Wacky Races @ The Cartoon Scrapbook

Prod. Notes:

September 1968 - September 1970, CBS

Hanna-Barbera

Cast:

Dick Dastardly ..................................................................... Paul Winchell

Muttley ...................................................................................... Don Messick

Penelope Pitstop .................................................................... Janet Waldo

Clyde ........................................................................................ Paul Winchell

The Anthill Mob ........................................................................... Mel Blanc

Red Max .................................................................................. Paul Winchell

Professor Pat Pending ......................................................... Don Messick

Sawtooth ................................................................................... Don Messick

Ring-A-Ding .............................................................................. Don Messick

Big Gruesome ........................................................................... Daws Butler

Little Gruesome ...................................................................... Don Messick

Peter Perfect ........................................................................... Daws Butler

Rufus Ruffcut ......................................................................... Daws Butler

The General .................................................................... John Stephenson

Sergeant .................................................................................... Daws Butler

Rock Slug .................................................................................. Daws Butler

Gravel Slug ............................................................................... Daws Butler

Luke Bear ........................................................................ John Stephenson

Blubber Bear .................................................................. John Stephenson

Narrator .................................................................................. Dave Willock

Synopsis:

Taking their cue from madcap mid-'60s films like The Great Race and Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines, Hanna-Barbera broke from tradition with Wacky Races. Instead of a few leading characters in a single setting, the show featured a multitude of zany characters competing cross-country in equally crazy souped-up racing contraptions, competing for first place and the title, “World’s Wackiest Racer.”

Dick Dastardly and his sidekick dog Muttley were the stars of the show. Drivers of the Mean Machine (#00), the two would stop at nothing to win. Also on the road was the lovely Penelope Pitstop in her Compact Pussy Cat, a mobile beauty parlor. The other competitors included Pat Pending, The Red Max, Peter Perfect, Rufus and Sawtooth, General, Sergeant and Private Pinkley, Rock and Gravel Slug, Clyde and The Anthill Mob, The Gruesome Twosome, and Luke and Blubber Bear.

Surprisingly, all but Dastardly and Muttley followed the rules closely, even when they used the special gadgets that each of their cars were equipped with.

Wacky Races was a major part of network executive Fred Silverman’s grand scheme to bring more comedy cartoons to Saturday morning and produce shows with characters who could easily be spun off to their own programs. The strategy paid off a year later, as Dastardly and Muttley and Penelope Pitstop were deemed interesting enough to star in their own shows, Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines and The Perils of Penelope Pitstop. All three continued to appear on the Wacky Races.

As the first "gang" cartoon, Wacky Races established what would become a Hanna-Barbera tradition. With such a multitude of characters, the show could bounce from scene to scene with enough speed to please kids with even the shortest attention spans. Scooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics, Yogi’s Space Race and many others all owe a debt to Wacky Races' freewheeling format.

Episodes:

See Saw to Arkansas / Creepy Trip to Lemon Twist

Why Oh Why Wyoming / Beat the Clock to Yellow Rock

Mish Mash Missouri Dash / Idaho a Go Go

The Baja-Ha-Ha Race / Real Gone Ape

Scout Scatter / Free Wheeling to Wheeling

By Rollercoaster to Upsans Downs / The Speedy Arkansas Traveler

The Zippy Mississippi Race / Traffic Jambalayan

Hot Race at Chillicothe / The Wrong Lumber Race

Rhode Island Road Race / The Great Cold Rush Race

Wacky Race to Ripsaw / Oils Well that Ends Well

Whizzin' to Washington / The Dipsy Doodle Desert Derby

Eeny, Miny Missouri Go! / The Super Silly Swamp Sprint

Dopey Dakota Derby / Dash to Delaware

Speeding for Smogland / Race Rally to Raleigh

Ballpoint, Penn. or Bust / Fast Track to Hakensack

The Ski Resort Road Race / Overseas Hi-Way Race

Racing to Racine / The Carlsbad or Bust Bash

Introduction:

".... and now here they are!!!! The most daredevil group of daffy drivers to ever whirl their wheels in the Wacky Races, competing for the title of worlds wackiest racer. The cars are approaching the starting line. First, is the Turbo Terrific driven by Peter Perfect. Next is Rufus Ruffcut and Sawtooth in the Buzzwagon. Manoeuvring for position is the Army Surplus Special. Right behind is the Ant Hill Mob in their Bullet Proof Bomb. Then there's ingenious inventor Pat Pending in his Convert-A-Car. Oh! Here's the lovely Penelope Pitstop, the glamour gal of the gas pedal. Next we have the Bouldermobile with the Slag Brothers, Rock & Gravel. Lurching along is the Creepy Coupe with the Gruesome Twosome, and right on their tail is the Red Max. And there's the Arkansas Chug-A-Bug with Luke & Blubber Bear. Sneaking along last is that Mean Machine with those double dealing do-badders Dick Dastardly and his sidekick, Muttley."