Mess O' Blues (partially found prototype short of "Johnny Bravo" Cartoon Network animated series; 1993)

The direct quality version of the original snapshot.

Status: Partially Found

Mess O' Blues is an original short film about an "over the hill aging rock star who thinks he's Elvis" created by Van Partible in 1993 for his senior thesis project that would serve as a basis for the Cartoon Network original show Johnny Bravo.

Origins

Concept art.

While working at Loyola Marymount University, Partible decided to pursue a career in animation, and so he started working on a senior thesis project entitled Mess O' Blues.

Partible started with the concept of three Elvis Presley impersonators (or "Elvi," as Van Partible puts it) who fought crime. However, due to his time constraints and the fact that he was doing all of the work himself, the idea was cut down to just one Elvis impersonator.

Becoming Johnny Bravo

Johnny Bravo.

Dan McLaughlin (Partible's animation professor) showed the short to a friend working at Hanna-Barbera Productions.

The studio saw the short and loved it so much they asked Partible if he could do a pitch for a seven-minute short cartoon, with Mess O' Blues as the inspiration. This became the original Johnny Bravo short.

The character was changed so that, as Partible put it, "he would be more of this '50's iconic James Dean-looking character that talked like Elvis."

Other changes include his hair color, name, physical appearance, and personality.

This new pilot was later aired on World Premiere Toons (also known as What a Cartoon!).

Resurfacing

Despite its success, Mess O' Blues has never been released or even seen publicly, unlike the widely available and similarly made What a Cartoon predecessor The Whoopass Girls - which would later become The Powerpuff Girls.

The only footage that has ever been made available are a few short, mute clips from a short mini-documentary that was included as a bonus feature on the Johnny Bravo: Season 1 (Cartoon Network Hall of Fame) DVD entitled Bringing Up Johnny Bravo.

Footage

In January 2017, Lost Media Wiki user YoshiKiller2S got ahold of the Johnny Bravo Season 1 DVD and preceded to rip and upload Bringing Up Johnny Bravo to YouTube and then later to Archive.org and with it, was a total of 15 mute seconds of Mess O' Blues footage. YoshiKiller2S also discovered four animation cels from Mess O' Blues in a YouTube video that was uploaded by the official Loyola Marymount University YouTube channel.

On a podcast in January 2022, Partible revealed that he owns the only VHS copy of the short film and a digital copy on his hard drive, but has no plans to release it online due to its internal value of his growth as an animation artist. He chooses to only show the film to either close colleagues or students participating in his animation classes.

Gallery

Videos

All Mess O' Blues clips from Bringing Up Johnny Bravo.

How Van Partible ’93 Gave Life to Johnny Bravo which includes the four animation cels.

The Bringing Up Johnny Bravo mini-documentury.

A Speech Bubble interview with Van Partible where he talks about Mess O' Blues.

LSuperSonicQ's first video on the subject.

LSuperSonicQ's second video on the subject.

Animation Cels and Photos

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  Animation cels (1/4)

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  (2/4)

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  (3/4)

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  (4/4)

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  The original snapshot of Mess O' Blues.

See Also

Johnny Bravo

• JBVO, Toon FM & Viva Las Bravo (partially found interstitials from Cartoon Network channel blocks; early-mid 2000s)

Anthology and Short Series

• Big Bag (partially found Cartoon Network live-action animated puppet series; 1996-1998)
• The Moxy Show (partially found Cartoon Network CGI animated anthology series; 1993-1995)
• Sunday Pants (partially lost Cartoon Network animated anthology series; 2005)
• ToonHeads (partially lost Cartoon Network animation anthology series; 1992-2003)
• ToonHeads "A Night of Independent Animation" (found special of Cartoon Network animation anthology series; 1996)
• Villainous (partially found Cartoon Network Mexico online animated short series; 2012-2013)
• What a Cartoon! (found Cartoon Network animated anthology series; 1995-1997)
• Youri, the Spaceman (found Cartoon Network France CGI animated short series; 2002)

Audio

• Adventure Time (lost uncensored episode commentaries from Cartoon Network animated series DVDs; 2012-2014)
• Akazukin Chacha (partially found Cartoon Network Asia English dub of anime; 1998)
• Ani-Yoko: My Next Door Neighbor (lost Cartoon Network Philippines English dub of anime; 2008)
• Class of 3000 (found original English audio of Cartoon Network animated musical series; 2006-2008)
• The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy "Matinee Mandy" (lost original English audio of Cartoon Network animated short; 2007)
• Heidi, Girl of the Alps (partially found Cartoon Network India English dub of anime; 2001)
• Mojacko (lost Cartoon Network Asia English dub of anime; 2013)
• My Melody (lost Cartoon Network Asia English dub of anime; mid-2000s)
• Out of Jimmy's Head (found Cartoon Network live-action/animated teen sitcom; 2007-2008)
• Spaced Out (partially found Cartoon Network UK English dub of French animated series; 2000s)
• Sugar Sugar Rune (lost Cartoon Network Philippines English dub of anime; 2011)
• Uncle Gus (partially lost original English audio of Cartoon Network animated pilots; 2000-2001)
• Yatterman (lost Cartoon Network Asia English dub of anime; 2011)
• Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones? (partially lost unreleased original voice audio and unfinished/unknown Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2002-2003)
• Zoids Genesis (partially found Cartoon Network Asia English dub of anime; 2007)

Bumpers and Interstitials

• The Big Game XXVI: Tom vs. Jerry (found Cartoon Network marathon special; 1998)
• Cartoon Network (partially found "High Noon Toons" bumpers from TV channel block; 1994-1996)
• Cartoon Network (partially lost "Nood" bumpers from TV channel; 2008-2010)
• Cartoon Network "Cartoon Network Responds!" (partially lost interstitials from TV channel; 1997-1999)
• Cartoon Network Mayors' Awards of Excellence (partially found interstitials of Cartoon Network Philippines civic campaign; 2000s)
• Cartoon Network NBA All-Star Slam (found interviews of marathon; 2003)
• Cartoon Planet (partially found bumpers of revival block of Cartoon Network animated variety series; 2012)
• Codename: Kids Next Door Mission Weekend (partially found marathon bumpers for Cartoon Network animated series; 2003)
• Fridays aka "Cartoon Cartoon Fridays" (partially found interstitials from Cartoon Network channel block; 1999–2007)
• Hotdog TV (partially found Cartoon Network interstitial series; 2010)
• Ice King Steals Christmas (partially found Cartoon Network UK Christmas themed bumpers starring "Adventure Time" character; 2015-2018)
• Tickle-U (partially found Cartoon Network preschool block; 2005-2006)
• VBirds: Perfect (lost Cartoon Network UK interstitial series of British virtual girl group; 2003)

Pilots

• Ben 10 (partially found pitch pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; early-mid 2000s)
• Billy and Mandy in Trepanation of the Skull and You (found prototype short of "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy" Cartoon Network animated series; 1995)
• Camp Lazlo "Monkey See, Camping Doo" (lost pitch pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2004)
• Captain Sturdy (found Cartoon Network animated pilots; 2001/2003)
• Cartoon Network Development Studio Europe (partially lost pitch pilots from British animation studio; 2008-2011)
• Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (found pitch pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2003)
• Imp Inc. (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2001)
• Jeffrey Cat: Claw and Order "All Dogs Don't Go to Heaven" (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2002)
• A Kitty Bobo Show (found storyboard of cancelled second animated pilot for Cartoon Network; 2002)
• Major Flake in "Soggy Sales" (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2001)
• The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack (partially lost unaired "Wedgies" pilot and short of Cartoon Network animated series; 2007)
• My Gym Partner's a Monkey (lost pitch pilots of Cartoon Network animated series; 2003/2004)
• The Powerpuff Girls (lost pitch pilot of Cartoon Network animated series reboot; early-mid 2010s)
• Project Gilroy (lost Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2007)
• Regular Show (non-existent Flash pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; late 2000s-2010)
• Space Ghost Coast to Coast (partially found pitch pilots of Cartoon Network adult animated comedy series; 1993)
• Squirrel Boy "Kite Makes Right" (partially found pitch pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2004)
• What's Wrong With Ruth? (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2007)

Live-Action

• Bobb'e Says (partially found Cartoon Network live-action clip series; 2009)
• BrainRush (partially lost Cartoon Network live-action game show; 2009)
• Track Rats (partially found Cartoon Network reality short series; 2010)
• The Othersiders (found Cartoon Network paranormal reality series; 2009)

Other Cartoon Network Series

• The Amazing World of Gumball (partially lost deleted scenes of Cartoon Network animated series; 2011-2019)
• The Amazing World of Gumball "The Downer" (lost original draft of Cartoon Network animated series episode; existence unconfirmed; 2012-2014)
• The Amazing World of Gumball "The Rex" (partially found production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series episode; 2012)
• Ben 10 (partially found pop-up trivia version of Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2008)
• Chowder (lost pop-up trivia version of Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2010)
• Chowder (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network TV film; 2009)
• Codename: Kids Next Door (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2002-2008)
• Dexter's Laboratory "Rude Removal" (found unaired Cartoon Network animated series episode; 1997)
• Droopy's Guide to the Cartoon Network (found launch preview of TV channel special; 1992)
• Ed, Edd n Eddy "Luck Be an Ed Tonight"/"A Room with an Ed" (rumored/lost unfinished Cartoon Network animated series episodes; existence unconfirmed; 2005)
• Ed, Edd n Eddy "Special Ed" (non-existent unproduced Cartoon Network animated series episode; late 1990s/early 2000s)
• Hall of Game Awards (partially found Cartoon Network award show; 2011-2014)
• I Heart Tuesdays (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series; 2011-2012)
• I-10: The Ben 10 User Generated Experience (found Cartoon Network TV special; 2008)
• Mixels (partially found unaired/unproduced episodes of Cartoon Network animated comedy series based on LEGO toy line; 2014-2016)
• OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes "Crossover Nexus" (partially found original 22-minute version of Cartoon Network animated series episode; 2010s)
• Skatoony (found original British version of Cartoon Network quiz show; 2006-2008)
• Space Ghost Coast to Coast (partially lost Gametap episodes of Cartoon Network adult animated comedy series; 2006-2008)
• Space Ghost Coast to Coast "Snatch" (lost script of ending of Cartoon Network adult animated comedy series episode; 1999)
• Sym-Bionic Titan (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series episodes; early 2010s)