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Doug Widley 1964 animated series "Jonny Quest," animated by Hanna-Barbera, only lasted 26 episodes, but for Gen-Xers, it may seem like a lot more. Thanks to a series of sweet, sweet syndication deals, along with the clever remixing and repackaging of the company's 1960s and 1970s shows, Hanna-Barbera cartoons remained in reruns for decades, allowing new generations to grow up watching "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?," "The Flintstones," and, uh, "Jabberjaw." For kids of the 1980s, not a Saturday slipped past without several Hanna-Barbera shows making their way into our eyeballs, often entirely by accident.

"Jonny Quest" always seemed to make its way into my generation's cartoon rotation, and many viewers my age became very fond of the show's chintzy, stilted animation, thick-lines drawing style, and stock "laser" sound effects. The premise was the stuff of boy's adventure novels: Jonny Quest (Tim Matheson) was an 11-year-old wunderkind who was skilled in martial arts,...

While it’s easy enough to edit an expletive out of a song, there are many other reasons a track might fall foul of broadcasting standards or public opinion.

Some songs have been banned for referencing drugs, others for attacking the monarchy. Some were banned because it was believed they implied something sexual, despite not stating it outright.

One recent example of a song being banned is “Delilah” by Welsh crooner Tom Jones. In February, it was announced that choirs had been banned from singing the hit during their performances on rugby international matchdays at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

The song’s lyrics include reference to a woman being murdered by her jealous partner.

The Welsh Rugby Union – the governing body which has recently been hit by sexism and discrimination allegations – took the song off its half-time entertainment and music playlist during Test matches in 2015. Guest choirs have also...

While it’s easy enough to edit an expletive out of a song, there are many other reasons a track might fall foul of broadcasting standards. Some songs have been banned for referencing drugs, others for attacking the monarchy. Some were banned because it was believed they implied something sexual, despite not stating it outright.

From stutters to sexual groans, and from coercive crooning to outer-space catastrophe, here are eight songs that were, at least temporarily, banned from airplay.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood, “Relax” (1984)

An otherwise relaxing Wednesday morning was dramatically disrupted as BBC Radio 1 breakfast show host Mike Read made a horrible realisation.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s debut single “Relax” was playing. The story goes that, upon heading the line “when you want to come”, Read lifted the needle on the record, halting it halfway through.

The irate presenter then announced he would refuse to play the...

The Herculoids: The Complete Original Series

Blu ray

Warner Archive

1967/ 1.33:1

Starring Mike Road, Virginia Gregg

Directed by William Hanna, Joseph Barbera

Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera produced 114 Tom and Jerry cartoons for MGM between 1940 and 1956—and then they were fired. The following year they found new employment as America’s babysitters; debuting in December of 1957 was The Ruff and Reddy Show, a rise and shine treat for the little ones and one of the first Saturday morning cartoon shows produced exclusively for television. With its success the duo expanded their reach, greeting kids just home from school with the sweet-natured adventures of Huckleberry Hound, Pixie and Dixie, and Yogi Bear. But the Sixties were the Sixties and in the midst of that mind-bending decade Hanna-Barbera took a turn for the weird: Frankenstein Jr. featured a blimp-sized version of Mary Shelly’s creature. Birdman was a solar-powered superhero with the...

On September 18, 1964, a serious animated adventure series, demonstrating cartoons didn’t have to always be comical such as The Flintstones (still airing then on ABC). Instead, Jonny Quest captured the sense of exploration Americans were longing for thanks to the Mercury astronauts and the rising tide of espionage films, headed by James Bond. However, Jonny was a young boy, making him an ideal feature for the Friday at 7:30 p.m. slot.

While the 26 episodes are all that were produced, the show’s overall quality proved influential to subsequent generations of animators, comic book storytellers, and audiences. It has pretty much remained in syndication for the last forty years. Jonny Quest remained the benchmark for dramatic animated fare for decades, enjoying brief runs as a comic book (notably Comico’s 1980s run).

The series has been collected and polished to a brilliant shine on a just-released Jonny Quest: The Complete Series Blu-ray from Warner Archives,...

Videogame tie-in Frankie Goes To Hollywood was one of the most bizarre games of the 1980s. Ryan takes a look back...

Imagine this scenario: it’s the mid 1980s, and your massive, chunky BT telephone suddenly rings. It’s the boss of Ocean Software, and he has a project for you: design a game based on the pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood.

What sort of game would you come up with? A platform game, perhaps? A Space Invaders shooter with a bleepy, 8-bit rendition of Relax playing in the background? Most game designers, I reckon, would have knocked out something quick and unimaginative - after all, it’s only being sold on the licence, isn’t it?

Instead, Denton Designs made one of the most unusual and innovative games of the 8-bit era.

Forming in the early 80s, Liverpool’s Frankie Goes To Hollywood played the northern club circuit...

Film classification board responding to pressure from parents worried about sexual imagery available to children online

If it's not Miley Cyrus licking a sledgehammer, it's Robin Thicke cavorting with naked women or Lily Allen having liposuction and getting dancers to twerk for her. It has sometimes felt as if barely a week goes by without a new pop video cause celebre generating massive online traffic and causing outrage in equal measure. Now the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has said it wants an age-rating system for online videos introduced as soon as possible.

Following the issuing of new classification guidance from the BBFC on Monday, the organisation's assistant director, David Austin, said it was responding to pressure from parents who were concerned about the sexual imagery freely available to children who had access to the web, having already begun reviewing videos by artists such as Metallica, Robbie Williams and...

The year now ending marks another 12-month period of losing talents who have given television viewers entertainment or information ... and some of those passings, even more sadly, came as major and untimely shocks. Zap2it remembers:

Paul Walker: The actor best-known for the "Fast & Furious" movies had career roots in such TV shows as "Who's the Boss?" "Highway to Heaven" and "Touched by an Angel."

James Gandolfini: He projected so much older as mobster Tony Soprano, many were surprised to learn the three-time Emmy winner only was in his 30s and 40s when he played the part.

Cory Monteith: As Finn Hudson on "Glee," the Canadian-born performer touched fans of all ages both in life and afterward.

Jean Stapleton: Forever TV's top "dingbat," the "All in the Family" actress earned three Emmys as lovably daffy Edith Bunker.

Jonathan Winters: The improvisation genius who inspired his...

The daring new movie from the director of Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond The Pines is a sweeping emotional drama exploring the unbreakable bond between fathers and sons.

Luke (Academy Award nominee Ryan Gosling) is a high-wire motorcycle stunt performer who travels with the carnival from town to town. While passing through Schenectady in upstate New York, he tries to reconnect with a former lover, Romina

(Eva Mendes), only to learn that she has given birth to their son Jason in his absence. Luke decides to give up life on the road to try and provide for his newfound family by taking a job as a car mechanic. Noticing Luke’s ambition and talents, his employer Robin (Ben Mendelsohn) proposes to partner with Luke in a string of spectacular bank robberies – which will place Luke on the radar of ambitious rookie cop Avery Cross (Academy Award nominee Bradley Cooper).

Avery,...

Be warned: murder, racism, nazism, bestiality, sex, drugs, and religion are just a few of the controversial subjects contained within this list of The 20 Most Controversial Songs Of All Time. As we all know, sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll makes the world go round and yet music remains a source of controversial content within modern society.

Since Elvis first shamelessly thrust his hips in the face of shocked housewives around the world, attempts have been made to censor or destroy music that has upset the moral majority. This list acknowledges the songs that caused the most upset and were often either censored or banned altogether so do not view if easily offended, swear words may be used!

So, in no particular order, let the controversy commence…..

20. Frankie Goes to Hollywood – Relax

Proof that any publicity is good publicity, when ‘Relax’ was first released in October 1983, Frankie Goes to Hollywood...

Former Bee Gee Robin Gibb has had a plaque unveiled to celebrate his life and work. Earlier this year, Gibb passed away from pneumonia after a long battle with cancer. The Heritage Foundation and Thame Town Council installed a blue plaque to commemorate his former home in Priestend, Thame. Friends, fans and family turned out to the ceremony, with former DJ Mike Read and songwriter Sir Tim Rice addressing the crowd. Read said Gibb had an "exceptional character". He added: "Everybody that knew him loved him. He wasn't a showy rock star, he wasn't a showy popstar." Rice told the crowd: "It's a great honour (more)...

If Nintendo plans on taking back their position as a worthy home console (fingers crossed) they will need all the third party titles they can get. While Ubisoft has shown strong support for the Wii U so far, other developers haven't seemed as eager to jump aboard. However, a recent report suggests Nintendo's Wii U may be getting the upcoming Fps three-quel, Crysis 3.

Though the title wasn't officially confirmed for a Wii U release, it appears Crytek is indeed working with Nintendo and their new console.

"I wouldn't say there's no chance," Crytek producer Mike Read told Cvg. "I wouldn't say no chance. I mean the Wii U still doesn't have any kind of release [date] attached to it at this point. Who knows what the future will bring with it. I can definitely say that we are working with Nintendo, and that's about all I can say on that front.

The Warner Archive Collection is a manufacture-on-demand (Mod) DVD series that specializes in putting previously unreleased films on DVD for the first time. Recently they dug deep into their vast history of classic horror and selected some winners to resurrect.

The Warner Archive Collection can make a wide array of films available because they don't actually create the DVD until it is ordered by a customer. This way, they are not taking a chance of getting stuck with a large amount of inventory if a selected title doesn't sell. You'll certainly recognize some of the horror films the Warner Archive Collection has added to its library, but there are a couple of really obscure ones in there as well. Take a look at the list of what's been made available and plan your shopping list now.

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973)

Although the recent remake featuring the suddenly single...

One of the more enduring concepts introduced on Saturday morning television in 1967 was Hanna-Barbera’s Herculoids. Some of this has to do with its fabulous Alex Toth design work and much of it has to do with the unusual assortment of people and creatures that band together to fight for survival in a hostile environment.

The series debuted on September 9 and CBS aired 18 original episodes before it vanished on September 6, 1969. Thanks to the miracle of on-demand DVD manufacture, Warner Archive has released the complete series on two DVDs this week. The eleven new episodes created in 1981 remain to be rediscovered.

The series was the brainchild of Toth but episodes were directed by Bill Perez, Paul Sommer, Ken Spears, Joe Ruby, and David Scott. Clearly Ruby and Spears were inspired by this because there’s a direct correlation between this and their Thundarr the Barbarian (also available from Warner Archive). The Herculoids...