A little history: 4/1/97 - Screwy Squirrel Day

[Matthew Williams]

We're about a week removed from this event, but it's still one of the watershed moments of Cartoon Network-- when the network's very sly, silly side came out to play, with probably the biggest April Fools' Joke ever pulled by a television network.

At 6am on the morning of April 1st, the Screwy Squirrel cartoon "Happy-Go-Nutty" came on. Not very unusual; the mornings, which were turned over to "Down wit' Droopy D" at the time, usually tended to show some of the non-T&J MGM cartoons.

And then, after that, it appeared again. And then again. And again and again and again until soon, one hour passed and the same exact cartoon was still being played. Again, innocently enough, it was probably a computer error-- helped in part by the fact that commercial bumpers and all were left intact.

But by midday, it became obvious that this was completely planned. A visit to the Cartoon Network area at AOL revealed that Screwy Squirrel had taken over Cartoon Network, taken the programmers hostage, and forced them to run the same cartoon-- over and over and over and over. Something that was only confirmed by the presence of several "scrolls" appearign across the screen to explain what was going on-- scrolls that got more and more ludicrous as time went on.

Yeah, by then it was obvious that the programmers had pulled a fast one on us. The only question from this point, was "how long"?

The cartoon kept repeating as the hours rolled by. Noon. 1pm. 2pm. 3pm. At 4pm, fans of the then-new Toonami tuned in to find Happy-Go-Nutty hurtling past its 60th consecutive airing. The scrolls continued, by this time pleading with viewers to stop calling the network so that the "phone lines could remain open so they could communicate with Screwy."

Finally, at 6pm, the madness stopped. The scroll released a statement from Cartoon Network-- "April Fool's". Viewers were thanked for their patience, and told that regular programming was about to resume... with the Screwy Squirrel Marathon, coming up next. Actually, that didn't happen; "Haredevil Hare" started a 6-hour "makeup session" filled with classic WB cartoons to apologize for the inconvienience viewers endured. Even afterwards, the marathon was reffed-- a voiceover promo for the Tex Avery Show teased,. "Maybe they'll show a Screwy Squirrel cartoon!! ...uh, seen any good ones lately?"

They never did anything like this again, choosing to remain with normal programming or pre-announced stunts, like a *shudder* Beetlejuice *double triple shudder* marathon the next year and the Monkey Marathon from this past year. It's sad, in a way; that stunt was one of the most memorable events ever at CN.

And this is my first shot at something I'd like to post weekly, or at least semi-regularly; you like this? Feel free to respond, e-mail, or PM, and I'll do more.

[Conan-san]

Could you infrom me of what scrools went past?
(I live in the UK see0)

[Pilmedium]

I must not have paid enough attention back then. It must have been annoying to many people, but those who caught on probably found it funny.

[Matthew Williams]

From the Google archives, here are the scrolls that started airing:

From around noon, when the cartoon began running:
NEWSFLASH...NEWSFLASH...SCREWY SQUIRREL HAS TAKEN OVER CARTOON NETWORK AND WILL NOT STOP RUNNING THIS CARTOON UNTIL HIS DEMANDS ARE MET. DO NOT CALL. DO NOT ADJUST YOUR SET. STAY TUNED TO CARTOON NETWORK FOR UPDATES...

From around 3pm EST:
UPDATE...UPDATE...SCREWY SQUIRREL IS STILL IN CONTROL OF CARTOON NETWORK. PLEASE DO NOT CALL YOUR CABLE OPERATOR... LEAVE PHONE LINES OPEN SO CARTOON NETWORK AUTHORITIES CAN COMMUNICATE WITH SCREWY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE. AGAIN. PLEASE DO NOT CALL.

Afterwards:
UPDATE...UPDATE...SCREWY SQUIRREL'S SIEGE OF CARTOON NETWORK
CONTINUES...UNLESS DEMANDS ARE MET. THIS CARTOON IS LIKLY TO REPEAT INDEFINATLY. WE WILL REPORT EXACTLY WHAT THE DEMANDS ARE AS WE RECIEVE THEM. PLEASE DO NOT CALL YOUR CABLE OPERATOR. LEAVE PHONE LINES OPEN SO THAT THE AUTHORITIES CAN COMMUNICATE WITH SCREWY.

and:
SCREWY SQUIRREL IS STILL IN CONTROL OF CARTOON NETWORK. PLEASE DO NOT CALL...LEAVE PHONE LINES OPEN SO THAT CARTOON NETWORK AUTHORITIES CAN COMMUNICATE WITH SCREWY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ASSTANCE. AGAIN. PLEASE DO NOT CALL....PUT DOWN THE PHONE...OH. YOU'RE CALLING SOMEONE ELSE? THAT'S OK THEN....

NEWSFLASH...NEWSFLASH...ACTUALLY WE HAVE NOTHING NEW TO REPORT ON THE SCREWY SQUIRREL SIEGE OF CARTOON NETWORK. WE JUST WANTED TO SAY "HI." PLEASE DO NOT CALL YOUR CABLE OPERATOR AS WE ARE ALL TOO AWARE OF THE SITUATION...

NEWSFLASH...NEWSFLASH...SCREWY SQUIRREL REMAINS IN CONTROL OF CARTOON NETWORK AND WILL NOT STOP AIRING THIS CARTOON UNTILL HIS DEMANDS ARE HA! DID YOU SEE THAT? OH THAT WAS A GOOD ONE...HE SURE IS ONE SCREWY SQUIRREL, HEH,HEH,HEH. AHEM. ANYWAY.STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS ON CARTOON NETWORK...

UPDATE...UPDATE...SCREWY SQUIRREL HAS ISSUED HIS ONE DEMAND...REPEAT...SCREWY SQUIRREL HAS ISSUED HIS ONE DEMAND: THAT TODAY, APRIL 1, SCREWY SQUIRREL'S BIRTHDAY.BE MADE A NATIONAL HOLIDAY. THAT MEANS EVERYONE CAN TAKE THE DAY OFF. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SCREWY SQUIRREL SIEGE OF CARTOON NETWORK. PLEASE DO NOT CALL YOUR CABLE OPERATOR OR ADJUST YOUR SETS...

SCREWY SQURIRREL TAKEOVER UPDATE...IN ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO BARGAIN WITH SCREWY SQUIRREL, CARTOON NETWORK EXECUTIVES HAVE OFFERD HIM HIS OWN THURSDAY NIGHT LINE-UP CALLED "NUT-SY TV." BUT HE WOULD HAVE TO GET A COOL HAIRCUT FIRST, AND POSSIBLY SOME COSMETIC "ENHANCMENTS."

UPDATE...UPDATE...ORDER HAS BEEN RESTORED...REGULAR PROGRAMMING IS ABOUT TO RESUME. WHEN ASKED TO EXPLAIN TODAY'S EVENTS, CARTOON NETWORK AUTHORITIES ISSUED THE FOLLOWING STATMENT..."APRIL FOOLS," REPEAT...AFTER HOURS OF AIRING THE SAME SCREWBALL SQUIRREL CARTOON, NETWORK AUTHORITIES HAD TO SAY: "APRIL FOOLS." THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE ALL THROUGHOUT TODAY. STAY TUNED FOR THE SCREWY SQUIRREL MARATHON, COMING UP NEXT.

[Botman]

The sad part is, I actually kept watching to see what the next scroll would say...

I woke up on that day, and my brother filled me in on what was happening. My dad was putting up new wallpaper, I just rented Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire for the N64, and I spent the day switching between playing the game and checking CN for updates. Every time a new scroll came up, I immediately notified my brother.

Hands down, it was the best April Fools joke I've ever experienced.

[Jeff Harris]

Hands down, it was the best April Fools joke I've ever experienced.I agree. It was so good and so unexpected. Kind of like that Great Comic Strip Switcharoonie (I think that happened a year later) in which most of the comics had comic artists switching strips for one day, like Family Circus switched with Dilbert.

[Numbuh 4]

... i think i remember that...
but i don't remember the updating messages... i just remember the cartoon
if i could remember it, ya that would be a really good April Fool's Day joke
Ah yeah: 200th post for me! "Victory Screech!" It's my birthday! It's my birthday!

[Conan-san]

Tell me this is "Screwy Squirrel" and "screwball squirrel" one of the same?

[EscaflownePilot]

Believe it or not, I was so intrigued by this whole stunt when it happened that from about 7:00am onwards I watched the whole thing - every single time the cartoon aired, I watched it... until the last two hours or so where I ended up playing video games instead, missing, apparently, some of the best moments of it.

Still, it was an incredibly interesting event, very surprising, and one that I'm sure no network would have the guts to do.

Man, I wish they'd do something this edgy or surprising again!

[EscaflownePilot]

And this is my first shot at something I'd like to post weekly, or at least semi-regularly; you like this? Feel free to respond, e-mail, or PM, and I'll do more.
Yeah, I'd love more...

[Mek]

I LOVED this!

And the sad part is that I haven't seen that cartoon since. :(

[Conekiller]

I HATED it . there are times when the main driving force for myself is merely getting home to watch what I taped. well, imagine my surprise when I taped Toonami only to find a few hours of that damn squirrel.

yes, my eps were showed in their proper order the next day. but it really ruined my day, pissed me off to no end. and fuled my abject hatred for April Fools day

[John-Paul]

The sad part is, I actually kept watching to see what the next scroll would say

Don't worry.So did I.

[Matthew Williams]

Tell me this is "Screwy Squirrel" and "screwball squirrel" one of the same?

Yes, they're the same character. The only difference is that in some cartoons he was called "Screwball Squirrel" and in some cartoons he was called "Screwy Squirrel". The last name rolls off easier on the tongue and that's what most people use for the character's name.

[Matthew Williams]

I agree. It was so good and so unexpected. Kind of like that Great Comic Strip Switcharoonie (I think that happened a year later) in which most of the comics had comic artists switching strips for one day, like Family Circus switched with Dilbert.

It was the same year, 1997. I remember because I spent most of that day obsessing over that rather than Screwy Squirrel.

But I agree-- it was probably one of the best April Fool's jokes ever pulled. Probably the best one I've seen, however, was pulled in a newspaper. Taco Bell chose to launch their new ad campaign by taking out a full-page ad in certain newspapers, including the one here, announcing that they had bought naming rights for the Liberty Bell and were renaming it the "Taco Liberty Bell". It enraged me when I first saw it, but looking back it was really funny and ballsy.

I think another edgy stunt CN pulled, that was almost as edgy as this, occurred a year earlier-- I'm not sure if it was April Fool's or not-- when they had Big Dog and Little Dog host a "Danger Island" marathon. "Danger Island" is live-action, and the promos made a big deal about it, but Big Dog and Little Dog protested, and well...

[Botman]

I think another edgy stunt CN pulled, that was almost as edgy as this, occurred a year earlier-- I'm not sure if it was April Fool's or not-- when they had Big Dog and Little Dog host a "Danger Island" marathon. "Danger Island" is live-action, and the promos made a big deal about it, but Big Dog and Little Dog protested, and well...


Yeah, I remember that. I was bored stiff that day...:D

It almost made me denounce my fandom to 2 Stupid Dogs...almost.

[Nin-Nin69]

That had to be the best CN April Fools joke yet. :D

[StrangerAtaru]

Do not remind me of that dumb April Fools stunt! Do you realize that I was sort of addicted to Thundercats at the time (it was the first time I had seen the series) and was shocked to turn on CN to see "Happy-Go-Nutty" and those scrolls? Well OK, I did stick around for the scrolls, but CN taunted me that day by showing the between stuff for Toonami (like "Voltron": Next), only to show more "Happy-Go-Nutty"! It was aggrevating! But hey, at least I liked the classic WB marathon after it was all over. (for one thing, it was about the time of the Turner/Time-Warner merger, and this was the first time I had seen some of those cartoons on CN)

[TServo2049]

I remember this...in fact, for a long time after that, I had the entire cartoon memorized, from beginning to end.

April Fools' Day 1997 had a lot of cool jokes...besides CN's, and the comic strip one, we also had Pat Sajak hosting "Jeopardy!" and Alex Trebek hosting "Wheel of Fortune"...any other media jokes that anyone can recall being pulled on 4/1/97?

(And yes, Matthew, I too am a Homestar fan. :D)

[Zorak Masaki]

They really should do something like that again,,in fact,,next year, air all the days programming (including toonami and adult swim) in a foreign language. It would be great to hear scooby in Japanese, or even better,,the dexter ep omelet du fromage IN FRENCH! They could even air the foreign intros for the shows!

[Disco Pete]

They really should do something like that again,,in fact,,next year, air all the days programming (including toonami and adult swim) in a foreign language. It would be great to hear scooby in Japanese, or even better,,the dexter ep omelet du fromage IN FRENCH! They could even air the foreign intros for the shows!

Yay, Toonami in Japanese! ASA in Japanese! Definately be... interesting. Of course, if they did that, they shouldn't tell us in advance, like this year's monkey day. Should be totally unannounced. Can start with Cpt. Planet in German in the morning... and ending with Adult Swim. (maybe Futurama should be in alienese:p).

[wonderfly]

I hated that stunt back in '97!!! Made me miss Thundercats that day. I came back home to the spot on my tape that's reserved for Thundercats had Slappy the Squirrel! That messed up the schedule, and it wasn't long after that that I lost interest in recording Thundercats altogether, (for the time anyway).

I hate April Fools Day at CN! They're always jerking around with us! :p

[Pilmedium]

Yes, they're the same character. The only difference is that in some cartoons he was called "Screwball Squirrel" and in some cartoons he was called "Screwy Squirrel". The last name rolls off easier on the tongue and that's what most people use for the character's name.

The character's name in the original cartoons was Screwy Squirrel, with the exception being that one cartoon was titled "Screwball Squirrel." I think there were some made-for-TV cartoons where he was called Screwball squirrel, almost like that Bluto/Brutus nonsense.

[Conekiller]

They really should do something like that again,,in fact,,next year, air all the days programming (including toonami and adult swim) in a foreign language. It would be great to hear scooby in Japanese, or even better,,the dexter ep omelet du fromage IN FRENCH! They could even air the foreign intros for the shows!

that would actually be cool

instead of altering the day's programming (like they're fond of doing) it would jsut be a harmless anomaly. Didn't Animaniacs have one episode where the theme was in German?