Friday, November 2, 2007

Problems? Complaints? Take Then Up With The Producer



Any true fan of Jay Ward and Bill Scott's work will know the name instantly: Ponsonby Britt O.B.E. was listed as the Producer of such shows as George of the Jungle, Fractured Flickers, The Bullwinkle Show, and Crusader Rabbit.

Totally befitting someone surrounding Jay and Bill, though, Sir Britt had a wacky side: he didn't exist.

From IMDB:
According to page 135 of Keith Scott's book, "The Moose That Roared," Ponsonby Britt is a non-existent person. In 1959, Jay Ward and Bill Scott invented the name "Ponsonby Britt, Limited" as the new title of their corporation. Britt eventually became an "O.B.E." and retained in the cartoon's closing credits as an in-joke. Bill Scott was quoted as saying, "We had no executive producer, so, we made one up." Britt eventually became the executive producer credited for all Jay Ward productions; even a fake official biography for Britt was even crafted for promotional press releases.
And here's Wikipedia's take on the famous, and nonexistent, Producer:

Ponsonby Britt was the credited—but fictional—executive producer of the television series The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, Fractured Flickers, Hoppity Hooper, and George of the Jungle.

In 1959, Jay Ward and Bill Scott invented the name "Ponsonby Britt, Limited" as the new title of their corporation. Britt eventually became an OBE (Officer of the British Empire) and was retained in the cartoon's closing credits as an in-joke. Bill Scott was quoted as saying, "We had no executive producer, so we made one up." Britt even had an "official" biography used in press releases.

The name Ponsonby possibly came from Arthur Ponsonby, a prominent British politician.

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