The Robonic Stooges
| The Robonic Stooges | |
|---|---|
 On-screen title card. | |
| Created by | Norman Maurer |
| Network | CBS |
| Production company | Hanna-Barbera |
| Original release | September 10, 1977—March 18, 1978 |
| Starring | Joe Baker Ross Martin Frank Welker Paul Winchell |
| Producer(s) | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Music composed by | Hoyt Curtin |
| Director(s) | Charles A. Nichols Chris Cuddington |
The Robonic Stooges is a series of animated segments as part of the Skatebirds television series, produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for CBS's Saturday morning children's programming block. It ran from 1977 to 1978, airing 32 episodes in total that spanned one season.[1] When Skatebirds ended in early 1978, the series was given their own half-hour timeslot that ran for 16 episodes, airing alongside Woofer & Wimper, Dog Detectives.[2]
In this strange twist on The Three Stooges, Moe, Larry and Curly work together as a team of cybernetic superheroes, and are given assignments from their boss Agent 000 of the Superhero Employment Agency.
Production
Development
Casting
Since all of the original Three Stooges had died when production began (Moe Howard and Larry Fine had both died in 1975, and Curly Howard died in 1952), other voice actors were used to impersonate them, mostly veteran voice actors from the Hanna-Barbera studio.[3] Paul Winchell, Joe Baker and Frank Welker provided the voices of Moe, Larry and Curly, respectively. For Curly in particular, Welker used a similar voice impression to that of Jabberjaw, another character he was voicing at the time.
Music
The music was composed by Hoyt Curtin.
Episodes
- Note: After the first sixteen episodes of the Robonic Stooges, it was spun-off into its own half-hour series, leaving the remaining sixteen episodes being part of its own series rather than the Skatebirds.
| Episode | Original air date |
|---|---|
| 1x01 | September 10, 1977 |
| 1x02 | September 17, 1977 |
| 1x03 | September 24, 1977 |
| 1x04 | October 1, 1977 |
| 1x05 | October 8, 1977 |
| 1x06 | October 15, 1977 |
| 1x07 | October 22, 1977 |
| 1x08 | October 29, 1977 |
| 1x09 | November 5, 1977 |
| 1x10 | November 12, 1977 |
| 1x11 | November 19, 1977 |
| 1x12 | November 26, 1977 |
| 1x13 | December 3, 1977 |
| 1x14 | December 10, 1977 |
| 1x15 | December 17, 1977 |
| 1x16 | December 24, 1977 |
| 1x17 | January 28, 1978 |
| 1x18 | January 28, 1978 |
| 1x19 | February 4, 1978 |
| 1x20 | February 4, 1978 |
| 1x21 | February 11, 1978 |
| 1x22 | February 11, 1978 |
| 1x23 | February 18, 1978 |
| 1x24 | February 18, 1978 |
| 1x25 | February 25, 1978 |
| 1x26 | February 25, 1978 |
| 1x27 | March 4, 1978 |
| 1x28 | March 4, 1978 |
| 1x29 | March 11, 1978 |
| 1x30 | March 11, 1978 |
| 1x31 | March 18, 1978 |
| 1x32 | March 18, 1978 |
Cast
- Joe Baker as Larry
- Ross Martin as Agent 000
- Frank Welker as Curly and Narrator
- Paul Winchell as Moe
Legacy
American Mythology published three issues of The Robonic Stooges from 2021 to 2022.
References
- ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 748–750. ISBN 978-1476665993. Retrieved on November 30, 2022.
- ^ Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part 1: Animated Cartoon Series. Scarecrow Press. pp. 288–290. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved on November 30, 2022.
- ^ Markstein, Don. Three Robonic Stooges. Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Retrieved on November 30, 2022.
