Bungled Burglary.

Hey kids (of all ages), it's Saturday Morning Cartoon time again!

I recently covered THE NEW ADVENTURES OF MIGHTY MOUSE AND HECKLE & JECKLE, the Filmation produced series of made-for-TV cartoons featuring the old Terrytoons characters. But the heroic rodent and troublemaking magpies weren't alone in the original, hour-long incarnation of the show. They got a backup segment featuring QUACULA, a vampire duck, created just for the show...

As screwy as that concept sounds, Filmation wasn't the first to do it. Scott Shaw had created DUCKULA in comic books a couple years earlier, and filed a lawsuit. The matter was settled quietly, and Quacula disappeared when the show was shortened to a half-hour. Not sure if Shaw signed-off on the COUNT DUCKULA character created in the late 1980s, or if his version of Duckula was considered out-of-trademark by then.

Of particular interest is the fact that the writer of two Quacula cartoons, including this one, was Paul Dini. One of the geniuses behind the new golden age of Warner Bros animation that included the DCAU, with BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES, SUPERMAN, JUSTICE LEAGUE and so much more.

Here, from Autumn of 1979, is one of his early works (that he might prefer forgotten)...

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