A Pup Named Scooby-Doo

A Pup Named Scooby-Doo is an American animated supernatural mystery-comedy television series created by Tom Ruegger. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera (H-B) for ABC's Saturday morning children's programming. It ran from 1988 to 1991, airing 27 episodes that spanned four seasons. It was the eighth Scooby-Doo series after Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!

Through all the format changes, celebrity guests, and cast changes, we finally go back to just the five essential characters: Shaggy, Daphne, Freddy, Velma, and Scooby-Doo. But this time we see them as junior high students in their hometown of Coolsville, where there is plenty of sleuthing to be had. When you're in Coolsville, look up the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency.

The entire series has been released on DVD.

Development
In 1988, Ruegger was hired by ABC executives Jeannie Elias and Amy Simon to create a new Scooby-Doo series, using it as a way of doing something fresh, which was to depict the main characters as actual kids for kids to watch, with the working title being Scooby-Doo: The Puppy Years. This was not inspired by the current trend of what became known as the "babyfication" of popular older cartoon characters, which began with Muppet Babies, something Ruegger was not a fan of as he saw it as, well, too "babyish."

Casting
Don Messick and Casey Kasem were bought back to voice Scooby and Shaggy, respectively, but their voices were pitched slightly higher to sound more youthful.

Music
The music was composed by John Debney, with Joanne Miller acting as director of music supervision for the first three seasons, then Bodie Chandler acting as director of music production for the fourth.

Theme song lyrics (Scooby Dooby, Scooby Dooby Doo! Scooby Dooby, Scooby Dooby Doo!)

There's a mystery in town, So call the coolest pup around Oh Scooby, A Pup Named Scooby-Doo!

Join Shaggy and the crew With Daphne, Freddie, and Velma too, Scooby, A Pup Named Scooby-Doo!

When the ghost and ghouls attack, Scooby eats a Scooby Snack. Scooby Dooby Doo! Jinkies!

(Scooby Dooby, Scooby Dooby Doo!) Come on! (Scooby Dooby, Scooby Dooby Doo!) Scooby!

So come on it's mystery time and You can help us solve the crime! With Scooby, A pup named Scooby, Scooby, a pup named Scooby-Doo!

Scooby-Doo, where are you? Scooby-Doo!

Cast

 * Don Messick as Scooby-Doo
 * Casey Kasem as Shaggy Rogers
 * Kellie Martin as Daphne Blake
 * Carl Steven as Freddy Jones
 * Christina Lange as Velma Dinkley
 * Scott Menville as Red Herring

Legacy
There is a flashback in the What's New, Scooby-Doo? episode "A Terrifying Round with a Menacing Metallic Clown," depicting Mystery Inc. in the designs they are depicted in A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. Interestingly, besides Velma, the only other character to talk is Fred, who is voiced by Frank Welker, who was replaced by Carl Steven in the prequel.

In 2013, A Pup Named Scooby-Doo served as an inspiration for puppet designs and humor for the direct-to-video film called Scooby-Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map.

In popular culture

 * In the Young Sheldon episode "Spock, Kirk, and Testicular Hernia," Sheldon tricks Missy out of watching A Pup Named Scooby-Doo so he can watch Professor Proton, a parody of Bill Nye, the Science Guy, and Mr. Wizard.