Jonny Quest (TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Jonny Quest |
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Title card
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| Genre | Adventure Action Spy-fi Science fiction |
| Created by | Doug Wildey |
| Written by | William D. Hamilton
Walter Black
Charles Hoffman
Joanna Lee
Alan Dinehart
Herbert Finn
Doug Wildey
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| Directed by | William Hanna Joseph Barbera Story Director Alex Lovy Paul Sommer Lewis Marshall Dan Gordon Kin Platt Animation Direction Charles A. Nichols Irv Spence |
| Voices of | Tim Matheson Mike Road Danny Bravo John Stephenson (Episodes 1-4; 9 as Dr. Quest) Don Messick (Episodes 5-8; 10-26 as Dr. Quest) Vic Perrin |
| Theme music composer | Hoyt Curtin |
| Composer(s) | Hoyt Curtin and Ted Nichols |
| Country of origin | United States Canada |
| No. of seasons | 1 (U.S.) 7 (Canada Run) |
| No. of episodes | 42 (split episodes, Canada Run) (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | William Hanna Joseph Barbera |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Hanna-Barbera Productions |
| Distributor | Screen Gems |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | September 18, 1964 – November 6, 1972 (Canada Run) March 11, 1965 (U.S.) |
Jonny Quest (also known as The Adventures of Jonny Quest) is an American animated science fiction adventure television series about a boy who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for Screen Gems, and was created and designed by comic book artist Doug Wildey.
Inspired by radio serials and comics in the action-adventure genre, it featured more realistic art, human characters, and stories than Hanna-Barbera's previous cartoon programs. It was the first of several Hanna-Barbera action-based adventure shows—which would later include Space Ghost, The Herculoids, and Birdman and the Galaxy Trio—and ran on ABC in prime time on early Friday nights for one season in 1964/1965.
After 20 years of reruns, during which time the series appeared on all three major U.S. television networks of the time, new episodes were produced for syndication in 1986 as part of The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera's second season. Two telefilms, a comic book series, and a second revival series, The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, were produced in the 1990s. Characters from the series also appear throughout The Venture Bros.
Contents
Characters
- Jonathan "Jonny" Quest is a Tom Swift-like 11-year-old American boy who lost his mother at an early age. Although unenthusiastic in his schooling, he is intelligent, brave, adventurous, and generally athletic with a proficiency in judo, scuba diving, and the handling of firearms. He takes on responsibility willingly, attending to his homework (and/or household chores), telling the truth, and treating adults with respect. His voice was provided by actor Tim Matheson.
- Dr. Benton C. Quest is Jonny's father and a scientific genius who works for the U.S. Government. He is considered "one of the three top scientists in the world", with interests and technical know-how spanning many fields. Raising Jonny and Hadji as a widowed father, he is benevolent, conscientious and decent, even though he is ready, willing and able to take decisive action when necessary for survival or defense. Dr. Quest was voiced by John Stephenson for five episodes, and by Don Messick for the remainder of the series. One of the government agents in the first episode mentions that Jonny lost his mother sometime earlier but does not say when or, more importantly, how she died. The fact a special agent was assigned to protect Jonny suggests Mrs. Quest may have been killed by foreign agents. As the two agents in the first episode fly to Palm Key to meet with Dr. Quest, one explains to the other that "if Jonny fell into the hands of enemy agents, Dr. Quest's value to science would be seriously impaired." So there is definite concern that Jonny might be kidnapped.
- Roger T. "Race" Bannon is the special agent from Intelligence One assigned to safeguard Jonny "24 hours a day and 7 days a week as tutor, companion and all-around watchdog". Race was born in Wilmette, Illinois, to John and Sarah Bannon. He is an expert in judo, having a third-degree black belt as well as the ability to defeat notorious experts in various sporting techniques, including sumo wrestlers. He is also a pilot. The character was voiced by Mike Road, with his design modeled on actor Jeff Chandler. The name is a combination of Race Dunhill and Stretch Bannon from an earlier comic strip. The surname Bannon is Irish (from 'O'Banain') meaning "white".
- Hadji Singh is a streetwise 11-year-old Kolkata orphan who becomes the adopted son of Dr. Benton Quest, as well as Jonny's best friend and adoptive brother. Rarely depicted without his bejeweled turban and Jodhpuri, he is proficient in judo, which he learned from an American Marine. The seventh son of a seventh son, Hadji seems to possess mystical powers (including snake-charming, levitation and hypnotism), which may or may not be attributed to parlor trickery. The Quest family meets Hadji while Dr. Quest is lecturing at Calcutta University; he subsequently joined the Quest team after saving Dr. Quest's life (by using a basket lid to block a knife thrown at the doctor). Although slightly more circumspect than Jonny, he can reliably be talked into participating in most any adventure by his adoptive brother. He is voiced by Danny Bravo.
- Bandit is Jonny's pet bulldog, so named because he is white with black markings - including what appears to be a black domino mask around his eyes. This coloration is occasionally instrumental in foiling adversaries. Bandit is unique among his fellow Hanna-Barbera dogs (such as Scooby-Doo, Huckleberry Hound, and Hong Kong Phooey), as he is a regular non-anthropomorphic dog. Still, he seems uncannily able to understand human speech and is capable of complex facial expressions. Don Messick provided Bandit's vocal effects, which were combined with an archived clip of an actual dog barking. Creator Doug Wildey wanted to have a monkey as Jonny's pet, but he was overruled by Hanna-Barbera. Wildey has said Bandit was intended to be a bulldog, though the dog differs in appearance from actual bulldog breeds.
- Jezebel Jade is a very savvy and mysterious woman. Very little is known about her, except that she is obviously wealthy and/or very well-connected. It is not clear whether Jade is her real name, a nickname, a code name, etc. It is clear that she has known the Quest family for some time, and that she and Race apparently once had a romantic relationship (perhaps still do). In "Double Danger", for example, she kisses the agent Korchuk, an agent of Dr. Zin who is pretending to be Race. When Jonny asks Jade how she knew Korchuk was an imposter, she simply replies, "There are some ways a woman cannot be fooled!" Jade is the only female character who appears in two episodes—"Double Danger" and "Terror Island". She is voiced by Cathy Lewis.
The Quest family has a home compound in the Florida Keys (on the island of Palm Key) but their adventures take them around the world. The Quest team travels the globe studying scientific mysteries, which generally end up being explained as the work of various adversaries. Such pursuits get them into scrapes with opponents, ranging from espionage robots and electric monsters to Egyptian mummies and prehistoric pterosaurs.
Although most menaces appeared in only one episode each, one recurring nemesis is known as Dr. Zin, an Asian criminal mastermind. With yellow skin and a maniacal laugh, Zin was an example of the Yellow Peril villains common in Cold War-era fiction. The voices of Dr. Zin and other assorted characters were done by Vic Perrin.
Race's mysterious old flame, Jade, appears in two episodes, as do the characters of Corbin (an Intelligence One agent) and the Professor (a scientist colleague of Dr. Quest's). The 1993 made-for-TV feature Jonny's Golden Quest included in its plotline the concept that Race and Jade had been briefly married years earlier, but it also depicted Race and Hadji in place with the family at Mrs. Quest's death, in direct contradiction to explicit statements and presentation in the original series. Jade's first name is revealed in Tom and Jerry: Spy Quest to be Jezebel.
Broadcast history
Jonny Quest first aired from September 18, 1964, to March 11, 1965 in prime time on the ABC network and was an almost instant success, both critically and ratings-wise but it was canceled after one season due to the animated show's high production costs.
Like the original Star Trek television series, this series was a big money-maker in syndication, but this avenue to profits was not as well-known when the show was canceled in 1965. Along with another Hanna-Barbera series, The Jetsons, Jonny Quest is one of the few television series to have aired on each of the Big Three television networks in the United States.
Episodes
| No. | Title | Written by | Original air date | |
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| 1 | "The Mystery of the Lizard Men" | Joseph Barbera, William Hanna, Douglas Wildey, and Alex Lovy | September 18, 1964 | |
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While investigating the disappearance of multiple ships in the Sargasso Sea, Dr. Quest discovers a secret laser base (operated by a foreign provocateur and protected by lizard-suited scuba divers) hidden aboard an 18th-century shipwreck (Hadji does not appear in this episode).
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| 2 | "Arctic Splashdown" | Walter Black | September 25, 1964 | |
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A foreign submarine crew races Dr. Quest and his recovery team (aboard an American icebreaker) to a downed experimental missile in the Arctic ice cap (the first appearance of Hadji).
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| 3 | "The Curse of Anubis" | Walter Black | October 2, 1964 | |
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A former archaeologist friend-turned Arab nationalist revolutionary named Ahmed Kareem, who is being stalked by a vengeful mummy, attempts to frame Dr. Quest and Race for the theft of a priceless Egyptian artifact.
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| 4 | "Pursuit of the Po-Ho" | William D. Hamilton | October 9, 1964 | |
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While going to the aid of a captive fellow scientist in the Amazon jungle, Dr. Quest is abducted (for ritual sacrifice) by a tribe of hostile native warriors.
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| 5 | "Riddle of the Gold" | Herbert Finn and Alan Dinehart | October 16, 1964 | |
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While investigating a bar of fake gold from a supposedly exhausted Indian mine, Dr. Quest discovers an alchemist counterfeit ring (conceived by his nemesis, Dr. Zin, and operated from the palace of an impostor Maharaja) that could bring damage to the global financial market. Note: First appearance of Dr. Zin and the first episode where Don Messick voices Dr. Quest. |
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| 6 | "Treasure of the Temple" | Walter Black | October 23, 1964 | |
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While on an archaeological expedition to an ancient Mayan city in the Yucatán jungle, Dr. Quest is threatened by a greedy, ruthless British treasure hunter named Perkins and his native confederates, searching for riches in the same ruins.
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| 7 | "Calcutta Adventure" | Joanna Lee | October 30, 1964 | |
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While investigating a mysterious ailment in India, Dr. Quest discovers an underground nerve-gas factory (operated by a criminal mastermind and protected by hazmat-suited guards) hidden high within a remote mountain range. There is also a flashback recounting the adoption of Hadji.
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| 8 | "The Robot Spy" | William D. Hamilton | November 6, 1964 | |
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Dr. Zin sends a large, black, cyclopean, four-legged spider-like robot (by a flying saucer-like craft) to a U.S. government research facility in the American Southwest to steal the secrets of a para-power ray gun on which Dr. Quest is working.
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| 9 | "Double Danger" | Joanna Lee | November 13, 1964 | |
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An impostor disguised as Race is infiltrated into Dr. Quest's expedition to gather a rare pharmaceutical plant by Dr. Zin (who covets the plant's potential mind-control properties) in the jungles of Thailand. Note: The first appearance of Jade and the final time John Stephenson voices Dr. Quest. |
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| 10 | "Shadow of the Condor" | Charles Hoffman | November 20, 1964 | |
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After an emergency landing in the Andes Mountains, Race is challenged to an aerial dogfight by Baron Heinrich von Frohleich, an old German fighter ace of World War I fame (who keeps a collection of vintage aircraft at his Bavarian-style castle in South America). The Baron's machine guns, however, are loaded — Race's are not.
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| 11 | "Skull and Double Crossbones" | Walter Black | November 27, 1964 | |
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In the Caribbean Sea, a new cook aboard the Quest research vessel betrays his employer to a gang of Mexican pirates (seeking a sunken treasure chest, discovered by Jonny).
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| 12 | "The Dreadful Doll" | William D. Hamilton | December 4, 1964 | |
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While researching marine biology in the Caribbean, Dr. Quest encounters a phony witch doctor, who is protecting a secret submarine base (under construction by a criminal contractor) with his supposed voodoo powers.
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| 13 | "A Small Matter of Pygmies" | William D. Hamilton | December 11, 1964 | |
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When the members of his team descend in a plane crash over uncharted jungle territory, Dr. Quest must rescue them (with the help of local authorities) from a tribe of hostile Pygmy warriors.
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| 14 | "Dragons of Ashida" | Walter Black | December 18, 1964 | |
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On a visit to Japan, Dr. Quest finds that an old biologist friend (having gone insane) is breeding over-sized carnivorous lizards for the purpose of hunting human prey.
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| 15 | "Turu the Terrible" | William D. Hamilton | December 25, 1964 | |
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While searching for a rare strategic mineral in the Amazon jungle, Dr. Quest and Race discover a prehistoric Pteranodon, trained by a wheelchair-bound slave driver to capture and guard native workers needed for his mining operation.
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| 16 | "The Fraudulent Volcano" | William D. Hamilton | December 31, 1964 | |
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While investigating unusual tremors on a tropical island in the South Pacific, Dr. Quest and Race uncover a secret ray gun base (operated by Dr. Zin and protected by hovercraft-mounted guards) hidden deep within a local volcano.
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| 17 | "Werewolf of the Timberland" | William D. Hamilton | January 7, 1965 | |
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While hunting for samples of petrified wood in the Canadian Rockies, Dr. Quest is threatened by a gang of lumberjacks (one of whom disguises himself as a werewolf) intent on protecting their gold-smuggling operation.
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| 18 | "Pirates from Below" | Walter Black | January 14, 1965 | |
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The Quest home compound in Florida is attacked by foreign (submarine-borne) agents, intent on stealing a new undersea crawling vehicle that Dr. Quest is developing for the United States Navy.
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| 19 | "Attack of the Tree People" | Walter Black | January 21, 1965 | |
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Jonny and Hadji are marooned (by shipwreck) on the jungle coast of the African continent, where they are adopted by a tribe of friendly brown gorilla-like apes who protect them from a pair of Australian poachers, intent on kidnapping them for ransom. When the poachers managed to abduct Dr. Quest and Race, Jonny and Hadji must persuade to the apes to help rescue them and defeat the poachers.
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| 20 | "The Invisible Monster" | William D. Hamilton | January 28, 1965 | |
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Dr. Quest responds to the distress signal from a fellow scientist, who has accidentally unleashed an (invisible) energy monster on a South Pacific island. Note: this episode is generally remembered as the most frightening one in the series.
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| 21 | "The Devil's Tower" | William D. Hamilton | February 4, 1965 | |
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While doing atmospheric research in the African savanna, Dr. Quest uncovers an inaccessibly high plateau, populated by prehistoric cavemen, who have been trained as slave laborers for diamond mining by Klaus Heinrich von Dueffel, a Nazi war criminal in hiding.
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| 22 | "The Quetong Missile Mystery" | William D. Hamilton | February 11, 1965 | |
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While investigating the contamination and mutation of marine life in China, Dr. Quest discovers a secret missile base (operated by a rogue general and protected by treetop-posted guards) hidden deep within a local swamp (the title card shows "The 'Q' Missile Mystery" for the 1964–65 season's re-run of this episode).
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| 23 | "The House of Seven Gargoyles" | Charles Hoffman | February 18, 1965 | |
| 24 | "Terror Island" | Story by: Doug Wildey Teleplay by: Alan Dinehart and Herbert Finn |
February 25, 1965 | |
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Dr. Quest is kidnapped by a rival scientist who needs help with his experiments to develop gigantic (crab, spider, lizard) creatures at a secret Hong Kong-based laboratory compound. Note: The second appearance of Jade. |
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| 25 | "Monster in the Monastery" | Charles Hoffman | March 4, 1965 | |
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During a trip to Nepal, a band of terrorists disguised as yetis attempt to overthrow the local spiritual/government leader (a Dalai Lama-style figure) who is an old friend of Dr. Quest's.
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| 26 | "The Sea Haunt" | Charles Hoffman | March 11, 1965 | |
All writing credits taken from Classic Jonny Quest.
See also The New Adventures of Jonny Quest.
Merchandise
Items released in the United States during or shortly after the show's original run on ABC included:
- A simple substitution code ring was offered as a promotion by PF Flyers. The ring featured a movable code wheel, magnifying lens, signal flasher and a secret compartment. The code was implemented by a rotating circular inner code dial marked "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ" and a fixed outer code marked "WEARPFSLQMYBUHXVCZNDKIOTGJ", i.e. "Wear PFs."
- Whitman released a Jonny Quest coloring book under two different covers in 1965.
- During the show's 1964–65 season, a Jonny Quest card game was produced and distributed in the United States by Milton Bradley and in Australia under license to John Sands Ltd.
- Milton Bradley also released six Jonny Quest puzzle sets in the United States, two apiece for three different age levels.
- Transogram produced three Jonny Quest coloring sets: paint-by-number, crayon-by-number and pencil-by-number.
- Transogram also released a Jonny Quest board game.
- Kenner released two different packages of its Give-A-Show projector in 1965 with different Jonny Quest slides. In 1969, it released a projector for short films, including a Jonny Quest cartridge.
- Hanna-Barbera records published a 28-minute audio story, "Jonny Quest in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", on an LP that featured a new version of the theme song by Shorty Rogers. There was a 7-inch 45rpm record with an abbreviated version of the story, and another 45 titled "Favorite Songs of Jonny Quest", with the LP's theme song and other Hanna-Barbera music.
Home media
Various episodes of the classic series have been released on VHS and DVD over the years.
On May 11, 2004, Warner Home Video released Jonny Quest: The Complete First Season on DVD in Region 1, which features all 26 episodes of the original series, although some have been edited for content, and nearly all episodes have incorrect closing credits.
On June 11, 2019, Warner Home Video (via the Warner Archive Collection) released the original 1960s Jonny Quest series on Blu-ray for the first time. For this release, the original broadcast masters were used, and the episodes were presented uncut, unedited and uncensored. Most, if not all of the missing dialogue removed for the 2004 DVD version has been restored.
Appearances in other programs
- The characters appear in an episode of Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law in which Dr. Zin uses a robot stand-in for Race Bannon in a scheme to sue Benton Quest for custody of Jonny and Hadji.
- Characters from Jonny Quest appeared in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated episodes "Pawn of Shadows" and "Heart of Evil".
- The Adult Swim animated series The Venture Brothers is a parody of Jonny Quest and similar adventure series, and has also used the original characters – or thinly veiled versions of them – as guest characters.
- Jonny Quest and Hadji will appear in Jellystone!. The characters will be adults in this series.
See also
In Spanish: Jonny Quest para niños
