06/19/98

Creative Cats....

The Internet has finally given cats a worldwide stage to showcase their creative talents. Online I found cats in photographs, cats in animated shorts, cats in movies, cats in plays and cats on postcards. I always suspected those cat people were up to something, but I had no idea it was the arts. By the way, many animal shelters have an abundance of kittens at this time of year. The next Greta Cat-bo may be waiting for you at the pound.

Cats Around the World

Meet Dalli and Sammy from Houston, Texas. These two cats like to travel, and have the vacation snapshots to prove it. See Dalli and Sammy modeling in front of the Eiffel Tower, the Golden Gate Bridge and Faneuil Hall. What? You think these pictures are doctored? But Dalli and Sammy gave me their word. "We were not dropped into the photos by computer." If you just have to know more, you can email their owner. The truth may surprise you.

The Cats Revenge

Rover, the Freddie Street dog, has been convicted of terrorizing the neighborhood cats. Felix (a cat and today's master of ceremonies) has had to escape up a tree one time too many. Now, in this short animated Shockwave feature, Felix has his revenge. "Please note: no cats were harmed during the performance of this act." And Rover is recovering nicely and promises his days of cat bullying are over.

Catzilla

"Fur does matter." With apologies to Sony and Tri-Star Pictures, this Godzilla parody is a fun, feline romp through New York City. I won't spoil the ending by telling you how they finally subdue the horrifying Catzilla. I've heard the summer blockbuster movie hasn't done as well as expected. Maybe too many of us just saw this "little screen" version instead.

CLAW Theater

"What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. It is you, my love! Oh, see how she cleans her whiskers with her paws?" Are you ready for kitty cat Shakespeare? CLAW is a large entertainment complex with three must-see shows: Romeo & Juliet, Snow White and a concert featuring the "mewsic of Clyde Big Paws." The plays are witty and cute, with real cats playing all of the roles. Think "picture book adaptation," and you'll get some idea of what to expect.

Mainzer Dressed Cat Postcards

Published between 1940 and 1965, these anthropomorphic postcards created by New Yorker Alfred Mainer, were printed in Belgium, Turkey and Switzerland. Collector Glenda Moore says "The charm of the postcards is not just in the fact that the cats are in everyday 'people' situations, but in the amount of detail in each picture - note the pickpocket on the train, for example, or the fact that most of the 'better dressed' female cats have poodles as pets." She has carefully captioned each of her 112 postcards and organized them by subjects such as Around the House, Just Being Kids and School Time.

The following links are either new discoveries or sites that didn't make it into my newspaper column because of space constraints. Enjoy!

Chez Fungus

Madison the Genius Cat

Why Cats Paint

Please send questions or comments to feldman@surfnetkids.com.