The Decline of Saturday Morning Cartoon Culture

When I was a kid, Saturday mornings were special. We didn't have Nickelodeon. We didn't have the Cartoon Network. In fact, my house didn't even have cable. So Saturday mornings were the only time I had when I could watch cartoons.

I've never been able to sleep in. Even as a kid, I was up early on Saturdays, so the cartoons were a Godsend for my parents.  It was great - I was up by six in the morning to watch Star Trek: The Animated Series. Every week. And then I'd watch whatever else they decided to show, with few exceptions. After Looney Toons ended at noon, I'd go outside and play. And so would the rest of the block.

It gave us a shared frame of reference and something to talk about.

Not only that, but it divided the weeks up during the summer, when there was no school week. It was like one morning was specially set aside for children. Like me.

These days, the local affiliates for ABC, NBC, and CBS run news until about 9:00. ABC then runs reruns from old Disney Channel shows until Noon or so. NBC sticks with news and paid programming. CBS has about an hour of cartoons.

Only FOX runs cartoons all morning.

Instead, cartoons run all afternoon all week long. Many cartoons have five-episode story arcs that perfectly match the school week.

There are a few cartoons that are more-watched than others, but the airwaves are flooded with options, now.

Saturdays have lost their status as a special day, with mornings set aside for kids.

Another piece of my childhood is lost because of it.

One more thing my nephews will never get to know.