Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo aspects of Christmas from South Park to remain politically correct and inoffensive. The episode was written and directed by the series' co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The Mr. Hankey character was based on an idea from Parker's childhood; when Parker and Stone conceived the "South Park" series, they wanted to make Mr. Hankey the lead character. Heavily influenced by the "Peanuts" Christmas special "A Charlie Brown Christmas" from 1965, "Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" was the first Christmas-themed "South Park" episode, the first musical episode, and the only episode in season one (and therefore the first time in the
What a Cartoon! of a theatrical cartoon, with each film being based on an original storyboard drawn and written by its artist or creator. The series first aired on February 20, 1995, and the shorts were promoted as World Premiere Toons. During the original run of the shorts, the series was retitled to "The What a Cartoon! Show" and later to "The Cartoon Cartoon Show" until the final shorts aired on August 23, 2002. The project served as the launching point for multiple Cartoon Network animated television series, including "The Powerpuff Girls" (1998–2005), "Dexter's Laboratory", "Johnny Bravo", "Cow and Chicken", "Courage the Cowardly