A number of sources, including Wikipedia, claim that the syndicated Hanna-Barbera's World of Super Adventure, a rerun anthology package collecting almost all of the studio's superhero cartoons from 1966-68 (the lone exception being Young Samson & Goliath), was released to stations in 1980. That information, not surprisingly, is incorrect. It actually was released to stations in 1978. Wikipedia claims that the anthology block aired on NBC, but that would also be incorrect.
In New York, for example, World of Super Adventure aired on WNEW (now WNYW), and would have a block running from around 9-12 (ET). The series that I barely remembered as a toddler were all together. Space Ghost & Dino Boy. Frankenstein, Jr. & The Impossibles. Shazzan. The Herculoids. The Fantastic Four. Birdman & the Galaxy Trio. Moby Dick & Mighty Mightor. The opening titles were sometimes deleted in favor of the umbrella opening, narrated by Stan Jones (Challenge of the Super Friends), which mashed together the opens of the various series. Prior to this, reruns of Space Ghost & Frankenstein, Jr. were put together in a half-hour show that aired on NBC as a mid-season replacement during the 1976-77 season, which might be what has confused the person responsible for the Wikipedia entry.
Here is that opening, uploaded by TheGhostPlanet to YouTube:
Rating: A-.
Updated, 4/21/11, with new information.
2 comments:
The opening credits really brought back memories!
I remember watching this on WNEW nack in the day! It was so great to have so many HB superheroes all bundled in a neat package! It's a shame Samson 7 Goliath couldn't have been included.
Yah, I found it strange that Samson was left out of the mix, but H-B had put that in a separate package, blocked together in some markets with 1966's Space Kiddettes and repackaged with some Jay Ward/Gamma shorts that the distributor had available at the time. H-B fumbled that one pretty badly.
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