Wacky Races

Wacky Races is an animated cartoon series from Hanna-Barbera Productions, about a group of 11 different cars racing against each other in various road rallies, with each driver hoping to win the title of the "World's Wackiest Racer." The series was apparently inspired by the movies Monte Carlo or Bust (aka Those Daring Young Men in their Jaunty Jalopies) and The Great Race. The series debuted on CBS in 1968 and ran until 1970. Seventeen episodes were produced, with each episode featuring two different races, for a total of 34 races in all.

Spinoffs and similar series

The Penelope Pitstop character was spun off into another cartoon series in 1969, The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop. Also in 1969, Dick Dastardly and Muttley were given a spinoff; the two villains appeared in the series Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines.

Related Topics:
1969 - The Perils Of Penelope Pitstop - Spinoff - Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The basic idea behind Wacky Races was used again by Hanna-Barbera in later years. The late 1970s series Yogi's Space Race featured Hanna-Barbera stalwards such as Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, and others racing against each other across outer space (and fending off a villain and his canine sidekick). In the early 1990s, the syndicated series Wake, Rattle and Roll featured a segment called "Fender Bender 500," which once again featured Dick Dastardly and Muttley (and their "Mean Machine"), only this time racing against Yogi Bear, Winsome Witch, and other Hanna-Barbera stars.

Related Topics:
1970s - Yogi's Space Race - Huckleberry Hound - Yogi Bear - 1990s - Wake, Rattle and Roll

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Around 2000 a video game based on the cartoon was produced for the Dreamcast system.

Related Topics:
2000 - Video game - Dreamcast

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~