In 1990, the Children’s Television Act was launched to lower the number of ads that a network could direct toward children during cartoons. This was the beginning of the demise of cartoons on network television that would culminate with the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which substantially regulates children’s television. This would impact network programming throughout the 2000s, but before that, the networks gave kids an explosion of new original content.
Some of the most memorable original content could be found on Kids’ WB. Let’s take a look at the network’s seven best ’90s cartoons!
Animaniacs
Animaniacs was created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Steven Spielberg. The show ran for 5 seasons with 99 episodes and was a slapstick variety show cartoon on Kids’ WB with lots of pop culture references. It is known for breaking the fourth wall and is one of the wackiest shows from the ’90s.
The Animaniacs are Wacko Warner, Yakko Warner, and their sister Dot Warner. The show also starred several spin-off characters that made up the different skits that ran through the show. “Pinky and the Brain,” for instance, is about two lab mice trying to take over the world, and “Goodfeathers,” Italian mobster pigeons who are always arguing on telephone lines. Some of the skits would spin off to their own successful shows, like Pinky and the Brain.
