On Sunday, July 1 at 10 pm, Cartoon Network's TOONHEADS will look at the many Looney Tunes World War II cartoons. "The Wartime Cartoons" will feature clips from over 100 cartoons including the 26 episodes of PRIVATE SNAFU, which were written by Theodore Geisel, i.e. Dr. Seuss. Many of these cartoons show Porky Pig, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tom and Jerry, Superman and Popeye heading into battle against the nation's enemies. The special presentation will also air four rarely seen classic examples of wartime cartoons in their entirety.

Last month Cartoon Network set new May total day ratings and delivery network records, posting double-digit ratings and delivery growth across households and all key kids demographics. Total day ratings grew 10% in households (1.1) as well as 10% for tweens 9-14 (1.1) and kids 2-11 (2.2), and 19% in kids 6-11 (1.9). Total day delivery increased 18% in households (767,000), 26% in tweens 9-14 (191,000), 31% in kids 6-11 (315,000) and 28% in kids 2-11 (616,000).

Nickelodeon has announced its new programming schedule for the summer. Beginning Monday, July 2, at 8 pm, SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS will join the primetime line-up. SpongeBob will host Nickelodeon's annual "Summer Splash," a daily, three-hour animation marathon beginning Monday, June 18, airing weekday afternoons from 2-5 pm. The "Summer Splash" line-up will include RUGRATS on Mondays; ROCKETPOWER on Tuesdays; THE WILD THORNBERRYS on Wednesdays; HEY ARNOLD! on Thursdays; and CATDOG on Fridays. Starting Monday, June 18, Nick Jr.

Taipei-based SMEC Media & Entertainment has acquired the animated TV rights for Wang Du-Lu's CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON book series on which the hit Sony Classics feature was based. The deal with Vista Publishing Group also gives the Chinese production house the right to produce an animated feature and home video. SMEC is currently pitching the idea around Hollywood. Alexis Wallrich, head of SMEC's U.S. offices in Pasadena, said to Variety, "The source material is a gold mine of fantastic stories and characters.

Leading independent animation house Film Roman has signed a deal to provide animation for the upcoming season of THE MAN SHOW on Comedy Central. The North Hollywood-based company will create graphics, title cards and over 30 animated bumpers for the show. The 5-10 second bumpers feature THE MAN SHOW mascot, Uncle Phil in various "manly" situations like barbecuing and sleeping on the couch.

Hoping that the world’s television audience pays more attention than the movie-going audience has, the folks controlling the rights to L. Ron Hubbard's novel BATTLEFIELD EARTH are bringing the epic science fiction adventure to TV. Hollywood-based Author Services, Inc. (ASI), international representatives for all L.

Following on the success of Boomerang in the U.K., Cartoon Network will launch a similar programming block in Spain on June 2, 2001. Cartoon Network’s Spanish channel will begin airing Boomerang’s four-and-a-half-hour of classic cartoons every Saturday and Sunday. The block will include PIXIE AND DIXIE, ATOM ANT, HONG KONG PHOOEY, HUCKLEBERRY HOUND and YOGI BEAR. Turner Broadcasting launched the Spanish service of Cartoon Network in 2000.

Visual effects house Foundation Imaging, in conjunction with Tribune Entertainment, Microsoft and Fasa Corporation, has announced a deal to develop and produce a one-hour live-action adventure series based upon the hugely successful MECHWARRIOR franchise. Over its fifteen-year history, MECHWARRIOR, also known as BATTLETECH, has been adapted to video games, board games, location-based entertainment centers, books and other entertainment mediums.

Denmark's Egmont Imagination and A. Film are developing a TV series based on the successful Danish theatrical feature film HELP! I’M A FISH. HELP! I'M A FISH is a 3D/traditionally animated film about a trio of kids – who after becoming transformed into fish – race time to find a way to become human again before it's too late. A. Film partner Stefan Fjeldmark wrote and co-directed the film with Michael Hegner. Fjeldmark was nominated for an Oscar for his work on the short WHEN LIFE DEPARTS. When HELP!

It’s the ultimate game of cat and mouse when Cartoon Network presents the 12-hour TOM AND JERRY SLAMFEST on Memorial Day, May 28, 2001 from 8 am to 8 pm (ET/PT). Tom and Jerry, two of the most beloved combatants in animation history, have earned seven Academy Awards over their storied career with their legendary dustups. TOM AND JERRY SLAMFEST will show more than 70 cartoons, including the Cartoon Network premiere of THE MANSION CAT, a short that TOM AND JERRY co-creator Joe Barbera developed with Cartoon Network in 2000.