The cartoons were produced starting in 1959 by New World Productions, and syndicated by United Artists.

[3] In October 1960, United Artists bought time on a station in Toledo, Ohio, to test the Mel-O-Toons for audience response; they showed two of the films, "Rumplestiltskin" and "Waltz of the Flowers".

Variety reported that the viewer response was entirely positive, saying, "Many parents compared the Mel-O-Toons favorable to what they called the usual violence in kiddie programming.

"[4] A week later, UA bought a full-page ad in Variety, announcing: "We passed the test in Toledo!"

The ad described the test: "Here's what happened: Two of these new cartoons were shown in a fifteen-minute on-the-air audition over WSPD-TV.