Clyde Crashcup was a part of the original Alvin and the Chipmunks show.

Everyone who has watched or studied animation for a fair amount of time can tell you who the greats are; many of them are recognizable by first name alone. Bugs, Woody, Donald, Rocky, Mickey, Scooby, Homer, Fred and Wilma all need no further elucidation. Along with these luminaries of the animated universe are many others whose names or series bespeak instant recognition. Animated celebrities of the second tier who did not reach superstardom might include the likes of Alvin, Josie, Beany and Underdog. Although these stars and their series were not merchandised or lauded as much as animation's superstars, they all hold a revered niche in the culture that spawned them if only for the purpose of nostalgia. (One of my colleagues at work named her baby girl Josie Tyger; I can't award her enough style points.)

The next stratum contains cartoons and series that either existed for a very short time or were spawned from existing properties (mostly comic book superheroes). Some of the inhabitants of this world are obscure, little known cartoons that have passed on into the darkness of extinction and are difficult to find even on DVD. They dwell in internet backchannels as bootlegs and copies of copies, occasionally surfacing on YouTube. I enjoy sifting through these for the purpose of finding hidden gems, and indeed I have found a few series that I thought were definitely underrated. By using that term I don't mean that they are "lost" cartoons (nothing in this digital age is truly "lost"). What I mean is a quality cartoon that flew under the cultural radar.

What makes a cartoon "underrated"? Admittedly, this is matter of personal as well as critical choice. However there may be some objective criteria useful as a starting point. Let's begin with the fact that only the most dedicated aficionados would be aware of these cartoons, since they did not last long to begin with. Impossible as it may seem, some of them may not even have fan sites on the web. Merchandising is either rare or non-existent, and revivals and makeovers would be as unlikely as Mideast peace. These are the cartoons that exist mostly as answers to trivia questions, or producers of puzzled glances when mentioned. They are rarely found on DVD, even in the voluminous cut-out bins of Wal-Mart. In short, they came, they went and they're history.

Yet, there was an amount of originality, charm and humor to these cartoons, something that shoved them up like a tiny atoll atop a sea of ink-and-paint dross: Sparks that flickered brightly if briefly on long-forgotten Saturday morning blocks (also extinct). Likeable, competently made cartoons that bring "Oh, yeaaaah!" and a bemused smile when remembered. Here are three of my old faves, in chronological order, for your perusal; after nearly 55 years of gobbling up cartoons, I hope that something of unrecognized quality might have stuck in my head.

Clyde Crashcup (1961-1962)
Clyde Crashcup did not have his own show; rather, he existed as a seven-minute second banana to Alvin and the Chipmunks during the show's original run on CBS. Crashcup was a kooky, rather than mad, scientist who constantly invented benefits for humankind. This inept inventor was oblivious to the fact that everything he invented already existed, and in superior form. With his beanpole build, mop of wild black hair, and the longest toothbrush mustache in animation, Crashcup captured the essence of every pompous professor and elevated egghead ever caricatured. His high-flown speeches were eloquent masterpieces of silliness, especially when contrasted with his inevitable flops.

Clyde Crashcup was assisted by a short, pudgy lab partner named Leonardo, who was as mute as Crashcup was verbose. His bald head and outsized glasses put him in the same egghead category as Crashcup, but he was clearly the subordinate scientist. Leonardo sensed disaster well before it happened, tugging frantically on Crashcup's lab coat and whispering into his ear when he needed to communicate.

Crashcup owned the quintessential inventor's tool: A pencil capable of turning the inventor's drawings into reality as soon as they were finished. In Clyde's hand, it produced some of the most woe-begotten creations in science. There were plenty of laughs in comparing Crashcup's "inventions" with the real artifacts. Crashcup continually broke the "fourth wall" in his cartoons, addressing the audience throughout the inventive process. He announced his inventions by breaking the words down into their simplest components ("That's 'Buh' for 'Buh' and 'Oat' for 'Oat' – 'Boat'"), and never seemed to lose his composure when the worst happened, which was often.

And such failures! In one cartoon, Crashcup invented "The Wife" (voiced by June Foray). After waxing poetic about the virtues of marriage and companionship, Crashcup draws himself a mate. The last thing he draws is a happy smile upon her face; the moment she materializes it instantly turns into a frown, and soon the nagging harridan is clobbering Crashcup while he calls his savage spouse endearing pet names.

Crashcup's "boat" is seemingly designed to do anything but float, and if baseball had been played the way Crashcup invented it, our national pastime might have been tiddlywinks instead. This overlooked cartoon was one of the more inventive (so to speak) offerings on prime-time TV and one of the funniest; no surprise since Chris Jenkyns, late of Rocky and his Friends, wrote many of the episodes. Clyde Crashcup is the only character on my short list to merit an encore with a bit part in a 1990 episode of Alvin and the Chipmunks. This silly scientist was voiced by veteran character actor Shep Menken (who channeled former radio star Richard Hayden). Among the animated men of science, Clyde Crashcup was "Gr for Gr and ate for ate – Great!"