The Great Space Coaster
The Great Space Coaster is an American live-action/animated children's television show that was broadcast in first-run syndication from 1981 to 1986.
Plot
The Great Space Coaster is about three young singers who are brought to a habitable asteroid in space called Coasterville by a clown named Baxter who pilots the "space coaster", a roller coaster-like spaceship. The asteroid is populated by strange-looking, wise-cracking puppet characters such as Goriddle Gorilla, Knock Knock the Woodpecker, Edison the Elephant, and Gary Gnu. Baxter is forever on the run from M.T. Promises, a nefarious ringmaster who plans to re-capture Baxter and return him to the circus he worked at before he escaped. Each episode ends with a different life lesson, and various celebrity guest stars occasionally dropped by.Production
The series was co-created by Kermit Love and Jim Martin. The series' episodes, which were videotaped in New York City, were directed by Dick Feldman and were fitted with a laugh track. It was produced by Sunbow Productions and distributed by Claster Television, a division of Hasbro. The puppets were designed by The Great Jones Studio, New York, under the supervision of Kermit Love. The puppet designers and builders consisted of Jim Kroupa, Robert Lovett, Christoper Lyall, John Orberg, and Matthew Stoddart.Format
In each episode, Roy shows a short film on his portable, fold-up television. Most often, the segments originated from La Linea, an Italian animated series about a little man who is drawn at the start of the segment and then springs to life, communicating with his animator through high-pitched Italian mixed with gibberish. Other animated shorts including from the National Film Board of Canada, Weston Woods Studios, and Jim Thurman are always segmented within an episode. Francine, Roy, and Danny sing a song together as the Space Coasters in each episode, sometimes originals or covers of 1960s and 1970s hits. The various puppet characters often sing. A few years into the show's run, the MTV-like "Rockin' with Rory" segment began where a VJ named Rory introduced Danny and the Space Coasters performing cover tunes. Other additions include Baffle, Big Jock Ox, and the Huggles. The action was mostly videotaped on the space set, and sometimes the characters venture down to Earth for filmed songs.Characters
Space Coasters
- Francine is a young woman from a fishing village on the East Coast and is the leader of the Space Coasters where she plays the guitar. She also acts as Baxter's second-in-command.
- Danny is from a small midwestern town, a member of the Space Coasters, and Francine's second-in-command. He plays the drums in the Space Coasters.
- Roy is from the big city and a member of the Space Coasters where he plays the keyboards. He is also a good poet. Roy showed clips and short films on his hand-held magic screen.
Coasterville inhabitants
- Baxter is a large, gentle clown who once worked for M.T. Promises in an apparently slave-like situation at his circus and lives in fear of ever going back. He now pilots the space coaster, taking the characters from Earth to the asteroid. He can magically disappear by twirling around, a talent he uses to escape M.T.'s attempts to catch him and bring him back to his circus.
- Goriddle Gorilla : A gravel-voiced orange gorilla-like creature, he has a tendency to be rude, obnoxious, nosy, lazy, and a nuisance, but somehow the gang on the asteroid seem to like him just the way he is. He is roommates with Edison the Elephant.
- Knock Knock the Woodpecker is a prissy pink woodpecker who lives in the hollow of a tree and tells a lot of knock-knock jokes.
- Edison the Elephant : A strange, large robotic-looking elephant with a segmented hose-like ever-moving trunk, semi-transparent fan-like ears, and a voice like an echo. He loves plants and tends a large garden. Edison and Goriddle Gorilla are roommates.
- Gary Gnu : A green gnu-like newscaster who hosts The Gary Gnu Show, he adds a hard "G" before any words that start with an "N" sound, such as "g-news" for "news" and "g-nothing" for "nothing". This unusual speaking style was inspired by the 1957 Flanders and Swann song "The Gnu".
- Speed Reader : A young man who appears on The Gary Gnu Show to discuss children's books. Described as "the fastest reader in the world", he performs a series of eye exercises before reading a book chosen by Gary within seconds.
- M.T. Promises : A nefarious, bulgy-eyed, top hat-wearing, caped ringmaster who is the primary antagonist of the series, he has always been scheming to capture Baxter the Clown and take him back to his circus.
- The Huggles are small, furry creatures who have stories read to them by Baxter. They consist of Fluffy, Puffy, and Scruffy. They also have a younger sister named Baby Huggle who appears later on and who spends most of her time sleeping.
- Rory : A wild-looking lion-like VJ, he appeared a few years into the show's run as the host of "Rockin' with Rory".
- Baffle is a furry, horned magical alien from the neighboring planet Blip.
- Big Jock Ox : An ox-like character who appeared a few years into the show's run, Big Jock Ox often appeared on The Gary Gnu Show as the sports expert.
Cast
- Emily Bindiger - Francine
- Chris Gifford - Danny
- Ray Stephens - Roy
- Ken Myles - Speed Reader
Puppeteers
- Pam Arciero - Baby Huggle, Fluffy, Puffy
- Kevin Clash - Goriddle Gorilla, Rory, Big Jock Ox, Scruffy
- Francis Kane - Baxter
- John Lovelady - Knock Knock the Woodpecker, Edison the Elephant
- Noel MacNeal - Knock Knock the Woodpecker
- Jim Martin - Gary Gnu, M.T. Promises, Baffle, Edison the Elephant
Soundtrack
Side A
1. The Great Space Coaster Song
- The Name Game
- Funnybone
3. Knock Knock Rock
4. I Like Scary Things
5. Mr. Rhyme
6. Goriddle's Banana Song
- Yellow-Orange Song
1. Spin About / Jump N' Shout
2. The Thing
- It's Baxter
4. Sticks and Stones
5. No Gnews Is Good Gnews
6. My Way