun they had ever had!" He, saying that the atmosphere was "not my doing", credited his team members for collectively contributing. Murray described the daily atmosphere at the studio as "very loose", adding that

1746-461: A slightly remixed version of the first and was used for episode 8. Version 2 had high-pitched, distorted voices in the chorus. The third version of the theme song was performed by Kate Pierson and Fred Schneider from the B-52s . They performed the Rocko's Modern Life theme song for the rest of the series. At first, Murray wanted Paul Sumares to perform the theme song since Sumares created most of

1843-575: A stand-in for "our culture of obsessive parenting." Kathie Huddleston, a reporter for the Science Fiction Weekly , created a favorable review of Camp Lazlo . The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reviewed the series and gave it an "A." Joly Herman of Common Sense Media posted a review of the show on Go.com . Herman describes the humor used in the Camp Lazlo as making it an "unpredictable show for younger viewers." Herman gave

1940-456: A term for masturbation , was renamed "Chewy Chicken" for the series' fourth season. In the 2019 special Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling , they go back to using the original "Chokey Chicken" name. As the series entered reruns after it ended, more scenes were cut. The entire episode "Leap Frogs", in which Bev Bighead attempts to seduce Rocko, was skipped. The entire episode "Heff in a Handbasket", in which Heffer Wolfe attempts to sell his soul,

2037-402: A variety of odd situations commonly based around traditional or fictionalized, bizarre camp activities. The setting of the show was designed to deliberately bring a nostalgic feeling of childhood summer camps and "evoke a comfortable place to visit". The colors instill the feeling of summer camp, rather than basing color schemes on real-life colors; Murray and Sue Mondt, the art director, chose

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2134-625: A veteran of many bands, including the New York-based instrumental group the Raybeats, and a side gig, the B-52s, spent five years as a music director on the series. Leading a six-piece combo on keyboard and guitar, Irwin brought together musicians such as trombonist Art Baron , drummer Kevin Norton , wind player Rob DeBellis, and bassist David Hofstra . Like SpongeBob SquarePants and Ren & Stimpy , Irwin also uses selections from

2231-490: A wallaby as a main character. Bentley also stated that the Rocko universe was influenced by "everything from Looney Tunes to underground comics ". The staff of the show consists of fans of outrageous comedy, both animated and not animated. Tom Kenny cited Looney Tunes and SCTV as influences for the show, and also stated "I'm sure if you asked Joe Murray or Mr. Lawrence or any of those guys, especially in terms of animation,

2328-535: Is an American animated television series created by Joe Murray for Nickelodeon . The series centers on the surreal life of an anthropomorphic Australian immigrant wallaby named Rocko and his friends: the eccentric steer Heffer Wolfe , the neurotic turtle Filburt , and Rocko's faithful dog Spunky . It is set in the fictional town of O-Town. Throughout its run to present day, the series has been controversial for its adult humor , including double entendre , innuendo , and satirical social commentary, and gained

2425-496: Is often at odds with his pessimistic camp leader, Scoutmaster Lumpus the moose, but usually gets along well with the second-in-command, Slinkman the banana slug, and other campers. Camp Kidney sits just across the lake from Acorn Flats, which is home to the campsite of the all-female Squirrel Scouts (which function somewhat similarly to the Girl Scouts ). Camp Lazlo was produced by Cartoon Network Studios . Its style of humor

2522-513: Is similar to the Nickelodeon series Rocko's Modern Life , which Murray also created and worked on, albeit more well-suited for a younger audience. The series premiered on Cartoon Network on July 8, 2005, and ran for five seasons comprising 61 episodes and the hour-long television special, Where's Lazlo? . The final episode aired on March 27, 2008. During its run, the series won three Primetime Emmy Awards and three Pulcinella Awards , and

2619-725: The Tom and Jerry cartoon short films released in movie theatres from 1940 to 1967, and many others. Direct-to-video animated series include most Japanese original video animations (OVAs). The first OVA series (and also the first overall OVA) was Dallos (1983 — 1985). Almost all hentai (pornographic) anime series are released as OVAs. Animated web series are designed and produced for streaming services . Examples include Happy Tree Friends (1999 — 2023) and Eddsworld (2003 — present). They can also be released on YouTube , such as Asdfmovie , which debuted in 2008. Rocko%27s Modern Life Rocko's Modern Life

2716-518: The APM Music into his score. On April 7, 2023, a soundtrack album featuring tracks from the first and second seasons was released on streaming and digital media, as well as a deluxe edition issued on September 18, 2023 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the series, with 11 additional tracks. All tracks are written by Pat Irwin , except where indicated Rocko's Modern Life has been noted for its racy humor. Adults made up more than one-fifth of

2813-620: The Cartoon Network Fridays – Volume 1 DVD, released on September 19, 2006. "Snow Beans", a winter-themed episode of the show, was released on the Cartoon Network Christmas: Volume Three DVD on October 3, 2006. The special "Where's Lazlo," received a "For Your Consideration" release for its Emmy nomination containing a glowstick and a DVD containing the episode. The DVD is only available through second hand market and very rare as it

2910-590: The Nick Rewind block, and on November 22, 2007, it was shown on Super Stuffed Nicksgiving Weekend . Reruns of Rocko's Modern Life aired on Nicktoons in the United States from May 1, 2002, to September 5, 2011. In the UK, the series premiered on Nickelodeon UK on November 6, 1993. The series was also screened on Channel 4 from August 9, 1994, until 2000. From 2002 to 2017, it also aired on Nicktoons in

3007-478: The 1990s, more mature content than those of traditional cartoon series began to appear more widely, extending beyond a primary audience of children. These cartoon series included The Simpsons , South Park , Family Guy , Futurama , The Ren & Stimpy Show , Rocko's Modern Life , Beavis and Butt-Head , King of the Hill , and Duckman . Canadian computer-animated series ReBoot , which began as

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3104-460: The American dream is volume! So what better company to create volume than 'Conglom-O', and since a majority of the town worked at Conglom-O, it should be called 'O' Town. I also wanted the town to be 'anytown' USA, and I used to love sports players with a big ZERO on their back. It was funny to me. Originally, the character appeared in an unpublished comic book titled Travis . Murray tried selling

3201-623: The Bad and the Wallaby", Heffer encounters a milking machine and finds pleasure, although only his reactions are shown onscreen. According to writer/director Jeff "Swampy" Marsh, the scene was originally supposed to have hearts appearing in Heffer's eyes at the climactic moment. Although it clearly wasn't going to be included, they described the scene to the Nickelodeon censors anyway: "We described

3298-565: The DVDs. The only uncut release of the show on DVD so far was published in Germany in October 2013, although this release is still missing the uncut version of "Road Rash". Back when the show was rerun on Nicktoons, "Leap Frogs" and "Heff in a Handbasket", the two episodes banned for content, were restored. While the former was removed from the rotation again, the latter was in circulation until

3395-596: The Dragon (a role that would coincidentally be taken over by Kenny), voices Lazlo. Mr. Lawrence , who voiced Filburt , voices Edward and the Loons. The opening theme song, "Lazlo Was His Name-O", was based on the children's folk song " Bingo ". It was adapted by musician/songwriter and producer Andy Paley , with Joe Murray writing new lyrics. Paley also composed the music score for the show; his score features original camp songs, bluegrass and cowboy swing. Murray explained that

3492-459: The Grappler ), and other genres. The first animated sitcom was The Flintstones (1960 — 1966), produced by Hanna-Barbera . It was followed by other sitcoms of this studio: Top Cat (1961 — 1962), Jonny Quest (1964 — 1965), The Jetsons (1962 — 1963, 1985, 1987) and Wait Till Your Father Gets Home (1972 — 1974), an adult-oriented animated series in

3589-737: The KND", mixed with the characters of Evil Con Carne . Lazlo made a cameo in the MAD episode "Taking Nemo / Once Upon a Toon", as one of the cartoon characters who forgotten their identity. Lumpus and Edward briefly appeared in the Villainous episode "The Lost Cases of Elmore". Lazlo made a cameo in the OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes episode "Crossover Nexus", as one of the cartoon characters who turned into stones by Strike. Animated series Animated television series are presented daily or on certain days of

3686-607: The Leaky Lake Games event. That will allow them to compete against the Squirrel Scouts in a final tournament. In the game, the player meets characters, such as Scoutmaster Lumpus, Mr. Slinkman, Edward, and others to receive hints and directions in achieving goals and completing timed mini-games. Jack DeVries of IGN rated the game a 4.0 out of 10, criticizing the mini-games for not explaining their objectives and calling its gameplay "boring" and its audio "some of

3783-567: The Rocko character after visiting a zoo in the Bay Area and coming across a wallaby that seemed to be oblivious to the chaos around him. Murray combed through his sketchbooks, developed the Rocko's Modern Life concept, and submitted it to Nickelodeon believing that the concept would likely be rejected. Murray felt they would not like the pilot, and he would just collect his sum and begin funding his next independent film. According to Murray, around three or four months later he had "forgotten about"

3880-450: The [1990s] apart was the fact that the climate was ripe for people taking chances and doing different things. Both Nick and Cartoon Network were able to invest on people who had nothing to lose. Of course, the result of that was that there was a big explosion in the scene. There were big successes—like that yellow sponge that popped up in a big way—and with that success came another era where people aren't apt to take as many chances because

3977-669: The animation business as a director. Murray designed the logo of the series. He said that, after his design drifted from the original design, Nickelodeon informed Murray of how it intended the logo to look like. Murray also designed the covers of the comic book, the VHS releases, and the DVD releases. The writers aimed to create stories that they describe as "strong" and "funny". The writers, including George Maestri and Martin Olson , often presented ideas to Murray while eating hamburgers at Rocky's,

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4074-444: The audience for the show during its run. The series contained numerous adult innuendos, such as Rocko's brief stint as a telephone operator at what is implied to be a sex hotline in the season one episode "Canned": the instructions on the wall behind him helpfully remind all employees to "Be Hot, Be Naughty, and Be Courteous" while he flatly repeats "Oh baby" into the receiver, who turned out to be Mrs. Bighead. Joe Murray noted that

4171-495: The bookish, sci-fi -loving giraffe , along with the object of Scoutmaster Lumpus's affections, Miss Doe (a female deer ), the head of Acorn Flats. Murray said that, as he did in Rocko's Modern Life , he matched the personalities of characters to various animals. Some episodes may involve the Bean Scouts' attempts at unveiling the truth behind camp legends or clowning around, infuriating their peers or placing themselves in

4268-538: The camp as having a "retro" feel. Murray likes 1950s and early 1960s designs of objects like advertising art, lamps, and old vacation brochures, and he said that the "brushy quality that developed at that time" heavily influenced the setting. After Rocko's Modern Life concluded production in 1996, series creator Joe Murray kept a notebook of ideas for television shows and books. Murray attributes some of his most fond memories to days at summer camp; Murray said that he attended summer camp every summer for "4 or 5 years in

4365-473: The characters, would be "a little too weird for test audiences". Murray, instead of removing Heffer from "Sucker for the Suck-O-Matic", decided to write "Trash-O-Madness" as the pilot episode. In the original series pilot, Rocko was colored yellow. His color was changed when a toy merchandising company informed Nick they were interested in marketing toys but did not want to market Rocko because "the color

4462-401: The colors. In Camp Lazlo , the sky can be yellow, and trees are not always green and brown. For the architecture and objects, books with cabins, camps and Native American artifacts were consulted. Ultimately, Murray wanted to create a place where nature prevails, and the hustle and bustle of real-life is left behind, with no technology to distract from the impressions of camp life. He describes

4559-459: The comic book in the late 1980s, between illustrating jobs and did not find success in getting it into production. Many other characters appeared in various sketchbooks. He described the early 1990s animation atmosphere as "ripe for this kind of project. We took some chances that would be hard to do in these current times (the 1990s)". Murray wanted funding for his independent film My Dog Zero , so he wanted Nickelodeon to pre-buy television rights for

4656-412: The concept and was working on My Dog Zero when Simensky informed him that Nickelodeon wanted a pilot episode. Murray said that he was glad that he would get funding for My Dog Zero . On his website he describes My Dog Zero as "that film that Linda Simensky saw which led me to Rocko ." "Sucker for the Suck-O-Matic" was originally written as the pilot; the executives decided that Heffer Wolfe , one of

4753-462: The concept of creating a Nicktoon as he disliked television cartoons. Simensky told him that Nicktoons differed from other cartoons. He then told her that he believed that My Dog Zero would not work as a cartoon. He then researched Nickelodeon at the library and found that Nickelodeon's "attitude was different than regular TV". The cable network providers were "making their own rules": for example, Murray stated that he "didn't write for children", which

4850-523: The creative team. Murray rented a floor in the Writers Guild of America, West building, although the team of Rocko was not a part of the union, which the staff found ironic. Sunwoo Entertainment , and later Rough Draft Studios , assembled the animation. According to Murray, as Rocko's Modern Life was his first television series, he did not know about the atmosphere of typical animation studios. Murray said that he opted to operate his studio in

4947-456: The crew as " coercion ". Murray wanted the Rocko's Modern Life crew as it "knows my sensibilities" and gained ten years of experience. Crew members of Rocko's Modern Life , such as Robert Scull or Peter Burns, have worked on this show. For season one, Murray hired among others comedy writer Martin Olson , who had collaborated with Murray on some of the most successful stories for Rocko's Modern Life . Murray said that he likes storybook art and

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5044-399: The episode. Both scenes were edited by Nickelodeon after their first broadcasts and are the only instances of censorship on the season two DVD, released in 2012. On the season three DVD, the "Wacky Delly" segment was shortened by approximately ten seconds to remove footage of Sal Ami repeatedly whacking Betty Bologna over the head with a telephone receiver. The restaurant named "Chokey Chicken",

5141-420: The executives were fine with. Murray was unsure at first, but was inspired by independent animation around him, such as Animation Celebration and MTV 's Liquid Television , and gave the network a shot. At the time, Nickelodeon was selling itself as a network-based as much around the edge as around kids' entertainment. It aimed to appeal to college students and parents as much as children. Murray developed

5238-474: The immediate rejection. Jeff "Swampy" Marsh , a storyboard writer who went on to create Phineas and Ferb , says that writers of Rocko's Modern Life targeted children and adults. He cites Rocky and Bullwinkle as an example of another series that contains references indecipherable by children and understood by adults. Aiming for a similar goal, Marsh described the process as "a hard job". According to him, when censors questioned proposed material, sometimes

5335-404: The klutzy, accident-prone, geeky Guinea pig Samson. There's also a rival summer camp called Acorn Flats, which is attended solely by girls, primarily focusing on Lazlo, Raj, and Clam's respective female counterparts attending that camp; Patsy the adventurous mongoose who has a major crush on Lazlo, Gretchen the short-tempered alligator , Nurse Leslie the pink nurse shark who is a doctor and Nina

5432-407: The locations in Rocko's Modern Life have the letter "O" in them; for example, O-Town and Conglom-O Corporation. When asked about the use of "O" in his show, Murray said: I always got a big kick out of the businesses that were 'House-O-Paint', or 'Ton-O-Noodles', because their names seemed to homogenize what they sold, and strip the products of true individuality and stress volume... and we all know,

5529-503: The material written by Doug Lawrence stands as an example of a "unique sense of humor". For instance, Marsh credits Lawrence with the " pineapple references" adding that Lawrence believed that pineapples seemed humorous. The staff drew upon Looney Tunes and the Fleischer cartoons to appeal to a wide demographic: having a certain adult sensibility but also enjoyed by kids. Rocko's Modern Life has been described as similar to that of

5626-627: The most horrendous music ever heard on the GBA." Camp Lazlo characters appeared in a 2007 commercial for the international fast food restaurant chain McDonald's , which advertised various Cartoon Network characters being included as action figure toys in Happy Meals , including those from Camp Lazlo . Murray did not want the series to be used in Happy Meals; the only action he could take

5723-464: The music found in My Dog Zero . Murray wanted the same style in My Dog Zero exhibited in Rocko's Modern Life . Nickelodeon wanted a person with more experience. According to Sumares, believing for the request to be a long shot, Murray asked for Danny Elfman and felt stunned when Nickelodeon decided to honor his request by asking Elfman to perform. According to Murray, Elfman, his first choice,

5820-417: The name to Camp Lazlo . When approval was given, Murray decided to produce the show at Cartoon Network Studios and his studio Joe Murray Productions, and brought Mark O'Hare on as co-producer. According to Murray, the greenlight to produce Lazlo had been initially given and later revoked, leaving Murray and Mark O'Hare "pissed" and "depressed". Murray believed that an executive was not "completely sold" by

5917-496: The output of Warner Bros. cartoons in the Golden Age : a visually driven show heavy on humor, sight gags, and good animation. Instead of a finished script, the animators usually received a three-page outline, requiring them to come up with a majority of the gags and dialogue. The animation team appreciated this approach, with storyboard artist Jeff Myers, formerly of The Simpsons , quoted as saying "The script [at The Simpsons ]

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6014-575: The personal experiences of himself and/or one or more of the directors or writers. He said that he did not intend to use formulaic writing seen in other cartoons. He desired content that "broke new ground" and "did things that rode the edge", and that could be described as "unexpected". He did not hire writers who had previous experience with writing cartoons, instead, hiring writers who worked outside of animation, including improv actors and comic artists. He said that story concept that "ever smacked close to some formula idea that we had all seen before" received

6111-419: The production of season 1 of Rocko's Modern Life , Murray's first wife committed suicide. Murray had often blamed his wife's suicide on the show being picked up. He said, "It was always an awful connection because I look at Rocko as such a positive in my life." Murray felt that he had emotional and physical "unresolved issues" when he moved to Los Angeles . He describes the experience as like participating in

6208-440: The production. He said that the approach, when used for production of television shows, was "driving me crazy". This led him to allow other team members to manage aspects of the Rocko's Modern Life production. Director and later creative director Stephen Hillenburg met Murray at an animation film festival where he was showing his three short films. Murray hired Hillenburg as a director on the series, making Hillenburg's first job in

6305-415: The quality of a television show may decline as production continues "when you are dealing with volume". On his website he said that "In some ways it succeeded and in some ways failed. All I know it developed its own flavor and an equally original legion of fans." In a 1997 interview Murray said that he at times wondered if he could restart the series; he feels the task would be difficult. "I think what set

6402-551: The rules permitted all staff members to use the paging system to make announcements. He stated that one visitor compared the environment of the production studio to " preschool without supervision". Murray stated that 70 people in the United States and over 200 people in South Korea and Japan animated the series. Rick Bentley of the Ventura County Star said that it was unusual for a cartoon creator to select

6499-497: The scene, and then waited for the axe to fall, but all they said was 'can you change the hearts to stars?', we said sure, and it went in." The scene, as well as another scene with Heffer saying, "Goodbye" to the milking machine, were later removed. They are intact in the Canadian broadcasts of the episode, however. In addition, the uncut version can still be found on the VHS tape "Rocko's Modern Life: With Friends Like These". There were at least two occurrences of immediate censorship of

6596-414: The season one episode "Leap Frogs" received "some complaints from some parents" due to its sexual humor, leading to Nickelodeon removing the episode from air for the remainder of the show's run, although it later aired on the cable channel Nicktoons and was made available on DVD and video streaming sites such as Netflix (formerly) and Paramount+ . In a deleted scene from the season one episode "The Good,

6693-519: The series' setting as having a "reality that is 'squashed and stretched' into a twisted version of real life". The background staff hand-painted backgrounds with Dr. Martin Dyes, while each episode title card consisted of an original painting. Linda Simensky said that she asked the creators of Rocko's Modern Life about why the women in the series were drawn to be "top-heavy", the creators told her that they believed that drawing women "the traditional way"

6790-684: The series, and worked to have the series receive definite approval. Production of Camp Lazlo began in 2004 and ended in 2007; November 2007 saw the beginning of the series' final production run. The series would later have writers that would go on to create their own shows, such as Thurop Van Orman , who later created The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack in 2008, and J. G. Quintel , who later created Regular Show in 2010 and Close Enough in 2020. Murray felt that Camp Lazlo successfully appealed to younger children because his prior experiences with his own children helped him determine details that children found humorous. Murray said that he resisted

6887-494: The series. He presented a pencil test to Nickelodeon , which afterward became interested in buying and financing the show. Murray had never worked in television before. The industry was coming out of a " rough period " and Murray wanted to "shake things up a bit". Linda Simensky , then in charge of animation development in Nickelodeon, described the Nicktoons lineup and concept to Murray. He originally felt skepticism towards

6984-405: The series. The original broadcast of the season two episode "Road Rash" featured a scene in which Rocko and Heffer stop at what is suggested to be a love hotel (the "No-Tell Motel") advertising "hourly rates" and ask the horse desk clerk for a room, who infers the two will be engaging in intercourse: "All night? [whistles] Wheeeooo! Okay." The scene was never shown again after its first airing, but

7081-514: The show and a DVD with four episodes (2 half-hour episodes): "Gone Fishin' (Sort of) / Beans Are from Mars" and "Parasitic Pal / It's No Picnic". This item is now only available through a second-hand market. On July 18, 2007, Madman Entertainment of Australia released a set of two DVDs encoded for Region 4 of season one episodes. No further information is available about a Region 1 release or additional seasons. Two episodes have also appeared on Cartoon Network-themed DVDs. "Hello Dolly" appeared on

7178-672: The show in January 1993. Rocko's Modern Life was Nickelodeon's first in-house animated production. Murray's Joe Murray Productions and Games Animation rented office space on Ventura Boulevard in the Studio City neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles , California . The production moved to a different office building on Vineland Avenue in Studio City. Executives did not share space with

7275-576: The show two stars out of five. Camp Lazlo was released in HD remasters partially on Boomerang's streaming service in 2018, completing the HD release of the show in its entirety in June 2019. The complete series was also released on HBO Max in Latin America. Prior to Camp Lazlo ' s premiere on Cartoon Network, a Press Kit for the show was given away as a promotional item, containing fact sheets on

7372-399: The show was removed from the network. Rocko's Modern Life first ran on Nickelodeon from 1993 to 1996, and was briefly syndicated to local stations by Nick during 1995 and 1996. In 2004, the show briefly returned to Nickelodeon as part of U-Pick Live 's Old School Pick, with select episodes airing on June 1 and June 11. In the summer of 2006, the series returned to Nick as part of

7469-595: The stage with the actors instead of "behind glass" in a control room, which he describes as "the norm" while making animated series. He believes that, due to his lack of experience with children, Rocko's Modern Life "skewed kind of older". Murray noted, "There's a lot of big kids out there. People went to see Roger Rabbit and saw all these characters they'd grown up with and said, 'Yeah, why don't they have something like that anymore?'" When he began producing Rocko , he says that his experience in independent films initially led him to attempt to micromanage many details in

7566-546: The stakes are too high." —Series creator Joe Murray in 2011, on being a part of the creative animation scene in the early 1990s The show was jointly produced between Games Animation and Joe Murray Productions. Since Nickelodeon did not have an animation studio, it had to contract out to other studios. After incidents with The Ren & Stimpy Show creator John Kricfalusi , Nickelodeon began not to trust its creators as much and began to form its own studio, Games Animation. Murray recalls that they were still able to get

7663-1046: The style of All in the Family . The Alvin Show from Ross Bagdasarian Sr. and Beany and Cecil from Bob Clampett are also sitcoms. The 1980s and 1990s were a renaissance of the animated children and adult television series. Various broadcast networks and media companies began creating television channels and formats designed specifically for airing cartoon and anime series. Companies that already had these types of formats in place began to revamp their existing models during this time. Most of this animations were American-based or Japanese anime. Listed below are examples of television networks and channels that include animated programs. American British Japanese Canadian Australian Examples of animation-focused networks and channels are listed below; but some of them aired live-action programs occasionally. American South Korean Canadian Japanese During

7760-412: The team disagreed with the opinions of the censors and sometimes the team agreed with the rationale of the censors. He says that "many people" told him that the team "succeeded in this endeavor" and that "many parents I know really enjoyed watching the show with their kids for just this reason". John Pacenti said the series "seems very much aimed at adults" "for a children's cartoon". Marsh believes that

7857-411: The team often used "strange instruments" such as washboards, and the musical saw . In addition to Paley's music score, the show also utilized many tracks from the APM Music library. Ray Richmond of The Hollywood Reporter posted his review of the series on July 7, 2005. Richmond said that his child enjoyed the show but did not ask to see it again. Richmond said that the show forms "plenty lively and

7954-411: The timid Indian elephant; and Clam, the quiet albino pygmy rhinoceros, and their multiple surreal misadventures. Other characters include the selfish, ill-tempered moose Scoutmaster Lumpus and his mild-mannered assistant Slinkman the banana slug , the boys' assortment of fellow campers including the disgruntled, surly platypus Edward, the two unintelligent, dirt-loving dung beetles Chip and Skip, and

8051-716: The urge inside of him to micromanage the production and instead approved aspects and contributions related to the show. He said that he had "a lot of pre-production time" and therefore details became established before the show aired on television. His main philosophies expressed in the show include the phrase "be who you are" and that one should question authority unless the issue is "a safety issue". Murray said that he avoids sending "messages" to children and that he hoped that his television show did not contain "too many messages". Murray asked many staff members who participated in creating Rocko's Modern Life to return and perform duties for Camp Lazlo , describing his main tactic to attract

8148-564: The vast majority of whom are mentally unstable. Murray said that he matched personalities of his characters to the various animals in the series to form a social caricature . The show is set in a fictional town called O-Town located near the Great Lakes and most likely based on Chicago , Illinois , as the city is located close to the Illinois - Wisconsin border. Places in the town include: Chokey Chicken, later renamed "Chewy Chicken",

8245-430: The week during a prescribed time slot , including for example saturday-morning cartoons , prime time cartoons , late night anime , and weekday cartoons ; series broadcast only on weekends. The duration of an episode also varies. Traditionally, they are produced as complete half-hour or nearly half-hour programs; however, many are presented as animated shorts of 10 — 11 minutes, which can be combined for filling

8342-566: The weirdest cartoons would, of course, be our favorites—those weird '30s Fleischer brothers Betty Boop cartoons and stuff like that." Murray produced the pilot episode, "Trash-O-Madness", at his studio in Saratoga; he animated half of the episode, and the production occurred entirely in the United States, with animation in Saratoga and processing in San Francisco . While directing during recording sessions, Murray preferred to be on

8439-454: The work for season 4; Murray continued to manage the cartoon. He said that he would completely leave the production after season 4. He said also that he encouraged the network to continue production, but Nickelodeon eventually decided to cancel the series. It is unclear why it was cancelled, but was likely to suit the wholesome image Nickelodeon image was beginning to promote at the time. He described all 52 episodes as "top notch", and in his view

8536-739: The works of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse ; the styles influenced the visual style of Camp Lazlo . He also describes "great comic book artists" as important to himself and Mark O'Hare. The team created some backgrounds using "Acryl Gouache ", a mixture of acrylic paint and gouache. Rough Draft Studios , a South Korean studio, produced the Camp Lazlo footage. Murray asked Tom Kenny , who had voiced Heffer on Rocko's Modern Life , to voice characters because Murray felt that Kenny "adds writing to his roles" and "brings so much". Murray looked for "comedic timing" in his voice actors, and therefore he used many stand-up comics and sketch actors. Carlos Alazraqui , who had previously voiced Rocko and Spyro

8633-562: Was digitally released on Netflix on August 9, 2019. The show launched the careers of voice actors Carlos Alazraqui , Tom Kenny , and Mr. Lawrence . After the series ended its run, much of the staff regrouped to work on SpongeBob SquarePants , created by Rocko ' s creative director Stephen Hillenburg . Rocko's Modern Life follows the life of an easily frightened Australian immigrant wallaby named Rocko who encounters various dilemmas and situations regarding otherwise mundane aspects of life. His best friends are Heffer Wolfe ,

8730-423: Was also skipped. When Shout! Factory and Paramount announced a DVD retail release for the series, there were concerns on whether Nickelodeon would allow them to release the series complete with some of the racier humor that the network eventually cut out for reruns. In the end, Shout! Factory and Paramount only received materials from sources that were edited for broadcast, so the episodes still remained censored on

8827-462: Was booked. Therefore, he chose the B-52s, his second choice. According to Sumares, Murray decided to use the B-52s instead of Elfman. Murray states that the difference between the stories "could just be a recollection conflict because Paul is a brilliant amazing guy". Murray also sought Alan Silvestri . According to Sumares, Viacom did not want to use Silvestri as the organization wanted a band "slightly older kids could identify with". Pat Irwin ,

8924-511: Was carved in stone. Here it's ... more of a challenge and a lot more fun when we're given a rough outline." Murray's animation lacked parallel lines and featured crooked architecture similar to various Chuck Jones cartoons. In an interview, he stated that his design style contributed to the show's "wonky bent feel". Jean Prescott of the Sun Herald described the series as "squash-and-stretch". A 1993 Houston Chronicle article described

9021-453: Was easier. Simensky described the creators as "talented guys" who formed "a boy's club" and added that "we pushed them to be funny, but a lot of their women are stereotypical ". There are three versions of the Rocko's Modern Life theme song. The first and original version can be heard playing throughout every episode in Season 1 except for episode 8. The second version of the theme song was

9118-407: Was nominated for another Emmy and an Annie Award. Spin-off media include DVDs, restaurant promotions, a video game, and digital download releases. The series is set in a universe inhabited solely by anthropomorphic animals of many species and focuses on a trio of campers attending a poorly run summer camp known as Camp Kidney. The trio consists of Lazlo, the eccentric, optimistic spider monkey; Raj,

9215-482: Was only available for Emmy members. A video game for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance called Camp Lazlo: Leaky Lake Games was released on November 6, 2006, as a tie-in to the show. The game is published by Crave Entertainment and developed by Collision Studios. The player plays as the three main characters (Lazlo, Clam and Raj) to compete in a series of game challenges and earn merit badges in

9312-422: Was refusing to appear in the television commercials. Murray stated on his website that he will not explain his opposition to Happy Meals due to his respect for the effort placed by Cartoon Network "marketing people". Murray stated that his opinions are his alone and do not reflect the opinions of Cartoon Network. He said that he appreciates Cartoon Network's "campaign for healthier eating habits for kids". "C" Raggio,

9409-413: Was too close to another major cartoon character that they were making a lot of money off of". Murray changed Rocko's color to beige, but after the pilot aired, the company opted out of producing toys for the series, so the color change was pointless. When the series was in development prior to the release of the first episode, the series had the title The Rocko Show . In November 1992, two months prior to

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