 Hanna-Barbera created The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest in the early 1990s after being acquired by Turner Entertainment Co. Turner planned a series of year-long "Turner-wide initiatives" to capitalize on old characters and create new franchises. Turner received copious fan mail and phone inquiries about Quest, and observed "incredibly high" marketing Q Scores. The show was also Hanna-Barbera's most popular venture in the action-adventure genre; no other contemporary series featured realistic children enjoying lifelike adventures. With William Hanna and Joseph Barbera's blessings, the company planned a new series, live action film, and two telefilms — Jonny's Golden Quest and Jonny Quest vs. The Cyber Insects. Combined with a substantial marketing campaign, the project would be their largest initiative since Turner acquired H-B. Turner Home Entertainment President Philip Kent claimed Quest would be a "consumer-products bonanza", and the company considered Real Adventures the linchpin of the Quest revival. Real Adventures, the live-action film, and release of classic episodes on VHS would constitute a "Year of Jonny Quest" marketing blitz. Delayed until 1996, the project echoed 1994's "Year of the Flintstones" and 1995's "Year of Yogi Bear". Production on Real Adventures commenced in 1993. Turner hired a team led by director Dick Sebast, writer Peter Lawrence, and art director Takashi Masunaga. The firm appointed Stephanie Sperber head of the Quest task force in 1994.
