Saturday 13 February 2021

ring around the collar

One signature feature of Hanna-Barbera characters (human or otherwise) was to portray them with a necktie or necklace or some similar accessory (Betty Rubble, Boo Boo Bear, Baba Louie, Mister Jinx, Penelope Pitstop and so on) owes its existence to the cost saving measure of limited animation—only having to redraw the face and head but not the entire body for every frame is far less time-consuming and the apparel at the next made for a good guide for continuity. Though largely rendered an obsolete trope (though to some extend used to signal gender to the audience where not otherwise apparent or important) by the use of digital animation techniques, it is often retained or reference in homage to the classics.