Beany and Cecil facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Beany and Cecil
Characters from left to right: Crowy, Captain Horatio Huffenpuff, Cecil, Beany, Dishonest John.
Genre	Animation
Created by	Bob Clampett
Voices of	Jim MacGeorge Irv Shoemaker Bob Clampett
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	26
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Release
Original network	ABC
Picture format	Academy ratio
First shown in	1959–1962
Original release	January 6 (1962-01-06) – June 30, 1962 (1962-06-30)

Beany and Cecil is a fun animated TV show created by Bob Clampett. It first aired in 1962 on ABC. The cartoon was based on an older puppet show called Time for Beany, which started in 1949.

The show first appeared as part of Matty's Funday Funnies in 1959. Later, it was called Matty's Funnies with Beany and Cecil, and finally just Beany and Cecil. A new season was even made in 1988.

Even though it was a children's show, adults loved it too. It often made funny jokes about real-world events and famous people. Some stories even poked fun at political issues of the time.

Beany and Cecil was one of the first three TV shows on ABC to be shown in color. The others were The Jetsons and The Flintstones.

Meet the Characters of Beany and Cecil

Main Heroes and Friends

• Beany Boy – Beany is a kind young boy with a special propeller hat. This hat, called the "Beanycopter," lets him fly! When Beany gets into trouble, he often yells, "Help, Cecil! Help!" Beany was first voiced by Jim MacGeorge.

• Cecil (or "Cecil the Seasick Sea Serpent") – Cecil is a big, green sea serpent who is very loyal to Beany. He has a slight lisp when he talks. Cecil is good-natured but not very smart, so bad guys often trick him. He can get squashed flat or lose his head, but he always bounces back! At the end of each episode's opening song, Cecil sings, "A Bob Clam-pett car-tooooooo-OOOOOOOOON!" Cecil was first voiced by Bob Clampett.

• Captain Horatio Huffenpuff – Also known as "Uncle Captain," he is Beany's kind uncle. He is the captain of their ship, the Leakin' Lena. The Captain helps Beany and Cecil with their missions. However, he is quite scared and often hides below deck when things get dangerous. Jim MacGeorge voiced Uncle Captain.

• Mouth-Full-of-Teeth Keith – Keith is a shy, toothless old lion who lives in the jungle. At first, he tried to scare away Beany and Cecil. But Cecil realized Keith was actually a good guy who was just afraid of strangers. Keith soon became a regular friend and often helped rescue the crew.

• Crowy – Crowy is the navigator of the Leakin' Lena. He is a crow and usually stays in the ship's crow's nest. He has a squawky voice and often faints when the ship faces danger. Jim MacGeorge also voiced Crowy.

• Dishonest John (or "D.J.") – D.J. is the main bad guy of the show. He always wears a fancy suit and is constantly trying to stop Beany and Cecil. His evil laugh is "Nya-ah-ãhh!" When his plans are found out, Cecil often says, "What the heck! D.J., you dirty guy!" Dishonest John usually gets a funny, painful defeat in the end. He even has a supervillain side called The Bilious Beetle. Irv Shoemaker first voiced D.J.

Other Fun Characters

• Davey Cricket – This character is a cricket who wears a coonskin cap. He lives in the backwoods and is a funny version of the famous American frontiersman, Davy Crockett.

• Go Man Van Gogh – A wild artist who lives in the jungle. He paints all sorts of things, like vines to swing on or fake backgrounds to trick enemies. He also plays bongo drums and sings in a jazzy style.

• Harecules – A rabbit version of the strong hero Hercules. He gets super mental powers from a special "Thinking Cap."

• Jack the Knife – A friendly sawfish who sings jazz with a French accent. He is a funny version of the singer Bobby Darin. His saw-like nose helps Cecil fight Dishonest John.

• Little Ace From Outer Space – This is an astronaut mouse. He was sent into space to check the weather. Cecil and Dishonest John both tried to get him back for a reward.

• Tear-A-Long the Dotted Lion – A very muscular lion who loves exercise and vitamins. He speaks with a Southern accent, like the cartoon character Foghorn Leghorn.

• Careless the Mexican Hairless – Cecil's happy pet Chihuahua. He is named "Careless" because he often knocks things over when he jumps and dances. He sings to the tune of a Mexican folk song.

• William Shakespeare Wolf – An actor wolf who often tries to eat a duckling named Little Quacker.

• Beepin' Tom – A small alien who flies in a saucer and makes beeping sounds. When he speaks, he hums "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and then sings his words.

• Shlepalong Catskill – A frog wearing a cowboy hat who walks with a limp. He speaks with a Yiddish accent and often asks, "Hey Shmendrick! Would you like a cup of coffee?"

• Peking Tom – A Siamese alley cat who sings about being very hungry.

• Cora the Clinging Vine – A vine who has a crush on Cecil and sings "groovy" jazz songs to him.

• Venus the Meanest and Venice the Menace – Two space robots from Venus. They were thought to be invading Earth but just came for a picnic. Venice the Menace acts like Linus Van Pelt from Peanuts.

• The Robot Ants – A group of ants brought by Venus the Meanest for her picnic. They sing a march based on the children's song "This Old Man".

• The Boo Birds – A group of ghost birds that haunt an old castle. They sing a spooky song.

• Edgar Allen Po's Shadow – A shadow man who owns a haunted mansion. He is based on Alfred Hitchcock.

• So What and the Seven What-Knots – A jazz band from Las Vegas. They are a funny version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

• Stogie Bear – A detective bear who Beany and Cecil helped.

• Double Trouble Bubble Beast – A strange underwater creature.

Music in the Show

The show used a lot of famous classical music! For example, in one episode, you could hear Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy" from The Nutcracker. Other parts of The Nutcracker, like the Chinese Dance, were also used.

Other well-known pieces included The William Tell Overture, Ride of the Valkyries, and Flight of the Bumblebee. Some of the background music was also taken from other shows like Leave It to Beaver and The Alvin Show.

How Beany and Cecil Influenced Others

The cartoon had a big impact!

• The famous rock band AC/DC got the title for their song "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" from Dishonest John's business cards. His cards read: "Dirty deeds done dirt cheap. Holidays, Sundays and special rates."

• Artist Bob Dylan even painted Cecil in one of his artworks in 2017.

• Marvel Comics has two alien characters named "B'nee" and "C'cil," which are a nod to Beany and Cecil.

• The puppet origins of Cecil also inspired the science fiction author Larry Niven. He created an alien race called Pierson's Puppeteer based on Cecil's design.

• The show was also an inspiration for Joel Hodgson to create the popular TV show Mystery Science Theater 3000.

The People Behind the Scenes

The show's creator was Bob Clampett. He was the producer and helped write the stories. He also voiced Cecil!

The credits for the show were unique. Instead of just job titles, they used little pictures to show what everyone did. For example, Bob Clampett's writing credit was shown by a typewriter typing his name. Bob Clampett also made sure his name was in the theme song so more people would know he created the show.

Home Video Releases

You might not remember these, but the whole series was released on VHS and Betamax tapes in the 1980s. Later, some episodes were put on DVDs, with special features like old puppet show episodes and behind-the-scenes footage.

See also

In Spanish: Beany and Cecil para niños