King Leonardo and His Short Subjects facts for kids
Quick facts for kids King Leonardo and his Short Subjects |
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| Genre | Animation |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
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| Executive producer(s) | Peter M. Piech |
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| Running time | 30 minutes |
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| Original network | NBC |
| Picture format | Color (initially telecast in black-and-white) |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | October 15, 1960 – September 28, 1963 |
King Leonardo and his Short Subjects (also known as The King and Odie Show) was a fun animated cartoon series. It aired from 1960 to 1963. The show was created by Total Television, a company that later changed its name to Leonardo Productions. It was sponsored by General Mills, a big food company.
Contents
What Is King Leonardo About?
The show mainly followed Leonardo the lion. He was the kind but sometimes clumsy king of Bongo Congo. This was a made-up African country famous for its bongos.
King Leonardo always had help from his calm and smart skunk friend, Odie Cologne. Odie was the one who truly kept the kingdom running smoothly. He had been by the king's side since they were little.
Who Are the Main Characters?
- King Leonardo (voiced by Jackson Beck): A lion who is a well-meaning but often clumsy king.
- Odie Cologne (voiced by Allen Swift): A smart and calm skunk who helps King Leonardo.
- Biggie Rat (voiced by Jackson Beck): The main bad guy who always tries to take over Bongo Congo.
- Itchy Brother (voiced by Allen Swift): King Leonardo's not-so-smart brother who helps Biggie Rat.
- Professor Messer (voiced by Jackson Beck): An evil German inventor who sometimes helps Biggie Rat.
- Carlotta: Odie's sister, who can be a bit flirty and sometimes helps Biggie.
Biggie and Itchy's plans always failed. They usually ended up in the dungeon or managed to get away.
What About Mr. Mad?
Some episodes of "The King and Odie" were shown on another cartoon series, Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales. In these, Biggie Rat and Itchy Brother worked for a mad scientist named Mr. Mad (voiced by Norman Rose). Mr. Mad was very bossy, even to Biggie. He had his own plans for Bongo Congo. When his schemes failed, Mr. Mad would disappear "as if by magic." This way, he was never caught.
Other Fun Segments
Each half-hour episode of King Leonardo had five animated parts. It included a two-part "King and Odie" story. In between, other characters had their own adventures.
Who Else Was in the Show?
- Tooter Turtle: This segment followed a turtle (voiced by Allen Swift). Tooter would ask Mr. Wizard the Lizard (voiced by Sandy Becker) to send him to different places. But Tooter always realized he was better off at home. When he got stuck, he would call for the wizard. The wizard would send him home with a special chant: "Drizzle drazzle druzzle drome, time for this one to come home."
- The Hunter: This part featured a bloodhound detective (voiced by Kenny Delmar). He had a Southern accent, like Senator Claghorn from The Fred Allen Show. The Hunter would chase a criminal fox named The Fox (voiced by Ben Stone). The Fox always tried to trick people but was always caught in the end.
What About Twinkles?
Another part of the original King Leonardo show was about Twinkles. This was an orange elephant who was the mascot for Twinkles Cereal. This cereal was a product of General Mills, the show's main sponsor. These short "Twinkles" segments were about 90 seconds long. They continued to air in reruns during the 1960s. They were later removed when a firefighter character replaced the elephant as the cereal's mascot.
Other Cartoons on the Show
Early in the show's run on NBC, some old cartoons from Columbia Pictures were also shown. These included cartoons with The Fox and the Crow and Li'l Abner. These extra shorts were added to fill time. This happened when the first episodes were delayed in production.
Who Made the Animation?
The animation for the early parts of the show was done by TV Spots. Later episodes were made by Gamma Productions. This studio in Mexico also did a lot of work for Jay Ward Productions. Because of this, and because both shows had the same sponsor (General Mills), Gamma is often linked to both Total Television and Jay Ward Productions. TV Spots mainly made animated commercials. They also worked on some parts of Rocky and His Friends for Jay Ward Productions.
Where Did They Appear Next?
After King Leonardo and his Short Subjects ended, new segments of "The King and Odie" and "The Hunter" were made. They aired on Total TV's Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales, which started in 1963. The next year, Total TV launched its most famous series, Underdog. When Underdog began in 1964, it showed repeats of The Hunter. The "Hunter" spot on Tennessee Tuxedo was then filled with repeats of Tooter Turtle.
In reruns, cartoons from Total Television were often shown with Jay Ward cartoons. Even though they looked similar because of their simple animation style, they were made by two different companies. The animation for both studios was done by Gamma Productions, which is why they had a similar "look."
King Leonardo was repackaged for reruns as The King and Odie in the mid-1960s. However, it never became as popular as Total Television's other shows, Underdog and Tennessee Tuxedo. It is not often seen on TV today. From 2006, the Black Family Channel aired this show on its BFC Kids TV block for about a year. The characters from the show also appeared in an eight-issue comic book series. These comics were made by Dell Comics and Gold Key.
Episodes
Voice Cast
Here are the talented voice actors who brought the characters to life:
- Jackson Beck – King Leonardo, Biggie Rat, Professor Messer
- Allen Swift – Odie Cologne, Itchy Brother, Duke, Earl, Tooter Turtle, Narrator ("The King and Odie")
- Sandy Becker – Mr. Wizard
- Kenny Delmar – The Hunter, Narrator ("The Hunter")
- Ben Stone – The Fox, Officer Flim Flanigan
- Norman Rose – Mr. Mad, Narrator (several 1962 episodes of "The King and Odie")
- Delo States – various female and children's voices
- George S. Irving – Narrator ("Twinkles"), various voices
