"Rocky and His Friends" (1959) TV series 1959-1964

User Rating:

8.8/10   

Writers:

Jim Critchfield (writer)
Bill Scott (writer)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

19 November 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Animated antics of flying squirrel Rocket J. Squirrel, or Rocky, and his dim companion, Bullwinkle J...

Plot Keywords:

Breaking The Fourth Wall | Cold War | Time Travel | Cult Favorite | Cartoon Moose

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Edward Everett Horton	...	Fractured Fairy Tales narrator (12 episodes, 1959-1960)
June Foray	...	Natasha Fatale / ... (12 episodes, 1959-1960)
Paul Frees	...	Boris Badenov (12 episodes, 1959-1960)
William Conrad	...	Narrator (12 episodes, 1959-1960)
Walter Tetley	...	Sherman (12 episodes, 1959-1967)
Daws Butler	...	Various Fairy Tale Characters (12 episodes, 1959-1960)
Bill Scott	...	Bullwinkle J. Moose / ... (12 episodes, 1959-1960)

Also Known As:

"Frostbite Falls Follies" (USA) (working title)
"Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends" (USA)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | Argentina:Atp

Company:

Bullwinkle Studios

Trivia:

The first episode, Part One of the Jet Fuel Formula story arc, was recorded in February 1958. However, subsequent episodes were not recorded until February 1959, using a different soundtrack stock. This led to some notable changes in the performances of the voice cast - in Part One of Jet Fuel Formula the clarity of the voice cast is noticeably better than in subsequent episodes, particularly the voice performances of June Foray and Paul Frees; a close listen finds that the studio echo of the session bleeds into the soundtrack. For subsequent episodes the different soundtrack stock used eliminated this echo. In addition, the voice cast's performances began changing, particularly William Conrad's narrations. Throughout Part One, Conrad's narration is totally straight, but in Part Two he began in inject a mild flamboyance to his narration in keeping with the show's whimsical flavor, and as the series continued his narration became ever more comically melodramatic.

Quotes:

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

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The West Wing: The Lame Duck Congress (#2.6)" (2000)

no matter what you call it...

No matter what you call it - "Rocky and His Friends", "The Bullwinkle Show", "Rocky and Bullwinkle", or something else - you can't deny how great this show is. A total parody of the Cold War, they hit everything right on the mark.

Equally as great as the parts where Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose battle the evil-and-proud-of-it Soviet spies Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale, are the Fractured Fairy Tales (narrated by Edward Everett Horton), Mr. Peabody's Improbable History, and Dudley Do-Right. Whether Prince Charming turns Sleeping Beauty into a circus attraction, Galileo needs help with a scientific experiment, or whichever dastardly scheme Snidely Whiplash is plotting, it's one of the greatest shows of all time. The "Simpsons" of its era, if I may say so.

So, June Foray has every reason to be proud of her work on this. I'll always love it. I never saw the 2000 movie, but every review said that it sucked.