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The cartoons of Hanna Barbera had a distinct influence on me as I was growing up, though I have to say mainly through their older work. I loved Scooby Doo (before it was ruined by the addition of he-who-shall-not-be-named), Top Cat and The Flintstones, and I was also very keen on most of their shorter cartoons, featuring characters such as Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound.
Most of these cartoons had been made in the Sixties, but they were still regularly being shown on kids TV as I was growing up, such was their enduring appeal. What better then than a cartoon that brought many of these great characters together?
The result was Yogi’s Treasure Hunt, which featured Yogi, Boo Boo, Top Cat, Huckleberry Hound, Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy, Snagglepuss and more. It also featured my favourite ever cartoon villains Dastardly and Muttley from Wacky Races and Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines (better known, albeit wrongly, as Stop the Pigeon due to the theme song).
A quick aside about Wacky Races. Dastardly and Muttley always tried to prevent the other competitors in the race from winning by planting traps on the course for them. However, given that the courses didn’t appear to be lap based in any way, this meant Dastardly and Muttley always had to get in front of the pack to set their surprises. This being the case, and if they really wanted to win, they must have had the fastest car on the track, so why bother with the traps?
Back to Yogi’s Treasure Hunt. The show revolved around Yogi and the gang sailing around the world looking for treasure (not quite sure why they were on a big old galleon type ship but there you go), after being given orders from Top Cat (who’s voice in this show was totally wrong, presumably explaining his relatively minor appearance). Dastardly and Muttley tried to stop them from reaching the treasure, which of course they never did, but quite what happened to the treasure after they’d found it I don’t know. I guess Top Cat must have pocketed it all.
Viewing it today I think I actually like it more than when I was a kid! I remember watching it, but not being that enamoured with it as a child, finding it a bit boring, but viewing a few episodes on YouTube it’s full of mostly terrible one liner gags. It’s a bit of a case of it being so bad it’s good, if you see what I mean. Here’s an example below (and then you can see what I mean about TC).
November 15th, 2011 at 8:38 pm
I’ve no memory of this at all. I recall the other great HannaBarbera Team Up show Laff-a-lympics but not this.
November 16th, 2011 at 10:28 am
I’m 99% sure it was on CBBC, but it would have been mid to late Eighties so you may have stopped watching by then, given I know your age Phil!
I, on the other hand, always had the TV on whilst doing my homework, which probably explains why I used to spend far too long doing it, as I kept getting distracted.