Kellogg's called on the same animation house that has produced their ads for Pop-Tarts to introduce viewers to a new product for their Eggo brand, Jungle Pancakes, in the winter of 2022-23. Check it.
Here's a seasonally appropriate Afterschool Special.
"The Skating Rink" stars Rance Howard (Ron & Clint's dad), Stewart Peterson, radio & cartoon personality Jerry Dexter (ex-Gomer Pyle, USMC, Josie & The Pussycats), and, in one of his earliest roles, Sparky Marcus (later the voice of Richie Rich).
Producer Martin Tahse became a go-to for ABC in the mid-to-late 70's, producing films for the Afterschool Special and, later, Weekend Special.
"Martin", of course, is Martin Luther King, Jr., and this 1999 animated DTV, which has aired on cable in the intervening years, traces his life, with the contrivance of time travel.
LeVar Burton, Whoopi Goldberg, Jaleel White, Ed Asner, and Angela Bassett lead an all-star cast in this Emmy nominated film. The movie also features King's son, Dexter, as the adult King, and Frank Welker & John Travolta in supporting roles.
No rating. Strictly for educational purposes, as we honor Dr. King's memory today.
Now, here's a band I'd never heard of until today.
From 1975, here's The People's Choice with their disco hit, "Party is a Groovy Thing":
I think you could tell To Tell The Truth was nearing the end of its 1st syndicated run in 1977 when they started doing stunt casting like they did a decade earlier near the end of the CBS run.
In game 1, ventriloquist Shari Lewis introduces viewers to her magician father, Abraham Hurwitz. Lamb Chop introduces moderator Joe Garagiola, and after the game, a little magic trick with father & daughter.
Sentient shoes? In the world of Here Comes The Grump, definitely.
Making it all the more obvious the series was both inspired by, and DePatie-Freleng's audition for, Dr. Seuss' madcap stories, which DFE would begin adapting two years later.
Terry (Jay North, Arabian Knights, ex-Maya, Dennis The Menace) and Princess Dawn end up in the city of Shoe-Cago. Marvin Miller paints the word picture to start.
Time to go across the pond for our next entry.
The first remembrance I have of Doctor Snuggles was that it'd been imported to the US by one of the pay-cable channels in the early 80's. The series had launched in 1979 as a co-production between Dutch & British animation houses until a strike, either in the UK or the Netherlands, forced outsourcing of the animation to Korea and the US (DePatie-Freleng handled the final 6 episodes).
Peter Ustinov voiced the title character, and also served as narrator. Ustinov was no stranger to cartoons having narrated the Babar cartoons.
Following is a sample episode.
Vincent J. (Jess) McMahon was never satisfied with 1 syndicated program. He needed to have 2.
In addition to Championship Wrestling, there was also All Star Wrestling, a title used by other promotions in other parts of the country, including the AWA. You'd get the occasional competitive feature match, but most of the hour was loaded with jobber matches, the likes of which you don't see anymore.
From 1978, you'll see 2 former champions, Ivan Koloff and Stan Stasiak, in separate bouts, the latter in the opener vs. Larry Zbyszko. Also on the card is Jerry "Crusher" Blackwell, who would later become a babyface (good guy) in the AWA in the 80's after turning on Sheik Adnan El-Kaissie. Once Blackwell lost a title match vs. then-champ Bob Backlund, he left the 3WF.
Vincent K. McMahon solos on commentary.
Hasbro decided to adapt the long running Game of Life into a TV show, which lasted 1 season on the ill-fated, Hasbro-co-run The Hub (now Discovery Family). Unfortunately, 15 years later, it appears as though Hasbro went old school, and wiped most of the episodes, save for this one.
The CMDF are assigned to the World's Fair to intercept foreign saboteurs in this episode of Fantastic Voyage.
Here's another Disney entry produced for schools.
"Buyer Be Wise" is all about how we're consumers, and what goes into the money we spend. Hal Smith voices Goofy, while Gary Owens is the narrator.
One of the biggest complaints about The Looney Tunes Show was how it dumbed down Daffy Duck (Jeff Bergman) to the point where he was little more than an imbecile.
In this case, a case of mistaken identity has him thinking Porky Pig (Bob Bergen) is a killer. Meanwhile, Bugs (Bergman) rushes to the aid of Lola (Kristen Wiig) after she breaks her ankle. Legendary producer Garry Marshall, who hadn't done much acting since the 60's, is heard as Dr. Weisberg, a recurring role.
Produced in between seasons 2 & 3 of Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends, the web-spinner (Dan Gilveazan), Firestar, Iceman, Captain America, Spider-Woman, & Hulk greet a family at Hardee's to shill the chain's answer to McDonald's Happy Meal.......
Meet Pete & Harry, the Carnation Rabbits, who shilled for Carnation cottage cheese, milk, yogurt, dips, & ice cream.
Today, Carnation is a unit of Nestle, continuing the long running company's evaporated milk and Breakfast Essentials (formerly Carnation Instant Breakfast), but the wider range of products didn't survive too far past the 60's.
A quick Google search reveals that Mel Blanc (who else?) gave life to Pete & Harry, though YouTubers were convinced Paul Winchell and/or Pat Harrington, Jr. did the voices.
Following is a 4 minute montage of commercials.
From season 1 of Problem Child:
Junior (Ben Diskin) takes umbrage when his grandfather (Jonathan Harris) welcomes a visiting general.
Considering that the president of our country fancies himself a dictator, but has the comportment of an immature child, well.........!
Here's a Fractured Fairy Tale from 1961.
The Three Little Piggs are a trio of sisters (all voiced by June Foray), instead of brothers in the traditional story, who get their own individual homes thanks to an inheritance from a recently deceased relative. Daws Butler is the wolf.
The Staple Singers scored a crossover hit in 1971 with "Respect Yourself", which brought them to Soul Train.
