A day of nostalgia: favourite Hungarian cartoons of our childhood – Part 1

It is very often claimed that everything was better in the past, and although it is not the case for all aspects of life, this statement is absolutely valid for Hungarian cartoons and folktales. Hungarian animated movies, broadcast between the 1970s and 1990s, enjoyed enormous popularity, and several generations were brought up while watching such traditional stories as the Mézga family or the adventures of Pom Pom.

Hungary-produced all-time favourite fairy-tales still wake up happy and nostalgic feelings in many Hungarians. At the same time, however, they also fill the hearts of many with sorrow, because they are no longer broadcast on TV, or only some modern version of them can be seen, that have nothing to do with the original ones.

As many might think, the Golden Age of the legendary Hungarian fairy-tale animation production was between the 1970s and 1990s, after which the cartoons broadcast on international TV channels started to compete with our beloved cartoons.

For today’s generation, the name of such cartoons as Pom Pom, The Great Angler (A nagy ho-ho-ho horgász) or Frakk, the Terror of Cats, means nothing, but for those whose bedtime story was any of these, they have great importance. Let’s go back in time a bit and recall some of our greatest childhood memories with Hungarian cartoons. 🙂

1. The Tales of Pom Pom

The sweet Hungarian cartoon, directed by Attila Dargay and written by István Csukás and Ferenc Sajdik, is composed of 2 series released in 1978 and 1981. The cartoon follows the adventures of Pom Pom, a wig-like character, and Picur, a schoolgirl. On her way to school, each morning, Picur meets Pom Pom who entertains the girl with interesting stories about various creatures, like Arthur Dumpling (Gombóc Artúr).

2. Frakk, the Terror of Cats

This Hungarian cartoon of great success was made by Ágnes Bálint and was 1st broadcast in 1971. The central character of the television show is Frakk, the loveable dog of Uncle Charles (Károly bácsi) and Aunt Irma (Irma néni) who also have a white and a black cat, Lucretia (Lukrécia) and Serena (Szerénke). The three pets constantly get into a fight with one another, and while Aunt Irma stands by the cats, Uncle Charles always favours Frakk.

3. Süsü, the dragon

The beloved puppet show was on television between 1977-1984 and was made by the Hungarian Television (MTV). Written by István Csukás and directed by Attila Szabó, the story of the little green dragon was a huge success.

In contrast to other dragons, Süsü has only one head, and he is a soft-hearted creature who, because of curing his alliance, is disinherited.

Forced to live among the human beings, he befriends a young prince who unlike other people, is not afraid of the dragon. The cartoon follows the adventures of the two protagonists as they try to get into the palace to propose to the princess.