The Pink Panther Show is a showcase of cartoon shorts produced by David H. DePatieand Friz Freleng between 1969 and 1979, starring the animated Pink Panther character from the opening credits of the live-action films. The series was produced by Mirisch Filmsand DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, and was broadcast on two American television networks. The opening title sequence of the original 1963 The Pink Panther film was such a success with the United Artists executives that they decided to adapt the title sequence into a series of theatrical animated shorts.DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, run by former Warner Bros. Cartoons creators David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng produced the opening sequences, with Freleng as director. United Artists commissioned a long series of The Pink Panther shorts, the first of which, 1964's The Pink Phink, won the 1964 Academy Award for Animated Short Film. By fall 1969, the shorts were being broadcast Saturday mornings on The Pink Panther Show; after 1969, new shorts were produced for both television broadcast and theatrical release. The animated Pink Panther character has also appeared in computer and console video games, as well as advertising campaigns for several companies.
Format[]
When The Pink Panther Show first aired in 1969, it consisted of one cartoon featuring The Inspector, sandwiched by two Pink Panther entries. The 30-minute show was then connected via bumper sequences featuring both the panther and Inspector together, as well announcer Marvin Miller acting as an off-camera narrator talking to the panther. Bumper sequences consisted of newly animated segments as well as recycled footage from existing cartoons, such as Reel Pink, Pink Outs and Super Pink, with new incidental music and voice-over work from Miller.[1]
Pink Panther shorts made after 1969 (starting with A Fly in the Pink) when The Pink Panther Show began airing were produced for both broadcast and theatrical release, typically appearing on television first, and released to theatres by United Artists.[1] A number of new series were created, including the very popular The Ant and the Aardvark,Tijuana Toads (a.k.a. Texas Toads), Hoot Kloot, Misterjaw, Roland and Rattfink, The Dogfather and two Tijuana Toads spinoffs: The Blue Racer and Crazylegs Crane. The New Pink Panther Show and later shows featured newly animated bumper segments involving the Panther, the Ant and the Aardvark, Misterjaw, and the Tijuana/Texas Toads.[1]
In 1976, the half-hour series was revamped into a 90-minute format, as The Pink Panther Laugh and a Half Hour and a Half Show; this version included a live-action segment, where comedian Lenny Schultz would read letters and jokes from viewers. This version did not do well, and eventually reverted to the original 30-minute version in 1977 as Think Pink Panther.[1]
After nine years on NBC, the Pink Panther moved to ABC in 1978 and was retitled The All New Pink Panther Show, where it lasted one season before leaving the network realm entirely. The ABC version of the series featured sixteen episodes with 32 new Pink Panther cartoons, and 16 featuring Crazylegs Crane: no bumpers were produced for The All New Pink Panther Show, but 10–15 second "Stay tuned..." snippets explaining an upcoming entry were produced for the first few episodes. The 32 new Pink Panther cartoons were eventually released to theatres by United Artists.
Theme music[]
Henry Mancini composed "The Pink Panther Theme" for the live action films, which would be used prominently in the cartoon series as well. Doug Goodwin composed the show's opening title music while William Lava and Walter Greene composed music scores heard throughout the cartoons, many which were variations on Mancini's "Pink Panther Theme".
Syndication[]
MGM/UA Television syndicated The Pink Panther Show in 1980, complete with bumpers and laugh-tracked versions of the shorts. By 1982, MGM/UA began syndicating some individual cartoons to local stations to air them as they saw fit. This format did not contain the series' bumpers nor the laugh track.[1]
The following series were included in MGM/UA Television's syndication package:
- The Pink Panther
- The Inspector
- The Ant and the Aardvark
- Tijuana Toads/Texas Toads
- Misterjaw (made-for-television series)
The following series were not included in MGM/UA Television's syndication package:
- Hoot Kloot
- Roland and Rattfink
- The Blue Racer
- Crazylegs Crane (made-for-television series)
- The Dogfather
Most television stations aired the later package released in 1982, featuring the cartoon shorts by themselves, ostracized from the show's original bumpers sequences. The laugh track was also silenced on all entries expect for Misterjaw. Chicago-based WGN-TV was one of the few stations to air the 1980 The Pink Panther Show syndication package. Conversely, New York City-based WPIX featured a stripped-down version of the shorts, airing the entries without the laugh track, bumpers, or theatrical opening/closing credits.
Reruns[]
The Pink Panther Show (1969–1970) and The New Pink Panther Show (1971–1974) has been remastered in its original format, and currently airs in its entirety (including bumpers and laugh track) on BBC Two in the United Kingdom. It was previously shown on UK Gold BBC One and Boomerang. It also airs in Canada on Teletoon Retro weekday mornings at 8:00 AM. The laugh track is muted for most entries.
A "no-frills" version aired on Boomerang five days a week at 5:30 AM, 10 AM and 2:30 PM; the Boomerang version included four shorts and no bumpers, in the style of its other theatrical-short compilation shows. Until August 2009, Boomerang only featured shorts fromThe Pink Panther, The Ant and the Aardvark and The Inspector. The laugh track was present on several entries. Currently, the show remains intact on the Spanish Language Boomerang TV channel with most entries containing their original laugh track.
The show also previously aired in its original format on This TV on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:30 AM Eastern time (as part of itsCookie Jar Toons programming block) until September 22, 2011,
Copyright: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pink_Panther_Show
http://pinkpanther.wikia.com/wiki/The_Pink_Panther_Wiki
The Pink Panther Theme Song (Original Version)
Shows Intro