Ranking Every Flintstones series

In celebration of Me-TV's reruns of the original Flintstones, it's time for a new series of posts called Ranking Every, where we dive into each and every series of a certain franchise.  And for our first one, it will be The Flintstones, as many different series were created by Hanna-Barbera long after the original series ended in the 60's.

NOTES:  1. This includes TV series only; no specials or movies are including in this series
                2. Each series is graded using the same grading system used in schools from A-F
                3. Contrary to what Boomerang says, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels is NOT...I repeat...is NOT a part of the Flintstones despite him appearing in a Flintstone series later on.

(1960-1966)

The original prime time animated sitcom about a blue collar caveman named Fred Flintstone who lives in the modern stone age

GRADE: A+

This is the absolute classic that remains one of Hanna-Barbera's most popular cartoons.  It's true that as the series progressed, the show did lose some quality (making Gazoo the final straw), but overall, this is what all the Baby Boomers remember watching every Friday Night (and in some cases Thursday Night).  After that, it became a series that just goes on and on in reruns.  So much so that Hanna Barbera commissioned new series featuring the Flintstones.  Did they work?  Well let's find out.

(1971-1972)

Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm are now teenagers and are with new friends in all new adventures and forming a new band called the Bedrock Rockers. 

GRADE: C-

It's obvious that this was made to compete with The Archies and go along with Hanna-Barbera's own hit show, Josie and the Pussycats.  Despite not being great....for some reason it was somewhat of a hit.  So much so that the next season would be a part of new Flintstones episodes (but I'm getting ahead of myself).  While this is the start of "factory made" Flintstones as opposed to creative driven, there are still some pluses.  Sally Struthers voiced Pebbles while Jay North voiced Bamm Bamm.  North played Dennis the Menace years earlier while Struthers would pursue the role as Gloria in All in the Family.  Overall....it's ok.....

(1972-1973)

Continuing success of Pebbles and Bamm Bamm, this show features an hour of cartoons which include episodes of Fred and Barney, episodes starring the cast of Pebbles and Bamm Bamm, music videos of the Bedrock Rockers, and new episodes/reruns of Pebbles and Bamm Bamm

GRADE: C-

And I'm probably being too nice.  It is obvious it's due to the success of the Archies even more now.  The Archies also followed this format.  It's not a bad format, but meh......not so well with The Flintstones.  The quality also is lacking compared to the original series.  The characters don't move as much.  Sally Struthers is gone to pursue as Gloria in All in the Family, and this would be the very last series Alan Reed would voice Fred Flintstone before his passing.  The next season, followed by reruns, would be reduced to a half an hour calling it The Flintstone Comedy Show, but alas, no new episodes, just repackaged cartoons per episode.  These are the rarest of the Flintstones cartoons due to music clearing rights; only The Pebbles and Bamm Bamm show episodes made for this show is legally available.

(1979)

Continuing adventures of Fred and Barney in a whole new kind of show...at least that's what the show says.

GRADE: C+

A little bit better than previous reboots, but not by much.  It follows the same format as the original Flintstones, but it so wasn't the same.  During it's run, it was also called Fred and Barney meet The Shmoo and Fred and Barney meet The Thing, which makes it sound worse than it is (The Thing and The Shmoo were separate from The Flintstones).  The Shmoo would join Fred and Barney later on in a new series.

(1980-1981)

Not to confuse with the 1973 series, this version is comprised of many different shorts including Flintstone Family Adventures, Bedrock Cops (featuring The Shmoo), Pebbles Dino and Bamm Bamm (ala Scooby-Doo style adventures), Captain Caveman (as a superhero to journalists Wilma and Betty), Dino and Cavemouse (in a Tom and Jerry style), and The Frankenstones (The Flintstones new neighbors).

GRADE: B-

Because there's a variety of cartoons in this hour long show, it's not too terribly bad.  It has its failures.  For example, Bedrock Cops looks like the cheapest out of all of them as Fred's eyes are drawn all wrong (to save money perhaps....typical Hanna Barbera of that time).  But its ups are pretty high.  Cavemouse would be some of the last works of Tex Avery, who passed away before the show debuted on the air.  Charles Nelson Riley voices Frank Frankenstone, and it was the first series for upcoming voice actress, the now late Russi Taylor, as Cavemouse and Pebbles.  Reruns of this series was repackaged as Flinstone Frolics, and continues to air as such to this day.  Enjoy, just don't get your hopes up too much.

(1986-1988)

The Flintstones are now their younger selves in this series of episodes.

GRADE: D+

It doesn't work well.  The characters look weird, and consistency as to how the characters should sound is gone.  This was to help cash in on the success of the Muppet Babies, but alas it just doesn't work.  By God they tried, but it just doesn't feel like The Flintstones.

(1996)

Pebbles and Bamm Bamm in a series of educational lessons for children

GRADE: F

Made with the success of The Rugrats, Hanna-Barbera realized they had their own Tommy and Chuckie, so they used Pebbles and Bamm Bamm instead of creating new characters.  What they failed to realize is that The Rugrats was not a toddler show (even though it stars toddlers), so naturally the series is a failure.  Thankfully though, by that time, Hanna-Barbera began focusing on creative driven shows just like Nickelodeon did, so the true competition to The Rugrats would be Dexter's Laboratory and later The Powerpuff Girls (both airing on Cartoon Network).  Simply put, this isn't The Flintstones at all....it's a baby show.

Yogi Bear Walkaround Costumes

For over 50 years, Jellystone Park has been franchised all across the country based on the famed Hanna Barbera cartoon, Yogi Bear.  These campgrounds include a big swimming pool, camping activities, water slides, mini golf, and of course....meeting Yogi Bear.  But Jellystone Park wasn't the only place Yogi would be, so today we take a look at the different costumes Yogi had over the years.

NOTE: 1.  The list is for Yogi Bear only.  No Boo-Boo, Cindy, or Ranger Smith covered here.
             2.  While bootlegs were few and far between, this only covers official costumes made by the copyright holders.
             3. The names given to these costumes are chosen by me.  No official names have been given to any of these costumes.
             4.  All dates are approximate, not official.  Many of these costumes have overlapped each other.

Traveling Fair Yogi (early 1960's)

The Hanna Barbera cartoons quickly became popular that all of the characters were made for hire at events such as fairs and carnivals.  However, like every other product by Hanna Barbera, quality of the merchandise varied, and each and every costume had at least one thing different about Yogi.  Sometimes his eyes are facing to the side, sometimes they're straight.  Generally speaking however, Yogi was skinny and had a small head with extra fur on the bottom to help cover up the neck.  Sometimes if done correctly, he wears his green hat and tie making it a not too bad costume for the time.  If done INCORRECTLY, he wears no tie but at least he's wearing a hat.....not really the greatest costume.

A....better.....Yogi????? (mid-1960's)

One picture shows a Yogi costume looking more plum, a much rounder head, along with his signature green hat and tie, making him more on model than before.  How often that costume was used and if massed produced, however, remains a mystery.  Once again, consistency is lost at Hanna-Barbera, so it may be the only costume that flew by night and disappeared.

Jellystone Yogi  (late 1960's-mid 1970's)

When the very first Jellystone opened at Wisconsin in 1969, Yogi Bear was there.  The deal made between one man and Screen Jems (who still owned some piece of the Hanna-Barbera pie) became a hit, and Jellystone became a franchise.  The costume was a little bit rounder than the previous traveling Yogi, but his head seemed to remain standard.  A bit of a long snout and big pupil eyeballs, he was an ok looking bear, but at least he was there.

However, it was still not as consistent.  One postcard shows Yogi with a much longer snout and eyes much smaller looking away.  The zipper also appears in the front of the costume, not the back.  It looks terrible.  It too may have flew by night after a few years.

Coney Island Yogi (1969-mid 1970's)

Meanwhile in Cincinnati, OH, Coney Island was looking to have Taft Broadcasting to buy the park and help move it to a new location, and also to incorporate the newly acquired Hanna Barbera characters.  The deal was struck, and by 1969, the Hanna-Barbera characters began making appearances at the park.  However, this has to be the most off model Yogi Bear costume I ever saw.  Rough fur, a very head but with little eyes, and his snout is the same color as his fur.  He only wore cheap gloves.  This costume would then be moved along with Coney Island to the new park named Kings Island

Kings Entertainment Yogi (1975-mid 1990's)

At last they came up with a standard costume to help celebrate the opening of Kings Dominion, and by far the most popular costume of Yogi ever used.  Being more on model with the character, Yogi gets a big nose, big eyes, and a big smile.  Everything about his costume is just right giving the illusion that Yogi Bear is real.  There were also small details to the costume such as snout spots on his nose and a tongue.  This costume would be used everywhere in many different theme and amusement parks, Jellystone Parks, special appearances, and even on television.  Hanna Barbera was becoming the king of cartoons like Disney was, and Yogi Bear was a top name for years.

Universal Studios Yogi (aprox. 1990-early 2002)

When Universal Orlando opened, they teamed up with Hanna-Barbera with a new attraction and hopes that MCA/Universal would acquire the studio (the deal fell through and Hanna-Barbera ended up with Turner.  To celebrate, new costumes of the Mount Rushmores of Hanna Barbera were created, and Yogi Bear was one of them.  Very similar to the Kings Entertainment costume body wise, the head was much different.  Yogi now has big ears and a longer snout.  He had a pretty big smile on his face and his eyes were big and horizontal.  There were some differences at times with the eyes.  Sometimes they look down while other times they look straight ahead, but the concept of the costume remained the same.  This costume was only used at Universal Studios, but it made some TV appearances as well such as promotional material for both Universal and Turner as well as an appearance on Coach and Kids for Character.  The costume was discontinued when The Fantastic World of Hanna Barbera was replaced with the Jimmy Neutron ride.

Promotional Yogi Bear (approx. 1991-1995)

In addition to the costume used at Universal, Hanna-Barbera also had one for promotional purposes.  Yogi's head is rounder but flatter.  His mouth isn't open that much as previous costumes but still maintained a big smile.  This costume was first used to promote Hanna-Barbera Home Video as well as the 30th Anniversary of The Flintstones.  By the time the costume ended appearing, it was used to help promote Cartoon Network.  

Paramount Yogi (mid-late 1990's-present)

On the other side of the theme park spectrum, Paramount who bought the Kings Entertainment parks decided to get new updates of the Hanna-Barbera characters, or at least the Mount Rushmores (retiring not so well known ones like Dynomutt and replaced them with the growing popularity of the Nickelodeon characters that they own).  At the same time, the Jellystone franchise was growing opening new franchise locations across the United States.  It was only natural to have a new Yogi Bear costumes.  This one was more cuddly.  His eyes are a lot smaller, making it a must for the performer to only see out either the mouth or nose.  There were some moments that screamed cheap at times since his great details are gone, but he still was on model.  Since these costumes were cheaper and because Jellystone was still growing and still popular, they were able to crank this costume out and continue to do so to this day.  The last time the costume made an appearance at Kings Island was in 2009 for their Halloween event.  Cedar Fair took control of the Paramount Parks by then and all references to Hanna-Barbera and Nickelodeon were replaced with Snoopy in 2010.  But today, this costume can be seen at a Jellystone Park near you.

WB Yogi (early 2000's-present)

As part of Hanna Barbera being absorbed into WB, new costumes were made to promote the product.  This included Yogi Bear.  Yogi now has much darker fur with a bigger snout and some minor details return.  He has big eyes and a big nose.  His body is slightly skinnier (but not that skinny).  This version had been used to promote Boomerang and is currently being used at the Warner Bros. Movie World Park in Madrid, Spain.  It could be suggested that Six Flags Great America used this costume for their Camp Cartoon Network, but I have seen no proof of that yet.

BONUS:

Happy Hour Yogi (1978)

This specially made Yogi dates back prior to when Disney was doing articulated heads.  Very similar to Kings Entertainment Yogi, this costume had a moving mouth and moving eyes.  The performer would operate the mouth and eyes the same way (I guess) as Carol Spinney did with Big Bird.  The hands would move the mouth and there's a section where the finger can move a rod to make the eyes go left and right.  One arm is null while the other can do everything else.  Unfortunately, it was only ever used once and only once, and that was the failed Hanna Barbera Happy Hour Show in which classic characters would be the guest stars and the stars were these two puppet ladies that sing, dance, tell jokes, and look creepy as sin.  No cartoons aired on it, it aired on prime time, it was gone after a few episodes.  Take a look at it in action, but I must warn you....it's weird

In the meantime, if you ever do visit a Jellystone Park near you......watch your pic-a-nic baskets.