The Skatebirds (1977) Half Hour Turner Episode List


Many people are aware of The Banna Splits Adventure Hour, a 1968 hour-long series most well known for it's wraparounds featuring Fleegle, Bingo, Drooper and Snorky. However, less know about an attempt by Hanna Barbera to revive the format years later in 1977, entitled The Skatebirds. 

This show pretty blatantly held it's "inspiration" on it's side. Both shows featured actors in suits who sang songs and introducing cartoons (in Banana Splits, it was The Three Musketeers, Arabian Nights, Micro Ventures and the Hilbilly Bears (starting in Season 2) while in Skaterbirds, it was The Robotic Stooges, Wonder Wheels and edited down reruns of Clue Club retitled Woofer and Wimper Dog Detectives) and an adventure live action segment set on an island (in Banna Splits, it was Danger Island and in Skatebirds, it was Mystery Island), even the title font appeared to be the same! 

Starting in February of 1978, the Robotic Stooges cartoons (alongside Woofer and Wimper) were placed in their own half-hour slot, replacing (alongside reruns of 1973's Speed Buggy) their parent Skatebirds show in the process! This was because the Robotic Stooges toons were apparently the most popular cartoons in the whole show. This new half hour show had a longer intro with narration by Frank Welker. The Robotic Stooges title cards were also changed, with them being similar to the final shot seen in the titles when they were shown on Boomerang, but this time being still and having "The Three Robotic Stooges in" on the top of the image. 

Eventually in September of 1979, The Skatebirds returned to TV. This version was a half-hour cutdown and only contained the Mystery Island and Wonder Wheels segments. In 1981, both shows were taken off the network. 

Skatebirds would remain off American TV until the mid-1990s, when it would resurface on Cartoon Network. This was in a much different version made by Turner, containing 2 Robotic Stooges cartoons per episode with a Wonder Wheels cartoon in the middle. This will be the focus of this post. 

The following is an episode guide for this version of The Skatebirds, sourced from cocatalog.loc.gov. 

1. Invasion of the Incredible Giant Chicken/Wonder Wheels and the County Fair/Dimwits and Dinosaurs

2. Fish and Drips/Wonder Wheels and the Skyscraper/Have Saucer, Will Travel

3. I Want My Mummy/Wonder Wheels and the Rustlers/The Great Brain Drain

4. Flea, Fi, Foe, Fum/Wonder Wheels and the Gold Train Robbery/Frozen Feud

5. Curley of the Apes/Wonder Wheels and the Snowman/Don't Fuel With a Fuel

6. On Your Knees, Hercules/Wonder Wheels and the Vanishing Prince/The Eenie Meanie Genie

7. There's No Joy In An Evil Toy/Wonder Wheels and his Double Trouble/Rub a Dub, Three Nuts in a Sub

8. Mother Goose on the Loose/Wonder Wheels and The Ghost Town/Woo Woo Wolfman

9. The Silliest Show on Earth/Wonder Wheels and the Golden Globe/Three Little Pigheads

10. Bye Bye Blackbirds/Wonder Wheels and the UFO/Mutiny on the Mountie

11. School House Louse/Wonder Wheels and the Hermit's Horde/Burgle Gurgle

12. The Three Nutsketeers/Wonder Wheels and the Air Race/Rip Van Wrinkles

13. Pestworld Ain't the Bestworld/Wonder Wheels and the Animals/Super Kong

14. Three Stooges and the Seven Dwarfs/Wonder Wheels and the Idol's Eye/Doctor Jekyll and Hide Curley

15. Jerk in the Beanstalk/Wonder Wheels and the Race Horse/Blooperman

16.  Star Flaws/Wonder Wheels and the Studio Steal/Stooges, You're Fired (or, The Day the Mirth Stood Still)

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