The Pink Panther (1993 TV series)
| The Pink Panther | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | Comedy |
| Created by |
Friz Freleng (characters: The Pink Panther and The Ant and the Aardvark) David H. DePatie Blake Edwards |
| Directed by |
Charles Grosvenor Byron Vaughns |
| Starring | Matt Frewer as The Pink Panther |
| Voices of |
Sheryl Bernstein John Byner Dan Castellaneta Brian George Jess Harnell Joe Piscopo Charles Nelson Reilly Wallace Shawn Kath Soucie Jo Anne Worley |
| Theme music composer | Henry Mancini (arranged by Eddie Arkin) |
| Composer(s) |
Albert Olson and James Stemple Mark Watters (supervising composer) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 60 (121 segments) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Walter Mirisch Marvin Mirisch Paul Sabella Mark Young |
| Producer(s) |
Kelly Ward Charles Grosvenor Byron Vaughns Ronald A. Levinson |
| Running time | 22 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Ruby Spears Connecticut Public Television |
| Distributor |
Claster Television Camelot Entertainment Sales (ad sales) MGM Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | Syndication |
| Original release | September 11, 1993 – December 16, 1996 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Pink Panther and Sons |
| Followed by | Pink Panther and Pals |
The Pink Panther is a 1993 animated television series. It was credited as a co-production of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Animation, Mirisch-Geoffrey DePatie-Freleng and United Artists (though only done by the former, as the other properties ceased to exist or were transferred to MGM a decade earlier) and distributed by Claster Television. This is the only Pink Panther TV series to not be distributed by MGM Television (even though MGM still owns The Pink Panther) and is the only series to have the panther talk.
He Talks!
Unlike previous television series and almost the entire original theatrical run, the panther talks in this incarnation. Voiced by Matt Frewer, he was given a humorous American accent in order to appeal to younger children. This characterization was in sharp contrast to the sophisticated British accent supplied by impressionist Rich Little (impersonating English actor David Niven who starred in the 1963 film The Pink Panther) who voiced the panther briefly in two 1965 cartoon shorts, Sink Pink and Pink Ice.[1][2] The Little Man also gained a speaking voice for the first time, provided by Wallace Shawn. John Byner also reprised his roles as both The Ant and the Aardvark.[1]
Plot
The 1993 incarnation of The Pink Panther starred the legendary hip feline in new adventures with several co-stars from the original theatrical shorts, including The Inspector, The Ant and the Aardvark and The Dogfather (who was redesigned for this series). Other former co-stars included the panther's regular foil, "The Little Man", as well as the Muscle Man from the 1968 cartoon Come On In! The Water's Pink. New characters included a mask-wearing tribal witch doctor named Voodoo Man, little red-headed girl Thelma, a sweet old lady Mrs. Chubalingo, and her pet parrot Jules.
Each episode featured the Pink Panther dealing with different situations in a manner similar to the original Looney Tunes shorts, ranging from modern day situations such as working as a delivery boy to outlandish situations like living in caveman days. Beginning with Season 2, the Inspector took a central role in the show as a detective assisted by the Pink Panther, who often played an American police officer.
The show was nominated for a daytime Emmy award in 1994 for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition.[3]
Episode list
Season 1: 1993–1994
| # | Title | Air Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pink Pink, and Away/Down on the Ant Farm" | September 11, 1993 |
| 2 | "Pink and Quiet/The Pinky 500" | September 14, 1993 |
| 3 | "The Ghost and Mr. Panther/Cleopanthra" | September 18, 1993 |
| 4 | "Big Top Pinky/Yeti Nother Bigfoot Story" | September 21, 1993 |
| 5 | "Pink in Paradise/Department Store Pinkerton" | September 28, 1993 |
| 6 | "Moby Pink/The Pink Stuff" | October 15, 1993 |
| 7 | "Pink Pizza/Pink Painter" | October 23, 1993 |
| 8 | "Pink Paparazzi/Werewolf in Panther's Clothing" | November 17, 1993 |
| 9 | "Rock Me Pink/Pinkus Pantherus" | November 25, 1993 |
| 10 | "Pilgrim Panther/That Old Pink Magic" | December 16, 1993 |
| 11 | "Pink-anderthal Man/Pink Kong" | December 17, 1993 |
| 12 | "The Magnificent Pink One/Downhill Panther" | March 16, 1994 |
| 13 | "14 Karat Pink/Robot Pink" | March 18, 1994 |
| 14 | "Pink Encounters/Junkyard Pink Blues" | March 19, 1994 |
| 15 | "Pantherobics/Pinkenstein" | April 19, 1994 |
| 16 | "Pink Rider/Midnight Ride of Pink Revere" | May 6, 1994 |
| 17 | "Pinky...He Delivers/Super-Pink's Egg-cellent Adventure" | May 11, 1994 |
| 18 | "Cowboy Pinky/Stealth Panther" | June 15, 1994 |
Season 2: 1994–1995
| # | Title | Air Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pinkazuma's Revenge/Pink Down Under" | September 5, 1994 |
| 2 | "Pinkadoon/A Camp Pink We Will Go" | September 19, 1994 |
| 3 | "Icy Pink/The End of Superpink?" | October 17, 1994 |
| 4 | "All for Pink and Pink for All/Service with a Pink Smile" | October 19, 1994 |
| "All for Pink and Pink for All" features The Ant and the Aardvark[4] | ||
| 5 | "Trains, Pains, and Panthers/Wet and Wild Pinky" | October 26, 1994 |
| 6 | "From Hair to Eternity/Strike Flea, You're Out!" | October 17, 1994 |
| 7 | "Cinderpink/It's a Bird! It's a Pain! It's Superfan!" | November 6, 1994 |
| 8 | "Who's Smiling Now? (The Inspector)/Robin Hoodwinked" | December 11, 1994 |
| 9 | "Hook Line and Pinker/Valentine Pink" | January 7, 1995 |
| 10 | "Dino Sour Head/The Luck of the Pinkish" | February 6, 1995 |
| 11 | "The Inspector...Not (The Inspector)/Pink Links" | March 5, 1995 |
| 12 | "Stool Parrot (The Inspector)/Pinky and Slusho" | April 19, 1995 |
Season 3: 1995–1996
| # | Title | Air Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Panthergeist/Pink Pending's Pink Slip" | October 6, 1995 |
| 2 | "The Three Pink Porker/The Heart of Pinkness" features The Ant and the Aardvark" | October 6, 1995 |
| 3 | "The Inspector's Most Wanted (The Inspector)/Pinky Appleseed" | October 13, 1995 |
| 4 | "Calling Dr. Panther/For Those Who Pink Young" | October 13, 1995 |
| 5 | "Lights, Camera, Voodoo/I'm Dreaming of a Pink Christmas" | October 20, 1995 |
| 6 | "Wiener Takes All/The Easter Panther" | October 20, 1995 |
| 7 | "The Inspector's Club (The Inspector)/A Royal Pain" | October 27, 1995 |
| 8 | "Black and White and Pink All Over/Beach Blanket Pinky" | October 27, 1995 |
| 9 | "Digging for Dollars (The Inspector)/Pinknocchio" | November 3, 1995 |
| 10 | "Pink Up the River/Long John Pinky" | November 3, 1995 |
| 11 | "Muff the Magic Dragon/Pink Thumb" | November 10, 1995 |
| 12 | "Pink Dilemma/Oh, Varkula" | November 10, 1995 |
| 13 | "Ice Blue Pink/Pink Trek" | November 17, 1995 |
| 14 | "Legend of El Pinko/Pinky Big" | November 24, 1995 |
| 15 | "Eric the Pink/Pretty and Pink" | December 1, 1995 |
| 16 | "Built for Speed/Pooch the Panther" | December 8, 1995 |
| 17 | "Pinky in Toyland/The Detective of Oz" | June 5, 1996 |
| 18 | "Royal Canadian Mounted Panther/Power of Pink" | June 12, 1996 |
| 19 | "Lifestyles of the Pink and Famous/Happy Trails Pinky" | October 16, 1996 |
| 20 | "A Hard Day's Pink/You Only Pink Twice" | November 13, 1996 |
| 21 | "It's Just a Gypsy in My Soup/Aliens and a Footstool" | November 14, 1996 |
| 22 | "Mummy Dearest/Feast of Famine" | November 16, 1996 |
| 23 | "No Pink is an Island/Pinky and the Golden Fleece" | November 15, 1996 |
| "No Pink is an Island" features The Ant and the Aardvark[5] | ||
| 24 | "Home Stretch Pinky/Pink Pucks" | November 24, 1996 |
| 25 | "The Reluctant Ninja/Pantherella" | December 16, 1996 |
| 26 | "Pink's Ark/Rain or Snow or Pink of Night" | September 16, 1996 |
| 27 | "Pink in the Middle/Pink in the Poke" | January 18, 1996 |
| 28 | "A Nut at the Opeta/Hamm-n-Eggz" | August 5, 1996 |
| 29 | "Voodoo Man/7 Manly Men" | July 17, 1996 |
| 30 | "Driving Mr. Pink/The Texas Toads/The Ant and the Aardvark" | March 29, 1996 |
| The only three cartoon entry to the series. | ||
Principal cast
- Matt Frewer - Pink Panther
- Sheryl Bernstein - Eskimo Mayor
- John Byner - Charlie Ant, Blue Aardvark
- Dan Castellaneta - Voodoo Man, Muck Luck
- Brian George - The Inspector, Pugg
- Jess Harnell - Louie, Manly Man
- Joe Piscopo - Dogfather
- Charles Nelson Reilly - Jules Parrot
- Wallace Shawn - The Little Man
- Kath Soucie - Thelma, Cleopatra
- Jo Anne Worley - Mrs. Chubalingo
Additional cast
- Ruth Buzzi - Witch
- Hamilton Camp -
- Cathy Cavadini - Thelma (occasional understudy)
- Rickey D'Shon Collins - Lester
- Troy Davidson -
- Phillip Glasser -
- Paige Gosney -
- Gerrit Graham -
- Maurice LaMarche -
- David Lodge
- Steve MacKall - Johnny Chucklehead
- Danny Mann -
- Kenneth Mars - Commissioner
- Bradley Pierce -
- Hal Rayle -
- Gwen Shepherd -
- Susan Silo -
- Jean Smart -
- Elmarie Wendel -
- Thomas F. Wilson -
DVD release
- A DVD box set called "Der rosarote Panther - Die neue Show" was released in Germany (Region 2) on February 21, 2006 through MGM. This set contains the first 40 Episodes in English, French and German on four DVDs. The set was then released in the UK from MGM and Fox on February 2, 2009; the remaining 20 episodes are yet to be released.
References
- 1 2 Beck, Jerry. (2006) Pink Panther: The Ultimate Guide to the Coolest Cat in Town!; DK ADULT, ISBN 0-7566-1033-8
- ↑ DePatie-Freleng website
- ↑ The Pink Panther at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ All for Pink and Pink for All
- ↑ No Pink is an Island (Spanish dubbed version)
External links
- The Pink Panther at the Internet Movie Database
- The Pink Panther (MGM) at the Big Cartoon DataBase
- The New Pink Panther Show (1993)