George of the Jungle
George of the Jungle | |
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Created by | Jay Ward Bill Scott |
Directed by | Gerard Baldwin Frank Braxton Pete Burness Paul Harvey Jim Hiltz Bill Hurtz Lew Keller John Walker |
Starring | Bill Scott Paul Frees June Foray Daws Butler |
Opening theme | Stan Worth Sheldon Allman |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 17 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | Ponsonby Britt, O.B.E. Jay Ward Bill Scott |
Producers | Jay Ward Bill Scott |
Running time | 30 minutes with commercials |
Production company | Jay Ward Productions |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | September 9 December 30, 1967 | –
Related | |
George of the Jungle is an American
Program format
Each episode featured three segments in the form of three unrelated cartoons: George of the Jungle, Tom Slick, and Super Chicken.[3] All three theme songs were written by the team of Stan Worth and Sheldon Allman, with Worth primarily composing the music and Allman handling the lyrics.[4] Each of the cartoons ended with a strike on the tympani (kettle drum), which changed to an ascending tone, following a pun.
Unlike previous Ward series, the animation production was done in Hollywood using veteran animators Phil Duncan, Rod Scribner, and Rudy Zamora, among others. Ward mainstays Bill Scott, June Foray, Paul Frees, and Daws Butler provided most of the character voices over all three segments.
The cartoons are technically more advanced than the animation in Ward's earlier series, which originated from Gamma Productions, a Mexican studio sponsored by Ward. He was so pleased with George of the Jungle that he allowed production to go over budget, which resulted in considerable financial loss, ultimately limiting the series to 17 episodes.
In 2008, Classic Media and Genius Entertainment released the complete series on DVD.[5]
Segments
George of the Jungle
The title segment, George of the Jungle, is a parody of the
In the opening title, George is depicted swinging on vines, repeatedly slamming face-first into trees or other obstacles even as theme-song singers warn him to "watch out for that tree!" Another running gag is that George keeps forgetting that he lives in a treehouse, falling from it to the ground every time he leaves home.
George's "beloved mate" is Ursula (voiced by June Foray), a Jane-like character (The character was referred to as Jane in the first episode and original pilot[6]) far brighter than George,.[7] George's closest friend is an ape named Ape (voiced by Paul Frees impersonating Ronald Colman[citation needed]) who, like Ursula, is far more intelligent than George. George has a pet elephant named Shep, who behaves like a lap dog, or, as George refers to him, a "great big peanut-lovin' poochie," and who George thinks is a dog. Also of note is the Tooky Tooky (or Tookie Tookie) bird, famous for his call: "Ah ah ee ee tooky tooky!"[8]
George's two most frequent foes are a pair of stereotypical
George, though hopelessly unintelligent, possesses substantial strength and jungle instincts that allow him to track down enemies. When trapped in a seemingly hopeless situation, he carries a miniature phrase book with numerous animal calls to summon help—although he usually gives the wrong call.
Tom Slick
Tom Slick features the title character (voiced by Bill Scott), a racecar driver who competes in races with his trusty vehicle, the Thunderbolt Greaseslapper. He is accompanied by his girlfriend Marigold (voiced by June Foray), and his elderly mechanic Gertie Growler (also voiced by Bill Scott). Tom's chief antagonists are Baron Otto Matic (voiced by Paul Frees) and his lackey Clutcher (voiced by Daws Butler impersonating Frank Fontaine as "Crazy Guggenheim"), whom the Baron often hits across the head with a monkey wrench when he messes up Otto's plots.
Super Chicken
Super Chicken features the title character (voiced by Bill Scott in a
Episodes
Each of the following episodes consists of a George of the Jungle cartoon, a Super Chicken cartoon, and a Tom Slick cartoon.
No. | Title | Original air date | |
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1 | "The Sultan's Pearl" "The Zipper" "The Bigg Race" | September 9, 1967 | |
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2 | "The Malady Lingers On" "One of Our States Is Missing" "Monster Rally" | September 16, 1967 | |
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3 | "Oo-oo Birds of a Feather" "Wild Ralph Hiccup" "Send In a Sub" | September 23, 1967 | |
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4 | "Ungawa the Gorilla God" "The Oyster" "Snow What" | September 30, 1967 | |
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5 | "Little Scissor" "The Easter Bunny" "The Great Balloon Race" | October 7, 1967 | |
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6 | "Monkey Business" "The Elephant Spreader" "I Was Railroaded" | October 14, 1967 | |
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7 | "Next Time, Take the Train" "The Geezer" "Dranko the Dragster" | October 21, 1967 | |
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8 | "The Desperate Showers" "Rotten Hood" "The Cupp Cup Race" | October 28, 1967 | |
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9 | "Treasure of Sarah Madre" "The Laundry Man" "Irish Cheapstakes" | November 4, 1967 | |
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10 | "The Trouble I've Seed" "The Noodle" "Overstocked" | November 11, 1967 | |
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11 | "Dr. Schpritzer, I Presume?" "The Fat Man" "Double Cross Country Race" | November 18, 1967 | |
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12 | "Rescue Is My Business" "Merlin Brando" "The Apple-less Indian 500" | November 25, 1967 | |
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13 | "Big Flop at the Big Top" "Salvador Rag Dolly" "Sneaky Sheik" | December 2, 1967 | |
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14 | "Chi Chi Dog" "Briggs Bad Wolf" "Cheap Skate Board Derby" | December 9, 1967 | |
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15 | "A Man for All Hunting Seasons" "The Muscle" "The Badyear Blimp" | December 16, 1967 | |
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16 | "The Forest's Prime Evil" "Dr. Gizmo" "Swamp Buggy Race" | December 23, 1967 | |
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17 | "Kings Back-to-Back" "The Wild Hair" "Mack Buster Trophy" | December 30, 1967 | |
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Home media
On February 12, 2008, Classic Media released a complete collection of the 1967 series which included, as a bonus feature, the original pilot cartoons for both George of the Jungle and Super Chicken.
Reception
In 2002, TV Guide ranked George of the Jungle #30 on its "50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" list.[9]
Spin-offs
Comic book
Gold Key Comics published two issues of a comic book based on the series in 1969.
Films
In 1997, the segment was adapted into a live-action film, titled George of the Jungle. Brendan Fraser played the title role, with Leslie Mann as Ursula, John Cleese as the voice of Ape and Thomas Haden Church as the villain, Lyle Van De Groot. A direct-to-video sequel, George of the Jungle 2, starring Christopher Showerman as George and Julie Benz as Ursula, was released in 2003.
2007 series
The series initially ran 26 episodes, with two George stories per episode for a total of 52 stories. In 2016, 26 additional episodes were made, also with two George stories per episode.
Cultural references
Another cover of the theme by The Presidents of the United States of America also appeared on the soundtrack and was the title theme for the film.
The
References
- ISBN 978-1538103739.
- ^ Ithaca Journal, Ithaca, N. Y., "ABC Shifts Schedule", January 3, 1970, p. 39.
- ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
- ^ Oliver, Myrna (February 8, 2002). "Sheldon Allman, 77; Actor, Songwriter, Cartoon Voice". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
- ^ "Box Art for George of the Jungle – The Complete Series". Archived from the original on 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
- ^ "George of the Jungle [Pilot Episode]". YouTube.
- ISBN 978-1476665993.
- ^ Tooki39 (5 February 2013). "Tookie Tookie Bird - George Of The Jungle". Archived from the original on 2021-12-22 – via YouTube.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ISBN 978-0-7624-3007-9.
- ^ "WGBH & Studio B to Produce Martha Speaks Animated Series For Public TV". Archived from the original on 2007-09-12. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
- ^ "Seven toons likely to draw an animated response from international buyers". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2007-10-16. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
- ^ "George returns to the jungle, with postmodernism in tow". Archived from the original on 2008-02-25. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
External links
- George of the Jungle at IMDb
- Official Cartoon Network site Archived 2008-02-20 at the Wayback Machine
- George of the Jungle' at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on August 3, 2016.