''Top Cat'' is an American

animated sitcom An animated sitcom is a subgenre of the sitcom that is animated instead of live action and is generally made or created for adult audiences in most cases. ''SpongeBob SquarePants'', ''The Simpsons'', ''South Park'', and ''Family Guy'' are four of ...

produced by

Hanna-Barbera Productions Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

and originally broadcast in prime time on the ABC network. It aired in a weekly evening time slot from September 27, 1961, to April 18, 1962, for a single season of 30 episodes. The show was a ratings failure in prime time, but became successful upon its time on Saturday morning television. The show also became very popular in Latin American countries (especially

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

), and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

History

''Top Cat'' was created as a parody of ''

The Phil Silvers Show ''The Phil Silvers Show'', originally titled ''You'll Never Get Rich'', is a sitcom which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959. A pilot titled "Audition Show" was made in 1955, but it was never broadcast. 143 other episodes were broadcast – all half-a ...

'' with

Arnold Stang Arnold Sidney Stang (September 28, 1918 – December 20, 2009)
''

imitating Sgt Bilko's voice for the titular character. Hanna-Barbera sold the cartoon to ABC based on a drawing of the main character. This was only the second cartoon series to premiere on prime time network television in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Premise

The title character, Top Cat (T.C.) (voiced by

Arnold Stang Arnold Sidney Stang (September 28, 1918 – December 20, 2009)
''

) is the leader of a gang of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

alley cats living in Hoagy's Alley: Fancy-Fancy, Spook, Benny the Ball, Brain, and Choo-Choo. Top Cat and his gang were inspired by the

East Side Kids The East Side Kids were characters in a series of 22 films released by Monogram Pictures from 1940 through 1945. Many of them were originally part of The Dead End Kids and The Little Tough Guys, and several of them later became members of The ...

, roguish, street-smart characters from a series of 1940s B movies, but their more immediate roots lay in ''

'' (1955–59), a successful military comedy whose lead character (Sergeant Bilko, played by Silvers) was a fast-talking

con artist A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers have ...

. Maurice Gosfield, who played Private Duane Doberman in ''The Phil Silvers Show'', provided the voice for Benny the Ball in ''Top Cat'', and Benny's chubby appearance was based on Gosfield's. Additionally, Arnold Stang's vocal characterization was originally based on an impression of

Phil Silvers Phil Silvers (born Phillip Silver; May 11, 1911 – November 1, 1985) was an American entertainer and comedic actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah". His career as a professional entertainer spanned nearly sixty years. Silvers achieved major popu ...

's voice. During the original network run, the sponsor objected to the Silvers impersonation—insisting that he was buying Arnold Stang, not Phil Silvers—so in later episodes Stang modified the Top Cat voice, to a closer tone of his own voice. The gang constantly hatch

get-rich-quick scheme A get-rich-quick scheme is a plan to obtain high rates of return for a small investment. The term "get rich quick" has been used to describe shady investments since at least the early 20th century. Most schemes create an impression that part ...

s through

scam A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers hav ...

s but most of them usually backfire, and a frequent plot thread revolves around the local

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

, Charles "Charlie" Dibble (voiced by Allen Jenkins), ineffectually trying to either arrest them, evict them from the alley, get them to clean the alley, or stopping them using the policebox phone. Like ''

The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...

'', all the episodes feature a

cold open A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In Amer ...

, which is a small scene from the episode that takes place ''

in medias res A narrative work beginning ''in medias res'' (, "into the middle of things") opens in the midst of the plot (cf. ''ab ovo'', ''ab initio''). Often, exposition is bypassed and filled in gradually, through dialogue, flashbacks or description of pa ...

'', and after that, a long flashback that leads to the scene begins with the series' theme song "The Most Effectual Top Cat" and features Top Cat's misadventures that happen before the scene from the beginning plays. The story then continues from where it left off. In some episodes, the flashback stops near the middle when the same scene plays.

Broadcast

''Top Cat'' aired on Wednesday nights in Prime Time from 8:30 to 9:00 pm. Hanna-Barbera created 30 half hour episodes of Top Cat. The show was broadcast in black and white but was created in color. The show aired on Saturdays in 1962 and 1963 on ABC, and was then rerun in various Saturday morning slots on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from 1965 to 1969, and occasionally in the 1980s. Reruns of the series aired on Cartoon Network from 1992 until 2004, and on

Boomerang A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning ...

from 2000 until 2014.

Analysis

Animation historian Christopher P. Lehman says that the series can be seen as

social commentary Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on social, cultural, political, or economic issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace ab ...

. The cats may represent

disenfranchised Disfranchisement, also called disenfranchisement, or voter disqualification is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing a person exercising the right to vote. D ...

people confined to living in a poor environment. Top Cat's

s are efforts to escape to a better life. The gang faces a human police officer who frustrates their efforts and keeps them trapped in the alley.Lehman (2007), p. 26 This enforcement of the

social order The term social order can be used in two senses: In the first sense, it refers to a particular system of social structures and institutions. Examples are the ancient, the feudal, and the capitalist social order. In the second sense, social order ...

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

ensures that the cats will not escape their current living conditions. Co-creator Bill Hanna said it was one of the wittiest and most sophisticated shows he produced with a rare appeal to audiences of all ages.

Writing staff

''Top Cat'' was conceived along the lines of a traditional, live-action situation comedy, and Hanna-Barbera recruited top sitcom writers of the day to furnish scripts, including Barry Blitzer (a ''Bilko'' veteran), Harvey Bullock, and

Kin Platt Kin Platt (December 8, 1911 – November 30, 2003) was an American writer, artist, painter, sculptor, caricaturist, and comics artist, best known for penning radio comedy and animated TV series, as well as children's mystery novels, one of whic ...

. In the current DVD versions, however, only Platt gets writing credit due to a production error: the closing credits from Platt's episode were used for ''every'' episode, so Platt gets screen credit regardless of who wrote the actual scripts.

Characters

Episodes

Voice cast

Main voices: *

Arnold Stang Arnold Sidney Stang (September 28, 1918 – December 20, 2009)
''

as Top Cat *

Marvin Kaplan Marvin Wilbur Kaplan (January 24, 1927 – August 25, 2016) was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter. Best known as Henry Beesmeyer in ''Alice'' (1978–1985). Early years Kaplan was born on January 24, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York, th ...

as Choo-Choo * Maurice Gosfield as Benny the Ball * Leo De Lyon as Brain, Spook * John Stephenson as Fancy-Fancy * Allen Jenkins as Officer Dibble Additional voices: * Bea Benaderet *

Herschel Bernardi Herschel Bernardi (October 30, 1923 – May 9, 1986) was an American actor and singer. He is best known for his supporting role in the drama television series ''Peter Gunn'' (1958–1961) and his leading role in the comedy television serie ...

* Sallie Jones * Don Messick * Ge Ge Pearson *

Daws Butler Charles Dawson Butler (November 16, 1916May 18, 1988) was an American voice actor. He worked mostly for the Hanna-Barbera animation production company where he originated the voices of many familiar characters, including Yogi Bear, Huckleberry H ...

Jean Vander Pyl Jean Thurston Vander Pyl (October 11, 1919 – April 10, 1999) was an American voice actress. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best known as the voice of Wilma Flintstone for the Hanna-Barbera cartoon ''The Flintstones''. In ...

Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...

Herb Vigran Herbert Vigran (June 5, 1910 – November 29, 1986) was an American character actor in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1980s. Over his 50-year career, he made over 350 television and film appearances. Early years Vigran was a native of Cin ...

Walker Edmiston Walker Edmiston (February 6, 1926 – February 15, 2007) was an American radio, television and voice actor. Early years Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Edmiston participated in local theater productions during his high school years. He later stu ...

* Hal Smith

Home media

Episodes of the series were released on VHS in Europe, as well as Worldvision Home Video in the United States. The series' episode, "''All That Jazz''", was edited into a 7-minute preview as part of the "A Sample of Boomerang" tape, from Cartoon Network's sister channel, Boomerang. Episodes of the series were also released on Laserdisc in the United Kingdom by Guild Home Video, as well as Image Entertainment in the United States.

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Vide ...

released ''Top Cat: The Complete Series'' on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

in Region 1 on December 7, 2004, as part of their Hanna-Barbera Classic Collection. This set was re-released by

Warner Archive The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inte ...

on January 10, 2017, albeit as a manufacture-on-demand (MOD) release. On June 6 of that year, ''Top Cat'' was re-released in stores again as part of the Hanna-Barbera Diamond Collection in honor of Hanna-Barbera's 60th anniversary; however, all bonus features were removed. In the UK, the complete series box set was released in 2007, initially as a

HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...

exclusive until 2008. Alternatively, five single DVD volumes, each containing 6 episodes, were released. The covers were originally from the US edition but later re-released with a new design. Each volume shows a group picture of Top Cat using Dibble's phone with his gang beside him, but the colour-coding is: * Volume 1: Primrose (Episodes 1–6) – Top Cat * Volume 2: Green (Episodes 7–12) – Choo-Choo * Volume 3: Red (Episodes 13–18) – Fancy Fancy * Volume 4: Blue (Episodes 19–24) – Benny * Volume 5: Orange (Episodes 25–30) – Spook The DVDs have since been made available to buy in other retailers across the UK.

In other media

Comic books

The gang's adventures continued off-screen in comic books as Dell (which became Gold Key) published 31 issues from 1961 to 1970.

Charlton Comics Charlton Comics was an American comic book publishing company that existed from 1945 to 1986, having begun under a different name: T.W.O. Charles Company, in 1940. It was based in Derby, Connecticut. The comic-book line was a division of Charlton ...

published 20 more issues from 1970 to 1973. In Mexico, Ediciones Latinoamericanas' "La Colección Primavera" featured Don Gato in 1968. In 2012, there was a crossover between Top Cat and Chilean comic book character

Condorito ''Condorito'' (''Little Condor'' in Spanish) is a Chilean comic book and comic strip that features an anthropomorphic condor living in a fictitious town named Pelotillehue—a typical small Chilean provincial town. He is meant to be a representat ...

. Top Cat had a backup story in ''Adam Strange/Future Quest Annual #1'' in where he escapes from prison and meets Batman through a cosmic portal. Unlike the cartoon, Top Cat is from a world where cats are the dominant species. As a follow-up, Top Cat also appears in one issue of a crossover series between DC and Hanna-Barbera, titled ''Superman/Top Cat Special'' (October 2018).

Books

Little Golden Books Little Golden Books is a series of children's books, published since 1942. ''The Poky Little Puppy'', the eighth release in the series, is the top-selling children's book of all time in the United States.. Many other Little Golden Books have b ...

and Durabooks have both produced hardcover children's books starring Top Cat. In the UK,

World Distributors World Distributors (known colloquially as "Pembertons") was a British publisher and distributor of magazines and comic books. The company was known for repackaging American comics and producing comic book annuals based on licensed properties. For ...

published annuals during the 1960s sourced from the Dell comics strips. BrownWatson later published a 1978 annual entitled ''The Great Grape Ape and Boss Cat''.

View-Master

T.C. and friends appeared on three

View-Master View-Master is the trademark name of a line of special-format stereoscopes and corresponding View-Master "reels", which are thin cardboard disks containing seven stereoscopy, Stereoscopic 3-D pairs of small transparent color photographs on film.M ...

reels in 1962. These were titled "Medal for Meddling", "Zoo-Operation", and "No Cat Fishing".

Music

The Original TV Soundtrack, written and recorded by

Hoyt Curtin Hoyt Stoddard Curtin (September 9, 1922 – December 3, 2000) was an American composer and music producer, the primary musical director for the Hanna-Barbera animation studio from its beginnings with '' The Ruff & Reddy Show'' in 1957 until his re ...

, was released by Colpix Records in 1962, consisting of slightly edited versions of "The Unscratchables" and "Top Cat Falls in Love". Hanna-Barbera Records released an LP in 1965 titled ''

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

Starring Top Cat''. T.C. and the gang were pictured as

Merry Men The Merry Men are the group of outlaws who follow Robin Hood in English literature and folklore. The group appears in the earliest ballads about Robin Hood and remains popular in modern adaptations. History The Merry Men are Robin Hood's gr ...

on the cover. Its songs included "Top Cat", "M-O-N-E-Y", "Dibble", "Robin Hood", and "Buddies". It was re-released in 1977 on Columbia Records' Special Products label. A jazzy arrangement of the ''Top Cat'' theme can be heard most weeks over the end credits of

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

's ''

Theme Time Radio Hour ''Theme Time Radio Hour'' (''TTRH'') was a weekly one-hour satellite radio show hosted by Bob Dylan that originally aired from May 2006 to April 2009. Each episode had a freeform mix of music, centered on a theme (such as "Weather", "Money" or "F ...

''. The titles and underscore were released as part of the CD release, ''The Best of Hanna-Barbera: Tunes from the Toons'' by Music Club in 2002 in Europe.

Top Cat's cameos

Other characters appearing in ''Top Cat''

Other Hanna-Barbera characters make cameo appearances during the series. * In the episode "King for a Day", Brain and Spook are reading comic books.

Yogi Bear Yogi Bear is an anthropomorphic animal character who has appeared in numerous comic books, animated television shows and films. He made his debut in 1958 as a supporting character in '' The Huckleberry Hound Show''. Yogi Bear was the first ...

and

Huckleberry Hound Huckleberry "Huck" Hound is a fictional cartoon character, a blue anthropomorphic coonhound that speaks with a North Carolina Southern drawl. He first appeared in the series ''The Huckleberry Hound Show''. The cartoon was one of six TV shows to ...

comics can be seen in the bottom right corner of the scene. * In the episode "Rafeefleas", the gang is wandering through a museum at night when they come upon a group of statues labeled "Prehistoric Man". Choo-Choo insists that he's seen the figures before, maybe on TV, but T.C. waves this off. The statues are modeled after

Fred Flintstone Fred Flintstone is the main character of the animated sitcom '' The Flintstones'', which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960 to 1966. Fred is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles Flintsto ...

and Barney Rubble. * In the episode "A Visit from Mother", "El Kabong" graffiti (

Quick Draw McGraw Quick Draw McGraw is a fictional anthropomorphic horse and the protagonist and title character of '' The Quick Draw McGraw Show''. He is a white horse, wearing a red Stetson cowboy hat, a red holster belt, a light blue bandana, and occasion ...

's alter-ego) is seen on the wall in the background.

Top Cat's appearance in other shows

* Top Cat also made a cameo appearance in one of the ''

What a Cartoon! ''What a Cartoon!'' (later known as ''The What a Cartoon! Show'' and ''The Cartoon Cartoon Show'') is an American animated anthology series created by Fred Seibert for Cartoon Network. The shorts were produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions; by ...

'' shorts named "Buy One, Get One Free" in a party scene. * Top Cat's theme is featured in ''

'' episode "Surfin Fred" when Barney and Betty discover that Jimmy Darrock is in fact not a lifeguard. * Officer Dibble makes a cameo appearance in ''The Flintstones'' episode "Time Machine", as a policeman in the future, thus returning the favor done in the episode "Rafeefleas" mentioned above. * Top Cat and his gang appeared in ''

Yogi's Ark Lark ''Yogi's Ark Lark'' is a 1972 animated television special produced by Hanna-Barbera, intended to raise ecological awareness. It was broadcast on September 16, 1972, as part of ''The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie'' and served as the four-part episod ...

''. While the others don't have dialogue, Top Cat was voiced by

while Benny the Ball was voiced by John Stephenson. It was presumed that Arnold Stang wasn't available at the time while Maurice Gosfield was already dead in 1964. * In 1985, Top Cat appeared on ''

Yogi's Treasure Hunt ''Yogi's Treasure Hunt'' (originally titled ''The Funtastic Treasure Hunt'') is an American animated television series and the fifth entry in the ''Yogi Bear'' franchise produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, featuring Yogi Bear and various other ...

'' with Yogi Bear and other Hanna-Barbera toon stars as the treasure hunt assigner. Officer Dibble made an appearance in the end of the show's episode, "Yogi's Beanstalk" voiced by John Stephenson since Allen Jenkins had died in 1974. * In 1987, Hanna-Barbera produced a feature-length television film based on the show titled '' Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats'' (part of the '' Hanna-Barbera Superstars 10'' film series), in which the gang helps a teenager claim her inheritance. During that time, John Stephenson reprised Officer Dibble while Benny the Ball was voiced by

Avery Schreiber Avery Lawrence Schreiber (April 9, 1935 – January 7, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. He was a veteran of stage, television, and movies who came to prominence in the 1960s in a comedy duo with Jack Burns. He acted in an array of roles ...

. * Top Cat appears as a teenager in '' Yo Yogi!'' where he lives in a trash can at the mall. * In the ''Fender Bender 500'' segment of ''

Wake, Rattle, and Roll ''Wake, Rattle, and Roll'' (retitled ''Jump, Rattle, and Roll'' when it aired on The Disney Channel on weekday afternoons in 1991''The Disney Channel Magazine'', Vol. 9, no. 5, September/October 1991: pp. 20, 36, 45.) is an American live-action/an ...

'', Top Cat and Choo Choo were one of the racers driving a trash can-modeled monster truck called the Alley Cat. * Top Cat was seen in a Cartoon Network Rap in 1995. * In the ''

Duck Dodgers Duck Dodgers is the metafictional star of a series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros., featuring Daffy Duck in the role of a science fiction hero. He first appeared in the 1953 cartoon short ''Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century'', directed by ...

'' episode "K-9 Quarry", Top Cat was amongst the poached Hanna-Barbera characters on the Alien Hunter's ship. * Top Cat, Benny, Spook and Brain made a cameo appearance at the end of ''

The Powerpuff Girls ''The Powerpuff Girls'' is an American superhero animated television series created by animator Craig McCracken and produced by Hanna-Barbera (later Cartoon Network Studios) for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Telev ...

'' episode "Catastrophe". They can be seen at the bottom left corner of the screen (although, instead of his hat, Top Cat has a splat of slime on his head). * Top Cat was seen briefly driving a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

in the ''

Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends ''Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends'' (also known as ''Foster's Home'', or simply ''Foster's'' for short) is an American animated television series created by Craig McCracken for Cartoon Network. It was produced by Cartoon Network Studios as ...

'' episode "Cheese a Go-Go". * Top Cat and the gang appear in a third-season episode of ''

Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law ''Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law'' is an American adult animated television sitcom created by Michael Ouweleen and Erik Richter for Cartoon Network's late-night programming block, Adult Swim. A spin-off of ''Space Ghost Coast to Coast'', the ...

'', "Mindless" where Birdman serves as Top Cat's attorney for charges of bookmaking and running an illegal gambling facility. In this appearance, Top Cat was voiced by

Tom Kenny Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media. Kenny has voiced many other characters, including Heffer Wolfe in '' ...

, while Benny the Ball was voiced by

Maurice LaMarche Maurice LaMarche (born March 30, 1958) is a Canadian voice actor, comedian, and impressionist. He has voiced the Brain in '' Animaniacs'' as well as its spin-off '' Pinky and the Brain'', Big Bob in ''Hey Arnold!'' (1996–2004), and a variety of ...

. Top Cat also makes a cameo in the series finale when Birdman is forced to retry all his cases. * Top Cat and Benny have a cameo in the ''

Wacky Races Eccentricity (also called quirkiness) is an unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive. Eccentricity is contrasted with nor ...

'' episode "Off Track". * Top Cat, Benny, and the rest of the alley cats appeared in the

HBO Max HBO Max is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in the United States on May 27, 2020, the service is built around the libraries of HBO, Warner Bros., Cartoon Netw ...

original series ''

Jellystone! ''Jellystone!'' is an American animated streaming television comedy series developed by C. H. Greenblatt for HBO Max. The series is produced by Warner Bros. Animation and features reimagined versions of various characters by Hanna-Barbera. It pr ...

'' Choo-Choo, Spook and Brain are females in this series. Spook is also renamed as Spooky and is completely silent.

Top Cat's appearances in comic strips

* Top Cat and his gang (except for Brain) appeared in the March 10, 2016 strip of '' Heathcliff''.

Television specials

* '' Top Cat and the Beverly Hills Cats'' (1988) * '' Hanna-Barbera's 50th: A Yabba Dabba Doo Celebration'' (1989)

Theatrical films

The series has spawned two theatrical films produced by Mexican animation studio, Ánima Estudios. Both films have grossed a combined total of $19.3 million (MX$166.35 million pesos). * '' Top Cat: The Movie'' (2011) * '' Top Cat Begins'' (2015)

Box office

International broadcast

Australia

The show premiered on the

National Television Network The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television netw ...

(now known as the Nine Network) on October 5, 1962, and ran on the Nine Network until 1971.

Canada

''Top Cat'' premiered on the CTV Television Network on October 9, 1961.

Hungary

''Top Cat'' (''Turpi úrfi'') was one of the first American cartoons premiered on Hungarian television channels in 1969. It also broadcast later with ''

The Huckleberry Hound Show ''The Huckleberry Hound Show'' is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and the second series produced by the studio following '' The Ruff and Reddy Show''. The show first aired in syndication on September ...

'', ''

Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series c ...

'', '' Looney Tunes'', ''

'' and ''

The Jetsons ''The Jetsons'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It originally aired in prime time from September 23, 1962, to March 17, 1963, on ABC, then later aired in reruns via syndication, with new episodes produced ...

'' on

Magyar Televízió Magyar Televízió (''Hungarian Television'') or MTV is a nationwide public television broadcasting organization in Hungary. Headquartered in Budapest, it is the oldest television broadcaster in Hungary and today airs five channels: M1 HD, M ...

from 1985 to 1990, and tv2 from 1997 to 1999 (together with ''

'', ''

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!'' is an American animated comedy television series created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and produced by Hanna-Barbera for CBS. The series premiered as part of the network's Saturday morning cartoon schedule on Septem ...

'' and '' Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo'').

began broadcasting it in Hungarian in 2012.

Latin America

The show was dubbed to spanish in Mexico in 1963, using some of the same voice actors who worked in ''

''. It was renamed ''

Don Gato y su pandilla Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vill ...

'' (literally ''Mr. Cat and his gang'') and the main characters adopted different accents. The voice acting improved the show, adding new jokes and local references. In spite of the modest success of the show in the United States, the show was a massive hit in Mexico, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Argentina, where it is recognized as one of the most famous Hanna Barbera characters ever, being as popular as The Flintstones. Besides Top Cat, all the other characters from the show were famous, and their popularity is commonly attributed by the excellent dubbing and voice acting: * Benny was renamed ''Benito B. Bodoque y B.'' and given a more childlike voice than was the case in the original dubbing. * Choo Choo was renamed ''Cucho'' and spoke with Mexican- yucatan accent. * Fancy-Fancy was ''Panza'' (belly). * Spook renamed as the word's rough translation ''Espanto''. * Brain was called ''Demóstenes'' (honouring the Greek statesman

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual pr ...

, with whom he shares a speech impediment). * Officer Charlie Dibble renamed as ''Oficial Carlos "Carlitos" Matute''. The adaptation and translation was made by Rubén Arvizu. The main voice actors were Julio Lucena (voice of Top Cat), Jorge Arvizu (voice of Benny and Choo Choo),

Víctor Alcocer Víctor Alcocer Gómez (March 23, 1917 – October 2, 1984) was a Mexican actor of film, television and voice-over.David Reynoso, among others. ''Top Cat'' is still rerun every few years. In

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, the character is known as ''Manda-Chuva'' (Brazilian Portuguese for ''big shot'') and was voiced by actor Lima Duarte. In addition, the city of New York was replaced by Brasília (federal capital) in the Brazilian version.

India

''Top Cat'' was one of the early favorites on Cartoon Network. It was aired in India in the 1990s. Top Cat was aired again in 2003 until 2004.

Japan

''Top Cat'' (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: ''ドラ猫大将'') first aired on

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Comp ...

back in 1963 under the title translating to ''Stray Cat Boss.'' It was then rebroadcast many times over the years. In 1990, A new dub was produced for VHS sold by Columbia Records and released under its original name in Katakana (''トップキャット''). This new dub was also carried over to airing on Cartoon Network Japan since its launch in 1997.

Sri Lanka

''Top Cat'' ( Sinhala: () literally ''Crazy Cat'') was one of the most popular cartoon shows in Sri Lanka early 1980s and it has been repeated several times on the national television channel " Rupavahini". The series is dubbed in Sinhala and directed by

Titus Thotawatte Thotawattege Don Manuel Titus de Silva ( Sinhala:ටයිටස් තොටවත්ත), popularly as Titus Thotawatte, was a Sri Lankan director and editor who made several popular Sri Lankan action movies in the 1960s and 1970s and later ...

United Kingdom

"Top Cat" premiered on the BBC Television Service (now

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

) on May 16, 1962, under its original name but after only four weeks was renamed ''The Boss Cat'' on June 13, 1962. This was shortened on 22 February 1967 to ''Boss Cat''. This rapid name change was made because Top Cat was also the name of a then-popular British brand of cat food, and the cartoon was aired on the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

which does not carry advertising. The dialogue and theme tune still referred to the character by his original name, but a small cut was made at the climax of the opening credits (resulting in a slight jump in the film) and a title card carrying the revised title inserted before the episode proper. Similarly, the Top Cat name was edited from the final section of the show's closing credits, causing another slight jump (as Top Cat is putting on his eyeshades and readying himself for sleep in his trash can). The BBC run comprised only 26 of the original 30 episodes, with notable omissions including ''Choo-Choo Goes Ga-Ga'', with its repeated scenes of Choo-Choo attempting suicide. This 26-episode selection was repeated on the BBC from 1962 to 1989. Despite the show being renamed ''Boss Cat'', the character's name was unchanged as Top Cat or the initials "TC". The ''Boss Cat'' title card was last used for a repeat run in 1989; by the time the series was next aired, in 1999, the Top Cat pet food brand had been discontinued in the United Kingdom, allowing the original US title sequence to be used. This continues to be the case in contemporary showings on satellite station

and BBC Two. In 2016, the characters from the show (all the cats and Officer Dibble) were used as part of a set of television commercials for the British bank Halifax.

Name in different languages

Brazilian Portuguese Brazilian Portuguese (' ), also Portuguese of Brazil (', ) or South American Portuguese (') is the set of varieties of the Portuguese language native to Brazil and the most influential form of Portuguese worldwide. It is spoken by almost all of ...

: ''Manda-Chuva'' (voice by Lima Duarte) *

British English British English (BrE, en-GB, or BE) is, according to Lexico, Oxford Dictionaries, "English language, English as used in Great Britain, as distinct from that used elsewhere". More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in ...

: ''Boss Cat'' * Bulgarian: ''Топ Кет'' (''Top Ket'') * Canadian French: ''Top chatons'' *

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

: ''Kočičí banda'' *

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

: ''Top Kat'' *

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

: ''Top Kat'' *

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Top Cat'' *

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

: ''Topi-katti'' ("Topi" does not mean 'Top', but is a Finnish nickname like "Tommy") * French: ''Pacha'' *

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: ''Superkater'' * Hungarian: ''Turpi úrfi'' (Lord Trick) in the series and ''Főmacsek'' (Main Cat) in the special. *

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

: ''Top Cat'' *

: (lit. 'Stray Cat Boss') * mk, Тошо Мачорот (''Tosho Machorot'') * Norwegian: ''Top Katt'' * Persian: ''گربه استثنائی / داش پیشی / پیشی خان'' *

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

: ''Kocia Ferajna'' (lit. ''Catfellas'') and earlier translation ''Kot Tip Top'' (lit. ''Tip Top Cat'') *

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

: ''similar to Brazilian'' * Romanian: ''Super Motanul'' *

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

: ''ГлавКот'' * sr, Mika Mačor, script=Latn * Sinhala: () *

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: ''Don Gato y su pandilla'' (''Mr. Cat and his gang'') *

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

: ''Top Cat'' (voice by Per Sandborgh)

Sources

References

External links

* * * * {{Children's programming on NBC in the 1960s 1960s American animated television series 1960s American sitcoms 1961 American television series debuts 1962 American television series endings American animated sitcoms American Broadcasting Company original programming American children's animated comedy television series American children's television sitcoms Animated television series about cats English-language television shows Television characters introduced in 1961 Television series by Hanna-Barbera Fictional portrayals of the New York City Police Department Television series by Screen Gems Television shows adapted into comics Television shows set in New York City