Jonny Quest (TV series)
Jonny Quest is an American animated science fiction adventure television series about a boy who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions for Screen Gems, and was created and designed by the late comic book artist Doug Wildey.
The show was inspired by radio serials and comics in the action-adventure genre, and featured more realistic art, human characters, and stories than Hanna-Barbera's previous cartoon programs. It was the first of several Hanna-Barbera action-based adventure shows—which would later include Space Ghost, The Herculoids, and Birdman and the Galaxy Trio—and ran on ABC in prime time on early Friday nights for one season from 1964 to 1965.
After 20 years of reruns, during which time the series appeared on all three major U.S. television networks of the time, new episodes were produced for syndication in 1986 as part of The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera
Development
artist Doug Wildey, after having worked on Cambria Productions' 1962 animated television series Space Angel, found work at the Hanna-Barbera studio, which asked him to design a series starring the radio drama adventure character Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy.Wildey wrote and drew a presentation, using magazines like Popular Science, Popular Mechanics, and Science Digest "to project what would be happening 10 years hence", and devising or updating such devices as a "snowskimmer" and hydrofoils. When Hanna-Barbera could not or would not obtain the rights to Jack Armstrong, the studio had Wildey rework the concept. Wildey said he "went home and wrote Jonny Quest that night—which was not that tough." For inspiration, he drew on Jackie Cooper and Frankie Darro movies, Milton Caniff's comic strip Terry and the Pirates, and, at the behest of Hanna-Barbera, the James Bond movie Dr. No. As Wildey described in 1986, producer Joe Barbera had seen that first film about the English superspy "and wanted to get in stuff like '007' numbers. Which we included, by the way, in the first Jonny Quest. It was called 'Jonny Quest File 037' or something. We dropped that later; it didn't work. But that was his father's code name as he worked for the government as a scientist and that kind of thing." Wildey stated that Hanna-Barbera refused to give him a "created by" credit, and that he and the studio "finally arrived on 'based on an idea created by', and that was my credit."
Jonny Quest debuted on ABC at 7:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, September 18, 1964. As comics historian Daniel Herman wrote,
Wildey did not design the more cartoonishly drawn pet bulldog, Bandit, which was designed by animator Richard Bickenbach.
Although they do not appear in any episode, scenes from the Jack Armstrong test film were incorporated into the Jonny Quest closing credits. They feature Jack Armstrong and Billy Fairfield escaping from African warriors by hovercraft. The test sequence and several drawings and storyboards by Wildey were used to sell the series to ABC and sponsors.
The show's working titles were The Saga of Chip Baloo, which Wildey said "wasn't really serious, but that was it for the beginning", and Quest File 037. The name Quest was selected from a phone book, for its adventurous implications.
Characters
The five main characters of the show are:- Jonathan "Jonny" Quest is a Tom Swift-like 11-year-old American boy who lost his mother at an early age. Although unenthusiastic in his schooling, he is intelligent, brave, adventurous, and generally athletic. Additionally, he is proficient in judo, scuba diving, and handling firearms. He is responsible, honest, and treats adults with respect.
- Dr. Benton C. Quest is Jonny's father and a scientific genius who works for the U.S. Government. He is considered "one of the three top scientists in the world", with interests and technical know-how spanning many fields. In the first episode, one of the government agents mentions that Jonny lost his mother, but it is not stated when or how she died. The fact a special agent was assigned to protect Jonny implies she may have been killed by foreign agents. As a result, he has raised Jonny and Hadji as a single father, and is willing to take decisive action when necessary for survival or defense. As the two agents in the first episode fly to Palm Key to meet with Dr. Quest, one explains to the other that "if Jonny fell into the hands of enemy agents, Dr. Quest's value to science would be seriously impaired." Therefore, it is important that Jonny be protected.
- Roger T. "Race" Bannon is a special agent from Intelligence One assigned to safeguard Jonny "24 hours a day and 7days a week as tutor, companion and all-around watchdog". Race was born in Wilmette, Illinois, to John and Sarah Bannon. He is an expert in judo, having a third-degree black belt and the ability to defeat notorious experts in various sporting techniques, including sumo wrestlers. He is also a pilot. His design was modeled after actor Jeff Chandler. His name is a combination of Race Dunhill and Stretch Bannon from an earlier comic strip. The surname Bannon is Irish, derived from 'O'Banain', and means "white".
- Hadji Singh is a streetwise 11-year-old Kolkata orphan who becomes the adopted son of Dr. Benton Quest, as well as Jonny's best friend and adoptive brother. He is rarely depicted without his bejeweled turban and Jodhpuri. He is the seventh son of a seventh son and seems to possess mystical powers, including snake-charming, levitation and hypnotism. He is proficient in judo, as well, which he learned from an American Marine. The Quest family meets Hadji while Dr. Quest is lecturing at Calcutta University; he subsequently joins the Quest team after saving Dr. Quest's life. Although more cautious than Jonny, he is often talked into going on adventures.
- Bandit is Jonny's pet dog, named because he is white with black markings, including markings resembling a black domino mask around his eyes. Bandit is unique among his fellow Hanna-Barbera dogs, such as Scooby-Doo, Huckleberry Hound, and Hong Kong Phooey, in that he is a regular non-anthropomorphic dog. However, he is seemingly capable of understanding human speech. Don Messick provided Bandit's vocal effects, which were combined with an archived clip of a dog barking. Creator Doug Wildey wanted to have a monkey as Jonny's pet, but he was overruled by Hanna-Barbera. Wildey has said Bandit was intended to be a bulldog, though his appearance is closer to a Boston Terrier.
Although most antagonists appeared in only one episode, there are recurring antagonists such as Dr. Zin, an Asian criminal mastermind. Dr. Zin and other characters were voiced by Vic Perrin.
Race's mysterious old flame Jade appears in two episodes, as do the characters of Corbin, an Intelligence One agent, and the Professor, a scientist colleague of Dr. Quest's.
Hadji's friend Pasha Peddler appears in the episode "Calcutta Adventure" and is instrumental in arranging Hadji's adoption by the Quest family. Pasha appears to make a living by buying and selling anything he can profit from, and he aids the Quests in their adventure. Although Pasha is presented as and claims to be a native of India, he speaks in jazz-tinged colloquial English. Notably, his skin tone resembles the Quests and not other Asian characters in the show. Although it is never stated outright, it is implied that Pasha is the U.S. Marine who originally taught Hadji to speak English and raised him, which is supported by the fact that Pasha is a skilled helicopter pilot.
Broadcast history
Jonny Quest aired from September 18, 1964, to March 11, 1965, in prime time on the ABC network and was an almost instant success both critically and ratings-wise. However, it was canceled after one season due to its high production costs.Jonny Quest also aired on CBS Saturday mornings/early afternoons from 1967 to 1970.
Like the original Star Trek television series, the series was profitable in syndication, but this was not as well-known when the show was canceled in 1965. Along with another Hanna-Barbera series, The Jetsons, Jonny Quest is one of the few television series to have aired on each of the Big Three television networks in the United States.
Beginning in 2024 reruns aired on MeTV Toons.
Episodes
All writing credits taken from .See also The New Adventures of Jonny Quest.
Merchandise
Items released in the United States during or shortly after the show's original run on ABC included:- A simple substitution code ring was offered as a promotion by PF Flyers. The ring featured a movable code wheel, magnifying lens, signal flasher and a secret compartment. The code was implemented by a rotating circular inner code dial marked "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ" and a fixed outer code marked "WEARPFSLQMYBUHXVCZNDKIOTGJ", i.e. "Wear PFs."
- Whitman released a Jonny Quest coloring book under two different covers in 1965.
- During the show's 1964–65 season, a Jonny Quest card game was produced and distributed in the United States by Milton Bradley and in Australia under license to John Sands Ltd.
- Milton Bradley also released six Jonny Quest puzzle sets in the United States, two apiece for three different age levels.
- Transogram produced three Jonny Quest coloring sets: paint-by-number, crayon-by-number and pencil-by-number.
- Transogram also released a Jonny Quest board game.
- Kenner released two different packages of its Give-A-Show projector in 1965 with different Jonny Quest slides. In 1969, it released a projector for short films, including a Jonny Quest cartridge.
- Hanna-Barbera records published a 28-minute audio story, "Jonny Quest in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", on an LP that featured a new version of the theme song by Shorty Rogers. There was a 7-inch 45rpm record with an abbreviated version of the story, and another 45 titled "Favorite Songs of Jonny Quest", with the LP's theme song and other Hanna-Barbera music.