TARZAN, LORD OF THE JUNGLE

 

TARZAN, LORD OF THE JUNGLE
(CBS, September 11, 1976-November 3, 1979)
 
Filmation Associates

 

 

MAIN CAST:
Robert Ridgely  – Tarzan (speaking), various
Danton Burroughs – Tarzan (yell)
Lou Scheimer – N’Kima, various

 

 

Edgar Rice Burroughs had wandered from job to job and one failed enterprise to another, making darkly humorous cartoon sketches and writing fairy tales set on other worlds to amuse himself and distract from his string of bad luck in life. Having indulged in some pulp publications during his downtime, he felt he could write better than what he read and began work on his first pulp story: Under the Moons of Mars, which would become the first entry in his Barsoom series about Confederate Army captain John Carter suddenly finding himself on the planet Mars and embroiled in the conflict between its peoples. After finishing half of it, he submitted it to The All-Story magazine under the pseudonym “Normal Bean” (fearing his reputation would be damaged if connected to the work). Managing editor Thomas Newell Metcalf liked what he read, and after some polish and its completion, he bought the serialization rights from Burroughs for $400 USD (equivalent to $13,283.92 as of this writing). It was first published in the February-July 1912 issues of The All-Story.

Cover to The All-Story magazine's October 1912 edition.

Burroughs took up writing full time. Although initially discouraged when his next story idea was rejected, encouragement to keep at it led him to create the first entry in his most successful series: Tarzan of the Apes. Tarzan was the son of a British Lord and Lady who were marooned on the West coast of Africa before he was born. Neither survived his infancy and he was adopted and raised by Kala, member of the ape tribe known as the Magani. His name, Tarzan, meant “White Skin” in their language. Tarzan would eventually ascend to king of the apes, learned about his past upon discovery of his family’s hut, people in general when another group wound up stranded in the jungle, and eventually of love when he met Jane Porter—who would eventually become his wife. Although his adventures would often take him out of the jungle, it wouldn’t be long before he was drawn back to it.

Front page artwork from the 1914 edition of Tarzan of the Apes.

Tarzan of the Apes was published in The All-Story in October of 1912. After being rejected by several publishers, A.C. McClurg and Co. finally agreed to release it in novel form in 1914, becoming a best-seller. Burroughs would go on to publish 24 books in the Tarzan series—two posthumously after his death in 1950—along with several novellas. Recognizing how popular Tarzan was with his audience, Burroughs went against advice and planned to exploit the character through whatever other media he could: a comic strip that ran from 1929-2002 and continues on in reruns; films beginning with the 1918 silent film Tarzan of the Apes and still being produced in the present; stage plays starting in 1921; radio shows beginning in 1932 which Burroughs was involved with; and various merchandise. For tax reasons and to maintain control over his works, Burroughs formed Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. which is still run by his family today and continues to license and manage Burroughs’ creations that have not yet fallen into the public domain.

Jane, Tarzan and Cheeta from Tarzan the Ape Man.

The films introduced many of the characteristics most people associate with Tarzan. 1932’s Tarzan the Ape Man introduced Tarzan’s sidekick Cheeta; a chimpanzee that provided comic relief and correspondence between Tarzan (Johnny Weissmuller) and his allies, and led other animals to come to Tarzan’s aid. This character replaced Nkima from the books; an African monkey that first appeared in Tarzan and the Lost Empire who exhibited great bravery in Tarzan’s presence but was otherwise cowardly on his own. The film also introduced the version of Tarzan’s yell synonymous with the character (and whose vocal origins have been an ongoing debate). His son with Jane (Maureen O’Sullivan), Jack, that first appeared in The Eternal Lover, was also replaced by an adopted son known only as “Boy” (Johnny Sheffield) in 1939’s Tarzan Finds a Son! The 12 films starring Weissmuller established Tarzan as a noble savage speaking in broken English, rather than the cultured aristocrat he was portrayed as being in the novels. The 1935 serial The New Adventures of Tarzan, which was one of a competing series of films allowed by licensing issues and the only film production with Burroughs’ direct involvement, featured an educated Tarzan. When television emerged as a dominant medium, many of the Tarzan films were brought to Saturday morning television. The character’s first television series, Tarzan starring Ron Ely, aired on NBC between 1966-68 as essentially a continuation of the films made under producer Sy Weintraub that began with 1959’s Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure.

The animated Tarzan and his animal friends.

Eight years later, Filmation co-founder and producer Lou Scheimer decided he wanted to try his hand at producing his own Tarzan series. Scheimer, at this time, resided in Tarzana, California; the town that sprang up when Burroughs gradually sold off portions of his massive 550-acre Tarzana Ranch named after Tarzan. ERB, Inc.’s office was also located in Tarzana just a few minutes away from Scheimer’s house. Scheimer met with the Burroughs estate to convince them that Tarzan would be perfect for animation; starting with a film to explain his origins. Unfortunately, Burroughs’ grandson, Danton, wasn’t thrilled with the changes writer David Gerrold wanted to make for the film to have the story flow better, and the resulting heated exchange between them would be one of the reasons Gerrold left Filmation to work with Krofft Productions. Eventually, a deal was struck and Filmation acquired the rights. They, in turn, sold the show to CBS.

Tarzan gives his traditional call.

The goal was to have the series appear as lush and illustrative as the work of Burne Hogarth, Burroughs’ favorite artist from the Tarzan comic strip that worked on it between 1937 and 1950, while keeping it within the scope of their budget. Knowing how physical a character Tarzan was, and since was meant to be a real man rather than a superhero who could fly like Superman, Filmation decided to make use of rotoscoping for their library of stock footage. They shot a lot of film of a model—who was a bartender from the animators’ favorite nearby hangout called The Dug-Out—walking, running, jumping, diving, swimming and whatever other common movements an ape-man would need to make in the jungle. The animators would then draw off of that footage to perfectly emulate how the human body would move.

Character models for Tarzan's foes from Zandor.

The series featured the smallest cast of any Filmation project; with the main characters only being Tarzan (Robert Ridgley) and his companion N’Kima (Scheimer providing vocal effects). Danton Burroughs himself provided Tarzan’s iconic yell (once; that single recording was reused for each instance in the series). Some of the recurring characters included the Mangani apes that raised him; Jad-bal-ja, the lion he raised and trained; African elephants, called “Tantor” in the Mangani language, that would come to Tarzan’s aid when called; Queen Nemone (Joan Gerber & Hettie Lynne Hurtes), the ruler of Zandor; Tomos (Alan Oppenheimer), Nemone’s prime minister and lackey; Belthar, Nemone’s pet lion; and Phobeg (Ted Cassidy & Oppenheimer), the strongest man in Zandor and one of the royal guards. Jane (Linda Gary) only appeared in one episode, and that was by special request from the Burroughs estate to resecure the character’s rights as she hadn’t appeared in visual media since 1959. The series made heavy use of the Mangani language from the books, having all animals be called by their Mangani names and even making up a few words when none existed, and retained Tarzan’s intellect.

Enter: evil robot Tarzan.

Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle debuted on CBS on September 11, 1976 and ran for four seasons; however, only the first was its own separate entity. For the second season, 6 new episodes and reruns were paired with repeats of The New Adventures of Batman to form The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour. They were joined by The Freedom Force, Jason of Star Command, Manta and Moray, Superstretch and Microwoman and Web Woman to form the 90-minute Tarzan and the Super 7 for the next two seasons. Tarzan’s runtime was reduced to 17 and 11 minutes as part of the block, depending on the episode, and longer reruns were trimmed down to run within the allotted time. 6 and 8 new episodes were made for each season, respectively. When the other series—excluding Jason—moved to NBC to air in reruns as Batman and the Super 7, reruns of Tarzan were joined by The New Adventures of The Lone Ranger to form The Tarzan/Lone Ranger Adventure Hour. For the final season, those shows were joined by The New Adventures of Zorro to make The Tarzan/Lone Ranger/Zorro Adventure Hour.

You encounter all sorts of strange beings in the jungle.

Much of the series was written by Len Janson and Chuck Menville, who also served as associate producers, with additional scripts from Paul Dini, Kathleen Barnes, David Wise, Tom Ruegger, Dale Kirby, Don Heckman, Michael Reaves and Fred Ladd. Many episodes were based off of Burrough’s books and tried to remain as faithful to them as possible; however, tempered for a more modern audience and infused with pro-social messages about preservation and treating animals and other cultures properly. Topping that off was Filmation’s customary coda at the end where Tarzan would relay a moral message to the viewers. Notably, Tarzan’s adventures seemed to be set in the present day with the appearance of robots, satellites and airplanes rather than the late 19^th and early 20^th Century of the books. Additionally, there were strong science fiction elements through the presence of mad scientists and extra-terrestrials. Lacking their desired film, storyboard director Bob Kline was able to provide at least a glimpse of Tarzan’s origins in the series’ opening sequence, supported by narration from Ridgely. Horta-Mahana Corp. was responsible for the music and sound effects used, with background music provided by Ray Ellis (as Yvette Blais) and producer Norm Prescott (as Jeff Michael).

The DVD cover.

Following the last run of episodes in the Adventure Hour, Tarzan took a two-year hiatus from the network before returning for a brief seven month run in February of 1984. The series largely disappeared, with Scheimer stating in his book, Creating the Filmation Generation, that he was often asked about when it would be released to home media. Warner Bros. eventually released the episode “Tarzan and the Colossus of Zome” as part of their compilation DVD Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1970s Volume 1; itself collected with other entries in that series in 2018. The complete first season was released to DVD in 2016 by Studio Distribution Services in time for its 40^th anniversary; just weeks before Warner Bros.’ (a part owner of SDS with Universal Pictures) new film, The Legend of Tarzan, hit theaters. It was also made available for purchase to stream on Prime Video.

 

EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
“Tarzan and the City of Gold” (9/11/76) – Tarzan ends up a prisoner of Zandor when he attempts to help Athne of the City of Ivory return home after Zandorians drove her off.
 
“Tarzan and the Vikings” (9/18/76) – Tarzan is captured by jungle Vikings to be a slave to the chieftain’s daughter and ends up discovering a plot to overthrow the chieftain.
 
“Tarzan and the Golden Lion” (9/25/76) – Tarzan comes to the aid of the Monkey People being enslaved by the Bolmangani and teaches them how to stand up for themselves.
 
“Tarzan and the Forbidden City” (10/2/76) – Tarzan must rescue two groups of visitors seeking the Forbidden City for different reasons after they’re captured by the soldiers living there.
 
“Tarzan and the Graveyard of Elephants” (10/9/76) – The Novardians demand Tarzan’s aid in finding the Graveyard of the Elephants so that they may harvest the tusks from their bones.
 
“Tarzan’s Return to the City of Gold” (10/16/76) – Tarzan ends up saving Athen’s brother and attempts to get him home, but Queen Nemone has ordered her soldiers to capture Tarzan.
 
“Tarzan and the Strange Visitors” (10/23/76) – Tarzan meets an anthropologist as aliens arrive in the jungle to capture animal specimens to bring back to their planet.
 
“Tarzan and the Land of Giants” (10/30/76) – Tarzan discovers a hidden valley full of giants being terrorized by tyrant King Odysseus and Buto, the latter whom they believe is a god.
 
“Tarzan and the Knights of Nimmr” (11/6/76) – Tracking the occupant of a crashed balloon leads Tarzan to be captured by knights and stumbling upon a plot to rob the queen.
 
“Tarzan’s Rival” (11/13/76) – Tarzan is villainized by a robot duplicate so that Mr. Senti can steal the Jewels of Opa.
 
“Tarzan and the City of Sorcery” (11/20/76) – Tarzan meets a boy who claims his father has been transformed by a sorceress queen, and Tarzan travels to the city of Rashid to confront her.
 
“Tarzan at the Earth’s Core” (11/27/76) – Tarzan journeys to the prehistoric land of Pellucidar in order to help unite two kingdoms.
 
“Tarzan and the Ice Creature” (12/4/76) – A volcano eruption frees the gigantic ice creature Glakor from his slumber.
 
“Tarzan and the Olympiads” (12/11/76) – After meeting two escaped slaves, Tarzan heads to Olympus to free the remaining slaves and make Emperor Cronus change his ways.
 
“Tarzan’s Trial” (12/18/76) – The aliens return and capture Tarzan so that their commander can learn all of his abilities and use them to become supreme ruler of the space fleet.
 
“Tarzan, the Hated” (12/18/76) – The Bolmangani Emperor plans to turn a tribe of gorillas against Tarzan and rebuild their city in the Opar Region despite an archaeologist’s claims it’s unsafe.
 
Season 2:
“Tarzan and the Sunken City of Atlantis” (9/10/77) – Tarzan seeks to free whales enslaved to power Atlantis, but deny the city power will cause it to flood.
 
“Tarzan and the Bird People” (9/17/77) – Aiding an injured member of the Bird People gets Tarzan involved in the conflict between them and the Land People.
 
“Tarzan and the Colossus of Zome” (9/24/77) – The inches-high people seek to enlist Tarzan in their war against the Zomans, but the Zomans need help as well when their weapon turns against them.
 
“Tarzan and the Beast in the Iron Mask” (10/1/77) – Tarzan must restore Chief Denat after his twin brother has assumed his identity in order to mine for gold in a volcano.
 
“Tarzan and the Amazon Princess” (10/8/77) – Tarzan returns a long-lost Amazon to her home only to learn the captain of the royal guard seeks her extermination to become next in line to rule.
 
“Tarzan and the Conquistadors” (10/15/77) – Tarzan must protect the Donlumangani from Conquistadors searching for their captain’s ancestors’ treasure.
 
Season 3:
“Tarzan and the Spider People” (9/9/78) – Tarzan tracks large spiders abducting elephants to a treetop city where he discovers that the spiders are actually robots under their control.
 
“Tarzan and the Space God” (9/16/78) – Tarzan rescues a professor from a crashed plane who convinces him to lead him to an area where the Mayans are believed to have disappeared.
 
“Tarzan and the Lost World” (9/23/78) – Tarzan must help a scientist retrieve a downed satellite from the Minotaur before it explodes and destroys the valley.
 
“Tarzan and the Monkey God” (9/30/78) – N’Kima winds up in a village being terrorized by a gorilla where he’s believed to be a monkey god.
 
“Tarzan and the Haunted Forest” (10/7/78) – Tarzan partners with the inhabitants of the Haunted Forest in order to stop Queen Tara’s deforestation to power her machines.
 
“Tarzan and the Island of Dr. Morphos” (10/14/78) – Tarzan pursues an abducted N’Kima to an island where a mad scientist plans to perform genetic experiments on Tarzan.
 
Season 4:
“Tarzan and the Sifu” (9/15/79) – Tarzan is captured in Tao Ching when their Sifu is overthrown, and their new leader plans to conquer other cities in the jungle and take control of a dragon.
 
“Tarzan and Jane” (9/22/79) – Tarzan rescues Jane and her father after a mutiny during an archaeological exposition and helps lead them back to civilization.
 
“Tarzan and the Land Beneath the Earth” (9/29/79) – Tarzan and his friends end up in the land of the mole people who have been using Makos Trees to power their furnace.
 
“Tarzan and the Drought” (10/6/79) – Tarzan tries to convince the Monkey People to tear down their dam during a drought.
 
“Tarzan and the Soul Stealer” (10/13/79) – Tarzan learns Zandor and Athne are at war again, and Queen Nemone has acquired magical powers.
 
“Tarzan and the Future King” (10/20/79) – King Torg’s Vizier plans to foil Prince Yaru’s final trial in order to become king of the Red Gorilla Kingdom himself.
 
“Tarzan and the Huntress” (10/27/79) – Tarzan must rescue Fana the Huntress from Kerlock and his men when they believe her to be an ally of Tarzan’s.
 
“Tarzan and the White Elephant” (11/3/79) – Tarzan must convince a kingdom to leave a White Elephant calf with its mother instead of taking it to protect against invading Rhino Riders.

TARZAN AND THE SUPER 7: WEB WOMAN

 

TARZAN AND THE SUPER 7: WEB WOMAN
(CBS, September 16, 1978-January 13, 1979)
 
Filmation Associates

 

MAIN CAST:
Linda Gary – Web Woman/Kelly Webster, various
Lou Scheimer – Scarab, Spinner

 

For the 1977 season, Filmation paired up the second season of Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle with reruns of The New Adventures of Batman in a block called The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour. With the show block being successful, Filmation decided to use the two established shows as a hook to bring audiences in for some new content.

Web Woman in Web Central.

In 1978, they renamed the block Tarzan and the Super 7 (the Super 7 referencing the seven different shows that would be featured with Tarzan) and expanded it to an hour and a half. Along with Tarzan and a truncated version of Batman, Filmation included the additional segments of The Freedom Force, Manta and Moray, Superstretch and Microwoman, Web Woman and Jason of Star Command (the only live-action show in the block). Another segment, Sunlight and Starbright, was planned but abandoned at the network’s behest (technically making it the Super SIX).

Web Woman and Spinner ensnare a diabolical robot.

Web Woman centered on NASA scientist-turned-farmer Kelly Webster (Linda Gary), who had rescued the insectoid alien Scarab (Lou Scheimer) from drowning. As a thanks, he turned her into the galactic hero Web Woman. She was given the strength and power of the world’s insects as well as the ability to communicate with them, a utility belt full of advanced technology including a Web Lasso, and a ring that created forcefields, shot energy that turned into solidified ensnaring webs, delivered sleeping gas and allowed her to communicate with Scarab remotely. She also gained a new companion/sidekick in furry alien Spinner (also Scheimer) who helped her on her farm as much as on adventures.

Receiving a mission from Scarab.

Kelly operated from a webbed subterranean base called Web Central (a rounded cave decorated in webs with several elevated platforms), which was accessed via a web-covered monorail that was accessed under her barn when Scarab summoned her. There she would communicate with Scarab from his galactic space station, Citadel Seven, via a giant crystal ball where he would tell her about a looming threat—from space pirates stealing the sun’s energy to disgraced military personnel out for revenge—followed by a cryptic riddle that would aid in her victory. When it was time to go into action, she would recite the chant “Insects of the world, small creatures of the cosmos, lend me your powers now!” and become Web Woman. Her primary mode of transportation was a spider-shaped ship called the Web Track, which could fly through the sky as easily as enter orbit.

Web Woman beside herself after being cloned.

Web Woman debuted along with the block on September 9, 1978 on CBS. Only five of the included segments aired each week, with Superstretch and Microwoman alternating with Web Woman every week beginning on the 16^th. Seven of the episodes were clocked in at 11-minutes, while three ran for 17. The segment was written by Gerry Boudreau, Len Janson, Don Heckman, Buzz Dixon, Chuck Menville, Michael Reaves, Patrick Harmon, Kathleen Barnes, David Wise and William S. Lipsher, with Menville and Janson serving as story editors. The music was composed by Ray Ellis (as Yvette Blais) and producer Norm Prescott (as Jeff Michael). Web Woman would follow its Super 7 compatriots over to NBC where the block was renamed Batman and the Super 7 as Tarzan stayed at CBS.

Early concept art.

Early in Web Woman’s development, designs for her were labelled with the name “Spider Woman”. However, this was changed at some point as Marvel Comics had created their own Spider-Woman in 1977 to ensure they would own the trademark on the name. They had learned about Filmation’s production, and had already been burned by rival DC Comics for making a Wonder Man character while they had Wonder Woman only for them to later make a Power Girl character while Marvel already had a Power Man. Remnants of this early work could be found in the comic book print ads for the Super 7 as she was depicted in a blue, yellow and red full-body suit rather than the purple leotard that made it to air. Gary would go on to star in two other shows featuring Marvel’s more well-known arachnid: as Colleen in 1981’s Spider-Man, and as Aunt May for the first three seasons of Spider-Man: The Animated Series. Ben Cooper produced a costume based on Web Woman while Imperial Toys released a Web Woman flash light, include the characters in their Super 7 puffy sticker collection, a set of Bubb-a-Loons balloon-maker tubes and two bubble maker sets.

Kelly about to transform into Web Woman.

Shortly after the block’s debut, DC Comics had sued Filmation for copyright infringement, feeling that Superstretch and Microwoman as well as Manta and Moray copied their characters Plastic Man and Aquaman a little too closely; especially considering Filmation was involved in the production of a series with one and in talks for the other. Many places claim that Marvel joined in on the suit in regards to Web Woman, however Scheimer stated in the book Creating the Filmation Generation that neither he nor his lawyer recall that particular nugget. However, deciding to be cautious and not press their luck, Web Woman ceased to air after it concluded its run as part of Batman and the Super 7. To date, episodes are only available to view through fan recordings on YouTube.

  

EPISODE GUIDE (dates are approximate):

“The Rainmaker” (9/9/78) – A disgruntled Major takes control of an experimental military weather satellite and starts causing weather problems around the world.

 

“The Eye of the Fly” (9/23/78) – A greedy treasure hunter stumbles upon a long-hidden alien spaceship and becomes a humanoid fly on a quest to find their greatest secret.

 

“The World Within” (10/7/78) – Dr. Abyss plans to bombard the world with deadly volcanos unless he’s named ruler of Earth.

 

“Madame Macabre’s Calamity Circus” (10/21/78) – Web Woman chases two crooks to a mysterious carnival where the owner captures beings from one world to exhibit on others.

 

“Red Snails at Sunset” (11/4/78) – Space pirates take control of Citadel Seven while Scarab escapes in a damaged ship that’s being pulled towards the sun.

 

“Send in the Clones” (11/18/78) – A vengeful mad scientist manages to get the drop on Web Woman and create a perfect duplicate of her.

 

“The Sun Thief” (12/2/78) – Space pirates plan to steal the sun’s energy to sell off to the highest bidder.

 

“Dr. Despair and the Mood Machine” (12/16/78) – Dr. Despair plans to turn members of the space program against it in order to become the master of space.

 

“The Perfect Crime” (12/30/78) – Mr. Perfect abducts law-breakers and brings them to his tiny island where he brainwashes them into being perfect people.

 

“The Lady in the Lamp” (1/13/79) – An ancient evil Scarab defeated before is freed and sets her sights on conquering the world—starting with Web Central.

MISSION: MAGIC!

 

MISSION: MAGIC!
(ABC, September 8-December 22, 1973)
 
Filmation Associates

 

 

MAIN CAST:
Rick Springfield – Himself
Lola Fisher – Miss Tickle
Howard Morris – Socks, Vinnie, Mr. Samuels
Erika Scheimer – Kim, Carol
Lane Scheimer – Harvey, Franklin

  

A spin-off of The Brady Kids and a precursor in concept to The Magic School Bus, Mission: Magic! was the fulfilment of producer Lou Scheimer’s desire to show how important a teacher could be to children. The series would center around a teacher with magical powers named Miss Tickle (a play on “mystical”, voiced by Lola Fisher) that had a special rapport with her small yet diverse class of kids—The Adventurers Club comprised of the quirky Socks, word-confusing Vinnie (both Howard Morris), their leader Kim, lovestruck Carol (both Erika Scheimer), nerdy Harvey and athletic Franklin (both Lane Scheimer)—and her cat, Tut-Tut, who could turn to and from a statue via a magical incantation. Her lessons would become enhanced adventures as she was able to open a portal through her blackboard, with Tut-Tut’s help and transport them all to magical worlds beyond such as a world ruled by magic, one where everyone did things in reverse, or even an underwater city. Filmation sold the idea to ABC’s Michael Eisner, however there was a catch: they wanted the series to feature Australian musician Rick Springfield.

Miss Tickle and The Adventurers Club: Harvey, Carol, Kim, Franklin, Vinnie and Socks.

After learning to play the guitar at age 13, Springfield joined various bands in England and Australia before winding up with pop rock band Zoot as a backing vocalist; eventually becoming the lead guitarist and vocalist in 1969. Zoot’s gimmick, wearing head-to-toe pink satin, earned them significant attention and numerous teenaged female fans, but cost them being taken seriously as musicians. After the band broke up in 1971, Springfield signed with Sparmac Records and his debut single, “Speak to the Sky”, peaked at number 5 on the Go-Set singles chart and at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. His debut album, Beginnings, became the first of seven of his top 40 albums on the Billboard 200. Springfield moved to the United States in 1972 and signed with Capitol Records until a scandal broke out that Capitol was paying people to buy his albums, resulting in a radio station boycott. Springfield moved to Columbia Records in 1973 where he recorded his second album, Comic Book Heroes. His looks and style had earned him the status as the next teen pop idol.

The psychedelic sounds of Rick.

ABC had entered into an arrangement to help promote Springfield and felt that the cartoon would be a good showcase for his music. It was decided that while Miss Tickle would be the children’s steward, Springfield would be their guide once they went through the portal with his owl Ptolemy (named for the Greek mathematician and astronomer and playing with Tut-Tut on the nonsensical poem “The Owl and the Pussycat” by Edward Lear); either filling them in on the goings on or actively calling for their help through a magic gramophone in dealing with situations like thieves, despots and disasters. Springfield would go on to write and perform a song in each episode related in some way to the story, albeit in truncated form to accommodate episode runtimes, and the series’ theme. Fisher, an accomplished singer herself, was able to perform a song of her own in an episode—not written by Springfield—as well as some melodic spell casting. According to Scheimer in the book Creating the Filmation Generation, she likely would have had more opportunities had Springfield not been involved. Carol was depicted as having a crush on Rick, not unlike the legion of his young female fans.

Drawing the magic door.

Mission: Magic! debuted on ABC on September 8, 1973, airing alongside The Brady Kids. This was one of the few Filmation series to not rely heavily on stock footage, making it one of the more expensive they produced. Outside of the main characters, each new world they visited necessitated new designs for both them and their related characters. It was a way to give the series a different look, compared by Scheimer to a Peter Max painting or the designs for Yellow Submarine, and to make sure each place fit the story being told. Additionally, the musical numbers would be accompanied by their own kind of psychedelic visuals. In typical Filmation fashion, each story contained a pro-social message. Marc Richards wrote the entirety of the series as he did with The Brady Kids, and the rest of the series’ music was composed by Ray Ellis and Norm Prescott as Yvette Blais and Jeff Michael, respectively. 

The magical Land of Prestidigitation.

The series ultimately did no one any favors. It didn’t hit with audiences and only lasted a single season. It did nothing for Springfield’s career that he wouldn’t do for himself with the release of the album Working Class Dog and its hit single “Jessie’s Girl”, as well as his prominent role as Dr. Noah Drake in the soap opera General Hospital. He has since continued to perform on stage and screen, as well as dabbled in writing with his autobiography and a novel. While this and Miss Tickle ended up being Fisher’s only credit for Filmation, she was the wife and manager of Jackson Bostwick who would become the titular hero of their live-action effort Shazzam! in 1974.

Tut-Tut and the magical gramophone.

In 1974, Springfield released the album Mission: Magic! in Australia through Wizard Records. The album contained the full version of all the songs he performed of the show except for “Yes I Am”. While none of the songs have been included on any of Springfield’s official compilation albums, the album itself has been re-released in various territories under different names and lengths: Just Gotta Sing (13 tracks), Big Hits (10 tracks), Backtracks, Speak to the Sky (9 tracks plus the titular single), Catch Me If You Can (including 2 singles), Fan-Tastic Rick Springfield and Rick Springfield. The album was reissued on CD in 2004. In 2007, BCI Eclipse released the digitally remastered complete series to DVD with additional special features.

 

 

EPISODE GUIDE:

“The Land of Backwards” (9/8/73) – The Adventurers Club finds themselves in trouble when returning stolen jewels lands them in jail.

Song: “You’d Better Think Twice”

 

“Modran” (9/15/73) – The Adventurers Club tries to stop crooked Modran from cheating to win a tournament, but he takes some of the kids captive as insurance that he will.

Song: “Catch Me If You Can”

 

“Dissonia” (9/22/73) – A device is eliminating all music in a land, and it appears to be impervious to Miss Tickle’s magic.

Song: “Love is the Key”

 

“Land of Hyde and Go Seek” (9/29/73) – A land is threatened by invaders who want the only substance that can give them a new hairstyle.

Song: “If We Help One Another”

 

“The City Inside the Earth” (10/6/73) – Rick calls the Adventurers Club to a subterranean city where a scientist seeks to claim the underground for himself.

Song: “Yes I Am”

 

“2600 A.D.” (10/13/73) – The Adventurers Club heads to the future where they find Omni the robot is ruler over all humans, and he needs help to save the Earth from a meteor.

Song: “You Can’t Judge a Book”

 

“Something Fishy” (10/20/73) – Dr. Manta uses his power to dominate an underwater city and takes Socks and Vinnie captive.

Song: “Free and Easy”

 

“Giant Steppes” (10/27/73) – Miss Tickle must rescue Rick and his friend Billy from a giant while the kids figure out how to get Billy back to his throne.

Song: “You Can Really Do It (If You Try)”

 

“Statue of Limitations” (11/3/73) – A statute is stolen in Paris, and the three prime suspects in its theft all have their own version of it.

Song: “I Want You”

 

“Will the Real Rick Springfield Please Stand Up?” (11/10/73) – Rick and Ptolemy are acting strangely, and it turns out both have been replaced by crooks that can change their shape.

Song: “It’s Driving Me Crazy”

 

“Doctor Astro” (11/17/73) – The Adventurers Club must stop a mad scientist who plans to bring Zodiac signs to life.

Song: “We’re Gonna Have a Good Time”

 

“Doctor Daguerreotype” (11/24/73) – Crooks capture the magic door in a special camera and use it to steal famous landmarks.

Song: “On the Other Side”

 

“Nephren” (12/1/73) – Miss Tickle finds herself up against an ancient Egyptian queen whose magic is just as powerful as her own.

Song: “I Know That It’s Magic”

 

“Modran Returns” (12/8/73) – Modran uses Rick as bait to get his hands on Tut-Tut, who turns out to be the key to the magic door.

Song: “Just Gotta Sing”

 

“Horse Feathers” (12/15/73) – The Adventurers Club must find out who stole the rodeo prize money.

Song: “Welcome to the Rodeo” & “Sing Me A Song”

 

“A Light Mystery” (12/22/73) – The Adventurers Club heads through the door to find out which of three rulers stole a generator to help them conquer the entire land.

Song: “Starlight, Starbright”

SABRINA, THE TEENAGE WITCH (1970)

 

SABRINA, THE TEENAGE WITCH (1970) / SABRINA AND THE GROOVIE GOOLIES / THE SABRINA COMEDY HOUR
(CBS, September 12- December 26, 1970)
 
Filmation Associates

 

 

MAIN CAST:

Jane Webb – Sabrina Spellman, Aunt Hilda, Aunt Zelda, Della the Head Witch, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Miss Grundy, Big Ethel, various

Dallas McKennon – Salem, Archie Andrews, Hot Dog, Mr. Weatherbee, Pop Tate, Mr. Lodge, Coach Kleats, various

Howard Morris – Ambrose, Jughead Jones, Moose Mason, Dilton Doiley, Hot Dog Jr., various

Don Messick – Harvey Kinkle, Spencer, Chili Dog, various

John Erwin – Reggie Mantle, Hexter, various

Treva Frazee – Ophelia
Larry Mann – Boneapart, various
Larry Storch – Drac, Hagatha, Ghoulihand, Batso, Ratso, Icky, various

 

 For the history of Sabrina, check out the post here.

 

When Filmation acquired the rights to adapt Archie Comics’ Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, she was still a fairly new and minor character; only appearing sporadically in the pages of the anthology Archie’s Mad House. To test her out with audiences, it was decided to include her as part of the expanded The Archie Show, The Archie Comedy Hour. The Sabrina segments proved a hit with audiences, and for her second season on the air she was split off into her own series. Sort of.

Sabrina with her cousins Wolfie, Drac and Frankie.

In similar fashion, Filmation had another untested property they wanted to do. Called The Groovie Goolies, it was their comedic take on the Universal Monsters combined with a healthy dose of Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In. Since both featured witches, they paired them up with Sabrina to form Sabrina and The Groovie Goolies (alternatively known as The Sabrina Comedy Hour). Both shows were developed by Jack Mendelsohn, with Jim Mulligan also working on Goolies.

Sabrina with Salem.

 The first half hour focused on the adventures of Sabrina Spellman (Jane Webb), your ordinary teenage girl attending ordinary Riverdale High. Well, ordinary except for the fact that she was a witch accidentally created by her aunts, Hilda and Zelda (both also Webb). They sought to create another wicked witch like themselves and instead mixed in the ingredients for a typical teenaged girl. Residing with them was their magical cat, Salem (Dallas McKennon), and occasionally popping in to cause trouble was warlock cousin Ambrose (Howard Morris, replacing John Erwin from the previous season). Sabrina’s human friends consisted of her bumbling boyfriend Harvey Kinkle (Don Messick), best friend Ophelia (Treva Frazee), girl-crazy Archie Andrews (McKennon), mischievous Reggie Mantle (Erwin), girl-next-door Betty Cooper, spoiled rich girl Veronica Lodge (both Webb), eternally-hungry Jughead Jones, big lummox Moose Mason, and genius Dilton Doiley (all Morris). Head witch Della (Webb) frequently popped in to give Sabrina a headache; especially when tasking her with watching her naughty nephew, Hexter (Erwin).

Rocking out with the Goolies.

The second half hour focused on the Goolies, who were members of a band based out of a creepy castle called Horrible Hall. The primary group was comprised of Drac (Larry Storch), a pastiche of Dracula, the short-tempered leader who played the pipe organ; Frankie (Howard Morris, doing a loose impersonation of Boris Karloff), based on Frankenstein’s monster, who was the easygoing head of the Muscleleum Gymnasium and played either bone xylophones or drums (later misinformation would call Frankie the son of Drac and Hagatha); and Wolfie (also Morris), based on the wolfman, who spoke in a mix of beatnik, surfer and hippie slang and played a lyre-like instrument. Despite the separation of the two shows, the characters often crossed over. The Goolies were said to be Sabrina’s cousins, and typically she had to try and keep their true natures a secret from her mortal friends lest her own witchcraft be exposed. 

Sabrina spending time with Aunts Hilda and Zelda.

 Sabrina and the Groovie Goolies debuted on CBS on September 12, 1970. The series was written by Mendelsohn and Mulligan with Bob Ogle, Chuck Menville, Len Janson, Jim Ryan and Bill Danch. The series’ music was provided by Horta-Mahana Corp. and Jan Moore, with the background score done by Ray Ellis and David Jeffrey. The series was a hit, becoming the highest-rated children’s program of 1970. Despite that, however, this would be the last time new episodes of Sabrina would be produced until 1977 in The New Archie and Sabrina Hour.

Worlds collide.

For the 1971 season, CBS split up the two shows into their own half-hours. Reruns of both seasons’ worth of episodes continued on Saturday morning under the newly-titled Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. The Groovie Goolies became its own entity, completely omitting Sabrina from their intro, and was moved to Sunday morning to air alongside Tom and Jerry; however, they remained in the Sabrina episodes in which they appeared. Sabrina remained on the network until 1973 and would be sold into syndication with Archie and Goolies in 1976.

Sabrina and The Archie gang.

With Sabrina’s new media attention, Archie finally gave her a series of her own with the first volume of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch in 1971. Before that, Sabrina began appearing as a regular feature in the anthology series Archie’s TV Laugh-Out (a play on the Laugh-In title), which starred all of Archie’s televised characters and introduced Harvey and Ambrose alongside Comedy Hour. Episodes of the series were released as part of the Archie & Friends compilations Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Archie’s Classic Cartoons by Nostalgia Ventures in 2004. A complete series DVD set was released by Classic Media in 2012, followed by a 10 episode collection from 20^th Century Fox. The series set was reissued by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment in 2019.

 

 

EPISODE GUIDE (see The Archie Comedy Hour for the previous season):
“Short Changed / Rose-Colored Glasses” (9/12/70) – Reggie comes over for lunch and ends up doused with a shrinking potion by Hilda. / Hilda’s rose-colored glasses give Mr. Weatherbee a skewed view of the world.
 
“Mis-Guided Tour / Living Dolls” (9/19/70) – Sabrina’s bringing Hexter on a class trip has Miss Grundy doubting her sanity. / Hida shrinks the Goolies and they’re discovered by The Archies.
 
“That Old Track Magic / Cake Bake” (9/26/70) – A concussion causes Ambrose to help Riverdale high’s oppoents in the track meet. / Hagatha and Hilda fight dirty to beat each other in a cake-baking contest.
 
“Moose’s Alter-Falter / Hot Rod Derby” (10/3/70) – Sabrina must get Moose’s good and bad sides back under control. / Sabrina gets roped into helping Wolfie with the local car race.
 
“Mortal Terror / The Bear Facts” (10/10/70) – Della grants Sabrina’s wish to be mortal, which ends up spoiling her bowling date with Reggie. / Riverdale High’s photography class decides to set up in the same area the Goolies have decided to inhabit.
 
“Weather or Not / Child Care” (10/17/70) – Sabrina’s magic-altering illness ends up getting Jughead expelled from school. / Sabrina conjures a dragon to entertain her Goolie cousins, but it ends up going out of control in town.
 
“Flying Sorcery / Witches Golf Open” (10/24/70) – Reggie catches Sabrina emerging from a flying saucer. / The Archies play caddy for Hilda and the Goolies during a nighttime golf game.
 
“Too Many Cooks / Rummage Sale” (10/31/70) – Archie and Reggie make a bet to stay in an empty mansion the same night as an annual witches gathering there. / The Goolies’ contributions to the school’s rummage sale ends up leading to problems for Sabrina.
 
“Ambrose’s Amulet / High School Drop-Ins” (11/7/70) – Ambrose loans Big Ethel his amulet, forgetting it changes people into animals. / The Goolies decide to get a high school education.
 
“Auto-Biography / Big Deal” (11/14/70) – Hilda accidentally turns herself into Archie’s car. / Ratso and Batso dog-sit Hot Dog, whom Hauntleroy causes to grow as large as a house.
 
“Tragic Magic / Frankie” (11/21/70) – Jughead enlists Sabrina’s help to be a better magician for the charity magic show. / Frankie just wants to help out his friends, but all his efforts always end in disaster.
 
“A Nose for News / Beached” (11/28/70) – When Reggie is made editor of the school paper he starts blackmailing his fellow students with their embarrassing secrets. / Sabrina’s beach day is spent keeping the Goolies hidden and protecting her friends from bullies.
 
“Ouch” (12/5/70) – Sabrina must keep Hilda’s loud music from disturbing the neighbors.
 
“Smog” (12/12/70) – Sabrina must intervene when smoke from Horrible Hall gets Archie’s Pollution Committee to investigate.
 
“Dirty Pool” (12/19/70) – Sabrina and the Goolies ask The Archies to help stop the pollution of Horrible Hall’s moat by the Crosstown Gang’s car-wash.
 
“The Grayed Outdoors” (12/26/70) – Sabrina and the Goolies must protect the environment from the Crosstown Gang’s construction of a bike track.