Thanx for the pix, Jerry. I would LOVE to see more of these pics, including what Ric is doing to the mural. BTW, whose idea was it to replace the original fiberglass with paper mache in the first place? Not really all that great an idea.

There used to be a Grauman’s Chinese sort of spoof on the sidewalk around the statue. Famous animators put their elbow prints in the cement. Walt Disney was one of them, we always wondered if it was really him. Are they still there?

Jay Ward and Hanna and Barbera, not only were they cartoon makers but they also knew where to get the prime real estate that would go up in value in the Los Angeles area!

I’m so glad you took so much care in restoring these Hollywood treasures. The next step should be establishing monument status (like the Hollywood sign) before Rocky and Bullwinkle are lost sometime in the future due to neglect or the wrecking ball.

I used to live practically around the corner from this statue (on Harper) about 20 years ago. A trip to the Dudley Do Right Emporium to rummage through all the old storyboards was a regular weekly ritual.

The drawing of Jay Ward’s dream machine is almost certainly the work of Chris Jenkins. That guy who repainted it said it had “50 years of oxidation” but this is not quite accurate, as Jay had it repainted at least once that I know of.

Well, better revised than falling apart I GUESS…but it’s based on the current crappy models…and am I the only one who bristles every time he sees Rocky with that stupid black dog nose?

Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but: Does anyone know if the documentary OF MOOSE AND MEN is available on video? It aired on PBS many years ago, then seems to have fallen off the face of the earth.

Mike Kazaleh guessed right - the original mural was the work of Chris Jenkyns. He told me so when I was researching “The Moose That Roared.”

And Tiffany Ward once told me that Rocky’s black nose and Bullwinkle’s colored antlers were Universal’s so-called hip marketing decision to update the characters, and “bring them into the 1990s” (remember that vapid catchcry). This is what passes for creativity now…sigh

Hey Jim Engel,

I was going to write that very thing until I saw your post. It also annoys me when Bullwinkle’s nostrils are filled in.

Unless Universal paid for this restoration, then why did they have to use those “hip” models instead of the originals?

To answer Steve Moore, yes, the elbow prints and signatures are still there in the plaza. They’re a bit difficult to see thru the fence. I was able to find most of them with the telephoto lens, but the light was too far gone to photograph them. I think the Disney spoof was to the left of the statue.

Ooops I just checked my book, and I forgot to credit artist Sam Clayberger, who also worked on the mural with Jenkyns.

Shame still we’ll have to put up with those 90’s revision-ed design/color choices though. Oh well, I’m not complaining too much over it.

Reading maxeythecat’s comment, didn’t they turn the Emporium into a pet grooming shop, or am I thinking of something else? Shame I never got to buy anything from them when they were open (could at least existed as an online shop of sorts, of course I wouldn’t mind having it relocate to my hometown if need be)!

I remember “Of Moose & Men” (for a minute there, I thought my PBS station lost it for suddenly playing something good for once). I remember taping it as well, but probably erased it later on. That special was usually seen during pledge drives on these stations, though when that one came out, they hadn’t started that nationwide deal where all the pledge breaks would be produced to go along with the specials, or else they could’ve had June Foray and others show up to pledge their support for public television! No, instead if was the usual volunteer announcers at my local PBS station doing the same thing, the added bonus items you received if you pledge a certain high amount was probably the Buena Vista VHS releases or some mug with the R&B on it.

The orange antlers on Bullwinkle go all the way back to the late 1970s. ASIFA-Hollywood had cels that Bill and June used to autograph at the annual Cel Sale at the Sherman Oaks Galleria. They always had orange antlers, and I never knew why.