Here at TIAH Blog, we commemorate Fifty Years of The Flintstones!The first animated network prime time comedy – complete with laugh track!
The first 30-minute animated production. Not a short (or show made up of shorts). Not a feature. But something NEW to animation!
Would we have The Simpsons or Family Guy, without The Flintstones? Their respective creators acknowledge the debt often enough.
Pop culture references galore! Oddly, this series about prehistoric times, was a nice chronicle of the sixties! If certain things I’ve read over the years are correct, the first television couple to sleep in the same bed!
The first animated pregnancy and birth!
And the first animated TV series to run six seasons – and 166 episodes.
Oddly, my favorite seasons of those six were the FIRST and FIFTH!
The first was pure raw, rough-edged fun.The fifth nicely moved fantasy and adventure into the mix.
And, needless to say, I loved the comic books from Dell and Gold Key!
Don’t fret, Fred… just look toward the next fifty years! 
4 comments:
Actually, the first ANIMATED couple to share a bed (and sometimes they were in separate beds, too). Off the top of my head, I can remember that I Love Lucy when they were their way to Hollywood and spent the night in that podunk with the stale cheese sandwiches -- both couples slept in the two beds they had. I'm sure there are other examples.
The FIFTH season? I almost never hear that one favorited even though it had some greats: Pebbles' birthday party, the Gruesomes, the Hatrocks, and of course Uncle Giggles Flintstone.
I'm a purist: the first two seasons are the pinnacle for me, when it was still more for adults than the kiddies. And my favorite is of course the Sassie episode. *snif* So touching.
My favorite line comes from the episode where Pebbles is born: Fred and Barney are rushing Wilma to the hospital but due to a lot of confusion Fred gets separated and lands in the lobby of a hotel thinking it's the hospital...
Fred: I'm looking for my wife. She just came in with my best friend.
Man at Front Desk: Look, mister, we don't want any trouble here.
!!!!
Joe C:
I stand corrected on TV couples sharing a bed. I wasn’t certain about that one anyway. Good for Lucy and Desi! They’ve made their share of history too!
As for the Fifth Season, among my very favorites of the series were:
“Monster Fred” (An odd title for the Ben Casey parody / Brain Switching episode).
“Bedrock Rodeo Round-Up” (Allan Melvin as “Boney Hurdle”.
“A Haunted House is Not a Home” (Hal Smith as “Uncle Giggles”).
“Dr. Sinister” (The “Jay Bondrock” adventure).
“The Gruesomes (‘Nuff said),
“Christmas Flintstone” (One of my most favorites – and the comic pictured here).
“Time Machine” (Just because I was AT that World’s Fair as a kid!).
“The Hatrocks and the Gruesomes” (‘Nuff said, again!).
“Sheriff for a Day” (The Cartrocks!).
“Surfin’ Fred” (Same plot also compressed into a 6 minute Magilla Gorilla cartoon!).
That’s a pretty good average for a single season!
I decided to pick ONE to watch tonight. I decided on “The Swimming Pool” but (given all the posts I’ve done recently on Alfred Hitchcock) I switched to “Alvin Brickrock Presents”! THAT has one of the all time GREATEST ENDINGS for a cartoon!
Oh, and in an amazing bit of detail (in a show not known for any sort of visual continuity), in “Alvin Brickrock Presents”, there’s a shot of the Flintstone and Rubble houses – and the SWIMMING POOL spanning the two yards (!) behind the houses!!!
I never noticed that before tonight! I think I’ve just discovered a NEW piece of Flintstones trivia… and on the night of their 50th Anniversary too!
Joe T.
Joe,
Don't forget tomorrow's big anniversary: PEANUTS' 60th!
Chris
It is really, Chris? How ‘bout that!
I’m sure you’ll do it up well on your Blog. I’ll be checking in.
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