I found this "Banana Splits" paper birthday tablecloth cover still in the original packaging at an estate sale a few weeks ago. Marked down to 36 cents from the original 48 cents tells me the show had peeked by the time some poor mom bought this at K-Mart for her son or daughter who proceeded to cry that "The Banana Splits" were "SO SQUARE and the other kids will LAUGH at me!" and ended up shelving it for the next 45 years.
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"The Banana Splits" was just outside of my TV viewing window, being just under a year old when it premiered. It was a Hanna-Barbera production and featured the puppets of Sid and Marty Krofft who would go on to make their own mark on Saturday morning TV a few years later.
With that, I'll leave you with this track from "The Banana Splits" first album "Doin' The Banana Split" written and performed by Barry White.
I used to like Banana Splits and the cartoons and live action shorts in between the Splits segments. Weird show, but fun and entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI didn't see "Danger Island" until it was rerun on Boomerang in recent years. I never realized it was part of The Banana Splits. And directed by Richard Donner to boot!
DeleteI never got it...
ReplyDeleteYou mean you never saw it or it didn't make any sense? :)
DeleteThey did not make a lot of sense...they used to come on with some of my favorite cartoons but I never really liked them or could understand their humor. Kinda like the Monkees but not as cute. I guess I was not a fan...
ReplyDeleteYes, definitely an odd concept for a show. I think Hanna Barbera thought they could save some money on animation if they just had actors dress up in costumes.
DeleteThe theme song is awesome though!
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