''The Adventures of Spunky and Tadpole'' is an animated

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

produced by Beverly Hills Productions and syndicated beginning on September 6, 1958. The show's characters were a boy and a bear who hunted down bad guys. The show was made in three and a half-minute episodes, with ten parts comprising each story. It was most frequently shown one episode a day as part of a local station's afternoon children's programming. The show remained in production until September 9, 1961, airing 150 episodes.

Marketing

According to ''Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003'':

Ultra-chintzy both in concept and execution... ''Spunky and Tadpole'' was given a big-bucks promotional sendoff in 1958 by its first syndicator, Guild Films. A major TV distributor of the period thanks to such valuable properties as the '' Liberace Show'' and the Warner Bros.
Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American media franchise produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The franchise began as a series of animated short films that originally ran from 1930 to 1969, alongside its spin-off series ''Merrie Melodies'', during t ...
theatrical cartoons, Guild secured bookings for ''Spunky and Tadpole'' in several top markets, promising a series that would appeal equally to grownups and children. Competition from stronger syndies like '' Huckleberry Hound'' and the
Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short-subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical, farce, and slapstick comedy. Six total ...
shorts caused ''Spunky and Tadpole'' to fall by the wayside, and when Guild disappeared in a merger at the end of the 1950s, the cartoons were shunted around to several minor distributors. Offered at bargain rates to less affluent stations in smaller markets, ''Spunky and Tadpole'' continued to play unobtrusively into the mid-1960s.Erickson, Hal. ''Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003''. McFarland & Company; 2nd edition (June 30, 2005),

Fundraising practices of the production company

Actress Corinne Calvet and her husband were originally vice-presidents of Beverly Hills Productions, but withdrew from the company after the shady fund-raising practices on the part of president and producer Ed Janis attracted the attention of the

Better Business Bureau The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is an American private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 92 independently incorporated local BBB organizati ...

and were reported on by '' Variety''.

Voices

The voice cast included: * Joan Gardner – Spunky *

Don Messick Donald Earle Messick (September 7, 1926 – October 24, 1997) was an American voice actor, known for his performances in Hanna-Barbera cartoons. His best-remembered voice roles include Scooby-Doo; Bamm-Bamm Rubble and Hoppy in ''The Flintsto ...

– Tadpole * Ed Janis – Tadpole

Episodes

References

External links

''Spunky and Tadpole''
at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

Archived
from the original on August 8, 2017. * * https://tralfaz.blogspot.com/2015/06/psst-wanna-buy-cartoon.html 1950s American animated television series 1958 American animated television series debuts 1960s American animated television series 1961 American television series endings American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series Animated television series about bears Animated television series about children First-run syndicated animated television series {{animation-tv-prog-stub