Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles |
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Title card
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| Genre |
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| Written by |
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| Directed by | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Starring | Dick Beals Ted Cassidy Paul Frees Don Messick Hal Smith John Stephenson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 18 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Hanna-Barbera Productions |
| Distributor | Taft Broadcasting |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBS |
| Original release | September 10, 1966 – January 17, 1967 |
Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles is a fun American cartoon TV show made by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It first aired on September 10, 1966, on CBS and was shown on Saturday mornings for two seasons.
Contents
About the Show
This TV show had two main parts. Each part was a different cartoon adventure. The show was a mix of Hanna-Barbera's older cartoons and their newer superhero shows from the 1960s. Every episode had two stories about The Impossibles and one story about Frankenstein Jr. in between.
Frankenstein Jr.
The Frankenstein Jr. cartoon takes place in a city called Civic City. A smart boy scientist named Buzz Conroy (voiced by Dick Beals) works with his dad, Professor Conroy (voiced by John Stephenson). They fight bad guys with the help of a giant, powerful robot hero named "Frankenstein Jr." (voiced by Ted Cassidy). Buzz built "Frankie" himself. He can activate Frankie using a special energy ring.
The Impossibles
The Impossibles are a team of three superheroes. They pretend to be a rock music band, a bit like The Beatles. Their names tell you about their cool powers:
- Multi-Man (voiced by Don Messick) can make many exact copies of himself.
- Coil-Man (voiced by Hal Smith) can turn his body into a super-springy coil.
- Fluid-Man (voiced by Paul Frees) can change his body into any liquid.
The heroes get their missions from a secret boss named "Big D" (also voiced by Frees). Big D talks to them through a special receiver hidden in Coil-Man's left-handed guitar. Before the show was made, the group was almost called "The Incredibles." This name was later used for the superhero family in the 2004 Disney/Pixar movie, The Incredibles.
Who Are the Voices?
Many talented actors gave voices to the characters in the show:
- Dick Beals as Buzz Conroy
- Ted Cassidy as Frankenstein Jr.
- John Stephenson as Professor Conroy
- Paul Frees as Fluid Man, Big D
- Don Messick as Multi Man
- Hal Smith as Coil Man
Episode Adventures
Both Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles had many exciting episodes. In Frankenstein Jr., Buzz and Frankie faced off against all sorts of villains. These included a shocking electrical monster, a spyder man, and even an alien brain from outer space! They also fought plant creatures, living images, and a giant junk monster.
The show had a total of 18 episodes. Each one brought new challenges for the heroes to overcome.
Other Appearances
The characters from Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles have appeared in other cartoons and comics.
- Buzz Conroy and Frankenstein Jr. showed up in an episode of Yogi's Space Race called "Race Through the Planet of the Monsters."
Comics and Books
A comic book for Frankenstein Jr. and The Impossibles was released by Gold Key Comics in 1966. It was a tie-in to the TV show. The stories from this comic were later reprinted in a UK annual in 1968. Frankenstein Jr. fought villains like the Flea Man in these comics.
Frankenstein Jr. also appeared in a comic called Hanna-Barbera Presents #8 in 1996. The cover of this comic showed Frankenstein Jr. fighting The Impossibles. It was a tribute to the first issue of the Fantastic Four comic by Marvel Comics.
A children's book called Frankenstein Jr.: The Menace of the Heartless Monster was published in 1968.
Hero Powers Reused
The special powers of The Impossibles were later used for characters in another Hanna-Barbera show called The Super Globetrotters. This show featured the famous Harlem Globetrotters basketball team as secret superheroes.
- Nate Branch's hero name was "Fluid Man" or "Liquid Man." He had powers similar to The Impossibles' Fluid-Man.
- "Twiggy" Sanders became "Spaghetti Man." He could coil and stretch, just like Coil-Man.
- "Geese" Ausbie was "Multi Man." His powers were almost exactly like The Impossibles' Multi-Man.
Future Quest Comics
In 2016, Buzz, Frankenstein Jr., and The Impossibles played a big part in the DC Comics series Future Quest. This comic series brought together characters from many Hanna-Barbera cartoons. These included Jonny Quest, Space Ghost, The Herculoids, and Birdman and the Galaxy Trio. In Future Quest, The Impossibles even gained a new female team member named Cobalt.
