Banana Splits
Encyclopedia
The Banana Splits were four comedic animal characters who featured in a late 1960s children's variety show made for television. The costumed hosts of the show were Fleegle (guitar
, vocals
), Bingo (drums
, vocals
), Drooper (bass
, vocals
) and Snork (keyboards
, effect
s).
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour was an hour-long, packaged television program that featured both live action and animated segments. The series was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions
, and ran for 31 episodes on NBC
Saturday mornings
, from September 7, 1968 to September 5, 1970.
The series costumes and sets were designed by Sid and Marty Krofft
and the series' sponsor was Kellogg's Cereals. The show was Hanna-Barbera’s initial foray into mixing live action with animation.
and Joseph Barbera
approached the Krofft Brothers to design costumes for a television show which would feature animated and live-action segments, with the whole show hosted by a bubblegum rock group of anthropomorphic characters. The format of the show was loosely based on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
. The Banana Splits Adventure Hour premiered on NBC on September 7, 1968.
The Kroffts give credit to the success of the series for opening the door for their own entry into television. NBC picked up the Krofft series H.R. Pufnstuf
, which was launched during an hour-long special hosted by The Banana Splits on August 30, 1969.
The show's live-action segment Danger Island
, a cliffhanger
serial
, as well as the short-lived Micro Ventures
, an animated series consisting of only four episodes, ran alongside with the animated segments Arabian Knights
and The Three Musketeers
. Actor Jan Michael Vincent (billed as Michael Vincent) appeared in the live-action component Danger Island; all the live-action material filmed for the series' first season (including the Banana Splits and Danger Island segments) was directed by Richard Donner
.
Each show represented a meeting of the "Banana Splits Club", and the wraparounds
featured the adventures of the club members, who doubled as a musical quartet, meant to be reminiscent of The Beatles
and The Monkees
. The main characters were Fleegle, a beagle
; Bingo, a gorilla
; Drooper, a lion
, and Snorky (called "Snork" in the theme song lyrics), an elephant
. Fleegle would assume the role as leader of the Banana Splits and preside at club meetings. The characters were played by actors in fleecy costumes similar to later Sid and Marty Krofft characters such as H.R. Pufnstuf. They all spoke in English (Drooper with a Southern drawl), except for Snorky who "spoke" in honking noises.
The Splits' segments, including songs-of-the-week and comedy skits, served as wraparounds for a number of individual segments. In the second season, The Three Musketeers segments were replaced with repeats of The Hillbilly Bears
, a cartoon segment that previously appeared on The Atom Ant Show
(1965–1968).
For the first season, some of the live-action segments (specifically those used during the musical segments) were shot at Six Flags Over Texas
, an amusement park located in Arlington
, Texas. For the second season, filming took place at the Coney Island amusement park
, located in eastern Cincinnati, Ohio
. In many episodes, the Banana Splits would be seen riding on the Runaway Mine Train roller coasters, Log Flumes, Bumper Cars, Merry-Go-Rounds, and many other rides at Six Flags and Coney Island.
Famous too were the "Banana Buggies" mentioned in the theme song. These were seen driven by each live-action character in the opening and closing segments and occasionally in the wraparound and music video segments as well. The buggies were customized Amphicat
six-wheel drive
all-terrain vehicle
s each decorated to resemble the character who drove them. Plastic 1/25 scale model kits were issued by Aurora Plastics Corporation
under catalog number 832 beginning in 1969; these were never reissued by Aurora, but have since been reissued as high-end, resin-based kits.
The amusement park scenes in the original series were not filmed at Kings Island
, which opened in nearby Mason, Ohio
in 1972, some three years after filming for The Banana Splits Adventure Hour wrapped in 1969. But some of the rides seen in the series were relocated to Kings Island (following a flood which led to the closing of Coney Island; the park later reopened on a smaller scale) and the live-action scenes in the 1972 production The Banana Splits In Hocus Pocus Park
were indeed filmed at Kings Island in Cincinnati.
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour was one of the first two Hanna-Barbera productions in 1968 in which William Hanna and Joseph Barbera received executive producer
credits; the other being The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
where Edward Rosen served as producer
on both series. They would not, however, assume the title full-time for another five years.
The series was syndicated on Cartoon Network during the mid 1990s, usually airing in early morning hours.
. They would normally intimidate or frighten the Splits until they gave the note to Fleegle. They would then dance out and take a bow before leaving. Five young actresses appeared as the messenger girls: Debra Thibodeaux, Colette Chenault, Julie Graham, Kathy O'Dare, and Shirley Hillstrom; only one would appear at a time, always called "Charlie" in the context of the show, except for the performance of the song "Doin' The Banana Split" (the segment first appeared in show #5, originally telecast October 5, 1968) which featured all five girls dancing with The Banana Splits. Their dance instructor was Byron Gilliam. Both Julie Graham and Kathy O'Dare would later appear in the 1970s TV series Happy Days
.
The Splits were also occasionally visited by the Mariachi-tuned Dilly Sisters (an actual musical act from Mexico), who would appear at their door playing guitars and singing "The Mexican Hat Dance
" or "Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay
". In other recurring features during the first season, Drooper and Bingo offered advice to viewers in the "Dear Drooper" segment, while Fleegle served as the reporter for Banana Splits News. Other running gags included Fleegle repeatedly hitting himself by accident with his oversized gavel. The show introduced some catch phrases: the line, "That's An Ooch", would be said every time a member was hit or injured (sometimes, it would be a double or triple-ooch depending on the extent of the injury). Other memorable sayings included "Hold the bus!" and "Uh-oh, Chongo!" (the latter from the serialized Danger Island segment).
and Danger Island were reprised from Season 1, while The Three Musketeers would be replaced with repeats of The Hillbilly Bears, previously seen on The Atom Ant Show.) For the new season, the set was slightly modified, and the Splits' recurring routines were all new: Fleegle attempted (quite unsuccessfully) to perform magic tricks as alter ego The Great Fleegali, while Super Drooper fought crime and Coach Bingo kept the rest of the group active in sports competitions. Other new elements included School Time, Nursery Rhymes and a Gag Wall segment (reminiscent of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), as well as Fan Club meetings where the Banana Splits would read viewer mail. Goofy Gopher (voiced by Paul Winchell) would pop out from a flower pot to deliver the occasional one-liner, joining Cuckoo, who popped out of the Cuckoo Clock, and Banana Vac (an electric talking moose head) as secondary characters. The characters' costume designs also received an overhaul (introduced in the next-to-last Season 1 episode, The Great Banana Splits Buggy Race), with Snorky, who was originally covered in hair, now clean-shaven and sporting a yellow and blue striped vest.
. Four other Hanna-Barbera series (originally unrelated to The Banana Splits, apart from having been produced by the same studio) were folded into the syndicated series as well: Atom Ant (26 half-hours, also featuring Precious Pupp
and the aforementioned Hillbilly Bears), Secret Squirrel
(26 half-hours, also featuring Squiddly Diddly
and Winsome Witch
), The Adventures of Gulliver
(17 half-hours), as well as The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (20 half-hours, originally seen in prime time and here introduced as The Adventures Of Huck Finn) which combined live action with animation. The four other shows occasionally are repeated on the Boomerang cable network in their original, non-Banana Splits configurations. (The syndicated Atom Ant, Secret Squirel and Gulliver episodes had a rotation of eight repeating clips edited into them, with Paul Winchell redubbing Fleegle's voice to introduce various cartoon segments. A total of a minute and a half of this footage was repurposed in this manner; the clips originated from Season 2 shows, as did the syndicated series' opening and closing titles. It was the only Season 2 material included in the syndicated package.)
Although fewer episodes were produced during the second season (13 compared to 18 in the first season), NBC repeated five Season 1 episodes (re-edited to feature the final five chapters of Danger Island) to maintain continuity of story line immediately following the first run of the 13 Season 2 episodes.
After the cancellation of the original series, the characters were revived in the TV special The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park
, which first aired as an hour-long installment of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
on Saturday, November 25, 1972. Unlike the television show, The Splits spent most of the film in animated form.
In addition to the original 31 episodes of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, NBC also aired two "preview" shows. Meet The Banana Splits was a half-hour special consisting of segments from the early episodes; it aired Friday, September 6, 1968, one day before the show's official premiere. Another "fall preview" show, called The Banana Splits And Friends (not to be confused with the later half-hour syndicated package The Banana Splits And Friends Show) aired in The Banana Splits Adventure Hour's regular timeslot on Saturday, August 30, 1969. The latter show served as a "fall preview" for NBC-TV's 1969–1970 Saturday morning lineup, and was produced by Don Sandburg
(who was best known to Chicago-area TV viewers as "Sandy the Tramp" from WGN-TV
's Bozo's Circus) for NBC-TV. The special featured appearances by Jack Wild (Jimmy of H.R. Pufnstuf), Judy The Chimp (of Jambo), and a costumed Pink Panther. Although the special aired before the start of the second season, it was the last original Banana Splits show to be filmed, after regular shooting for the series had been completed.
Joe Barbera wrote in his autobiography, My Life in 'Toons, that the original name for the series was to be "The Banana Bunch", but Hanna-Barbera was forced to change it after the author of a children's book by that name refused permission to use the title. Kellogg's had printed up 1.25 million cereal boxes with references to "The Banana Bunch" on them but wound up trashing the stock and starting over.
produced a five-part Banana Splits series for its Web Premiere Toons site. The series took the form of a semi-interactive adventure (under the title of SPLITS VISION). The first episode started off with a live-action segment (with new SPLITS costumes and used a new Snorky based on the classic hair-covered first season), which then led into the other four segments using flash-animated versions of the characters.
starting September 2, 2008. The relaunch includes a live show and a new website, as well as a CD and a DVD featuring 13 new songs to be released by Universal Records
. In addition, a kids-themed area called Banana Splitsville was placed at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
's Hard Rock Park (now Freestyle Music Park) rock-and-roll theme park.
began publishing a comic version in 1969, releasing eight issues through 1971. Drawn by Jack Manning, these followed the musicians trying to find work or on the road between gigs.
rock and roll
was provided by studio professionals, including Joey Levine
("I Enjoy Being a Boy", "It's a Good Day for a Parade"); Al Kooper
("You're the Lovin' End"); Barry White
("Doin' the Banana Split"); Gene Pitney
("Two Ton Tessie") and Jimmy Radcliffe
provided his songs ("I'm Gonna Find A Cave", "Soul", "Don't Go Away Go-Go Girl", "Adam Had 'Em" and "The Show Must Go On") but did not contribute vocals to Splits recordings. The music director was music publisher Aaron Schroeder
while production duties were mainly handled by David Mook. When a heavier R&B vocal was needed, the music producers usually turned to singer Ricky Lancelotti (billed in the show credits under his stage name Rick Lancelot). Lancelotti went on to become one of Frank Zappa
's many lead vocalists in late 1972.
In 1968, The Banana Splits released an album on Decca Records
titled We're the Banana Splits. The show’s theme song, titled "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)
", released as a single, peaked at number 97 on Billboard's Top 100 in February 1969. The version included on the We're The Banana Splits album is the same recording heard at the beginning of the show, while the single version is an entirely different arrangement and recording of the song, featuring an additional verse. The song was written by Nelson Brock Winkless, Jr., however, owing to contractual arrangements, on all record releases (as well as the TV show's closing credits), credit given to Ritchie Adams and Steve Kincannon ( Formerly of Cream and the Allman Brothers ). Winkless is credited as co-writer, along with Hoyt Curtin
, of "The Beautiful Calliope" (also called "My Beautiful Calliopesaxaviatrumparimbaclaribassotrombaphone"), which was featured several times in the television series and also issued on record.
, surprisingly appropriate because Liz Phair and three cast members of the Banana Splits attended New Trier High School
, with Material Issue
, is included on the 1995 tribute album
Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, produced by Ralph Sall
for MCA Records
. Another rendition was performed by rock & roll comic C.C. Banana
on the 2005 cartoon tribute album "Complete Balanced Breakfast." A cover of "Don't Go Away Go-Go Girl" by pop-punk band Mr. T Experience was issued on the 1993 tribute album
Banana Pad Riot and their Big Black Bugs Bleed Blue Blood
and Our Bodies Our Selves
CD releases. The 1988 landmark release "Sub Pop 200
" included a version of "I'm Gonna Find A Cave
" retitled "Gonna Find A Cave" by the band Girl Trouble. "Sub Pop 200" featured recordings from many soon to be notable bands, Nirvana
, Green River
, Mudhoney
, Soundgarden
and others from Seattle's Grunge music explosion that followed.
The Dickies
also cover the theme song, and their recording appears as a bonus on the CD reissue of their 1979 album The Incredible Shrinking Dickies
. The track is titled "Banana Splits" and it reached Number 7 in the UK charts. The Dickies still perform this song live at almost every concert. This cover was also featured in the movie soundtrack of Kick-Ass
during ten-year-old Hit-Girl's brutally violent fight scene.
Chicago-based musician Ralph Covert
, who records children's music under the group name Ralph's World
, covered the theme song under the title "The Banana Splits (The Tra La La Song)" on his 2001 album At the Bottom of the Sea.
Although Snorky's voice often has been mistakenly credited to Don Messick
, the character never actually spoke. Messick did perform Drooper's voice in some portions of The Banana Splits In Hocus Pocus Park, with Allan Melvin voicing the character in other scenes.
Jeffrey, Terence and Dan Winkless are brothers, the sons of N. B. Winkless Jr., jingle writer, copywriter, creative exec and vice president at Leo Burnett Company whose client was the show's sponsor, Kellogg's. Winkless composed some of the memorable Kellogg's cereal jingles, including the "Snap, Crackle, Pop Fugue" and "The best to you each morning", and also co-wrote (with Hoyt Curtin) "The Beautiful Calliopa", a song used on the series. The actors' names were changed in the show's credits to avoid the appearance of nepotism
. Fleegle's voice is an imitation of actor/comedian Ed Wynn
.
James Dove, the original Snorky, was previously a voice-over artist. He was hired as a result of his small stature, and has claimed that he was later fired as a result of not being able to keep up the same energy as the Winkless "kids". Dove died on July 27th, 2010 after a 28 year battle with Parkinson's disease.
Dan Winkless currently lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico
. Terence H. Winkless produces, writes, and directs television and film. Jeffrey Winkless died of cancer at age 65 on June 26, 2006.
released the complete first season on DVD in Region 2
.
The 6-disc set consists of 36 edited half-hour episodes of The Banana Splits And Friends Show as aired on Boomerang.
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
), Bingo (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
), Drooper (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
) and Snork (keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, effect
Sound effect
For the album by The Jam, see Sound Affects.Sound effects or audio effects are artificially created or enhanced sounds, or sound processes used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media...
s).
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour was an hour-long, packaged television program that featured both live action and animated segments. The series was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
, and ran for 31 episodes on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
Saturday mornings
Saturday morning cartoon
A Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming that has typically been scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the present; the genre's peak in popularity mostly ended in the 1990s while the popularity of...
, from September 7, 1968 to September 5, 1970.
The series costumes and sets were designed by Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid Krofft and Marty Krofft , are a sibling team of television producers who were influential in children's television and variety show programs in the USA, particularly throughout the 1970s and early 1980s....
and the series' sponsor was Kellogg's Cereals. The show was Hanna-Barbera’s initial foray into mixing live action with animation.
Television series
In 1967, William HannaWilliam Hanna
William Denby Hanna was an American animator, director, producer, and cartoon artist, whose film and television cartoon characters entertained millions of people for much of the 20th century. When he was a young child, Hanna's family moved frequently, but they settled in Compton, California, by...
and Joseph Barbera
Joseph Barbera
Joseph Roland Barbera was an influential American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist, whose film and television cartoon characters entertained millions of fans worldwide for much of the twentieth century....
approached the Krofft Brothers to design costumes for a television show which would feature animated and live-action segments, with the whole show hosted by a bubblegum rock group of anthropomorphic characters. The format of the show was loosely based on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In is an American sketch comedy television program which ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to May 14, 1973. It was hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin and was broadcast over NBC...
. The Banana Splits Adventure Hour premiered on NBC on September 7, 1968.
The Kroffts give credit to the success of the series for opening the door for their own entry into television. NBC picked up the Krofft series H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf
H.R. Pufnstuf was a children's television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft in the United States. It was the first Krofft live-action, life-size puppet program. The seventeen episodes were originally broadcast September 6, 1969 to September 4, 1971...
, which was launched during an hour-long special hosted by The Banana Splits on August 30, 1969.
The show's live-action segment Danger Island
Danger Island (TV series)
Danger Island is a live-action adventure serial produced by Hanna-Barbera and originally broadcast in 1968 as a segment on the Banana Splits Adventure Hour...
, a cliffhanger
Cliffhanger
A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma, or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction...
serial
Serial (radio and television)
Serials are series of television programs and radio programs that rely on a continuing plot that unfolds in a sequential episode by episode fashion. Serials typically follow main story arcs that span entire television seasons or even the full run of the series, which distinguishes them from...
, as well as the short-lived Micro Ventures
Micro Ventures
Micro Ventures is an educational animated series created by Hanna-Barbera Productions which originally aired as a 4-minute segment on The Banana Splits Adventure Hour...
, an animated series consisting of only four episodes, ran alongside with the animated segments Arabian Knights
Arabian Knights
Arabian Knights is an animated segment of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series is based on Arabian Nights, a classic work of Middle Eastern literature.-Plot :...
and The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers (cartoon)
The Three Musketeers was an American Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for NBC. It premiered on 1968 and ran for 18 episodes.This cartoon is based on famous novel The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas.-Episodes:...
. Actor Jan Michael Vincent (billed as Michael Vincent) appeared in the live-action component Danger Island; all the live-action material filmed for the series' first season (including the Banana Splits and Danger Island segments) was directed by Richard Donner
Richard Donner
Richard Donner is an American film director, film producer, and comic book writer.The production company The Donners' Company is owned by Donner and his wife, producer Lauren Shuler Donner. After directing the horror film The Omen, Donner became famous for the hailed creation of the first modern...
.
Each show represented a meeting of the "Banana Splits Club", and the wraparounds
Interstitial program
In television programming, an interstitial program refers to a short program which is often shown between movies or other events, e.g. a cast interview after movies on premium channels...
featured the adventures of the club members, who doubled as a musical quartet, meant to be reminiscent of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
and The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
. The main characters were Fleegle, a beagle
Beagle
The Beagle is a breed of small to medium-sized dog. A member of the Hound Group, it is similar in appearance to the Foxhound, but smaller, with shorter legs and longer, softer ears. Beagles are scent hounds, developed primarily for tracking hare, rabbit, and other game...
; Bingo, a gorilla
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
; Drooper, a lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
, and Snorky (called "Snork" in the theme song lyrics), an elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
. Fleegle would assume the role as leader of the Banana Splits and preside at club meetings. The characters were played by actors in fleecy costumes similar to later Sid and Marty Krofft characters such as H.R. Pufnstuf. They all spoke in English (Drooper with a Southern drawl), except for Snorky who "spoke" in honking noises.
The Splits' segments, including songs-of-the-week and comedy skits, served as wraparounds for a number of individual segments. In the second season, The Three Musketeers segments were replaced with repeats of The Hillbilly Bears
The Hillbilly Bears
The Hillbilly Bears is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It aired as a segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show for two seasons, from 1965 to 1967. During the first half of the 1966-67 television season, The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was split into two...
, a cartoon segment that previously appeared on The Atom Ant Show
Atom Ant
Atom Ant is a cartoon ant and superhero, created by Hanna-Barbera in 1965. Atom costarred in The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show...
(1965–1968).
For the first season, some of the live-action segments (specifically those used during the musical segments) were shot at Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Over Texas
Six Flags Over Texas is a major amusement park located in Arlington, Texas , east of Fort Worth and about west of Dallas. It is the oldest park of the Six Flags chain. The park opened on August 5, 1961 following just a year of construction and an initial investment of US$10 million by real estate...
, an amusement park located in Arlington
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
, Texas. For the second season, filming took place at the Coney Island amusement park
Coney Island, Cincinnati, Ohio
Coney Island is a small amusement park and waterpark located in the California neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio and Anderson Township, on the banks of the Ohio River east of Downtown Cincinnati...
, located in eastern Cincinnati, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. In many episodes, the Banana Splits would be seen riding on the Runaway Mine Train roller coasters, Log Flumes, Bumper Cars, Merry-Go-Rounds, and many other rides at Six Flags and Coney Island.
Famous too were the "Banana Buggies" mentioned in the theme song. These were seen driven by each live-action character in the opening and closing segments and occasionally in the wraparound and music video segments as well. The buggies were customized Amphicat
Amphicat
The Amphicat was a six-wheel-drive, skid steer amphibious all-terrain vehicle manufactured in the late 1960s through the early 1970s by Mobility Unlimited Inc. of Auburn Hills, Michigan...
six-wheel drive
Six-wheel drive
Six-wheel drive, 6WD or 6x6 is a drivetrain configuration of six wheels, all of which are driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the configuration is largely confined to off-road and military vehicles, particularly heavy-duty ones...
all-terrain vehicle
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...
s each decorated to resemble the character who drove them. Plastic 1/25 scale model kits were issued by Aurora Plastics Corporation
Aurora Plastics Corporation
The Aurora Plastics Corporation is a U.S. toy and hobby manufacturing and marketing company. It is known primarily for its production of plastic model kits in the 1960s.-History:Aurora Plastics Corporation was founded in March, 1950 by engineer Joseph E...
under catalog number 832 beginning in 1969; these were never reissued by Aurora, but have since been reissued as high-end, resin-based kits.
The amusement park scenes in the original series were not filmed at Kings Island
Kings Island
Kings Island is a amusement park located northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio. Opened in 1972 by Taft Broadcasting Company and now owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, Kings Island is the most visited seasonal amusement park in the U.S...
, which opened in nearby Mason, Ohio
Mason, Ohio
Mason is an affluent city in southwestern Warren County, Ohio, United States, 22 miles away from Cincinnati . As of the 2010 census, Mason's population was 30,712. Mason has experienced fast growth, with its historic Main Street remaining at the center of the community...
in 1972, some three years after filming for The Banana Splits Adventure Hour wrapped in 1969. But some of the rides seen in the series were relocated to Kings Island (following a flood which led to the closing of Coney Island; the park later reopened on a smaller scale) and the live-action scenes in the 1972 production The Banana Splits In Hocus Pocus Park
The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park
The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park is a 1972 live-action/animated film made by Hanna-Barbera featuring the characters from The Banana Splits children's television series...
were indeed filmed at Kings Island in Cincinnati.
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour was one of the first two Hanna-Barbera productions in 1968 in which William Hanna and Joseph Barbera received executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
credits; the other being The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was a half-hour live-action/animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions on NBC primetime in 1968, based on the famous Mark Twain characters.-Plot:...
where Edward Rosen served as producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
on both series. They would not, however, assume the title full-time for another five years.
The series was syndicated on Cartoon Network during the mid 1990s, usually airing in early morning hours.
Season 1
During the first season, the Banana Splits segments often concerned the group's confrontations with a rival club: The Sour Grapes Gang. The Sour Grapes were not seen on camera, but would send notes (usually a challenge or some other kind of threat) delivered by one of the "Sour Grapes messenger girls", who would dance into the Splits' clubhouse wearing purple minidresses, matched with pink leotards, tights and black go-go bootsGo-go boots
Go-go boots are a low-heeled style of women's fashion boot worn since the mid-sixties when fashion silhouettes focused on accentuating the leg...
. They would normally intimidate or frighten the Splits until they gave the note to Fleegle. They would then dance out and take a bow before leaving. Five young actresses appeared as the messenger girls: Debra Thibodeaux, Colette Chenault, Julie Graham, Kathy O'Dare, and Shirley Hillstrom; only one would appear at a time, always called "Charlie" in the context of the show, except for the performance of the song "Doin' The Banana Split" (the segment first appeared in show #5, originally telecast October 5, 1968) which featured all five girls dancing with The Banana Splits. Their dance instructor was Byron Gilliam. Both Julie Graham and Kathy O'Dare would later appear in the 1970s TV series Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
.
The Splits were also occasionally visited by the Mariachi-tuned Dilly Sisters (an actual musical act from Mexico), who would appear at their door playing guitars and singing "The Mexican Hat Dance
Jarabe tapatío
The Jarabe Tapatío dance in its standardized form was first choreographed by the Mexican, in the early twentieth century to celebrate a government-sponsored fiesta that commemorated the successful end of the Mexican Revolution....
" or "Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay
Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay
"Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay" is a vaudeville and music hall song, copyrighted by Henry J. Sayers, and introduced in Boston, Massachusetts in Tuxedo in 1891. The song was best known in the version sung by Lottie Collins in London music halls in 1892....
". In other recurring features during the first season, Drooper and Bingo offered advice to viewers in the "Dear Drooper" segment, while Fleegle served as the reporter for Banana Splits News. Other running gags included Fleegle repeatedly hitting himself by accident with his oversized gavel. The show introduced some catch phrases: the line, "That's An Ooch", would be said every time a member was hit or injured (sometimes, it would be a double or triple-ooch depending on the extent of the injury). Other memorable sayings included "Hold the bus!" and "Uh-oh, Chongo!" (the latter from the serialized Danger Island segment).
Season 2
In the second season, all new live-action segments were produced with the Banana Splits characters, while the animated segments and Danger Island serial were repeats. (Arabian KnightsArabian Knights
Arabian Knights is an animated segment of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, created by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series is based on Arabian Nights, a classic work of Middle Eastern literature.-Plot :...
and Danger Island were reprised from Season 1, while The Three Musketeers would be replaced with repeats of The Hillbilly Bears, previously seen on The Atom Ant Show.) For the new season, the set was slightly modified, and the Splits' recurring routines were all new: Fleegle attempted (quite unsuccessfully) to perform magic tricks as alter ego The Great Fleegali, while Super Drooper fought crime and Coach Bingo kept the rest of the group active in sports competitions. Other new elements included School Time, Nursery Rhymes and a Gag Wall segment (reminiscent of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), as well as Fan Club meetings where the Banana Splits would read viewer mail. Goofy Gopher (voiced by Paul Winchell) would pop out from a flower pot to deliver the occasional one-liner, joining Cuckoo, who popped out of the Cuckoo Clock, and Banana Vac (an electric talking moose head) as secondary characters. The characters' costume designs also received an overhaul (introduced in the next-to-last Season 1 episode, The Great Banana Splits Buggy Race), with Snorky, who was originally covered in hair, now clean-shaven and sporting a yellow and blue striped vest.
Syndication and cable
In syndication, the show was re-edited into a half-hour format and retitled The Banana Splits And Friends Show. That package consisted of 125 half-hours, including 36 Banana Splits Adventure Hour cutdowns edited from the eighteen original first season shows, thirteen additional episodes produced for the 1969–1970 season which were not included in the syndicated package and reconstructed versions of the 36 syndicated edits which presently air on BoomerangBoomerang (TV channel)
Boomerang is a 24-hour American cable television channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System, a division of Time Warner. Boomerang specializes in reruns of animated programming from Time Warner's extensive archives, including pre-1986 MGM, Hanna-Barbera, Cartoon Network, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises...
. Four other Hanna-Barbera series (originally unrelated to The Banana Splits, apart from having been produced by the same studio) were folded into the syndicated series as well: Atom Ant (26 half-hours, also featuring Precious Pupp
Precious Pupp
Precious Pupp is an animated cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera and first broadcast as part of The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show on October 2, 1965.-Plot:The cartoon featured Precious Pupp, a large, mangy dog, and his owner, Granny Sweet...
and the aforementioned Hillbilly Bears), Secret Squirrel
Secret Squirrel
Secret Squirrel is a cartoon created by Hanna-Barbera. Secret Squirrel was one of two co-stars of The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show, which debuted in 1965. He was given his own show in 1966, but was reunited with Atom Ant for one more season in 1967...
(26 half-hours, also featuring Squiddly Diddly
Squiddly Diddly
Squiddly Diddly is an anthropomorphic animated squid created by Hanna-Barbera, who was featured in his own cartoon segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show beginning in 1965.-Fictional character biography:...
and Winsome Witch
Winsome Witch
Winsome Witch is a television series produced by Hanna Barbera Studios. It aired alongside Secret Squirrel and Squiddly Diddly on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show.-Plot:...
), The Adventures of Gulliver
The Adventures of Gulliver
The Adventures of Gulliver was a television cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, created in 1968. The show is based on the novel Gulliver's Travels. The show originally aired Saturday mornings on ABC-TV between September 14, 1968 and September 5, 1970...
(17 half-hours), as well as The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (20 half-hours, originally seen in prime time and here introduced as The Adventures Of Huck Finn) which combined live action with animation. The four other shows occasionally are repeated on the Boomerang cable network in their original, non-Banana Splits configurations. (The syndicated Atom Ant, Secret Squirel and Gulliver episodes had a rotation of eight repeating clips edited into them, with Paul Winchell redubbing Fleegle's voice to introduce various cartoon segments. A total of a minute and a half of this footage was repurposed in this manner; the clips originated from Season 2 shows, as did the syndicated series' opening and closing titles. It was the only Season 2 material included in the syndicated package.)
Although fewer episodes were produced during the second season (13 compared to 18 in the first season), NBC repeated five Season 1 episodes (re-edited to feature the final five chapters of Danger Island) to maintain continuity of story line immediately following the first run of the 13 Season 2 episodes.
After the cancellation of the original series, the characters were revived in the TV special The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park
The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park
The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park is a 1972 live-action/animated film made by Hanna-Barbera featuring the characters from The Banana Splits children's television series...
, which first aired as an hour-long installment of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie
The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie — renamed The New Saturday Superstar Movie in its second season — is a series of one-hour animated TV-movies , broadcast on the ABC television network on Saturday mornings from September 9, 1972, to November 17, 1973.Intended as a "Movie of the Week" for kids, this...
on Saturday, November 25, 1972. Unlike the television show, The Splits spent most of the film in animated form.
In addition to the original 31 episodes of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, NBC also aired two "preview" shows. Meet The Banana Splits was a half-hour special consisting of segments from the early episodes; it aired Friday, September 6, 1968, one day before the show's official premiere. Another "fall preview" show, called The Banana Splits And Friends (not to be confused with the later half-hour syndicated package The Banana Splits And Friends Show) aired in The Banana Splits Adventure Hour's regular timeslot on Saturday, August 30, 1969. The latter show served as a "fall preview" for NBC-TV's 1969–1970 Saturday morning lineup, and was produced by Don Sandburg
Don Sandburg
Don Sandburg is an American writer, actor, and producer who has worked in television, most notably as producer of The Banana Splits for Hanna-Barbera as well as WGN-TV's Bozo's Circus....
(who was best known to Chicago-area TV viewers as "Sandy the Tramp" from WGN-TV
WGN-TV
WGN-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the CW-affiliated television station in Chicago, Illinois built, signed on, and owned by the Tribune Company. WGN-TV's studios and offices are located at 2501 W...
's Bozo's Circus) for NBC-TV. The special featured appearances by Jack Wild (Jimmy of H.R. Pufnstuf), Judy The Chimp (of Jambo), and a costumed Pink Panther. Although the special aired before the start of the second season, it was the last original Banana Splits show to be filmed, after regular shooting for the series had been completed.
Joe Barbera wrote in his autobiography, My Life in 'Toons, that the original name for the series was to be "The Banana Bunch", but Hanna-Barbera was forced to change it after the author of a children's book by that name refused permission to use the title. Kellogg's had printed up 1.25 million cereal boxes with references to "The Banana Bunch" on them but wound up trashing the stock and starting over.
Internet Cartoons
In the early 2000s Cartoon NetworkCartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
produced a five-part Banana Splits series for its Web Premiere Toons site. The series took the form of a semi-interactive adventure (under the title of SPLITS VISION). The first episode started off with a live-action segment (with new SPLITS costumes and used a new Snorky based on the classic hair-covered first season), which then led into the other four segments using flash-animated versions of the characters.
2008 revival
In August 2008, Warner Bros announced a multi-platform release featuring new comedy shorts and music videos that debuted on Cartoon NetworkCartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
starting September 2, 2008. The relaunch includes a live show and a new website, as well as a CD and a DVD featuring 13 new songs to be released by Universal Records
Universal Records
Universal Records was a record label owned by Universal Music Group, and it is now owned by Manny Patino and Michael Jackson, and operated as part of the Universal Motown Republic Group.-History:...
. In addition, a kids-themed area called Banana Splitsville was placed at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Myrtle Beach is a coastal city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is situated on the center of a large and continuous stretch of beach known as the Grand Strand in northeastern South Carolina. It is considered to be a major tourist destination in the...
's Hard Rock Park (now Freestyle Music Park) rock-and-roll theme park.
Comics
The Banana Splits' adventures continued in comic books. Gold KeyGold Key Comics
Gold Key Comics was an imprint of Western Publishing created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated from 1962 to 1984.-History:...
began publishing a comic version in 1969, releasing eight issues through 1971. Drawn by Jack Manning, these followed the musicians trying to find work or on the road between gigs.
Music
The Banana Splits' bubblegum popBubblegum pop
Bubblegum pop is a genre of pop music with an upbeat sound contrived and marketed to appeal to pre-teens and teenagers, produced in an assembly-line process, driven by producers, often using unknown singers.Bubblegum's classic period ran from 1967 to 1972...
rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
was provided by studio professionals, including Joey Levine
Joey Levine
Joey Levine is an American singer, songwriter and record producer of pop music, who has been active since 1966.-Career:...
("I Enjoy Being a Boy", "It's a Good Day for a Parade"); Al Kooper
Al Kooper
Al Kooper is an American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears , providing studio support for Bob Dylan when he went electric in 1965, and also bringing together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills to...
("You're the Lovin' End"); Barry White
Barry White
Barry White, born Barry Eugene Carter , was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A five-time Grammy Award-winner known for his distinctive bass voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring...
("Doin' the Banana Split"); Gene Pitney
Gene Pitney
Eugene Francis Alan Pitney, known as Gene Pitney , was an American singer-songwriter, musician and sound engineer. Through the mid-1960s, he enjoyed success as a recording artist on both sides of the Atlantic and was among the group of early 1960s American acts who continued to enjoy hits after the...
("Two Ton Tessie") and Jimmy Radcliffe
Jimmy Radcliffe
James "Jimmy" Radcliffe was an American soul singer, composer, arranger, conductor and record producer.-Biography:James Radcliffe was born in New York City...
provided his songs ("I'm Gonna Find A Cave", "Soul", "Don't Go Away Go-Go Girl", "Adam Had 'Em" and "The Show Must Go On") but did not contribute vocals to Splits recordings. The music director was music publisher Aaron Schroeder
Aaron Schroeder
Aaron Schroeder was an American songwriter and music publisher.-Biography:Born Aaron Harold Schroder , he graduated from the school now known as the Fiorello H...
while production duties were mainly handled by David Mook. When a heavier R&B vocal was needed, the music producers usually turned to singer Ricky Lancelotti (billed in the show credits under his stage name Rick Lancelot). Lancelotti went on to become one of Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
's many lead vocalists in late 1972.
In 1968, The Banana Splits released an album on Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
titled We're the Banana Splits. The show’s theme song, titled "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)
The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)
"The Tra La La Song " was written by Mark Barkan and Ritchie Adams to be the theme song for the children’s television program The Banana Splits Adventure Hour....
", released as a single, peaked at number 97 on Billboard's Top 100 in February 1969. The version included on the We're The Banana Splits album is the same recording heard at the beginning of the show, while the single version is an entirely different arrangement and recording of the song, featuring an additional verse. The song was written by Nelson Brock Winkless, Jr., however, owing to contractual arrangements, on all record releases (as well as the TV show's closing credits), credit given to Ritchie Adams and Steve Kincannon ( Formerly of Cream and the Allman Brothers ). Winkless is credited as co-writer, along with Hoyt Curtin
Hoyt Curtin
Hoyt Stoddard Curtin was an American composer and music producer, the primary musical director for the Hanna-Barbera animation studio from its beginnings with The Ruff & Reddy Show in 1957 until his retirement in 1986, except from 1963-1973, when the primary music director was Ted Nichols...
, of "The Beautiful Calliope" (also called "My Beautiful Calliopesaxaviatrumparimbaclaribassotrombaphone"), which was featured several times in the television series and also issued on record.
Covers
A cover of the show’s theme song performed by Liz PhairLiz Phair
Phair's entry into the music industry began when she met guitarist Chris Brokaw, a member of the band Come. Brokaw and Phair moved to San Francisco together, and Phair tried to become an artist there...
, surprisingly appropriate because Liz Phair and three cast members of the Banana Splits attended New Trier High School
New Trier High School
New Trier High School is a public four-year high school , with its major campus located in Winnetka, Illinois, USA, and a second campus in Northfield, Illinois, with freshman classes and district administration...
, with Material Issue
Material Issue
Material Issue was a 1980-1990s power pop trio from Chicago. The band's trademark was pop songs with themes of love and heartbreak, where a number of song titles using girls' first names.-History:...
, is included on the 1995 tribute album
Tribute album
A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits, produced by Ralph Sall
Ralph Sall
Ralph Sall is a record producer, music supervisor, composer, songwriter, and screenwriter. He is the president of Bulletproof Entertainment, a company involved in several facets of the entertainment industry, including film, television, comic books and graphic novels, music, internet and live...
for MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
. Another rendition was performed by rock & roll comic C.C. Banana
C.C. Banana
C.C. Banana is an improv comic who performs while wearing a large yellow banana costume. Originally inspired by maverick Poison guitarist C.C. DeVille, he has since taken on a life and career of his own. C.C...
on the 2005 cartoon tribute album "Complete Balanced Breakfast." A cover of "Don't Go Away Go-Go Girl" by pop-punk band Mr. T Experience was issued on the 1993 tribute album
Tribute album
A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
Banana Pad Riot and their Big Black Bugs Bleed Blue Blood
Big Black Bugs Bleed Blue Blood
-Performers:*Dr. Frank - vocals, guitar*Jon Von Zelowitz - vocals, guitar*Byron Stomatos - bass*Alex Laipeneiks - drums*Eric Mead - guitar on "T-Shirt Commercial"*Janis Tanaka - bass on "T-Shirt Commercial"*Eban Ostby - drums on "T-Shirt Commercial"...
and Our Bodies Our Selves
Our Bodies Our Selves
Our Bodies Our Selves is the fifth album by the Berkeley, California punk rock band The Mr. T Experience, released in 1993 by Lookout! Records. It was the band's first album as a three-piece, after the departure of founding guitarist Jon Von Zelowitz the previous year. It was also their last album...
CD releases. The 1988 landmark release "Sub Pop 200
Sub Pop 200
Sub Pop 200 is a compilation released in the early days of the Seattle grunge scene . It features songs from Tad, The Fluid, Nirvana, Steven Jesse Bernstein, Mudhoney, The Walkabouts, Terry Lee Hale, Soundgarden, Green River, Fastbacks, Blood Circus, Swallow, Chemistry Set, Girl Trouble, The...
" included a version of "I'm Gonna Find A Cave
I'm Gonna Find A Cave
"I'm Gonna Find A Cave" is a song written in 1965 by Jimmy Radcliffe and Buddy Scott .First recorded in 1966 by soul singer Charlie Starr on a United Artist Records single followed in the same year by an early Psychobilly version by Billy Lee Riley on Crescendo Records .Other version of the song in...
" retitled "Gonna Find A Cave" by the band Girl Trouble. "Sub Pop 200" featured recordings from many soon to be notable bands, Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Green River
Green River (band)
Green River was an American rock band from Seattle, Washington that was active from 1984 to 1988. Although the band had little commercial impact outside of its native Seattle, Green River proved to have significant influence on the genre later known as grunge, both with its own music and with the...
, Mudhoney
Mudhoney
Mudhoney is an American alternative rock band. Formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988 following the demise of Green River, Mudhoney's members are vocalist and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison, and drummer Dan Peters. Original bassist Matt Lukin left the...
, Soundgarden
Soundgarden
Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
and others from Seattle's Grunge music explosion that followed.
The Dickies
The Dickies
The Dickies are an American punk rock group formed in San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, California, U.S. in 1977.-History:The Dickies were among the first punk rock bands to emerge from Los Angeles...
also cover the theme song, and their recording appears as a bonus on the CD reissue of their 1979 album The Incredible Shrinking Dickies
The Incredible Shrinking Dickies
The Incredible Shrinking Dickies was the 1979 first album by the California punk band The Dickies. The album included the group's notable cover of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid", which reached No. 45 in the UK charts in July 1979...
. The track is titled "Banana Splits" and it reached Number 7 in the UK charts. The Dickies still perform this song live at almost every concert. This cover was also featured in the movie soundtrack of Kick-Ass
Kick-Ass (film)
Kick-Ass is a 2010 superhero comedy film based on the comic book of the same name by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. The film was directed by Matthew Vaughn, who co-produced the film with actor Brad Pitt, and co-wrote the screenplay with Jane Goldman...
during ten-year-old Hit-Girl's brutally violent fight scene.
Chicago-based musician Ralph Covert
Ralph Covert
Ralph Covert is the lead singer of children's music group Ralph's World and lead singer of the Chicago based indie-rock band The Bad Examples. Ralph was nominated for his Best Musical Album For Children at the 48th Grammy Awards....
, who records children's music under the group name Ralph's World
Ralph's World
Ralph's World is a children's music group created by Ralph Covert. Covert, previously of Chicago-based indie-rock group The Bad Examples, uses high rock and roll energy with kid-friendly lyrics....
, covered the theme song under the title "The Banana Splits (The Tra La La Song)" on his 2001 album At the Bottom of the Sea.
Cast
- Fleegle (beagleBeagleThe Beagle is a breed of small to medium-sized dog. A member of the Hound Group, it is similar in appearance to the Foxhound, but smaller, with shorter legs and longer, softer ears. Beagles are scent hounds, developed primarily for tracking hare, rabbit, and other game...
):- Instrument: GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, VocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Acted by Jeff WinklessJeff WinklessJeffrey Alan Winkless was an American film and voice actor and music composer. He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. Two of his younger brothers, Terence H. Winkless and Daniel Owen Winkless, worked with him on The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. He was also credited as Jeffrey Brock...
(1969), billed as Jeffrey Brock, and by Ginner Whitcombe in the 2008 WB Version. - Voiced by Paul WinchellPaul WinchellPaul Winchell was an American ventriloquist, voice actor and comedian, whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s...
(who also provided the voices of Goofy Gopher and Cuckoo), and by Bill FarmerBill FarmerWilliam "Bill" Farmer is an American voice actor and comedian, best known for being the current voice of the Disney characters Goofy, Pluto and Horace Horsecollar.-Early life:...
in the 2008 version
- Instrument: Guitar
- Bingo (gorillaGorillaGorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
):- Instrument: DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, VocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Acted by Terence H. Winkless, billed as Terence Henry.
- Voiced by Daws ButlerDaws ButlerCharles Dawson "Daws" Butler was a voice actor originally from Toledo, Ohio. He worked mostly for Hanna-Barbera and originated the voices of many famous animated cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, and Huckleberry Hound.Daws Butler trained many working actors...
, and by Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
in the 2008 version
- Instrument: Drums
- Drooper (lionLionThe lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
):- Instrument: BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, VocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Acted by Dan Winkless, billed as Daniel Owen.
- Voiced by Allan MelvinAllan MelvinAllan Melvin was an American character actor who appeared in several television shows, including the roles of Corporal Henshaw on The Phil Silvers Show; Alice's boyfriend Sam the Butcher on The Brady Bunch; and Archie Bunker's friend Barney Hefner on All in the Family and Archie Bunker's...
(who also provided the voices of the announcer and Banana Vac), and by Carlos AlazraquiCarlos AlazraquiCarlos Jaime Alazraqui is an American actor, comedian, impressionist and voice actor. He is best known for his role as Deputy James Garcia on the Comedy Central series Reno 911!. His voice-over work includes the role of Bobbi Fabulous on Phineas and Ferb, the Taco Bell chihuahua, Denzel Q...
in the 2008 version
- Instrument: Bass
- Snorky (elephantElephantElephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
):- Instrument: KeyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, EffectSound effectFor the album by The Jam, see Sound Affects.Sound effects or audio effects are artificially created or enhanced sounds, or sound processes used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media...
s - Acted by James "Jimmy" Dove in season 1 song segments
- Acted by Robert TowersRobert Towers-Animated roles:* Doctor Dolittle - Various Animals* Kidd Video - Cool Cat* Pole Position - Additional Voices-Film roles:* Masters of the Universe - Karg* Switch - Mental Patient...
in most other segments
- Instrument: Keyboards
Although Snorky's voice often has been mistakenly credited to Don Messick
Don Messick
Donald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
, the character never actually spoke. Messick did perform Drooper's voice in some portions of The Banana Splits In Hocus Pocus Park, with Allan Melvin voicing the character in other scenes.
Jeffrey, Terence and Dan Winkless are brothers, the sons of N. B. Winkless Jr., jingle writer, copywriter, creative exec and vice president at Leo Burnett Company whose client was the show's sponsor, Kellogg's. Winkless composed some of the memorable Kellogg's cereal jingles, including the "Snap, Crackle, Pop Fugue" and "The best to you each morning", and also co-wrote (with Hoyt Curtin) "The Beautiful Calliopa", a song used on the series. The actors' names were changed in the show's credits to avoid the appearance of nepotism
Nepotism
Nepotism is favoritism granted to relatives regardless of merit. The word nepotism is from the Latin word nepos, nepotis , from which modern Romanian nepot and Italian nipote, "nephew" or "grandchild" are also descended....
. Fleegle's voice is an imitation of actor/comedian Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn was a popular American comedian and actor noted for his Perfect Fool comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a dramatic actor....
.
James Dove, the original Snorky, was previously a voice-over artist. He was hired as a result of his small stature, and has claimed that he was later fired as a result of not being able to keep up the same energy as the Winkless "kids". Dove died on July 27th, 2010 after a 28 year battle with Parkinson's disease.
Dan Winkless currently lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
. Terence H. Winkless produces, writes, and directs television and film. Jeffrey Winkless died of cancer at age 65 on June 26, 2006.
DVD release
On September 21, 2009, Warner Home VideoWarner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
released the complete first season on DVD in Region 2
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
.
The 6-disc set consists of 36 edited half-hour episodes of The Banana Splits And Friends Show as aired on Boomerang.