Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch
Encyclopedia
Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch is a 30-minute cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera
which aired for one season on NBC
from September 7, 1974 to August 30, 1975. It aired on Saturday morning from 8:30-9:00 am, opposite the popular The Bugs Bunny Show
.
" and Ruta Lee
). Wheelie made his living as a professional- and quite successful- racing and stunt car. Wheelie didn't talk (unlike the other characters in the show) but emoted by honking and displaying symbols across his windshield showing his inner thoughts such as a heart for love or a lightbulb for an idea. Wheelie could also produce any form of prop needed from his trunk thru the use of special mechanized hands, much like Inspector Gadget
would later. Wheelie's regular nemeses were a 4-member motorcycle gang called the Chopper Bunch which included the leader Chopper (who was jealous of Wheelie and had a spiked motorcycle helmet for a head), Revs (a sputtering three-wheeled motorcycle who often mixed up his words), Hi-Riser (who was tall in body but shorter in brains), and Scrambles (a small minibike who acted more like the good kid caught up in the wrong crowd). Scrambles would constantly try to warn Chopper that his plans were about to backfire only to be rebuffed ("Muffle it, Scrambles!") and end up taunting his sullen leader once they inevitably did:
Two other characters were used on occasion to keep the Chopper Bunch in line. They were Captain Tough a hulking Police car, and Fishtail, who was literally a motorcycle cop.
The show was the subject of a seven-issue comic book
from Charlton Comics
, published from July 1975 to July 1976. The first five issues featured some of the earliest published artwork of John Byrne(#2-4) and Joe Staton
(#1,#5)
39 six-minute installments of Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch were produced (3 aired per show). In the 1980s, repeats were shown on USA Cartoon Express
and later resurfaced on Cartoon Network
and Boomerang
.
Since the show aired on NBC, Wheelie sometimes "imitated" the network's trademark "chimes
".
on May 26, 2009.
On January 25, 2011, Warner Bros.
released Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch: The Complete Series on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US.
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
which aired for one season on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
from September 7, 1974 to August 30, 1975. It aired on Saturday morning from 8:30-9:00 am, opposite the popular The Bugs Bunny Show
The Bugs Bunny Show
The Bugs Bunny Show is a long-running American television anthology series hosted by Bugs Bunny, that was mainly composed of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons released by Warner Bros. between August 1, 1948 and the end of 1969. The show originally debuted as a primetime half-hour program on...
.
Plot
The series focuses on Wheelie, a red Volkswagen Beetle, and his girlfriend Rota Ree (a pun on both the "rotary engineRotary engine
The rotary engine was an early type of internal-combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration, in which the crankshaft remained stationary and the entire cylinder block rotated around it...
" and Ruta Lee
Ruta Lee
Ruta Lee is a Canadian actress and dancer who appeared as one of the brides in the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers...
). Wheelie made his living as a professional- and quite successful- racing and stunt car. Wheelie didn't talk (unlike the other characters in the show) but emoted by honking and displaying symbols across his windshield showing his inner thoughts such as a heart for love or a lightbulb for an idea. Wheelie could also produce any form of prop needed from his trunk thru the use of special mechanized hands, much like Inspector Gadget
Inspector Gadget
Inspector Gadget is an animated television series that revolves around the adventures of a clumsy, simple-witted cyborg detective named Inspector Gadget – a human being with various bionic gadgets built into his body. Gadget's arch-nemesis is Dr...
would later. Wheelie's regular nemeses were a 4-member motorcycle gang called the Chopper Bunch which included the leader Chopper (who was jealous of Wheelie and had a spiked motorcycle helmet for a head), Revs (a sputtering three-wheeled motorcycle who often mixed up his words), Hi-Riser (who was tall in body but shorter in brains), and Scrambles (a small minibike who acted more like the good kid caught up in the wrong crowd). Scrambles would constantly try to warn Chopper that his plans were about to backfire only to be rebuffed ("Muffle it, Scrambles!") and end up taunting his sullen leader once they inevitably did:
- (SCRAMBLES: "Itoldja! Itoldja!"
- CHOPPER: "I know! I KNOW!!")
Two other characters were used on occasion to keep the Chopper Bunch in line. They were Captain Tough a hulking Police car, and Fishtail, who was literally a motorcycle cop.
The show was the subject of a seven-issue comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
from Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics was an American comic book publishing company that existed from 1946 to 1985, having begun under a different name in 1944. It was based in Derby, Connecticut...
, published from July 1975 to July 1976. The first five issues featured some of the earliest published artwork of John Byrne(#2-4) and Joe Staton
Joe Staton
Joe Staton is an American illustrator and writer of comic books.-Career:Staton started his work with Charlton Comics in 1971 and gained notability as the artist of the super-hero book E-Man...
(#1,#5)
39 six-minute installments of Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch were produced (3 aired per show). In the 1980s, repeats were shown on USA Cartoon Express
USA Cartoon Express
The USA Cartoon Express was a programming block of animated productions which aired on cable television's USA Network from late 1982 to September 15, 1996...
and later resurfaced on Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network
Cartoon 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....
and 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...
.
Since the show aired on NBC, Wheelie sometimes "imitated" the network's trademark "chimes
NBC chimes
The NBC chimes, named for the radio and television network on which they have been used, consists of a succession of three distinct pitches: G3, E4, and C4 , sounded in that order, creating an arpeggiated C-major chord in the second inversion, within about two seconds time, and reverberating for...
".
Episodes
Three 6 minute segments per 30 minute episodes- WCB-1. Get a Doctor / A Day at the Beach / Ghost Riders (September 7, 1974)
- WCB-2. Double Cross Country / The Stunt Show / Razzle Dazzle Paint Job (September 14, 1974)
- WCB-3. The Autolympics / The Delivery Service / The Infiltrator (September 21, 1974)
- WCB-4. The Big Bumper / Surprise Party / On the Town (September 28, 1974)
- WCB-5. Black Belt Fuji / Our Hero / Wheelie Goes Hawaiian (October 5, 1974)
- WCB-6. The Inspection / The Old Timer / The Copter Caper (October 12, 1974)
- WCB-7. Dr. Crankenstein / Bulldozer Buddy / Happy Birthday Wheelie (October 19, 1974)
- WCB-8. Wheelie, The Super Star / Down on the Farm / Roadeo (October 26, 1974)
- WCB-9. Carfucios Says / Mighty Wheelie / Camping With a Go Go (November 2, 1974)
- WCB-10. Lenny Van Limousine / Snow Foolin / Wheelie in Paris (November 9, 1974)
- WCB-11. Dragster Net / Dragula / Boot Camp (November 16, 1974)
- WCB-12. Dr Cykll and Mr. Ryde / Johnny Crash / Wheelie and the Smoke Eater (November 23, 1974)
- WCB-13. Friday the Thirteenth / Wings of Wheelie / Wheelie's Clean Sweep (November 30, 1974)
Voices
- Frank WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
- Wheelie, Chopper - 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....
- Scrambles, Fishtail - Lennie WeinribLennie WeinribLennie Weinrib was an American actor, voice actor and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show H.R...
- Hi-Riser - Paul WinchellPaul WinchellPaul Winchell was an American ventriloquist, voice actor and comedian, whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s...
- Revs, Captain Tough - Judy StrangisJudy StrangisJudy Strangis is a Los Angeles based actress who is best known for her TV roles in Room 222 and Electra Woman and Dyna Girl.-Acting:...
- Rota Ree
DVD release
Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch was included on Disc #1 of Saturday Morning Cartoons: 1970s Volume 1 released by Warner Home VideoWarner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
on May 26, 2009.
On January 25, 2011, Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
released Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch: The Complete Series on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the US.
Production credits
- EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: WILLIAM HANNA and JOSEPH BARBERA
- Directed by: Charles A. Nichols
- Creative Producer: Iwao Takamoto
- RECORDING DIRECTORS: Art Scott and Wally BurrWally BurrWally Burr is an American voice actor and director. He was best known as the voice director for the Generation 1 cartoon and The Transformers: The Movie. Aside from voicing some incidental characters, he has also filled in roles for regular voice actors who were unavailable for taping. He is also...
- EXECUTIVE STORY CONSULTANT: Myles Wilder
- STORY EDITOR: Ray Parker
- WRITERS: Larz Bourne, Len Janson and Chuck Menville, Robert Ogle, Dalton Sandifer
- STORYBOARD EDITORS: John Ahern, Carl Fallberg, Gary Hoffman, Earl Klein, Paul Sommers
- VOICES: 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....
, Judy StrangisJudy StrangisJudy Strangis is a Los Angeles based actress who is best known for her TV roles in Room 222 and Electra Woman and Dyna Girl.-Acting:...
, Lennie WeinribLennie WeinribLennie Weinrib was an American actor, voice actor and writer. He is best known for playing the title role in the children's television show H.R...
, Franklin WelkerFrank WelkerFranklin Wendell "Frank" Welker is an American actor who specializes in voice acting and has contributed character voices and other vocal effects to American television and motion pictures.-Acting career:...
, Paul WinchellPaul WinchellPaul Winchell was an American ventriloquist, voice actor and comedian, whose career flourished in the 1950s and 1960s...
, Rolinda Wolk - PRODUCTION DESIGN: Bob Singer
- PRODUCTION SUPERVISION: Victor O. Schipek
- TITLES: Iraj Paran
- MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Hoyt Curtin
- MUSIC SUPERVISION: Paul DeKorte
- CHARACTER DESIGN: Jerry Eisenberg, David High
- LAYOUT UNIT MANAGERS: Owen Fitzgerald, Bob Givins
- LAYOUT: Pete Alvarado, Roman Arambula, Jim Fletcher, Bob Foster, Cullen Houghtaling, Homer Jonas, Jack Manning, Floyd Norman
- UNIT DIRECTOR: Jerry Hathcock
- ANIMATION: Frank Andrina, Tom Barnes, Jack Foster, Hugh Fraser, John Garling, Frank Gonzales, Milt Gray, Robert Hathcock, Jr., Lawrence Huber, George Jorgenson, Margaret Parkes, Morey Reden, Mike Reyna, Veve Risto, Joanna Romersa, Ken Southworth, Rich Trueblood, Carlo Vinci, Bob Trochim
- BACKGROUND SUPERVISION: Fernando Montealegre
- BACKGROUND: Fernando Arce, Gino Giudice
- TECHNICAL SUPERVISION: Frank Paiker
- CHECKING AND SCENE PLANNING: Evelyn Sherwood
- INK AND PAINT SUPERVISION: Billie Kerns
- XEROGRAPHY: Robert "Tiger" West
- SOUND DIRECTION: Richard Olson, Bill Getty
- SUPERVISING FILM EDITOR: Larry Cowan
- MUSIC EDITOR: Chip Yaras
- SOUND EFFECTS EDITOR: Richard C. Allen
- NEGATIVE CONSULTANT: William E. DeBoer
- POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISION: Joed Eaton
- CAMERA: John Curtis Hall, Ron Jackson, Jerry Mills, Norman Stainback
- PRODUCTION MANAGER: Art Scott
- ASSISTANT PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jayne Barbera
- A HANNA-BARBERA PRODUCTION
- © 1974 Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc.
Other media
- Hi-Riser appeared in the Harvey Birdman, Attorney at LawHarvey Birdman, Attorney at LawHarvey 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 "SPF" voiced by Maurice LaMarcheMaurice LaMarcheMaurice LaMarche is an Emmy Award winning Canadian-American voice actor and former stand up comedian. He is best known for his voicework in Futurama as Kif Kroker, as Egon Spengler in The Real Ghostbusters, Verminous Skumm and Duke Nukem in Captain Planet and the Planeteers, Big Bob Pataki in Hey...
. He appeared as one of the many characters who were victims of cybersquatting. - Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch were referenced in the Psych episode "Zero to Murder in Sixty Seconds."
- This Cartoon Could Be the inspiration for the Realization of CarsCARSCars, or automobiles, motor cars, are wheeled motor vehicles used for transporting passengers.Cars or CARS may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Cars , a Disney/Pixar film series...
from PixarPixarPixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
External links
- Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch at the Big Cartoon DataBaseBig Cartoon DataBaseThe Big Cartoon DataBase is an online database of information about animated cartoons, animated feature films, animated television shows and cartoon shorts....
- Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch at Don Markstein's Toonopedia