Go Go Gophers facts for kids

Go Go Gophers is a fun cartoon show set in the Wild West. It first appeared as short, 4-5 minute stories within the Underdog TV series. Later, these popular segments became their own show on CBS, airing from September 14, 1968, to September 6, 1969. The show also shared airtime with Space Kidettes on Saturday mornings in 1967. Total Television produced this unique series.

What made Go Go Gophers special was that, unlike many Westerns, the Native American characters always outsmarted the cowboys!

Meet the Characters and Their Adventures

The series takes place in the late 1800s and early 1900s in the American West. Here, we meet the leaders of a U.S. Army fort. There's Colonel Kit Coyote, voiced by Kenny Delmar, who sounds a lot like Theodore Roosevelt. His name is a funny take on the famous frontiersman Kit Carson. Then there's his loyal helper, Sergeant Okey Homa, voiced by Sandy Becker, who sounds like John Wayne. His name is a playful nod to the state of Oklahoma.

These two officers are always trying to take over Gopher Gulch. Their goal is to get rid of the last two Gopher Indians: Running Board (voiced by George S. Irving) and Ruffled Feather (also voiced by Sandy Becker). But these gophers are super smart and always find a way to stop Colonel Coyote and Sergeant Oakey Homa's plans!

How the Gophers Outsmart Everyone

Whenever Running Board and Ruffled Feather come up with a clever idea, Ruffled Feather starts speaking in what sounds like gibberish. This is supposed to be the gophers' native language. Running Board always understands him perfectly, asks a quick question about the plan, then laughs and shouts, "Woopie doopie! We have fun!" or "You-um genius!".

The gophers also get a lot of help from Colonel Coyote's own mistakes. He often ignores the good advice from Sergeant Homa, who is much more observant. In one episode, the gophers even say they need Colonel Coyote to stay in charge. They worry that a smarter replacement might actually succeed in removing them from Gopher Gulch.

A common phrase in the show is Sergeant Homa saying, "Begging the Colonel's pardon." The Colonel often ignores the Sergeant while reading his army rule book, and he usually pays the price for it! Most episodes end with the Sergeant telling the audience, "Don't miss our next adventure," hoping their problems will be solved soon.

Other Characters and Storylines

Sometimes, General Nuisance (voiced by George S. Irving) visits the fort. He is the commanding officer of the Colonel and Sergeant. General Nuisance often gives them plans from Washington D.C. to deal with the Gopher Indians. But the gophers always mess up these plans. This usually ends with General Nuisance throwing the Colonel and Sergeant into the guard house!

Some episodes also feature Corporal Crimp (voiced by Sandy Becker). He sometimes tries to make deals with the gophers for his own benefit. For example, he might try to buy root beer from them, which the gophers secretly spike with "Indian Hiccup Drops."

Some stories in the show are told over several episodes. For instance, in "The Raw Recruits," the Colonel tries to make Ruffled Feather and Running Board join the army. But no matter how hard he tries, the gophers are impossible to train. This story continues in "Tenshun," "Cuckoo Combat," and finishes in "Kitchen Capers." In the end, the Colonel is so tired of their tricks that he lets them leave the army.

Episode Highlights

Here are some of the adventures the Go Go Gophers had:

• He's for the Berries – Colonel Kit Coyote dreams he eats berries that make him huge.
• Swamped – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa try to get rid of the Gopher Indians, but their army gets stuck in a swamp.
• Tanks to the Gophers – Colonel Kit Coyote gets a new tank to fight the Gopher Indians.
• Up in the Air – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa fly a shaky airplane to drop bombs on the Gopher Indians.
• The Big Banger – General Nuisance orders the Colonel and Sergeant to move a huge cannon up a mountain to use on the Gopher Indians.
• Bold as Gold – Gold is found, and people start moving West. The Gopher Indians try to keep them away from their land.
• Who's a Dummy – The Gopher Indians carve and paint totem poles that look exactly like themselves to trick the Colonel and Sergeant.
• Tapping the Telegraph – The Gopher Indians tap into the telegraph wires to send fake messages to the Colonel and Sergeant.
• Termite Trainers – The Gopher Indians use a termite to turn the fort into sawdust.
• Medicine Man – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa guard the fort and their bologna from the Gopher Indians.
• Mesa Mess – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa go to Lonesome Mesa to try and catch the Gopher Indians.
• Cleveland Indians – Colonel Kit Coyote takes the Gopher Indians to Cleveland to meet the Cleveland Indians baseball team, hoping they will stay there. The gophers cause trouble in the city.
• Gatling Gophers – The Colonel gets a powerful Gatling gun to use against the Gophers.
• Introducing General Nuisance – General Nuisance visits the Colonel to find out why the Gopher Indians are still around.
• Trojan Totem – The Gophers give the Colonel a hollow totem pole as a gift. Ruffled Feather and Running Board hide inside and sneak out at night to cause mischief.
• Moon Zoom – Running Board and Ruffled Feather build a rocket to send Colonel Kit Coyote to the moon.
• Indian Treasure – A fake treasure map (painted by Ruffled Feather) sends the Colonel and Sergeant on a wild chase full of traps.
• The Horseless Carriage Trade – It's a race between the Colonel and Sergeant in their horse and carriage, and Ruffled Feather and Running Board in their "horseless carriage" (an early car).
• Honey Fun – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa try to get back the honey that the Gopher Indians keep stealing.
• The Colonel Cleans Up – Colonel Kit Coyote plans to use a giant vacuum cleaner to suck up the Gopher Indians from Gopher Gulch.
• The Raw Recruits – The Colonel makes Ruffled Feather and Running Board join the U.S. Army.
• Tenshun – When the Gopher recruits fail as foot soldiers, the Colonel tries to train them to use cannons.
• Cuckoo Combat – The Colonel tries to teach the Gopher recruits unarmed self-defense using the Army manual.
• The Unsinkable Ironclad – Colonel Kit Coyote borrows the Navy's newest warship to try and clear out Gopher Gulch.
• Amusement Park – The Gopher Indians take over an amusement park.
• Crash Diet – The Gopher Indians send a fake telegram to make Colonel Kit Coyote lose weight before General Nuisance arrives.
• Wild Wild Flowers – Aunt Flora comes to the fort and plants flowers on the Army's weapons.
• Look Out! Here Comes Aunt Flora – The Colonel doesn't want his meddling Aunt Flora to come to the fort, but Ruffled Feather and Running Board make sure she does.
• Root Beer Riot – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa stop the Gopher Indians from getting water. The Gopher Indians do everything to get water back.
• Tricky Teepee Trap – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa build a teepee to trap the Gopher Indians.
• Three Ring Circus – When the Gophers are not allowed to perform in the Army circus, Ruffled Feather and Running Board crash the rehearsals.
• Don't Fence Me In – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa build a fence around Gopher Gulch, but they end up locking themselves out.
• Locked Out – Colonel Kit Coyote orders Corporal Crimp to get the key, but the Gopher Indians play a trick on Corporal Crimp.
• Hotel Headaches – Colonel Kit Coyote brings the Gopher Indians to a hotel, where they cause a lot of damage.
• Choo Choo Chase – The Colonel and Sergeant finally catch the Gophers and are taking them to a reservation by train. But Ruffled Feather and Running Board escape, leading to a wild train ride.
• Rocket Ruckus – The Colonel gets Army rockets to launch against the Gophers.
• Go Go Gamblers – The Colonel and Sergeant pretend to be riverboat casino operators, hoping to trick the Gophers into betting their land. But the games are rigged!
• Radio Raid – The Colonel uses a 2-way radio to talk to the Sergeant and direct cannon fire at the Gophers.
• Steam Roller – The Colonel gets a steam roller to flatten the Gophers’ teepee.
• Mutiny a Go-Go – The Colonel invites the Gophers on a cruise to an exotic island, where he plans to leave them stranded.
• Marooned on Cannibal Island – The Colonel’s plan to leave the Gophers on an island backfires. He and the Sergeant end up stranded instead, and the island has cannibals!
• The Indian Giver – The Colonel gets an electronic device called an "Indian Giver," which finds where Indians are.
• The Big Pow-Wow – Running Board calls for a meeting of all local tribes, planning a big attack on Fort Gopher, even with the Colonel’s Indian Giver device. During the attack, the Gophers steal the device.
• Back to the Indians – The Gophers change the stolen Indian Giver device so it finds everything EXCEPT Indians. Then they make sure the Colonel finds it.
• California Here We Come – Colonel Kit Coyote and Sergeant Okey Homa race the Gopher Indians to California for a contest.
• Blankety-Blank Blanket – The Gopher Indians get a new blanket by robbing a stagecoach.
• The Great White Stallion – The Colonel wants to catch a wild horse known as the Great White Stallion.
• Kitchen Capers – Colonel Coyote gives the Gopher recruits one last chance in the Army by putting them to work in the fort kitchen. The Gophers make super-spicy soup and gunpowder biscuits. A furious Colonel Coyote chases them, throwing "exploding" biscuits!