Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales

Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales
Stanley Livingston, Tennessee Tuxedo, Chumley
Genre
Written by
Voices of
Narrated by
Theme music composer
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
Production
Executive producer(s) Peter M. Piech
Producer(s)
Running time 30 minutes
Production company(s)
Distributor NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network CBS
Original release September 28, 1963 – January 29, 1966

Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales is an animated cartoon TV series that originally aired on CBS from 1963 to 1966.[1] It was produced by Total Television, the same company that produced the earlier King Leonardo and the later Underdog, and primarily sponsored by General Mills. (Tennessee Tuxedo debuted on CBS on the same day that King Leonardo last ran on NBC.[2]) The title is a play on the “tuxedo” dinner jacket worn as formal wear.

New short episodes[3][4] were created for YouTube in 2014 by Chuck Gammage Animation in Toronto, and Cartoon Lagoon Studios in New York. Sponsored by Trix cereal, they resided on[5] sillychannel.com. They feature the voice talent of Chris Phillips, Robb Pruitt and Ashley Albert.

Plot

The cartoon series revolved around Tennessee Tuxedo the penguin (voiced by Don Adams, future star of Get Smart and later voice of Inspector Gadget) and his best friend Chumley the walrus (voiced by Bradley Bolke, brother of Terrytoons voice artist Dayton Allen, a.k.a. Deputy Dawg, Tom Terrific, and many others). The pair lived (not always willingly) at the Megapolis Zoo under the control of the ill-tempered zoo director Stanley Livingston (voiced by Mort Marshall), a play on explorers Stanley and Livingstone, and his zookeeper assistant Flunky (voiced by Kenny Delmar). It was on one of Stanley’s journeys that Tennessee met Stanley. It was Chumley that Stanley had wanted, as Chumley was at the South Pole and was thus one of a kind: a South Pole walrus. Tennessee agreed to accompany Chumley and Stanley back to the zoo.

At the zoo, Tennessee and Chumley had many friends to help them out, such as Yakkety Yak, Baldy the Eagle, Peanuts the Elephant, the Beaver brothers, Freddy Cat, Icycold the Blue Reluctant Dragon (both also voiced by Kenny Delmar), Alfonse the Giraffe, the Gopher brothers, Rockymount the Rhinoceros, Kounging the Panda, and Dumboing the Ostrich, amongst other inhabitants of the zoo. Four episodes also featured Howler, a dog that Tennessee got from his Uncle Admiration. Stanley was against Tennessee's having Howler on zoo grounds until Howler saved Stanley when he fell into a lake upon spying on Tennessee and Chumley's housing project for Howler.

Tennessee and Chumley had a rival: Jerboa Jump the kangaroo rat (also voiced by Bradley Bolke). Jerboa had a henchman in a boxing tiger named Tiger Tornado (voiced by Kenny Delmar). Some of the episodes centered around Tennessee's trying to outsmart Jerboa at his own game and succeeding in the end.

Tennessee and Chumley were constantly bedeviled by Rocky Maninoff (voiced by Jackson Beck), a gangster who often called them “dum-dums”, and “bo-bos” and ordered them to do his will at the point of his machine gun (which he sometimes referred to as his "violin"). Rocky had a dumb assistant nicknamed "Pretzel" (voiced by Delmar, and Adams), who sounded like Humphrey Bogart. Rocky Maninoff's name is an obvious pun on that of composer and musician Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Tennessee and Chumley regularly escaped from the zoo, only to find trouble in the outside world. Whenever Tennessee would propose a hare-brained scheme, Chumley would be skeptical at first. Typically Tennessee would assure the dim-witted Chumley that his superior intelligence would carry the day, often with his catchphrase, "Tennessee Tuxedo will not fail!" More often than not, however, he did. Chumley would respond with his own catchphrase, "Duh, OK Tennessee." When faced with more trouble than they could bear, the pair would turn to their friend Phineas J. Whoopee (voiced by future F Troop star Larry Storch), the “Man with All the Answers". Mr. Whoopee, as he was known, was extremely knowledgeable on all subjects, and would frequently lecture the pair on diverse topics, from the physics behind the hot air balloon to how musicians become popular. His lectures were illustrated and animated on the Three-Dimensional Blackboard (3DBB for short) that he would retrieve out of an avalanche of junk that would always fall out from his overstuffed hallway closet whenever he opened the closet door. Other times, Tennessee and Chumley would have to overcome a personal problem to which children could relate, such as Chumley's requiring treatment for a toothache but fearing the dentist. At the end of each lecture from Mr. Whoopee, Tennessee praised his mentor with the line, “Phineas J. Whoopee, you’re the greatest!” The name also applies to when Mr. Whoopee shouts out in excitement: "WHOOPEE!!!!" In a few episodes, Whoopee made both Tennessee and Chumley promise not to fool around with dangerous things. Sometimes, Tennessee and Chumley had to see Mr. Whoopee again when they failed in their first attempt to solve things. This caused Mr. Whoopee to say: "But I've tried to warn you...". Sometimes a warning from Whoopee came too late to help both Tennessee and Chumley.

The pair would then attempt to use their newly gained knowledge to get out of the trouble they had created, but would invariably end up in more trouble with Stanley Livingston, who would punish them in different ways, ranging from having the police arrest them to making them scrub pots and pans in the Zoo cafeteria for six months. Stanley even threatened to skin them alive many times. Some episodes end merely with Stanley chasing Tennessee and Chumley around the Zoo. A few times, they managed to succeed, including an episode in which the pair (along with Baldy) formed a musical group that gained so much popularity that they managed to star in Stanley's music show, while Stanley was reduced to carrying out his threat to eat his hat.

On a Boing podcast, Underdog creator Joe Harris explained that F.C.C. commissioner Newton Minow declared television a "vast wasteland" in terms of educational material. Efforts were subsequently made to include education in programming. He added that in this show, Tennessee and Chumley were portrayed as the ones who were being educated, so that children would not feel that they were being lectured to, even though they actually were.

Occasional back segments included "The World of Commander McBragg", "Klondike Kat", "Tooter Turtle", "The Hunter", and "The King and Odie" (the last three were re-run from the earlier show King Leonardo and His Short Subjects).

Don Adams used his well-known “clippy” voice characterization for the voice of the “small penguin, who tries but can’t succeed-o,” which he said was an exaggeration of actor William Powell’s voice. Bradley Bolke's characterization of Chumley seemed to be taken from Charlie Cantor's voice and personality of Clifton Finnegan on the Duffy's Tavern radio show of the 1940s; there Finnegan played a somewhat similar dimwitted sidekick to the scheming but good-natured bartender Archie.

Chumley would ask Tennessee a riddle before and in between the segments, in which Mr. Whoopee came up with the humorous answer on his Three-Dimensional Blackboard, usually ending with laughter. Sometimes Tennessee would ask Whoopee a riddle and Whoopee would come up with the humorous answer.

Episodes

Series overview

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
135September 28, 1963 (1963-09-28)November 14, 1964 (1964-11-14)
213November 21, 1964 (1964-11-21)February 13, 1965 (1965-02-13)
324February 20, 1965 (1965-02-20)January 29, 1966 (1966-01-29)
452014 (2014)August 18, 2014 (2014-08-18)

Season 1 (1963–1964)

  1. "Mixed-Up Mechanics" – After Stanley Livingston brings them to the Megapolis Zoo, Tennessee and Chumley find a job outside the zoo—which will prove to be their first of many—as mechanics. Their first customer is Rocky Maninoff, who warns them to repair his car, or else. Tennessee takes advice from a newspaper ad to see Phineas J. Whoopee to learn how cars work. 9/28/1963
  2. "Rainmakers" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as weathermen. A farmer demands they make rain for his cauliflower crops or he will use his shotgun on them. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee. 10/5/1963
  3. "The Lamplighters" – Tennessee and Chumley learn how lights work when the darkness prevents Tennessee from reading his book. 10/12/1963
  4. "Telephone Terrors or Dial 'M' for Mayhem" – Tennessee wants to have a telephone in each animal's quarters. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee to learn how a telephone works. 10/19/1963
  5. "Giant Clam" – When Stanley Livingston wants to obtain a giant clam for the Megapolis Zoo, Tennessee and Chumley sneak out of the zoo to obtain one for him. Tennessee and Chumley visit Phineas J. Whoopee to learn where they can find a giant clam. 10/26/1963
  6. "Tic Toc" – The Megapolis Zoo receives a clock tower. Chumley accidentally shoots an arrow at the clock and Stanley Livingston orders Tennessee and Chumley to remove the arrow. Tennessee and Chumley learn how clocks work from Phineas J. Whoopee. 11/2/1963
  7. "Scuttled Sculpture" – The Megapolis Zoo receives a statue of Stanley Livingston that will be dedicated to him tomorrow. When Chumley accidentally wrecks it, Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee. 11/9/1963
  8. "Snap That Picture" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as photographers. Their first job is to take the picture of the Mayor of Megapolis for his poster advertisement. How do cameras work? Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee. 11/16/1963
  9. "Zoo's News" – When ordered by Stanley Livingston to spread the news to the other animals of an upcoming event, Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee for ways to do so. Phineas tells them about newspapers. 11/23/1963
  10. "Aztec Antics" – When Jerboa Jump arrives at the zoo, Stanley Livingston arranges for some archaeologists to make a trip to Mexico to find some artifacts to go with Jerboa's exhibit. Tennessee and Chumley learn about the Aztecs from Phineas J. Whoopee. 11/30/1963
  11. "Coal Minors" – Tennessee and Chumley assemble a stovepipe oven to heat their quarters. They learn how coal is obtained from Phineas J. Whoopee. 12/7/1963
  12. "Hot Air Heroes" – When ordered by Stanley Livingston to spread the news of the town picnic at the Megapolis Zoo, Tennessee and Chumley, having already tried telephones and newspapers, turn to Phineas J. Whoopee for other ideas. Phineas tells them about hot-air balloons. 12/14/1963
  13. "Irrigation Irritation" – During a drought, Tennessee tries to figure out how to get water to his watermelon crops. Meanwhile, Stanley Livingston is warned by the Chief of Police not to waste water during the drought on pain of arrest. 12/21/1963
  14. "TV Testers" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as TV repairmen. Their first customer is Rocky Maninoff, who orders them to repair his television, or else. Meanwhile, the Chief of Police gets word from Stanley Livingston that Tennessee and Chumley have escaped from the zoo. 12/28/1963
  15. "By the Plight of the Moon" – After getting knocked out, Tennessee dreams he is to be the first astronaut penguin to take a rocket to the moon. 1/4/1964
  16. "Lever Levity" – In a follow-up to "Coal Minors," the tunneling that Tennessee and Chumley did for their coal mine has caused the foundation of Stanley's office to settle to one side. While Stanley and Flunky go into town to find someone to build a new foundation, Tennessee tries to straighten the foundation. When nothing seems to work, Tennessee and Chumley go to Phineas J. Whoopee for help. 1/11/1964
  17. "The Bridge Builders" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as bridge builders. Rocky Maninoff wants them to build a bridge following his gang's bank robbery, or else. 1/18/1964
  18. "Sail Ho!" – Tennessee and Chumley go up against Jerboa Jump in a yacht race to determine who will end up leading the Zoo's Yacht Club. 2/1/1964
  19. "Tell-Tale Telegraph" – Tennessee dreams that he, Chumley, Yakkety and Baldy are at a fort headed by Stanley Livingston that keeps suffering Indian attacks. Tennessee and his friends must find a way to warn the fort of approaching Indians. 2/8/1964
  20. "Howl, Howl, the Gang's All Here" – Tennessee receives a dog named Howler from his uncle and tries to hide him from Stanley Livingston. To make a new home for Howler, Tennessee and Chumley call on Phineas J. Whoopee, who advises them on building Howler a house near a lake in Megapolis Woods. 1/25/1964
  21. "All Steamed Up" – After Stanley has a steam locomotive put in the zoo to take children for rides, Tennessee tries to prove he can operate it as well...and proceeds to wreck it while Stanley is away. Phineas J. Whoopee explains how locomotives work. 2/22/1964
  22. "Rocket Ruckus" – Upon hearing Jerboa Jump brag that he has been in a rocket, Tennessee and Chumley visit Phineas J. Whoopee to learn how rockets work. 2/15/1964
  23. "Tale of a Tiger" – A new animal named Tiger Tornado appears to be a narcoleptic, but he becomes a fierce fighter at the sound of a boxing-ring bell. Jerboa Jump teams up with Tiger and the two make the other zoo animals kowtow to their wishes. Tennessee and Chumley consult Phineas J. Whoopee on how to defend themselves. 2/29/1964
  24. "Dog Daze" – In a follow-up to "Howl, Howl, the Gang's All Here," Stanley has problems with Howler the Dog when he mistakes the Mayor of Megapolis for an attacker. Stanley and the Mayor warn to Tennessee control Howler or the Mayor will have Howler detained. They consult Phineas J. Whoopee about dog training. 3/7/1964
  25. "Brushing Off a Toothache" – Chumley has a toothache and Tennessee tries various ways to get rid of the tooth. When one of the attempts ends up breaking Stanley Livingston's motor scooter, Tennessee and Chumley escape from the zoo and see Phineas J. Whoopee about how to deal with a toothache. 3/14/1964
  26. "The Treasure of Jack the Joker" – Tennessee and Chumley hear about the treasure of Jack the Joker hidden somewhere in the Megapolis Zoo, but Stanley Livingston does not allow digging on zoo grounds. They learn about compasses. 9/12/1964
  27. "Funny Honey" – Tennessee and Chumley need honey from the bears of the Bearville section of the Megapolis Zoo. 3/21/1964
  28. "A Wreck of a Record" – Tennessee, Chumley, and Baldy form their own folk band for Stanley Livingston's music show, but Stanley wants only hit artists for it. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee to learn how they can make a recording and become stars. 9/19/1964
  29. "Miner Forty-Niner" – Tennessee and Chumley find a map that to a gold mine and turn to Phineas J. Whoopee to learn how to get there. They learn about gold. 9/26/1964
  30. "Helicopter Hi-Jinx" – During a heat wave in Megapolis, Tennessee and Chumley's plans to leave the zoo to get fans for the animals are repeatedly thwarted by Stanley Livingston and Flunky. Tennessee and Chumley recall the time they asked Phineas J. Whoopee about how helicopters work. 10/3/1964
  31. "Oil's Well" – Tennessee's friend Freddy Cat inherits an oil field that is supposedly haunted, and Jerboa Jump tries to scare Freddy into selling him the land cheaply. They learn about oil drilling. 10/10/1964
  32. "Parachuting Pickle" – When Rocky Maninoff pulls off a bank robbery and escapes by airplane, the money falls into the Lost Mountains. Tennessee Tuxedo and Chumley answer his ad and are forced to parachute down to recover the stolen money, or else. They learn about parachuting. 10/17/1964
  33. "Wish Wash" – Tennessee and Chumley start a laundry service in the Megapolis Zoo at the same time that Stanley Livingston and Flunky are assembling a tool shed. 10/24/1964
  34. "The Eyes Have It" – Tennessee competes against Jerboa Jump in the finals of a bowling tournament. Jerboa tricks Tennessee into thinking that something is wrong with his eyes and gives him glasses made from the bottoms of glass bottles. Phineas J. Whoopee explains to Tennessee how the eyes work. 11/7/1964
  35. "Mad Movie Makers" – Tennessee and Chumley go into the movie-making business. They turn to Phineas J. Whoopee for advice on filmmaking. 11/14/1964

Season 2 (1964–1965)

  1. "Snow Go" – Eager to cash in on the skiing craze, Tennessee and Chumley try various schemes to turn the hill at the zoo into a ski slope. 11/21/1964
  2. "Brain Strain" – Chumley looks like a local millionaire. Tennessee has Chumley impersonate the moneyed one when Chumley gets amnesia and starts to think that he is the millionaire. 12/5/1964
  3. "The Big Question" – Tennessee is convinced a radio quiz show is going to call him for an upcoming cruise prize, so he goes about trying to steal Stanley's radio and eventually learns how to make his own crystal set. 11/28/1964
  4. "Rocky Road to Diamonds" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs at Stonecutter's Jewelry Store. Mr. Stonecutter tells them that they must protect the diamonds or they will go to jail. Rocky Maninoff robs the store and hides out on a ship. While being pursued by the ship's crew, Tennessee and Chumley run into Phineas J. Whoopee, who tells them about diamonds. 12/12/1964
  5. "Hooray X-Ray" (a.k.a. "X-Ray X-Perts") – When Tennessee and Chumley are ordered by Stanley Livingston to get back the rare coin with which they accidentally paid the paper boy, they trace the coin's path to a bakery and then to a cookie from that bakery that Chumley ate. How shall they recover the coin? Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee, who tells them about x-rays. 12/19/1964
  6. "Food Feud" – A reporter from the Megapolis Tribune approaches Tennessee to ask him about his feuds with Jerboa Jump. Tennessee tells him about the feud between the Tennessees and the Jerboas, which old Phineas Whoopee was called in to resolve. 12/26/1964
  7. "How Does Your Garden Grow?" – Tennessee is tired of eating fish all the time and wants to grow a vegetable garden, much to the objection of Stanley Livingston. Tennessee manages to get the Mayor's wife on his side, and Tennessee and Chumley ask Phineas J. Whoopee for advice on growing a vegetable garden. 1/2/1965
  8. "Perils of Platypus" – Tennessee and Chumley get a platypus for a roommate and deny him access to the pool. When the platypus leaves the zoo and they are ordered by Stanley Livingston to get the platypus back, Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee for help and learn that the platypus lives in Australia. 1/9/1965
  9. "Hail to the Chief" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as police officers. They learn about being police officers. 1/16/1965
  10. "Physical Fatness" – Phineas J. Whoopee gives Tennessee and Chumley some advice on fitness when Jerboa Jump challenges Chumley to a boxing match against Tiger Tornado. 1/23/1965
  11. "Playing It Safe" – Tennessee and Chumley get involved with gangsters who pose as bankers, trying to get a stolen safe open, so they learn about locks. 1/30/1965
  12. "House Painters" – Tennessee and Chumley try painting the Zoo, waste it all, learn about making paint, and do a beautiful job covering a building with clay. They learn about paint. 2/6/1965
  13. "Admiral Tuxedo" – Upon escaping to the docks, Tennessee falls asleep and has a dream wherein he is the admiral of a ship ordered by the Queen to go after some pirates. They learn about navigation. 2/13/1965

Season 3 (1965–1966)

  1. "Three Ring Circus" – Tennessee and Chumley escape from the zoo in order to join the circus. They learn how a calliope works. 2/20/1965
  2. "The Big Drip" – Tennessee and Chumley get jobs as plumbers. Their first customer is Rocky Maninoff, who wants them to fix a leaky pipe in his hideout before he returns from his bank robbery, or else. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee to learn about plumbing. 10/2/1965
  3. "Boning Up" – Stanley Livingston orders Tennessee and Chumley to guard the new dinosaur exhibit. Unfortunately, Howler gets in and dismantles the dinosaur skeletons. They learn about dinosaur bones. 10/9/1965
  4. "Smilin' Yak's Sky Service" – Tennessee and his friends, Chumley and Yak, start a flying service. Their first customer is Rocky Maninoff, who wants them to fly him to safety after a bank job, or else. They learn about flying a plane. 10/16/1965
  5. "Teddy Bear Trouble" – When Chumley's teddy bear goes missing, Tennessee turns private eye in order to find it. They learn about fingerprints (dark and light surfaces). 10/23/1965
  6. "Sword Play" – When ordered by Stanley Livingston to clean the medieval exhibit at the museum, Tennessee is knocked unconscious by a fallen suit of armor and dreams that he is a knight fighting a dragon. Tennessee learns about steel. 10/30/1965
  7. "The Romance of Plymouth Rock" – Tennessee is putting on a play about the Pilgrims called "The Romance of Plymouth Rock"." Jerboa Jump and Tiger Tornado plan to join the play as Indians so that they can sabotage it. When Jereboah claims that the Indians were not friendly to the Pilgrims, Tennessee calls in Phineas J. Whoopee for help on the history of the Pilgrims. 11/13/1965
  8. "Phunnie Munnie" – The boys, Tennessee and Chumley set up a printing press. Their first customer is Rocky Maninoff, who wants them to print counterfeit money for him, or else. They learn about printing. 11/6/1965
  9. "The Zoolympics" – Phineas J. Whoopee advises Tennessee and Chumley on how to be in shape for the Zoolympics. 11/20/1965
  10. "The Tree Trimmers" – On Christmas Eve, Stanley Livingston orders Tennessee and Chumley to guide the arriving tree trimmers to the Christmas tree. Tennessee and Chumley trim the tree with the help of Yakkety and Baldy until the ornaments are destroyed. Tennessee and Chumley ask Phineas J. Whoopee for help on making ornaments. 11/27/1965
  11. "Goblins Will Get You" – Following a trick-or-treating on Halloween, Tennessee eats too much candy and dreams that he is in a haunted forest with an evil witch and her goblin servants. They learn about maple syrup. 12/4/1965
  12. "Going Up" – Washington's Birthday celebration causes the friends to try putting a Liberty Bell decoration atop a zoo tower. They learn about elevators (cab, pulley, counterweight). 12/18/1965
  13. "The Cheap Skates" – Wanting ice skates, the friends try producing an ice show for "Sewonya Button" (Yak's cousin), but need to learn how to build a rink first. 12/11/1965
  14. "Monster from Another Planet" – Tiger, wanting a better life, pretends to be an extraterrestrial, forcing Tennessee & Chumley into servitude. They learn about spacemen. 12/25/1965
  15. "Signed and Sealed" – Tennessee's cousin Percy is coming to visit. Needing money to fix up their place, the friends rent to Big Bill Bailey with a crafty four-week lease. They learn about leases and contracts, and ultimately learn that Percy can be a demanding guest. 1/1/1966
  16. "The Barbers" – Tennessee buys a barber shop and he and Chumley go to work as barbers. They get Rocky Maninoff as a customer, who wants them to make him a new man, or else. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee for help in haircutting and applying specific make-up. 1/8/1966
  17. "Catch a Falling Hammock" – The guys learn about termites that are causing the trees holding their hammock to fall. They learn about termites. 1/15/1966
  18. "Peace and Quiet" – An employment agency promises jobs to the pair, but they manage to fail at all of them. 1/22/1966
  19. "There Auto Be a Law" – The guys build a car for an auto race, and decide to make and sell copies of the car to pay the entrance fee. They learn about production line manufacturing. 2/5/1966
  20. "Samantha" – Chumley falls in love and Whoopee tries teaching him about the finer points of etiquette and deportment. 2/12/1966
  21. "Telescope Detectives" (a.k.a. "Private Eye Detectives") – Tennessee and Chumley become private detectives. Hotel manager Mr. Hothead hires them to deal with the robberies committed by Slippery Hood, who has eluded every hotel detective. In order to get a better stake-out on Slippery Hood's hotel room, Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee, who tells them about telescopes. 10/31/1964
  22. "That is Horse" 3/5/1966
  23. "Ponda that Moose" 3/12/1966
  24. "Robot Revenge" - Yak and Baldy build robots to do their work. Tennessee and Chumley turn to Phineas J. Whoopee, who tells them about hearts. 1/29/1966

Season 4 (2014; YouTube)

  1. "Go South"
  2. "Be Like Baldy"
  3. "Dinner Party"
  4. "Catch the Cable Man"
  5. "Yakety Yak"

Syndication

Later reruns of Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales are quite different from the original network series, like most cartoon series produced by Total Television. The first 34 Tennessee Tuxedo cartoons were incorporated into syndicated prints of The Underdog Show. That syndicated package actually was a revised version of another earlier (mid-1960s) syndicated series called Cartoon Cut-Ups which initially featured first season segments of Underdog, Tennessee Tuxedo, and Commander McBragg. In fact, the syndicated Underdog Show includes some artifacts such as the Cartoon Cut-Ups closing, combining portions of the original Tennessee Tuxedo and Underdog closings, effectively eliminating the punch line of the visual "Post No Bills" joke in the original Underdog closing. It also includes the final teaser at the end of the show in which announcer George S. Irving says, "Looks like this is the end...but don't miss our next Cartoon Cut-Ups show!" (The line was redubbed to say "Underdog" instead of "Cartoon Cut-Ups".)

In syndication, Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales features different supporting cartoon segments compared to the show's original network run, including some cartoons from the Jay Ward studio. The first 39 syndicated episodes (#901–939) include "Tooter Turtle," "Bullwinkle's Corner" (followed by a vintage Rocky and His Friends commercial bumper), and "Aesop And Son." For syndicated episodes #940–945 and again from #956 through the end of the episode cycle, the supporting segments are all Jay Ward cartoons: "Peabody's Improbable History," "Mr. Know-It-All," and "Fractured Fairy Tales." Syndicated shows #946 through #955 repeat the "Tooter Turtle," "Bullwinkle's Corner", and "Aesop And Son" cartoons already shown in episodes #901–910. Each of the seventy Tennessee Tuxedo cartoons themselves appears twice over the 140 syndicated shows, in addition to the repeats of the first 34 segments as part of the syndicated Underdog Show(during a recent run on the Black Family Channel cable network, only shows #901–934 were aired).

In its first season during its original network run, Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales featured segments of "The Hunter" and "The King And Odie". Both segments originated on the 1960 series King Leonardo And His Short Subjects, but Tennessee Tuxedo included 26 newly produced segments of both, which were not seen on the original King Leonardo program (and were not syndicated as part of that package either). The following season, "The Hunter" began appearing as a segment on The Underdog Show, and the "Hunter" spot in Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales was filled by repeated segments of "Tooter Turtle" (a character also previously seen on King Leonardo And His Short Subjects). The "Tooter" cartoons shown on Tennessee Tuxedo were all repeated segments; no new segments were produced. Between 1968 and 1970, "Tooter Turtle" and "The Hunter" were seen as part of ABC-TV's The Dudley Do-Right Show. The 26 "Hunter" and "King & Odie" segments originally produced for Tennessee Tuxedo are seen in syndicated reruns as part of the Dudley Do-Right And Friends package (which also is different from the 1968–1970 Dudley Do-Right Show).

DVD releases

A DVD titled The Best of Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales was released by Classic Media in 2006. It contains 15 "sort of educational" episodes from the series. The series introduction and end credits do not seem to appear on the DVD if an episode is selected, but if "Play All" is selected, the series introduction will appear at the start of the episodes and the end credits will appear after the last episode.

One of the two "extras" on the DVD is a set of about ten audio-only outtakes from the recording of this version of the theme song. During the session the engineer is heard speaking to the musicians and singers. The voice of the engineer was revealed on June 28, 2007, on The Howard Stern Show as the voice of Howard's father Ben Stern.

The other "extra" is a short collection of corny riddles (originally presented as show transitions) posed to Mr. Whoopee and his 3DBB by Chumley and Tennessee. Example: What has four legs and only one foot? A bed.

On March 6, 2012, Shout! Factory released Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales: The Complete Collection on DVD in Region 1.[6]

Cultural references

Austin Russell, a prominent employee and cast member of the History Channel's Pawn Stars, is nicknamed Chumlee after the Tennessee Tuxedo character.[7][8]

References

  1. ↑ Christopher P. Lehman, American Animated Cartoons of the Vietnam Era: A Study of Social Commentary, 2006, p. 48
  2. ↑ Tom Heintjes. ""Whatever Happened to Total TeleVision productions?," ''Hogan's Alley'' #15, 2009". Cartoonician.com. Retrieved 2014-04-15.
  3. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3979936/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
  4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNFqe8e08EPDNLL76m_e6txt6IsVwnyfx
  5. ↑ http://sillychannel.com
  6. ↑ "Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales DVD news: Press Release for Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales - The Complete Collection". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 2014-01-03. Retrieved 2014-04-15.
  7. ↑ "Meet the Pawn Stars: Austin (Chumlee) Russell" Archived 2012-06-27 at the Wayback Machine.. History.com, Retrieved March 5, 2011.
  8. ↑ Harrison, Rick. 204 License to Pawn
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