Censored Eleven

TheCensored Elevenis a group ofLooney TunesandMerrie Melodiescartoons originally produced and released byWarner Bros.that have been withheld fromsyndicationin the United States byUnited Artists(UA) since 1968. UA owned the distribution rights to theAssociated Artists Productionslibrary at that time, and decided to pull these 11 cartoons from broadcast because the use ofethnic stereotypesin the cartoons, specifically African and African-American stereotypes, was deemed too offensive for contemporary audiences.
The ban has been continued by UA and the successive owners of the pre-August 1948Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies. Since 1968, these shorts have not been officially broadcast on television and have only been exhibited theatrically by Warner Bros. once (in 2010, seebelowfor more details) since their withdrawal. They have turned up, however, on low-cost VHS and DVD collections.
The cartoon output ofWarner Bros.during its most active period sometimes had censorship problems more complex in some respects than those of features. Unlike feature films, which were routinely censored in the script, the animated shorts were passed upon only when completed, which made the producers exceptionally cautious as to restrictions.In 1983, directorChuck Jonescommented on the television censorship of the Warner Bros. cartoons: "I don't like to see the films cut at all. [...] They make some cuts that are so arbitrary and stupid, you can't believe it."Independent stations that once ran the syndicated Warner Bros. cartoons never had the same type of censorship as first-run networks such asABCandCBSdid for the cartoons. Some stations owned syndication rights to "a few they consider[ed] racially stereotypical", but never ran them.
WhenTed Turnerobtained the rights to the pre-1950 Warner Bros. library fromMGM/UAEntertainment Co. in 1986, he vowed that he would not distribute or air any cartoons from the Censored Eleven. They were the only cartoons in this package not to be featured in theLaserDiscseriesThe Golden Age of Looney Tunes.Warner Bros. Picturescurrently owns the theatrical distribution on behalf ofTurner Entertainment Co., whileAmazon MGM Studioscurrently owns the home video distribution on behalf of United Artists to the Censored Eleven cartoons.
Friz Frelengdirected the largest number of cartoons on the list with four, followed byTex Averywith three, andBob Clampettwith only two.Rudolf Ising, likeJones, only has one cartoon on the list.Angel Pussis the only cartoon directed by Jones on the list, as well as the onlyLooney Tunescartoon on the list.Hittin' the Trail to Hallelujah Landis the only black-and-white short on the list, and the only cartoon to starPiggy.Goldilocks and the Jivin' Bearsis the only cartoon on this list not to be produced byLeon Schlesinger. It is also the first to be produced by an uncreditedEddie Selzer.All This and Rabbit Stewis the onlyBugs Bunnycartoon on the list.The Isle of Pingo Pongois also the onlyElmer Fuddcartoon on the list. The other eight are one-shot cartoons.
As the 20th century came to a close, the Censored Eleven cartoons became better known.
In February 2010, as part of a press release for the first annualTCMClassic Film Festival, it was announced that the Censored Eleven were to receive a special screening sourced from restored35mmfilm prints. This special presentation was put together by George Feltenstein, vice president of Warner Bros.' classic film catalog. Film historianDonald Bogle, who has six books published to his credit on the subject of African American stereotypes in film, agreed to host the event for the festival. On April 24, 2010, a total of eight of the Censored Eleven were screened at theEgyptian Theaterin Hollywood; the three that were not shown at the event wereJungle Jitters,All This and Rabbit StewandAngel Puss.
At theNew York Comic Conin October 2010, Warner Bros. confirmed that it would be releasing the Censored Eleven completely uncut on DVD through theWarner Archivesprogram sometime in 2011.On December 1, 2010, animation expertJerry Beckannounced on the Shokus Internet Radio call-in talk programStu's Showthat there were plans for a general traditional retail release and not via the Warner Archives. It would be a high-class release featuring all of the Censored Eleven and other rare cartoons restored, with some bonus materials. However, no further news of a DVD release has surfaced since.In 2016, Jerry Beck stated that the transfers had been done, but the DVD release had been delayed indefinitely due to declining sales of previousLooney Tunes Platinum Collectionreleases.