Rocky and His Friends (1959–1964)

Animated antics of flying squirrel Rocket J. Squirrel, or Rocky, and his dim companion, Bullwinkle J. Moose. And let's not forget the two spies who always complicate things for our heroes: ... See full summary »

Stars:

June Foray, Edward Everett Horton, Bill Scott

2 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
June Foray	...	Rocket J. Squirrel (47 episodes, 1959-1961)
Edward Everett Horton	...	Fractured Fairy Tales narrator (36 episodes, 1959-1961)
Bill Scott	...	Bullwinkle J. Moose (36 episodes, 1959-1961)
Paul Frees	...	Boris Badenov (34 episodes, 1959-1961)
William Conrad	...	Narrator (34 episodes, 1959-1961)
Walter Tetley	...	Sherman (32 episodes, 1959-1961)
Leon Askin	...	Fearless Leader (29 episodes, 1959-1960)

Storyline

Animated antics of flying squirrel Rocket J. Squirrel, or Rocky, and his dim companion, Bullwinkle J. Moose. And let's not forget the two spies who always complicate things for our heroes: Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale, who incognito try and help Rocky and Bullwinkle then immediately put them in life-threatening situations that result in major cliffhangers. Also features Grimm Fairy Tales Jay Ward-style and Peabody and Sherman taking intriguing trips through time courtesy of the Way-Back machine.

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Plot Keywords:

time travel | cult tv | breaking the fourth wall | cold war | cartoon moose | 

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Details

Official Sites:

Classic Media Jay Ward Productions, Inc.

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 November 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

Frostbite Falls Follies

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bullwinkle Studios, Jay Ward Productions, P.A.T.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Representatives for Red Skelton contacted the producers claiming that Bullwinkle's voice was an unauthorized use of a character voice created and owned by Skelton for his character "Clem Kadiddlehopper". Jay Ward responded by having a segment on the show where Bullwinkle would address the issue . . . in a voice that was a deliberate imitation of Clem Kadiddlehopper.

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Quotes

Fearless Leader: Where is that nincompoop Badenov? Who is this?
Boris Badenov: Nincompoop!

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Connections

Referenced in Full House: The Legend of Ranger Joe (1991)

User Reviews

Precursor to The Bullwinkle Show

Who would have ever thought, when this show came out, in 1959, that between this cartoon, and its successor, The Bullwinkle Show, that these cartoon characters would have five years of episodes?......kind of modelled in the old radio episodic format, I would say.

I wonder if Jay Ward would have also been surprised that his creation had lasted that long. He had done Crusader Rabbit, back in 1949---TV's first animated show ever----but certainly that cartoon could not hold a candle to this one.

From what I have read, there were no other cartoon TV series, up until this point, which had lasted 5 years (shortly AFTER this series began, The Flintstones ran 6 years---1960-1966). After Rocky, Bullwinkle (and Hanna Barbera's Flinstones) I think that it was EXTREMELY RARE that any animated series lasted 5 or more years......Until The Simpsons came along!.....

The story that I have read, as to why Jay Ward switched the name, from Rocky and His Friends, to The Bullwinkle Show, is very simple. In 1961 the show switched networks. The new station would only pick the series up if Ward renamed it The Bullwinkle Show (for what reason, I will never know). The rest is history......