World Masterpiece Theatre was largely overlooked by the english speaking world despite large parts of continental Europe showing it.
Actually, there a number of WMT series that were released in the United States. Not full series, but a few episodes here and there on VHS. The ones I know of currently that have english episodes released are. "Little Women", "Tom Sawyer", "Rocky Chuck the Mountain Rat", and "Peter Pan", also "Bush Baby" in Canada and a rumored english dub out there of "Swiss Family Robinson."
There are tons more literary anime out there. (Les Miserables, Anne Frank, Christopher Columbus, Pinnochio, Grimm's Fairy Tale Classics, Little Prince, etc etc.)