THE ADVENTURES OF SAM & MAX: FREELANCE POLICE

THE ADVENTURES OF SAM AND MAX: FREELANCE POLICE

(FOX, October 4, 1997-April 25, 1998)

Nelvana Ltd

MAIN CAST:

Harvey Atkin – Sam

Robert Tinkler – Max

Dan Hennessey – The Commissioner

Tracey Moore – Darla “The Geek” Gugenheek

            It all began with a dose of friendly sibling rivalry. Dave Purcell created a comic about a pair of anthropomorphic animal detectives; specifically, a large dog and a small rabbit. Leaving them around the house, his brother Steve would finish the incomplete stories as a parody of themselves. Over time, Steve’s mocking of the characters eventually grew into his own full stories. In the 1970s, Dave signed over all rights to the characters to Steve on his birthday and Steve began to develop the characters in his own style.

An early Sam & Max strip.

            In the 1980s, Purcell produced Sam & Max comic strips for the weekly newsletter of California College of Arts and Crafts. Brought to the attention of Fish Police creator Steven Moncuse, Moncuse gave Purcell the chance to publish his characters in comic book form. In 1987, the first Sam & Max: Freelance Police was produced and published by Fishwrap Productions. The comic, “Monkeys Violating the Heavenly Temple”, was Purcell’s first full story with the characters and it established a lot of the persistent key elements of the franchise that followed. 

Sam holding Max.

            Sam was a 6-foot dog that wore a suit and fedora like classic detectives to make people more cooperative when talking to a large dog. He was generally laid back, but had a warped sense of justice that made his mission to fight crime a passionate one. He was also a walking encyclopedia and was always willing to share what he knows in long-winded sentences--regardless of its accuracy--while also possessing ignorance to more practical matters. 

Sam and Max living it up for New Year's.

Max was described as a “hyperkinetic 3-foot rabbity thing” with white fur. He always had a crazed grin and verged on psychotic. He enjoyed violence and had a “pinball-like stream of consciousness” coupled with a short attention span. Despite the fact that Max was naked, he managed to carry a wide array of items on his person.

Sam & Max from The Adventurer parodying LucasFilm's Indiana Jones franchise.

            Sam & Max continued in comics through various publishers, such as Comico and Epic. In 1988, Purcell joined LucasArts as an artist and game designer and was asked to contribute to LucasArts’ new quarterly newsletter, The Adventurer. The newsletter was targeted to customers to inform them about upcoming LucasArts projects and news. From 1990-96, Purcell created twelve Sam & Max strips which featured similar plots to the comics as well as parodies of LucasArts games and film franchises. Sam & Max were also used as internal testing material for new SCUMM engine programmers. SCUMM stood for Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion, a LucasArts-developed scripting language that was created to ease the development of the game Maniac Mansion and could be reused across various platforms.

Sam & Max Hit the Road artwork.

            Based on the strip’s success in the newsletter, as well as the success of their previous games Monkey Island and Maniac Mansion, LucasArts offered Purcell the chance to create a video game around the characters in 1992. Developed by Purcell with Sean Clark, Michael Stemmle and Purcell’s future wife, Collette Michaud, Sam & Max Hit the Road was partially based on Purcell’s 1989 comic “On the Road” and utilized the SCUMM Engine. It was released for DOS in 1993 as a point-and-click adventure game. A sequel was planned but soon abandoned.

Sam model sheet.

            In 1997, FOX optioned the characters for a new animated series. Produced by Nevlana and developed by Purcell (who also wrote several of the episodes), the series stayed true to the nature of the comics while toning some elements down for the targeted children audience. Based out of a dilapidated building in New York City, Sam (Harvey Atkin) and Max (Robert Tinkler) received jobs from the unseen Commissioner (Dan Hennessey) via telephone, which they would always fight over to answer. Their cases ranged from serving as marriage counselors to the gods to stopping a rat infestation on the moon. Armed with devices cooked up by their resident tech expert Darla “The Geek” Gugenheek (Tracey Moore) in the Sub-Basement of Solitude (a play on Superman’s Fortress of Solitude), Sam and Max met any challenge with a degree of enthusiasm and insanity that always seemed to work out in their favor. Their primary mode of transportation was a convertible police car based on the DeSoto Adventurer. Other writers included J.D. Smith, Hugh Duffy, Marty Isenberg, Robert N. Skir, Bob Ardiel, Dale Schott, Jamie Tatham, Tim Burns and Tracy Berna, with music by John Tucker.

Max facial expression model sheet.

            The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police (seen only as Sam & Max on the title screen) debuted as part of the Fox Kids programming block on October 4, 1997. Except for several episodes, every episode was comprised of two segments aired out of the intended production order. Stories typically parodied pop culture from movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Apocalypse Now and the James Bond series to literature such as Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot collection. The series was considered a success and even received the Gemini Award for “Best Animated Program or Series.” However, a second season was never commissioned. Sullivan Entertainment released three VHS collections containing several story segments each. In 2008, Shout! Factory released the complete series to DVD with original cover artwork by Purcell. It was also made available to purchase on Prime Video. In 2022, it became available to stream on Tubi and Pluto TV.

The DVD cover.

            Despite its cancellation, Sam & Max went on to become a cult classic and the characters continued to endure in other media. A collection of all the Sam & Max comics and strips was released by Marlowe & Company in 1995 and again in 1996, before receiving a 20^th anniversary release with new material in 2007 by Telltale Games.  After a failed attempt to bring Sam & Max back to video games in 2001 when developer Infinite Machine went bankrupt, LucasArts began work on a new game, Freelance Police, in 2002. However, that game was cancelled due to “economic considerations,” much to the ire of fans. When the LucasArts license expired in 2005, Purcell took the franchise to Telltale, founded by former LucasArts employees like Infinite Machine was, and began work on a series of three episodic point-and-click games, which would all be remastered and re-released a decade later. Max (Dave Boat) also appeared in Telltale’s Poker Night at the Inventory in 2010 and was joined by Sam (David Nowlin) for its sequel. From 2005-07, Purcell ran a webcomic for the series on Telltale’s website that earned him the Eisner Award for “Best Digital Comic” in 2007. To promote Telltale’s game, GameTap released each episode of the series weekly on GameTap TV where they remained until GameTap TV was removed in a site redesign. Another game, This Time It’s Virtual, was developed by HappyGiant and released on OculusQuest in 2021.

EPISODE GUIDE:

“The Thing That Wouldn’t Stop It” (10/4/97) – Sam & Max must stop a monster living inside Darla’s fridge from hurting people.

 

“The Second Show Ever / Max’s Big Day” (10/11/97) – Sam & Max take a class of kids to space on career day where they encounter an alien bent on destroying Earth. / Sam & Max land on an island where the New Guinea Pigs think Max is their chosen one.

 

“Bad Day on the Moon / Dysfunction of the Gods” (10/18/97) – Sam & Max head to the moon to help the rat people deal with a roach problem. / To keep from aging rapidly, Sam & Max must reunite Greek gods Zeus and Hera.

 

“They Came from Down There / Big Trouble at the Earth’s Core” (10/25/97) – Mack Salmon’s Sea Chimp food products have turned a town into fish-like zombies. / Sam & Max save the Earth from the mole-men by lowering the Earth’s core temperature and finding them dates.

 

“The Friend for Life / A Glitch in Time” (11/1/97) – Lorne kidnaps The Mad Thespian in order to get Sam & Max to hang out at his funhouse. / Sam & Max use a time traveling watch to muck with history, causing Sam to have never joined the Freelance Police.

 

“That Darn Gator / Vice Squad” (11/8/97) – Sam & Max try to raise a baby alligator. / Sam & Max show what fun it is to put junk in your dad’s vice.

 

“We Drop at Dawn / Christmas Bloody Christmas” (12/20/97) – Sam & Max look for the Commissioner’s keys in Central Park. / Sam & Max spend Christmas with Sam’s grandma at Blood Island prison where the prisoners attempt a jailbreak.

 

“It’s Dangly Deever Time / Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang” (2//6/98) – Sam & Max, using Darla’s TV, accidentally allow Dangly Deever’s evil twin freedom to take over the city. / Sam & Max try to stop T.R.U.S.S. from releasing an obnoxious tourist virus.

 

“Aaiiieee Robot” (2/27/98) – Sam & Max send the Mega Max 3000 robot they used to stop a meteor to battle a giant baby in Japan.

 

“The Glazed McGuffin Affair / Tonight We Love” (2/13/98) – Sam & Max try to convince Kent Standit to unban their favorite snack place. / Sam & Max deliver an artificial heart to the President only to have their car stolen by a couple in love.

 

“The Tell Tale Tail / The Trouble with Gary” (2/20/98) – Max’s tail is severed in an accident and the doctor brings it back to life as a monster. / Sam & Max babysit Gary, who can change things with his mind.

 

“The Invaders” (2/27/98) – Two tiny aliens try to destroy Sam & Max.

 

“Little Bigfoot / Fools Die on Friday” (4/4/98) – Sam & Max rescue a young sasquatch from life as a busboy. / Sam & Max have to save the Statue of Liberty from a blimp hijacked by Lorne.

 

“Sam & Max vs. the Uglions” (4/11/98) – Aliens open a restaurant that literally serves people, which Sam & Max must close before the government uses a nuclear solution.

 

“The Final Episode” (4/25/98) – All of Sam & Max’s former foes, led by Mack Salmon, attempt to get revenge on the Freelance Police.

 

Shorts:

“Our Bewildering Universe!: Chock Full O Guts” (short) – Sam & Max describe the human body.

 

“Artsy Craftsy Bit Of Time-Wasting Nonsense” (short) – Sam & Max show how to make a Max paper bag puppet.

Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2023.

SECRET SQUIRREL

SECRET SQUIRREL

(NBC, October 2, 1965-November 26, 1966)

Hanna-Barbera Productions

MAIN CAST:

Mel Blanc – Secret Squirrel, various

Paul Frees – Morocco Mole, Double-Q, Yellow Pinkie, Hy-Spy, Squiddly Diddly

John Stephenson – Chief Winchley

Jean Vander Pyl – Winsome Witch

            In the 1960s, the viewing audience was gripped by the action and adventure found in the burgeoning spy genre, thanks to the James Bond film series and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. television show. Hanna-Barbera took their own leap into the genre by creating Secret Squirrel.

Secret being helped by his trusty sidekick, Morocco.

            Secret Squirrel (Mel Blanc, with a lisp similar to his portrayal of Sylvester the Cat), designated Agent 000, was a super spy who wore a trench coat and a hat that covered his face like a mask. Both articles of clothing contained an armory of weapons and comedic devices used to combat his foes and escape various traps. His partner was Morocco Mole (Paul Frees impersonating Peter Lorre), a glasses and fez wearing mole who served as comic relief. Together they worked for the International Sneaky Service and answered to their human boss, Double-Q (also Frees). Secret’s primary villain and arch-enemy was Yellow Pinkie (Frees again), a play on the character Auric Goldfinger from Goldfinger with a bit of Kasper Gutman from The Maltese Falcon (1941 version) thrown in.

Episode title card screen.

            The character and his world debuted in Hanna-Barbera’s first production for NBC, the prime-time special The World of Atom Ant and Secret Squirrel on September 12, 1965. The special was spun-off into a show called The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show, which began airing on October 2^nd. The show was an hour long, broken up into two parts of three segments each. The second half featured Secret Squirrel, Squiddly Diddly and Winsome Witch.

Chief Winchley and Squiddly Diddly.

            Squiddly Diddly focused on Squiddly (Frees), a purple squid in a sailor hat and shirt that resided in a tank in the Bubbleland water park. Squiddly often aspired to be more than a park attraction and would frequently try to escape and have grand adventures. Usually, his plans were thwarted by the head of the park Chief Winchley (John Stephenson), or by the realization that his new life wasn’t much better than his old one. There were times where Squiddly and Winchley would work together to solve problems that arose in the park. Winsome Witch was about a friendly, though sometimes inept, witch named Winnie (Jean Vander Pyl). Winnie rode a magic broom and cast spells by reciting the chant “Ippity-pippity-pow!” Of course, like most comedic witches, her spells didn’t always solve the problems as they were meant to.

Winsome Witch.

            In 1966, Atom Ant and Secret Squirrel were split into their own separate half hours. Both ran a total of two seasons and 26 episodes before reuniting in 1967 for an additional season of reruns. After 1968, Secret Squirrel was shown in syndication or during episodes of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. The series was written by Tony Benedict, Warren Foster, Michael Maltese, Arthur Pierson and Dalton Sandifer, with music by Ted Nichols.

            In the years following the original series, the characters from the show made appearances on other programs. Secret and Morocco both appeared in Yogi’s Ark Lark and Yogi’s Gang, and Secret appeared alone in Yogi’s Treasure Hunt. Teenaged versions of both appeared on Yo Yogi!, voided by Kath Soucie and Neil Ross, respectively. Secret and Morocco appeared in various commercials and program bumpers during the early years of Cartoon Network, and made guest-appearances on the network’s show Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law voiced by Bill Farmer as Secret and Maurice LaMarche as Morocco. Secret also had cameos in Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, The Angry Beavers, and his hat appeared in an episode of Squirrel Boy.

The Sonic Broom.

Squiddly also joined Yogi’s Gang, this time voiced by Messick, and later in Yogi’s Treasure Hunt with Winchley. Squiddly also appeared in cameos on Yo Yogi!, The Ricky Gervais Show, 2012’s MetLife commercial “Everyone”, and in the graphic novel Nemo: River of Ghosts by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill. Winnie appeared in the Fender Bender 500 segment of Wake, Rattle and Roll driving a cauldron-shaped monster truck dubbed “the Sonic Broom.” In that series she gained a black cat named Lucky (Messick) and a skeleton named Axel (Ross).

The new Secret and Morocco.

            In 1993, Secret Squirrel was revived as Super Secret Secret Squirrel and shown during episodes of 2 Stupid Dogs. Fred Seibert, then-president of Hanna-Barbera, asked Dogs creator Donovan Cook to choose a classic creation to revive within the show and Cook chose Secret, one of his favorite shows growing up. Secret (Jess Harnell, sans lisp) and Morocco (Jim Cummings) were given new designs by Paul Rudish and Craig McCracken with David Feiss providing the storyboards. All of Secret’s supporting characters were replaced by animals, particularly Yellow Pinkie who became a sea lion named Goldflipper (Cummings). Double-Q was called simply “Chief” (Tony Jay), and was rendered as a cape buffalo who smoked a pipe. Introduced in the series was the Chief’s assistant Penny (based on Miss Moneypenny from Bond and voiced by Kimmy Robertson), a female squirrel who served as a love interest for Secret. The series ran for 13 episodes and had become a cult favorite with fans, often heralded as taking the formula of the original and improving upon it.

Hanna-Barbera Presents #1

            In 1966, Reddy Kilowatt Inc. published the Secret Squirrel Kite Fun Book; a promotional comic about kite safety. Gold Key also produced a single comic book issue starring Secret, which had a back-up story starring Squiddly. In 1967, Secret received his own coloring book while in 1968 he appeared in the United Kingdom comic Atom Ant Annual by Atlas Publishing. It wouldn’t be until 1995 when Secret would appear again in Hanna-Barbera Presents #1 by Archie Comics, with Squiddly appearing in issue #6. In 2015, Secret appeared in Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #11 by DC Comics, teaming up with the titular canine. The new version of secret made an appearance in DC’s Cartoon Network Presents #20 in 1999. During the show’s run, Hanna-Barbera Records released a record for all three segments: Super Spy, Surfin’ Safari and It’s Magic. Each featured an audio adventure and several songs, although Daws Butler voiced Morocco mole rather than Frees. The characters also appeared on the slip covers to Golden Cartoons in Song volumes 2, 3 and 4.

Funko POP! Secret Squirrel.

            Among the earliest merchandise based on the program were bubble clubs featuring Squiddly and Winnie by Purex and Secret on a tricky trapeze and as a push puppet by Kohner. The Roalex Company made a sliding squares puzzle featuring all four main characters of the series, and Whitman made a tray puzzle of Secret and Morocco. The main cast of Squiddly and Secret even appeared together on a tin lunchbox, and with Atom Ant in a View-Master slide set. In 1985, Secret was turned into a plush, and again in 1999 by the Warner Bros. Studio Store along with Morocco and Squiddly. In the 90s, a Secret, Morocco and Squiddly were featured in a Spanish series of connecting toys playing instruments. In 2000, Secret was included in the series of Hanna-Barbera plush dolls featured as a Dairy Queen premium. Funko produced Secret, Morocco and Squiddly as part of their Wacky Wobblers and POP lines, and Secret alone in their Funko Force series. Jazwares released a Secret figure that featured limited articulation, but had hat-gadget action. Nodnik and Big Head Company released collectible versions of Secret and Morocco.

Character model sheet.

In 1985, The Video Collection released 8 Secret Squirrel and Winsome Witch segments onto VHS as part of their Kaleidoscope collection, while Hanna-Barbera Home Video released 13 in 1988. In 1986, 8 Squiddly segments were released by Worldvision Home Video Inc. as part of their Kids Kollection. “Squid on the Skids” was featured in the 1989 compilation video Hanna-Barbera Super Stars Courtin’ Cut-Ups. The segments “Sub Swiper,” “Way Out Squiddly” and “Prince of a Pup” were made available on DVD in 2009 on Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1960s Volume 1. In 2013, the segment “Cuckoo Clock Cuckoo” was featured on Best of Warner Bros. 25 Cartoon Collection: Hanna-Barbera. In 2015, Warner Archive released the complete series onto DVD as part of their Hanna-Barbera Classics Collection.

EPISODE GUIDE:

Season 1:

“Sub Swiper / Way Out Squiddly / Have Broom Will Travel” (10/2/65) – Secret and Morocco have to find a stolen atomic submarine. / Aliens kidnap Squiddly thinking he’s a typical Earthling. / Winnie’s hunt for a job leads her to babysitting two troublesome toddlers.

“Masked Granny / Show Biz Squid / Prince of a Pup” (10/9/65) – Secret and Morocco have to protect the Bombay Bomb from the Masked Granny. / Squiddly is jealous over the fame of the dolphins. / Winnie tries to help get rid of Snow White for the Queen.

“Scotland Yard Caper / The Canvas Back Squid / Operation Broom Switch” (10/16/65) – Secret’s recovery of the crown jewels lead to his being accused as the thief. / A wrestler tricks Squiddly into taking his place in a match. / Two spies steal Winnie’s broom.

“Robin Hood & His Merry Muggs / Nervous Service / The Hansel and Gretel Case” (10/23/65) – Thieves use the Robin Hood television show to hide their activities. / Squiddly accidentally joins the Navy. / Hansel and Gretel pay Winnie a visit.

“Wolf in Cheap Cheap Clothing / Westward Ha! / The Little Big League” (10/30/95) – Secret and Morocco have to stop Wily Wolf from smuggling sheep. / Squiddly gets more action than he bargained for in the Wild West. / Winnie replaces a sick player on a little league baseball team.

“Royal Run Around / Sea Grunt / School Teacher Winnie” (11/6/65) – Pasha Panchabaggie doesn’t want Secret and Morocco’s protection and flees on his flying carpet. / Squiddly tries to get the role of the squid in a show being filmed at Bubbleland. / Winnie becomes a teacher.

“Yellow Pinkie / Chief Cook and the Bottle Washer / Good Red Riding Hood” (11/13/65) – Enemy agent Yellow Pinkie outsmarts Secret and Morocco at every turn. / Squiddly runs away and ends up on a pirate ship as a virtual slave. / Winnie helps Little Red Riding Hood escape the Big Bad Wolf.

“Five is a Crowd / Squid on the Skids / Winnie’s Baby” (11/20/65) – Dr. Dangit creates Secret duplicates in order to commit crimes and frame the real one. / Squiddly must fight for the love of a female squid. / Winnie adopts a baby left on her doorstep.

“It Stopped Training / Double Trouble / How Now Cinderella” (11/27/65) – Yellow Pinkie steals the Silver Streak Express train with a shrink ray. / Squiddly ends up switching places with a man in a costume on the way to a party. / Winnie tells the story of how she met Cinderella.

“Wacky Secret Weapon / Squid Kid / Have Broom Will Zoom” (12/4/65) – Yellow Pinkie steals the secret weapon Secret and Morocco are guarding. / A kid takes Squiddly home as his new pet. / Winnie encounters alien visitors and is taken to their planet.

“Cuckoo Clock Cuckoo / Booty and the Beast / Winnie the Sheriff” (12/11/65) – A giant steals Big Ben in order to make it into a cuckoo clock. / Squiddly and Winchley go on a treasure hunt. / Winnie is made the sheriff of an all-male western town besieged by bnadits.

“Catty Cornered / Clowning Around / Welcome Wagging” (12/18/65) – A dog makes it difficult for Secret and Morocco to capture a cat with explosive atoms inside. / Squiddly runs away to join the circus. / Unable to find a puppy a home, Winnie adopts it herself.

“Leave Wheel Enough Alone / Surprise Prize / Shoo Spy” (12/25/65) – Yellow Pinkie steals all the gold from the mint, and Secret has to enter a race to catch him. / Squiddly and Winchley end up on an island where Squiddly is worshipped as a god. / The Pentagon calls on Winnie to defeat enemy spy Dr. Zero.

“Jester Minute / Naughty Astronaut / Hollywood or Busted” (1/1/66) – Yellow Pinkie steals the king’s crown from under Secret’s nose. / Squiddly crashes in the desert and is mistaken for an alien. / Winnie wins a trip to Hollywood to star in a horror movie.

“Not So Idle Idol / The Ghost is Clear / Wolfcraft vs. Witchcraft” (1/8/66) – Yellow Pinkie steals a golden idol. / Squiddly is invited to a birthday party for a ghost kid. / The Big Bad Wolf learns magic to get past Winnie to the Three Little Pigs.

“Gold Rushed / Lucky Ducky / Tallyho the Hunter” (1/15/66) – Secret and Morocco’s vacations are cut short when Yellow Pinkie steals a gold bullion from the Granbovian Embassy. / A duck tries to trick Squiddly out of his tank. / Winnie transforms into different animals to outwit a hunter.

“Double-Ex Double Cross / Foxy Seal / Witch Hitch” (1/22/66) – Double-Ex petrifies the population of Okey Dokey Isle. / Squiddly tries to save a fox from a hunter. / Winnie investigates a flying saucer that lands on the White House lawn.

“Capt. Kidd’s Not Kiding / Squiddly Double Diddly / Ugly Duckling Trouble” (1/29/66) – Yellow Pinkie disguises himself as the ghost of Captain Kidd to steal gold. / A spy infiltrates Bubbleland and disguises himself as Squiddly. / Winnie tries to help the Ugly Duckling gain self-esteem.

“Bold Rush / Hollywood Folly / Witch Witch is Witch” (2/5/66) – Secret secretly keeps tabs on Morocco as he attempts to apprehend Yellow Pinkie by himself. / Squiddly is cast in a Hollywood spy movie as the villain. / Two boys Winnie babysits play with her wand as she sleeps causing magical mischief.

“Tusk-Tusk / One Black Knight / Good Little Scout” (2/12/66) – The Grand Wazir kidnaps an elephant in a plot to overthrown the Rajah. / Squiddly inherits a castle and his butler tries to scare him off. / Winnie helps Tomb Thumb get into the Boy Scouts.

Season 2:

“Robot Rout / Yo Ho Ho / Potluck” (9/10/66) – Using robots to brainwash the citizenry, Yellow Pinkie is elected President. / Squiddly ends up on a pirate ship and sees where the captain buries his treasure. / Winnie fumbles her attempts to help the chef in Joe’s Café.

“The Pink Sky Mobile / Phoney Fish / Pussycat Man” (9/17/66) – Secret and Yellow Pinkie duke it out in the sky. / Robbers disguise themselves as fish to steal Bubbleland’s box office. / Winnie takes over for hero Pussycat Man when he’s injured to stop The Thinker’s crimewave.

“Scuba Duba Duba / Gnatman / Sheriff Winnie” (9/24/66) – Secret and Morocco have to recover a missile before its used to destroy a city. / Squiddly and Winchley take up a superheroic persona. / Winnie winds up in a western town where she’s made sheriff and made to defeat a bandit.

“Hi-Spy / Robot Squid / Wee Winnie Witch” (10/29/66) – Secret can’t outsmart the evil scientist Hy Spy. / Winchley attempts to replace Squiddly with a robot that malfunctions. / Winnie gets a visit from her mischievous magical niece.

“Spy in the Sky / Jewel Finger / Sea-Dogged” (11/12/66) – Hy Spy destroys various targets using his armed satellite. / Jewel thief Jewel Finger hides his latest score in Bubbleland, where Squiddly accidentally swallows it. / Winnie is shanghaied and made into a scullery maid.

“Ship of Spies / Baby Squidder / Wild Wild Witch” (11/26/66) – Secret and Morocco have to find Hy Spy’s invisible ship. / Squiddly tries to protect a lost baby. / A tornado drops Winnie into a magical land where she must seek out the Wild Wizard.


Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2020.

HONG KONG PHOOEY

HONG KONG PHOOEY

(ABC, September 7-December 21, 1974)

Hanna-Barbera Productions

MAIN CAST:

Scatman Crothers – Hong Kong Phooey/Penrod “Penry” Pooch

Kath Gori – Rosemary

Joe E. Ross – Sergeant Flint

Don Messick - Spot

            Who is this super hero? Sarge (Joe E. Ross)? Rosemary (Kath Gori), the telephone operator? Penry (Scatman Crothers), the mild mannered janitor? That was the way each cartoon opened before going into the theme song by Chester Stover, W. Watts Biggers, Treadwell Covington and Joseph Harris with Crothers providing the singing.

Penry and Spot.

            Penrod “Penry” Pooch was an anthropomorphic dog who worked as a janitor in a police station. When he overheard a crime being reported by Rosemary to the Sarge (both humans, by the way), he dove into a filing cabinet and (after sometimes getting stuck in the drawers) emerged as Hong Kong Phooey: number one masked super guy. With his trusty book, The Hong Kong Book of Kung-Fu, cat, Spot (Don Messick), and the Phooeymobile, Phooey fumbled his way through protecting the city from the baddest of the bad.

Phooey and Spot in the Phooeymobile.

            Phooey was designed by Playboy cartoonist Marty Murphy with additional designs by Iwao Takamoto. Sgt. Flint’s design was close to Botch, the assistant zoo keeper from Help! It’s the Hair Bear Bunch, who was also voiced by Ross. Ross incorporated his catchphrase exclamation “Ooh! Ooh!” from his role as Officer Gunther Toody on Car 54, Where Are You? into his performance. Rosemary was shown to have an attraction towards Phooey, but completely disregarded Penry in much a similar way as Lois Lane favored Superman over his alter-ego, Clark Kent (before finding out who he was and their getting married in 1996, anyway). Also, like the implausibility of Superman using a pair of glasses to disguise himself, nobody could deduce that Penry--the only human-like dog on the show--was Phooey outside of his hero outfit.

Model sheet of Hong Kong Phooey in action.

            Hong Kong Phooey began on ABC on September 7, 1974 and ran for a single season of 16 episodes. The series was written by Jack Mendelsohn, Larz Bourne, Fred S. Fox, Seaman Jacobs, Len Janson and Chuck Menville. The show continued to be shown in rerun rotations for the next two years before eventually being paired up with Godzilla in The Godzilla/Hong Kong Phooey Hour in 1981. All the episodes were broken up into two segments except for the series finale, “Comedy Cowboys,” which was intended to be a backdoor pilot for several new characters: Honcho, The Mystery Maverick and Posse Impossible. However, while the show never materialized, a version of Posse Impossible would become a feature of The CB Bears Show.

Hong Kong Phooey the comic book.

            Most of Phooey’s merchandising came long after the show ended, save for three tin lunchboxes by Thermos in 1975 and a nine-issue comic series by Charlton Comics. Funko had released Phooey as part of their Funko Force, Wacky Wobbler (complete with glow-in-the-dark variant) and POP! series of toys. In 1999, Phooey was featured as a plush toy in the Warner Bros. Studio Store, and in vending machines made by Play-by-Play in a 11 inch and 13 inch version. A bendy action figure was released with Spot under the Boomerang network branding, and McFarlane Toys and Jazwares released their own action figure versions. Hot Wheels also made two different cars with Phooey’s logo and graphic on them. Phooey even received the salt and pepper shaker treatment complete with the Phooeymobile. In 2018, Phooey returned to comics as part of DC Comics’ second wave of Hanna-Barbera crossover one-shots. Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special #1 by Bryan Hill and Denys Cowan saw the 1970s version of Black Lightning teaming-up with a more realistic version of Phooey in an homage to 1970s kung fu movies.

The DVD cover.

            After the show, Rand McNally and Company published two short children’s novels: Hong Kong Phooey and the Fortune Cookie Caper (1975) and Hong Kong Phooey and the Bird Nest Snatchers (1976). The theme song, re-recorded by Sublime, was included on the 1995 tribute album Saturday Morning: Cartoons’ Greatest Hits from MCA Records. In 2006, Warner Home Video released the complete series on DVD, and later as two separate volumes. In 2009, the first episode was included as one of the featured cartoons on Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1970s Volume 1. In 2012, the first eight episodes were released in the United Kingdom on a DVD titled Hong Kong Phooey and Friends, which was also packaged with a Top Cat and Wacky Races DVD in a triple pack. Phooey returned to television in 2026 on retro animation network MeTV Toons; first on June 13th as part of a Paws for Applause marathon, and then every Saturday beginning the following week.

As well as being mentioned in several songs in the following decades, Phooey made a brief return to television in a 2001 short by Alan Lau and Wildbrain.com as part of Cartoon Network’s Web Premier Toons. It featured Penry as he appeared in the show, but a more massive Phooey who plows through a gang of evil anthropomorphic animals. In 2009, David A. Goodman was announced to have been hired to write a film adaptation of the show with Alex Zamm set to direct and Eddie Murphy to provide the voice. Despite some test footage being leaked in 2012, nothing has materialized of the movie as of this writing. However, the character did appear in another movie—namely the 2020 film Scoob!, with his likeness incorporated onto an arcade cabinet in an abandoned amusement park arcade for the fictional game, Phooey Phighter.

EPISODE GUIDE:

“Car Thieves / Zoo Story” (9/7/74) – A stolen car ring is operating in town. / A kangaroo helps Phooey capture animal thieves.

“Iron Head the Robot / Cotton Pickin’ Pocket Picker” (9/14/74) – Phooey chases a robot that steals every safe in town. / Phooey tries to capture legendary pickpocket Fingers Fazoo.

“Grandma Goody (Cat Burglar) / Candle Power” (9/21/74) – All the cats in town are being stolen, including Spot. / Two criminals force the city to use candles for their wax museum.

“The Penthouse Burglaries / Batty Bank Mob” (9/28/74) – Phooey investigates a series of penthouse robberies. / Spot and an octopus help Phooey stop a bank robbery.

“The Voltage Villain / The Giggler” (10/5/74) – Phooey faces off against a villain that can control electrical appliances. / The Giggler uses laughing gas to rob high-society parties.

“The Gumdrop Kid / Professor Presto (The Malevolent Magician)” (10/12/74) – A child-sized villain plans to take over the town’s candy production. / A magician disappears from the station.

“TV or Not TV / Stop Horsing Around” (10/19/74) – Thieves plan to steal everyone’s TVs. / A circus gang is stealing horses.

“Mirror, Mirror on the Wall / Great Movie Mystery” (10/26/74) – A health salon is targeted by a series of robberies. / Phooey is tricked into helping a bank robbery believing it’s for a movie.

“The Claw / Hong Kong Phooey vs. Hong Kong Phooey” (11/2/74) – A mechanical claw steals gold from the National Bank. / An impostor claims all of Phooey’s glory.

“The Abominable Snowman / Professor Crosshatch” (11/9/74) – A snowman steals equipment for a luxury ski resort. / An evil professor trains his bird to steal jewels from store windows.

“Goldfisher / Green Thumb” (11/16/74) – A gang steals a competitor’s fish to raise the cost of fishing. / A gang wants to remove all the plants from the city.

“From Bad to Verse (Rotten Rhymer) / Kong and the Counterfeiters” (11/23/74) – Rotten Rhymer plots to steal the nation’s books. / Phooey investigates a counterfeiting ring.

“The Great Choo Choo Robbery / Patty Cake, Patty Cake, Bakery Man” (11/30/74) – Jim Shady plans to steal every railroad car. / A gang steals jewels by hiding in pastry.

“Mr. Tornado / The Little Crook Who Wasn’t There” (12/7/74) – A villain robs banks by using his super breath. / Phooey tries to find a criminal who can disappear.

“Mr. Disguiso / The Incredible Mr. Shrink” (12/14/74) – A master of disguise robs banks. / A businessman terrorizes the city into buying his umbrellas.

“Comedy Cowboys” (12/21/74) – Tin Nose frames Phooey for a crime, and it’s up to Honcho, The Mystery Maverick and Posse Impossible to clear his name.


Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2026.

IT'S LAW & DISORDER MONTH!

It seems like no matter what channel you watch these days, you'll likely find a crime show or several. Well, Saturday morning wasn't much different. To combat the twisted dark talons of evil and crime were the good guys. Cops. Secret agents. Super heroes. Join us as we spend a month following the bumbling escapades of the heroes (and sometimes the villains) that make the world a better place to live. Or, at least provide hours of entertainment on Saturday morning. Either way.

The cast of C.O.P.S., which was rerun on Saturday morning.

"ROWDY" RODDY PIPER DEAD AT 61

Wrestler and actor "Rowdy" Roddy Piper died on July 30th. You can read the full story here.

Although not voicing himself, his wrestling persona served as the basis of the lead villain on Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling. Piper did appear on an episode during one of the live-action segments.

JURASSIC PARK CRUNCH

JURASSIC PARK CRUNCH CEREAL

General Mills

            After the success of 1993’s Jurassic Park film, author of the novel on which it was based Michael Crichton was pressured by fans and director Steven Spielberg to write a sequel. In 1995, he released The Lost World and production began almost immediately on the sequel of the same name. Despite mixed reviews, the film was a box office success.

            To promote the film, Universal Pictures went all-out with an expensive marketing campaign. One of the items to come out of that was a cereal licensed by General Mills. Called Jurassic Park Crunch, the cereal featured sweetened corn pieces with four two-colored marshmallow pieces shaped as dinosaurs and a hatching egg. The boxes were completely covered in foil and featured a skeleton matching game on the back. Some boxes came with a microchip that let the box “roar” when it was opened, indicating the winner of a trip offered on the box, or a number of other Jurassic Park-themed prizes.

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Back of the box.

            Once the film was released and the promotional period ended, so too did the run of the cereal as it left the shelves before the end of the year.