I’m so excited to say that today is the 50th anniversary of Scooby-Doo! Scooby has been on the air for a full 50 years as of 10:30am EST today. “What a Night for A Knight” aired on September 13, 1969 on CBS. 50 years later, Scooby has acquired an amazing fandom that is still going strong even today.
So, I’ll admit the end of yesterday’s fan profile was a bit of a joke. Today, the fan spotlight is none other than…me! I had initially contacted 30 people to be fan spotlights, but one of them unfortunately didn’t end up responding. I thought about it a little bit, and I figured some people who may not know me as well may want to know a little more about me, and how I became a Scooby fan. I also didn’t want anyone to feel jealous that I chose them to go on Scooby’s anniversary, so I thought I’d put myself on that day just to make sure I was being fair to everyone. (Cue the "I'm sooo jealous!" jokes, which I've heard from at least 3 of the fan spotlights I had told about this before posting my profile live) My answers may not be as cool and insightful as I joked they were yesterday, but nonetheless I hope you enjoy reading them! 1. What is your name? WildwindVampire 2. How did you get into Scooby-Doo? When I was 6, my parents recorded some Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? episodes on VHS, back when they were airing on the USA Network in the ‘90s. The very first episode I watched was “A Gaggle of Galloping Ghosts.” I remember loving everything about the show, especially the mystery aspect of it, and I’ve kept watching ever since. 3. What is your favorite Scooby-Doo episode and film? Why? Since I was a kid, I’ve always been fond of “The Loch Ness Mess” from The New Scooby-Doo Movies. I’ve always had an odd appreciation for history of the American Revolution, and the ghosts are genuinely really creepy! It was also one of the first episodes I ever saw as a kid, so I’m sure the combination of the aforementioned things and nostalgia have caused my love for that episode to continue being so strong. I always bounce back and forth between Boo Brothers and Ghoul School for my favorite movie, but I think I’m going to have to go with Ghoul School. The girl ghouls are just so darn adorable (especially Sybella - how could you not love her?) and the dark-yet-whimsical tone of the film is just spot-on. Scrappy was also more toned down in this film, and I loved all the villains, and just the setting of the film in general. Honestly, there’s nothing I don’t like about this film! 4. What ways are you involved in the Scooby fandom online? I run my own Scooby site and blog, ScoobySnax.com, which posts the latest Scooby news, as well as other editorial and opinion articles on the franchise. I also do a weekly Fun Fact of the Week blog series on here, which has been going strong for an amazing 259 weeks in a row currently. I’m also one of the admins on the ScoobyAddicts forum, and make a lot of posts on there. It’s so fun getting to meet a wide variety Scooby fans and chat about the franchise with them. Scooby fans are the best! I’ve also written my own Scooby-Doo fanfiction, “Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake” (a post-Zombie Island fanfic about Daphne’s famous television show) and “Fangs for the Memories” (a spinoff of Ghoul School focusing on solely the girl ghouls in their high school years). I used to be quite active writing Scooby-Doo quizzes on Funtrivia.com (I believe I wrote around 150 or so), but in the past few years I’ve lost interest in that. I also will often chat with various fans via email and to a lesser extent social media. 5. In your opinion, what is the best series or era of Scooby? The 1998-2001 era (especially Zombie Island), hands down. This era has a much darker and mature tone, yet doesn’t completely alienate younger viewers. The stakes are much more real, and I liked that it was left uncertain if the monsters would be real or fake in each film. The three-dimensionality of the characters was also excellent, and the gang seemed much more mature and relatable to an older audience. 6. If they could make a sequel to one Scooby-Doo series or film, what would it be? This is a really tough one, because of course it begs the question of “would it actually live up to the original?” Presuming the sequel would live up to the original, I would pick Witch’s Ghost. Given we already got a Zombie Island sequel this year, I would love to see a sequel in Oakhaven, maybe showing the aftermath of what happened, or having another mystery take place in that town. Who knows, maybe even the Hex Girls could show up! 7. What direction would you like to see the franchise go in the future? Going off of my answer for question 5, I would love to see the series return to the tone of the Zombie Island era films. Honestly, I don’t know any fans who hate these films, so I think the franchise would be best served in picking something that appeals to both adult fans and younger fans. This era had the perfect level of maturity without going over the heads of the younger viewers. 8. Who is your favorite member of the gang and why? Gonna have to go with a classic and say Scooby! Because he’s sooo cute, how can you not love him? 9. What is your favorite villain? Why? The Ghost of Uncle Beauregard from Boo Brothers is my favorite, to be honest. His design is super creepy, especially the yellow eyes. The raspy voice brought his spookiness factor full circle, in my opinion. I also love the ambiguity of if he was actually real or not at the end of the film. 10. In your opinion, who is the best recurring (non-gang) character in the franchise? The Hex Girls for sure! I love strong, empowered women characters, and these three are definitely pretty badass. I also love the environment, so them being eco-goths is a big plus in my book. And of course, their music is amazing! It’s also been cool to learn over the years about how much they’re a part of the real-life goth culture, to the extent that some people became goths because of watching the Hex Girls as a kid! 11. Do you have a Scooby-Doo collection? If so, what’s in it? My collection is admittedly small, though I have a very large collection of Scooby DVDs and action figures. Also have some misc Scooby merchandise I’ve picked up over the years. My collection may be small, but I’m still trying to grow it more and more! 12. What do you think has made the franchise so popular that it’s still going strong after 50 years? The plethora of incarnations over the years has no doubt played a factor in how popular it’s become. Between the series that are dark and gritty, or silly and whimsical, there’s something for everyone. Additionally, I’m going to pick on yesterday’s fan profile, Tore, a little bit here. Her college entrance essay about how Scooby taught her courage, confidence, integrity, friendship, and perseverance really gets at the core of why Scooby is so popular I think. The ghosts and monsters can be metaphors for one’s real life issues, whether as a kid or an adult. At the end of most episodes, the monsters are shown for what they truly are, and it just turns out to be a not-so-scary guy in a mask. The format of Scooby is interesting for kids, and can even arguably help them boost their self confidence by teaching them to face their fears. 13. What are five fun facts people might not know about you? I’ve been doing one for everyone else, but I’m going to cheat and do five for myself just because I’m having fun writing these haha. 1. I pretty much hate all emojis. The only ones I can stand are the ones on ScoobyAddicts, otherwise they just all look very exaggerated and unappealing to me. Which is why you'll still see me using the old fashioned ":)"- type emoticons... 2. I really enjoy traveling, both in and out of the United States. It's lovely to experience other ways of life and different cultures, and it can really help expand your worldview. 3. I'm a very avid reader...give me a good book and I'll definitely cuddle up and read it! 4. My natural hair color is darkish brown. 5. You know those people that are like “don’t touch me”? That’s definitely not me. Hugs are quite possibly one of my favorite things in the world. All of you are free to give me a virtual hug whenever you want :) Thanks again to me for doing this fan profile! It was so generous of me to agree to do this, and I really appreciate my continued friendship over the years! Check back tomorrow for an awesome new fan spotlight, who is most certainly not me this time lol.
6 Comments
John Locke
9/13/2019 12:56:07 pm
I keep forgetting there was a time before cartoon network, but I still have a VHS (that I need to get converted to dvd at some point...) that has a full halloween block from USA, showing the scooby dum/headless horseman episode, scooby doo and the reluctant werewolf, and other things like.... Buttons and Rusty? Full of nostalgic memories for me... and a ton of commercials for gas heating.
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9/13/2019 03:08:42 pm
Never heard of Buttons and Rusty, tbh. I do have all the questions written for the polls already (wrote them at the beginning of the month), but should I decide to continue the polls after this month I'll definitely use that question!
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Samuel Kirkwood
9/13/2019 01:33:03 pm
Oh that's just cheating. Interesting fact I learnt today. It is also Don Bluth's 82nd birthday.
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9/13/2019 03:03:27 pm
Lol, I intended to have someone else but they never responded for some reason (don't know why they said they'd definitely do it in the first place then, but whatever). So I had to improvise as best I could haha. That's an interesting fact!
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IkeDaKil
9/13/2019 03:09:49 pm
Happy 50th year anniversary!
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9/13/2019 03:16:25 pm
I wish I were as cool as the person who I'm posting for the day 30 spotlight. Seriously, they're amazing and you guys are going to love this person.
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