131-541: Over its five seasons, The Ren & Stimpy Show featured a varied cast of characters, some who appeared in as few as one episode, and some who were practically regulars. Marland "Ren" T. Hoëk (voiced by John Kricfalusi in Seasons 1–2 and Adult Party Cartoon , Billy West in Seasons 3–5 and most laughter and screaming, and Chris Edgerly in Nicktoons MLB ) is a scrawny " Asthma - Hound " Chihuahua with
262-457: A pejorative which was later used by others to criticize a widespread 2010s cartoon aesthetic. In 2018, Kricfalusi was accused by two former Spümcø artists of grooming and sexually abusing them in the late 1990s, when they were teenagers. Kricfalusi released an apology for his behavior, blaming his mental health and "poor impulse control". He has since declared his withdrawal from the professional animation industry. Michael John Kricfalusi
393-438: A 1950s' sitcom-styled white suburban couple who are seen only from the waist down. Mr. Pipe is typically seen with a pipe and clad in a bathrobe , slippers and black socks supported by sock-suspenders. He loves to wear rubber nipples on his knees and farts at inappropriate moments. Mrs. Pipe appears to wear a dress and nondescript women's shoes. Their first appearance was in "The Boy Who Cried Rat", in which Ren and Stimpy got
524-404: A Cartoon! , also known as World Premiere Toons for Cartoon Network . Seibert approached Kricfalusi for advice and for recommendations for personnel to head the shorts, among them David Feiss , Tom Minton , Pat Ventura, and Eddie Fitzgerald. Kricfalusi directed Icelandic singer Björk 's animated music video for the song " I Miss You " in 1997, which features Björk and the character Jimmy
655-517: A bonus feature. A set for "Seasons Three and a Half-ish", containing all of season three and the first half of season four up to "It's a Dog's Life/Egg Yölkeo", followed on June 28, 2005. Season Five and Some More of Four completed the DVD release of the Nickelodeon series on September 20. Like the previous DVDs, some scenes were removed in these releases. A two-disc set dubbed The Lost Episodes
786-400: A brain the size of a peanut (despite some intelligence, such as when cooking and inventing). Martin "Dr. Toon" Goodman of Animation World Magazine described Stimpy as "obese" and "brain-damaged". Andy Meisler of The New York Times described Stimpy as "barrel-chested" and "good-natured". Stimpy's trademark facial expression is a blissfully ignorant smile with his tongue flopping out. Most of
917-437: A caricature of Ralph Bakshi , Bakshi himself voiced the character. Kricfalusi had originally based the character on Bakshi. Mrs. Buttloaves is a morbidly obese and homely old woman dressed in a bulging pink night gown and hair curlers . She first appeared in "Fire Dogs". She is voiced by John Kricfalusi for the show's first two seasons and subsequently by Billy West. George Liquor is an ultra- patriotic American and
1048-406: A cartoon short entitled Cans Without Labels , starring the character George Liquor (with Michael Pataki reprising the role for the final time before his death in 2010, having recorded his lines beforehand), with the initial delivery date of February 2013. The cartoon was due to be screened at the 2016 Annecy International Animated Film Festival for the first time; however, at the last minute it
1179-576: A child, and by studying cartoons and their production systems from the 1940s and 1950s. His main influence is Bob Clampett , and he also names Chuck Jones , Frank Sinatra , Kirk Douglas , Milt Gross , Tex Avery , Peter Lorre , The Three Stooges , Al Jolson , Bing Crosby , Dean Martin , Elvis Presley , Don Martin and Robert Ryan . Michael Barrier , an animation historian , said that Kricfalusi's works "testify to his intense admiration for Bob Clampett's Warner Bros. cartoons" and that no cartoonist since Clampett created cartoons in which
1310-648: A cultural touchstone in the mid-1990s, and were featured in works such as the films Clueless (1995), The Cable Guy , and Jack (both 1996). Ren & Stimpy placed 31st in TV Guide 's list of "Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" in 2002. The cover story of the October 2001 issue of Wizard , a magazine for comic book fans, listed the 100 Greatest Toons ever as selected by their readers, with Ren & Stimpy ranked at number 12. Other entertainment journals similarly hold Ren & Stimpy as one of
1441-592: A deep impression on Kricfalusi. After he was expelled from Sheridan College at the end of 1978, Kricfalusi moved to Los Angeles, California, intending to become an animator. After moving to Los Angeles, Kricfalusi was introduced to Milt Gray by Bob Clampett , suggesting he should join Gray's classical animation class. Gray was working for Filmation at the time, and soon Kricfalusi found work there as well, getting his start on shows like Super Friends and The Tom and Jerry Comedy Show . His first independent cartoon
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#17327973214391572-541: A demented Peter Lorre from the film The Maltese Falcon . When Nickelodeon terminated Kricfalusi's contract, Billy West , already the voice of Stimpy, took the role using a combination of Burl Ives , Kirk Douglas , and a slight "south of the border accent" for the rest of the Nickelodeon run. West voiced Stimpy for the Spümcø and Games Animation episodes, basing the voice on an "amped-up" Larry Fine . Some notable artists and performers who voiced incidental characters on
1703-723: A fairly long, rat-like, pink tail (which constantly disappears due to the character's animation limits), pink eyes and tan fur. Martin "Dr. Toon" Goodman of Animation World Magazine described Ren as "scrawny", "dyspeptic", and "violently psychotic". On some occasions, Ren "lost his mind" in a "cumulative process", resulting in Ren becoming, in Goodman's words, a "screaming klaxon, neon-pink eyes dilating into twin novae inches above his jagged, monolithic teeth". Andy Meisler of The New York Times described Ren as "adventurous", "intelligent", and "emotionally brittle". Kricfalusi originally voiced Ren in
1834-439: A flick of his wrist or a scrape of his head. It is implied that this is the usual method Ren and Stimpy get powdered toast when they run out, because it doesn't "taste right" unless Powdered Toast Man exits with his traditional passing of gas. He is a popular figure with children. Responding to a request from sickly "Little Johnny" to meet the president, he brings the president to him. In trying to get to Little Johnny before his nap,
1965-408: A hot-tempered, psychotic, "asthma-hound" Chihuahua , and Stimpson J. "Stimpy" Cat (also voiced by Billy West), a dimwitted and happy-go-lucky Manx cat . The duo fill various roles from episode to episode, including outer-space explorers, Old West horse thieves, and nature-show hosts, and are usually at odds with each other in these situations. While the show was sometimes set in the present day,
2096-460: A job catching mice for them. In "Big Baby Scam", it seems they have two children named Eugene and Shawn. The Announcer Salesman (also known as "That Guy") serves as the multi-purpose loudmouth in the Ren and Stimpy show. Sometimes, he is a salesman ("Feud for Sale", "To Salve and Salve Not!".) Other times, he is a narrator , an announcer , a dog-show judge, a real estate agent, etc. The character
2227-496: A late-night block for shows that appeal to both children and adults. The immediate influence of the show was the spawning of two "clones". Kricfalusi's previous employer Hanna-Barbera produced 2 Stupid Dogs , in which Kricfalusi contributed jokes. Walt Disney Television Animation produced The Shnookums & Meat Funny Cartoon Show to mimic the show's success. The Disney series failed to gain any recognition and remained obscure. However, The Ren & Stimpy Show had
2358-487: A live-action host presenting different cartoons, each cartoon parodying a different genre. Ren and Stimpy were pets of one of the children in Your Gang , serving as a parody of the "cat and dog genre". The network's vice president of animation production Vanessa Coffey was dissatisfied with the other projects but liked Ren and Stimpy, singling them out for their own series. Production of the series' pilot episode began in
2489-468: A manner that he describes as "a bad imitation of Peter Lorre ". Billy West said that he auditioned to play Ren; the creators of the series believed that having West voice Ren and Stimpy would give him too large of a workload. West would, however, take over Ren's voice after Nickelodeon fired Kricfalusi. Kricfalusi would return for the Spike TV episodes and unaired episodes of The Ren and Stimpy Show . In
2620-465: A mysterious background and an alter ego. The character's catchphrase is "Leave everything to me". Powdered Toast Man can fly by flatulence, by inserting his head into a special toaster and launching from it, or by pushing off from the ground. He also flies backwards, and can hover in mid-air. His powers include projection of offensive weapons: high-velocity raisins shot from his mouth, hyper-corrosive croutons fired from his armpit, butter pats launched from
2751-491: A presentation by Kricfalusi. The show came to garner high ratings for Nickelodeon, and at the time was the most popular cable TV show in the United States, but the network disagreed with Kricfalusi's direction of the show, and disapproved of his missed production deadlines. Kricfalusi points specifically to the episode " Man's Best Friend ", which depicts the character George Liquor as an abusive father figure, as
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#17327973214392882-420: A team of Taiwanese animators to draw characters more emotive and wild, which at the time was considered radical. He recalls being "saved" from having to work on these cartoons by director Ralph Bakshi , who had worked with him before in 1980 and 1982. They began working on the designs for the film Bobby's Girl , which was sold to TriStar Pictures but was later cancelled. Under Bakshi, Kricfalusi directed
3013-475: A wider influence on the future of animation. Mike Judge credits the success of Ren & Stimpy reruns on MTV for the network's willingness to commission Beavis and Butt-Head . Writer Larry Brody credits Ren & Stimpy for leading a new golden age of animation, as other networks followed Nickelodeon and invested in new cartoons, opening the way for more adult-oriented satirical shows like Beavis and Butt-Head . David Feiss , an animation director of
3144-432: A year after the original Nickelodeon run ended. The Ren & Stimpy Show received widespread critical acclaim. Matt Groening , creator of The Simpsons , praised the show for its outrageousness and called it "the only good cartoon on TV" other than The Simpsons ; he was later critical of Kricfalusi's firing. Terry Thoren, former CEO and president of Klasky Csupo , said that Kricfalusi "tapped into an audience that
3275-598: Is a mudskipper (a species of fish capable of crawling out of water and breathing air through its skin) with the voice and personality of a grizzled vaudeville comedian who hosts an afternoon kids' show. Muddy is an archetype — the old, jaded comedian who is outstanding at being "on" when on stage but sour and dissatisfied off-stage. There are certain parallels between Muddy and Krusty the Clown from The Simpsons — both have television shows that may or may not be for children, both shower their co-stars with abuse, and behind
3406-436: Is a Canadian illustrator, blogger, and former animator and voice actor. He is the creator of the animated television series The Ren & Stimpy Show , which was highly influential on televised animation during the 1990s. From 1989 to 1992, he was heavily involved with the first two seasons of the show in virtually every aspect of its production, including providing the voice of Ren Höek and other characters. In 2009, he won
3537-412: Is a short, bald stereotypical Scotsman . At one point, he was a cartoon star, but low ratings forced him out into the street. He is voiced by Alan Young , who utilizes the same voice as Scrooge McDuck . Wilbur Cobb is a demented, decaying old man who was once the foremost cartoon producer in the world. He speaks in malapropisms and suffers from a malady that results in body parts falling off. In
3668-583: Is considered to be one of the progenitor series of the brand. The Ren & Stimpy Show has received widespread critical acclaim from critics and audiences, with praise going to its visuals, animation, and surreal nature. However, it has also generated significant controversy for its dark humor , adult humor , violence, and shock value . This controversy contributed to the production staff's altercations with Nickelodeon's Standards and Practices department, in addition to Spümcø's failure to deliver episodes on time, all of which led to Kricfalusi's termination from
3799-642: Is incapacitated, and Powdered Toast Man steps in as commander-in-chief. In office (having avoided the entire line of succession to fill in for the Chief Executive), he heats the Oval Office with dusty old papers which include the Bill of Rights and the Constitution . Powdered Toast Man responds a number of times to Ren and Stimpy when the dog and cat run out of powdered toast, producing it with
3930-411: Is made of two pieces of toast) and scraping the interior with a butter knife. His head is depicted as two identical pieces of toast, each with a face. By day, Powdered Toast Man is Pastor Toastman: a "cool youth deacon". His disguise is a pair of thick black spectacles and a pastor's collar reminiscent of Superman 's thinly-disguised alter ego, Clark Kent. Pastor Toastman's office is his headquarters; he
4061-419: Is named after an art school classmate of Kricfalusi, whose nickname was "Stimpy Cadogen" ("Killer Cadogen" was Stimpy's pseudonym in several episodes, and in a few others he is referred to as Stimpleton Cadogen). Billy West , who voiced Stimpy, said that he based Stimpy's voice on a "sped up" Larry Fine of The Three Stooges . West described Stimpy as one of his favorite characters. Eric Bauza voiced Stimpy in
List of The Ren & Stimpy Show characters - Misplaced Pages Continue
4192-463: Is never referred to by any name in the series, but the name of "Hey, It's That Guy" seems to be the official name given by West, who also voiced him. He first appeared in "Space Madness" provoking Stimpy to press the history eraser button. He bears a slight resemblance to the Genie from Disney's Aladdin . He had a moustache in "House of Next Tuesday". He was voiced by Billy West . Haggis MacHaggis
4323-417: Is served by a lovely young female assistant named "Catholic High School Girl", and it is suggested that they have a romantic relationship. Most of Powdered Toast Man's accomplishments are dubious and pyrrhic; if he succeeds, it is usually accidentally and unintentionally inflicts havoc on someone else. He saves a kitten from being run over at the cost of an airliner (which he shot down) and a truck flattened by
4454-414: Is so conservative that he thinks Republicans are Communists . When episodes featuring him were aired on Nickelodeon, his family name was edited out. Instead, the scene would pause and a record- scratching sound effect would be played in place of the word "Liquor". Many story pitches featuring Liquor were vetoed by Nickelodeon due to their dislike for the character. After Kricfalusi's termination from
4585-534: The Looney Tunes Golden Collection volumes 2 , 3 and 5 , for cartoons directed by Bob Clampett and Chuck Jones . On February 13, 2006, Kricfalusi started his own weblog , John K Stuff , posting about cartoons and the animation industry. The site was originally intended for other artists and entertainers, and specifically other cartoonists. Kricfalusi directed commercials for Comcast and Voice over IP company Raketu in 2007. He
4716-592: The Ren & Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon" because West believed that the series had no humor and that voicing Stimpy in it would damage his career, as West later said in an interview. Stimpy likes to create destructive electronic devices and feels a fixation for "sensory pleasures of fresh kitty litter". Bill Wray described Stimpy as his favorite character to draw. Wray said that Stimpy has "a huge range of emotion". Mr. Horse (voiced by John Kricfalusi in Seasons 1–2 and Adult Party Cartoon , Billy West in Seasons 3–5)
4847-715: The Inkpot Award . Born in Quebec, Kricfalusi spent his early childhood in Germany and Belgium before returning to Canada at age seven. He acquired his skills largely by copying cartoons from newspapers and comic books as a child, and by studying cartoons and their production systems from the 1940s and 1950s. His main influence is Bob Clampett . After moving to Los Angeles in 1978, he collaborated with Ralph Bakshi and worked for Filmation , Hanna-Barbera , and DIC Entertainment on various shows. In 1989, Kricfalusi co-founded
4978-435: The Ren & Stimpy: The Lost Episodes DVD. In February 2016, Deadline Hollywood reported that characters from Ren & Stimpy were scheduled to appear in an upcoming Nicktoons feature-length film. Three months later, Variety reported that Nickelodeon was in negotiations with Kricfalusi about another revival of the characters. Bob Camp and William Wray revealed in an April 2016 panel discussion that Kricfalusi
5109-433: The pope (voiced by Frank Zappa ) from the clutches of Muddy Mudskipper. Why (or how) Muddy kidnapped the pope is unclear, but after Powdered Toast Man frees the pope from the barrel of TNT he was strapped to, he places Muddy there in his stead and ties him up. When the president of the United States accidentally gets his private parts caught in his pants zipper, Powdered Toast Man painfully frees him. The grateful president
5240-593: The Cat . The second music video was for Classico by Tenacious D, starring the band members as cartoon characters. He animated them again in a THX logo parody for the band's feature film, The Pick of Destiny . Kricfalusi served as art director for a musical segment in the show Class of 3000 entitled Life Without Music , which first aired on November 3, 2006. In 2014, he produced art for Miley Cyrus ' Bangerz Tour . Venturing into Internet cartoons, Kricfalusi created Weekend Pussy Hunt in 1996 for MSN , which
5371-460: The Idiot Boy. Jack Black of Tenacious D approached Kricfalusi to produce a music video for the song " Fuck Her Gently " from their debut album , released in 2001. Black browsed Kricfalusi's website and, since both he and his bandmate Kyle Gass held Ren & Stimpy in high regard, he asked Kricfalusi to produce the video. The costs amounted to $ 40,000. Initially, Sony Music did not allow
List of The Ren & Stimpy Show characters - Misplaced Pages Continue
5502-524: The Man , A Day in the Life of Ranger Smith and Boo Boo Runs Wild , and two Jetsons parody cartoons he produced, The Jetsons: Father & Son Day and The Jetsons: The Best Son . Kricfalusi contributed several articles in 1993 and 1994 for the magazines Film Threat and Wild Cartoon Kingdom under various aliases. Kricfalusi appears in several bonus featurettes and provides audio commentaries for
5633-463: The Roosevelts ", which aired in October 2011 and " Treehouse of Horror XXVI ", which aired in October 2015. He collaborated with streetwear brand Stüssy to create a short series of apparel based on his designs in 2012, which he promoted with a commercial featuring some of his characters. The advertising agency Muhtayzik-Hoffer hired Kricfalusi in 2013 for an ad campaign for F'real milkshakes. He
5764-498: The airliner. No one is apparently killed in the crash, since the passengers seem happy to see Powdered Toast Man despite their injuries. Responding to another mission, he throws the kitten off screen (where it is presumably run over by another vehicle; the screech of tires and a crash are heard. He fights Spider-Man once, after being turned evil by the evil Dr. Dough-naught. Spider-Man gets Powdered Toast Man working for good again by using milk, which stops PTM from being crunchy. He saves
5895-408: The animation for The Rolling Stones ' 1986 music video " Harlem Shuffle ". The team's most successful project was Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures for CBS , based on the classic Terrytoons character. The series was well-received, and it is considered the forerunner of creator-driven cartoons. Kricfalusi directed eight of the twenty-six episodes and supervised the series. At the beginning of
6026-433: The animation studio Spümcø , with which he remained until its dissolution in 2005. Nickelodeon fired Kricfalusi from Ren & Stimpy due to creative differences and his failure to meet production deadlines; the show continued for three additional seasons without his involvement. Following this, he directed and produced animated television commercials and music videos for entertainers such as Björk and Tenacious D . In
6157-483: The animation would feature sponsored products to tie in with the cartoon, but in lieu of real advertisements, it featured fake commercial breaks advertising nonexistent products, most notably "Log". Kricfalusi cited Carbunkle Cartoons, an animation studio headed by Bob Jaques and Kelly Armstrong, for beautifully animating the show's best episodes, improving the acting with subtle nuances and wild animation that could not be done with overseas animation studios . Some of
6288-517: The animation. Mighty Mouse was cancelled amidst controversy for allegedly depicting the main character snorting cocaine . Bakshi maintained that neither he nor Kricfalusi had the character sniffing cocaine, and that the character was sniffing the crushed petals of a flower, which were handed to him in a previous scene in the cartoon. In 1994, Kricfalusi pitched a revival series of Mighty Mouse to Paramount , which would have featured other Terrytoons characters such as Deputy Dawg , but they rejected
6419-710: The best cartoons of the '90s and cartoons for adults. In 2003, a reboot of the series helmed by John Kricfalusi, titled Ren & Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon" , was launched on a late night programming block on Spike TV and was rated TV-MA . The new series is more adult-oriented than the original, and features an explicitly homosexual relationship between the main characters, strong profanity, graphic violence and female nudity. Billy West declined to participate in Adult Party Cartoon , saying that it "wasn't funny" and joining it would have damaged his career. Eric Bauza subsequently replaced West as
6550-437: The cartoon, but remained supportive of Kricfalusi. ABC canceled the show after six episodes, finding the humor not suitable for children's programming. Kricfalusi formed Spümcø animation studio with partners Jim Smith , Bob Camp and Lynne Naylor . They began working on a pilot for The Ren & Stimpy Show on behalf of Nickelodeon , after the eponymous characters were favored by Nickelodeon producer Vanessa Coffey in
6681-419: The character George Liquor was removed, being changed to "George American". Many other episodes included someone smoking a cigar, pipe, or a cigarette. Several episodes had violent, gruesome, or suggestive scenes shortened or removed, including a sequence involving a severed head, a close-up of Ren's face being grated against a man's stubble, and a scene that was shortened where Ren receives multiple punches to
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#17327973214396812-484: The early 20th century, where a director supervised the entire process. These methods are in contrast with animation production methods in the 1980s, where there was one director for animation and a different director for voice actors, and the cartoons were created with a "top-down" approach to tie in with toy production. Animator Vincent Waller compared working on Ren & Stimpy and SpongeBob SquarePants in an interview: "Working on Ren and Stimpy and SpongeBob
6943-501: The emotions of the characters "distort their bodies so powerfully". In March 2018, former Spümcø employees Robyn Byrd and Katie Rice told BuzzFeed News that Kricfalusi sexually harassed and groomed them while they were underage. Byrd told the website that she was in a sexual relationship with Kricfalusi in 1997 at age 16, and flew to California to live with him when she was 17. Rice said that Kricfalusi had flirted with her and made overt sexual comments towards her starting when she
7074-518: The episode " Stimpy's Cartoon Show ", Ren and Stimpy show Cobb their own film "I Like Pink" (with Explodey the Pup) in hopes the powerful producer will give them their big break. Voiced by Jack Carter , his final appearance was in "The Last Temptation", where he was the gardener for God. John Kricfalusi originally wanted his name to be Raymond Spum (a reference to the pseudonym that he used in episodes he considered unsatisfactory), but after his termination from
7205-489: The episode remains unproduced. After leaving The Ren & Stimpy Show , Kricfalusi consulted, and other Spümcø animators worked for Donovan Cook 's 2 Stupid Dogs , which was put into production by Hanna-Barbera president Fred Seibert . The cartoon's credits read "Tidbits of Poor Taste Supplied by John Kricfalusi" for the three "Little Red Riding Hood" episodes: "Red", "Red Strikes Back", and "Return of Red". In 1994, Hanna-Barbera and Seibert started production on What
7336-427: The episode. Years later on Spike TV, the show's revival, Ren & Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon" , debuted with this banned episode as their unofficial pilot, even receiving a TV-MA rating. Games Animation, however, was allowed to include more risqué content and even occasional graphic violence , despite "Man's Best Friend" not featuring any of both. The series ran for five seasons, spanning 52 episodes. The show
7467-431: The episodes from the second season, "Svën Höek", did have footage reinserted from a work-in-progress VHS tape, but with an editing machine timecode visible on-screen; the scene was later restored by fans. Three other episodes ("Powdered Toast Man", "Dog Show", and " Big House Blues ") contain extra footage that was not originally broadcast on Nickelodeon. The DVD set even includes the banned episode " Man's Best Friend " as
7598-540: The first "Powdered Toast Man" commercial, Corey Burton in Nicktoons MLB , David Kaye in Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl and Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway , Michael Berger in Smite ), is a melodramatic superhero and a spokesperson for Powdered Toast, a breakfast treat that "tastes just like sawdust". He was based on a Frank Zappa -inspired character called Studebacher Hoch, from
7729-425: The first season of the show holds a rare 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 12 reviews from critics, though the remaining seasons have not been rated. The show came to garner high ratings for Nickelodeon, having double the viewership of the other Nickelodeon cartoons for its first season and later averaging three times their viewership. Due to the first season's high ratings, Nickelodeon renewed
7860-575: The format. Time Life released several episodes of The Ren & Stimpy Show in a "Best of" set in September 2003. This set is now out of print . On October 12, 2004, Paramount Home Entertainment released the first two complete seasons in a three-disc box set; although the cover art and press materials said the episodes were "uncut", a handful of episodes were edited, due to the use of Spike TV masters where Spike TV would cut some scenes from episodes to make room for longer commercial breaks. One of
7991-501: The idea. Kricfalusi left Bakshi's studio to work on The New Adventures of Beany and Cecil for ABC , where he teamed up with many of the people who would later work with him on many of his Spümcø projects. ABC had been negotiating for the production of the show with the Clampett family, who insisted that Kricfalusi be part of the production as he was a strong proponent of Bob Clampett's cartoon style. The long negotiations delayed
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#17327973214398122-524: The late 1990s, he created the first cartoons made exclusively for the Internet: The Goddamn George Liquor Program and Weekend Pussy Hunt . He returned to television with The Ripping Friends and the adult animation spin-off Ren & Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon" . Since 2006, Kricfalusi has maintained a personal blog dedicated to cartoons and animation. There, he popularized the term " CalArts style ",
8253-669: The material particularly funny; they were merely doing what was expected". The series ended its original run on Nickelodeon on December 16, 1995, with "A Scooter for Yaksmas", and had a total of five seasons and 51 episodes, although one episode from the final season, "Sammy and Me/The Last Temptation", remained unaired. Almost a year later, the episode aired on Nickelodeon's sister network, MTV , on October 20, 1996. The animation production methods used in The Ren & Stimpy Show were similar to those found in Golden Age cartoons of
8384-408: The meaning of "safe" as "spend a third of what they spend now per picture, hire proven creative talent, and let them entertain." He estimated Spümcø's run of The Ren & Stimpy Show cost around $ 6 million to produce. The relationship between Kricfalusi and Nickelodeon deteriorated to the point where Kricfalusi would communicate with Nickelodeon only through his lawyer. News outlets and several of
8515-426: The middle of a school season, and Kricfalusi spent much of his time that year at home, watching Hanna-Barbera cartoons and drawing them. Kricfalusi's interest in golden-age animation crystallized during his stay at Sheridan College , where he attended weekly screenings of old films and cartoons at Innis College held by film archivist Reg Hartt , among them the cartoons of Bob Clampett and Tex Avery , which left
8646-485: The new show. While he was initially pleased with the added freedom afforded to him by Spike, he later expressed disappointment in the series due to its slow pacing and overuse of toilet humor . Only three episodes aired before Spike's entire animation block was "put on hold", and the complete series was ultimately released in 2006 on DVD including three additional episodes that never aired. Kricfalusi also wanted to release an episode titled "Life Sucks" straight to DVD, but
8777-442: The original series, Kricfalusi showed apparent disregard for meeting production deadlines, with only three out of the ordered nine episodes being completed on time. After the first three episodes aired, Spike's entire animation block was removed from its programming schedule and three more episodes, already in production and completed by the time Adult Party Cartoon was canceled, were subsequently released three years later in 2006 on
8908-427: The pilot, Pierre Decelles provided Ren's signature diabolical laughter, while West performed Ren's maniacal laugh in the series. Kricfalusi complained about Nickelodeon executives requesting for Ren to have "a softer side". Bill Wray said that Ren was his favorite character to write for; Wray described Ren as "fun" because "you can make him mean". In 1993, he added that, "It drives me crazy when I tell people I work on
9039-444: The police, they could neither arrest nor investigate Kricfalusi because the statute of limitations had passed. In response, Kricfalusi's lawyer confirmed that "for a brief time, 25 years ago, he had a 16-year-old girlfriend", but denied that Kricfalusi's "avid pursuit" of Rice was sexual harassment or that he had ever possessed child pornography. Kricfalusi released an apology to the women and his fans for his behavior, which he said
9170-537: The president is vaporized by Powdered Toast Man's speed. He saves the child from his apparent nemesis, Waffle Woman, at the cost of destroying most of Earth. In a Powdered Toast commercial, he encounters a little boy and a girl who are flying and reminds them that children can't fly. The children panic and plummet, and Powdered Toast Man saves them at the last second. When carrying passengers on his backside, he asks them "Are you clinging tenaciously to my buttocks?" before flying off. Muddy Mudskipper (voiced by Harris Peet)
9301-476: The production of the new reboot nor will he receive any compensation from it. Originally set to be produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio , production on the reboot has been moved to Awesome Inc in October 2021, while Snipple Animation announced their involvement in September 2022. According to West, development was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States , contrary to earlier rumors that
9432-523: The project had been canceled. Paramount Global (at the time operating as ViacomCBS), the parent company of Comedy Central and Nickelodeon, has not responded to requests for a comment about the status of the show, though West reiterated that it was still in production. On September 14, 2021, West confirmed that he was reprising his roles as Ren and Stimpy. Other returning crew members from the original series include Bob Jaques , Chris Sauve and former Spümcø alumni Robyn Byrd, who previously advocated to get
9563-691: The reboot canceled. Series regular Bob Camp was also assigned to return for the reboot, but was dismissed from the project due to creative differences. The reboot was originally supposed to premiere on July 12, 2024 on Comedy Central in Latin America, but has since been delayed for unknown reasons. The reboot made its debut on Comedy Central in France on July 1, 2024. Sony Wonder initially distributed collections of episodes of The Ren & Stimpy Show on VHS , which were not grouped by air dates or season. For instance, The Classics Volume 1 VHS
9694-479: The rights for Nickelodeon's programming on home video transferred from Sony to Paramount Home Video. Paramount only released one video of The Ren & Stimpy Show , "Have Yourself a Stinky Little Christmas", which was a re-release of a Sony video from 1993. In 2005, Paramount released The First Ten Cartoons on UMD , only for playback on Sony's PSP portable video game system. Presumably due to poor sales of UMD movies and shows, no further episodes were released on
9825-683: The scenes they are less than pleasant to be around. He calls everyone he meets "a lousy bum". Besides being a huge television star, Muddy has dabbled in villainy, at one point kidnapping the Pope (voiced by Frank Zappa ) before being foiled by Powdered Toast Man. His name is a parody of Woody Woodpecker . The show's theme song (written by John Kricfalusi, Bob Camp & Charlie Brissette) plays up Muddy's particular physical traits. Muddy's lines would also be used as archive recording from these last three episodes for Nickelodeon 3D Movie Maker . Mr. and Mrs. Pipe (voiced by Billy West and Cheryl Chase) are
9956-510: The second disc were not completely uncensored, Turbine Classics offered to send everybody proof of purchase of an uncensored disc. The set comprises a mix of the known US airings and the German TV airings which included some exclusive scenes of various episodes. Since the set is the first to include all scenes ever broadcast worldwide, it is considered the first truly uncensored DVD release of the series. Seven action games based directly on
10087-445: The second season, Kricfalusi left the show. The production of Mighty Mouse was very different from other cartoons at the time, gaining creative and artistic leeway thanks to the success of the irreverent Pee-wee's Playhouse on CBS a year before. The animators had much more creative input, driven by Kricfalusi's production system that emphasizes artistic contribution in every step of the process, from outline to storyboard to layout to
10218-399: The series Nickelodeon renamed him Wilbur Cobb after the story editor. The Fire Chief has a psychotic hatred for circus midgets and a penchant for slamming his fire axe into concrete as a response to answering the door. He was voiced by Harris Peet in the entire original series and at the beginning of the character's appearance in the Adult Party Cartoon . After transforming into
10349-492: The series aired on Nickelodeon from August 11, 1991, to December 16, 1995, with its last episode airing on MTV on October 20, 1996, spanning for a total of five seasons and 52 episodes. The series follows the misadventures of Ren Höek , an emotionally unstable and psychotic chihuahua dog; and Stimpy , a good-natured and dimwitted Manx cat . It is the third to be aired of the original three Nickelodeon animated series known as " Nicktoons ", alongside Doug and Rugrats , and
10480-486: The series for twenty additional episodes in November 1991, alongside the second season of Rugrats and the second and third season of Doug . The show for a time was the most popular cable TV show, with several airings being the most-watched scripted cable TV show in 1993 in the United States. The show quickly developed a cult following in college campuses, and was included in the launch of Nickelodeon's SNICK ,
10611-467: The series' staff ascribe the tension to episodes not being delivered promptly. Author Andy Mangels , writing for Wizard magazine, commented that "Kricfalusi's lax treatment of deadlines angered not only the networks, but his loyal viewers as well." However, some of the delays were attributed to Nickelodeon's prolonged approval process and withdrawal of approval from scenes and episodes that had been previously approved. Another point of contention
10742-588: The sexual abuse allegations made against him the previous year. However, some praised Pataki's voice acting performance. In the 2020 documentary Happy Happy Joy Joy: The Ren and Stimpy Story , Kricfalusi stated in an interview that he was "officially retired" from the animation industry, "though not by choice". Kricfalusi says he is mostly self-taught, having only spent a year in Sheridan College , barely attending class. He acquired his skills largely by copying cartoons from newspapers and comic books as
10873-480: The show and they always say, 'Make Ren meaner'". Stimpson "Stimpy" J. Cat (voiced by Billy West in the series, Eric Bauza in Adult Party Cartoon ) is a 3-year-old fat, red and white Manx cat (described by George Liquor as a "Cornish Rex Hound" to enter him in a dog show) with a large blue nose, purple eyelids, no tail, white gloves with fingernails on them, human-style buttocks, flat feet and
11004-526: The show for the next two years while encountering issues with Nickelodeon's Standards and Practices department. The show was known for its lack of early merchandising; according to Wray, the initial lack of merchandise was "the unique and radical thing" about The Ren & Stimpy Show , as no toy company planned for any merchandise for the show, and Nickelodeon did not want to use "over-exploitive" merchandising. Kricfalusi described his early period with Nickelodeon as being "simple", as he got along with Coffey,
11135-463: The show in 1992. Games Animation would produce the remaining three seasons of the series. One episode was initially left unaired in North America until it was broadcast on MTV on October 20, 1996. A reboot for adult audiences, Ren & Stimpy "Adult Party Cartoon" , was produced by Kricfalusi and Spümcø and aired in 2003 on Spike TV . Only three episodes were aired before the series
11266-457: The show was directing the voice-actors, which he "really worked-out" so much that he was afraid he'd give one of them a heart attack. In 2003, Spike TV produced a new show featuring Ren & Stimpy, which was written and directed by Kricfalusi. The first three episodes were based on fan ideas and scripts that were rejected by Nickelodeon during the original show's run. According to Kricfalusi, Spike pushed for more South Park -like themes in
11397-439: The show were Frank Zappa (in his final public performance before his death), Jack Carter , Stan Freberg , Tommy Davidson , Randy Quaid , Gilbert Gottfried , Rosie O'Donnell , Dom DeLuise , Phil Hartman , Mark Hamill and Soleil Moon Frye . The Ren & Stimpy Show features a wide variety of music, spanning rockabilly , folk , pop , jazz , classical music , jingles , and more. The opening theme, "Dog Pound Hop",
11528-529: The show were altered to exclude references to religion, politics, alcohol, violence, and tobacco. The episode "Powdered Toast Man" had a cross removed from the Pope 's hat and the credit was changed to "the man with the pointy hat". The same episode had a segment featuring the burning of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights that was removed, while in "Dog Show", the last name of
11659-441: The show's crew tended to avoid "contemporary" jokes about current events. The show extensively features off-color and absurdist humor , as well as slapstick akin to animated shorts of the 1950s. The show features a host of supporting characters. Due to the nature of the show, they do not have consistent appearances or even designs; those who do appear repeatedly have different roles in each appearance. They may either be part of
11790-460: The show's earlier episodes were rough to the point Kricfalusi felt the need to patch up the animation with sound effects and "music bandaids", helping the segments "play better, even though much of the animation and timing weren't working on their own". KJ Dell'Antonia of Common Sense Media describes the show's style as changing "from intentionally rough to much more polished and plushie-toy ready." Kricfalusi originally voiced Ren, styled after
11921-513: The show's most notable visual trademarks is the detailed paintings of gruesome close-ups, along with the blotchy ink stains that on occasion replace the standard backgrounds, reminiscent of "holes in reality or the vision of a person in a deep state of dementia". This style was developed from Clampett's Baby Bottleneck , which features several scenes with color-cards for backgrounds. The show incorporated norms from "the old system in TV and radio" where
12052-586: The show, the rights to the character were returned to him. According to Kricfalusi, he's Ren and Stimpy's official owner. He was voiced by Michael Pataki , but Harris Peet voiced him as two pre-George characters in "The Boy Who Cried Rat" and "Black Hole". The Ren %26 Stimpy Show The Ren & Stimpy Show , commonly referred to as simply Ren & Stimpy , is an American comedy animated television series created by John Kricfalusi and developed by Kricfalusi, Bob Camp , Jim Smith and Lynne Naylor for Nickelodeon . Originally produced by Spümcø ,
12183-428: The show, went on to create Cartoon Network 's Cow and Chicken . John Kricfalusi became a teacher of sorts for Fred Seibert , and was the first person Seibert called while looking for new talent for the project What A Cartoon! . Writer/animator Allan Neuwirth writes that Ren & Stimpy "broke the mold" and started several trends in TV animation, chiefly the revival of credits at the beginning of each episode,
12314-415: The sole executive of the program. When another executive was added, they wanted to alter or discard some of the Ren & Stimpy episodes, but Kricfalusi says the episodes stayed intact since he did a "trade" with Coffey: he would have some "really crazy" episodes in exchange for some "heart-warming" episodes. Kricfalusi also said that the program was the "safest project [he] ever worked on" while explaining
12445-532: The song " Billy the Mountain ". The character appeared in Powdered Toast commercials on The Ren & Stimpy Show , and starred in two of its episodes: "Powdered Toast Man vs. Waffle Woman" and "Powdered Toast Man" (with Frank Zappa as "the Pope "). Powdered Toast Man hides his true identity as Pastor Toastman, a youth deacon. Powdered Toast Man has a number of abilities and, like many superheroes, has
12576-408: The start of production to mid-July, causing much of the animation to be rushed in order to meet the September deadline. Tensions rose between Kricfalusi and ABC over the tone of the show, leading to an uncomfortable atmosphere for the show's crew. The more ABC strove to soften the show, the more Kricfalusi pushed for shocking and offensive material. The Clampett family were ultimately not very happy with
12707-451: The stomach from a baby. In the second-season episode " Sven Höek ", during the scene where Ren fantasizes about Stimpy and his cousin Sven's deaths after they break all of his prized possessions, his line "Then...I'm going to gouge your eyes out...yeah..." was cut. One infamous episode, " Man's Best Friend ", was banned by Nickelodeon for its violent content. Neither Nickelodeon nor MTV would air
12838-577: The storyline or make cameo appearances with little bearing on the plot. Some, such as Mr. Horse , are exclusively cameo-based, spontaneously appearing as a running gag. George Liquor makes his first appearances in the show through cameos or as a supporting character, as demonstrated in " Dog Show " and " Man's Best Friend ". According to animator William Wray , John Kricfalusi created the characters Ren and Stimpy in 1978 for "personal amusement" while studying at Sheridan College in Ontario , Canada. He
12969-439: The summer of 1989 after Kricfalusi pitched and sold The Ren & Stimpy Show to Nickelodeon. The pilot was produced by Kricfalusi's Los Angeles-based animation company, Spümcø , and screened at film festivals for several months before the show was announced in Nickelodeon's 1991 cartoons line-up. The series premiered on August 11, 1991, alongside Doug and Rugrats as the original Nicktoons . Spümcø continued to produce
13100-448: The television series The Ripping Friends in 2001, created by Kricfalusi and Jim Smith. Kricfalusi had previously tried pitching the show in the late 1980s, but networks considered it "too extreme" so did not pick it up. Kricfalusi felt the show's supervisors were doing away with the Spümcø style and was displeased with the direction of the show. He considers the episodes he was involved in to be experimental. One of his contributions to
13231-550: The television series were released between 1992 and 1995. Aside from these dedicated titles, Ren, Stimpy, and other characters from the series make appearances in the Nickelodeon 3D Movie Maker , Nicktoons Racing , Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots , Nicktoons MLB , Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix , Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl , Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway , and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 . A Ren & Stimpy game by Acclaim Entertainment
13362-469: The time when he gets excited, he says his famous catchphrase, "Oh, joy!" or simply "Joy". He also has a strong attachment to his "first material possession" which is a litter box (given to him in the pilot episode) and even though Ren destroys it (by bashing it on his head in "Fire Dogs" or dumping it in acid in "Ren's Bitter Half"), Stimpy always reacts strongly to it by crying, panicking or fainting, though it always appears again in some later episode. Stimpy
13493-572: The title characters—he is physically a full-sized male horse , but he usually stands on two legs and speaks. Mr. Horse is typically depicted as a straight-talking, thoughtful and serious character. He can also be cynical and disgruntled, and on occasion is merely a horse. His catchphrase is "No sir, I don't like it". He in fact does say other things in response to Stimpy in the Gritty Kitty Litter commercial. Powdered Toast Man (voiced by Gary Owens in most appearances, Darrin J. Sargent in
13624-433: The top of his head, and acidic marmalade from his navel. There are several signals that alert Powdered Toast Man to danger: his tongue phone, the inflation of his briefs, the dissipation of toast particles in his head, or the reading of emergency messages encoded in slices of olive loaf. He is apparently made entirely of powdered toast, since he can produce fully-formed toast by flicking his wrist or separating his head (which
13755-521: The turning point in his relationship with Nickelodeon. One of the episodes, "Nurse Stimpy", did not meet Kricfalusi's approval because of the low quality of the rough cut of the episode that they received from the overseas studio, leading him to use the alias Raymond Spum in its credits. Nickelodeon terminated Kricfalusi's contract late September 1992, leaving it to Nickelodeon's Games Animation studio, which continued producing it for three more seasons before its cancellation. Fox Kids started airing
13886-403: The use of grotesque close-ups, and a shift in cartoon color palettes to richer, more harmonious colors. A direct influence can be seen in the series SpongeBob SquarePants with the physically extreme drawings that contrast with the characters' usual appearance, the "grotesque close-ups". Series veteran Vincent Waller currently serves as a showrunner on SpongeBob . The characters became
14017-519: The video to be placed on Tenacious D's website and instead placed it on the record label Grand Royal 's website, but later relented. In 2006, Kricfalusi directed two music videos, and served as art director for an animated musical segment. The first music video, for Close but No Cigar by "Weird Al" Yankovic , was released in September, on the DVD side of the DualDisc album Straight Outta Lynwood , which features Kricfalusi's character Cigarettes
14148-402: The voice of Stimpy in the series, while Kricfalusi reprised his roles as both Ren and Mr. Horse. The series premiered with the banned Nickelodeon episode " Man's Best Friend ", before debuting new episodes thereafter. From the first episode, fans and critics alike were put off by this revival, which featured the consumption of bodily fluids such as nasal mucus , saliva and vomit . Much like
14279-436: Was 14, and sexually harassed her when she turned 18 and began working at his animation studio, Spümcø. Documents Rice and Byrd had saved from those years corroborate their stories, and several people who worked with Kricfalusi referred to his sexual harassment as an open secret in the animation industry. Kricfalusi was also reported to possess child pornography on his computer. Though the allegations were eventually reported to
14410-400: Was a lot hipper than anybody thought. He went where no man wanted to go before – the caca, booger humor ". Jonathan Valania of The Morning Call called it "high voltage yuks and industrial-strength weirdness", John Lyttle of The Independent described it as "a gooey media meltdown, absolutely grotesque and instantly recognisable" and did not consider it a children's cartoon. As of 2024,
14541-404: Was a short called Ted Bakes One , which he produced with Bill Wray in 1981 for a cable channel. From 1979 to the mid-1980s, Kricfalusi worked for Filmation and later Hanna-Barbera and DIC Entertainment on various shows that he once described as "the worst animation of all time". However, he did enjoy his work as a layout artist on the 1985 series of The Jetsons as he was able to train
14672-473: Was a turning point in the show, with the new episodes being a considerable step down from the standard of those that preceded them. Ted Drozdowski, resident critic of The Boston Phoenix , stated that "the bloom faded" on Ren & Stimpy . Animation historian Michael Barrier writes that while the creators of the Games episodes used crude jokes that were similar to those used by Kricfalusi, they did not "find
14803-470: Was also granted a LaserDisc set (the only ever LaserDisc release from Sony Wonder, and the only LaserDisc of a Nickelodeon original series), The Ren & Stimpy Show -- The Essential Collection: Classics I & II , was released in 1995. This included all the episodes previously released on VHS from the Classics I and Classics II volumes, as well as the shorts included on said VHS releases. Eventually,
14934-540: Was announced that it was not ready. However, on August 6, 2017, the Kickstarter was updated, announcing the film's completion. On May 27, 2019, Kricfalusi announced the DVD masterings' completion and released it on his MyShopify store within a week or two, with backers receiving first priority. The short received negative reviews for its animation, humor, sound design, storyline and repeatedly delayed production, as well as Kricfalusi's decision to release it following
15065-579: Was billed as "the world's first interactive web-based cartoon". The cartoon, which was released in segments, was scheduled to be completed in June 1997, but production under MSN stopped before it was finished. Production later resumed under Icebox.com after the release of Spümcø's own web-based Flash cartoon, The Goddamn George Liquor Program . Between 1998 and 2001, Kricfalusi worked on several Hanna-Barbera cartoons for Cartoon Network: three Yogi Bear parody cartoons he directed and animated, Boo Boo and
15196-733: Was born on September 9, 1955, in Chicoutimi , Quebec , Canada to Michael Kricfalusi, who was of Ukrainian descent, and Mary Lou Kricfalusi (née MacDonell), who was of Scottish and English descent. He has one sister named Elizabeth. He spent his early childhood in Germany and Belgium while his father was serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force . He would watch weekend screenings of European feature-length cartoons such as The Snow Queen at Air Force cinemas. At age seven he returned with his family to Canada . After their return they moved from Montreal to Ottawa in
15327-512: Was canceled due to both production delays and negative critical reception from both critics and fans of the original series, with three additional episodes (all incomplete at the time of the cancellation) being released straight to DVD in 2006. On August 5, 2020, Comedy Central announced that they had ordered a second reboot of the series to be produced without the involvement of Kricfalusi. The series centers on Ren Höek (voiced by John Kricfalusi in seasons 1–2; Billy West in seasons 3–5),
15458-442: Was composed by Chris Reccardi and written by Charlie Brissette and John Kricfalusi. A cover of this song, performed by Wax , is included on the 1995 tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits , produced by Ralph Sall for MCA Records . The program's staff did not want to create an "educational" series, a stance that bothered Nickelodeon , leading to the series being criticized by parent groups. Some segments of
15589-461: Was developing a new Ren & Stimpy short that would be shown in theaters with the third SpongeBob SquarePants film , and later said that they were "not invited to that party" and would not be involved with the short's production. However, Kricfalusi later denied making such a cartoon on Twitter . Despite this, an animatic of the short that was originally made as a promotion for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water before being cancelled
15720-509: Was developing a series of cartoon commercials in 2008 for Pontiac Vibe starring George Liquor and Jimmy The Idiot Boy , but the series remained unreleased after General Motors discontinued the Pontiac Vibe auto line in 2009. He developed and animated a series of bumpers using Toon Boom Harmony for Adult Swim in 2011 and again in 2015. He animated the opening couch gags of two episodes of The Simpsons , " Bart Stops to Smell
15851-429: Was inspired to create Ren by an Elliott Erwitt photograph, printed on a postcard, called "New York City, 1946", showing a sweatered chihuahua at a woman's feet. Stimpy's design was inspired by a Tweety cartoon called A Gruesome Twosome , where the cats in the animation had big noses. When Nickelodeon approached Kricfalusi, he presented three shows, among them a variety show titled Your Gang or Our Gang with
15982-512: Was involved in the early development of many Reel FX projects such as the 2013 film Free Birds , a pitch for a film adaptation of the Dr. Seuss book Happy Birthday to You! and a pitch for a film he created with Jim Smith. He posted the concepts for these projects on his blog. He partnered with animator Mike Judge to produce a series of shorts for UFC that aired on Adult Swim throughout 2016. In 2012, Kricfalusi funded through Kickstarter
16113-412: Was one of the most popular characters, appearing in many episodes in a wide variety of non-continuous roles. Mr. Horse has variously been a victim of a fall from a skyscraper , a GI returning from war in love with a sheep, a dog-show judge, a neighbor hiding a dark past, and a tester for Gritty Kitty cat litter. He has also been portrayed as a psychiatrist . Mr. Horse is anthropomorphic , similar to
16244-469: Was performed by a group of Spümcø employees under the name "Die Screaming Leiderhôsens"; they include developer Jim Smith , animator Chris Reccardi and production assistant Scott Huml. Three Ren & Stimpy albums have been released. In 1993 a compilation album, You Eediot! , was released as a soundtrack album. The album's front cover is a parody of The Beatles ' 11th studio album Abbey Road . Stimpy's rousing anthem titled "Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy"
16375-723: Was planned for the Atari Lynx but never released. Marvel Comics optioned the rights to produce comic books based on Nickelodeon properties in 1992. The initial plan was to have an anthology comic featuring several Nicktoons properties. Marvel produced 44 issues of the ongoing series, along with several specials under the Marvel Absurd imprint. Most of these were written by comic scribe Dan Slott . John Kricfalusi Michael John Kricfalusi ( / ˌ k r ɪ s f ə ˈ l uː s i / krihs-fuh- LOO -see ; born September 9, 1955), known professionally as John K. ,
16506-404: Was produced by Kricfalusi's animation studio Spümcø for the first two seasons. Beginning with season three (1993–94), the show was produced by Nickelodeon's Games Animation. The episode "Man's Best Friend" was produced for season two, but the episode was shelved and debuted with the show's 2003 reboot . Another episode, "Sammy and Me / The Last Temptation", aired on MTV on October 20, 1996, almost
16637-618: Was released as a bonus feature on the Cans Without Labels DVD in May 2019. On August 5, 2020, it was announced that a new Ren & Stimpy reboot has been greenlit by Comedy Central , along with Daria and Beavis and Butt-Head . Though a new creative staff has been employed, Billy West was expected to return along with a few of the original series' writers. Due to the sexual abuse allegations surrounding him , it has been confirmed that Kricfalusi will not be involved in
16768-460: Was released in 1993 and included three episodes from Season 1 ("Space Madness", "Untamed World" and "Stimpy's Invention"), as well as the short segment "Breakfast Tips" and a "Log" commercial. Other Nickelodeon compilation tapes, including two themed after the SNICK programming block, were also released containing individual Ren and Stimpy cartoons. Perhaps because of the show's adult following, it
16899-497: Was released on July 17, 2006, featuring both the aired and unaired episodes from "Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon". Paramount released "The Almost Complete Series" 9-disc set that combines the individual season discs into a single package, on February 6, 2018, and was re-released on January 11, 2022. The original series was released entirely as a 9-disc set in Germany on October 4, 2013. After people said that two episodes on
17030-793: Was the direction of the series. Kricfalusi cites the episode " Man's Best Friend " as the primary reason for his dismissal; the character George Liquor is depicted in the episode as an abusive father figure, and Nickelodeon did not want the show to be so frightening and dramatic. Nickelodeon terminated Kricfalusi's contract in late September 1992 and offered him the position of consultant for Ren & Stimpy , but he refused to " sell out ". The network moved production from Spümcø to its newly founded animation studio, Games Animation , which later became Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Bob Camp replaced Kricfalusi as director, while West, having refused Kricfalusi's request to leave along with him, voiced Ren in addition to Stimpy. Fans and critics felt this
17161-538: Was very similar. They're both storyboard-driven shows, which means they give us an outline from a premise after the premise has been approved. We take the outline and expand on it, writing the dialogue and gags. That was very familiar." The show's aesthetics draw on Golden Age cartoons, particularly those of animator Bob Clampett from the 1940s in the way the characters' emotions powerfully distort their bodies. The show's style emphasizes unique expressions, intense and specific acting and strong character poses. One of
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