Remember that one day when you could wake up without an alarm? When you would get your favorite bowl of cereal and sit between the hours of 8 and 12? This is a blog dedicated to the greatest time of our childhood: Saturday mornings. The television programs you watched, the memories attached to them, and maybe introducing you to something you didn't realize existed. Updated every weekend.
For the history of the Flintstones, check out the post here.
With Muppet Babiesproving a rousing success, Hanna-Barbera decided to
get in on the action by taking their flagship property and de-aging them for a
new generation. The result was The
Flintstone Kids.
Fred, Barney, Wilma, Betty, Philo and Dreamchip leaving Bedrock Elementary.
The series focused on
the daily adventures of best friends Freddy Flintstone (Lennie Weinrib &
Scott Menville) and Barney Rubble (Hamilton Camp) and their future wives, Wilma
Slaghoople (Julie McWhirter & Elizabeth Lyn Fraser) and Betty Jean Bricker
(B.J. Ward), as modern Stone Age attendees of Bedrock Elementary School. Other
familiar faces included Freddy’s dog, Dino (Mel Blanc), and future boss, Nate
Slate (Frank Welker).
Rocky Ratrock threatens Freddy.
Joining them was a slew of new characters created for the show, giving it
the largest supporting cast of any entry in the franchise. There was resident
whiz kid, amateur detective and one of the first recurring Black characters in
the franchise, Philo Quartz (Bumper Robinson); his father, Officer Bob Quartz (Rene Levant); spoiled rich girl
Dreamchip Bluestone (Susan Blu); neighborhood bully Rocky Ratrock (Marilyn
Schreffler), his dog, Stalagbite (Welker), and his gang, Tarpit (McWirter),
Flab Slab (Camp) and Janet Granite (Blu). While Wilma’s mother had previously made
appearances on the parent show as a thorn in Fred’s side, this series
introduced Freddy’s parents Ed and Edna (both voiced by then-current adult Fred
actor Henry Corden) and Barney’s parents Bob (Blanc in his Barney Rubble voice)
and Flo (Schreffler).
Barney rocks out to his portable radio.
While a prequel
series, the show largely ignored any continuity established by its parent
series. In The Flintstones, a
flashback in the season four episode “Bachelor Daze” revealed that Fred and
Barney didn’t meet their future wives until early adulthood. Dino was also
introduced in the season one episode “The Snorkasaurus Hunter” (although he was
shown earlier) well after Fred and Wilma were married adults. Much like the
parent series did with 1960s technology, Kids
adapted 1980s technology and gave it a Stone Age twist. For instance, there
was the presence of computers--particularly Philo’s advanced one and the fact
Wilma’s father owned a computer business. And, even in the intro, Barney was
seen rocking out to a prehistoric Walkman.
Princess Wilma and her magic mirror.
Rather than focus on
a single story, each episode was broken up into several segments. Along with
the standard story starring the kids, there was a segment called “Flintstone
Funnies” in which the kids would use their imaginations to propel themselves into
fantastic worlds and adventures. That segment was dropped for the show’s second
season. Another segment called “Dino’s Dilemmas” was a shorter one focusing on
a day in Dino’s life and the resulting misadventures.
Cavey, Jr. and Captain Caveman.
The final segment was a show within a show: Captain Caveman and Son. Captain Caveman (Blanc) was the dim-witted
bumbling prehistoric superhero that had previously appeared on Scooby’s All-Stars, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angelsand The
Flintstones Comedy Hour. This time, he was joined by his much smarter son
and sidekick, Cavey, Jr. (Charlie Adler), as they haphazardly dealt with
threats to Bedrock. The segment straddled the line between being a television
program and an actual adventure with the town actually in peril, and the
characters frequently broke the fourth wall to interact with their narrator
(Kenneth Mars) or a disruptive member of the viewing audience. Each episode
would see the Flintstone kids hurriedly gather in front of a television with
their Captain Caveman spotted capes and clubs to watch the show, chanting his
patented “Unga Bunga” when the narrator would ask “Hey, kids, do you know what
time it is?”
The Captain Caveman Fan Club gets ready to watch an episode.
Several days after the end of the series, a primetime special aired on
September 15th called The
Flintstone Kids Just Say No. It was a 30-minute ant-drug special that
focused on Wilma being offered marijuana in order to join the “cool kids” while
the others focused on winning tickets to a Michael Jackstone concert. The
special featured an introduction by Nancy Reagan
and an appearance by the actual La Toya
Jackson as La Toya Jackstone, sister to Michael. Original Wilma Jean Vander Pyl portrayed
Wilma’s mother. The special was subsequently aired as an episode of ABC
Weekend Specials. Reruns of the series proper aired as part of the
weekday syndicated block The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera.
Cavey Jr. would go on to have later appearances in an episode of Harvey Birdman, Attorney at
Law and Jellystone!
Ad for Pizza Hut's Flintstone Kids glasses.
Coleco produced a line of action figures
based on the show, including all the principle characters, the playsets Bedrock
and Bedrock Elementary School, and three vehicles in a firetruck, a Bedrock
Airlines plane and Dreamchip’s chimp limo. A line of puzzles were
produced by Golden
Press, Illco and Rainbow Works, respectively. Selchow & Righter
published a board
game where the kids were in a race to get to a concert first. From 1987-89 Marvel Comics published 11 issues of a tie-in
comic and a special giveaway
mini-comic through their Star
Comics imprint. Also in 1987, Pizza Hut
offered four drinking glasses featuring the main characters for $.49 cents
each, as well as four buttons with their faces. In 1988, McDonald’s included five
toys in their Happy Meals featuring
the main characters in race cars and Dino, and Budget Books published two sticker
storybooks. In 1989, the kids adorned a Fun-N-Learn carry activity case
which featured Flintstone-themed
activities. View-Master
also produced a 3-reel
3-D set for their viewer.
EPISODE
GUIDE: Season 1: “The Great
Freddini” (9/6/86) – Freddy learns magic for the school talent show. “Frankenstone /
Yard Wars / Frenzy Does It” (9/13/86) – Fixing broken toys leads Freddy to
imagine he’s Dr. Frankenstone. / Wilma’s cat causes trouble when left in Dino’s
care. / Cavey, Jr. becomes Captain Caveman’s sidekick in time to help him fight
Dr. Icemare. “Heroes For
Hire” (9/21/86) – Jealous of Barney winning a prize to a Captain Caveman taping
at his house, Freddy tries to prove himself a hero and more deserving of the
prize. “Indiana
Flintstone / Dreamchip’s Car Wash / Invasion of the Mommy Snatchers” (9/27/86) –
Freddy fantasizes that he’s Indiana Flintstone on an adventure. / Dreamchip
uses Dino to test her new automatic dog washer. / Captain Caveman must 1` rescue Earth’s mothers from a
two-headed alien. “The Bad News
Brontos” (10/4/86) – After Edna saves Freddy’s failing baseball team, Rocky
challenges them to a game. “Rubble Without
a Cause / Dressed Up Dino / The Ditto Master” (10/11/86) – Barney dreams he’s a
space-faring hero. / Micki and Mica dress Dino up as a baby. / Captain Caveman
faces the Ditto Master, whose machine allows him to duplicate himself. “Dusty
Disappears” (10/18/86) – Barney’s little brother is sent with him and Fred to
the carnival where he promptly disappears on them. “Sugar and
Spies / The Vet / I Was a Teenage Grown-Up” (10/25/86) – Wilma and Betty dream
about being secret agents. / Dino overhears a conversation that makes him
believe he’s being taken to the vet. / Mr. Bad unleashes a gas that turns all
the kids in Bedrock into virtual grown-ups. “Poor Little
Rich Girl” (11/8/86) – Dreamchip’s friends attempt to invade her mansion in
order to celebrate her birthday. “Freddy in the
Big House / The Butcher Shoppe / Grime & Punishment” (11/15/86) – Fred
imagines he’s in prison when Rocky frames him for playing baseball in class. /
Dino tries everything to get some sausage. / Captain Caveman has to stop the
Trash Man from messing up Bedrock. “The Rock
Concert That Rocked Freddy” (11/22/86) – Freddy and Barney need to find a way
to acquire the Brick Stonespring tickets Freddy promised the gang. “Bedrock P.I.s
/ Fred’s Mechanical Dog / A Tale of Too Silly” (12/2/86) – Freddy and Barney
look into the disappearance of Wilma’s cat. / Dino gets jealous of Freddy’s new
robot dog. / Captain Caveman has to stop the Yuckster from making a pie big
enough to throw at the city. “Curse of the
Gemstone Diamond” (12/9/86) – Freddy steals Dreamchip’s diamond at a Halloween
party…or did he? “Princess Wilma
/ The Dino Diet / To Baby or Not to Baby” (12/16/86) – While home sick, Wilma
dreams she’s a princess. / Freddy is forced to put Dino on a strict diet. /
Jealous of Captain Caveman’s success stealing his viewers, Mr. Sciencedome uses
a formula to turn him into a baby. “I Think That I
shall Never See Barney Rubble As A Tree / Dino Come Home” (1/17/87) – Freddy
overhears a conversation that makes him believe Barney is sick. / Dino runs
away after stowing away on a class camping trip. “Monster From
the Tar Pits / What Price Fleadom / Hero Today, Gone Tomorrow” (1/31/87) – The
kids imagine they’re making a movie on an island about a monster that dwells in
the tar pits. / Dino tries to get rid of a flea living on his back. / New hero
Perfect Man outdoes Captain Caveman in being a hero. “The Fugitives”
(2/8/87) – Freddy and Barney accidentally steal an old pillow from a museum on
a class trip. “The Twilight
Stone / The Terror Within / Day of the Villains” (2/15/87) – The kids discuss
what they plan to do as adults. / A cowardly Dino is sent to investigate a
potential prowler in the garage. / Mr. Bad assembles a team of villains to get
revenge on Captain Caveman. “Freddy’s Rocky
Road to Karate” (2/22/87) – Rocky challenges the gang to a karate match. “Betty’s Big
Break / Revenge of the Bullied / Curse of the Reverse” (3/14/87) – Replacing a
sick Dreamchip leads Betty to instant stardom. / Dino and Stalagbite join
forces against another dog bullying them. / Mr. Bad’s Backwards Beam turns
Captain Caveman and Cavey into wanted criminals. “Barney’s
Moving Experience” (3/21/87) – Barney moves away after Freddy breaks his bike. “Dino Goes
Hollyrock / The Chocolate Chip Catastrophe / Captain Caveman’s First Adventure”
(4/22/87) – Dino becomes a big movie star. / Dino attempts to cover up his ruining
a batch of cookies. / Captain Caveman remembers his first adventure when his
mother gave him his club. “The Little
Visitor / Grandpa for Loan” (4/29/87) – Freddy believes he’s getting a new
sibling. / Freddy loans his grandfather to Barney for the father-son picnic. “Philo’s
Invention / Watchdog Blues / Leave it to Mother” (5/12/87) – Rocky attempts to
steal Philo’s inventions in reality and his daydreams. / Dino earns his
place in the Flintstone household against a burglar. / Captain Cavemom has to
save her kids from Mr. Bad’s hair blob. “Freddy’s First
Crush” (5/19/87) – Freddy gets a crush on his substitute teacher. “Bedrock ‘n
Roll / Captain Cavepuppy / Greed it and Weep” (5/27/87) – The kids imagine themselves
as rock stars attempting to foil Rocky’s plans to demolish a youth center. /
Dino dreams that he’s Captain Cavepuppy, allowing him to stand up to Rocky and
Stalagbite. / Greedy Piggy McGrabit uses a money magnet to steal the city’s
money. Season 2: “The
Flintstones Fake Ache / Killer Kitty / Captain Knaveman” (9/12/87) – Freddy
fakes being sick to get out of school. / Dino attempts to prove Freddy’s aunt’s
cat isn’t as sweet as advertised. / Captain Caveman loses his memory and
believes he’s a villain since he was disguised as one. “Better Buddy
Blues / Who’s Faultin’ Who? / Attack of the Fifty Foot Teenage Lizard” (9/19/87)
– Star Shades Stone moves to Bedrock and takes advantage of his young fans. / Dino
shows up snooty dogs when a jewel thief invades their fancy training school. /
Billy the monster is being forced by his parents to be destructive and destroy
a city. “Anything You
Can Do, I Can Do Betty / Bone Voyage / The Cream-pier Strikes Back” (9/26/87) -
Dreamchip tries to outdo Betty at her ice cream business. / Dino’s plans to
steal some food go awry when his helium balloon floats away with the food—and
him! / Yuckster’s cream pies turn everyone into copies of him—including Captain
Caveman. “Haircutastrophe
/ World War Flea / Captain Caveman’s Super Cold” (10/3/87) - Freddy has Barney
cut his hair so that he can save money for a toy car. / A flea interrupts Dino’s
favorite show. / Mr. Bad takes advantage of Captain Caveman’s cold and poses as
his grandmother to get rid of him. “Camper Scamper”*
(10/10/87) – The kids try to earn their scouting badges while competing with
Rocky’s gang. *Originally
paired with reruns of “Fred’s Mechanical Dog” and “Grime and Punishment”. “A Tiny Egg”*
(10/17/87) - The kids adopt a tiny egg that ends up producing a giant dinosaur. *Originally
paired with reruns of “The Vet” and “Captain Caveman’s First Adventure”. “Freddy the 13th
/ A Midnite Pet Peeve / The Big Bedrock Bully Bash” (10/24/87) – Freddy and Betty are mistaken for bank robbers when they use their discarded costumes for
trick-or-treating. / A scolding leads Dino to dream about switching places with
Freddy. / A local bully gets turned into a giant through an experimental growth
light. “Philo’s D-Feat
/ The Birthday Shuffle / Captain Cavedog” (10/31/87) – Philo gets his first D
and the gang helps him try to raise his grade. / Dino attempts to hide that he
opened his birthday present early. / Mr. Bad is freed from prison and turns
Captain Caveman into a dog. “Little Rubble,
Big Trouble”* (11/7/87) – After accidentally drinking one of Philo’s potions,
Barney turns into a monster that attacks Rocky when certain foods are
mentioned. *Originally
paired with reruns of “Dreamchip’s Car Wash” and “Invasion of the Mommy
Snatchers”. “Rocky’s Rocky
Road”* (11/14/87) – Rocky turns to the kids for help to keep from being shipped
off to military school. *Originally
paired with reruns of “The Butcher Shoppe” and “The Ditto Master”. Specials: “Just Say No”
(9/15/88) – Wilma is offered marijuana while the gang tries to get tickets to
the Michael Jackstone concert.
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