# The Abbott and Costello Cartoon Show

The Abbott and Costello Cartoon Show is an American half-hour animated comedy television series of the famous comedy duo that aired in syndication from September 9, 1967, to June 1, 1968. Each of the 39 individual episodes consisted of four five-minute cartoons. The cartoons were created jointly by Hanna-Barbera, RKO General, and Jomar Productions between 1965 and 1967. The series was syndicated by Gold Key Entertainment and King World Productions, with the rights now owned by Warner Bros. Television Distribution (through Turner Entertainment).
Bud Abbott provided the voice for his own character. Stan Irwin provided the voice of Lou Costello, who had died in 1959. The rest of the voice cast was composed of Hanna-Barbera regulars. Canadian cartoonist Lynn Johnston, best known for her comic strip, For Better or For Worse, was an uncredited cel colorist.

## Production

Abbott and Costello is among the animated programs of the 1960s that are based on the decade's nostalgia craze which animated other comedy teams of the past such as Laurel and Hardy and The New 3 Stooges. It was pitched by the duo's manager Eddie Sherman to producer Lee Orgel, who also worked on The New 3 Stooges and further developed the concept. Orgel originally planned for the series to be produced at Cambria Productions, however the show's sponsor insisted it be done entirely at Hanna-Barbera instead. The show created work for the ill and impoverished Bud Abbott, who provided the voice of his animated character. Lou Costello had died in 1959, and his voice was supplied by nightclub manager Stan Irwin (1920-2015), who was a close friend of the duo.

## Voices

* Bud Abbott as Himself
* Stan Irwin as Lou Costello
Additional voices: Mel Blanc, Don Messick, Hal Smith, John Stephenson, Janet Waldo

## Episodes

| No. | Cartoon 1 | Cartoon 2 | Cartoon 3 | Cartoon 4 | Original air date |
| 1 | "Cops and Saucers" | "Dog Gone Dog" | "Go Go Goliath" | "In the Soup" | September 9, 1967 |
| 2 | "The Cloud Monster" | "The Gravity Grabber" | "There Auto Be a Law" | "Tiny Terror" | September 16, 1967 |
| 3 | "Big Bird Break Out" | "Going Buggy" | "Sahara You?" | "The Vikings" | September 23, 1967 |
| 4 | "Down in the Dumps" | "Eskimo Pie-eyed" | "Lube-a-Tuba" | "The Forty Thieves" | September 30, 1967 |
| 5 | "Frail Whale" | "Sitting Pity" | "Tooth or Consequences" | "Wizardland" | October 7, 1967 |
| 6 | "Catman on a Hot Tin Roof" | "Elephantasy" | "Shutter Bugged Sea Serpent" | "The Mark of El-Zap" | October 14, 1967 |
| 7 | "Kooks and Spooks" | "Mouse Route" | "Stand-In Stand-Off" | "Super Lou" | October 21, 1967 |
| 8 | "Dinosaur Dilemma" | "Frigid Fugitive" | "The Astro Nuttys" | "The Industructible Space Suit" | October 28, 1967 |
| 9 | "Galoots in Armor Suits" | "Mighty Midget Mustang" | "The Bouncing Rubber Man" | "The Purple Baron" | November 4, 1967 |
| 10 | "Abbott and Costello in Blunderland" | "Going to Pot" | "Skyscrapper Napper" | "The Two Musketeers" | November 11, 1967 |
| 11 | "A Creep in the Deep" | "Crying High" | "Germ Squirm" | "Weird Neighbors" | November 18, 1967 |
| 12 | "Lashed but Leashed" | "Pigskin Pickle" | "The Moleman Mine" | "Two on the Isle" | November 25, 1967 |
| 13 | "Space Toy Tyrants" | "The Little Fat Boy Cried Wolf " | "Wacky Wax Work" | "Werewolf Whim-Wham" | December 2, 1967 |
| 14 | "A Goose Misuse" | "Invader Raider" | "Monster Muddled" | "The Monsterkeet" | December 9, 1967 |
| 15 | "Going, Going, Gun!" | "Paddle Boat Pirate" | "Road Race Ruckus" | "Who Needs Arrest?" | December 16, 1967 |
| 16 | "Baby Buggy" | "Drumsticks Along the Mohawk" | "Gone Ghosts" | "Hey, Abbott!" | December 23, 1967 |
| 17 | "A Car Is Born" | "Lumbering Lummoxes" | "Professor Uncle's Ants" | "Teenie Weenie Genie" | December 30, 1967 |
| 18 | "Fish-Hooked" | "High Wire Lion" | "Magic Monster" | "Planet Plant" | January 6, 1968 |
| 19 | "Baby Shoo" | "Marauding Mummy" | "Space Beard" | "The Long Long Camper" | January 13, 1968 |
| 20 | "Fumbled Fable" | "Phantom of the Hoss Opera" | "Puppet Enemy Number One" | "Rabbit Grabbers" | January 20, 1968 |
| 21 | "Phoney Express" | "The Big Cannon Caper" | "The Vacuum Villain" | "Throne of a Loss" | January 27, 1968 |
| 22 | "A Guest in the Nest" | "Concrete Evidence" | "Glass Reunion" | "The Lava Monster" | February 3, 1968 |
| 23 | "Broom Gloom" | "Gadzooka" | "Gone Like the Wind" | "Merry Misfits" | February 10, 1968 |
| 24 | "Fighting the Clock" | "Rescue Miscue" | "Sinister Professor Sinister" | "The Hound Hounders" | February 17, 1968 |
| 25 | "Bully Billy" | "Pigs in a Panic" | "Ship Ahooey" | "Underworld Whirl" | February 24, 1968 |
| 26 | "Dragon Along" | "Mounty-Bounty" | "Password to Panic" | "Super Terror Strikes Again" | March 2, 1968 |
| 27 | "No Place Like Rome" | "Not So Sweet Sioux" | "Texas Jack" | "Follow the Bouncing Blob" | March 9, 1968 |
| 28 | "Luna Tricks" | "Pearl Diving Perils" | "Picture Frame-Up" | "The Queen of Diamonds" | March 16, 1968 |
| 29 | "Booty Bounty" | "Dangerous Buck" | "G.I. Jokers" | "Tasmanian Terror" | March 23, 1968 |
| 30 | "Gator Baiter" | "The Fiendish Farmer" | "The Gadget King" | "The Ice-Tronauts" | March 30, 1968 |
| 31 | "Rabbit Rouser" | "Save a Cave" | "Which Witch Is Which?" | "Wild Man, Wild" | April 6, 1968 |
| 32 | "Doggies by the Dozen" | "Shooting the Works" | "Son of Konk" | "Super Knight" | April 13, 1968 |
| 33 | "Bully for Lou" | "Cherokee Choo-Choo" | "Hotel Suite and Sour" | "Rhino Riot" | April 20, 1968 |
| 34 | "Carnival of Menace" | "Shoo Shoes" | "Teensy vs. Weensys" | "Tragic Magic" | April 27, 1968 |
| 35 | "Get 'im Tiger" | "Hullaba-Lou" | "Mountain Mischief" | "The Drastic Driller" | May 4, 1968 |
| 36 | "Gorilla Thriller" | "The Eighth Dwarf" | "Turkish Daffy" | "Yankee Doodle Dudes" | May 11, 1968 |
| 37 | "Rodeo Rumpus" | "Run of DeMille Pictures" | "Super Car" | "The Sinister Stinger" | May 18, 1968 |
| 38 | "Bad Day at High Noon" | "Magic Mix-Up" | "Shock Treatment" | "Tom All-Thumbs" | May 25, 1968 |
| 39 | "Pinocchio's Double Trouble" | "Private General Nuisance" | "Starlight Starfright" | "Trigger Tricks" | June 1, 1968 |

## Comic book series

A comic book based on the TV show was produced by Charlton Comics. Starting in February 1968, it ran for 22 issues, ending in August 1971.

## Reception

Hal Erickson, author of Television Cartoon Shows, An Illustrated Encyclopedia gave the program a negative review, stating that Abbott and Costello episodes were difficult to tell apart. Erickson stated that "virtually every one them features the tubby Costello being pursued by some bugeyed monster or giant sized garden pest" and that "None of the classic verbal exchanges which brought the real Abbott and Costello to fame in the first place are evident."

## Home media

An episode of the show, "Gadzooka" was released in May 2013 as part of The Best of Warner Bros.: Hanna Barbera 25 Cartoon Collection DVD set.