The Hillbilly Bears
Encyclopedia
The Hillbilly Bears is an animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. It aired as a segment on The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show
for two seasons, from 1965 to 1967. During the first half of the 1966-67 television season, The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was split into two shows, and The Hillbilly Bears aired as part of The Atom Ant Show. The characters in the series were a family of four anthropomorphic bear
s: Paw and Maw Rugg, their teenage daughter Floral, and their young son Shag (whose voices and personas were nearly identical to Elroy and Judy Jetson
).
", with a gun toting, mumbling father Paw Rugg (voiced by Henry Corden
)) who was always "feudin" ("feudin" was usually a lethargic operation, in which the protagonists fired the same bullet back and forth from the comfort of their rocking chairs) with the neighbors the Hoppers.
Paw Rugg's voice was a mumble, splattered with a few understandable words. Particularly in the first episodes, Paw Rugg's voice was incomprehensible; his speech improved with the later episodes. His wife Maw (voiced by Jean Vander Pyl
) was a homemaker
who appeared as more levelheaded parent, The fur of his daughter Floral (voiced by Jean Vander Pyl
) had lemon-colored fur (as opposed to the darker-colored fur of Maw, Paw and Shag) and Floral was southern belle
and most sophisticated member of the family while Shag (voiced by Don Messick
) was a troublemaker who looks up to his father.
and its spin-off series Yogi's Gang
.
The Hillbilly Bears made a cameo appearance
in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
episode "Guitar Control."
The Hillbilly Bears are in a Boomerang
short, where Maw takes them on a Jerry Springer
-like show due to the fact she can't understand Paw, although the audience assumes that she means she doesn't "understand" him in the sense that she doesn't know who he is anymore. This results in Paw shooting on the wall "I luv you Maw".
On the Dexter's Laboratory
Episode, "Chubby Cheese" Paw Rugg is seen playing the banjo during the song.
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show
The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was an hour-long Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1965 to 1967 for NBC.-Production:...
for two seasons, from 1965 to 1967. During the first half of the 1966-67 television season, The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show was split into two shows, and The Hillbilly Bears aired as part of The Atom Ant Show. The characters in the series were a family of four anthropomorphic bear
Bear
Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern...
s: Paw and Maw Rugg, their teenage daughter Floral, and their young son Shag (whose voices and personas were nearly identical to Elroy and Judy Jetson
The Jetsons
The Jetsons is a animated American sitcom that was produced by Hanna-Barbera, originally airing in prime-time from 1962–1963 and again from 1985–1987...
).
Overview
The Hillbilly Bears played on a social stereotype of the "hillbillyHillbilly
Hillbilly is a term referring to certain people who dwell in rural, mountainous areas of the United States, primarily Appalachia but also the Ozarks. Owing to its strongly stereotypical connotations, the term is frequently considered derogatory, and so is usually offensive to those Americans of...
", with a gun toting, mumbling father Paw Rugg (voiced by Henry Corden
Henry Corden
Henry Corden was a Canadian-born American actor and voice artist best-known for taking over the role of Fred Flintstone after Alan Reed died in 1977. His official debut as Fred's new voice was on the 1977 syndicated weekday series Fred Flintstone and Friends for which he provided voice-overs on...
)) who was always "feudin" ("feudin" was usually a lethargic operation, in which the protagonists fired the same bullet back and forth from the comfort of their rocking chairs) with the neighbors the Hoppers.
Paw Rugg's voice was a mumble, splattered with a few understandable words. Particularly in the first episodes, Paw Rugg's voice was incomprehensible; his speech improved with the later episodes. His wife Maw (voiced by Jean Vander Pyl
Jean Vander Pyl
Jean Vander Pyl was an American actress on radio, television and movies. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best remembered as the voice of Wilma Flintstone from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones...
) was a homemaker
Homemaker
Homemaking is a mainly American term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping or household management...
who appeared as more levelheaded parent, The fur of his daughter Floral (voiced by Jean Vander Pyl
Jean Vander Pyl
Jean Vander Pyl was an American actress on radio, television and movies. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best remembered as the voice of Wilma Flintstone from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones...
) had lemon-colored fur (as opposed to the darker-colored fur of Maw, Paw and Shag) and Floral was southern belle
Southern belle
A southern belle is an archetype for a young woman of the American Old South's upper class....
and most sophisticated member of the family while Shag (voiced by Don Messick
Don Messick
Donald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
) was a troublemaker who looks up to his father.
Episode list
There were a total of 26 six-minute episodes produced.| # | Title | Production | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detour For Sure | 1965 | |
| 2 | Woodpecked | 1965 | |
| 3 | Anglers Aweigh | 1965 | |
| 4 | Stranger Than Friction | 1965 | |
| 5 | Goldilocks and the Four Bears | 1965 | |
| 6 | Going, Going Gone Gopher | 1965 | |
| 7 | Courtin' Disaster | 1965 | |
| 8 | Picnic Panicked | 1965 | |
| 9 | Judo Kudos | 1965 | |
| 10 | Just Plane Around | 1965 | |
| 11 | War Games | 1965 | |
| 12 | Bricker Brats | 1965 | |
| 13 | Slap Happy Grandpappy | 1965 | |
| 14 | Pooped Pops | 1966 | |
| 15 | Leaky Creek | 1966 | |
| 16 | My Fair Hillbilly | 1966 | |
| 17 | Rickety-Rockety-Raccoon | 1966 | |
| 18 | Modern Inconvenience | 1966 | |
| 19 | Rabbit Rumble | 1966 | |
| 20 | Speckled Heckler | 1966 | |
| 21 | Whirly Bear | 1966 | |
| 22 | Saucy Saucers | 1966 | |
| 23 | Chipper Chirper | 1966 | |
| 24 | Gettin' Paws Goat | 1966 | |
| 25 | Buzzin' Cuzzins | 1966 | |
| 26 | Do the Bear | 1966 |
Cast
- Henry CordenHenry CordenHenry Corden was a Canadian-born American actor and voice artist best-known for taking over the role of Fred Flintstone after Alan Reed died in 1977. His official debut as Fred's new voice was on the 1977 syndicated weekday series Fred Flintstone and Friends for which he provided voice-overs on...
- Paw Rugg - Paul FreesPaul FreesPaul Frees was an American voice actor and character actor.-Biography:He was born Solomon Hersh Frees in Chicago...
- Claude Hopper - Don MessickDon MessickDonald Earl "Don" Messick was an American voice actor best known for his work for Hanna-Barbera. Perhaps his most well-known voice creations include Scooby-Doo, Papa Smurf, and Dr. Benton Quest....
- Shag Rugg - Jean Vander PylJean Vander PylJean Vander Pyl was an American actress on radio, television and movies. Although her career spanned many decades, she is best remembered as the voice of Wilma Flintstone from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flintstones...
- Maw Rugg, Floral Rugg
Other appearances
The Hillbilly Bears appeared in Yogi's Ark LarkYogi's Ark Lark
Yogi’s Ark Lark is an animated Hanna-Barbera television movie, intended to raise ecological awareness. Broadcast in 1972, it was part of The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie and served as the pilot for Yogi's Gang.-Plot:...
and its spin-off series Yogi's Gang
Yogi's Gang
Yogi's Gang is a 30-minute animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired 16 half-hour episodes on ABC from , to . The show began as Yogi's Ark Lark, a special TV movie on The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie in 1972...
.
The Hillbilly Bears made a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law is an American animated television series comedy created by Williams Street and produced by Cartoon Network Studios that aired on Cartoon Network during its Adult Swim late night programming block. The series' pilot first aired in 2000, and later became a series in...
episode "Guitar Control."
The Hillbilly Bears are in a Boomerang
Boomerang (TV channel)
Boomerang is a 24-hour American cable television channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System, a division of Time Warner. Boomerang specializes in reruns of animated programming from Time Warner's extensive archives, including pre-1986 MGM, Hanna-Barbera, Cartoon Network, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises...
short, where Maw takes them on a Jerry Springer
The Jerry Springer Show
The Jerry Springer Show is a syndicated television tabloid talk show hosted by Jerry Springer, a former politician, broadcast in the United States and other countries...
-like show due to the fact she can't understand Paw, although the audience assumes that she means she doesn't "understand" him in the sense that she doesn't know who he is anymore. This results in Paw shooting on the wall "I luv you Maw".
On the Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory
Dexter's Laboratory is an American animated television series created by Genndy Tartakovsky and produced by Cartoon Network Studios . The show is about a boy named Dexter who has an enormous secret laboratory filled with an endless collection of his inventions...
Episode, "Chubby Cheese" Paw Rugg is seen playing the banjo during the song.
External links
- Hillbilly Bears - Cartoon NetworkCartoon NetworkCartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
Department of Cartoons (Archive)