Troop Beverly Hills (1989)

“Patches? We don't need no stinkin' patches.” — Rosa

“Well, I love to set a bad example,” said animator John Kricfalusi, talking about his work on the opening titles of Troop Beverly Hills. Having spent much of his time prior to 1988 animating Saturday morning cartoons for companies like Hanna Barbera and Filmation, he relished the opportunity to do something more indulgent for 1989’s Troop Beverly Hills. “It's the first time I ever got a chance to animate and design a sexy girl,” he recalls. For his previous work, “it was completely taboo to draw women who were good looking because it would set a bad example for young girls.” The producers of Troop Beverly Hills had no such concerns with their animated opening – despite its key demographic.

The film centers around Phyllis Nefler (Shelley Long), a flighty housewife determined to prove herself capable by shepherding a troop of wealthy Wilderness Girls. Produced by animation pioneer and director Bill Kroyer’s studio Kroyer Films, the title sequence was created by a team including John Kricfalusi (The Ren & Stimpy Show, The Ripping Friends), Jon McClenahan (Animaniacs), Jim Smith (Mighty Mouse, Ren & Stimpy), Mike Kazaleh (Mighty Mouse, The Simpsons), Kent Butterworth (The Smurfs, He-Man), and Eric Stefani (The Simpsons).

In the 1980s, digital techniques were beginning to seep into Hollywood animation. The “combo technique” developed by Bill Kroyer and his partner Susan Kroyer was used to great effect in their previous animated openings, but was used only sparingly in Troop. This allowed the murderer’s row of animators to let loose. Jim Smith and John K. handled much of the layout duties, with Kricfalusi animating Phyllis with the flashlight. Smith drew the scene in the canoe, while Kazaleh animated the girls with the wine bottle and the corks. Kent Butterworth animated Phyllis interacting with the bear toward the end of the sequence, wrapping herself in its furry paws before scampering away.

Though the team was illustrious, a thorough look at the finished product reveals several sloppy mistakes. Key animators’ creative demands pushed the production schedule to its edge, resulting in a delightful but less-than-perfect title sequence. And while the film may have missed its mark as top shelf comedy and as social commentary – indeed, Roger Ebert called it “a sitting duck for satire” – its animated opening succeeds in jacking up the joviality.

A discussion with Title Designer, Director, and Animator BILL KROYER of Kroyer Films.

So, it was the late 1980s, and your studio was working on commercials and animated title sequences. What was the industry like at the time?

Well, there was a revival happening. The Little Mermaid had already happened and so things were picking up. But there wasn’t a lot of Disney-quality animation happening outside of Disney, and that was why we had our studio. If you didn’t work at Disney, there was really no other place to go where you could work on a Disney-style film, which is…

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