Filmation had enjoyed enormous success in previous years with cartoons based on the "The Archies" and "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" comics, which aired in one-hour blocks. In 1970, Filmation paired Sabrina with a new concept, The Groovie Goolies, featuring classic Universal monsters - Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, the Wolfman, and the Mummy - living together at "Horrible Hall," a castle that also served as an inn for monsters.
The Groovie Goolies show, unlike the previous two shows that featured musical numbers in every episode, was composed almost entirely of gags, puns, and short sketches, rather than a coherent narrative. While The Archies had included quickfire comedy segments reminiscent of "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In", the Groovie Goolies show lacked a unifying storyline.
Franklin Frankenstein, Wolfgang Wolfman, and Tom Dracula were the stars of the new show Sabrina and the Groovie Goolies. Sabrina the Teenage Witch was being promoted from the back segments of Archie's various 1960s shows to this more prominent role. In the show, the three monsters lived together in Horrible Hall, a rooming house catering to supernatural residents.
Tom Dracula was the proprietor of Horrible Hall. Other residents included Hagatha (Tom's witch wife), Broomhilda (Hagatha's broom), Doctors Jekyll and Hyde (a two-headed mad scientist), Ghoulihand (similar to Thing from The Addams Family), and Bela LaGhostly (who ran the house's telephone switchboard).
Howard Morris (Atom Ant, Beetle Bailey did the voices of both Frankie and Wolfie. Tom was played by Larry Storch, who also did the TV version of Koko the Clown and The Joker in The Batman/Superman Hour. Other voices included (but again, were not limited to) Larry D. Mann (Crazylegs Crane), John Erwin (He-Man) and Don Messick (Scooby Doo).
During the 1971-72 television season, Sabrina and the Goolies were spun off into two separate shows. Seeking to replicate the success of the Archie rock band, Filmation also launched a real-life musical group called The Groovie Goolies, featuring musicians in elaborate monster costumes. However, this musical experiment produced only a handful of minor songs before fading into obscurity.
Howard Morris (Atom Ant, Beetle Bailey did the voices of both Frankie and Wolfie. Tom was played by Larry Storch, who also did the TV version of Koko the Clown and The Joker in The Batman/Superman Hour. Other voices included (but again, were not limited to) Larry D. Mann (Crazylegs Crane), John Erwin (He-Man) and Don Messick (Scooby Doo).
During the 1971-72 television season, Sabrina and the Goolies were spun off into two separate shows. Seeking to replicate the success of the Archie rock band, Filmation also launched a real-life musical group called The Groovie Goolies, featuring musicians in elaborate monster costumes. However, this musical experiment produced only a handful of minor songs before fading into obscurity.
On December 16, 1972, ABC aired an hour-long special titled "Daffy Duck & Porky Pig Meet the Groovie Goolies," which featured an unlikely crossover between the Looney Tunes stars and a half-dozen other characters, including Yosemite Sam and Foghorn Leghorn. This unusual pairing has been met with near-unanimous disdain from critics.
The Goolies starred in their own show for a single season before going into reruns. In 1978, the characters were revived in the syndicated series Groovie Goolies and Friends, which featured daily reruns shared with other Filmation productions like Waldo Kitty and Fraidy Cat. Despite originating from the Archie Comics animation franchise, the Goolies never actually appeared in the comic books themselves.
The Goolies starred in their own show for a single season before going into reruns. In 1978, the characters were revived in the syndicated series Groovie Goolies and Friends, which featured daily reruns shared with other Filmation productions like Waldo Kitty and Fraidy Cat. Despite originating from the Archie Comics animation franchise, the Goolies never actually appeared in the comic books themselves.
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