Linus the Lionhearted

Linus the Lionhearted is an American Saturday morning animated television series that aired on CBS from September 26, 1964 to December 11, 1965, originally airing in black and white. Color versions of the episodes started airing on ABC in 1966, and continued in reruns until September 7, 1969. It was an early Saturday morning cartoon. The show follows a jungle-dwelling lion king who rules from his personal barber's chair.^[1]

Linus the Lionhearted
1964 vinyl record
Genre	Comedy
Created by	Ed Graham Jr.
Developed by	Gene Schinto
Directed by	Ed Graham Jr.
Voices of	Sheldon Leonard Ed Graham Jr. Carl Reiner Ruth Buzzi Bob McFadden Jesse White Jonathan Winters Gerry Matthews "Bashful Bigshots"
Theme music composer	Johnny Mann
Opening theme	"Roar For Linus"
Ending theme	"Linus and His Friends Must Go"
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	39 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer	Ed Graham Jr.
Running time	30 minutes (with commercials)
Production companies	Ed Graham Productions General Foods
Original release
Network	CBS (B&W) ABC (color)
Release	September 26, 1964 (1964-09-26) – December 11, 1965 (1965-12-11)

The character was created in 1959, by the Ed Graham advertising agency, originally as a series of ads for General Foods' Post Cereals.^[2] At first, Linus the lion was the spokesman for the short-lived Post cereal "Heart of Oats" (a Cheerios imitation). Eventually, the lion was redesigned and reintroduced in 1963, to sell Crispy Critters, which featured Linus on the box.^[3] The ads were so popular that a television series was created in 1964, with General Foods as sponsor. The show ran on the CBS network until 1966, and reruns aired on ABC from 1966 to 1969.^[4]

History

In addition to Linus, a rather good-natured "King of the Beasts" who ruled from his personal barber's chair and was voiced by Sheldon Leonard, there were other features as well, all based on characters representing other Post breakfast cereals.^[5] The best-known of these was Sugar Bear (Sugar Crisp), who sounded like Dean Martin or Bing Crosby and was voiced by actor Gerry Matthews.^[6] There was also a postman named Lovable Truly (Alpha-Bits), a young Asian boy named So-Hi (Rice Krinkles), and Rory Raccoon (Post Toasties).^[7]

A long-play record album was released as a premium tie-in in the year of the show's debut, featuring the characters (voiced by the same stars as the animated cartoon) singing familiar songs such as "Jimmy Cracked Corn" with rewritten lyrics. A coloring book was also published which detailed the adventures of So-Hi going on a scavenger hunt in order to break a curse on a two-headed bird, who is then transformed into a human boy due to So-Hi's dedication.

Vocal talent

The show was perhaps best noted for its abundance of well-known vocal talent. In addition to Leonard, Carl Reiner voiced several characters, most notably Linus' friend Billy Bird; Ruth Buzzi (later of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In) voiced an old witch who had befriended Lovable Truly, as well as Sugar Bear's sometime nemesis, Granny Goodwitch; and veteran Bob McFadden voiced So Hi, Rory and Lovable Truly. Jonathan Winters made a number of guest appearances, as did Jerry Stiller and his wife Anne Meara. Also credited was the later "Maytag Repairman," Jesse White.

End theme

As opposed to the cartoon's jaunty, upbeat, fast-paced opening, which promoted "Linus the King, Linus the Star, Linus the Lionhearted," the end theme, likely by the Johnny Mann Singers^{[citation needed]}, was slow and melancholy in tone. As it played, the cartoon's five principal characters—Linus, Lovable Truly, Rory Raccoon, So Hi, and Sugar Bear were depicted loading the series' "props" into a trunk under a spotlight. As the song progressed and with the trunk filled, closed, and now in Linus' hand, the characters, with big tears in their eyes, were all sadly forced to wave goodbye, turned, and faded away into darkness as they walked out of the spotlight. As the song concluded, Billy Bird "mopped up" the white spotlight circle of tears until it faded to black for the week:

"Linus and his friends must go, so we leave you with a song.

We're all kind of sad to go, glad to know it won't be long.

Lion-hearted friendships don't end, we'll all be back, and then

Linus and his friends will go on with the show again!"

Cancellation

An FCC ruling in 1969 forbade children's show characters from appearing in advertisements on the same program. ABC was consequently forced to pull the series' reruns.^[8]

Even after the show left the airwaves, Linus continued to appear in balloon form in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, making his final appearance in 1991.^[9]

Episode list

Segments

• C = The Company (i.e., wraparound segment)- 39 segments
• LK = Linus, King of Beasts- 39 segments
• LT = Lovable Truly- 35 segments
• R = Rory Raccoon, Hometown Hero- 19 segments
• SH = So-Hi- 37 segments
• SB = Sugar Bear- 22 segments

Season 1 (1964–65)

Nº	Ep	Originally broadcast segments	Air date
1	1	"Mocking Bird" (C) / "The Gallant Grouse" (LK) / "Truly Chewy" (LT) / "Bye, Bye, Bad Bird" (R) / "So-Hi and the Bamboo Stalk" (SH) / "Room for One More" (SB)	September 26, 1964 (1964-09-26)
2	2	"Adrift on the Rapids" (C) / "Swami Bird" (LK) / "Beware of the Dog Catcher" (LT) / "Samples from Mars" (R) / "King Midas" (SH) / "Bad Apple" (SB)	October 3, 1964 (1964-10-03)
3	3	"Linus Plays, Linus Says" (C) / "Rocky Road to Riches" (LK) / "Truly Scarey" (LT) / "Faults of the Toreador" (R) / "Sleeping Beauty" (SH) / "Which Is Witch?" (SB)	October 10, 1964 (1964-10-10)
4	4	"Water Skiing" (C) / "Birds Gotta Swim" (LK) / "It's a Dog's Life" (LT) / "Winter Blunderland" (R) / "The Night Before Christmas" (SH) / "Cry Wolf" (SB)	October 17, 1964 (1964-10-17)
5	5	"Macy's Thanksgiving Day Balloon" (C) / "Hiccups" (LK) / "Frank Pfaff Streetcleaner" (LT) / "Circus Stars" (R) / "So-Hi and the Ugly Duckling" (SH) / "Water, Water, Everywhere" (SB)	October 24, 1964 (1964-10-24)
6	6	"Sugar Bear, Linus Says" (C) / "Hidden Talent" (LK) / "Wrong Dog" (LT) / "Rory Takes a Vacation" (R) / "When So-Hi Called Wolf" (SH) / "Picture Me in Pictures" (SB)	October 31, 1964 (1964-10-31)
7	7	"Cheering of the Grouse" (C) / "Exercise" (LK) / "Dog Gone" (LT) / "Make Someone Happy" (R) / "Casey at the Bat" (SH) / "Stop the Magic" (SB)	November 7, 1964 (1964-11-07)
8	8	"Joke Day" (C) / "A Gift for Linus" (LK) / "Dog Pound" (LT) / "Rory's Circus Act" (R) / "The Bear Who Danced Too Well" (SH) / "Granny's Broom" (SB)	November 14, 1964 (1964-11-14)
9	9	"Hide and Seek" (C) / "Who Am I" (LK) / "One for the Book" (LT) / "World's Worst Caddy" (R) / "The Tortoise and the Hare" (SH) / "A Cake for Benjie" (SB)	November 21, 1964 (1964-11-21)
10	10	"Suggestion Box" (C) / "Help! Save the Mocking Bird!" (LK) / "My Fuzzy Fugitive" (LT) / "Beautiful Baby Contest" (R) / "The Fisherman and the Wishes" (SH)	November 28, 1964 (1964-11-28)
11	11	"Musical Chairs" (C) / "Talking Rock" (LK) / "A Visit to a Toy Store" (LT) / "Vincent Van Crow, Artiste" (R) / "So-Hi and the Knight" (SH)	December 5, 1964 (1964-12-05)
12	12	"National Linus Admirers Day" (C) / "The Reflection Pool" (LK) / "Be Kind to Dogs Week" (LT) / "Big Chief Rain In the Face" (R) / "So-Hi and the Singing King" (SH)	December 12, 1964 (1964-12-12)
13	13	"It's Rhyme Time" (C) / "Flyin' Lion" (LK; Pilot) / "One Way" (LT) / "This Means Total War" (R) / "The Princely Toad" (SH)	December 19, 1964 (1964-12-19)
14	14	"Old Car" (C) / "Linus' Coronation" (LK) / "Making Movies" (LT) / "C. Claudius Dreams" (R) / "The Prince Who Wasn't Charming" (SH)	December 26, 1964 (1964-12-26)
15	15	"Flying High" (C) / "The Birds" (LK) / "Puncture Time" (LT) / "Some Total" (R) / "Little Red So-Hihood" (SH)	January 2, 1965 (1965-01-02)
16	16	"The Picnic" (C) / "Remember the Birds" (LK) / "Flop Flop" (LT) / "Rory Goes Skiing" (R) / "The Giant with Two Glass Jaws" (SH)	January 9, 1965 (1965-01-09)
17	17	"Mountain Climbing" (C) / "Fishing for Relaxation" (LK) / "Ups and Downs" (LT) / "Numbskull and Crossbones" (R) / "The Business-Like Witch" (SH)	January 16, 1965 (1965-01-16)
18	18	"Treasure Hunt" (C) / "Missing—One Throne" (LK) / "What's Up" (LT) / "The World's Greatest Hypnotist" (R) / "The Wolf Who Changed His Spots" (SH)	January 23, 1965 (1965-01-23)
19	19	"Cross Jungle Race" (C) / "Helping Hands" (LK) / "United We Stand" (LT) / "Rest Cured" (R) / "CinderSo-Hi" (SH)	January 30, 1965 (1965-01-30)
20	20	"The Voyage" (C) / "Dinny's Sydney Special" (LK) / "A Visit to Dizzyland" (LT) / "The Too-Particular Princess" (SH)	February 6, 1965 (1965-02-06)
21	21	"The Hand Gernade" (C) / "Travel Is Broadening" (LK) / "Keep Off the Grass" (LT) / "E.R. Jack Rumplestiltskin" (SH)	February 13, 1965 (1965-02-13)
22	22	"The Bicycle" (C) / "Billy's Sydney Special" (LK) / "It's a Bird Dog" (LT) / "The Jester Who Took Himself Serious" (SH)	February 20, 1965 (1965-02-20)
23	23	"The Tank" (C) / "Crocodile Tears" (LK) / "Double Trouble" (LT) / "Huffy Miss Muffet" (SH)	February 27, 1965 (1965-02-27)
24	24	"The Box" (C) / "The Sinking Island" (LK) / "The Flying Dog Catcher" (LT) / "The Walrus and the Carpenter" (SH)	March 6, 1965 (1965-03-06)
25	25	"Coconut Harvest" (C) / "Surprise" (LK) / "The Poet Bandit" (SH)	March 13, 1965 (1965-03-13)
26	26	"The Sky Race" (C) / "That Winning Smile" (LK) / "The Cat Who Looked at a Queen" (SH)	March 20, 1965 (1965-03-20)

Season 2 (1965)

Nº	Ep	Originally broadcast segments	Air date
27	1	"Underwater" (C) / "Linus to the Rescue" (LK) / "Truly Heroic" (LT) / "Thieves Who Fell Out" (SH) / "Mervyn Meets His Match" (SB)	September 18, 1965 (1965-09-18)
28	2	"The Lost Kingdom" (C) / "Shadow Thief" (LK) / "Truly Explosive" (LT) / "Magic Pig" (SH) / "Benjie, the Apprentice" (SB)	September 25, 1965 (1965-09-25)
29	3	"Hand Car" (C) / "No News Is Good News" (LK) / "The Counterfeiter" (LT) / "Genie Who Got His Wish" (SH) / "Rich Witch" (SB)	October 2, 1965 (1965-10-02)
30	4	"Skateboard" (C) / "Surprise Attack" (LK) / "The Spy" (LT) / "King's Canary" (SH) / "Singing Toad" (SB)	October 9, 1965 (1965-10-09)
31	5	"Albino Gorilla" (C) / "Leaping Lizard" (LK) / "Truly to the Rescue" (LT) / "Twin Witches" (SH) / "Mervyn's Museum" (SB)	October 16, 1965 (1965-10-16)
32	6	"Space Capsule" (C) / "Jungle Rot" (LK) / "Carnival Cars" (LT) / "The Giant Who Liked People and Birds" (SH) / "Benjie's Revenge" (SB)	October 23, 1965 (1965-10-23)
33	7	"Linus Submarine" (C) / "Nephew Norman" (LK) / "Trestle Trouble" (LT) / "The Dragon Who Went Home To His Mother" (SH) / "Mervyn's Genie" (SB)	October 30, 1965 (1965-10-30)
34	8	"The Man Eating Plant" (C) / "The Census" (LK) / "Pony Express Postman" (LT) / "The Scaredy Cat" (SH) / "Trick Banjo" (SB)	November 6, 1965 (1965-11-06)
35	9	"Twin Gorillas" (C) / "Booby Traps" (LK) / "Truly Monstrous" (LT) / "The Fast Sword" (SH) / "Head Over Heels" (SB)	November 13, 1965 (1965-11-13)
36	10	"The Peculiar Tree" (C) / "What's on Third" (LK) / "Playing the Trains" (LT) / "Jolly Roger" (SH) / "Granny's Phone Booth" (SB)	November 20, 1965 (1965-11-20)
37	11	"Ivory Tower" (C) / "Winner and Still King" (LK) / "The Flying Dog" (LT) / "The Princess Who Held On to her Hand" (SH) / "Perilous Picnic" (SB)	November 27, 1965 (1965-11-27)
38	12	"Pre-Historic Perils" (C) / "Around the World in 80 Gags" (LK) / "Mervyn's Elevator" (SB)	December 4, 1965 (1965-12-04)
39	13	"Cool Cousin" (C) / "The Disappearing Act" (LK) / "Mervyn's Songbook" (SB)	December 11, 1965 (1965-12-11)

Credits

Season 1

• Supervising Director: Irv Spector
• Production Supervision: Lew Irwin
• Character Models: George Cannata
• Head Writer: Bill Schnurr
• Associate Producer: Rick Herland
• Produced and Directed by Ed Graham, Jr.
• Animation Directors: John Freeman, Clyde Geronimi, Rube Grossman, Ed Rehberg, George Singer, Marvin Woodward, T. Hee
• Layouts: Corny Cole, Bob Dranko, Burt Freund, Dave Hanan, Homer Jonas, Tony Rivera, Sam Weiss, Osmond Evans, Bob Singer, Gerard Baldwin, Fred Crippen, Mordicai Gerstein, Alex Ignatiev, Victor Haboush, Elmer Plummer, Ray Jacobs, Ron Maidenberg, Marty Murphy
• Storyboards: Tom Dagenais, Art Diamond, Bob Givens, Cal Howard, Bob Kurtz, Mike Smollin, Dave Detiege, Jim Mueller, Ken Mundie, Jack Miller
• Backgrounds: Bill Butler, Boris Gorelick, Erv Kaplan, Bob McIntosh, Lorraine Morgan, Curt Perkins
• Editors: Hank Goetzenberg, Jerry MacDonald, George Mahana
• Sound Engineer: Gil Arion
• Ink and Paint by Connie Crawley, Dea Shirley
• Character Layouts: Stan Green
• Special Music Arrangements: Johnny Mann
• Production Assistants: Ruth Kennedy, Armand Shaw
• Animators: Ray Abrams, Frank Andrina, Gerard Baldwin, Tom Baron, Warren Batchelder, Bob Bentley, Dan Bessie, Frank Braxton, Brad Case, Fred Crippen, Jim Davis, Ed Friedman, Bob Goe, Frank Gonzales, Manny Gould, Bill Hajee, Ken Hultgren, Tom McDonald, Dan Mills, Chic Otterstrom, Amby Paliwoda, Manuel Perez, Virgil Ross, Frank Smith, Ed Solomon, Russ von Neida, Ray Young, Rudy Zamora

Season 2

• Direction: Gerard Baldwin, Clyde Geronimi, George Singer, Marvin Woodward
• Music: Hoyt Curtin
• Head Writer: Bill Schnurr
• Character Models: George Cannata Jr.
• Production Supervision: Lew Irwin
• Production Assistants: Henry Hof III, Ruth Kennedy, Armand Shaw
• Film Editing: Hank Gotzenberg, George Mahana
• Sound Engineer: Gil Arion
• Inking & Painting: Connie Crawley
• Storyboards: Tom Dagenais, Tom Henderson, Lee Mishkin, Irv Spector
• Layout: Stan Green, Burt Freund, Don Jurwich, Tony Rivera, Sam Weiss
• Animation: Bob Bentley, Ted Bonnicksen, Herm Cohen, Ed Friedman, Bob Goe, Manny Gould, Bill Hajik, Ken Hultgren, Fred Madison, Amby Paliwoda, George Rowley, Ed Solomon, John Walker, Rudy Zamora
• Background: Erv Kaplan, Curt Perkins
• Associate Producer: Rick Herland
• Produced and Directed by Ed Graham Jr.

Voices

• Carl Reiner - Billy Bird, Dinny Kangaroo and various other characters
• Sheldon Leonard - Linus the Lionhearted
• Bob McFadden - So Hi, Rory Raccoon, and Lovable Truly
• Gerry Matthews - Sugar Bear
• Jesse White - Claudius Crow
• Ruth Buzzi - Granny Goodwitch
• Paul Frees - various supporting characters
• "Bashful Bigshots" (various big name guest stars, usually not credited)
  • Jonathan Winters
  • Tom Poston
  • Stiller & Meara