>>126513181Did Nick and the writers all know somehow know SpongeBob was gonna be a massive hit? I suppose there wasn't much like it at the time even if it does have have some roots in Ren & Stimpy and Rocko's Modern Life.
I think there were some major elements why SpongeBob was that popular even from the start.
If you look into Hillenburg's pitch bible for the show, you see the charm and magic of the show - just in paper form. I highly recommend looking into it. His pitch was also pretty lively according to Drymon, which convinced execs in days.
CatDog was originally supposed to be shorts in-between commercials, but was greenlit into a full on series because the one exec loved the song Hannan made for the shorts.
Second, the ending of both Rocko and Ren & Stimpy in 1996. It's not hard to see SpongeBob is heavily influenced by both these shows. Hell, Rocko and R&S alumni even worked on the show. As both these shows ended, there was a vacuum for the next big wacky and quirky show for Nick.
Third, the fact Hillenburg was more known than Hannan at Games Animations. Hillenburg was the creative director of Rocko from season 1 to season 3 before becoming the showrunner on the 4th show. He was personally scouted by Joe Murray to work on the show and has emassed many connections and friendships with the more experienced crewmembers (Drymon, Jennings, Hill and Lawrence). That way, he was able to garner more people for SpongeBob, especially after Rocko and Ren & Stimpy's alumni searched for a new job.
Hannan's biggest thing for Nick before CatDog was voicing a character in the second season of Rugrats. He had barely any experience beforehand. So he was already 1-0 behind when it came to it.
>Was Hannan even really involved much with his own show?He did write some episodes and oversaw production with three more experienced producers behind him (Robert Porter, Ken Kessel and Mario Piluso). Bit the same with Hillenburg and the support he got from Drymon, Jennings and Hill
