A to Z of Animation Studios: D Is for DiC Entertainment
The studio behind half of your Saturday mornings, and that whispered logo at the end.
D is for DiC Entertainment
Founded: 1971, in France, by Jean Chalopin. The name stood for Diffusion, Information et Communication. In the 1980s, producer Andy Heyward built DiC into an American powerhouse.
The approach: Volume. DiC made a lot of shows, fast, often based on toys, games and movies. If you grew up in the '80s or '90s, you heard the DiC logo whisper "DiC!" at the end of something you loved.
Greatest hits
Inspector Gadget (1983). A bumbling detective with a gadget for everything, whose niece Penny and dog Brain solve every case.
The Real Ghostbusters (1986). One of the rare movie-to-cartoon adaptations people still praise.
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989). Cartoons plus live-action segments with a very enthusiastic Mario.
Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990). Five kids, five rings and one very blue superhero fighting pollution.
Sonic the Hedgehog (1993). DiC made two Sonic shows at once: a goofy one and a serious sci-fi one that fans still call "SatAM."
Where on Earth Is Carmen Sandiego? (1994). Geography plus mystery plus the most famous red trench coat in animation.
The DiC formula
Make it toyetic. Big, bold characters that look great on a shelf.
A catchy theme song. You can probably hum Inspector Gadget right now.
Make a lot. Not every show was great, but enough of them were.
The struggle
Quantity sometimes beat quality. Lots of DiC shows were cheaply animated and made mainly to sell toys. REAL: DiC was bought by Cookie Jar Group in 2008, and the whispered logo went quiet.
Honorable mention: DisneyToon Studios
The Disney division that made direct-to-video sequels from 1990 to 2018: The Return of Jafar, Simba's Pride, Cinderella III and the Tinker Bell movies. REAL: Robin Williams didn't voice the Genie in The Return of Jafar. Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer Simpson, stepped in. Williams returned for Aladdin and the King of Thieves.
The lesson
DiC proves a big library of shows can define a generation, even if they're not all masterpieces. But the shows people still love, like Gadget and Carmen Sandiego, are the ones with a great character at the center, not just a great toy.
Up next
E is for Elzie Segar's Popeye.
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