As a lot of Flintstones fans will know, today is the birthday of the one and only Fred Flintstone. I've made a post before covering some of the many actors who have voiced the character, but what about the men who almost portrayed him?
Around sixty or so actors auditioned for The Flintstones. Of that group, we know of three that were considered for Fred before the role went to the great Alan Reed. I'll be going through all of them today, starting with the king of Hanna-Barbera voiceovers, Daws Butler.
Daws voiced both Fred and Barney in the pitch film, The Flagstones. His performance as both characters is good, but nothing particularly special when compared to his other roles. That being said, this was a pilot, so who knows how he'd have sounded in the actual series. Daws would not voice either character when the show was picked up, supposedly because Joe Barbera felt the studio was stretching him too thin. Despite that, he'd go on to voice the occasional side character in the series, and famously filled in for Mel Blanc as Barney after his near-fatal crash.
For a time, the role was nearly George O'Hanlon's. If that name sounds familiar to you, it's because he would later voice George Jetson in The Jetsons. He had sent out a tape that Joe Barbera enjoyed, but there was one small problem: the network didn't, forcing Barbera to continue his search. Though O'Hanlon didn't get the role, Barbera kept him in mind and soon called on him for The Jetsons. O'Hanlon would also contribute to The Flintstones'later seasons as a writer.
Though I love George O'Hanlon and his work, I have to go with the executives on this one. O'Hanlon's voice worked perfectly for someone like George Jetson, but he lacks the gruffness that Fred Flintstone needs. Funnily enough, that was the exact reason Bill Thompson was booted from the role. For a short time, Touche Turtle himself was going to play Fred Flintstone. He had recorded five episodes before being sacked. Hal Smith, the original voice of Barney, was thrown out with him.
After a lengthy search, Alan Reed was finally chosen to play Fred Flintstone. Reed hadn't done much in the way of animation at the time (though he did contribute to Disney's Lady and the Tramp, which also featured Bill Thompson), but his voice had the grittiness Joe was looking for. Reed also chose to play the character straight, which I imagine put him above others auditioning for the role. And just like that, history had been made, and I don't think anyone can imagine anybody else voicing Mr. Flintstone.
Alan Reed wasn't a cartoon voiceover legend when he was cast in The Flintstones. However, he knew a thing or two about creating a character with your voice. Having thirty years of experience in radio will do that.
Though Alan had a long career across animation, TV, and the silver screen, it was radio where he made a name for himself. He played many characters across many programs, and no doubt it played a large part in his later casting as Fred Flintstone. Today, I'm sharing a look at Reed's career that was presented in the July 23rd, 1967 edition of the Los Angeles Times. Even though this was after The Flintstones ended production, there's almost no mention of the show. The focus is mostly on his radio work. A great piece overall, and it's complemented with some great shots of Reed as his radio characters.
Reed-Radio's One-Man Talent Gang
By Don Page
His 45 years in show business are imbued in the face. It has become a composite caricature of all the characters Alan Reed has played—from Falstaff to Fred Flintstone. Reposing with his son, Al, in a corner booth at the Hollywood Brown Derby, with a hundred sketches of stars as a backdrop, Alan had come to lament the passing of radio as he knew and loved it. He shook his head. "Radio was more than a damn good living to a lot of people," he said. "It was a labor of love." Soulfully and wistfully, Alan has hopes of a return of radio drama. He would like to form a stock company, as he is convinced there are numerous old-guard radio performers who would eagerly work for scale on such a project. "We can't kid ourselves that we'd be a threat to TV," he reasoned, "but we could entertain. There are a lot of scripts available without any rights attached. But money is the big thing—you've got to have backing and sponsors." The thought aborted when the conversation somehow drifted to today's conversation radio, the molar-to-molar marathon. "Ohhh," he muttered, "this two-way stuff's not entertainment. So much depends on the one person calling. If he doesn't have quality it won't come off. So many of the callers flub it. I don't like it," he added with annoyance. Then, the wonderful face became animated and it glowed warmly as he was asked to trace his career and tell some anecdotes about the old radio days. Perhaps his most famous radio role was the screwy poet Falstaff on the Fred Allen Show. He offered a Falstaffian sample: "Parachutists who must practice, must never do it over cactus." He was Pasquale in the Life With Luigi series, the original Daddy on Baby Snooks, Joe Palooka and literally thousands of other voices for which he could not claim credit, as he often performed in 35 shows a week and, with conflicting sponsorship, was not allowed identification on more than one program. Alan Reed's first radio role was in the late 20s. He was turned down for a tough gangster part on True Detective Mysteries because he was too young. "I knew I could get the part. I left the audition, went to a phone and got the producer on the line and threatened him: 'Look, you, I'm a real hoodlum, see, and you're going to use me in your show or I'm takin' you for a ride." Impressed, the producer hired him and Reed was on his way. Reed has been featured in many television cartoons as well as dramatic shows. He prepared for television as early as 1931, when he participated in an experimental telecast for all of New York's 15 eyeglass-size receivers. "We did a comedy bit in '31 at the old Columbia Broadcasting building. Three of us had to squeeze together, head to head, to be seen on the screen. It was a wonderful thing, though, because I met my wife that day. She did a singing bit on the telecast from another room and I asked to meet her afterward. She was wearing green make-up with brown lips, a lovely girl. We were married six months later." Alan's vocal ability saved more than one show over the years. In another throbbing edition of True Detective Mysteries, he was playing a tough Irish police captain, supported by an 80-year-old actor from the Abbey Players of Ireland. When the scene came where the gangsters opened fire on the pair, the old gentleman was frightened by the sound effects and fainted. "I finished the show playing both parts," Alan recalled Alan Reed Jr. joined his father in show business in the 40s, appearing on the Baby Snooks series, and they have alternated as co-stars on various dramatic vehicles ever since. (Currently, Alan Sr. is featured in the play "Barefoot in the Park" at the Las Palmas Theater co-starring and co-produced by Alan Jr.) The last regular radio show in which Alan Reed starred was My Friend Irma. After its cancellation, he moved to television with Life With Luigi. "But there are many ageless things we can do again on radio," he insisted. "As long as TV guides the programming to appeal to the 12-year-old mind, we can do something with radio. "In fact, I'm looking for a way to bring back the Falstaff character in 'Falstaff's Fables.' I own the character and most of the material, you know."
Before I sign off, here's a pretty cool photo of Alan Reed alongside Joe Barbera and Mel Blanc. This was taken around '71, right as recording sessions began on The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show. Reed was gifted a plaque congratulating him for fifty years in the entertainment industry. A great gift for a great talent!
Hey, guys. I'm back again with a post that's a little on the short side, but I hope you find it sweet despite that. There are many photos of the Flintstones cast out there, but today, I've got a few you probably haven't seen before. Except for the first two, these were all promotional photos produced during the show's first season.
This first set was done to promote the 1966 feature film, The Man Called Flintstone, and show Alan Reed and Mel Blanc alongside their cartoon personas. The second photo features them in classic detective outfits, as was typical of many photos from this set. If you'd like to see more of them, check out my post on the subject from back in 2023.
This next photo showcases Barney and Betty Rubble next to the actors who gave them life, Mel Blanc and Bea Benaderet. Again, there are other photos from this particular shoot, but this is the first time I've ever seen this particular one.
Here's an image that appears to come from a recording session. It's Bill Hanna, joined by both Bea Benaderet and Jean Vander Pyl. It's not often you see photos of Bill or Joe with the show's actors, so this one was quite a surprise to find.
Now, what better way to end this post than a photo with Alan, Mel, Jean, and Bea? Nothing, which is why I'm happy to have found this photo. You've got the entire original cast, with their characters in front of them. I especially love Alan's expression here.
Quick disclaimer: This post was originally set to be published yesterday. Unfortunately, a thunderstorm knocked out my internet from the beginning of the weekend until last night, hence the lack of posts this week. Anywho, onto the post!
When animation fans think of Alan Reed, most tend to think of him as the voice of Fred Flintstone, and that's about it. He wasn't a man of a thousand voices in the way people like Mel Blanc or Daws Butler were, but I would argue he was every bit as innovative as they were. As Greg Ehrbar points out in his new title, Hanna-Barbera: The Recorded History, Reed tackled the role of Fred as a sitcom protagonist first, and as a cartoon character second. This gave the character a sense of reality and grounding, unlike most other classic cartoon characters. This approach was arguably every bit as groundbreaking as the show Fred Flintstone sprung from.
In celebration of his birthday (August 20th, 1907), here's a nice biography on Reed in The Lewiston Evening Journal published in December of 1964. Reed's radio career, wrestling days, hobbies, and more are all detailed.
Alan Reed Was Wrestling Champ
Alan Reed, entering his fifth season as the voice of Fred Flintstone, has long ago become accustomed to being greeted with a "Yabba Dabba Doo" wherever he goes. Reed is a veteran of 38 years in show business. He spent 30 years in radio where he frequently worked as many as 35 different broadcasts a week.
In such characterizations as Falstaff Openshaw on "The Fred Allen Show," as Rubinoff with Eddie Cantor, and as the original daddy to Fanny Brice's Baby Snooks, Reed achieved nationwide fame. From his roles of Clancy the cop on "Duffy's Tavern" and Pasquale in "Life with Luigi," he moved on to television. He also had a featured role in the "Mr. Adams and Eve" TV series. Born Teddy Bergman, he grew up in New York City and studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts until he met the age requirement at Columbia University. Majoring in journalism, he also won the Eastern Intercollegiate heavyweight wrestling title and took part in the school's annual varsity shows. He began his stage career with an Oklahoma City stock company, but shortly returned to New York and during 1934-35 starred in "The Blubber Bergman Show." Reed met his wife, Finette, while both were working in experimental TV in New York City. The Reeds moved to Hollywood in 1943, and since that time Allan has appeared in more than 50 motion pictures, the list including such hits as "Viva Zapata," "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Desperate Hours," and "Breakfast at Tiffany's." In 1955 he founded Alan Reed Enterprises, a Hollywood advertising specialties and business gifts sales firm. The Reeds reside in a modern ranch style Beverly Hills home above the Sunset Strip. Their sons, Alan Jr. and Stephen, have presented them with five grandchildren. Reed's special interests include reading, golf, square dancing, and Fred Flintstone, whom Alan admits he resembles physically.
Hey, everyone. Apologies for the lack of posts this week. Work's been kind of hectic recently, but I'm hopeful I'll return to a semi-normal schedule soon. At the very least, you can expect a review of Greg Ehrbar's new Hanna-Barbera book next week (spoiler alert: it is quite good!). September will also be a big month for this blog, as I plan on celebrating the anniversary of a particular show, but I'll discuss that more near the end of the month.
Anywho, this next week will mark what would've been Alan Reed's 117th birthday, the man who gave life to Fred Flintstone. I'll have more to say about him when that day comes, but until then, enjoy this 1962 TV pilot called Strictly for Laffs. The idea behind this series was simple. It's a roundtable of comedians discussing life, and their work, and having a laugh in the process. The pilot also happens to have not one, but two, classic animation voice actors. Alan Reed obviously makes an appearance, and later on, we see the man of a thousand voices himself, Mel Blanc. Unsurprisingly, their animated counterparts become a topic of conversation for both actors.
February 2nd. It was on this day, several billion years ago, that Fred Flintstone came into this world. Or, that's at least what the original series told us. While there's no real-life Fred Flintstone, there have been many people who have voiced him, and four of them stand above the rest. Those are Alan Reed, Henry Corden, Jeff Bergman, and James Arnold Taylor. These are the four who have been primarily tasked with playing the character in his various onscreen appearances. Today, we're going to celebrate each of them by going through their respective histories as the character. We'll look into their backgrounds, how they approached the role, and how they got it in the first place. Let's begin with the original, Alan Reed.
As a lot of you probably know, Reed wasn't the first person to voice Fred. Daws Butler played him in the pilot reel, and for a time, the role went to Bill Thompson. However, Bill and Joe felt that none of the other voices had the gravelly tone they were looking for with Fred. That's where Alan Reed enters the picture. A resident of the Big Apple, Reed had a voice that was equal parts rough and smooth, making him perfect for a character like Fred. He could accurately capture the entire range of Fred's emotional spectrum, from sentimental to anger, and do it well. Also helping him was his years' worth of experience in acting. From radio to the stage, Reed had done it all, and although Fred is the cartoon character people know him most for, it wasn't the only character he portrayed. He also voiced Boris in Disney's Lady and the Tramp, and would go on to give his voice to many other Hanna-Barbera productions.
Reed was the first and only voice for Fred during the entirety of the original Flintstones series. He'd later go on to reprise the role in the early spinoffs, such as The Man Called Flintstone movie, and The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show. Sadly, as time progressed, Reed's health began to decline. Shortly after the show ended, he developed bladder cancer, and though it was treated, he also began to suffer from emphysema. In June of 1977, just two months shy of his seventieth birthday, Reed died of a heart attack. His death left a huge void in the Flintstones voiceover family, but it wasn't long before Hanna-Barbera sought out a replacement.
The actor who would take over for Reed was none other than Henry Corden. Born in Canada, Corden's path to becoming Fred began years before he took over the role from Reed. You see, Alan Reed couldn't sing on pitch, so Hanna-Barbera required a soundalike to provide Fred's singing voice anytime the character sang. In instances like the aforementioned Man Called Flintstone and their line of records, it was Henry Corden who took on those duties. Corden had been working with Hanna-Barbera since around 1964, providing minor roles in episodes of The Flintstones and Jonny Quest. After Reed died, Corden was the obvious pick for his successor, although he did audition for the part alongside several others.
Corden began being heard as Fred in 1977's A Flintstone Christmas, and continued to be heard as the character until 2005. While Alan used his natural voice for Fred, Corden (and by extension, all of the following Freds), had to create Fred's voice. Corden initially focused on closely imitating Alan, but as time progressed, he began to make the character more his own. Many liken his take on Fred to being very Jackie Gleason-esque, and I wouldn't say that's wrong. He was a little bit higher pitched than Alan's, and his voice most definitely had a more cartoony quality to it.
Like I said, Corden voiced Fred for nearly three decades, but towards the end of his run, he began to step back from the role, until he was voicing the character only in Fruity Pebbles commercials. His last major credit as Fred was in the 2000 video game Bedrock Bowling. As far as I can tell, this was due to a few reasons. For one, Corden was beginning to suffer from several health problems, chief among them being sight issues. It also sounds like those who worked on Flintstones productions during these later years felt Corden didn't sound like Fred. In an episode of Johnny Bravo, Fred appears, and Corden originally voiced him. According to series creator Van Partible, they felt his voice didn't sound right, and hired another actor instead. In May of 2005, Henry Corden passed away from emphysema (the same illness Reed struggled with). Since then, Fred has been voiced by two actors.
The first of these is Jeff Bergman. While Reed and Corden got their starts in radio and film, animation voice-acting was always Bergman's area of expertise. He grew up doing impressions of his favorite cartoon characters, and when he was only 29(!), he got the opportunity of a lifetime to take over many of the Looney Tunes characters after Mel Blanc's passing. His ability to imitate Blanc also made him a natural choice for the characters he voiced for Hanna-Barbera, including Mr. Spacely, and, of course, Barney Rubble. He voiced him opposite Corden's Fred in many Fruity Pebbles commercials throughout the nineties and 2000s, but it was in 1993 that he got his first chance to voice Fred, this being through a strange video game crossover between The Jetsons and The Flintstones. Jeff voiced the character periodically in the nineties, mostly in commercials for the Cartoon Network, but got his big break as Fred in 2001's Flintstones: On The Rocks TV movie. Since then, he's voiced the character in the majority of his appearance, such as the 2015 WWE crossover film, Yabba Dabba Dinosaurs, and even Fred's appearances in Family Guy! Out of all the Fred's that have come since Alan Reed, I maintain that Bergman is easily the best of the bunch. I do mean no offense to the others, who I feel have all done a wonderful job, but Jeff's take feels the most like a natural continuation of Reed's Fred. Bergman has actually taken over many Hanna-Barbera characters, from Yogi Bear to George Jetson, and he's done a great job as all of them. To put it simply, he knows his cartoons!
The other voice actor who inherited the role after Corden was James Arnold Taylor. Oddly enough, Taylor is the only one of the four to have had a major voice-acting role before voicing Fred. He's voiced Obi-Wan Kenobi in many Star Wars projects, tons of Marvel and DC superheroes, and in 2005, took over for Fred in the Fruity Pebbles commercials. Henry Corden was personally involved in his selection, which came down to Taylor and three others. While James doesn't look like the type of guy to have Fred's voice, he can actually go even deeper than Corden ever could, showing his skill as a voice actor. James Arnold Taylor also has a really interesting approach to the role of Fred. Rather than just imitating one of the prior actors, Taylor likens his version of the character to an amalgamation of Reed and Corden's performances. To put it more specifically, I'd say he takes Reed's smoothness and combines it with Corden's often over-the-top delivery. It makes for a Fred that sounds like the character, but still manages to be its own thing, a pretty hard feat to accomplish. Sadly, we don't get to hear from this take on Fred too much nowadays. After Post swapped ad agencies sometime around 2010, Taylor was replaced in the role before the entire marketing approach for Fruity Pebbles was changed. Taylor does voice the character on occasion, but not nearly enough if you ask me. Below is a great video of Taylor getting into the headspace for the voice of Fred. It's always lovely to see a voice actor do what they do best!
And that's all, at least for now. I know Stephen Root has been tasked to voice the character in that upcoming Bedrock series, and if that animated film ever gets off the ground, I'm sure they'll get some big-name celebrity to voice Fred (much to my dismay). That's also not getting into the voice actors who have played him in more obscure instances, or the actors who portrayed him in The Flintstone Kids. Maybe someday I'll cover the rest of them, but for today, I think I am all Fredded out! That's why this coming Monday, we'll be celebrating the life of Janet Waldo, who celebrates her birthday over the weekend!
It's the first day of Flintstone February, a celebration on this blog of everything Flintstones, and to usher in this celebration, I share with you not one, but two interviews from yesteryear featuring cast members of The Flintstones. This first one is audio only and was conducted in 1965 to promote the original series' final season. "Interviewed" here are Alan Reed, Jean Vander Pyl, and Gerry Johnson, the second voice of Betty Rubble. Sadly, it doesn't seem like Mel Blanc was interviewed here, which is a real shame. You're probably wondering why "interview" is in quotations, so I'll explain. The actors' audio was part of an LP sent out to radio stations. Local radio hosts would then do their own recording of the questions, making it sound like it was an exclusive. Give it a listen right below!
Jumping forward about 20 years, here is an Entertainment Tonight segment covering the series' 25th anniversary, complete with a short interview with Jean Vander Pyl and Henry Corden, the second Fred Flintstone. Also interviewed are the "real" Fred and Wilma, interestingly enough. I wish it was a bit longer, but it's always great to see videos with the voices of our Hanna-Barbera favorites. However, I must say one thing: that Wilma Flintstone mascot costume is the stuff of nightmares!
Check back here tomorrow for another exciting installment of Flintstones February. It's Fred Flintstone's birthday, and I'm celebrating it by looking at four of the voice actors who have brought everyone's favorite caveman to life!
It's been a while since I did an installment in my "Hanna-Barbera Voices in Advertising" series, so today, I thought I could do something different. Instead of commercials, let's look at some of the Hanna-Barbera voice actors' appearances in the television shows of yesteryear. While we know them best for the various animated characters they portrayed, most did make plenty of onscreen appearances in the TV shows of the time. Starting things off is Jean Vander Pyl, in this short clip from an episode of Leave It to Beaver. Miss Vander Pyl made several appearances in the series, each time as a different character, a practice that wasn't uncommon back then.
You can't have Wilma without Fred, so here's Alan Reed in an episode of The Beverly Hillbillies. Reed made many onscreen appearances, from Breakfast at Tiffany's to the 1966 Batman series, but what's interesting about this series is that all of the principal cast members from The Flintstones appeared in this show. For example, Mel Blanc guest starred as a cab driver in one episode. I could have centered this entire post on this show, but as they say, variety is the spice of life!
One more today, here is Judy Jetson, Janet Waldo, in probably her most famous live-action appearance as the obsessive fan Peggy in I Love Lucy. This was Waldo's first TV role, and, as the video points out, was pregnant at the time of filming this episode, despite playing the role of a teenager. She really was an eternal teenager!
That's all for today, but as I alluded to earlier, there's a lot more to cover. From Howard Morris to John Stephenson to Frank Welker to Allan Melvin, if you can think of a classic Hanna-Barbera actor, the chances are high they at least made one or two onscreen appearances. I'd love to hear from you all if there are any actors or shows you'd like to see covered in a potential follow-up!
Back when The Man Called Flintstone premiered in cinemas in 1966, Hanna-Barbera released a set of promotional stills featuring the principal cast members alongside cardboard cutouts of their characters. I don't know what publications included these photos, but here is a nice collection of the ones that I could find online. Take a gander below to see Alan Reed, Mel Blanc, Jean Vander Pyl, and Gerry Johnson (NOT Bea Benaderet, contrary to what the internet may tell you) hang out with some of their most beloved roles.
I'll start this gallery off with pictures showcasing individual cast members. I love the second one, in particular, showing Fred and Alan with matching hats and mustaches. Sadly, I didn't find one of Gerry Johnson, which is one reason why I believe there are more photos in this set floating around. Another reason I feel that way is because some of these I only found while researching these photos!
Now, here are the ensemble photos, featuring one or more of the voice actors. As I alluded to earlier, one of these is in color, which makes me guess at least a few of these appeared in some sort of magazine from around the film's release. Also, as a heads up, some of these are admittedly pretty poor quality. You can practically count the pixels in a few!
If you happen to have any idea where these images are sourced from, or if you have ahold of a few yourself, I'd love to hear from you in the comments below. I'm sure there were more photos in this set, and it'd be great to catalog every single one of them!
Yesterday August 20th marked the birthday of the late, great Alan Reed, the original (and in my opinion, definitive) voice of Fred Flintstone. So why don't we celebrate the occasion with an interview with Fred himself? Originally recorded in 1975, just two years before his passing, here is a lengthy interview with Alan Reed. Chuck Schaden is the man interviewing him. The interview focuses primarily on his voice-over work, both in the land of Bedrock and on the radio. I've also gotta say, it's pretty hard not picturing Fred when hearing him here!
If you are interested in knowing more about Reed's long career and life, I highly recommend you check out Yabba Dabba Doo! or, Never a Star: The Alan Reed Story. It's an autobiography he wrote that was only published years after he passed away, and it's a great read from start to finish. Any fan of either The Flintstones or classic cartoon voice actors should definitely give it a look!
By pure coincidence, it appears that the last few posts on this blog have been heavily focused on voice actors from The Flintstones. So why don't we continue that trend with something I discovered a few months ago? Straight out of the 1960s, here are several casting ads for each of the main cast members from the classic animated series, which I found after digging through old auctions on the website Worthpoint. According to the listing, these all came out of casting directory books. Give 'em all a look right below!
While this isn't a casting ad, I thought this next photo was too interesting to leave out of this. Featured in an ABC press release promoting the show's fifth season, here are some headshots that accompanied extensive biographies of all of the principal cast members. It should also be noted that Gerry Johnson is featured here instead of Bea Benaderet, as this was the season when she began voicing Betty. And, just as I mentioned in my post on Miss Johnson earlier this week, this listing is yet another example of her being mislabeled as Bea Benaderet. I honestly don't know how they messed that one up. Her name is the first one listed on the image!
In the fall of 1960, The Flintstones premiered on television and soon became a cultural phenomenon. It wasn't long before a second season was commissioned, and for the first episode of this new set, Hanna-Barbera chose to do something that the series had yet to do: feature a celebrity guest appearance. As most of you probably know, this role went to musician Hoagy Carmichael, who got to sing alongside Fred and Barney in the episode, "The Hit Songwriters." Being that this was the first time the show ever did such a thing, a lot of press was generated by his appearance. Here are a few newspaper excerpts previewing the episode, featuring quotes from Carmichael and some rare photos of him in the HB studio!
First up is a piece from The Hutchinson News, dated September 2nd, 1961. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any author attributed to the story.
Hoagy Plans On Stoneway
Did you know cavemen made music too?
Yes, you'll soon find out that Tin Pan Alley started all the way back in the Stone Age. This fall's first installment of "The Flintstones," that animated study of Neolithic manners, will give a full description of the song business back there then. Guest star of the episode is a prehistoric tunesmith named Hoagy.
If you're wondering why this Bedrock musician looks familiar, he's patterned after a certain Machine Age Hoagy, named Hoagy Carmichael. The modern-day Hoagy is providing the voice of his Neanderthal counterpart, and has penned a song for the show titled "Yabba Dabba Do," with lyrics by Fred Flintstone.
The handsome, greying Carmichael has high hopes for "Yabba Dabba Doo." "With Fred Flintstone singing the song," said Hoagy (Carmichael, that is), "I wouldn't be surprised if it got on the Pilt Parade's top ten. After all, it's written in rocks-trot tempo."
Having Hoagy play Hoagy is somewhat of a departure for Hanna-Barbera, producers of "The Flintstones," who have never used living guest stars before. But they figured a good-natured spoof of the music business needed a real live composer. Hoagy, with his famous voice, was the natural choice.
The only hitch in the operation was a jurisdictional problem. Carmichael had to join ASCAP. It stands for Antediluvian Society of Caveman, Authors, and Petractadyls.
Next is a piece that showed up on September 10th in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. This was one of several writings that appeared in a feature titled, "Look and Listen With Rowe." Some of this piece is identical to the above story, so for the sake of brevity, I decided to cut that section out.
HOAGY CARMICHAEL will appear—in spirit, so to speak—as a guest of The Flintstones when ABC's animated series starts its second TV season at 8:30 Friday night.
Via the art route, Hoagy is back in the Stone Age and working as a songwriter in the company of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. The song is "Yabba Dabba Do."
The cartoon feature also will have Hoagy Carmichael dabbling, uncharacteristically, in rock 'n' roll and a world of champagne music with a bubble-blowing baby elephant. Now what Saturday night TV cornball could be the object of that satirical punch?
Also promised is a new set of atrocious lyrics for the nostalgic classic that is Carmichael's "Star Dust."
"Sometimes I think this sort of outlandish treatment is good for a song and the people who love it. It gives them an opportunity to get a little outraged." That's Hoagy Carmichael's dry-witted analysis of the situation.
