Saturday Morning Cartoons Comic Ads!

[gaastra]

Anyone remember when they had full ads for that seasons saturday mornings in comics? Of course, that was when we still had saturday mornings. Did you use these to plan out your saturday or just wing it as kids?

[Randall]

Oh, these were essential! Growling up in Canada in the 1970s, these ads were initially such teases, since we got the American comics, but no American TV stations. All we had on TV for Saturday morning cartoons were the Grantway-Lawrence shows: the (admittedly awesome) Spider-Man reruns, plus Rocket Robin Hood, and Max the 2000 Year Old Mouse.

That all changed in the late 1970s, though, when we started getting North Dakota stations via cable. Finally, I could see these shows! Super Friends! Plastic Man! Scooby Doo! Mighty Mouse! Bugs Bunny! Popeye! Fat Albert! Flash Gordon! Fred and Barney Meet the Thing! It was a golden age. At least, it seemed that way at age 9. Not all those shows hold up so well now, but I thought they were grand.

And those comic book ads were great for planning your day. Sure, we had TV listings, too, but those ads were so much fun. I totally scheduled myself according to what shows looked most appealing in those ads. Just seeing them now makes me want to dig out my crates of Sat AM cartoons on DVD.

[EricJ]

No, I always waited for those "Preview specials" the networks would show the Friday night before (usually during the Friday-night kiddie programming like Donny & Marie)--
That way you got a good synopsis and five-minute sampler of just WHAT to expect, and you pretty much had your hits and misses already planned out:

[Ben]

Well that one's BIZARRE!!

But…

Benji, Zax And The Alien Prince!

Wow…brain overload! Had completely forgotten this, having loved it way back when. Gosh, the theme music and everything! Might have to seek more out sometime…


Buying the American comics here, we also saw those Saturday morning ads, and I loved how cool they looked, although we had different Saturday morning shows here, like more of a magazine format with guests and cartoons, and, through the summer holidays, old TV episodes like Adventures Of Superman and Batman. Good time, great times!

[ShyViolet]

I’m mostly an 80s child so I relate more to the top one. (Alvin, Smurfs, etc…). Although I have of course seen many 70s cartoons. (Challenge of the Superfriends, Scooby-Doo classic, etc…).

It was really in Israel (late 70s to mid 80s) where I saw the most 70s stuff I guess…I remember Richie Rich being on a lot. (I understood bits and pieces.). Plus Wonder-Woman too I think. Definitely Spider-Man, although that alternated between the 80s one and the series from ‘67.

The weird thing about TV there (back then) is that it was such a strange mishmash! Dubbed cartoons from Europe (Maya the Bee, which I know came to Nick in the 90s), American TV like Knight Rider, Little House and constant Star Trek (TOS of course) re-runs. For kids there was Smurfs plus a few more things, as well as variety shows with puppets and performers in Hebrew.

Plus back then, a lot of stuff was still pretty low-tech. (Color TV was actually relatively recent! ). So most of the cartoons weren’t even dubbed, but mostly in English! I think I picked up a lot just from watching American TV…lol. .*



*As well as tons of Disney, WB and Popeye shorts! .
The Muppet Show was shown pretty regularly too. Statler and Waldorf scared me.

[gaastra]

A few more--

[EricJ]

Well that one's BIZARRE!!

They could be worse (be glad I didn't show you the 1974 one from when Krofft basically owned all of NBC's shows...)
And, of course, this one had to go with the Dukes of Hazzard motif to plug the Dukes cartoon.

I wanted to show it for the Dungeons & Dragons: the Cartoon nostalgia, but dang, I'd forgotten Benji, Zax & the Alien Prince, too.

And Chip & Pepper, in that second NBC ad from the bottom--For those who ever wondered what the heck that weird Netflix thing was about.
I remember wanting to see "SpaceCats", since it was the next series from Paul "ALF" Fusco after ALFTales, but...by that point, NBC had already bailed, and ran ANOTHER episode of Chip & Pepper in its timeslot. AISTR, that was the last year of Saturday Morning for NBC before they switched to three hours of the Today Show, and then came back later in the 90's to let the Discovery Kids cable channel take it over.
(And I'm sure a certain poster will be glad for the Fonzie & the Happy Days Gang shoutout...)

[Randall]

I'm not sure which poster you're alluding to, but I personally admit to being pretty excited for the Fonzie cartoon - and was thrilled again when the DVD set came out.

[Daniel]

Droo! For the longest time he had Cupcake as an avatar!

[gaastra]

Someone say happy days?

[Randall]

I don't know if that Mork cartoon was any good, but I really want to see it now!

[Ben]

Looks pretty bad!

Wasn’t really ever the biggest ALF fan — I think it came a little too late for me as I was growing up — but this makes me laugh…





Once seen, it can never be unseen…!

[gaastra]

I don't know if that Mork cartoon was any good, but I really want to see it now!

Have it on a "fan" dvd. The full cast does the voices including robin Williams. They changed them to teens in high school and added a pet alien dog voiced by frank welker of course. Otherwise plays out like a mork episode but as it's animated could do things the live show cant. They added a bad alien also and mork would have to fight at times with his powers and mork took mindy to his planet at times! There's a bad guy who knows morks a alien and wants to still his powers also. Other episodes are more slice of life like the show.

It's the only love american style cartoon not on dvd due to voice rights and high price i'm sorry to say.

Here's some snapshots i found from a episode--

[Randall]

Cool. Yeah, I need to get myself a copy.

[ShyViolet]

This is pretty cool too!

https://www.buzzfeed.com/alanwhite/31-t ... l-remember