The Puppetoon Movie

The Puppetoon Movie is a 1987 animated film written, produced, and directed by Arnold Leibovit. It is based on the Puppetoon characters Tubby the Tuba, Tulips Shall Grow, John Henry and the Inky Poo created by George Pal in the 1930s and 1940s, in addition to Gumby, Pokey, and Arnie the Dinosaur who host the framing story. It stars the voices of Dick Beals, Art Clokey, Paul Frees, Victor Jory, and Dal McKennon. as the main characters.

The original 1987 release of The Puppetoon Movie contained 11 Puppetoons. The 2000 DVD release and 2013 Blu-ray release each include the same 12 additional Puppetoons.

Plot

The film opens on a film set, where Gumby and his friends are filming a dinosaur movie. A ferocious Tyrannosaurus Rex named Arnie charges on set and is about to devour a young doe named Barbara when suddenly, he removes his false teeth and lets the doe go out of sympathy. Gumby cuts the scene and questions Arnie on his hesitation to act ferocious. Although Arnie knows it is all just acting, he feels unfit for the part because it just isn't him. He explains that he once was a ferocious T-Rex, but thanks to the divine influence of George Pal, he has reformed and is now a vegetarian without a bad bone in his body. Gumby fails to understand the profound effect of George Pal on Arnie's persona, so Arnie and Pokey show Gumby a set of George Pal shorts to show him the significance of the artist, thus starting The Puppetoon Movie.