Classic Superman cartoons now free online

Superman fans, rejoice: the classic 1940s version of your favorite cartoon has been officially immortalized online.

 

Warner Bros. quietly posted most of the Fleischer Superman cartoons to their YouTube channel, according to a report on CartoonBrew.com.  

 

"Warner Bros. owns the original negatives to these films and has restored them to brand new condition. It thrills me no end to be able to watch these version at will, anytime, online. The first nine are not only technically brilliant, but are some of the cleverest little sci-fi concepts ever visualized. A magnetic telescope? An electrical earthquake? Robot jewel thieves? The same kind of ingenuity behind the gags in the Koko the Clown films or Popeye cartoons is at work here," it said.

 

It noted, though that the cartoons are already in public domain, and WB released them on DVD years ago.

 

The first cartoon, "Superman," is an Academy Award nominee of 1941 the rest of the films include:

 

 

CartoonBrew.com said that When the Fleichers left the building in 1942, Paramount’s animators finished the contract with eight more films.

 

The films shifted the focus from imaginative science fiction to conflicts with wartime enemies, ancient mummies and petty thugs.

 

"These are some of the best cartoon shorts ever made – and were not like any Hollywood cartoons before or since," it said. — TJD, GMA News