October 5, 1999
Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost is a 1999 American direct-to-video animated supernatural horror comedy film, and the second of the direct-to-video films based upon Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation (though copyrighted to Hanna-Barbera Cartoons). The film was released on VHS on October 5, 1999, then on DVD on March 6, 2001.
The plot involves Mystery Inc. travelling to the New England town of Oakhaven after being invited by horror writer Ben Ravencroft. Like a number of direct-to-video Scooby-Doo animated films released in the late-1990s and early-2000s, The Witch's Ghost features real supernatural elements instead of the traditionally fabricated ones the franchise is associated with, giving the film a darker tone. The film has been adapted into a book.
It is the second of the first four Scooby-Doo direct-to-video films to be animated overseas by Japanese animation studio Mook Animation. The film marks the first time voice actor and radio-personality Scott Innes voiced Shaggy, as Billy West (who voiced Shaggy in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island.) needed time for his voice work on Futurama. This was also the final film starring Mary Kay Bergman that was released during her lifetime.