Don't Fool with a Phantom (Where Are You!)


 * This article is about the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! episode. For The Funky Phantom episode, see "Don't Fool with a Phantom."

"Don't Fool with a Phantom" is the eighth episode of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! season two, and the twenty-fifth and final overall. It aired on October 31, 1970 on CBS. It was produced and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, the founders of Hanna-Barbera Productions.

A waxy phantom interrupts a TV dance contest the gang is competing in.

Detailed summary
During the Johnny Sands dance contest at TV station KLMN, the lights go out and a giant, shapeless figure briefly appears. When the lights come back on, the station manager, Mr. Stevens, has vanished, and Johnny Sands is found tied up in the back. Johnny blames the escapade on the "Wax Phantom," a figure created by a crank wax sculptor with a grudge against the station. Even though the station safe has been robbed and Mr. Stevens apparently took as a hostage, Johnny begs the kids not to call the police because the station has been in financial trouble and couldn't take the publicity.

The gang then split up, with Scooby, Shaggy, and Velma setting off to visit the sculptor, Grisby, while Freddy and Daphne go off to investigate the local wax museum. The creepy Grisby tells Velma that he knows what happened at the TV station thanks to his crystal ball, and cheerfully admits to dabbling in black magic. He believes that he has indeed brought the Wax Phantom to life. Velma and the others race over to the museum to warn Freddy and Daphne.

At the museum, Freddy and Daphne have entered through the open front door but are then locked in and chased by the Wax Phantom. Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby enter through a window and find themselves in the monster display room. Fleeing a ghostly hand and ghostly laugh, they run into Freddy and Daphne and come across an airline ticket on the floor.

The gang splits up again, with Freddy and the girls falling through a trap door while Scooby and Shaggy try snacking on some wax fruit. They are interrupted by the Wax Phantom, who catches them after they take a detour through the Topsy Turvey Room. He threatens to turn them into wax creatures.

Freddy and the girls find a satchel full of money down in the secret room; they also find a secret panel that lets them out, and they follow the groans of Shaggy and Scooby. The Wax Phantom places the hapless pair on a conveyor belt that will drop them into a vat of molten wax, but Daphne accidentally reverses the belt, and Scooby and Shaggy escape. A chase ensues.

After they escape from the Phantom, Freddy decides to turn the tables on the Phantom by luring him under a wax shower. Shaggy and Scooby unwittingly act as bait and get trapped in the wax shower along with the Phantom. When the police arrive, Scooby and Shaggy are broken out of their wax prison, and the Wax Phantom is unmasked as Mr. Stevens. He had embezzled a lot of money from the TV station and was planning to flee to South America, leaving the mad Grisby to take the blame for both the theft and the disappearance.

The gang is free to go back on the road, and Shaggy and Scooby have taken a couple of souvenirs: Wax sculptures they made of themselves. Daphne asks them what they're going to do with their creations, with Shaggy telling her that next time there's a mystery, the dummies will take their place instead. Fred then makes a joke that they wouldn't be able to tell the difference between either, which doesn't amuse the duo at all.

Memorable quotes
Fred: Okay, Scoob? Scooby: You got to be kidding!

Fred: Now, Mister Wax Phantom, time to find out who you really are. Shaggy: Hey! You're chipping him down to regular size. Fred: Mr. Roger Stevens, the TV station manager! Roger: And I wish you'd have minded your own business.

Daphne: Just what are you two fellas going to do with those wax dummies you made? Shaggy: Like, simple. Next time we have a mystery, those dummies can go instead of us. Fred: There's only one problem -- how to tell "one" pair of dummies from the other! Shaggy: Very funny. Very funny! Scooby: Yeah! Very funny!

Characters

 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Johnny Sands
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Casey Kasem
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Fred Jones
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Daphne Blake
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Heather North
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Roger Stevens
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Scooby-Doo
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Shaggy Rogers
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Casey Kasem
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Velma Dinkley
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Nicole Jaffe
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Wax Phantom
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Michael Stull
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Mr. Grisby
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Sheriff
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#clear"| Nicole Jaffe
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Wax Phantom
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Michael Stull
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Mr. Grisby
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Sheriff
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Sheriff
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Don Messick

Organizations

 * Mystery Incorporated

Locations

 * Earth
 * United States
 * California
 * KLMN
 * Mr. Grisby's residence
 * Wax museum
 * South America (mentioned)

Objects

 * Scooby Snacks

Vehicles

 * The Mystery Machine

Development
Credited writers are Larz Bourne, Tom Degenais, and Bill Lutz, while Joe Ruby and Ken Spears story edited.

Music
The theme song's lyrics were written by David Mook, while Ben Raleigh wrote the music, which was performed by George A. Robertson, Jr. The score was composed by Ted Nichols, who was credited as the musical director.

Songs
The song below was produced by La La Productions.


 * "Pretty Mary Sunlight" - performed by George A. Robertson, Jr.

Release
Dates are in order of release:


 * United States: October 31, 1970 on CBS

Behind the scenes

 * Black Widow, a villain from Hanna-Barbera's Space Ghost, cameos as the animatronic figure who passes Scooby the fruit bowl.

Errors

 * When the inside of the TV station is first seen at the beginning of the episode, Velma is not present next to Shaggy and Scooby as they watch Fred and Daphne dance.
 * Daphne's eyebrows are missing as Mr. Stevens comments on how Shaggy and Scooby look like they could win the contest. At the same time, Velma's lips are pronounced right up until the close-up of her talking.
 * When Johnny says the studio has been receiving threatening letters, the inside of his shirt is flesh-colored. Also, when the camera gets to Fred listening to him continue to talk, the visible part of the inside of his collar is also flesh-colored.
 * Around this time, when Johnny is recuperating from the Wax Phantom's attack, he rubs his head. However, it appears that he loses and regains bits of his head as he does so because his hand intersects with parts of his head and hair.
 * When Fred states the safe was robbed and that Mr. Stevens could've been taken as a hostage, Daphne's pantyhose are missing.
 * When Johnny says the bad publicity could close the studio, the inside of his ascot at the back of his neck is flesh-colored.
 * When Velma says they've got another mystery on their hands, a bit in the left corner of her forehead where her hair is, is flesh-colored.
 * At the entrance of KLMN, the Mystery Machine is missing its orange license plate.
 * When Fred point at the sign and says, "Look, the wax phantom display," Daphne's pantyhose are missing.
 * When Velma turns her head to Shaggy and asks him when he would like to go to Mr. Grisby's house, the visible part of her neck is orange.
 * The right backdoor of the Mystery Machine (the one that doesn't open), is missing the blue stripe along the middle where the handle would be, which is also missing.
 * The arm of Velma's glasses is missing when Scooby and Shaggy jump into her arms after being frightened by the owl's hoots.
 * After Mr. Grisby shuts the door after the trio has entered his house, his face appears blurred for a fraction of a second.
 * Throughout the trio's meeting with Mr. Grisby, the gap at the top of his jacket is either black or brown like his jacket, if there's even a gap at all.
 * As Velma's head bops up as she says they've got to get back to the others, her neck right underneath her chin is orange.
 * As Daphne and Fred wait for the other three to drive out the back of the van on the scooter, Daphne doesn't have lipstick or lips period.
 * At the time Daphne says someone forgot to lock the museum, the Mystery Machine matches the look of the museum and the rest of the city -- dark blue with little to no details.
 * After Fred says, "Hey, they did!" and the camera pans from Fred and Daphne's backs to their front, a small orange spot can be seen on the right side of Fred's face.
 * When Shaggy, Scooby, Scooby, and Velma arrive at the museum, the Mystery Machine retains the look it gained when Daphne noted that someone forgot to lock the museum -- dark blue with no little to no details, like the museum, and the rest of the city.
 * When Fred says to Daphne to go into the museum, the right bottom corner of his orange ascot seeps into his collar.
 * Fred's ascot is missing on the right side of his neck when he sits on the floor after the two groups collide while in the museum.
 * While in the Egyptian coffin, the bottom half of Scooby's neck is missing and the top half which is visible is skin-colored. He also appears to have two collars.
 * Down in the pit, Fred either has blue socks or the color has just continued from his pants.
 * The Scooby Snacks box in the topsy-turvy room has a different design to the one Velma held.
 * During the moment Fred says, "Offhand, I'd say over there at that ventilator", Daphne's pantyhose briefly disappear and then her scarf turns light purple.
 * When Fred tells the girls they should take a peek through the ventilator, the gap between his collar and ascot flashes from blue to flesh color to orange.
 * Daphne's eyebrows are missing when Fred says it's nice to see Scooby and Shaggy after he pulled them into a room when they were running away from the phantom at the end of the song.
 * When Fred points down to the waxworks to plan their trap, Daphne's lower lip looks like it's covering more of her opened mouth than it should be because it's slightly darker as if the bottom was drawn too high.
 * Shaggy's whiskers are missing when Fred says about Daphne locking the in the room.
 * When Shaggy says they thought the Wax Phantom was either a real ghost or Mr. Grisby, his neck covers the gaps in his hair (instead of having the background drawn in), but when he moves his body doesn't adjust well and an additional piece has been added beside his neck.
 * When Shaggy suggests the dummies can go with Fred, Daphne, and Velma instead of him and Scooby, his neck blinks between being bigger and smaller.
 * At the end of the episode, when Fred makes the joke about the dummies, Daphne's neck is briefly invisible.
 * When Shaggy and Scooby are sarcastically remarking how "funny" Fred's joke is, Scooby's eyes blink between being attached and detached in the close-up shot of him.
 * Despite it being called The Johnny Sands Dance Game Show, the banner says "Johnny Sands Dance Game Show."
 * Both Shaggy and Scooby were at the left of the screen, but when they go on stage Scooby enters from the right. He could've quickly got to the right behind the curtain. Fred and Daphne are also seated quickly.
 * When the Wax Phantom first appears onstage, Stevens, the culprit behind the Wax Phantom, is seen on the far right of the stage even though he should be in the Wax Phantom costume.
 * Time seems to have been a thought on the writers' minds in this one particular episode if they needed a scooter for Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby to use to get to Mr. Grisby's house. Protective headgear didn't seem to be an issue though.
 * When they leave on the scooter only the left backdoor opens, but surely both doors would've opened?
 * Mr. Grisby mentions a cemetery nearby, but that just seems to be a foil to make him more spooky.
 * After Velma presents a box of Scooby Snacks in order to goad Shaggy and Scooby into entering the wax museum via a window, Shaggy says "Let's find a window, Scoob", whilst waiting for the Scooby Snacks. After receiving and gobbling down the Scooby Snacks, Shaggy repeats the line, almost word for word, when he says "Let's go find the window, Scoob."
 * When the gang walk through the museum, after finding their first clue, Fred's mouth is open slightly (with the gap filled in with his teeth), giving him a goofy smile.
 * Fred seems to know the ticket is for a plane going to South America, but the ticket simply says, "Speedy Airlines Ticket."
 * Scooby and Shaggy defy gravity in the topsy-turvy room, but the Scooby Snacks still fall to the ground. What are Scooby Snacks doing in there anyway?
 * The hole in the ventilator looks a lot smaller before it's opened.
 * Before she falls out the ventilator hole, Daphne is waving, when it would've made more sense to point Scooby and Shaggy out.
 * As Daphne begins to fall, Fred's warning to her doesn't match his movements as he still looks like he's looking at Scooby and Shaggy.
 * The ventilator is covered back up when the gang return to the ventilator room. When Fred points out what they'll do down below, it's gone.
 * When the Wax Phantom has Scooby and Shaggy tied and plans to dump them in a wax vat it's threatening to them, but later when for comedic purposes they survive being poured down with wax anyway. They're not only able to survive unharmed, but (along with Mr. Stevens who was also wearing his costume) can breathe within their wax prison.
 * When Fred chips away at Mr. Stevens's wax, Scooby and Shaggy are completely free of their wax coatings (when only their heads had been freed) and behind Fred.
 * The sheriff is wincing the entire time. Perhaps that's less of a mistake and more of a medical condition.
 * Due to the interruption, the winning couple is never announced. It's unknown if it was outright canceled or postponed. Due to time never being an issue in the series (the gang spends what seems an entire night solving a case, only to go back to do what they were doing before on the same night), it was likely they were driving back to KLMN at the end of the episode.
 * At the end of the episode, as the Mystery Machine drives through town, Shaggy is shown at the front, but a close-up to the inside reveals that he is actually in the back with Scooby.
 * Making wax sculptures is incredibly easy for Shaggy and Scooby to do, and takes them what seems minutes to do. No reasonable thought was put into the pair having them, they just have it and that's that.

Everlasting influence

 * Jerry Reed (as his character) performed "Pretty Mary Sunlight" in The New Scooby-Doo Movies episode "The Phantom of the Country Music Hall."

Home availability

 * In the United States:
 * March 16, 2004: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete First and Second Seasons on DVD.
 * November 9, 2010: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series (limited edition) on DVD.
 * November 13, 2012: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series on DVD.
 * August 20, 2013: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright on DVD.
 * August 20, 2013: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright on Blu-ray Disc.
 * May 23, 2017: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete First and Second Seasons (Hanna-Barbera Diamond Collection edition) on DVD.
 * August 17, 2017: Warner Home Video releases Happy Spook-Day, Scooby-Doo! on DVD.
 * December 12, 2017: Warner Home Video releases Hanna-Barbera Diamond Collection 4-Pack on DVD.
 * February 13, 2018: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series (repackaging) on DVD.
 * June 4, 2019: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete First and Second Seasons on DVD.
 * August 13, 2019: Warner Home Video releases Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Scooby-Doo! on DVD.
 * September 9, 2020: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series (limited edition) on Blu-ray Disc.
 * March 1, 2022: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You: The Complete Series on Blu-ray Disc.
 * In the United Kingdom and Ireland:
 * June 20, 2005: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete First and Second Seasons on DVD.
 * November 21, 2011: Warner Home Video releases Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series on DVD.
 * In Poland:
 * April 9, 2012: Warner Home Video releases Happy Spook-Day, Scooby-Doo! on DVD.