Cartoon All-Stars To The Rescue
Story written by	Duane Poole, Tom Swale
Studio	Southern Star Productions
Distributor	Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date	1990
Running Time	27 minutes
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"Cartoon All-Stars To The Rescue" was an animated special that was aired on ABC, CBS, and NBC in April 1990, featuring a crossover of various cartoon characters such as those from Alf, Alvin And The Chipmunks, Disney's DuckTales, Winnie The Pooh, Muppet Babies, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Garfield And Friends, The Real Ghostbusters, The Smurfs, and Looney Tunes. Because the Smurfs, like all the characters from the other cartoon shows listed, are presented in this special as nothing more than cartoon characters coming to life, and because this adventure doesn't tie in with any of the stories featured in either the Smurfs comic book series or the Smurfs cartoon show, it is considered a "non-canonical" Smurf story.

Plot Summary Edit

The plot chronicles the exploits of Michael, a teenager who is using marijuana and stealing his father's beer. His younger sister, Corey, is worried about him because he has started to act differently. When her piggy bank goes missing, her cartoon tie-in toys come to life to help her find it. After discovering it in Michael's room along with his stash of drugs, the various cartoon characters proceed to band together and take Michael on a fantasy journey to teach him the risks and consequences a life of drug-use can bring.

Background InformationEdit

• Financed by McDonald's, the special was originally simulcast on April 21, 1990 on all three major American television networks: ABC, NBC, and CBS, along with syndication to most independent stations.
• McDonald's also distributed a VHS home video edition of the special, produced by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, which opened with an introduction from then-President George H. W. Bush, and First Lady Barbara Bush.
• The show was produced by Southern Star Productions for the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and was animated overseas by Wang Film Productions.
• The special was able to get so many characters from various franchises because the license holders gave producers royalty-free access due to the public service aspect of the special. However, Garfield was used without consent from his creator Jim Davis.
• It should be noted that, despite Smurfette appearing in the promotional poster for this cartoon special, she actually doesn't appear anywhere in the special.

Video ReleasesEdit

• The special was mostly released as a rental-only videocassette in the early 1990s.

External Links Edit

Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue at Wikipedia.com