The Banana Splits facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Banana SplitsAdventure Hour |
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Original title card
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| Genre | |
| Directed by | Richard Donner (Season 1) Tom Boutross (Season 2) |
| Starring |
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| Voices of |
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| Theme music composer | Nelson B. Winkless Jr. (credited to Ritchie Adams & Mark Barkan) |
| Opening theme | "Tra La La (One Banana, Two Banana)" |
| Composer(s) |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 31 + shorts |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | |
| Producer(s) | Edward J. Rosen (Season 1) |
| Running time | 45–48 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Hanna-Barbera Productions |
| Distributor | Warner Bros. Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | September 7, 1968 – September 5, 1970 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | |
The Banana Splits Adventure Hour is a fun American TV show. It was made by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The show stars the Banana Splits, a pretend rock band. The band members are four animal characters who wear cool red helmets.
The show's hosts are people dressed in costumes. They are Fleegle (who plays guitar and sings), Bingo (who plays drums and sings), Drooper (who plays bass guitar and sings), and Snorky (who plays keyboards and makes sounds).
The series had 31 episodes. It first aired on NBC on Saturday mornings. This was from September 7, 1968, to September 5, 1970. Later, it was shown again from 1971 to 1982. The Banana Splits was the first show from Hanna-Barbera to mix live actors with cartoons. The costumes and sets were designed by Sid and Marty Krofft.
In 2019, a comedy horror movie called The Banana Splits Movie was released.
Contents
About the Show
Each episode of The Banana Splits was like a meeting of the "Banana Splits Club." The show featured the club members' adventures. They were a musical group, a bit like the band the Monkees.
The Splits would perform songs and funny skits. These parts of the show introduced other cartoon and live-action segments.
For the first season, some parts of the show were filmed at Six Flags Over Texas. This is a big amusement park in Arlington, Texas. In the second season, filming moved to the Coney Island amusement park in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Banana Splits often rode the rides at these parks.
The show also featured special vehicles called "Banana Buggies." Each buggy was a customized Amphicat all-terrain vehicle. They were decorated to look like the character who drove them.
The Banana Splits was one of the first Hanna-Barbera shows where William Hanna and Joseph Barbera were listed as executive producers. It was also one of the first Saturday morning cartoon shows to use a laugh track.
Meet the Characters
Main Banana Splits
- Fleegle – He is a greenish-brown dog. Fleegle wears a big red bow tie and black buttons. His tongue is always sticking out, which makes him have a lisp. He plays guitar and sings for the band. Fleegle often leads the club meetings.
- Bingo – He is an orange ape with a nasal voice. Bingo wears white glasses and a yellow vest. He has a big, toothy grin. He plays drums and sings. Bingo is known for answering riddles that Fleegle asks.
- Drooper – He is a lion with a very long tail. Drooper wears yellowish-orange glasses and spats on his feet. He speaks with a Southern drawl. He plays bass guitar and sings. Drooper often tries to empty a trash bin that keeps spewing things out.
- Snorky – He is a quiet, furry elephant who wears pink glasses. In season two, he looks more like a regular elephant and wears a green vest with yellow stripes. Snorky communicates by making honking sounds, like a clown horn. The other Splits often translate what he is saying. He plays the keyboard.
Other Friends
- Announcer – You don't see him, but he introduces the Banana Splits and other parts of the show.
- The Banana Vac – This is a blue, moose-like head with lights on it. He hangs over the clubhouse entrance. He makes comments and helps introduce segments.
- Cuckoo Clock – A clock with a blue and yellow bird head inside. It gives funny remarks when asked "What time is it?" It also helps introduce segments.
- Goofy Gopher – A gopher who lives in their flower pot.
- The Sour Grapes Bunch – A group of silent human girls, all named Charley. They bring written notes to the Banana Splits. They also danced one song with the main characters.
- The Dilly Sisters – Two human girls who play acoustic guitars and sing songs like "The Mexican Hat Dance".
Show Segments
The show featured four main segments:
- Arabian Knights – This cartoon is about Prince Turhan and Princess Nida. With their friends, they try to free Persia from the evil Black Sultan.
- The Three Musketeers – This cartoon is based on the famous novel. Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnian go on new adventures. They fight enemies of the King and Queen of France.
- Danger Island – This was the only live-action adventure part of the show. It follows archaeologist Professor Irwin Hayden, his assistant Link, and his daughter Leslie. They have adventures on an island chain. They also try to avoid a group of clumsy pirates.
- Micro Ventures – In this four-episode segment, Professor Carter and his children, Jill and Mike, use a shrinking machine. They shrink themselves and their dune buggy. This lets them explore the world from the size of an insect.
In the second season, The Three Musketeers was replaced with reruns of The Hillbilly Bears. This cartoon had been on The Atom Ant Show before. Later, other shows like The Adventures of Gulliver were also shown as reruns.
In 1971, The Banana Splits was shown again on local TV stations. It was called The Banana Splits and Friends Show. It included episodes of The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Atom Ant Show.
Music of the Banana Splits
The show's main song is "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)". It was released as a single and became quite popular in 1969. The music for the Banana Splits was made by professional studio musicians.
Singers like Joey Levine, Al Kooper, and Barry White helped create the band's bubblegum pop rock and roll sound.
In 1968, The Banana Splits released an album called We're the Banana Splits on Decca Records.
Comics and Other Projects
Comic Books
The Banana Splits' adventures continued in comic books. Gold Key Comics started publishing their comics in 1969. These stories showed the band trying to find work or traveling between their shows.
The Banana Splits even had a crossover comic with the Suicide Squad in 2017.
TV Film
In 1972, Hanna-Barbera made a TV movie called The Banana Splits in Hocus Pocus Park. In this film, the group has to rescue a girl from an evil witch.
Educational Films
The Banana Splits also appeared in educational films:
- The Banana Splits: Healthy and Happy (1978)
- The Banana Splits: We Have Five Senses (1978)
- The Banana Splits: Safety First (1978)
- The Banana Splits: It's a Sense-sational World (1979)
- The Banana Splits: Meet the Microbes (1980)
- Learning About Holidays with The Banana Splits (1982)
2008 Revival
In 2008, new comedy shorts and music videos featuring the Banana Splits were released. These debuted on Cartoon Network. New voices were used for the characters. This relaunch also included a live show, a website, and a CD with new songs. A special area called Banana Splitsville was even opened at a theme park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
