TV Reviews : Hanna-Barbera Special Doesn’t Get in Last Laugh

Watching “Hanna-Barbera’s 50th: A Yabba Dabba Doo Celebration” (at 8 tonight on the TNT cable channel) is like being buried inside a sofa cushion: The special offers a great deal of fluff and very little substance.

The Hanna-Barbera Studio, which has produced more than 1,500 hours of cartoons, ranks as an American institution, like the Rose Bowl or the Betty Ford Clinic. Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera transformed the animation industry and children’s television by discovering the way to make cartoons for television quickly and profitably. They helped to establish the Saturday morning kidvid ghetto, which they’ve dominated for much of its existence.

But “Celebration” fails to discuss the significance of their work or even to list the seven Oscars and seven Emmys they’ve won. No mention is made of any of the animators, writers, directors or voice actors who worked with Hanna and Barbera over the years, nor does the show explain how the partners work together. Instead, writer/producer/director Marshall Flaum trots out an array of celebrities who have no connection with animation (Tommy Lasorda, Phyllis Diller, Valerie Harper), to offer congratulations and try to sing the theme song from “The Flintstones.”

It’s a rare treat to see the live action/animation dance sequences Hanna and Barbera did with Gene Kelly for “Anchors Aweigh,” “Invitation to the Dance” and “Jack & the Beanstalk.” But the montages of H-B characters come off badly. Television footage is carelessly juxtaposed with clips from the features “Hey There, It’s Yogi Bear” and “A Man Called Flintstone,” which were done in a different style. Many of the TV segments are badly faded: Wally Gator’s green body looks decidedly gray.

The duo that brought America the “Tom and Jerry” shorts, Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, The Flintstones and The Jetsons deserve something better than this mindless hour. “Celebration” rates a Yabba Dabba Don’t.