Paw Paws
| Paw Paws | |
|---|---|
 On-screen title card. | |
| Network | Syndication |
| Production company | Hanna-Barbera |
| Distributor | Worldvision Enterprises |
| Original release | September 15, 1985—February 2, 1986 |
| Run time | 21 minutes |
| Starring | John Ingle Susan Blu Thom Pinto Bob Ridgely Alexandra Stoddart John Ingle Stanley Ralph Ross Frank Welker |
| Executive producer(s) | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Producer(s) | Berny Wolf |
| Music composed by | Hoyt Curtin |
| Writer(s) | Jim Ryan Don Nelson Arthur Allsberg |
| Director(s) | Art Davis Oscar Dufau Don Lusk Carl Urbano Rudy Zamora Alan Zaslove Gordon Hunt (voices) |
Paw Paws is an American animated fantasy television series produced by Hanna-Barbera for syndication on stations that took part in The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera programming block. It ran from 1985 to 1986, airing 21 episodes that spanned one season. The series also has two other different names; the first being Paw Paw Bears, which is sung in the theme song right over the Paw Paws title, and the episode title cards say The Paw Paws.
The series centre around a group of Native American bears known as the Paw Paws, who defend themselves from the Meanos, led by the evil sorcerer Dark Paw. Dark Paw and his henchmen plan steal three totem poles from the Paw Paws; consisting of Totem Bear, Totem Tortoise, and Totem Eagle. The totems also served as the tribe's protectors, coming to life when needed through means of Princess Paw Paw's Mystic Moonstone, which she wore around her neck, to defend the village.
The entire series has been released on DVD.
Production
Development
Music
The music was composed and conducted by Hoyt Curtin, with musical supervision from Paul DeKorte.
Episodes
| Episode | Number | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| "The Big Spell" | 1x01 | September 15, 1985 |
| "The Wishing Star Crystal" | 1x02 | September 22, 1985 |
| "The Flying Horse-Napper" | 1x03 | September 29, 1985 |
| "The Creepy Cave Creature" | 1x04 | October 6, 1985 |
| "The Greedie Greenies" | 1x05 | October 13, 1985 |
| "The Rise of the Evil Spirits" | 1x06 | October 20, 1985 |
| "The Genie-athalon" | 1x07 | October 27, 1985 |
| "The Golden Falcon" | 1x08 | November 3, 1985 |
| "A Honey of a Robbery" | 1x09 | November 10, 1985 |
| "Totem Termi-Nation" | 1x10 | November 17, 1985 |
| "Waif Goodbye to the Paw Paws" | 1x11 | November 24, 1985 |
| "The Dark Paw Totem" | 1x12 | December 1, 1985 |
| "Dark Paw Under Wraps" | 1x13 | December 8, 1985 |
| "Genie Without a Lamp" | 1x14 | December 15, 1985 |
| "Egging Dark Paw On" | 1x15 | December 22, 1985 |
| "Two Heads Are Better Than None" | 1x16 | December 29, 1985 |
| "The Great Paw Paw Turnaround" | 1x17 | January 5, 1986 |
| "Lost Lake Monster" | 1x18 | January 12, 1986 |
| "Totem Time Trap" | 1x19 | January 19, 1986 |
| "S'no Business" | 1x20 | January 26, 1986 |
| "The Zip Zap 4-D Trap" | 1x21 | February 2, 1986 |
Cast
- Susan Blu as Princess Paw Paw
- Thom Pinto as Brave Paw
- Bob Ridgely as Mighty Paw
- Alexandra Stoddart as Laughing Paw
- John Ingle as Wise Paw
- Stanley Ralph Ross as Dark Paw
- Frank Welker as Bumble Paw and Totem Bear
Legacy
Critical reception
In 2014, listing it among twelve 1980s cartoons that did not deserve remembrance, blog website io9 characterized Paw Paws as "kind of racist," due to Hanna-Barbera making a series embodying Native American stereotypes.[1]
References
- ^ Bricken, Rob (11 November 2014). "12 Cartoons From The 1980s No One Will Ever Have Nostalgia For". io9. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
