Gerald McBoing Boing (Boomerang)

Young Gerald McCloy doesn't speak: Instead, he makes sounds, from sirens to horse hooves to rockets to an entire cavalry. The shorts are usually a few minutes long; 30-minute episodes consist of a few shorts and two slightly longer vignettes featuring a Seuss-ian narrator. In this iteration, Gerald is joined by sister Janine, brother Jacob, and his usually tolerant parents, who all communicate with words instead of noises. The animation retains the '50s look, but the content puts a refreshingly modern twist on some of the old cartoon stand-by gags (for example, the bank robber isn't disguised as a little old lady -- she is a little old lady).

Gerald offers giggles for everyone in the family in much the same way that the cartoon classics do. The humor is sometimes physical, sometimes verbal, and never scatological (although there is a dog who burps rather than barking). It's sheer, harmless fun -- but if you're looking for even the slightest educational or moral content, you'd do best to go elsewhere.