Larry F. Houston: Delivering Non-Stop Cartoon Greatness
This audio interview was conducted by Chris Doucher, Editor-in-Chief, Writer and Comic Panel Moderator for GeekNerdNet. (Image credits to: Larry F. Houston and GeekNerdNet)
Larry F. Houston at Calgary Expo 2024. (image credit: Chris Doucher/GeekNerdNet)
Throughout his career, Larry F. Houston, director/producer and storyboard artist has worked on some of—actually, almost all—of the iconic cartoons over the past three decades plus, and he hasn’t stopped. Recently though, he did stop to chat with me at Calgary Expo 2024. Let me say this: If you get a chance to meet him at a show, stand in that line to chat with him, you’ll be more than happy you did. Sooooo, what cartoons has he worked on? Most of you, and understandably so, are likely thinking of The X-Men (animated series, 1992 - 1996), as well as X-Men ‘97 (2024 - present), and that’s more than okay. However, allow me to provide you a rundown of the cartoons he’s worked on over the years—many of them as director and/or storyboard artist on opening sequences and various written episodes, too. Ready? Great! Here we go:
The X-Men (1992 - 1996)
X-Men ‘97
Care Bears
Care Bears Movies (3 of them)
G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe: The Movie
Robocop
Pryde of the X-Men
The Karate Kid
Captain Planet
Fantastic Four
Jonny Quest
Masters of the Universe
Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
TMNT
Transformers
And my goodness, so MANY more!
Houston shared a hilarious story about the theme song to Captain Planet, and its connection to boy bands of the early nineties. So really, boy bands did bring us something really good. Upon listing off the massive handful of shows Houston had a direct hand in getting put out there, was a definite moment of pleasant reflection for him.
“There have been several shows, and I’m glad you went through that list…I’ve worked on so many shows. I worked on almost all the adventure shows of the 80’s and 90’s. I feel blessed that way. I was able to put my mark on so many shows, and try and make the show as best I could, try and elevate the entertainment and have fun at the same time.”
Looking back, Houston shares the story that his script was the first to be approved for Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. And a side note, as writer Tim Sheridan nicknamed it: Spider-Man and His Amazing Furniture. When I told Houston about this, he laughed pretty damn hard. You’ll hear it once you listen to the full interview. And yup, theres a lot of talk about the original X-Men animated series and how he came up with teh opening intro. sequence over one weekend. Unreal! In the best possible way. If you’re like me, you already have the tune in your head right now. In fact, the final version of the intro. music took 12 or 13 takes. Okay, here’s the thing, this interview is so fun and engaging. Go ahead and enjoy my full interview with Houston. On a personal note: Thank you again, Larry. You are awesome!
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