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Dr. Ruebert Saturnine III at a toon-agedy conference in Estonia. All Photos courtesy of Boing-busters.

In light of the recent Super Bowl debacle, the harmful effects of media on children have once again become a hot topic in this country. One of society's most important and sacred responsibilities is to mold the future leaders of the U.S. during their impressionable years. Janet Jackson's breast baring has awoken America and moved legislators to remove lurid material from radio and TV. I recently testified in front of the House of Representatives to push for increased fines against broadcasters that air and performances that contain unsuitable content.

However, what the mainstream press is not discussing is the adverse effects of animation on children. Kid friendly channels like Cartoon Network are no longer safe with its "adult" programming. Like the use of the cartoon character Joe Camel, children and their parents see cartoons and think safe product. But as we have learned that it’s harmful to give cigarettes to six-year-olds, we need to address the dangerous effects of Space Ghost and Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law on our children as well.

Cartoon related injuries are a serious topic that America has been avoiding for years. Dozen of our children each year fall prey to being over stimulated by crazed and/or super-powered characters. How many times will children be hurt under the guise of "having fun?" It is a note to AWN's balanced coverage of the animation community that it is willing to publish my case study on the adverse effects that cartoons have had on our youth. What you read may be disturbing, but as a concerned parent, grandparent or court appointed guardian, this article is a must read. Afterwards, hopefully each of you will join my call to ban all harmful cartoons.

The first reported "toon-related" incident occurred in 1914, when a 9-year-old upstate New York boy fell from his pony while pretending to be Winsor McCay atop Gertie the Dinosaur. The prep school student was already an experienced rider, but was distracted during a routine trot by fanciful thoughts of bare-backing a brontosaurus. After the release of Steamboat Willie in 1928, the number of cases of toon-related injuries skyrocketed. Strangely enough one of the most publicized "Willie ward" cases -- as the hospitals use to call them – was from the same upstate New York town that the aforementioned Gertie fiasco occurred. Many scholars in the field of toon-agedies have looked into the susceptibility of the New England states to toon-related occurrences. Some have linked it to harmful levels of cod in the groundwater, but others feel it's simply due to the region's loose liberal attitudes.

This picture was used in Johnson's trial as proof of his unruly behavior.

In the fall of 1928, young Dickie Johnson decided to take the family yacht for a spin around the lake. Unfortunately, the small boy was not yet an accomplished sea-fairing captain and he crashed the family heirloom into the dock, ruining his sister’s otherwise splendid cotillion.

This incident spurred the first toon-related injury lawsuit. Dickie's father, Gaylord Johnson, filed the case against Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks on charges of corrupting a minor and inciting mischief. When Dickie took the stand in the summer of 1929, he told the jury, "I thought if a lowly, common mouse could drive a boat, surely I could too."

In other damning testimony, the boy's mother, Mrs. Virginia Johnson said, "After seeing that crazed mouse in the theater, Dickie became a hellion. He just wouldn't stop tormenting the cat. He even fashioned his father’s ascots into a nest!" Disney, not one to flinch from adversity, stood his ground. The case is officially still on the books. Luckily, after a short institutional stay, young Johnson grew out of his Mickey Mouse fixation and ended up founding the hugely successful Orkin Extermination franchise.