From Comics to Toons: The Rainbow Club raises money for the PTA (Kid Power, 1972)

 The subject says it all. The kids of the Rainbow Club have been asked to raise money for their school's PTA in this installment of Kid Power:

No rating.

Sunday Funnies: Donald Duck in Mathmagic Land w/An Adventure in Color (Wonderful World of Color, 1961)

 After 7 seasons at ABC, Walt Disney moved his television enterprise to NBC, where it would stay for the next several years.

The Wonderful World of Color opened with a pair of features. First, host Walt Disney, aided by Ludwig Von Drake (Paul Frees), explains the evolution of technicolor in films.

Then, and we're happy to bring this back, is 1959's "Donald Duck in Mathmagic Land" (italics mine), which we had posted a while ago, but it was pulled by YouTube. Now, the fan channel Keeping Walt in Disney has brought it back.

I remember seeing "Mathmagic Land" in school back in the day. It can still be used today if teachers are so inclined, especially in places where certain nannies are getting in the way of today's education.

Rating: A.

Sunday Funnies: Mickey's 50 (1978)

 In 1978, Disney & NBC marked a pair of milestones.

First, in September, the network feted the studio on 25 years of television programming with a 2 part season premiere of The Wonderful World of Disney, part 1 of which is over at The Land of Whatever.

Two months later, it was time to honor Mickey Mouse on his 50th birthday.

"Mickey's 50" is just as star packed as the 25th anniversary show, with narrators including Jack Albertson (Grandpa Goes to Washington), Dean Jones, Dick Clark (American Bandstand), Elton John, Johnny Carson, and Gene Kelly, plus contributions from Edgar Bergen, Peter Sellers, Rich Little, and much more.

No rating. This tape was edited to remove copyrighted material before it could be posted.

Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits: Sunshine Man (1972)

 It's been too long since we heard from Pebbles & Bamm-Bamm's band, the Bedrock Rockers.

Summer may have ended on Friday, but here's "Sunshine Man", prefaced by a short skit in which Penny (Mitzi McCall) meets a talking penguin (Mel Blanc):

Coming Attractions: Disney dives into the NFL

 By now, you know that, after CBS & Nickelodeon had hooked up for some kid-friendly alternate coverage of NFL games the last two seasons, ESPN & Disney-Pixar are getting in on the act.

On October 1, ESPN+ will carry the Jacksonville-Atlanta game from London's Wembley Stadium. Over on Disney+, an alternate broadcast will be shown, set in the bedroom of Andy, the human owner of the "Toy Story" action figures.

Chris Fowler explains in this ad.

This is the first of the NFL's games in London airing on ESPN's family of networks, as previous games in London had aired on NFL Network and Fox.

Getting Schooled: The Day my Kid Went Punk (1987)

 From the ABC Afterschool Special:

A teenager (Jay Underwood, "The Boy Who Could Fly") decides he needs an image change, and that leads to "The Day my Kid Went Punk". Bernie Kopell (ex-The Love Boat), James Noble (ex-Benson), Albert Hague (ex-Fame) and Christine Belford co-star.

Today, Jay Underwood is an ordained pastor, and largely out of show business.

No rating. Just a public service.

On The Air: Tiny Toons Looniversity (2023)

 The Tiny Toons are back, but now, they're in college!!

Tiny Toons Looniversity bowed on Max 2 weeks ago, with episodes airing on Cartoon Network on Saturdays. The gang's all here. Babs & Buster Bunny, now revealed as sister & brother. Plucky Duck. Hamton Pig. Dizzy Devil, and the rest.

However, the voice cast has been overhauled since the original Tiny Toon Adventures ended. Original cast members Don Messick & Joe Alaskey have since passed on. Charlie Adler, the original Buster, was not invited back, with Eric Bauza taking over. New voices for a new generation, I suppose. Since the show is on CN, that means it's also accessible on your cable system's On Demand service.

The following sample is a parody of a certain long running daytime soap that turns 60 this year. Here's "General Hogspital":

Edit, 9/28/23: CN decided to privatize the video. In its place is this promo card:

Rating: A.

From Comics To Toons: It's The Pied Piper, Charlie Brown! (2000)

 Seven months after Peanuts creator Charles Schulz had passed away, his final television script was brought to life in "It's The Pied Piper, Charlie Brown!", which was released as a DTV, instead of airing on ABC or CBS, which had been the network homes for Peanuts. I shan't be surprised if Apple TV+ now holds the rights.

Anyway, as the title implies, this is a loose adaptation of The Pied Piper of Hamelin, set in modern times. Instead of using musical instruments for adult voices as in the past, producers Lee Mendelson & Bill Melendez brought in veterans Pat Musick, Neil Ross, Joan Van Ark (ex-Spider-Woman, Santo Bugito), and Frank Welker to voice the adults. Melendez, as usual, provided vocal effects for Snoopy & Woodstock, and the vocal effects for the mice, while not credited, likely was also Welker.

Jazz musician David Benoit composed the soundtrack.

Rating: B.

Getting Schooled: Whatever Happened to......Robot Jones (2002)

 This might be the only time a cartoon character's voice was generated by a text to speech computer program.

That was the uniqueness of Whatever Happened to.......Robot Jones, a Cartoon Network entry whose pilot had originally aired in 2000, but it took 2 years for series creator Greg Miller's concept to go to series. He was able to use the text to speech program for season 1, but network suits hated it, and hired actor Bobby Block to essay the title role in season 2. That decision, unwitting or not, doomed the show.

Robot Jones, with its throwback character designs, which recall the likes of The Metric Marvels moreso than Schoolhouse Rock, although the artwork of Robot Jones looks busier than both, lasted less than 1 full calendar year before signing off for good.

Check the pilot. After Block was hired, CN had him redub the voice in all 1st season episodes, but this is the original print with the text to speech program.

Miller had a nice idea, but apparently, CN suits weren't ready, and thought their viewers weren't, either.

Rating: B-.

From Comics to Toons: Josie & The Pussycats vs. The Serpent (1970)

 While in Hong Kong, Josie & The Pussycats run afoul of a mad toymaker, The Serpent, who is after some ancient documents, and needs a specific coin. Should it surprise anyone that said coin falls into the hands of Melody (Jackie Joseph)?

The Asian villains were voiced by Don Messick & John Stephenson. Where was Keye Luke when you really needed him?

Rating: B.

Getting Schooled: The Letter People (1974)

 Here's another PBS series that was part of a learning block back in the day.

The Letter People began as a teaching tool in a school in Long Island in 1964. A series of books followed, written by series creators Elayne Reiss-Weimann & Rita Friedman. New Dimensions in Education acquired the rights a few years later, and, in 1974 the Letter People made their television debut in the form of a puppet show produced in St. Louis for PBS.

I'd imagine that today, the old tapes are still being used, even after the series was revised in the mid-90's for a new generation.

Here's a sample episode:

No rating. Just a public service.

You Know The Voice: Bob Hastings (1981)

 From season 1 of The Greatest American Hero:

Ralph (William Katt) is tasked to retrieve a stolen prototype for the government for security reasons. Meanwhile, he has a dinner date with his girlfriend (Connie Sellecca) and her parents (60's icons June Lockhart & Bob Hastings).

Here's "Here's Looking at You, Kid":

Getting Schooled: Uncle Scrooge & Money (1967)

 Uncle Scrooge made his animation debut, aside from a cameo appearance on the original Mickey Mouse Club, in 1967's "Uncle Scrooge & Money".

Scrooge (Bill Thompson) provides a lesson for his nephews, Huey, Dewey, & Louie (all voiced, reportedly, by Dick Beals) and the viewers, as I believe this was actually screened at schools before it reached television.

Rating: A.

Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits: Boogie Oogie Oogie (1978)

 It ain't exactly Studio 54, but the audience gets down with their bad selves grooving to the beat of A Taste of Honey on The Midnight Special. Here's "Boogie Oogie Oogie":

Toon Rock: Cheese & Onions (1969)

 The Rutles were largely a send-up of the Beatles, and in the wake of the latter's 1968 film, "Yellow Submarine", the Rutles released "Yellow Submarine Sandwich" in 1969. Neil Innes, who passed away a few years ago, wrote & recorded "Cheese & Onions", aided by Eric Idle, before Idle joined Monty Python.

Nine years later, after Idle & Innes had appeared on Saturday Night Live, Lorne Michaels produced the special "All You Need is Cash" in support of the Rutles album of the same name. While it was a hit in the UK, it was a dud here in the US. Go figure.

Saturday School: Fillmore in Two Wheels, Full Throttle, No Breaks (2002)

 School is back in session, and so is Fillmore! (Orlando Brown, That's So Raven). A series of scooter thefts leads Fillmore to a student activist (Eli Marenthal) with a tendency to refer to himself in the 3rd person. Who does this punk think he is, The Rock? Anyway, here's "Two Wheels, Full Throttle, No Breaks":

In the end, Derek Minna was a nothing happening jabroni.

Rating: A.

Looney TV: Bugs Bunny for Chiquita Bananas (1973)

 Even Bugs Bunny knows that bananas, rich in potassium, are healthy food. 

Warner Bros. licensed Bugs to United Brands, at the time the makers of Chiquita Bananas, for this ad. Bugs (Mel Blanc) dusts off his yellow hat & jacket, plus the cane, from his primetime series in the 60's, to croon the Chiquita jingle.

How Hanna-Barbera, home to Magilla Gorilla, didn't capitalize on this opportunity, I'll never know.

Getting Schooled: Where do Teenagers Come From? (1980)

 From the ABC Afterschool Special:

"Where do Teenagers Come From?" is the follow-up to 1977's "My Mom's Having a Baby", with Shane Sinutko ("Soup For President"), Jarrod Johnson (ex-The Lost Saucer), Stephanie Steele, and Dr. Lendon Smith (ex-The Children's Doctor) returning from the 1st film 3 years ago. This time, the kids are learning about the transition into their teenage years.

I may be wrong about this, but this might've been DePatie-Freleng's final entry in the Afterschool Special series. Doug Goodwin wrote & sung the title song. Bill Owen (ex-Discovery) and Dick Tufeld are our announcers. Sponsors, as per normal, include Kellogg's & McDonald's, including a Cocoa Krispies ad with Tusk the Elephant (Paul Winchell).

No rating. Just a public service.

Rare Treats: Hamburgers (1974)

 Alan Blye & Chris Bearde (often stylized as Chrisbearde) had previously worked on the 2nd Andy Williams show for NBC, and were riding the success of The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, which was ending its run on CBS amid the Bonos' divorce. The duo would also deliver The Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show later in 1974, also for CBS, but that was a 1 year wonder.

Anyway, in April of '74, Blye & Bearde served up Hamburgers, which appears to be an unsold pilot set up as a sketch comedy show. Ted Ziegler (Sonny & Cher) is the announcer. Our cast includes Charles Nelson Reilly (Match Game, ex-Lidsville), Bobby Vinton, Jim Nabors (ex-Gomer Pyle, USMC), Julie McWhirter (Jeannie), Micky Dolenz (ex-The Monkees, Funky Phantom), Rod Hull, who, with his emu puppet, would turn up on the Hudsons' show five months later, Sid Caesar, Charlie Callas, and William Conrad (Cannon), who appears briefly in quick bookend skits.

All I remember seeing back in 1974 as an 11 year old was a superhero parody set in a hospital, The Patient, with Reilly in the title role, whose costume is a hospital smock and a beanie.

This is also a "You Know The Voice" grand slam (Reilly, Conrad, Dolenz, McWhirter). The sketches move at a faster clip akin to Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In than Sonny & Cher. I think my folks were a little curious (or, at least, my dad was). 

Check it.

This was after Reilly had donned a banana suit to sell a brand of BIC pens. Don't know if he plugged this show on Match Game, but this wasn't the low point of his career. That would come a year later (Uncle Croc's Block).

No rating. The "Patient" skit was all I remember.

Getting Schooled: Uncle Smiley (1972)

 My brother used to regale me with tales of seeing Uncle Smiley on PBS when he was not at school. I was led to think these were animated, but, nope. These were live action shorts, all produced in 1972 by the Learning Corporation of America. PBS stations, including WMHT in the 518, would seed the shorts as filler during daytime educational programming, something that could still be done today. What got my bro's attention was the fact that ol' Smiley was best known for his pratfalls, and thus was dubbed by my bro and his pals as "The Man Who Falls".

The intro to "Uncle Smiley Goes Planting" encapsulates the slapstick comedy.

No rating. Never saw these shorts.

Toon Rock: Happy Happy Joy Joy (1991)

 From season 1 of Ren & Stimpy:

"Happy Happy Joy Joy", recorded by "Stinky Whizzleteats" (John Kricfalusi) is Stimpy's favorite song, an absurd tribute to Burl Ives.

When the song was released on CD after Kricfalusi was dumped by Nickelodeon, writer & comics vet Bob Camp recorded the vocals. A cover by Wax (Andrew Gold & Graham Gouldman) appeared on the 1995 "Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits" compilation.

Tooniversary: The series premiere of The Adventures of Gulliver (1968)

 We've had this up before, then it got taken down. It's back.

"Dangerous Journey" is the series premiere of The Adventures of Gulliver, which updates Jonathan Swift's original tale bringing in Gary Gulliver (Jerry Dexter), whom we'll assume was the grandson of Lemuel Gulliver, or even a great grandson. Like Lemuel, Gary ends up in Lilliput after a shipwreck, during which he loses contact with his father (John Stephenson, who also voices King Pomp & Captain Leech). The Lilliputians, understandably, are scared, except for Flirtacia (Ginny Tyler), who falls for the newcomer.

Rating: A.

Saturday Morning's Greatest Hits: Love is Alive (1976)

 We lost singer-songwriter Gary Wright the other day at 80 from Parkinson's disease & Lewy's Body dementia. 

In 1976, Gary appeared on The Midnight Special, performing his two best known solo hits (he'd previously been with Spooky Tooth), "Dream Weaver" and our next entry, "Love is Alive":

Rest in peace.

Sunday Funnies: The Sunday Comics (1991)

 Sundays have not always been entirely animated at Fox.

In the early 90's, the network relied on not just standard sitcoms like Married......With Children, but also comedy shows like The Sunday Comics, a spin-off from Comic Strip Live. Many of the comedians on this show also appeared on MTV's Half Hour Comedy Hour and the usual late night stops.

Actor Jeff Altman (ex-Pink Lady & Jeff, The Dukes of Hazzard) was the first host, but was dropped in favor of Lenny Clarke before production ended. Fox would replace this series with The Edge, featuring Tom Kenny and "Hollywood" Julie Brown, the next season, and, that, unfortunately, would bomb, as Fox had trouble finding a companion for In Living Color.

In this excerpt, the late John Pinette discusses the prospects of Russian food lines, and his experiences in Chinese & Japanese restaurants. Parental discretion advised for a certain "B" word.

Yes, this routine also aired on MTV.

No rating.

Animated World of DC Comics: The Super Friends pursue The Ultra Beam (1973)

 Super Friends turns 50 this month. No complete episodes of the original 16 episode season are available, so all we have are excerpts.

In "The Ultra Beam", it's a typical case of misguided scientists seeking to destroy all the gold in the world because they believe it's the root of all evil. Hate to break it to these guys, but it isn't. I'll bet they never cracked open a Bible.

The Bible tells us that love of money is the root of all evil, not gold. Making money by selling gold is one thing, but gold itself is not the root cause of evil, other than greed.

Rating: B.

ABC All-Star Saturday, 45 years ago (1978)

 Next week marks the 45th anniversary for ABC's All-Star Saturday block, marking the premieres of Challenge of The Super Friends and Fangface. Scooby's All-Star Laff-a-Lympics was rechristened Scooby's All-Stars for its 2nd & final season. The Krofft Supershow was gone after 2 seasons, but the show's hosts, Kaptain Kool & The Kongs, spent some time on NBC's ill-fated Krofft Superstar Hour, though half the band (Michael Lembeck & Debra Clinger) were pulling double duty in primetime (One Day at a Time & The American Girls, respectively, for CBS). The Pink Panther, after 9 seasons on NBC, moved to ABC, but for some reason, the ABC launch was delayed three weeks.

Following is an ad for the Central time zone.

Yes, they were short on original programming again, hence Scooby-Doo Where Are You? reruns on the schedule. Not included is the ABC Weekend Special, which was also in its 2nd season. After a few weeks, the reruns were tossed aside, and Challenge was expanded to 90 minutes to include repeats from the previous season's All-New Super Friends Hour.

Celebrity Toons: Coming Home to Utah (The Osmonds, 1972)

 Though no one really knew at the time, "Coming Home to Utah", which premiered on Christmas weekend in 1972, was not just the season finale of The Osmonds, but also the series finale, as the Osmond brothers return home to Utah after a world tour that encompassed the duration of the series.

Noted comedy writer Earle Doud served as one of the writers for the series, and his only other Saturday morning contribution came three years later, when he & Chuck McCann co-created Far Out Space Nuts for the Kroffts & CBS, in which McCann co-starred with Bob Denver. MGM's Mike Curb, serving as co-executive producer with Arthur Rankin, Jr. & Jules Bass, had been the musical director for three ABC series 3 years ago, Hot Wheels, Skyhawks, & Cattanooga Cats. 

No rating.

You Know The Voice: Robert Ridgely (1972)

What do you get when you cross John Wayne with Uncle Sam?

Robert Ridgely.

Before he made his Saturday morning debut on Uncle Croc's Block, Ridgely, a veteran character actor, appeared in this Ford ad, decked out like Uncle Sam, and imitating the Duke himself.