Long before Casey Kasem forged his legendary career in cartoons, he had been well established in radio. During a stint in San Francisco, Casey recorded a spoken word single, "A Letter From Elaina", in 1964. "Letter" didn't quite make it onto the Top 40, but it would ultimately be the forerunner to the "Long Distance Dedication" segment on American Top 40, the long-running radio series Kasem launched in 1970, and continues to this day with American Idol host Ryan Seacrest as the current host. "Letter" was also Casey's only studio recording of note. Nearly 40 years later, some of his work as Shaggy on Scooby-Doo was included on the "Scooby's Snack Tracks" compilation CD. Since the story on the record involves the Beatles, I'm willing to bet a lot of Beatles mermorabilia collectors either have copies of this single, or are looking for them. A photo slide show of Kasem accompanies the track:
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Toonfomercial: Does a dog really like breakfast cereal? (1969)
As long as we're dealing with Dastardly & Muttley in Their Flying Machines, the appropriately named Muttley16 offers up this gem of a commercial, one of the last of its kind. Hanna-Barbera had a licensing deal with Kellogg's during the studio's early years, and one of the last ads the company produced features the Vulture Squadron shilling for Frosted Flakes, with the help of some additional birds, after Muttley is unable to nab Yankee Doodle Pigeon.
It's also rare in that Klunk speaks a full sentence without using sound effects. I dare Boomerang to play this ad!
It's also rare in that Klunk speaks a full sentence without using sound effects. I dare Boomerang to play this ad!
Saturtainment: Dastardly & Muttley in Their Flying Machines (1969)
With Wacky Races in perpetual repeat and buried at the bottom of the CBS lineup, Hanna-Barbera placed three new series on the network schedule, including two spin-offs from Races. We've previously covered The Perils of Penelope Pitstop, so now it's time to give Dastardly & Muttley in Their Flying Machines some equal time.
As with Perils, Dick Dastardly (Paul Winchell) and his partner-in-crime, Muttley (Don Messick, of course) had their own series set in a different period, in this case, somewhere around World War 1, some have speculated. Now, they're 1/2 of the Vulture Squadron, an eccentric outfit with one goal in mind, capturiing Yankee Doodle Pigeon. The other half of the Squadron consisted of a neurotic named Zilly (Messick) and a mechanical genius known simply as Klunk (Messick again), who spoke mostly with sound effects, requiring Zilly to be his interpreter. If Dastardly wasn't frustrated enough being thwarted during the Races, imagine how it feels when every mission is a failure!
Here's the intro everyone knows. Hewey1972 uploaded it. Winchell, in character, sings the theme song.
There was a backup feature with Muttley having Walter Mitty-like daydreams, and we'll cover that another time.
Rating: B.
As with Perils, Dick Dastardly (Paul Winchell) and his partner-in-crime, Muttley (Don Messick, of course) had their own series set in a different period, in this case, somewhere around World War 1, some have speculated. Now, they're 1/2 of the Vulture Squadron, an eccentric outfit with one goal in mind, capturiing Yankee Doodle Pigeon. The other half of the Squadron consisted of a neurotic named Zilly (Messick) and a mechanical genius known simply as Klunk (Messick again), who spoke mostly with sound effects, requiring Zilly to be his interpreter. If Dastardly wasn't frustrated enough being thwarted during the Races, imagine how it feels when every mission is a failure!
Here's the intro everyone knows. Hewey1972 uploaded it. Winchell, in character, sings the theme song.
There was a backup feature with Muttley having Walter Mitty-like daydreams, and we'll cover that another time.
Rating: B.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Rein-Toon-Ation: Spider-Man Unlimited (1999)
After just a year away, Spider-Man returned to Fox's Saturday morning lineup in 1999, only to discover just how much the ratings landscape had changed in his absence.
In Spider-Man Unlimited, the web-head heads for Counter Earth to retrieve astronaut John Jameson, son of Daily Bugle editor-publisher J. Jonah Jameson. Here's the intro:
Pokemon, having been a mid-season pickup by WB earlier in the year, is the hottest cartoon on the planet at the time, and blows away Spidey in the ratings, such that Fox pulled the plug after less than a month. Didn't help that the series was late in starting for reasons known only to the network. Unlimited would later return to burn off the remaining episodes. Marvel produced a companion comic book, which also was given a quick hook.
As with Avengers: United They Stand, which bowed that same season and ran into the same problems, Unlimited was produced by Saban in conjunction with Marvel's own animation studio, and was one of the last entries in this collaboration (Silver Surfer was also part of this group). Spidey, of course, has since recovered to star in two more series since. DisneyXD holds the cable rights to the series, but doesn't run it in key air slots.
Rating: B.
In Spider-Man Unlimited, the web-head heads for Counter Earth to retrieve astronaut John Jameson, son of Daily Bugle editor-publisher J. Jonah Jameson. Here's the intro:
Pokemon, having been a mid-season pickup by WB earlier in the year, is the hottest cartoon on the planet at the time, and blows away Spidey in the ratings, such that Fox pulled the plug after less than a month. Didn't help that the series was late in starting for reasons known only to the network. Unlimited would later return to burn off the remaining episodes. Marvel produced a companion comic book, which also was given a quick hook.
As with Avengers: United They Stand, which bowed that same season and ran into the same problems, Unlimited was produced by Saban in conjunction with Marvel's own animation studio, and was one of the last entries in this collaboration (Silver Surfer was also part of this group). Spidey, of course, has since recovered to star in two more series since. DisneyXD holds the cable rights to the series, but doesn't run it in key air slots.
Rating: B.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Saturday School: Ark II (1976)
Filmation had hit its first pothole with their live-action line in 1975, as Ghost Busters & Uncle Croc's Block were both cancelled after 1 season. The studio forged ahead with their 4th entry for CBS, Ark II, but it too would end up a 1-year wonder.
Soap star Terry Lester (Young & the Restless) was cast as Jonah, the pilot of the title vehicle, and leader of a roving research team in this futuristic sci-fi series, set in the 25th century, but nowhere near where Buck Rogers had been, and Buck would later surface over on NBC 4 years later. All of the central characters, including a talking chimp named Adam (voiced by co-executive producer Lou Scheimer), were named after Biblical characters from the Old Testament, but insofar as I knew, there weren't any plotlines with Biblical connotations.
Anyway, Post-Apocalyptic.com uploaded the series premiere, "The Flies", with guest stars Malachi Throne (ex-It Takes a Thief) and Jonathan Harris (ex-Lost In Space), who had co-starred on Uncle Croc and would headline Ark II's replacement, Space Academy, the following season. The opening, unfortunately, has been edited off.
The fact that Ark II had failed suggests that the live-action movement had already peaked, and, in terms of scheduling, things would be back to normal by the start of the 80's.
Rating: B.
Soap star Terry Lester (Young & the Restless) was cast as Jonah, the pilot of the title vehicle, and leader of a roving research team in this futuristic sci-fi series, set in the 25th century, but nowhere near where Buck Rogers had been, and Buck would later surface over on NBC 4 years later. All of the central characters, including a talking chimp named Adam (voiced by co-executive producer Lou Scheimer), were named after Biblical characters from the Old Testament, but insofar as I knew, there weren't any plotlines with Biblical connotations.
Anyway, Post-Apocalyptic.com uploaded the series premiere, "The Flies", with guest stars Malachi Throne (ex-It Takes a Thief) and Jonathan Harris (ex-Lost In Space), who had co-starred on Uncle Croc and would headline Ark II's replacement, Space Academy, the following season. The opening, unfortunately, has been edited off.
The fact that Ark II had failed suggests that the live-action movement had already peaked, and, in terms of scheduling, things would be back to normal by the start of the 80's.
Rating: B.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Saturday Morning's Forgotten Heroes: WildC.A.T.S. (1994)
1994 was a big year for Image Comics in that they landed their first television deals for their properties, but neither would be very successful in the long haul.
Sam Kieth's The Maxx was picked up by MTV as part of their primetime series, Oddities, but for reasons known only to Kieth and the network, Maxx would not make his television debut until almost a year after he was supposed to, sealing his fate. By the time Maxx hit the air, Image's other entry had come and gone.
Jim Lee's WildC.A.T.S. was adapted by Canada's Nelvana Studios, which sold the series to CBS. So far, so good, right? Wrong. The series debuted two weeks later than it was supposed to due to unforeseen delays in production. Worse, CBS scheduled the series to air at 11 am (ET), when some network affiliates were blacking out network shows in favor of more profitable syndicated programming.
Here's the open:
As it turns out, that two week delay at the start of the season proved costly, as WildC.A.T.S. was cancelled after 1 season. The comic book proved to have a much longer shelf life. What may have hurt the show, more than anything, was that most casual fans weren't familiar with Image Comics as they were DC or Marvel. Two of the characters, Voodoo & Grifter, will be starring in their own separate DC books starting next month, nearly 20 years after their debut. The others? Wait & see, methinks.
Rating: B-.
Sam Kieth's The Maxx was picked up by MTV as part of their primetime series, Oddities, but for reasons known only to Kieth and the network, Maxx would not make his television debut until almost a year after he was supposed to, sealing his fate. By the time Maxx hit the air, Image's other entry had come and gone.
Jim Lee's WildC.A.T.S. was adapted by Canada's Nelvana Studios, which sold the series to CBS. So far, so good, right? Wrong. The series debuted two weeks later than it was supposed to due to unforeseen delays in production. Worse, CBS scheduled the series to air at 11 am (ET), when some network affiliates were blacking out network shows in favor of more profitable syndicated programming.
Here's the open:
As it turns out, that two week delay at the start of the season proved costly, as WildC.A.T.S. was cancelled after 1 season. The comic book proved to have a much longer shelf life. What may have hurt the show, more than anything, was that most casual fans weren't familiar with Image Comics as they were DC or Marvel. Two of the characters, Voodoo & Grifter, will be starring in their own separate DC books starting next month, nearly 20 years after their debut. The others? Wait & see, methinks.
Rating: B-.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Saturday School: NBC Junior Hall of Fame (1977)
It was NBC's 1st attempt at creating a series of short in-between-show pieces to compete with Schoolhouse Rock on ABC and In The News on CBS. However, for some odd reason, the Junior Hall of Fame, though noble in concept, failed to keep viewers from changing the channel. 70sKidVid offers up this sample clip about a 9 year old swimmer:
NBC commissioned producer Alan Landsburg (In Search Of....) to produce the Junior Hall of Fame shorts, which if memory serves lasted just the one season. NBC would try again with other, similar bits, such as One to Grow On in the 80's. In the meantime, Landsburg would do business with NBC again, producing the 80's sitcom, Gimme A Break!, starring Nell Carter.
Rating: A.
NBC commissioned producer Alan Landsburg (In Search Of....) to produce the Junior Hall of Fame shorts, which if memory serves lasted just the one season. NBC would try again with other, similar bits, such as One to Grow On in the 80's. In the meantime, Landsburg would do business with NBC again, producing the 80's sitcom, Gimme A Break!, starring Nell Carter.
Rating: A.
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