The Dick Tracy Show

The Dick Tracy Show (Syndicated:1961) Details by Kevin Butler.

Production Co.:UPA Studios,Inc.

Voices:

• “Dick Tracy”:Everett Sloan
• “Hemlock Holmes”:Paul Frees
• “Go Go Gomez”:Paul Frees
• “Joe Jitsu”:Benny Rubin
• “Officer Heap O’Calorie”:Paul Frees
• “Stooge Villa”:”Uncle Johnny”Coons
• “Mumbles”:”Uncle Johnny”Coons
• “Prune Face”Paul Frees
• “Itchey”:Jerry Hauser
• “Sketch Parree”:Paul Frees
• “The Mole”:Jerry Hauser, Benny Rubin
• “BB Eyes”:Everett Sloan, Paul Frees
• “Flat Top”:Mel Blanc, Paul Frees
• “The Brow”:(Actor Unknown)
• “Oodles”(Actor Unknown)
• “Cheater Gunsmoke”:Everett Sloan
• Other Voices:Jerry Hauser and Frank Nelson

In 1960, UPA Animation Studios were hired by The Chicago Tribune Syndicate and by The New York Daily News Syndicate to create and produce a series of TV Cartoons based upon their popular “Dick Tracy” comic strip.

The Dick Tracy Show opening credits

The studio produced 130 films of which would be sold to local tv stations for national syndication.Unlike The violent and surreal aspects of the comic strips…the plots of The Dick Tracy Show cartoons depended more on broad comedy than extreme crime drama.

“Dick Tracy” was assigned a group of bumbling plains clothes detectives and patrolmen: “Hemlock Holmes & The Retouchables ” (A parody of The Keystone Kops..Holmes was also a spoof of movie actor:Cary Grant),”Joe Jitsu”,”Go Go Gomez”, and”Officer Heap O’Calorie”(A parody of comic/character actor and kids tv host/performer:Andy Devine)in thwarted the crimes that were being perpetrated by his arch foes..who usually worked in teams:EG’s “Stooge Villa & Mumbles”,”Sketch Parree & The Mole”,”BB Eyes & Flattop”,”The Brow & Oodles”.

The tough,no nonsense police detective rarely got involved with his squad’s cases and he usually came at the end of the story to help take the crooks in and help prevent his men from getting killed by the villians.

The Dick Tracy Show on Saturday Morning in 1960s

Oftimes..the villians were thwarted by their own scheames backfiring on them..as in the case of “The Brow & Oodles”trying puncture a fake rubber sea monster with a pin and getting out of Scotland with their ill gotten gaines..but..”Oodles”inadvertedly
stuck his pin into the real sea monster of Loch Ness and the angry beast chased the two foes right into the hands of”Dick Tracy”, “Go Go Gomez” and the Brittish authorities.

The voices for the characters were performed by Benny Rubin,Paul Frees,Mel Blanc and by former NBC & CBS TV Kids tv comedy performer: “Uncle Johnny” Coons.Character actor:Everett Sloan(Best remembered for his work in the tv and film versions of “Patterns” and the movie “Some Up There Likes Me”)provided the voice for “Dick Tracy”.Jerry Hauser(The voice of”Waldo Magoo”) and Frank Nelson also provided voices for the supporting characters.

The Dick Tracy Show made it’s debut in the fall of 1961 and became a popular feature on many local kids tv programs.

More often than not local station execs would screen the films against the backdrop of a local police station with one of their announcers or a well known entertainer serving as the police chief or a uniformed desk sgt

The most popular mc’s of these types of local cartoon shows were:Joe Bolton..who hosted WPIX TV Ch.11 NYC’s”Dick Tracy Show” as “Police Chief Joe” Bolton weekday evenings from Thursday September 7, 1961 to Friday August 31,1963 and Ray Rayner as”Police Detective Sgt. Pettybone” and his police dog puppet pal”Tracer”(“Tracer”was manipulated by Roy Brown and voiced by Ron McAdam)weekday afternoons on WGN TV Ch.9 in Chicago, Ill.

On some of these local kids tv shows The Dick Tracy Show creator Chester Gould would make a guest appearance and he would draw his famous creation on camera for the host and the viewers.

The films would continue to be seen in national syndication into the 1970’s,80 and 90’s.

Another new series of “Dick Tracy” TV Cartoons would be produced by Filmation Associates Inc. as a segment of”Archie’s TV Funnies”, which would be seen saturday mornings on CBS TV during the 1970’s.