Don’t diss the frog

Re: “Frog Mascot Has Had His Last Dance With WB,” July 23: “The frog is dead,” said WB Chairman Garth Ancier at the TV Critics Assn. press tour. The WB network is trying “to shed its teeny-bopper image.”

Clearly Mr. Ancier isn’t familiar with frog history; “teeny-bopper” M.J. Frog is not, although he has been called an existential hero. Years ago Time magazine film critic Jay Cox called Chuck Jones’ work “One Froggy Evening” a “morality play in cameo that comes as close as any cartoon ever has to perfection.” The cartoon was recently inducted into the National Film Archives.

Mr. Ancier jokingly said that a federal court gave permission to remove the frog’s feeding tube. The chairman might well be careful about pulling plugs. The frog, along with Bugs and all the WB characters, have made billions through WB merchandizing over the years.

Note to Mr. Ancier: As those familiar with the cartoon know, M.J. Frog has a mysterious way of reappearing after many years, even when buried in cement!

Marian Jones

(Mrs. Chuck Jones)

Corona del Mar