The Disney Afternoon
Some of the early cartoon series on The Disney Afternoon came from already in-circulation cartoons, such as "Adventures of the Gummi Bears", which aired on NBC from 1985 to 1988 and then moved to ABC in 1989. "DuckTales" premiered in 1987 as Disney was focused on incorporating animated series into its portfolio in the era of cartoons; it was Disney's only syndicated cartoon series until accompanied in 1989 by "." These two shows had been packaged together as an hour-long cartoon block from 1989 to 1990, until both shows were incorporated into The Disney Afternoon in September 1990.
Modern animation in the United States
In 1987, the TV animation division adapted Carl Barks' Scrooge McDuck comic books for the small screen with the syndicated hit "DuckTales". Its success spawned a 1990 theatrical film entitled "" and an increased investment in syndicated cartoons. The result of this investment was "The Disney Afternoon" in 1990, a two-hour syndicated television programming block of such animated shows as "Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers" (1989–91), "TaleSpin" (1990–91), "Darkwing Duck" (1991–93, also airing on ABC), "Goof Troop" (1992–94, also airing on ABC), "Bonkers" (1993–94), and "Gargoyles" (1994-96). TV animation also brought some animated feature film characters to Saturday morning, including "The Little Mermaid" and "Aladdin" both on CBS.