BOOTLEG FILES 875: “A Doonesbury Special” (1977 animated film that received an Oscar nomination).
LAST SEEN: On YouTube.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On VHS and laserdisc plus a blink-and-you-missed-it DVD release in an anthology collection.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: There might be a rights issue that is unresolved.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: A re-release on DVD and Blu-ray is not likely at this time.
As a prefix to this column, I need to confess that I’ve never been infatuated with Garry Trudeau’s comic strip “Doonesbury.” Yes, I am highly aware of its awards and cultural resonance, but I never found Trudeau’s brand of satire to amusing or provocative. That being said, I was curious to explore “A Doonesbury Special,” the 1977 production that marked the only time that Trudeau’s comic strip was adapted into an animated film. Trudeau collaborated with Oscar-winning animators John and Season Hubley on this work – John Hubley died while the production was in the storyboard phase, but he still received co-director and co-producer credit with his wife and Trudeau.