Difference between revisions of "Hong Kong Phooey (TV series)"

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Mild-mannered police station janitor and anthropomorphic dog Penry Pooch is really [[Hong Kong Phooey (character)|Hong Kong Phooey]], who believes himself to be a competent and wise martial artist, when in fact is the complete opposite, to the point where he has to be saved by his pet cat, [[Spot]], who makes Hong Kong look like a hero.
Mild-mannered police station janitor and anthropomorphic dog Penry Pooch is really [[Hong Kong Phooey (character)|Hong Kong Phooey]], who believes himself to be a competent and wise martial artist, when in fact is the complete opposite, to the point where he has to be saved by his pet cat, [[Spot]], who makes Hong Kong look like a hero.


[[Big Duke]], [[Blubber]] and [[Stick]] from the final episode titled, "[[Comedy Cowboys]]," would later star in [[Posse Impossible|their own segments]] of the [[CB Bears]].
[[Big Duke]], [[Blubber]] and [[Stick]] from the final episode titled, "[[Comedy Cowboys]]," would later star in [[Posse Impossible (segments)|their own segments]] of the [[CB Bears]].


Hong Kong Phooey was memorable enough to be brought back in the Hanna-Barbera crossover series ''[[Laff-A-Lympics (TV series)|Laff-A-Lympics]]'' in [[1977]], as a member of the [[Scooby Doobies]]. Then in [[2001]] and [[2018]], he appeared in a [[Hong Kong Phooey (Web Premiere Toons)|web short]] and [[DC Comics]]' ''[[Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special/Issue 1|Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special]]'', respectively, with both times redoing him as someone serious and in complete control.
Hong Kong Phooey was memorable enough to be brought back in the Hanna-Barbera crossover series ''[[Laff-A-Lympics (TV series)|Laff-A-Lympics]]'' in [[1977]], as a member of the [[Scooby Doobies]]. Then in [[2001]] and [[2018]], he appeared in a [[Hong Kong Phooey (Web Premiere Toons)|web short]] and [[DC Comics]]' ''[[Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special/Issue 1|Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special]]'', respectively, with both times redoing him as someone serious and in complete control.

Revision as of 03:25, 20 May 2022

This article is about the TV series. For the main title character, see Hong Kong Phooey (character). For other uses, see Hong Kong Phooey.
Hong Kong Phooey
HKP title card.png
On-screen title card.
Network ABC
Production company Hanna-Barbera
Original release September 7December 21, 1974
Run time 30 minutes
Starring Scatman Crothers
Kathy Gori
Joe E. Ross
Don Messick
Executive producer(s) William Hanna
Joseph Barbera
Producer(s) Iwao Takamoto
Music composed by Hoyt Curtin
Writer(s) Bill Raynor
Fred Fox
Seamon Jacobs
Jen Janson
Chuck Menville
Larz Bourne
Jack Mendelsohn
Director(s) Charles A. Nichols
Wally Burr (voices)

Hong Kong Phooey is an American animated TV series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for ABC's Saturday morning children's programming. It ran in 1974, airing 16 episodes.

Mild-mannered police station janitor and anthropomorphic dog Penry Pooch is really Hong Kong Phooey, who believes himself to be a competent and wise martial artist, when in fact is the complete opposite, to the point where he has to be saved by his pet cat, Spot, who makes Hong Kong look like a hero.

Big Duke, Blubber and Stick from the final episode titled, "Comedy Cowboys," would later star in their own segments of the CB Bears.

Hong Kong Phooey was memorable enough to be brought back in the Hanna-Barbera crossover series Laff-A-Lympics in 1977, as a member of the Scooby Doobies. Then in 2001 and 2018, he appeared in a web short and DC Comics' Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey Special, respectively, with both times redoing him as someone serious and in complete control.

He also guest-starred in the 2017 reboot of Wacky Races.

Warner Bros. Pictures also attempted to make a live-action feature-length film, with Eddie Murphy in the lead. They only achieved producing a test film in 2012.

The entire series has been released on DVD.

Production

Development

Casting

Executive producer Joseph Barbera did not tell the network of Scatman Crothers's name when he was cast as Hong Kong Phooey, due to him believing they would not approve of a black man in the role.

Music

The music was composed by Hoyt Curtin, with musical supervision from Paul DeKorte. The sound editor was Joe Sandusky.

Episodes

Episode Number Air date
"Car Thieves" / "Zoo Story" 1x01 September 7, 1974
"Iron Head the Robot" / "Cotton Pickin' Pocket Picker" 1x02 September 14, 1974
"Grandma Goody (Cat Burglar)" / "Candle Power" 1x03 September 21, 1974
"The Penthouse Burglaries" / "Batty Bank Mob" 1x04 September 28, 1974
"The Voltage Villain" / "The Giggler" 1x05 October 5, 1974
"The Gumdrop Kid" / "Professor Presto (The Malevolent Magician)" 1x06 October 12, 1974
"TV or Not TV" / "Stop Horsing Around" 1x07 October 19, 1974
"Mirror, Mirror on the Wall" / "Great Movie Mystery" 1x08 October 26, 1974
"The Claw" / "Hong Kong Phooey vs. Hong Kong Phooey" 1x09 November 2, 1974
"The Abominable Snowman" / "Professor Crosshatch" 1x10 November 9, 1974
"Goldfisher" / "Green Thumb" 1x11 November 16, 1974
"From Bad to Verse (Rotten Rhymer)" / "Kong and the Counterfeiters" 1x12 November 23, 1974
"The Great Choo Choo Robbery" / "Patty Cake, Patty Cake, Bakery Man" 1x13 November 30, 1974
"Mr. Tornado" / "The Little Crook Who Wasn't There" 1x14 December 7, 1974
"Dr. Disguiso" / "The Incredible Mr. Shrink" 1x15 December 14, 1974
"Comedy Cowboys" 1x16 December 21, 1974

Cast

In popular culture

  • In the Family Guy episode "I Never Met the Dead Man," Peter can't resist the urge to jump into a children's ball pit at Cheesie Charlie's, shouting out "Hong Kong Phooey!" as he does.
  • The theme song appears on the Billboard for the Hot 100 Cartoon Songs in The Cleveland Show episode "Harder, Better, Faster, Browner." The writers are also mentioned underneath.
  • In The Goldbergs episode "Kara-te," Murray called Barry's karate performance for the talent show a "Hong Kong Phooey act."

Comic Book Men

  • "To the Bat Cave:" Walt says his favorite talking dog is Hong Kong Phooey.
  • "Dukes of Jersey:" Kevin Smith used Hong Kong Phooey as an example of being a fan of something, but wouldn't be so drastic as to get a tattoo of a show he may later have no interest in.
  • "KITT and Caboodle:" Walt mentions how Hong Kong Phooey was created during the kung fu craze of the 1970s.

References